David Falor

Chart: Netflix Surpasses Major Cable Providers in the U.S. via Statista Statista
Chart: Netflix Surpasses Major Cable Providers in the U.S. via Statista

Netflix has, for the first time, surpassed cable in total subscribers according to Leichtman Research. US cable companies have 48.61 million subscribers while Netflix has just hit 50.85 million. The numbers don't count minor cable networks, which could in themselves amount to 5% of total cable customers.

For many this won't be a surprise. Let's be honest, with Netflix having doubled its subscriber base - adding 27 million subs - over the last five years there was always going to come a time when it beat other services.

And the good news for cable is that this isn't having a massively detrimental effect on their numbers either. While cable subs are down by 4 million in the same five years that Netflix has seen huge growth, that's not a massive drop off. It's also worth bearing in mind that cable TV makes up only 50% of total TV viewership in pay TV. That said, Q1 2017 shows a net loss in subscriptions while Q1 2016 saw cable grow a little.

Satellite TV is doing okay, with around 38 million subscribers. Dish Network added 318,000 customers in Q1 with Direct TV stalling with gains that didn't outpace customer loses. Satellite is still growing faster than cable though.

Faster still though are the internet-delivered services like Sling TV and Direct TV now which have added 350,000 in Q1. These services now have 1.7 million customers between them, and it's likely that this segment will

The Innovation Prize for Africa is an initiative of the African Innovation Foundation. AIF
The Innovation Prize for Africa is an initiative of the African Innovation Foundation.

While most tests in Africa for infectious diseases can take up to a week to get a result, Liberian doctor Dougbeh Christopher Nyan has invented a prototype that can rapidly detect for three to seven infections in just 10 to 40 minutes.

Nyan is one of 10 finalists in the prestigious Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA) announced today. The six-year old competition is an initiative of the Swiss-based African Innovation Foundation (AIF) which promotes innovation on the continent.

Nyan's test is part of the finalists who include clever ways to look to solve the problems faced by Africans. They include group buying for cheaper prices through an app in Cape Town, assessing the credit-worthiness of smallholder farmers in Kenya, a computer-aided diagnostic system that helps healthcare workers diagnose medical images more accurately, Voice recognition and speech synthesis software for African languages, a more sophisticated intravenous drip system, a test for tuberculosis (TB) using sweat, a cheaper way to get email in rural areas, and software to autonomous fly drones without a pilot.

IPA director Pauline Mujawamariya Koelbl told me: "Its goal is to strengthen African innovation ecosystems through supporting a culture of innovation and competitiveness, whilst spurring growth of innovative, market-driven African solutions to African challenges. I am delighted to see the diversity represented by this year’s nominees: more women (four) and more countries represented (nine) as well as the type of solutions being proposed."

The winner will be chosen at a ceremony in Accra, Ghana on July 18, where the total prize money of $185,000 will be awarded. Going into its sixth year, the competition allows entrants a great way to showcase their ideas. "It gives them a unique platform to showcase their innovations, position them as problem solvers with marketable solutions," says Mujawamariya Koelbl. "The IPA platform provides opportunities to attract needed investments and other support to move their innovations forward… [and] become role models for the younger generation and inspire them to take actions when they see challenges."

Adult male collared flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis). (Credit: Andrej Chudý / CC BY-SA 2.0) Andrej Chudý via a Creative Commons license
Adult male collared flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis). (Credit: Andrej Chudý / CC BY-SA 2.0)

Much of what we know about vocal learning and memory in people comes from our studies of songbirds. Each songbird species sings a distinctive song that functions as an acoustic signal for identifying species and maintaining species barriers.

In many species of songbirds, young birds learn their songs and acquire their song preferences by imprinting on the songs of nearby adult males. But some of the songs that nestlings are listening to are sung by other songbird species who also live nearby. Why don't nestlings imprint on the songs of other songbird species?

Coffee drinkers can always use one more reason to keep our habit humming, so how does preserving the function of a major organ sound? The organ is the all-important liver, filtration central for everything that goes into our bodies. And it seems coffee, and quite possibly tea, may protect the liver from prematurely hardening and scaring from the punishment we put it through.

Chronic liver disease is the twelfth leading cause of death worldwide, so anything we can do to preserve liver function is a good idea. The cumulative effect of eating truckloads of unhealthy food, popping meds and drinking alcohol puts enormous strain on the liver over time, and that results in stiffening and scaring. If that goes on long enough, the liver may eventually succumb to cirrhosis, the last road to the organ's ruin. Considering that the liver performs in the neighborhood of 500 vital functions (only the brain performs more), we owe it as much love as possible.

There’s been some evidence to suggest that the compounds in coffee and tea exert a protective effect on liver tissue, but results haven’t been conclusive. In the latest study, researchers wanted to run the numbers on a decent-size swath of coffee and tea drinkers to see what if any effect the beverages had on the health of their livers.

Negative reviews on an Internet review site such as Yelp, Trip Advisor or Healthgrades can quickly damage you or your business’ reputation. Even more problematic is when the review is defamatory, that is when the review is based on false statements of fact. While the reviewer’s opinions are protected speech under the First Amendment, false statements of fact are not protected. Under the law, there is a difference between when a reviewer claims that a restaurant’s soup tastes like gasoline and when the reviewer falsely claims that there was a mouse swimming in his soup. The former is a protected opinion (assuming that the reviewer actually tried the restaurant’s soup) and the latter is defamatory.

While negative and even false reviews can be frustrating, it is not always necessary to respond to each one. Before moving forward, an analysis should be conducted as to the importance and nature of the review, its potential to cause damage and whether a particular response could make things worse.

Send a Cease and Desist Letter. If the reviewer can be identified, sending a cease and desist letter can sometimes convince the reviewer to take down the post. Cease and desist letters are often necessary when privacy laws or other issues prevent a meaningful online response. These letters need to be drafted with the expectation that the recipient will post the letter on the Internet and mock the sender. In order to avoid appearing to be heavy handed or seen as a bully, the tone of the letter should be professional, the letter should acknowledge the reviewer’s free speech rights and an explain why the reviewer’s post exceed the bounds of protected speech.
Buy-off the Reviewer. If the negative review is extremely damaging or part of a reviewer’s ongoing effort to damage you or your business, it may be necessary to pay the reviewer to cease. Distasteful as this may be, sometimes it is the only solution short of a lawsuit, particularly where the review can be viewed as protected opinion making. Effectuating this option requires a formal settlement agreement with strict confidentiality provisions.

David Falor is well-known as Upscale Hotels and Resorts brand-builder, motivator, trend-spotter and problem-solver.
Take a look at the hospitality industry and you’ll soon discover that its people really are the heart and soul of the business. While other industries may claim the same thing, the hospitality industry truly does rely on the unique attributes of its people for success.
While the industry is still fairly conservative, the Internet has forced it to become more contemporary and innovative. David Falor represents one of the finest minds and leaders in the hospitality industry. The is an innovator and creative individual who has left his mark on the industry and will leave it better than he found it.
Areas of David Falor’ expertise: improving Hotels service & sales performance, revenue management, profitability & customer experience in the areas of Service Quality, Sales Performance, Leadership Communication and Team Development.

David Falor has been recognized as a top Luxury Hospitality producer receiving multiple leadership and sales awards and recognitions over the years.
David Falor, a veteran of over 40 years in the hospitality and restaurant industries, advisor to service-oriented hospitality organizations across North America, helps Hotel operators create organizations that can prosper in tough times and bring out their workers' innate ability to deliver exceptional service.

David Falor has been driven to change the way customers experience Luxury Hotels and Resorts. One of his main focuses has been reinventing the meeting experience, which has provided a solid revenue stream for the company for many years.
Most notably, he has created more intimate and informal non-traditional meeting spaces. Following extensive customer research, he is also credited with creating an environment that is more responsive to customer demands.