Electronics

By 2017, the global volume of discarded refrigerators, TVs, cellphones, computers, monitors and other electronic waste will weigh almost as much as 200 Empire State Buildings, a new report predicts.

The forecast, based on data gathered by United Nations organizations, governments, and nongovernment and science organizations in a partnership known as the "Solving the E-Waste Problem (StEP) Initiative," predicts e-waste generation will swell by a third in the next five years, led by the United States and China. The StEP Initiative created a map of the world's e-waste, which is available online.

MAGLITE recently announced that it will be entering the promotional/premiums and incentives industry as a direct supplier, as of January 1, 2014. The company will be handling these new markets through a new division called "MAGLITE PROMO DIRECT."

Marc Puglisi and Scott Kennis will be managing the new division. "Marc and Scott are a team with longstanding distinction and deep experience," said Anthony Maglica, company founder and owner. "With a combined record of accomplishment spanning 50 years, they are skilled relationship builders with a vast knowledge of the promotional products/premiums incentives industry. Marc and Scott have a long history with Mag Instrument and are well-known to many of our promotional products/premium incentive customers."

Promo Marketing's Video Battle pits two industry videos against each other for the chance at the ultimate bragging right: Being declared our readership's absolute favorite. This week it's the country versus the city in a showdown between Johnny Cash and OrigAudio's catchy rap anthem.

Based in Mobile, Ala., Crown Products revealed a new logo to ring in 2014.

Its icon now has a physical crown appearing at the end of the word "Crown," almost like a "speech bubble," with its motto "whatever it takes!" below.

Crown Products, Mobile, Ala., a supplier of writing instruments, business accessories, drinkware and more, announced that Kathleen Donlin is the new regional sales manager for the upper midwest territory, which covers Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Bloomberg Businessweek recently reported on a new apparel company animating T-shirts by cutting holes in the artwork, then placing smartphones or tablets behind the opening and configuring them so an animation would play. Is this a technology you could apply to your apparel marketing?

WOWLine, a  supplier based out of Long Island, has partnered with Innovative Technology to introduce the new WOWTech line of smartphone and tablet accessories for the promotional product marketplace.

"This partnership brings together the outstanding expertise in the design and manufacturing of innovative consumer electronics of Innovative Technology with WOWLine's exceptional printing, service and distribution capabilities in the promotional products industry," said Shawn Hood, director of marketing at WOWLine.

Coby Electronics' future in the promotional products industry--and in the consumer-electronics business--is uncertain. The Boston-based Gordon Brothers Group acquired Coby's assets in August, after Coby reportedly had two rounds of layoffs as it prepared to shut down by the end of the year. However, those plans seemed to have changed.

Pegatron Corp, a Taiwanese company that makes Apple Inc. products, is violating workers' rights at its Chinese factories in Shanghai and Suzhou, New York-based rights group China Labor Watch said in a report on Monday.

Pegatron, which assembles iPads and iPhones at its China factories, is forcing employees to work unpaid overtime in poor working and living conditions, among other violations of Chinese regulations, China Labor Watch said.
 
"The Pegatron factories are violating a great number of international and Chinese laws and standards as well as the standards of Apple's own social responsibility code of conduct," it said ...

Last week a young Australian woman was hospitalized after receiving a shock while using her iPhone, and earlier in July, two people in China were shocked while using plugged-in Apple devices, resulting in the death of one of the users. Counterfeit chargers may have been responsible for at least two of the incidents.