As our enthusiasm for e-commerce grows and an ever larger number of packages are sent whizzing around the globe, delivering those packages safely into our hands is becoming a growing problem. Online shopping goes hand in hand with missed deliveries; a 2014 study put the number of online shoppers who have had problems getting hold of their purchases at 60 per cent. The practice of some delivery firms to pay couriers per parcel (rather than per day) has led to an increase in those very modern irritants: ever-shifting delivery windows, cards telling us that we must journey several kilometres to a depot and packages being left in bins or delivered to neighbours that don't exist. These kind of experiences make consumers furious, and blame tends to be deflected in an unsatisfying fashion between vendor and courier.
In recent days, rumours have surfaced that online retailer Amazon has been experimenting with technology that could give couriers one-off access to our car or even our home to deliver goods safely and without fuss. The reaction to this news has been less than universally positive, but demands on delivery networks have become so intense, and complaints over missed deliveries so numerous, that an opportunity has certainly arisen for an inventive new approach.
It would be unfair to say that nothing has been done to address customers’ concerns over the years. There was a time when companies would only ship to the address registered to our credit card, but the relaxation of that rule has allowed us to receive goods at work. Amazon has introduced its “Lockers” to certain countries – secure units positioned around town that offer a safe place to pick up goods – and also a “photo on delivery” service, which provides photographic proof that packages have been delivered safely. Other firms have manufactured remotely operable “smart mailboxes” that can be installed outside our homes to accept deliveries – but could our cars serve precisely the same purpose?
Phrame is the firm rumoured to be working with Amazon on this solution. Its product consists of a smart license plate, remotely unlockable and re-lockable, behind which can be found the keys to the vehicle. By giving you the ability to grant and revoke access to a third party, the delivery problem is solved – at least in theory.
"Phrame turns your car [boot] into your own personal mobile locker," says the blurb, going on to claim – rather debatably – that this is "the best thing to happen to your car since the wheel". But the idea of cars as lockers isn't new; it has been tested by various companies over the years, and the fact that trials have ceased rather than extended might point to a lack of enthusiasm on the part of the public.
At Mobile World Congress in 2014, Volvo, in partnership with Ericsson, demonstrated a "Roam Delivery" concept that offered one-off access for couriers and the ability to lock remotely; Amazon and Audi then teamed up with DHL in 2015 for a series of trials in the Munich area, but nothing more was heard about either scheme. Volvo claimed that 92 per cent of participants appreciated the convenience of the system they had devised, but nothing was mentioned about the far bigger issue of trust.
It is not inconceivable that the public might be prepared to place trust in a uniformed employee of a big delivery network, but the pressure on companies to get us our goods in a timely fashion has resulted in deliveries being undertaken in some countries by self-employed drivers from the likes of Uber and Lyft. The so-called "gig economy" might offer great efficiency, but we may not want to give our car keys to strangers whose credentials may not be easily checked and verified.
The prospect of letting couriers into our homes is an even thornier issue. Last summer, Amazon worked with a smart-lock company called August, investigating ways for couriers to leave packages in homes in Seattle, while Walmart teamed up with the same firm last month for trials in the Silicon Valley area of California. "This test will also include online grocery orders," the website TechCrunch reported, "which won't just be placed inside the house ... but will be put away in the fridge and freezer, when appropriate."
Because it already involves a mental leap to remotely grant a stranger access to our home, giving them permission to unpack our groceries and put them away will inevitably make people feel uneasy. "I don't trust anyone's screening process enough to give that person the keys to my house," one online commenter posted.
Innovations frequently force us to consider the offset between convenience and privacy, and this provides a vivid example. Given the choice between allowing a courier into our living room and having a delivery left in an insecure place, most of us would take the chances with the parcel. Phrame positions itself almost as a lifestyle product ("Our goal is to give you more freedom to do what you love"), but despite the safeguards that these products put in place, there may still be nagging doubts on the part of the end user.
It doesn’t help that smart locks have occasionally shown themselves to be flawed. They’re incredibly clever pieces of technology, and very appealing to early adopters who adore the concept of the connected home, but the humble metal key is brilliantly simple and difficult to improve upon; keys will never be rendered inoperable by an online software update and have no vulnerability to hacking. However keen we might be on speedy, convenient deliveries, it would seem to make sense not to have our car doors and front doors connected to the internet. But with each failed delivery costing the industry an estimated US$15 (Dh55), big online vendors seem quietly keen on persuading us that it is a good idea. How long might it take them to succeed?
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Read more:
Are delivery robots taking over your streets?
Payfort says online payments in the Middle East grew 22 per cent last year
Online retail is shifting from a desktop model to being mobile-first
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
HAJJAN
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Abu%20Bakr%20Shawky%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3EStarring%3A%20Omar%20Alatawi%2C%20Tulin%20Essam%2C%20Ibrahim%20Al-Hasawi%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Without Remorse
Directed by: Stefano Sollima
Starring: Michael B Jordan
4/5
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
TOP 5 DRIVERS 2019
1 Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 10 wins 387 points
2 Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, 4 wins, 314 points
3 Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 3 wins, 260 points
4 Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 2 wins, 249 points
5 Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari, 1 win, 230 points
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Top 5 concerns globally:
1. Unemployment
2. Spread of infectious diseases
3. Fiscal crises
4. Cyber attacks
5. Profound social instability
Top 5 concerns in the Mena region
1. Energy price shock
2. Fiscal crises
3. Spread of infectious diseases
4. Unmanageable inflation
5. Cyber attacks
Source: World Economic Foundation
Ipaf in numbers
Established: 2008
Prize money: $50,000 (Dh183,650) for winners and $10,000 for those on the shortlist.
Winning novels: 13
Shortlisted novels: 66
Longlisted novels: 111
Total number of novels submitted: 1,780
Novels translated internationally: 66
Company profile
Company name: Suraasa
Started: 2018
Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker
Based: India, UAE and the UK
Industry: EdTech
Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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The Outsider
Stephen King, Penguin
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
'Saand Ki Aankh'
Produced by: Reliance Entertainment with Chalk and Cheese Films
Director: Tushar Hiranandani
Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Bhumi Pednekar, Prakash Jha, Vineet Singh
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
TWISTERS
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos
Rating: 2.5/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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SQUADS
UAE
Mohammed Naveed (captain), Mohamed Usman (vice-captain), Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Imran Haider, Tahir Mughal, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed, Fahad Nawaz, Abdul Shakoor, Sultan Ahmed, CP Rizwan
Nepal
Paras Khadka (captain), Gyanendra Malla, Dipendra Singh Airee, Pradeep Airee, Binod Bhandari, Avinash Bohara, Sundeep Jora, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Rohit Paudel, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi, Basant Regmi, Pawan Sarraf, Bhim Sharki, Aarif Sheikh
Fifa%20World%20Cup%20Qatar%202022%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFirst%20match%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENovember%2020%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinal%2016%20round%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%203%20to%206%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EQuarter-finals%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%209%20and%2010%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESemi-finals%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%2013%20and%2014%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinal%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%2018%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
