Irvine-based Netwin Solutions Inc. has introduced a software program to help publicly traded companies comply with new regulatory requirements regarding the origin of certain minerals in products.
The GTKonnect Conflict Minerals Module is billed to simplify the process of disclosure for tantalum, tin, tungsten and gold to ensure they didn’t originate from “conflict” countries, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where armed groups are engaged in mining operations and known to finance regional conflicts and subject workers to labor abuses.
The minerals are found in numerous products, from cellphones and laptop computers to watches, apparel, golf clubs and hearing aids. Thousands of companies will be affected by the ruling, which was part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act signed into law in July 2010.
The goal of the Securities and Exchange Commission Conflict Minerals Rule Filing, which takes effect this week, is to provide transparency in corporate disclosures and reduce funding for that type of criminal enterprise.
The software provides a template and questionnaire that’s sent to suppliers, who must fill out the information to ensure the minerals’ origins. That data is sent back to the public company and automatically categorized in a database, eliminating paper and email correspondence and aggregation, according to Netwin Senior Vice President Sri Ramadas.
“Automating all of this really helps to get through the report,” he said.
Netwin was founded in 2004 and employs more than 50 people in Irvine and has four offices in India.
The company has less than $10 million in revenue annually.
Its clients include Cypress-based Mitsubishi Motor North America Inc., and Boeing Co., Mattel Inc. and Volkswagen of America Inc.
Second Livestock
Virtual reality for chickens?
That’s one of the latest potential applications for the Oculus Rift, the virtual-reality headset created by Irvine startup Oculus VR Inc., which is set to be acquired by Facebook Inc. for $2 billion.
The possibility was posed by Iowa State University assistant professor Austin Stewart, who wants to create a “free-range” utopia for chickens. Under the Second Livestock project—a take on the Second Life virtual world—chickens raised in cages would be placed on omni-directional treadmills in mini silos and don virtual reality headsets that display 3-D worlds that mimic a free-range existence.
The aim is to raise chickens more humanely and to protect actual free-range chickens from predators.
New applications for the Rift are being developed weekly by designers around the world, and this column will try to keep you updated on the latest advances.
Chuck E. Cheese’s will become one of the first entertainment venues to make the device available, with plans to offer it at 29 locations. San Diego, Dallas and Orlando will be among the first to roll out the Virtual Ticket Blaster Experience, where players attempt to snag virtual tickets blown around them in a simulation of money booths typically found at race tracks, bowling alleys and other venues.
Marriage Made in Heaven?
A recent report by Variety points to an imminent marriage between twitch.tv, a popular streaming video gaming channel, and YouTube, which is owned by Google Inc.
YouTube would acquire Twitch for more than $1 billion in a cash deal, according to the report. San Francisco-based twitch.tv, which attracts some 45 million monthly visitors, has helped Blizzard Entertainment Inc. amass one of the most loyal followings in the industry. The Irvine-based company’s new free-to-play card game, Hearthstone, has attracted more than 10 million users since its March release, a number buoyed by Twitch streamers.
