India Globalization Capital, Inc. (NYSE MKT: IGC) has set a long-term goal for itself in the U.S. of becoming a leading provider of cannabis-based pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products. This is a transition away from its earlier short-term strategy, including the sale of electronics and development of a hotel site in Malaysia. To this end, the company has jettisoned its electronics business. IGC is now fully focused on building a portfolio of patents and starting clinical and pre-clinical trials for a series of pain-reducing and other cannabis-based therapies. These therapies are designed to treat neuropathic pain, seizures, Parkinson’s, anorexia/cachexia, Alzheimer’s, and PTSD.

Ram Mukunda, CEO of the company, indicated that IGC’s 2017 goals are focused on its progression toward commencement of clinical trials for these combination therapies. The Journal of Pain, in September 2012, reported that between $560 billion and $635 billion is spent annually in the U.S. for pain management, making it a significant part of the American health care system. In response, IGC has developed a series of drugs for pain and other disorders, including IGC-501 for neuropathic pain, IGC-502 for the treatment of seizures, and IGC-504 and IGC-506 for eating disorders and cachexia.

The company recently filed for issuance of a provisional patent for IGC-506, a combination of cannabis-based extracts and other compounds. It should be noted that a provisional patent does not assure the issuance of a patent in the future.

Mukunda explained that IGC is starting a review of international medical sites as the company seeks preclinical and clinical trials of its patent portfolio. He described the marketplace that IGC is entering as large, indicating that trials, patents and seeking approval from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration is seen as cost-effective.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.IGCinc.us

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Using mobile devices to make purchases is becoming commonplace. An estimated $37 billion in mobile transactions occurred in 2015, and that total is expected to explode to over $800 billion by 2019. User payments with mobile devices are expected to exceed 70 percent this year. Like the mobile phones and devices themselves, mobile transactions and payments will soon be ubiquitous.

First conceptualized in the 1990s, paying for transactions with mobile devices has now taken off as a convenient and beneficial option for both consumers and merchants. Consumers find it easier to ditch credit cards all together and rely solely on their phones for payments. Mobile point-of-sale transactions give merchants the ability to integrate loyalty and incentive programs into mobile payment applications, track customer trends and inventory, increase check-out speed and save money on credit card fees.

Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE) has been at the vanguard of facilitating this mobile point-of-sale boom, providing speed, security, accuracy, value-add, and the convenience of mobile transactions. Net Element owns and operates a global mobile payments and transactional processing provider, TOT Group. TOT Group companies include Aptito, Digital Provider, Restoactive, PayOnline and Unified Payments, which was named the fastest-growing private company in America in 2012 by Inc. Magazine.

Through its wholly-owned group of companies, Net Element prides itself on delivering tailored turnkey solutions that fit each merchant’s specific needs. The company’s online and offline payment capabilities allow merchants to transact business anywhere, any way, and at any time. Simultaneously, Net Element’s mobile payments and value-added transactional platforms deliver speed and convenience to mobile customers, giving them the ability to make purchases with just a few clicks on their mobile devices, and provide an alternative to cash payments.

Net Element delivers solutions for the complex web interactions triggered by each mobile point-of-sale transaction.

For more information, visit www.NetElement.com

Alternative Lodging Rentals (ALRs) have taken over as a hot topic in the world of tourism. ALR offers customers a more flexible approach to vacations. Depending upon the location, travel consumers can often find larger accommodations for less money, with more facilities such as kitchens, outdoor spaces, and multiple bedrooms and bathrooms throughout the rented space.

Despite different types of travelers looking for different features in their vacation rentals, a recent survey in Tripping.com found that nearly all travelers like to have the same basic things (http://dtn.fm/7Ce50). Although many of those surveyed highlighted the need for a kitchen, good value for their money, a decent level of privacy, and a lot of space, the need for on-site technology was not far behind. Many people like to stay plugged in while away, and this is not limited to just the internet. While Wi-Fi is a major factor, cable and HDTV also came in high on the list of ALR requirements. Also, more than a quarter of those surveyed said they look for smart features when booking an ALR, including smart security systems, smart entry, and smart electronics such as TV.

However, the modern traveler’s tech needs go beyond the accommodation itself. It starts on the booking platform. We live in a world where customers have been given the technology to place orders and book experiences with the click of a button. According to Jen O’Neil from Tripping.com, “Recent trends show that travelers of all ages are gravitating toward the instant booking model, so we expect that the vast majority of properties will be booked instantly within the next few years.”

Unfortunately, booking ALR properties has not traditionally been that easy. Often, customers have to submit a request to the landlord or property manager, discuss their needs, apply to book the property, and wait for approval. Luckily, Monaker Group, Inc. (OTCQB: MKGI) recently announced that it will soon be launching a real-time booking system whereby customers can book their ALR accommodations and get instant confirmation, just as with air travel or hotels.

In addition, Monaker, through its flagship NextTrip.com, will be giving business and vacation travelers the chance to not only book ALR, but all other travel bookings, such as flights, tours, car rentals, and more. This new system will be the first of its kind, becoming the one-stop travel shop for all consumer needs.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.MonakerGroup.com

Moxian, Inc. (NASDAQ: MOXC) is poised to generate sales of greater than $62 million and a gross profit of more than $39 million in FY 2020, according to the SeeThruEquity research report on the company (http://nnw.fm/T6Aj4). Moxian is a China-based high-technology marketing company which has offered a beta no-charge platform in China’s large online-to-offline (O2O) market, a marketplace anticipated to grow to $48 billion in 1H2017, according to Moxian investor materials.

In the O2O market, online consumers are attracted to brick and mortar stores through various incentives. Moxian is expected to launch its paid Moxian+ platform this year. To the 75 million small- and medium-sized businesses in China, Moxian will offer its premium services for a fee. Services on its Moxian+ Business App would include access to analytics, hosting of online shops, targeted marketing, and the ability to host social sites with consumers. In its analysis of Moxian, SeeThruEquity reported that the company could achieve, in FY 2020, an estimated margin of almost 64% and a gross profit of $39.9 million on revenues of $62.5 million.

According to a 2015 study by China’s Ministry of Industry and Technology, China is the world’s largest mobile telephone marketplace, with 1.3 billion mobile users. Moxian will also offer its Moxian+ User App to individual consumers.

Paid premium subscriptions are key to Moxian’s future. The annual fees the company receives from each premium subscription ranges from $1,200-$2,000 annually. Additionally, Moxian would receive fees from every transaction and mobile advertisements, plus OEM and retail distribution license fees. SeeThruEquity has set a price of $4.50 per share for Moxian, based on the size of the O2O marketplace in China and Moxian’s aggressive plans for expansion. The company is currently based in Shenzhen, China, but is expanding into other metropolitan markets, such as Shanghai and Guangzhou.

SeeThruEquity noted that Moxian was uplisted to the Nasdaq Capital Market last year, after raising, in November 2016, some $8.5 million net in a public equity offering. However, the report noted that the company would require access to additional capital funding to finance its plans to expand and add more sales staff to sell the paid app. The company has plans to expand its sales staff to some 100 persons by the end of 2017.

For more information, refer to www.Moxian.com

The human body is elegantly designed to heal itself, utilizing the immune system as its defense against various pathogens. Triggered by immune response signals, the immune system attacks and kills organisms and substances that invade body systems and cause disease. However, the immune system sometimes needs help in identifying and killing some invaders.

Cancer presents a complex and perplexing problem for effective immune system response, because it finds ways to hide from the immune system or block the immune system’s ability to battle against the disease. An important part of the immune system is its ability to differentiate between normal cells in the body and invaders. This differentiation allows the immune system to attack the invading cells while leaving normal cells alone. To achieve this, the immune system uses molecules on certain immune cells that need to be activated or inactivated to trigger an immune response. However, cancer cells can sometimes use these checkpoints to deceive the immune system and avoid being attacked. Newly developed drugs, known as checkpoint inhibitors, have shown some success in cancer treatments. However, a combination of checkpoint inhibitors and specific T cell-stimulating therapeutic vaccines indicates a much higher degree of efficacy.

Heat Biologics (NASDAQ: HTBX) is at the vanguard of this shift in cancer treatments, developing novel therapeutic vaccines to activate the immune system against a wide range of cancers. When antigens enter the body, they stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies in response to these foreign substances. Heat Biologics exploits this natural process to elicit a powerful immune response against the disease target. The company’s therapeutic vaccines are based on heat shock protein gp-96, a protein that activates the immune system when cells die. This protein is attached to the cell by what’s called a KDEL leash. Heat Biologic’s vaccines remove this leash and cause cells to continuously secrete gp96 and its chaperoned antigens to activate the immune system.

Heat Biologics recently announced the latest results of its ongoing phase 2 clinical trial in combination with Bristol-Myers Squibb’s checkpoint inhibitor. Researchers reported a strong correlation between T cell activation, tumor reductions, and increased overall survival in the patients evaluated. Patients with a sustained immune response also exhibited substantial tumor reductions. It appears the combination of Heat Biologics’ vaccine and checkpoint inhibitors may become an attractive therapeutic approach treating cancers.

For more information, please visit www.HeatBio.com

Today, customers have a lot more choice when it comes to booking accommodation for a holiday. Gone are the days when holidaymakers and travelers had no option but to book hotels for their vacations. Now, they can choose from a variety of short- and long-term house rentals, vacation homes, resorts, timeshares, and other Alternative Lodging Rentals (ALR).

Hotel companies are changing their services to suit the needs of a new generation, but, although traditional lodging has not been forgotten, it is starting to face serious competition from ALR. In fact, according to a survey undertaken by OAG published on Tnooz.com (http://dtn.fm/R5Bv6), of the 2,500 travelers questioned, two-thirds being leisure travelers with the rest taking trips for work, more than 50% would like to see accommodations from Airbnb, a major online ALR marketplace, in travel agency search results. Not only this, the majority of these people also stated that they would book such accommodations on an online travel agency if they could. But ALR options still have little or no representation in the mainstream travel industry, especially if the traveler wants instant confirmation of ALR bookings. Whether booking ALR properties through Airbnb or other services, people seeking such non-traditional accommodations still face the time-consuming hassle of waiting for the ALR property owner/manager to respond, unlike with airline or hotel bookings.

In addition, from a business travel point of view, companies seem to still be slow on the uptake. Out of the one-third of those taking trips for business, less than 5% said that their company offers Airbnb as a lodging option. However, a third of those people said they would take advantage of such lodgings if they could.

As a result of this need for integrating ALR into mainstream travel marketing, Monaker Group, Inc. (OTCQB: MKGI), a technology-driven travel company, has been developing and will soon be launching the first real-time system for booking ALR, such as vacation homes and unused timeshares, among others, on its NextTrip.com website and mobile application.

Currently, customers wanting to book alternative lodging are having to contact property owners, wait for responses, and wait for confirmation from the potential host. As a result, ALR has been one of Monaker’s key focal points, and the company believes there is a large gap in the market due to the fact that these accommodation options are currently offered separately to other alternatives such as hotels. The convenience of instant booking confirmations and the ability to perform all travel planning and booking from one site represent a major shift in the travel industry, and Monaker aims to be the company to offer it.

For more information, visit www.MonakerGroup.com

HIV, a virus that attacks the immune system to the point of destroying it if not treated correctly, remains a global epidemic. According to Healthline (http://nnw.fm/i9ptS), more than 34 million people have died from the disease since it was first discovered in 1981. Currently, there is no confirmed cure for HIV, but getting treated is extremely important for those wanting to live a normal life once diagnosed.

Although anyone infected with the virus should begin antiretroviral treatment as soon as possible, no matter what ethnicity, age, or gender, the fact is that more than half of those infected with HIV are not currently receiving treatment, often because access to treatment is unavailable.

Treatment is important to stop the virus from spreading further. It has now been proven that HIV medication can reduce the chances of transmission to an HIV-negative partner by 96%. Not only this, the medication can also reduce chances of transmission to unborn children by 90%. The medication now developed is the best chance a person has for fighting HIV, and although there is no cure, many are able to live normal lives with the virus.

HIV treatments have evolved significantly over the years. Currently, the antiretroviral drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are distinguished into four classes: Reverse Transcriptase (RT) inhibitors, Protease Inhibitors (PIs), entry or fusion inhibitors, and integrase inhibitors. To avoid the mutation of HIV cells and the resistance to single therapies, many doctors prescribe multidrug combination therapy.

CytoDyn Inc. (OTCQB: CYDY), a company committed to enhancing the lives of people with HIV, has been focusing its efforts on developing new therapies that provide flexibility and freedom to those living with the virus.

Its lead product, PRO 140, belongs to a new class of HIV therapeutics that is expected to protect healthy cells from the infection. The drug is different from many other therapies as it is not a synthetic drug and therefore has no visible issues with toxicity and side effects. In addition to the above, the studies undertaken on PRO 140 show that it does not induce the development of resistant viruses.

PRO 140 is currently one of the most advanced experimental monoclonal antibodies for HIV treatment, and CYDY believes that it will be beneficial to patients with complicating issues, such as those with single or multi-drug resistant viruses or those who have difficulty sticking to a daily drug regimen, as well as those who can’t tolerate the current therapies available due to side effects and toxicity or those with compromised organ function or complex medical requirements.

PRO 140 is currently undergoing two concurrent Phase 3 clinical trials.

For more information, visit www.CytoDyn.com

ChineseInvestors.com, Inc. (OTCQB: CIIX) is planning to open a retail store in San Gabriel, California, the same city in which the company is headquartered. The company also recently announced its new online cannabidiol (CBD) oil retail store would be operated by its newly-launched XiBiDi Biotechnology Co., Ltd subsidiary, which is headquartered in the Pudong Free-Trade Area of Shanghai, China.

XiBiDi Biotechnology will focus on the online and offline sales of health products, including a range of hemp-derived food and beverages. In a news release, Warren Wang, founder and CEO of CIIX, said he was delighted with the registration and establishment of CIIX’s new hemp company. The registration is expected to be finalized by the end of March 2017.

“XiBiDi is strategically located in the Pudong Free-Trade Area of Shanghai, China, where we have the opportunity to reach a consumer base of nearly 1.4 million people,” Wang said. “We believe that this large population affords XiBiDi an outstanding opportunity to be the provider of choice for natural hemp products.”

CIIX previously opened the world’s first online CBD product store in the Chinese language, www.ChineseCBDoil.com, in the Industrial Building of Shanghai. It will sell CBD products, which are non-toxic and non-addictive. CBD is extracted from cannabis in the form of a natural concentrate. It is thought to have value in treating epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, and cirrhosis of the liver, as well as in easing the impact of the neurodegenerative disease ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

“CIIX is very excited to be the world’s first U.S. publicly traded company promoting hemp-based CBD health products and hemp foods that will help Chinese people improve their overall health,” noted Wang.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ChineseInvestors.com

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Data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) show that the unemployment rate (http://dtn.fm/U7mmN) in February 2017 was 4.7%, around the lowest it has been since the financial crisis. The Bureau is also projecting a benign environment in the coming years for the skilled trades, but those blue-collar jobs of the future won’t be quite the same as the ones held by our fathers and uncles. To get and keep them will require training, the kind offered by Houston, Texas-based educational technology company ProBility Media Corp. (OTCQB: PBYA), which is out to develop the first full service training and career advancement brand for technical vocations and trades.

For the foreseeable future, the need for electricians, plumbers and HVAC (heating, ventilation & air-conditioning) technicians will remain, according to BLS statistics (http://dtn.fm/FD4Cv), and employment in these skilled trades will continue to grow. In the decade to 2024, we will need about 29 percent more electricians than we have now. About half of this demand will be driven by population growth; the rest will result from the places left by retirees.

The job markets for plumbers and HVAC tradesmen present similar prospects. The U.S. will need about 25 percent more plumbers and around 29 percent more HVAC tradesmen than it now has.

But nobody wants a plumber that leaves a leaky pipe, which is where ProBility and its suite of educational products come in. ProBility has positioned itself as a key industrial training resource for individuals, small- and medium-size businesses and enterprise customers, offering consistent, high-quality training services and materials for education, testing, and career advancement.

ProBility is the only company building the full spectrum of career training, advancement and compliance tools for tradesmen and technical experts in a wide variety of over 60 skilled professions. ProBility is executing a disruptive strategy of defragmenting the marketplace of thousands of disparate companies by acquiring companies in the areas of expertise and organically growing revenues through synergies.

Revenues for the year ended October 31, 2016, were $3.1 million, which represented a 45-percent increase over same period revenues for 2015. Revenues for the first quarter ended January 31, 2016, were $1,088,180, which represented a 24-percent year-over-year increase.

Currently, the ProBility portfolio includes the following divisions:

• Brown Technical Media Corp. – An online web business with multiple micro websites featuring training materials and codes and standards sought by engineers, construction workers, scientists and other tradesmen in a wide variety of fields
• Brown Technical Publications – A proprietary publishing business generating copyrighted training materials for engineers, construction workers, scientists and other tradesmen in a wide variety of fields
• 1ExamPrep – E-Learning, education and exam preparation for contractors via the cheapest, fastest and most effective exam prep school in the industry instituting a 4-point proven learning system
• National Electrical Wholesale Providers – In the business of distributing wholesale industrial, commercial and residential training materials, including those relating to HVAC, plumbing and electrical

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.ProBilityMedia.com

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Singlepoint, Inc. (OTC: SING), specializing in small- to mid-sized company acquisitions, recently began funding Convectium, an organization that sells equipment in the cannabis industry. There should be “more funding on the way,” according to Singlepoint CEO Greg Lambrecht, who discussed the acquisition in a recent episode of MoneyTV with Donald Baillargeon. Convectium sells machines that fill vials with oil, and it created a unique system for filling/packaging vape cartridges and disposable vape pens. These systems, and point of sale equipment, are sold at various trade shows, according to Lambrecht.

In the phone interview, Lambrecht also revealed that Singlepoint is looking into joint ventures as part of its growth strategy. The Singlepoint CEO further talked about subsidiary SingleSeed Payments, which was recently re-activated as a means to offer legal marijuana businesses the financial tools they need to thrive. He noted that the SingleSeed.com website is very helpful for dispensaries looking for merchant payment processing solutions and other relevant tools for their business. “Once they get there, they’re going to see anywhere from three to five products that can help their dispensary do business,” he said.

Discussing several points highlighting the company’s inside sales strategy, Lambrecht also gave insights into Singlepoint’s outside sales strategy. He added, “Of course, the outside sales strategy is to continue to acquire companies that do not touch the plant, like Convectium… so we’re not affected by state or federal laws.” He also said the strategy is “to be the pick and shovel of the industry.” There are currently 26 states with medical marijuana, Lambrecht noted, emphasizing the market that is available to his organization and the potential to generate revenue.

Founded in 2006, Singlepoint is a publicly-traded holding company. Investors have access to a wide range of assets. The company’s primary solutions focus on mobile technology to allow clients to engage in communication, conduct business transactions, and accept donations. It began solely as a mobile technology provider and has grown from there. The company has since diversified into horizontal markets, built its portfolio by acquiring interests in undervalued subsidiaries, and targeted cash flow positive businesses with high potential and verified assets.

Singlepoint has a stake in a variety of solutions, in addition to products for marijuana dispensaries, including mobile payment and donations solutions. It also offers a credit card checkout system for mobile phones.

The company is headed by CEO Greg Lambrecht, who has founded and led several start-up companies, including a leading consumer product distribution company. He has also negotiated with some of the largest retail firms in the country. Singlepoint is also led by Chief Technology Officer Eric Lofdahl, who has held positions in software development, program management, engineering process definition, and more. Along with telecommunications expert Gowri Shankar, the team makes up the company’s board of directors. Wil Ralston is VP of Sales and Marketing.

To hear the full interview on the Convectium acquisition, go to https://vimeo.com/208748705

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.Singlepoint.com

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