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20 Jan 2010 10:03

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Biz: Learning to love the bomb: Why we don’t mind the NYT’s pay wall

  • The gray lady’s change from free to pay makes sense. Simply put, if there’s one newspaper in the U.S. that can blaze the trail for online pay walls and get it right, it’s the New York Times. Here’s why:
  • one They’re big enough to take the kind of risks that smaller papers can’t.
  • two They understand the Web better than most papers – there’s no tired cynicism here.
  • three They get the sharing nature of the Web, and so does their planned model.
  • four They’ve had a long history of online innovation already, such as Times Skimmer.
  • five They have content that’s good enough that people will pay for it. Duh. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Jan 2010 09:22

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Biz: Bank of America lost the TARP, posted huge losses. Coincidence?

  • $2.2B in losses this year, despite a strong upswing at formerly faltering Merrill Lynch
  • $4B the amount Bank of America spent on killing off those pesky bailout funds
  • $5.6B the amount Bank of America lost at its global credit cards division; oof source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Jan 2010 02:02

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Biz: A shoutout to our friends at the bankrupt Morris Publishing Group

  • Our history Before we worked on ShortFormBlog, we worked at this great little publication called Bluffton Today (disclosure: we started this Wikipedia article), a pretty innovative small-town newspaper. The owner, Morris Publishing Group, has been very supportive of the idea, despite their recent financial struggles.
  • Their troubles Morris, another victim of the recession, had to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Tuesday. It’s a reorganization of debt – one that reportedly takes $278.5 million off the table – that they say will not affect their papers, employees or advertisers. They’d still remain on the hook for about $100 million in debt.
  • fingers crossed While it’s likely Morris will survive this change in their corporate standing mostly unscathed, we do worry about Morris missing opportunities to do innovative things like Bluffton Today – or with their larger publications in Jacksonville, Fla. or Augusta, Ga. We have our fingers crossed for them – and our friends. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

19 Jan 2010 22:03

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Biz: Yelp: The ruiner of dreams, small businesses and Diane Goodman

  • In the past, if someone was difficult, you could just tell them to leave. But you can’t do that anymore. You talk to someone, and a couple of minutes later, it’s on Yelp.
  • Small-business owner Diane Goodman • Regarding the minor total nightmare Yelp has become for her business. Goodman overreacted to a post on the site, contacted the poster, and the poster responded back by putting her messages in the Yelp review. The result turned into an altercation at the poster’s house. With its 8 million user-submitted reviews and 26 million views, a negative review can cause significant damage to a business. As well as Diane Goodman’s mental health. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

19 Jan 2010 10:31

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Biz: Citigroup took a big loss to scare off the TARP monster

  • $7.6 billion to be rid of federal pressures source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Jan 2010 19:36

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Biz: Taco Bell founder Glen Bell dies, leaves trail of chalupas behind

  • These were true entrepreneurs. These weren’t people who did hostile takeovers. They took a risk, had a dream and went out and financed it. And nobody did it better then Glen Bell.
  • Stater Bros. Markets chairman Jack Brown • Regarding friend and Taco Bell founder Glen Bell, who died today at 86. Before it became a brand synonymous with the generalization of Mexican food, Taco Bell innovated the fast food process by proving it could be done with products slightly less traditional than burgers, fries and shakes. Beyond turning Taco Bell into an incredibly successful business that PepsiCo eventually bought (and was later spun off as the centerpiece of Yum! Brands), Bell planted the seed that made it possible for an incredibly varied array of fast food – from Potbelly to Panera to Chipotle – to diversify the market. A questionable legacy to some, but it’s totally his. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Jan 2010 18:07

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Biz: Cadbury/Kraft merger: Mmm, Velveeta and Trident Gum …

  • $19 billion mash-up could be announced tomorrow source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

17 Jan 2010 12:29

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Biz, World: Protip: If you want your donations to help people NOW, don’t text it

  • two seconds the amount of time it takes to send a text message donation to the Red Cross (or other sources)
  • three months the amount of time it could take for that donation to reach its destination; WTF? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Jan 2010 11:19

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Biz: The meter’s on: Get ready to pay for the New York Times online

  • We’re in a megatransition. It hasn’t ever felt like anyone has the answer. My macro feeling is that I’m glad I had this job at this time. It was great working at the paper when it was on dead trees and could pay for itself.
  • New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman • Discussing whether he feels new technology has shown a next path for journalism. It’s something his bosses are currently feeling significant pressure about. According to New York Magazine, the plan seems to be a change from free to pay, using a so-called “metered” system that requests payment based on usage. It’s akin to what the Financial Times does – read a few articles, and a pay wall finally comes up. Since we post a lot about the Times, for example, and think it’s a high-quality publication, we’d probably get a subscription. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jan 2010 11:20

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Biz: Scary: Lots of big-name drugs getting recalled over “moldy smell”

  • 54M number of packages of over-the-counter drugs that are getting recalled due to a  strange “moldy smell”
  • 27 number of brands – including Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl and Rolaids – that are getting recalled
  • 70 people have gotten sick as a result of the smell, which causes nausea, vomiting, and other ailments source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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