Latest news with #BillBennett
Scoop
8 hours ago
- Business
- Scoop
Australian warship takes rural fixed wireless broadband offline
Article – Bill Bennett Australian warship disrupts wireless networks, Spark warns cloud adoption is stalling, Chorus updates its outage map, and 2degrees teams with Datacom. Plus: Freeview adds HD, and telcos react to proposed right-to-repair laws. Primo spots FWB outage as HMAS Canberra passes Taranaki Primo managing director Matthew Harrison says a visiting Australian warship took a number of his company's fixed wireless broadband access points offline as it passed down the Taranaki coast. In a LinkedIn post Harrison writes: 'This morning, an Australian warship took out many 5GHz wireless networks across parts of New Zealand. From around 2am, we started seeing our 5GHz APs drop off the Primo network – DFS hits firing off all down the coastal area of Taranaki as the ship's radar swept the area.' DFS or Dynamic Frequency Selection is a way 5GHz WiFi devices can increase their performance by using unlicensed frequencies. Military radar systems use the same frequencies and, as Harrison reveals, this can override civilian applications. Primo is a broadband provider servicing the Taranaki region. It operates fixed wireless broadband networks and has some fibre. 'We've never seen anything like it here before' Harrison says other wireless ISPs were affected. He says Inspire Net Limited in the Manawatū and TPNet NZ in Nelson also reported outages. He says this wasn't a mere blip: 'It was full-scale, military-grade radar triggering built-in safety protocols designed to protect airspace… and it rolled across our network in sync with the ship's movement.' The incident underlines the need for New Zealand Radio Spectrum Management to speed up the release of frequencies in the 6 GHz band. Spark says cloud adoption stalling thanks to security, skills concerns New Zealand cloud adoption may be surging ahead, but Spark warns businesses' ability to make best use of the technology often fails to keep up. Spark's State of Cloud 2025 report surveyed 400 IT decision makers. It found many organisations are not investing in the governance oversight and technical skills needed to make the most of cloud technology. The report found the majority (70 percent) of New Zealand businesses believe cloud is 'critical to their future strategy and growth'. Yet only a third (34 percent) have well-established processes and infrastructure in place. Spark makes a credible sales pitch for cloud services: 'Businesses that fail to prioritise cloud as part of their core strategy may struggle to keep pace with competitors who are already leveraging cloud for scalability, agility, cost optimisation, and are therefore more able to respond quickly to market demands and emerging trends.' It goes on to say that cloud is essential for AI and other emerging technologies. However, two thirds (67 percent) of those surveyed say their cloud infrastructure could be better leveraged. One in ten say their current cloud setup is inefficient and hinders business goals. Mark Beder, Spark's enterprise and government customer director, says there's a danger that organisations treat cloud as an IT issue. He says: 'New Zealand businesses risk being unable to scale innovation and realise ROI from advanced technologies. It's time to bring cloud into the boardroom and recognise it as the next competitive edge for businesses.' Chorus upgrades outage map Chorus says its Internet Outage map is now smarter and clearer after a series of upgrades. Dan Kelly, the company's general manager of access, says its an important tool to update customers: 'On the rare occasion there is an outage, we also know how important it is to customers to know we're aware of the fault and are working to fix it. Ensuring everyone can rely on their internet connections is our top priority.' The improvements include a clearer and more precise view of outage areas so customers can immediately see if they are affected. Customers can now dig deeper for more detailed outage information. This includes live status updates, an explanation of the issue and details on what's being done to fix it. There are also estimates of the time and date services will be restored. In normal times, maps get around 1000 views a day. Kelly says this rises fast when there is a major disruption. 'During Cyclone Gabrielle, the outage map saw a sharp increase in usage, with 43,583 views in just one week.' You can see the map for yourself at: 2degrees, Datacom pair to chase enterprise accounts Datacom managing director Justin Gray and 2degrees chief business officer Andrew Fairgray. A 'preferred supplier' partnership between 2degrees and Datacom will see the two companies formalise an arrangement previously used to offer enterprise and government customers a one-stop shop. Together they can offer an entire technology suite covering IT, networking, cloud, cybersecurity and mobile. For Datacom, the deal means being able to offer customers a more complete range of services. The company's managing director Justin Gray says mobile, a 2degrees speciality, is now a key part of contract discussions. Gray goes on to say the partnership opens the door to new opportunities: 'It's simple, but smart, and I am confident it will help us both win business… A preferred mobile and IT services partnership between Datacom and 2degrees represents the coming together of two organisations that share a mutual goal'. Freeview adds high-definition TV for satellite users Freeview says it now offers high-definition television on its satellite service. The company says this is possible because it has upgraded its satellite TV technology to DVB-S2, a second generation broadcast standard with more bandwidth. Broadcasters have to update their transmission systems to make use of HD. Freeview GM Leon Mead says TVNZ was the first to upgrade to HD. At the time of writing TVNZ 2 and Duke offer HD nationwide while TVNZ 1 offers HD in Northland and Auckland. Elsewhere it offers improved picture quality. In other news… Spark in line for $47m windfall from Hutchison takeover The NZ Herald's Chris Keall writes about a transaction in Australia which could reap Spark a much needed cash injection. However the story goes on to say Spark may be able to do better if it doesn't take the offer currently on the table. At Reseller News, Rob O'Neill dives deep into responses to the Green Party's right-to-repair legislation. While the idea is well-intentioned, it could have far-reaching effects and cause more problems than it solves. IDC has cut its forecast for worldwide phone shipment growth from 2.3 percent earlier this year to 0.6 percent, which is effectively a flat market. It puts the blame on economic headwinds and notes the continued uncertainty from the US over tariffs is not helping. The Download Weekly is supported by Chorus New Zealand. Australian warship takes rural fixed wireless broadband offline was first posted at
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Innovative Food Holdings, Inc. Announces 2025 Annual Meeting, and CEO Letter to Shareholders
BROADVIEW, Ill., May 13, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Innovative Food Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: IVFH) ('IVFH' or the 'Company'), a national seller of gourmet specialty foods to professional chefs, today announced the timing for the Company's 2025 annual meeting of shareholders and shared a letter from the Chief Executive Officer to the Company's shareholders. Annual Meeting of Shareholders The Company will be hosting its annual meeting of shareholders in person on May 28, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time at the Courtyard by Marriott, 114 West 40th St, New York, New York. Please reference the Company's Definitive Proxy Statement as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on May 5, 2025 for full details on the agenda for the meeting. This will be a great opportunity for investors to meet the Company's board of directors and management team. CEO Letter to Shareholders Included in the Company's Proxy Statement for its upcoming Annual Meeting of Shareholders is the following letter from the Company's Chief Executive Officer, Bill Bennett: May 5, 2025 Dear fellow stockholders, As we turn the page on 2024 and look ahead to the future, I want to begin by thanking you for your continued support and trust. Each year, I am reminded of just how important our shareholder community is to the success and evolution of Innovative Food Holdings, Inc. ('IVFH'). Thank you for your continued support and confidence during this year of significant transformation and growth. 2024 was a pivotal year. We moved beyond stabilization and into strategic execution, accelerating our progress across multiple fronts. When I joined IVFH, we laid out a clear roadmap to long-term value creation. That roadmap remains our north star: Phase 1: Stabilization – Restructure the business, strengthen the balance sheet, and improve gross margins. Phase 2: Lay the Foundation for Growth – Optimize operations, focus the business, and execute strategic acquisitions. Phase 3: Build and Scale – Expand markets, scale revenue, and activate a profitable flywheel. I'm proud to share that Phase 1 is now complete, and Phase 2 is well underway. The business is healthier, more focused, and more dynamic than it has been in years. Executing on Strategy Our 2024 achievements speak for themselves: We divested all non-core operations, including and eliminating distractions and financial drag. We improved our financial flexibility by selling our Florida headquarters and rightsizing our cost structure. We focused entirely on our core foodservice distribution business, which delivered organic revenue growth (excluding the impact of divestitures and acquisitions) of 44.3% in Q4 2024, most of which was driven by the new retail business we launched this year. We completed our first two acquisitions, the first in five years—Golden Organics and LoCo Foods—that are both profitable and synergistic. We launched a national retail distribution partnership, creating a new revenue stream with immediate and material scale. Despite a year of structural change, we grew revenue to $72.1 million—up 2.5% year-over-year. GAAP net income improved by $6.2 million to $2.5 million. These gains are especially meaningful given our continued investment in growth-related expenses in our new retail platform and integration costs from our recent acquisitions. Disciplined, Synergistic M&A We continue to evaluate acquisitions through four key lenses: Immediately accretive profitability Attractive valuation, before considering synergies Strategic fit Right-sized for integration Golden Organics and LoCo Foods were clear fits. Already, their integration has unlocked real value—lower logistics costs (down 60%), reduced driver hours (down 50%), and elimination of a $158,000 annual facility expense. There is significant work ahead as we focus on fully integrating the companies to our platform, and begin to prove their long-term flywheel effect, but the early progress demonstrates the speed at which we're moving. In 2025, our focus will remain squarely on integrating these acquisitions, building scalable systems, and strengthening the foundation. While we do not expect to pursue additional M&A this year, we are laying the groundwork for the next chapter in Phase 3. Founder Mode: A Renewed Focus on Digital Channels Our legacy drop ship business is an important part of our platform; however sales continued to decline year-over-year in 2024. To accelerate its rebound, I have taken direct ownership of the team and infused a renewed sense of urgency, with a focus on 1) accelerating catalog expansion through cutting-edge AI tools, 2) adding headcount in sales to deepen relationships at both the distributor and local market levels, and 3) integrating the catalogs from our new acquisitions to begin driving a flywheel effect. We are applying the same founder-like energy that helped this business succeed in its early days, and I am confident in the results to come. Momentum Across the Portfolio Beyond our core businesses, we are seeing strength in several additional channels: Artisan Specialty Foods: sustained double-digit growth Airline catering: sustained double-digit growth Amazon: triple-digit revenue growth Each of these verticals plays a role in our diversified growth strategy, and each contributes to a less concentrated, more balanced and resilient business. The Road Ahead We ended 2024 with clear momentum. We strengthened our focus, delivered profitable growth, and built the early pieces of a scalable platform. And we did it while remaining disciplined and aligned to our long-term vision. Looking forward, our priorities are clear: Drive profitable growth across foodservice and retail Successfully integrate Golden Organics and LoCo Foods Continue scaling operational excellence and technology enablement Position the company for Phase 3 acceleration We are building a stronger, more durable IVFH. Our long-term ambition—a $1 billion revenue company—is bold, but our roadmap is grounded in real progress. As part of this road ahead, three of our long-time board members are stepping down: Sam Klepfish, Hank Cohn, and Jefferson Gramm. We are incredibly grateful for their tremendous contributions to the company. Accordingly, we are shrinking the size of the board from eight members to five, with each of our remaining directors standing for re-election. I have full confidence in our remaining board members, who are all stockholders themselves, and who bring diverse expertise and a shared commitment to driving our company forward over the long term. Finally, I want to thank our employees, customers, board members, and you—our stockholders. We are grateful for your trust and excited about what we can achieve together. With deep appreciation and confidence in the future, Robert W. (Bill) BennettChief Executive OfficerInnovative Food Holdings About Innovative Food Holdings, Inc. At IVFH, we help make meals special. We provide access to foods that are hard to find, have a compelling story, or are on the forefront of food trends. Our gourmet foods marketplace connects the world's best artisan food makers with top professional chefs nationwide. We curate the assortment, experience, and tech enabled tools that help our professional chefs create unforgettable experiences for their guests. Additional information is available at Forward-Looking StatementsThis release contains certain forward-looking statements and information relating to the Company that are based on the current beliefs of the Company's management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Company. Such statements, including those related to the Company's growth plans, reflect the current views of the Company with respect to future events and are subject to certain assumptions, including those described in this release. Should one or more of these underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein, which include words such as 'should,' 'could,' 'will,' 'anticipate,' 'believe,' 'intend,' 'plan,' 'might,' 'potentially,' 'targeting,' 'expect,' or similar expressions. Additional factors that could also cause actual results to differ materially relate to current conditions and expected future developments, international crises, environmental and economic issues and other risk factors described in the Company's public filings. As a result, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results and that there are a number of risks, uncertainties and other important factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those expressed in these statements, including, among others: economic factors affecting consumer confidence and discretionary spending; cost inflation/deflation and commodity volatility; competition; reliance on third party suppliers and interruption of product supply or increases in product costs; changes in the Company's relationships with vendors and customers. The Company does not intend to update these forward-looking statements. For a detailed discussion of these risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or expressed in any forward-looking statements, see the section entitled 'Risk Factors' in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ('SEC'). Additional risks and uncertainties are discussed from time to time in current, quarterly and annual reports filed by the Company with the SEC, which are available on the SEC's website at Investor and Media contact:Gary SchubertChief Financial OfficerInnovative Food Holdings, in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
