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The Festival of Light had come and gone, and we certainly hope you enjoyed your Diwali with lights and bangs. But now that it’s over, many of us are already busy on the Web, trying to chalk out some never-before holiday plans. Before you finalise destinations and dates, here’s a look at the most mesmerising train journeys across an incredible India that will keep you spellbound even before you reach the vacation spot.<br />
<br /> Last month, we brought our readers a list of most <keyword id="1943444" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Scenic-train-rides">scenic train rides</keyword> through the mountains. And this time around, we take you on a <keyword id="6374782" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="journey">journey</keyword> through India’s heartland as the sweeping plains, emerald forests, golden deserts and hilly terrains chug past you at a relaxed pace. Whether you are travelling in 5-star cabins or a rickety carriage, nothing can beat the unique experience these rail rides offer to soak up the atmosphere, enjoy the views and be a part of the untravelled India you have never seen before.<br />
<br />
<b>Image: </b> Wikipedia

<b>Chugging Along: 9 Picturesque
Train Rides Into The Heartland Of India</b>

New Delhi, Mar 18 () Highlighting that there are as many as 417 deaths on Indian roads every day, global road safety body IRF on Wednesday demanded treating road accidents in India at par with coronavirus pandemic.<p> According to International Road Federation (IRF), road accidents in India contribute 12 per cent of the global accidents, which is no less than a pandemic and could be effectively checked and handled with government support.</p><p> The organisation welcomed Indian government's quick moves to prevent the spread of deadly coronavirus in the country by taking various measures but urged it to treat road accidents in the country on similar lines to prevent fatal accidents.</p><p> "IRF has urged the Indian government to treat road traffic accidents on similar lines as the prevention and treatment of coronavirus pandemic," it said in a statement.</p><p> "During the year 2018 about 1.51 lakh people died in 4.67 lakh road accidents in India with an average of 417 fatalities per day. But with few hundred cases of coronavirus being reported in the country, the entire central and state governments have woken up and taken preventable measures on war footing. IRF urges government to take similar steps to prevent fatal road accidents," said KK Kapila, President, Emeritus, IRF.</p><p> Kapila said most of the road accident deaths and injuries in the country are preventable by simple road safety solutions including wearing of helmets by two-wheeler drivers, promoting safer behaviour, proper marking of roads, reclaiming of sidewalks from encroachers, strict adherence to safety norms, and regular road safety audits to identify black spots and their addressal.</p><p> As per the data of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, about 72 per cent vehicles are two-wheelers in the country and 24 per cent are four-wheelers.</p> About 35 per cent of total road traffic deaths in the country are contributed by two-wheelers, 18 per cent by four-wheelers, 11 per cent by trucks and other heavy duty commercial vehicles and 10 per cent by vulnerable pedestrians.  NAM  DRR

IRF urges govt to treat road accidents in India on lines of coronavirus pandemic

<ul><li>Seven people from India are part of the jury of this year’s <keyword id="2188061" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Cannes-Lions-awards">Cannes Lions awards</keyword>.</li><li>Jury members hail from across the world and represent the global industry’s leading talent from the broadest spectrum of disciplines. The juries also comprise 51% of female jurors, up from 48% in 2019.</li></ul><keyword id="177378" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Cannes-Lions">Cannes Lions</keyword> has announced its jury line-up of global experts selected to award the world’s very best creative work and benchmark excellence this June. <br /><br />The Lion-winning work will be announced and awarded during Cannes Lions Live, a fully digital experience, running from 21-25 June 2021, that’s included for free as part of the new LIONS Membership, launching in May. <br /><br />Jury members hail from across the world and represent the global industry’s leading talent from the broadest spectrum of disciplines. The juries also comprise 51% of female jurors, up from 48% in 2019. <br /><br />This year, seven people from India are part of the jury of Cannes Lions awards, mentioned below:<br /><br /><table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;"></colgroup></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Category<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Jurors<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Direct Lions<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Santosh Padhi (Paddy), Chief Creative Officer &amp; Founder, Taproot Dentsu, India<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Entertainment Lions<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Ashima Avasthi Chaudhuri, Head - Content, Zee Studios, India<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Creative Effectiveness Lions<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Jitender Dabas, Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Operations Officer, McCann Worldgroup, India<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Glass: The Lion for Change<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Swati Bhattacharya, Chief Creative Officer, FCB, India<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Health and Wellness Lions<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Prateek Bhardwaj, Chief Creative Officer, Lowe Lintas, India<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Titanium Lions<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sonal Dabral, Writer, Director, Creative Consultant, Tribha, India<br /><br /></td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Pharma Lions<br /><br /></td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-right:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 2.25pt;border-top:solid #000000 2.25pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Parixit Bhattacharya, Managing Partner - Creative, TBWA\ India<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />This year’s Lions juries see the highest ever representation from global brands including: Nike Inc, Levi Strauss &amp; Co, Diageo, IKEA, Mars Incorporated, Mondelez, Beats by Dr Dre, Uber, KFC, Oatly, Squarespace, ByteDance K.K., Nestlé, and Aesop. <br /><br />Platforms and entertainment companies represented are: Twitter, Facebook, Netflix, YouTube, Disney+, Spotify, Google, Twitch, alongside NBCUniversal, Vivendi, Universal Music Group, Columbia Records, and Warner Music Central.<br /><br />Among the many global networks represented are jurors from McCann, Ogilvy, Publicis, BBDO, VMLY&amp;R and Dentsu who are joined by specialist and independent agencies such as Quiet Storm, Above &amp; Beyond, Stink Studios, Futerra and Tech and Soul. <br /><br />Simon Cook, Managing Director, LIONS, says: “It’s hugely exciting to welcome this formidable line-up of experts, who will unite across time zones and backgrounds, representing the full scale of our industry. Each year, our juries grow more diverse, which is part of our commitment to appoint outstanding talent from right across the breadth of our global community.”<br /><br />Philip Thomas, Chairman, LIONS, comments: “After pausing the awards last year, our juries will be awarding Lions across two years’ worth of work, which is an unprecedented opportunity to set the global creative benchmark for two years of outstanding creativity.”<br /><br />Thomas adds: “The awards will be the heartbeat of Cannes Lions Live with announcements, analysis, insights and interviews taking place throughout the week. We can’t wait to celebrate and immerse ourselves in Lion-winning creativity alongside our community in June.”<br /><br />Lions juries will take part in remote judging from their home locations worldwide. Speaking about the process, Susie Walker, VP Awards &amp; Insight, LIONS, explains: “Judging is a very human experience. It must also be a rigorous and robust process. Our unique judging platform, successfully trialled at other Lions awards this year, has been built to ensure the value and integrity of the Lion is upheld. We’re committed to delivering a world-class judging experience of the standard we’re known for, and crucially, we want every piece of creative work to be given the time and discussion it deserves.”<br />

Here are the 7 Indians who will be a part of Cannes Lions Jury this year

<ul><li>The Competition Commission of India is probing into MMT and <keyword id="2808667" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO">OYO</keyword>’s deal for an adverse effect on competition in the market. </li><li>There is a thin line indeed between businesses which want to share benefits and those who want to control the market. </li><li>With the Indian digital penetration, is it time to bring in a new era of competitive businesses in India?</li></ul><keyword id="54613" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="makemytrip">MakeMyTrip</keyword> and Oyo’s commercial agreement has brought a new problem at their doors – the Competition Commission of India. The <keyword id="47183" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="CCI">CCI</keyword> is now probing into their deal for a possible adverse effect on the market. <br /><br />The alleged dominance that they would enjoy is now under scanner. And prima facie, MakeMyTrip is identified as ‘dominant’ in the online travel market while OYO holds the same position in the hotels market. And the joint effect of their partnership could alter the way the market operates.<br /><br />“OYO has been prima facie found to be a significant player in the ‘market for franchising services for budget hotels in India’,” said the report. Both Oyo and MMT had begun their partnership in February 2018. In 2019 they renewed their partnership for five years.<br /><br />In an earlier conversation with Business Insider India, Deep Kalra, founder and chairman of MakeMyTrip, had said, “Oyo for us would be more a partner, because they are now on the supply side and the fastest growing hotel chain in the world. Like all other hotel chains, they also go direct, they aren’t selling other services. We have always seen competition in the market otherwise.”<br /><br />If CCI finds discrepancies, it could turn a precedent for several deals forged recently. Reliance Jio acquired music streaming app Saavn, which strengthened the latter’s position in the Indian market against competition like Gaana, Spotify and even the Airtel-backed Wink. <br /><br />As per an exclusive partnership, OnePlus phones come pre-installed with the Amazon app. There is a thin line indeed between businesses which want to share benefits and those who want to control the market. <br /><br />“There is a clear need of legal audit of all such agreements. Such partnerships should always and periodically be evaluated on the touchstone of AAEC. Unless the CCI establishes AAEC, it can’t bring a case against a party under section 3(4) of the Act,” said KK Sharma, Chairman, KK Sharma Law Offices &amp; ex-Director General and Head of Antitrust and Merger Divisions, CCI. <br /><br /><strong>We have a vertical relationship with MMT, says Oyo <br /></strong><br />The Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of India lodged a complaint against MMT and its acquired unit GoIbibo and Oyo Hotels and Homes. The complaint was against MMT-Go and Oyo’s alleged dominance in the market, predatory pricing. It also alleges that their commercial agreement has led to the presumable exclusion of other competitors on MMT’s platform.<br /><br />“Whether the commercial agreement between OYO and MMT entails preferential treatment to OYO and consequent exclusion of Treebo, Fab hotel and any other hotel chain and if so, the effect of the same on competition merits investigation,” the CCI order said. <br /><br />Oyo argued that it is not an online aggregator but a hotel chain which is listed on MMT and has a vertical relationship with the latter.<br /><br />“We will continue to cooperate with Hon’ble CCI’s investigation process as we review the complete order. We will actively engage with the Hon’ble Commission in this process,” said an OYO spokesperson.’<br /><br />The CCI further said that any restrictive agreement which may lead to refusal to deal with some players or exclusive arrangement with some players, may have potential adverse effect on competition.<br /><br />“The problem is not merely because of there being an exclusive partnership. It is because of conduct much beyond this,” said Sharma. <br /><br />He further explained that the Commission has asked DG to examine violation of Section 3(4) of the Act. It means CCI has to establish that such conduct exists and if it does, if it can have an adverse effect on the competition. <br /><br />“Only after the above are established, can it be said that there is a violation of the provisions of the Act; and further only after the above are done, can the onus of proof move to the person against whom allegations are made,” said Sharma.<br />

MakeMyTrip and Oyo are in trouble with the CCI, opening up a gray area for business partnerships in India

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul><li><strong>Motorola launched a new phone this week, the P30.</strong></li><li><strong>Promotional images make it look nearly identical to Apple's marketing for the iPhone X - all the way down to the wallpapers.&#xa0;</strong></li></ul><p>If you're in the market for a new Android phone, you can do worse than <a href="https://www.motorola.com.cn/motop30/overview/index.html">the Motorola P30</a>, a roughly $350 device with some quality parts, including a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip and 128GB of storage.</p><p>People might also mistake it for a device that costs three times as much: the $1,000 Apple iPhone X, which was launched last fall.&#xa0;</p><p>Photos of the new China-bound device were made official on Thursday, and not only do the phones share a lot of design details - a vertical camera, a "notch" on the front of the screen - the promotional images look nearly identical. Even the default wallpapers on the two devices are very similar.&#xa0;</p><p>There is one way to tell them apart, though: Motorola has a big logo on the front of the device.&#xa0;</p><p>Naturally, tech fans and enthusiasts immediately started roasting the Levovo-owned phonemaker for ripping off Apple's design:&#xa0;</p><p>Even the BBC got in on the mockery:</p><p>Decide for yourself. Here's an official image of the Motorola P30:</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>And here's Apple's iPhone X:&#xa0;</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>&#xa0;</p><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-9-fortnite-new-galaxy-unpacked-2018-8">Everything Samsung just announced - the Galaxy Note 9, Fortnite, and more</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div></hr>

People are roasting Motorola's new phone for looking like an exact copy of the iPhone X

(Eds: Combining related stories) <p> New Delhi, May 4 () As India's COVID-19 fight entered its third phase on Monday with considerable relaxations to the lockdown curbs, the government said a record high number of 1,074 patients recovered from the deadly virus infection in the last 24 hours but cautioned that the restrictions can be reimposed if there is any complacency in following the containment and social distancing norms.</p><p> While the nationwide tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases was seen nearing 44,000 with close to 1,400 having lost their lives so far, the number of recoveries also neared the 12,000-mark.</p><p> Kerala did not report a single new case for the second consecutive day, but neighbouring Tamil Nadu saw its tally rising by a record number of 527 new cases. Gujarat and Maharashtra also reported significant rise in their numbers.</p><p> While several big urban centres across the country continued to report rise in the number of cases, several smaller states and union territories -- including Goa, Puducherry, Andaman &amp; Nicobar Islands, Meghalaya, Assam, Aruranchal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Manipur, Mizoram, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Tripura -- have witnessed nil or very few cases getting detected in the last few days.</p><p> The Union Health Ministry said around 27.5 per cent people have recovered so far from the disease, but cautioned that there was no place for complacency and what was required was a collective effort to keep the spread under check.</p><p> At a press briefing on the COVID-19 situation, Health Ministry's Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said there is a need for rigorous implementation of the containment strategy while people also need to strictly adhere to hygiene as well as social distancing habits.</p><p> He said it has been observed that when social mobility is allowed during the fight against spread of infectious diseases, the transmission risk again arises and therefore it was important for everyone to follow the containment and social distancing norms.</p><p> Agarwal cautioned that if the virus spread is detected in areas that do not have any active cases for now, restrictions can be reimposed there.</p><p> "We are transitioning into a new normal and we need to be aware and vigilant... Everyone must strictly follow social distancing practices even outside the containment zones," he said.</p><p> In its 5 PM update, the Ministry said the COVID-19 death toll has risen to 1,389 and the total number of cases has climbed to 42,836, registering an increase of 83 deaths and a record jump of 2,573 cases in the last 24 hours. The number of active cases stood at 29,685, while 11,761 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, it said.</p><p> However, a  tally of numbers announced by different states and union territories till 6.30 PM put the total number of confirmed cases at 43,685 with at least 1,413 deaths.</p><p> To contain the coronavirus pandemic, which has cost more than 2.5 lives worldwide ever since its emergence in China last December, India had imposed a nationwide lockdown beginning March 25.</p><p> The first phase of the lockdown was for 21 days, but got extended by another 14 days till April 3, while the third phase has begun now for another two weeks but with considerable relaxations especially in relatively safer areas identified as 'green' and 'oranze zones'. The higher-risk areas have been identified as 'red' zones.</p><p> The government officials said the relaxations have been given in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's resolve for fighting COVID-19 while focussing on 'jaan bhi, jahaan bhi' (lives as well as livelihood).</p><p> At a video-conference of NAM leaders on Monday, Modi called for a new template of globalisation post COVID-19, saying humanity is facing a major crisis.</p><p> Several exerts and independent organisations have said the pandemic and the lockdown will have a huge economic cost. Rating agency ICRA on Monday estimated that the country's GDP might contract by as much as 20 per cent in the June quarter and is expected to overcome some lost ground in the remainder of the year but still close the fiscal year 2020-21 down by up to 2 per cent.</p><p> In the third phase, more categories of stores including of apparel and electrical goods, as also various kinds of repair centres, and even barber shops in some places, reopened in several parts of the country, liquor shops saw the biggest of the crowds and had to be closed at many places, including in the national capital, after social distancing norms appeared totally missing.</p><p> Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said whatever happened on Monday was not right and all have to follow the social distancing norms.</p><p> "It is sad that people were not following social distancing norms at some shops today. I request everyone to not take any risk," he said.</p><p> On the other hand, confusion prevailed in large industrial and business clusters across the country, including in Noida and Gurgaon on the outskirts of Delhi, on reopening of offices and industrial establishments due to lack of clarity on daily commute of their staff given continuing restrictions on major modes of the public transport.</p><p> Among big cities, Mumbai has reported the largest number of cases while several other major urban centres including Delhi, Ahmedabad, Indore and Chennai have also reported large numbers of cases.</p><p> From Mumbai's Dharavi slum, 42 more tested positive during the day to take its total tally to 632. Mumbai's overall tally crossed 9,100 with 510 more people testing positive on Monday.</p><p> Gujarat reported 376 new cases and 29 more deaths -- the highest for a day -- to take its total tally of confirmed cases to more than 5,800 and fatalities to 319. Ahmedabad alone reported 259 new cases and a record number of 26 deaths on Monday, taking its tally of confirmed cases to above 4,000 and the death toll to 234.</p><p> Several other states including Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha also reported a rising number of cases.</p><p> Amid reports that the peak of COVID-19 in India may happen in May-June period, the Health Ministry officials said the COVID-19 curve is relatively flat as of now and a collective effort may ensure that the peak does not come ever, but any failure in collectively containing the virus spread may result in spike in cases.</p><p> Officials also said the process of transporting stranded migrant labourers was being coordinated by states, though the central government guidelines have clearly stated that the infectious disease management requires everyone to stay where he or she is.</p><p> "Based on the request given from states for particular cases, permission was given to run special trains. Be it the government of India or the Railways, we have not talked about charging from workers. Eighty-five per cent of the transportation cost is borne by the Railways, while states have to bear 15 per cent of the cost," Agarwal told reporters.</p><p> Separately, the Union Home Ministry said the government will facilitate the return of Indians stranded abroad and the process will begin from May 7 in a phased manner. Only asymptomatic people would be allowed to travel and it would be arranged by aircraft and naval ships, and the facility will be available on a payment basis.</p> After their arrival in India, medical examinations will be conducted on everyone and they will be subsequently put under quarantine for 14 days, either in a hospital or in an institutional facility, the ministry said. UZM ASK AA VIT GVS PR NIT AMP BUN KA PD KK  BJBJ

COVID-19: Govt says daily recoveries up at record high, warns against complacency

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></p><p><a href="slack.co">Slack</a>, the chat app that's been the talk of the startup world for the last year thanks to its incredible growth, is in talks to raise another round of funding at a $2 billion valuation, according to <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-23/slack-is-said-to-be-in-funding-talks-at-2-billion-plus-value">a Bloomberg report</a>.</p><p>The report didn't say how much Slack is seeking to raise.</p><p>If the report is accurate, it would mean Slack's value has doubled in the last six months or so - the company raised $120 million in October led by Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers and Google Ventures, at the time raising at a $1.12 billion valuation.</p><p>Founder Stewart Butterfield, who had previously sold Flickr to Yahoo in 2005, has become something of a celebrity in Silicon Valley thanks in no small part to the company's explosive growth. In early February, the company celebrated its 1st birthday with the announcement that it adds <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/slack-growth-after-one-year-2015-2">$1 million in new contracts every 11 days</a>.  </p><p>Butterfield recently <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/slack-1-billion-valuation-2015-1">admitted</a> that the company's $1 billion+ valuation in its last round was somewhat arbitrary, since investors were lining up to put money into the company and he thought $1 billion was a nice "psychological threshold" for customers, employees, and the press. </p><p>The app itself is a chat room for the workplace, aimed at <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/use-slack-instead-of-email-2015-2">reducing the amount of email coworkers send</a> by making it super easy to have short and simple work conversations. Business Insider is a Slack customer, as are many other tech and media companies, with <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/slack-uses-consumer-design-to-invade-the-enterprise-2015-2">new customers signing on and getting started in droves</a>. There are over 500,000 users on Slack and growing. </p><p>And for what it's worth, that number could be even higher: Fortune's Dan Primack <a href="https://twitter.com/danprimack/status/580147274489171968">tweeted today</a> that he heard the number was closer to $2.5 billion.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/john-paul-dejoria-doesnt-use-email-2014-8">This Billionaire Proves You Don't Need Email To Manage An Empire</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="dqbGNlbzq44fHul0EFOPI7NqYvfwIVhl" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Slack is now worth $2 billion -&#160;it doubled its value in six months

The death of the unicorns: How the interest rate bubble might cause a new tech crash

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Everyone loves Slack.<p>Its incredible founding story, popular CEO, and beautiful app turned the $3.8 billion startup into a press golden boy over the past two years.</p><p>But the narrative is about to change.</p><p>In just the&#xa0;past week, Slack was&#xa0;hit pretty hard from all angles: <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2016/11/3/13504932/slack-microsoft-teams-letter-wtf">a potential marketing blunder</a>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/slack-cmo-bill-maciatis-steps-down-2016-11">a sudden executive departure</a>, and <a href="https://stratechery.com/2016/slack-and-the-macintosh-microsoft-teams-slacks-ad/">lagging product innovation</a> -&#xa0;not to mention <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-teams-vs-slack-2016-11">a new rival in Microsoft</a>.</p><p>Even in Silicon Valley's move-fast culture, Slack's meteoric rise has been nothing but impressive. And the press embraced it with sweet headlines so far.</p><p>But the recent developments show Slack's honeymoon period with the press may&#xa0;be coming to an end, as it faces higher&#xa0;expectations and increased scrutiny - stepping into the most difficult phase of Silicon Valley's "press cycle."</p><p>We've seen this story with almost every hotshot startup before. Facebook went through years of criticism before turning into a $330 billion goliath, while Uber's still trying to prove some people wrong about its whopping&#xa0;$62 billion valuation.<span> <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/cost-cutting-at-dropbox-and-silicon-valley-startups-2016-5">Dropbox is in a tougher spot</a></span>, but at least it's in a better situation than companies like Groupon and Zynga, who quickly faded into obscurity after failing to keep up&#xa0;their once beloved brand.</p><h2>'Silicon Valley Time'</h2><p>Perhaps the best explanation for <a href="https://backchannel.com/how-the-tech-press-forces-a-narrative-on-companies-it-covers-5f89fdb7793e#.nrks7z9fx">this can be found in a blog post by Aaron Zamost</a>, a former Google PR guy who's now leading Square's communications.</p><p>Zamost calls this press cycle a "predictable arc" that runs like a "clockwork," based on what he calls "Silicon Valley Time." Here's how he describes it:</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"A company's narrative moves like a clock: it starts at midnight, ticking off the hours. The tone and sentiment about how a business is doing move from positive (sunrise, midday) to negative (dusk, darkness). And often the story returns to midnight, rebirth and a new day."</p><p>In other words, every big-time&#xa0;startup gets hyped up from a shiny up-and-comer to the "greatest company in the world" phase, before hitting the wall and facing constant question marks that kick it into the ground. The truly great ones, however, overcome the "worst company in the world" moniker and circle back to everyone's favorite toy.</p><p>Last July, when Zamost wrote the post, Slack was put in the "Hottest company in the Valley" bucket. But based on what we're seeing now, Slack may be going from the "Greatest company in the world!" to the "Greatest company in the world?" category.</p><p>Of course that doesn't mean this is the start of the end for Slack. As Zamost points out, companies heading into the darker portion&#xa0;of Silicon Valley Time need to stay focused and levelheaded. And if the business fundamentals are strong, it'll eventually make a comeback and prove all the pundits wrong.</p><p>Will Slack be able to do it? At least judging by Butterfield's response to some of the articles,&#xa0;he seems undeterred by any of it, yet.</p><p><div></div></p><p>&#xa0;</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-unveils-solar-roof-solarcity-video-2016-10">Elon Musk just unveiled something that could revolutionize how you power your home </a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="ZtcHQzNzE6rJiNVeNBtErYRi4yljUmMb" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

$3.8 billion Slack is falling into a tough cycle every hot startup goes through

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div>Stewart Butterfield, co-founder of Flickr and CEO of office-communication software Slack, lashed out against <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-charleston-shooting-1434669812">a Wall Street Journal editorial</a> in a tweetstorm Sunday night.<p>The WSJ editorial in question addresses the recent killings of nine people at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, last week, <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-charleston-shooting-1434669812">saying that</a> the event was caused by a "problem that defies explanation."&#xa0;</p><p>President Obama had compared the shooting to the September 1963 bombing of a church in Birmingham, Alabama, that killed four young black girls.&#xa0;</p><p>But the <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-charleston-shooting-1434669812">WSJ editorial says</a> the comparison is inadequate: "<span>Today the system and philosophy of institutionalized racism identified by&#xa0;</span><span>Dr. King</span><span>&#xa0;no longer exists."&#xa0;</span></p><p><span>Butterfield spoke out against the column's logic and ended by directly insulting the WSJ editorial board, writing "<span></span><span>So, WSJ editorial board: f--- you!"</span></span></p><div><div></div></div><p class="embed-spacer"></p><div><div></div></div><div><div></div></div><div><div></div></div><div><div></div></div><p>&#xa0;</p><div><div></div></div><div><div></div></div><div><div></div></div><p class="embed-spacer"></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/gogoro-smartscooter-is-available-and-it-looks-incredible-2015-6">The 'Tesla of scooters' is finally available and it looks incredible</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="JrYjNydTomoXrRoIQe_bxbwlk4mNL1AL" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Slack CEO goes nuts over article about the South Carolina shooting, says 'f--- you' to WSJ

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>kk / Flickr</span></p><p class="caption">Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield</p></div><p></p></div></div>Slack is one of the hottest startups in Silicon Valley with an estimated value of $2.8 billion. Its business communication app is often called the fastest growing software of all time.</p><p>But Slack appears to have set itself apart from the rest of the industry in another important category: gender diversity.</p><p>According to <a href="http://slackhq.com/post/128721741660/inclusion-and-diversity-at-slack">its diversity report released on Wednesday</a>, 45% of all Slack managers are female, with 41% of the entire workforce having a woman as their manager. In non-engineering positions, 51% of the workforce turned out to be female. Out of the roughly 250 employees worldwide, 39% are reported to be female.</p><p>Those are pretty impressive figures, considering the fact that most of the big tech companies <a href="http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/diversity-in-tech/">have less than 30% female representation</a> in their workforce. </p><p><span>"While 45% of all people managers at Slack are women, it's noteworthy (and not shown above) that </span><strong>fully 41% of all people working at Slack have a woman as their manager</strong><span>. This means that 41% of our people report to a woman who helps set their priorities, measure their performance, mentor them in their work, and who make recommendations that will impact their compensation and career growth," Slack <a href="http://slackhq.com/post/128721741660/inclusion-and-diversity-at-slack">said in the report</a>.</span></p><p><span>In terms of racial diversity however, Slack's numbers were pretty much in-line with the rest of the industry, and heavily skewed towards white and Asian employees. Only around 10% of their workforce were African-American or of mixed race, while the portion of people who called themselves Hispanic/Latino was less than 1%. </span></p><p><span><span>"While 'Hispanic/Latino' was an option for respondents, responses totaled less than 1% - too small a percentage to report at this time. (It is possible that some people with Hispanic or Latino backgrounds elected to identify as multi-racial)," it said.</span></span></p><p><span><span>In order to make sure they're on top of this issue, Slack also shared these four guidelines they stick to when hiring people:</span></span></p><ol><li>Examining all decisions regarding hiring/recruiting, promotion, compensation, employee recognition and management structure to ensure that we are not inadvertently advantaging one group over another.</li><li>Working with expert advisors and employees to build fair and inclusive processes for employee retention, such as effective management education, company-wide unconscious bias training, ally skills coaching, and compensation review.</li><li>Helping to address the pipeline issue with financial contributions to organizations whose mission is to educate and equip underrepresented groups with relevant technical skills (like Hack the Hood and Grace Hopper), as well as supporting a variety of internship programs to broaden access to opportunity (like CODE2040). </li><li>Attempting to be conscious and deliberate in our decision-making and the principles and values by which we operate. Changing our industry starts by building a workplace that is welcoming to all so that a generation of role models, examples and mentors is created.</li></ol>

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Slack is now worth $2 billion - it doubled its value in six months