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01 Sep 2009 21:06

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Biz, Tech: Facebook and MySpace pretty much own the online ad market

  • 21% of online ads run on social media sites source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Sep 2009 10:40

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Biz: Duh: “Cash for Clunkers” a kick in the pants for car sales

  • 16 million cars sold in August, based on a seasonally-adjusted rate source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Sep 2009 09:26

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Biz, Culture: Marvel is just more proof that Disney is out of good ideas

  • [Bob Iger] was watching all the classic Disney characters go by, and it hit him that there was not one character that Disney had created in the past 10 years. Not one. All the new characters were invented by Pixar.
  • John Lasseter • Discussing the turning point that convinced Disney to buy Pixar in 2006. Consider the Marvel deal to be in a similar situation. Marvel’s live-action properties are far more compelling than Disney’s right now, so much so that Disney’s struggling at the box office while other companies are doing really well. While Pixar can guarantee one solid animated movie a year, Disney’s live-action side has had diminishing returns since “Pirates of the Carribean.” Marvel provides the mouse with a shot in the arm. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

31 Aug 2009 21:30

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Biz: Don’t be so scared of losing your job. It’s killing you.

  • No, really. A study says so. Three sociologists, based in California and Michigan – two perfect locations for a study like this – say that chronic worry about job loss leads to health decline more than the job loss itself. “Persistent stress is a strain on people. It is the unrelenting nature of the uncertainty that really gets you,” their study noted. So lighten up and act as if your crappy job isn’t even in jeopardy. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 3 Comments • Permalink

31 Aug 2009 11:08

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Biz: Turning away money: Cablevision blocks Verizon ads in Newsday

  • Customers are still coming to us, and the net of this is Cablevision doesn’t get the benefit of our revenue.
  • Verizon Senior Vice President Eric Rabe • Discussing Cablevision’s policy of turning away Verizon’s FiOS ads in Newsday, despite the fact that they had been a high-paying advertiser in the paper for years. Cablevision bought Newsday last year and has made a lot of questionable decisions like this, according to Gawker. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

31 Aug 2009 10:15

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Biz, U.S.: The U.S. actually made some money on the bailouts

  • $4 billion in profits – that’s just enough to buy Marvel Comics! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

31 Aug 2009 09:52

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Biz, Culture: Disney to buy Marvel: Cute heroes meet dark antiheroes

  • $4 billion Marvel’s going rate – a price raised, we’re sure, by the company’s recent box-office success source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

30 Aug 2009 11:47

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Biz: News Corp.: The BBC’s “free news” model is hurting us

  • It is essential for the future of independent digital journalism that a fair price can be charged for news to people who value it.
  • News Corp. European chairman James Murdoch • Making an argument critical of the BBC, a state-sponsored news source which he says is damaging the business models of free-market journalism. Beyond the fact that the news organization is “dominant,” he specifically has an issue with the fact that they won’t be charging for their content online. Our response to Rupert’s son? Stop whining and improve your content. While remaining independent editorially, the BBC’s news is often of a higher quality than yours, which makes it easier for us to decide what to read online. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Aug 2009 12:06

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Biz: These Bing ads for “The Philanthropist” drew a patent troll

  • Can you patent an advertising concept? That’s the question worth debating in this case, where small ad agency Denizen claims that the agency that made this “Bing” ad, JWT, stole its idea – a commercial for a product that advances the plot of the show on which it airs. Sounds patent trollish to us.source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Aug 2009 10:42

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Biz: It looks like a hip, independent coffee shop, but it’s really Starbucks

15th Avenue Coffee & Tea, Inspired by Starbucks
  • This new petri dish, the 15th Avenue Coffee & Tea (which is “inspired by Starbucks”), is Starbucks’ attempt to learn some lessons about flair, quality and comfort that are currently missing from their own cold and cool and uncomfortable stores. The shop, based in Seattle, does most of the things that independent coffee shops do – brewing using low-tech methods, bringing in food from local bakeries, making their espresso arty. Will it actually end up making Starbucks cool again? No. But it’s a great start.source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 3 Comments • Permalink
 
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