Democrats Abroad
No related posts. What is really going on in Iran? Professor Victoria Fontan will speak on the Iran situation, who the international players are and what you should know about their agendas at the DACR meeting on Saturday, May 26, from 9:30 a.m.-noon at the Holiday Inn (third floor) in downtown San José.A {5,000 ($10) contribution will be collected for coffee and the meeting room; reservations are required at cr.democratsabroad@yahoo.com, or call Nelleke at 2279-3553 or 8721-6497. Come and meet democrats; visit democratsabroad.org. U.S. citizens: Register to vote at votefromabroad.org. Facebook Comments
MiT National Land Services Recruits Leader for National Division In New York, national title insurance firm MiT National Land Services added Daniel Eckert to its team to run the company’s National Division.Eckert’s title career spans 25 years and has seen him working with clients ranging from real estate investment trusts to banks to large loan officers. Throughout his career, MiT says he’s earned a reputation as a leader in providing title and settlement-related services for clients.Working out of Chicago, he will spearhead MiT’s national expansion, actively integrating his clients into the company’s platform.In a statement, MiT president Marc Israel said Eckert was the natural choice for the job.”When we set out to find an executive to head up our National Division we made a Top Ten list of the skills and qualities we were looking for,” Israel said. “Incredibly, when we met Dan we were able to quickly tick off all 10 on our list and then a half dozen more. We are thrilled to have him on board and are looking forward to him helping us grow our national presence.”Eckert expressed similar thoughts about joining the firm.”Five minutes after I met Marc I knew I wanted to join MiT,” he said. “What they are doing both on a national level, and with their continuing education programs for attorneys, brokers, and the title insurance industry, made it a no brainer for me to jump on board and help grow the national division.” MiT National Land Services Movers & Shakers 2015-01-14 Tory Barringer January 14, 2015 494 Views 
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Derrick Hall satisfied with D-backs’ buying and selling Grace expects Greinke trade to have emotional impact Pierre signed with the Chicago Bears in May as a rookie free agent out of Miami. The 6-foot-5, 293-pound defensive lineman remained with the team until he was released on Aug. 30. In four seasons with the Hurricanes he appeared in 44 games, tallying 96 tackles, 2.5 sacks, nine tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.Byndom and Pierre will take the place of cornerback Leon McFadden, who was claimed by the New York Giants, and defensive end Lawrence Okoye, who was released by the Cardinals. Top Stories Comments Share The 5: Takeaways from the Coyotes’ introduction of Alex Meruelo Former Cardinals kicker Phil Dawson retires Carolina Panthers’ Carrington Byndom (37) arrives for practice during the NFL football team’s training camp in Spartanburg, S.C., Sunday, Aug. 2, 2015. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) The Arizona Cardinals announced Wednesday they signed cornerback Carrington Byndom and defensive tackle Olsen Pierre to their practice squad.The 6-foot, 180-pound Byndom entered the NFL with the Carolina Panthers last season as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Texas. He appeared in three regular season games as well as two playoff games, recording a tackle on special teams. In college, he played in 51 games, recording 189 tackles, five interceptions, two sacks and 29 passes defensed.
Paphos lifeguards are fraught with worry over the safety of swimmers and are demanding that the government step in to satisfy their demands and do more to protect tourism in the district.A spokesman for the Paphos Lifeguards’ Association told the Cyprus Mail that nothing has changed in the last month, since they appealed to the authorities to step in and help them.“Tourism is our main economy, why don’t the authorities protect that. They are making so much money and yet they don’t seem to care. Promises are made to us and yet nothing happens,” he said.Beaches are full to bursting with tourists and locals and lifeguards are desperate for extra staff and equipment, which they say they were promised by the government.The spokesman said that the jet ski used by lifeguards at Coral Bay beach – a blue-flag beach and one of the most popular spots on the island – is still broken and out of service.“The municipality of Peyia is blaming us for the jet ski not working, but it is not our fault and the public must know the truth. We have no-where to keep it and have to leave it in the water, but we clean it every day.”He said that the vehicle is heavy and that it must be easily accessible to lifeguards as they need to jump on it quickly to perform any necessary rescues.“We have requested keeping the jet ski at the small port of the Coral Beach hotel where boats are moored, but the municipality has forbidden us, we don’t know why,” he said. “They are not helping us and just give us excuses,” he added.Around four thousand people visit Coral Bay daily, the spokesman said, and the municipality is raking in around 10,000 euros a day in income from the hire of beach beds and umbrellas and the operation of two beach bars.The Paphos lifeguards said that they need eight lifeguards to safely cover Coral Bay, which is one kilometre long and very popular with both visitors and locals. There are currently three, and sometimes only two, he said.In June 2013, on only one day, two lifeguards at Coral Bay performed twenty-four rescues from drowning, due to huge waves and a strong current.“At Coral Bay alone in August, there have been ten or more very serious recues from drowning and a minimum of five hundred other incidents where lifeguards had to help people, such as, injuries, broken bones, lost children, jelly fish stings, heart attacks, people becoming unconscious and so on,” the spokesman said.Meanwhile, elsewhere in the district of Paphos, monthly numbers for August are around 22 rescues from drowning and in excess of 1,000 other incidents.In addition, he noted that the only rescue jet ski in the municipality of Geroskipou is also broken, and of the two in use at the beaches in the municipality of Paphos, only one is in working order.However, he said that Polis Chrysochou municipality has five jet skis in working order, and that Neo Chorio also has a much sought after jest ski rescue stretcher, which is used to safely transport injured swimmers safely to shore. They cost around two thousand euros each.“We should all have jet skis at designated and approved beaches and these stretchers too, they are imperative for us to do our job properly,” the spokesman said.He added that the lifeguard covering Potima Bay in Kissonerga in Paphos has expressed feelings of panic and stress at the huge responsibility of looking after swimmers at the stretch of beach on his own. Around five hundred to one thousand people are currently visiting the beach area there every day, he said.“The sea on Wednesday was very rough and dangerous, there are no plans from the authorities to provide a second lifeguard here, why not?”In addition, lifeguard towers need to be modernised, to bring them all into line with upgraded towers in Limassol which have windows, provide ample shade, electricity, water and, importantly, a telephone line for emergencies.“The authorities must hear us before it’s too late,” the spokesman warned. You May LikeDr. Marty ProPower Plus Supplement3 Dangerous Foods People Feed Their Dogs (Without Realizing It)Dr. Marty ProPower Plus SupplementUndoBon VoyagedCelebrity Mega Yachts That Are Out Of This World – Step AboardBon VoyagedUndoGundry MDHow To Make Your Dark Spots Fade (Effortless 2 Minute Routine)Gundry MDUndo Pensioner dies after crash on Paphos-Polis roadUndoTurkish Cypriot actions in Varosha ‘a clear violation’ of UN resolutions, Nicosia saysUndoRemand for pair in alleged property fraud (Updated)Undoby Taboolaby Taboola
Although it was shot at, authorities on Tuesday were carrying out tests to determine the exact cause of death of one of the few Griffon vultures on the island whose carcass was found at Zapalo beach in Episkopi, Limassol.Conservation group BirdLife Cyprus said an x-ray showed the presence of pellets but a necropsy was also underway to confirm whether it was a shooting that killed the bird or if it died of poisoning, the most frequent cause of death of vultures in Cyprus.BirdLife said preliminary tests showed the bird most probably died from the shooting but more tests were underway to check for evidence of poisoning.“This x-ray alone, however, paints a gloomy picture for the species,” BirdLife said. “Why was it even shot at? With only around 20 vultures left on the island, each death comes at a great cost for the species’ survival.”The bird, CAJ, was born in Crete in 2011 and brought to Cyprus the following year as part of the GYPAS project to boost the island’s dwindling population.BirdLife said measures were needed urgently to address the problem or risk losing the entire vulture population.Where there used to be at least 100 vultures in the 1960s, a population census in 2011 estimated there were only six to eight birds living in the wild in the south-west, according to www.gypas.org, the GYPAS project’s website.Numbers diminished in the past because vultures were hunted, killed by poison aimed at foxes and dogs, disturbed during breeding, or because of intensified farming methods.They were declared an endangered species in 2003 and protected by law, but with only one or two couples breeding every year, even if their little ones did survive, the Cypriot birds were still vulnerable to diseases from inbreeding, as well as climate change.You May LikeDr. Marty ProPower Plus Supplement3 Dangerous Foods People Feed Their Dogs (Without Realizing It)Dr. Marty ProPower Plus SupplementUndoYahoo SearchThese SUVs Are The Cream Of The Crop. Research Best Compact SUV CarYahoo SearchUndoPopularEverythingColorado Mom Adopted Two Children, Months Later She Learned Who They Really ArePopularEverythingUndo Concern over falling tourism numbersUndoTurkish Cypriot actions in Varosha ‘a clear violation’ of UN resolutions, Nicosia saysUndoOur View: Argaka mukhtar should not act as if he owns the beachUndoby Taboolaby Taboola
13Feb Jenkins welcomes local pastor to give invocation on House floor Categories: News Rep. Nancy Jenkins joins Speaker Jase Bolger, left, and Pastor Ken Nichols at the podium on the floor of the Michigan House of Representatives. Nichols, the pastor of Rollin Friends Church in Addison, was invited by Rep. Jenkins to give the invocation prior to the beginning of today’s legislative session.###
##### Categories: News 06Feb Rep. Jacobsen applies common-sense solutions to ‘Action Plan’ Tags: #SB State Representative Brad Jacobsen, R-Oxford, joined the House Republican caucus on Thursday for a Capitol news conference announcing House Republican Action Plan, a framework for implementing key policy initiatives during the 2015-2016 legislative session. Rep. Jacobsen was selected to help chart the course for the plan on the caucus’ Policy Development Workgroup.“Identifying budget priorities, streamlining government services, and removing unnecessary regulations on taxpayers are common-sense solutions that will foster real economic growth for our state,” said Jacobsen, following the news conference. “Michigan has a tremendous capacity to develop our resources and make vast technological advancements within our industrial and agricultural processes in order to create better opportunities for the people of Michigan.“We want to create more high-tech jobs, export more goods, and increase revenue.”Jacobsen is currently serving his third term as representative for House District 46. Jacobsen is looking forward to bringing positive change with his leadership as chair of House Communications and Technology Committee and chair of the Government Operations Committee.The GOP’s Action Plan for the new legislative session can be viewed at gophouse.org.
14Mar McCready bill allows township supervisors to perform marriages Bloomfield Township Supervisor speaks in support of legislationState Rep. Mike McCready of Bloomfield Hills, center, testifies today before the House Judiciary Committee with Bloomfield Township Supervisor Leo Savoie, left, and Judy Allen of the Michigan Townships AssociationState Rep. Mike McCready of Bloomfield Hills was joined today by Bloomfield Township Supervisor Leo Savoie to speak before the House Judiciary Committee in support of legislation McCready introduced to allow township supervisors to perform marriage ceremonies.“Over the years, I’ve had numerous people request for me to marry them and I have not been able to do that,” Savoie told members of the committee.Under current law, district court judges, district court magistrates, municipal judges, probate judges, federal judges and city mayors have the authority to solemnize a marriage. McCready’s legislation would add township supervisors to that list.“Mayors have been allowed to perform marriage ceremonies since 1972, and they hold similar positions in local government as township supervisors,” McCready said. “My legislation creates parity between the two positions.”Under the bill, township supervisors who perform marriages must collect a fee determined by the township board and deposit the funds into the township’s general fund. These requirements parallel the current requirements for mayors who solemnize marriages.House Bill 4272 remains under consideration by the House Judiciary Committee.### Categories: McCready News
Categories: News,Victory News 05Jul Rep. Victory: M-6 pavement reconstruction begins Saturday State Rep. Roger Victory today said the Michigan Department of Transportation will begin pavement replacement on a section of M-6 starting Saturday and continuing until November.Victory, of Hudsonville, said the project involves replacing four miles of pavement on M-6 from Interstate 196 to just east of Wilson Avenue. Access to eastbound M-6 from I-196 will be closed early Saturday morning, and traffic will be detoured to eastbound I-196 to U.S. 131. In preparation of the work, MDOT crews will set up single left-lane closures on eastbound and westbound I-196 about 1.5 miles before the M-6 interchange.“This might be an inconvenience this summer, but it will be well worth it in a safe and durable roadway for years to come,” Victory said. “This is part of the Legislature’s long-term commitment to improving our transportation system. In the budget just passed by the Legislature in June, we are investing a record amount of money into roads and bridges, so we can make travel safe for Michigan families and for commercial traffic as well.”MDOT officials say closure of the westbound M-6 lanes will take place in mid-August or early September. The on ramps to eastbound M-6 from Wilson Avenue will remain open for the time being.#####
19Jan House Judiciary chair urges oversight of universities’ legal expenditures Categories: News,Runestad News Budget amendment requires reporting on legal expenses of Michigan’s public institutions
State Rep. Jim Runestad, R-White Lake, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, today announced he has requested an amendment to the state budget requiring Michigan’s public universities and colleges to report their expenditures for legal fees to the Legislature.Runestad, who testified before the House Oversight Committee last October challenging the limits of universities’ operational autonomy, stated that the Legislature is ultimately responsible for oversight of public funds and should act to require reporting of their legal expenses. The budget amendment would require reporting to the Legislature of all lawsuits against public universities and colleges and the legal expenses paid in settlements, courts or for other legal services.“This reporting is necessary to protect Michigan citizens’ due process rights from large public institutions with significant resources,” stated Runestad. “Without legislative oversight, taxpayer-funded institutions can be restricting or violating the rights of students, staff, and faculty without knowing how many consider lawsuits each year.”Runestad stated that he initially requested this budget amendment last year as a means of acquiring information on the number of students, faculty and staff who pursue lawsuits on free speech rights violations on public campuses. However, the matter came to a head with the case of Larry Nassar, a former physician at Michigan State University, who was convicted of sexually assaulting women and girls over a period of years. Public funds may have been used for legal services to mitigate the universities’ liability.A bipartisan group of legislators have called for the resignation of the university’s president. Runestad agrees and added “New leadership alone will not end decades of corruption compounded by a resistance to adhere to the Open Meetings Act, the Freedom of Information Act and basic provisions of our Bill of Rights, federal and state constitutions.”Language requiring this reporting may be considered as part of the regular House budget process this year.#####
ShareTweetShareEmail0 Shares Participants of the Donald Sterling protest next to Staples Center, Los AngelesApril 30, 2014;TMZ Sports“Here’s the moral dilemma…you’re a charity and a really bad guy, a.k.a. Donald Sterling, has given you a ton of money. Do you now give it back?”That’s the question asked at celebrity website TMZ this week in the wake of the scandal over the L.A. Clippers owner’s taped comments. Those comments got him banned from pro basketball for life and earned him universal disdain.If that’s not a question nonprofit leaders have asked themselves and debated all over America since the robber barons practiced philanthropy over a hundred years ago, nothing is. The sad truth is that some of the financial support charities receive comes from individuals who are less than honorable in all aspects of their lives, or from wealth created in ways that many people might find offensive or which conflicts with the very values and missions of the charities being supported.TMZ canvassed some of the recipients of Sterling’s philanthropy. Some feel that it’s “dirty money,” while others say “a buck’s a buck.” Among the nonprofits surveyed:A Place Called Home (a program for high-risk teens): $100,000, doled out in $10,000 annual installments. The $30,000 it has received will be kept, but it is rejecting the balance.Temple of the Arts: keeping a $10,000 donation.Union Rescue Mission of Los Angeles: has been receiving $10,000 a year, and plans to keep it, telling TMZ, “We take money from all kinds of bad people all the time.”Goodwill Southern California: received a $100,000 donation, doled out over 10 years; received $20,000 so far, but is giving all the money back and not accepting the balance.American Diabetes Association: keeping Sterling’s $25,000 contribution, saying, “The sad reality is that without donations like Mr. Sterling’s, we can’t help the people that we do.”TMZ previously reported that Sterling pledged $3 million to UCLA for kidney research, giving $425,000 up front. The university is returning the up-front funding and refusing to accept the rest. L.A.’s Simon Wiesenthal Center’s Museum of Tolerance, posted a statement on its website that it was “shocked” and that “There is no place in America for such bigoted comments.” The center will take no further money from Sterling, but it’s keeping the $30,000 it has received, saying the money’s already been spent.—Larry KaplanShareTweetShareEmail0 Shares
Greek telco OTE is launching its own movie channels, one of which will offer films in HD.The company, which operates an IPTV and a DTH platform, will launch OTE Cinema 1 HD and OTE Cinema 2 HD on November 5.OTE Cinema 1 HD will offer recent blockbusters, including TV premieres, in HD. Each week, the channel will air back-to-back film franchises. OTE Cinema 2 will offer a mix of Hollywood blockbusters, and independent, European titles.Between them, the new channels will broadcast over 500 movies a year.OTE Cinema 1 HD and OTE Cinema 2 will be included in the Full OTE TV package for €19.90 per month.
Dutch cable operator Ziggo reported 46,000 internet net additions and 37,000 new All-in-1 bundle subscribers in the third quarter, its highest sequential growth in net adds since 2010. The firm said that All-in-1 bundle penetration now reaches 53.9% of its consumer customer base, while the 46,000 new internet sign-ups represented 2.5% quarter-on-quarter growth and 6.3% year-on-year growth.Revenues for digital pay TV were down 2.7% year-on-year. However,Ziggo said that a loss of pay-TV subscribers was partially offset by high growth of VoD transactions, which were up 43% year-on-year.“Even though this quarter was very successful in terms of growth of RGUs, we believe that for the foreseeable future the market will remain as competitive as we have seen in the last six quarters,” said CEO Bernard Dijkhuizen.For the quarter, revenue was up 2.9% year-on-year to €391.1 million. Organic revenue excluding set-top box sales and revenue from other sources was up 0.9%. Net profit was up 19.4% to €86.5 million, from €72.4 million in Q3 2012.
The Digital Transmission Licensing Administrator (DTLA) has approved content security specialist Nagra’s DRM solution for streaming premium content within the home network. Nagra’s MediaAccess Persistent Rights Management (PRM) DRM was approved for the retransmission of DTCP-IP protected content. Nagra said this will allow service providers to deploy home networking solutions that meet “the strictest security requirements.”Nagra MediaAccess PRM was previously approved by the DTLA for the storage of DTCP content, but Nagra said it now becomes the only pay-TV operator-controlled DRM that is also authorised for its retransmission.“This latest approval puts Nagra on a very short list of trusted and approved providers of home networking DRM technologies in the world and is another vote of confidence in our solution,” said Philippe Stransky, chief architect for Nagra.
Mediaset is expressing interest in deploying technology provider Motive Televisions Tablet TV technology, according to the company. Motive says it has agreed to provide Mediaset a demonstration of the Company’s Tablet TV technology for evaluation by Mediaset executive and commercial management regarding a launch in Italy.Motive’s tablet TV technology is designed to enable broadcast TV to be delivered via mobile devices.Mediaset has renewed its agreement with Motive for the latter to continue to provide support and other technology services for the maintenance and delivery of its headend solution, meaning that Motive’s Content Express platform will continue as part of the Mediaset Premium service for another year.“We are pleased to renew this support contract with Motive and look forward to evaluating Tablet TV. Motive has been a reliable and responsive technology partner for Mediaset,” said Eugenio Pettazzi, chief technology officer of Mediaset Premium.
Twitch, the Amazon-owned video platform for games enthusiasts, has launched a new category of video dedicated to ‘social eating’.Announcing the launch on the company blog, Twitch said that the content available on the service is inspired by community feedback and that eating broadcasts are already “very popular” in South Korea.The new category will allow Twitch users to stream footage of themselves both preparing and eating food and the eSports platform said that while it has been inspired by Korean broadcasters, it will be valuable to the wider community.“Social Eating is a new category that allows streamers to interact with their communities while eating a meal, whether it’s taking a break from gaming or having a pizza party with subscribers,” said Twitch product marketing director, Annie Berrones.“For viewers, Social Eating is another opportunity to chat with streamers they love – kind of like eating with your friends.”Twitch described social eating as “still very experimental” and said that user feedback will help determine how this type of content evolves. Twitch will also update its rules of conduct and FAQ for this category as its social eating community grows.
Supermedium, a new startup from members of the original Mozilla VR team, have launched a virtual reality browser for web VR content.The Supermedium VR browser was created by developers Diego Marcos and Kevin Ngo and technical artist Diego Goberna and is designed to let users experience VR without downloading large native apps.“We are establishing the web as a legitimate foundation for VR, and for immersive platforms going forward,” said the three founders in a blog post.“As there are a billion websites today, we are aiming for millions of VR sites in the future. And it starts with a browser.”At launch Supermedium will feature a few dozen curated VR sites, with more to be added on a weekly basis.“We witnessed first-hand how slow the web was to react to the rise of smartphones and app store ecosystems. We’re not going to let that happen again with VR,” said Ngo, Marcos and Goberna.At the same time the company said that it is now being backed by startup accelerator Y Combinator, after being included in its winter 2018 startup batch.
Online video encoding specialist Bitmovin has raised US$30 million in Series B funding, led by Highland Europe.Bitmovin said it will use the cash to expand its customer base by scaling its product research and development, field engineering and sales teams worldwide.Highland Europe led the round with participation from existing investors Atomico, Constanita New Business, Dawn Capital and YCombinator. The latest round brings total investment in Bitmovin to US$43 million.“Our mission is to provide the infrastructure layer for all video on the internet, a market that combines traditional media customers as well as Internet companies transforming into video companies,” said Stefan Lederer, CEO and co-founder at Bitmovin.“In our view, every internet company is going to be a video company in the future, which is a huge opportunity for Bitmovin to be an integral part of the internet infrastructure.”Fergal Mullen, partner at Highland Europe, said: “As the shift to streaming approaches a tipping-point and becomes the dominant format of consuming sports, news, movies and drama, Bitmovin is addressing an unprecedented market opportunity.”“With video now critical to all social media platforms, as well as many more internet companies and increasingly corporates and educators, Stefan and his team are set to shape the future of video technology.”
Axonista, SoftAtHome, Think Analytics, Netgem, Conviva, Cleeng and BT were among the winners at the TV Connect Awards in London last night.The awards ceremony, held at a venue near TV Connect’s new home at Olympia, where the show returned after several years at ExCeL London, honoured innovators across fields including AI, content personalisation OTT and immersive video experiences.“Year on year our awards programme attracts first class talent, solutions, and companies which truly embody entrepreneurial spirit,” said Jackson Szabo, show manager at TV Connect.“As an industry, we push for new technologies to drive the disruption of traditional content distribution models, platforms, and processes. This year’s TV Connect Awards winners capture this desire for change and we congratulate them, and the shortlist, for their success.”Among the categories of the TV Connect Awards 2018 is the People’s Choice Award which honours exceptional talent in the connected entertainment industry. Voted for by the public, this year’s winner is Claire McHugh, CEO and co-founder of Axonista.“Industry leaders deserve to be recognised for their dedication to shaping the video distribution landscape we know today, and we’re excited to give the People’s Choice Award 2018 to Claire McHugh for her pivotal role in helping power a new generation of interactive video and OTT experiences,” said Szabo.The full list of winners is as follows: Breakthrough advertising technology:WINNER: SoftAtHomeShortlist:Inside SecureAppiness NV (Commercial name Spott™)Stealth Micro Leading content discovery and personalisation platform:WINNER: Think AnalyticsShortlist:Sri Lanka Telecom Visioncom PVT LtdKaltura Most cutting-edge encoding solution:WINNER: CiscoShortlist:BitmovinBeamr Best OTT platform service:WINNER: Intertrust TechnologiesShortlist:United CloudSimplestreamBTVewdMagine Best in-class AI use case:WINNER: MetaliquidShortlist:BitmovinConvivaNPAW (NIce People At Work) People’s Choice Award:WINNER: Claire McHugh, CEO and co-founder of Axonista Best network optimisation implementation:WINNER: ConvivaShortlist:Hughes SystiqueZTE CorporationQarva Best multiscreen service:WINNER: BTShortlist:SimplestreamCSGGoMediaQarva Most innovative in-home device:WINNER: Netgem SoundboxShortlist:China Telecom Smart Home Operation Center & ZTE CorporationM7 GroupAirTies Wireless Networks Excellence in content protection award:WINNER: CleengShortlist:Intertrust Technologies Corporationtivù s.r.l.
Telecom Italia (TIM) said that its “content convergence strategy” contributed to a 6.5% quarter-on-quarter increase in IPTV service TIMVision’s fixed customer base in the three months to March.Telecom italia’s added a total of 314,000 retail fixed subscribers year-on-year, in addition to 319,000 wholesale fixed customers. TIM now has 3.8 million fixed retail and wholesale fixed customers in total.The company said that its premium position had been enhanced by further coverage improvements, new simplified and flexible offers, optimized acquisitions via a mix of channels – online, direct and stores – and a reinforced convergent proposition.TIM posted net group revenues of €4.7 billion for the quarter, up 2.7% on an organic basis, and EBITDA of €2 billion, up 1.8% excluding non-recurring charges. However, the company was hit by the €74.3 million fine levied on it by the Italian government for alleged infringement of the Golden Power rule whereby it should have notified the authorities earlier about Vivendi’s controlling interest. TIM is contesting this fine.The fine meant that EBITDA was under analysts’ expectations. EBITDA growth was also slowed by increased labour costs.Analysts at Jefferies said that the “robust domestic revenue trends suggest TIM is managing the return to 30-day billing more smoothly” than rivals Vodafone or Wind. The note refers to a fine levied by regulator AGCOM late last year that sanctioned Italian telcos for levying 28-day bills, which had been ruled to be overcharging customers.TIM has separately announced that Vivendi no longer exercises control or coordination of the company following the recent changes to the board after activist investor Elliott Advisors secured victory in the vote at the company’s shareholders meeting.