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13 Feb 2011 11:50

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Tech: Three reasons why Microsoft’s Nokia deal really sucks for Nokia

  • one Their long-popular Symbian OS was created mostly as a reaction to Microsoft’s plans to enter the mobile market over a decade ago. This move tastes like crow.
  • two The profit margins on Nokia phones right now are roughly 30 percent. With a Windows-licensed phone, it’s much closer to 5-10 percent – a huge drop in revenues.
  • three This is the worst one by far – 20,000 Finnish Nokia employees will likely lose their jobs due to redundancy – a HUGE chunk of people by any stretch. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Feb 2011 10:05

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Biz: Groupon listens to angry people, takes controversial ads off air

  • Five days have passed since the Super Bowl, and one thing is clear – our ads offended a lot of people. Tuesday I posted an explanation, but as many of you have pointed out, if an ad requires an explanation, that means it didn’t work.
  • Groupon CEO Andrew Mason • Being forced to back down on those cause-mocking Super Bowl ads which seem to have pissed off just about everybody. Within the next day or so, they’re going off the air, kids. ” We thought we were poking fun at ourselves,” he continued. but clearly the execution was off and the joke didn’t come through.” Mason says he personally takes blame for approving the ads. (thanks abcworldnews) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Feb 2011 10:08

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Biz, Culture: Groupon CEO Andrew Mason tries to explain awful ad campaign

  • Not a single person watched our ad and concluded that it’s cool to kill whales. In fact – and this is part of the reason we ran them – they have the opposite effect.
  • Groupon CEO Andrew Mason • Attempting to explain that his company’s controversial Super Bowl ads were in fact – IN FACT – meant to be respectful to other cultures and environmental causes. “The last thing we wanted was to offend our customers – it’s bad business and it’s not where our hearts are,” Mason concluded. Too bad nobody took the ads that way. Commenters on the blog post are savaging him and the company for trying to be a little too clever with its commercial approach without explaining its reasoning. They could’ve saved themselves a lot of trouble had they actually put a domain name on the ad somewhere. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Feb 2011 21:21

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Culture: Groupon wins award for worst ad campaign of the night

  • In case you haven’t seen this hot mess, here you go. Groupon just exploited the Tibetian people to sell its wares, an advertising strategy not seen since, well, ever. While Groupon does have a point, you have to get all the way to this site to find it. The odds that people will reach this site and see the joke: Zilch. Way to go, Groupon. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 4 Comments • Permalink

20 Jan 2011 22:26

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Tech: Google Offers: There goes the neighborhood, Groupon

  • So, here’s what happens when you turn down an insane multi-billion-dollar offer from Google. They become your direct competitors. Suck on that, Groupon. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Dec 2010 12:26

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Biz: Groupon founders cash in big time with latest financing round

  • $950M the size of Groupon’s current funding round, started this week
  • $500M of that funding has already been raised (impressive!)
  • $345M of that total is going to founders and existing shareholders  source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Dec 2010 01:14

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Biz: After spurning Google, Groupon plans massive financing round

  • $950
    million     the amount in financing that the IPO-pondering Groupon wants
  • $7.8
    billion     the value of the company based on that financing round source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

10 Dec 2010 00:53

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World: What’s the least you can spend to fly ’round the world?

  • 35k number of miles on Steve Kamb’s travel itinerary
  • 9 number of countries he’ll be visiting
  • $419 total cost of the trip; no, that’s not a typo source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Nov 2010 20:09

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Tech: Groupon’s best deal so far: They may sell to Google

  • $3 billion potential Groupon sale price being bandied about source
  • » But the real question: Will Google get a discount if it signs up for Groupon and waits for the deal of the day to come up?
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Nov 2010 10:29

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Biz: Wal-Mart offers free online shipping, with a couple catches

  • Want some crap from Wal-Mart? Well, based on what it is, you might be able to get it shipped for free over the holidays. This is a big change that could potentially give the retailer a huge leg-up on its competitors. The deal, which runs through December 20, includes giant flat-screen TVs, computers and other electronics. However, it doesn’t include furniture, toys, home appliances, some video games, baby crap (go to Diapers.com), jewelry, iPhones or iPads … wait. No iPhones or iPads? Not interested. Screw you, Wal-Mart. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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