Message Pad 100/ The Newton– http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MessagePad – first powerful PDA
Panasonic Toughbook 08 – monstrous rugged convertible
Motion M1200 (other series as well) – motion made the first slates
Fujitsu Stylistic ST5010 – one of the first major slates from a big manufacturer http://www.fujitsu.com/ph/news/articles/20040531.html
Samsung Q1 (Q1 Ultra) – on of the first oragami devices
iPod Touch
Lenovo U1
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Nursing for Men
Boy Scouts is for boys. Nursing can be, too. That’s the message behind Saturday’s First Aid Merit Badge Day at Harper College, an event led by male Harper nursing students and graduates aimed at marketing the still-female-dominated career field to local Boy Scout troops. “We realized many young men make judgments early-on about acceptable careers. By providing male nurse role models, we hope to prevent some of the preconceived notions,” Nursing Professor Kate Kniest says. “Nursing is a female-dominated profession, but male nurses add a valuable dimension to the care of patients.” The event, from 9 am until noon on Saturday, January 30, will showcase the College’s state-of-the-art Nursing Lab and allow the Scouts – primarily middle-schoolers from Chicago’s suburbs – a chance to practice first aid techniques on Harper nursing manikins and on each other. The Scouts also will hear from male nursing students enrolled in Harper’s program, and from recent graduates. The day supports the Scouts’ advancement toward Eagle Scout, the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scout program, and gives the boys hands-on exposure to the nursing profession. “We hope to help them realize what an important and challenging profession nursing is,” Kniest says. “It’s good for them to have a positive experience like this, and to hear at a young age from men who’ve chosen the nursing profession.” Statistics from the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health show that fewer than 6 percent of U.S. RNs are male. At Harper, 10 percent of current nursing students are male.
Media Note: This event is not open to the public, but reporters and photographers are invited to attend. Kniest and other Harper experts are available to talk in advance or afterward about the benefits of pursuing non-traditional gender careers and about nursing as a male profession. Contact Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159, [email protected].
Bilingual Financial Aid
Harper College is offering a series of workshops aimed at helping potential students navigate the murky waters of financial aid – whether they speak English or Spanish. The dual-language Financial Aid Workshops, geared toward high school juniors and their parents, will feature information on financial aid eligibility, the FAFSA application process, deadlines, the varying forms of federal and state aid and Harper scholarships for new freshmen. Those who aren’t eligible for financial aid will get tips for researching other scholarship options online. Participants also can receive onsite help filling out the FAFSA. The first workshop, offered in Spanish only, will be held at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, February 11 at Wheeling High School, 900 S. Elmhurst Road in Wheeling. Two more bilingual workshops, offered in both English and Spanish, will be held at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, February 21 at Rolling Meadows High School, 2901 W. Central Road in Rolling Meadows, and at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 11 at Palatine High School, 1111 N. Rohlwing Road in Palatine. “Financial aid can be intimidating even for the savviest person. Offering the pertinent information in Spanish can be helpful to parents, in particular, when it comes to understanding the details,” says Juanita Pérez Bassler, a Harper College Recruiting Specialist. “We offer these workshops to let high school students know that college really is an option, and to let them know we’re here to help.” The workshops are free, but seating is limited. For details or to RSVP, visit www.harpercollege.edu or contact Pérez Bassler at 847.925.6940 or [email protected]. To complete the FAFSA at the event, students must bring a driver’s license, social security card and 2009 tax information (tax returns should be completed first).
Media Note: Harper’s Director of Student Financial Assistance, Earl Dowling, is available for interviews on financial aid topics. His answers to frequent questions, including details on the new FAFSA form changes, are available in video form on Harper’s web site, www.harpercollege.edu, under the Financial Aid tab. For interviews or for more Harper financial aid information, contact Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159, [email protected].
Unemployment Aid
Illinois’ unemployment rate jumped to 11.1 percent in December, the second-worst in the Midwest. Harper College has a head start on helping turn those numbers around. Every month, the College’s Career Stimulus program serves up a career-boosting package of expert job-hunting tips, networking opportunities and information sessions on everything from starting a business to managing stress and acing interviews – strategies that already have helped participants land new jobs and reenergize their employment search. “I have recommended your class to everyone I know,” participant Brett Batchelder told program coordinators after a session focused on effective networking. “It has really been worthwhile.” The January edition of Career Stimulus is at 9:30 a.m. Friday, January 29 in the Wojcik Conference Center on Harper’s main campus, 1200 W. Algonquin Road in Palatine. The program will feature a keynote address from David Krull, who has managed multi-million dollar projects, won awards for project management and logged more than 25 years of experience with local, national and global companies. He’ll address the tools and know-how needed to succeed in today’s competitive job-hunting market. “This month’s meeting, like the others, is the perfect outlet for those who feel like they’re at the end of their job-hunting rope,” Adult Learning Special Assistant Nancy Wajler says. “David Krull is skilled in business and in technology, and he’s also passionate about mentoring others who need help navigating the job hunt.” The event also will include a legislative briefing from State Representative Mark Walker of Arlington Heights, who also will take participants’ questions. Networking groups and breakout sessions on job-hunting strategies, money and stress management also are on the agenda. The program is free to first-timers. Subsequent sessions are $10. Memberships are available for $85; they include a year of meetings, materials for and admission to an intensive NetWorthing session focused on making networking work for you, and free one-on-one sessions with Harper’s career coach. Participant Bruce Cruz took advantage of the workshops and coaching sessions to transition from a job as a systems analyst to a career in healthcare. The workshops “identified my career interests and passions,” he said, “and the career coach helped define and detail how to pursue them.” Visit www.harpercollege.edu.
Media Note: Previous Career Stimulus participants are available for interviews. Harper’s Adult Learning Special Assistant, Nancy Wajler, also is available for comment on the success rate of today’s job club programs and why they work – or don’t. To book interviews, contact Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159, [email protected].
Documentary and Lecture
Journalist David Wilson began tracing his roots six years ago. His transatlantic journey, and the surprising discoveries that came with it, are the focus of an acclaimed documentary that explores the legacy of slavery and the pursuit of racial reconciliation. Wilson, 32, will personally share his experiences at a Harper College lecture at 7:30 p.m. Monday, February 8 in the Building J Theatre on Harper’s main campus, 1200 W. Algonquin Road in Palatine. Wilson’s quest to explore his background took him from his Newark, N.J. birthplace to Ghana in Africa, where his ancestors had been put on a slave ship. He eventually discovered the plantation where they’d been enslaved, and found their modern-day descendants – one of whom also was named David Wilson. “In my film (“Meeting David Wilson”), the other David Wilson asks me where I think I’d be if my ancestors hadn’t been brought to America as slaves,” Wilson says. “I respond this way: America would have been a far different country had it not been for the contributions of African-Americans.” Wilson’s documentary was released in 2008; he’s now launching theGrio.com, a video-centric web site devoted to community news about African-Americans. Harper will offer two free showings of his documentary, “Meeting David Wilson,” at 12:10 p.m. Tuesday, February 2 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, February 3 in Room A242, Building A. Tickets for his February 8 lecture are $7 for general admission, with discounts for seniors and students. For tickets or more information, call 847.925.6100 or visit www.harpercollege.edu/boxoffice.
Press Contact: Terry Karow, Marketing and Public Relations Specialist, 847.925.6627, [email protected]
Veterans’ Support
Michael James Tumilty served six years in the United States Air Force before enrolling in Harper College’s Nursing program and joining the growing ranks of veterans-turned-college students. It’s a sharp change of pace – but he’s finding support and camaraderie in Harper’s new Veterans Club, a group aimed at helping veterans forge relationships with other former military men and women who now are taking classes on campus. The fledgling club, led by Assistant Political Science Professor Bobby Summers, will look to recruit members and boost its numbers at the annual Spring Semester Club Expo, from noon until 1 p.m. Wednesday, January 27 in the Student Center on the main floor of Building A. “Veterans who join will have a place where they can come together and be among others who can relate to their experience,” says Tumilty, of Algonquin. The number of Illinois veterans attending Harper College increased by more than 22 percent between fall 2008 and fall 2009. The Post-9/11 Veteran’s Educational Assistance Act of 2008 drove more veterans to college campuses statewide, promising them help in achieving a college education. “Many veterans are taking advantage of that, and it’s up to us to help them find success in every way that we can,” says Thomas Warfield, who assists student veterans in his role in Harper’s Office of Student Financial Assistance. The club’s first meeting is scheduled for 2 p.m. Thursday, January 28 in Room A243, Building A. The National Survey of Student Engagement, among other studies, has shown that college students who participate in co-curricular campus activities are more immersed in their college experience and have better success rates than other students. The Veterans Club needs at least 10 members to be officially recognized by the College’s Student Activities Department. The group will be one of nearly three dozen campus organizations seeking to recruit members at the upcoming Expo. For more information on the clubs or the Expo, call 847.925.6242 or visit www.harpercollege.edu.
Media Note: Veterans Club members and adviser Bobby Summers are available for interviews relating to Harper’s club and the importance of veterans’ support on college campuses. Contact Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, 847.925.6159 or [email protected].
Creating Internships
There are many Harper College students who’d like to have internships. And, Harper College Career Center Director Kathleen Canfield says, there are plenty of Chicago-area businesses that would like to have interns. The College is working to bring the two together. On Friday, February 5, Harper will host its first-ever Employer Connection Breakfast, uniting College faculty and administrators with dozens of Chicago-area employers in an effort to hammer out promising internship opportunities for Harper students. More than 200 Northwest suburban employers were invited, representing a range of career fields – from healthcare and engineering to interior design, marketing and finance. “Our role as an educational institution is to do all we can to prepare these students for solid future careers,” Canfield says. “We’re trying to attract employers to this event that haven’t worked with Harper before – in the hope that, together, we can get students in the door of great companies.” Some area businesses don’t realize Harper students are available, or don’t know how such internships would work, Canfield said. Internships can prove invaluable for students, providing them with work experience and helping them beef up their resumes in a competitive job market.
Media Note: This event is not open to the public, but reporters and photographers are welcome to attend and talk with Harper faculty and administrators and local employers. The event will include a presentation on the benefits of hosting interns. Harper experts also are available to talk about the importance of internships in college students’ academic careers. Contact Erin Brooks, Media Relations Specialist, at 847.925.6159 or [email protected].
Photo Opportunities
Event: Spring Semester Club Expo
Date: Noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, January 27
Location: Student Center Lounge, main floor of Building A
Event: First Meeting of Harper’s new Veterans Club
Date: 2 p.m. Thursday, January 28
Location: Room A243, Building A
Event: Career Stimulus job-hunting support group
Date: 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, January 29
Location: Wojcik Conference Center on Harper’s main campus
Event: First Aid Merit Badge Day. The event, for area Boy Scouts, will be led by male students and grads of Harper’s nursing program, with an eye on breaking the career’s gender stereotypes.
Date: 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, January 30
Location: Harper College Nursing Lab, Room X228 in the Avanté Center
Event: Computer Kids Program. Elementary District 21 students whose parents are in Harper literacy courses are able to learn digital concepts and computer technology in this new class.
Date: 5 to 7 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays through March 17.
Location: Harper College Northeast Center, 1375 Wolf Road in Prospect Heights
In the adorable he said/she said that is the Nokia-Apple patent spat, the ITC has begun its official investigation of Apple. So what? The ITC has the power to ban the sale of Apple products in the US, that’s what.
Nokia first sued Apple last October over 10 patent infringements in the iPhone, but didn’t file with the ITC until late December. What’s interesting about yesterday’s move is that while the ITC has started investigating Apple, they haven’t yet taken a similar measure against Nokia, despite Apple’s similar complaints.
Where does this leave us? Well, while the ITC can ban the sale of iPhones in the US, there’s no way Apple would ever let that happen. All the wrangling is ultimately over over which company is going to owe the other hundreds of millions of dollars. It’s a process that’ll take months to play out, but so far it looks like Apple’s on the losing side of the ledger. [Reuters via Apple Insider]
Dear John is an upcoming 2010 romantic drama/war film starring Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried and Scott Porter. Directed by Lasse Hallström, and distributed by Screen Gems (a Sony Pictures company), the film is an adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ novel of the same name. Some of you may remember Sparks’ last novel, The Notebook.
Dear John tells the story of John Tyree (Channing Tatum), a young soldier home on leave, and Savannah Curtis (Amanda Seyfried), the idealistic college student he falls in love with during her spring vacation. Over the next seven tumultuous years, the couple is separated by John’s increasingly dangerous deployments. While meeting only sporadically, they stay in touch by sending a continuous stream of love letters overseas – correspondence that eventually triggers fateful consequences.
The film will be released theatrically in North America on February 5, 2010 – other international release dates can be found on the official website. It was rated PG-13 by the MPAA for some sensuality and violence.
If anyone is wondering, the song in the trailer above is Set The Fire To The Third Bar by Snow Patrol. Check out some other Dear John clips at Sony Pictures YouTube.
Wade Roush wrote:
Homes and businesses in North America generate about 55 million tons of organic waste every year, and that’s without even counting sewage. Roughly half of this solid waste comes from grass clippings and other biomass from the typical yard, and the other half is food scraps. Most of the yard waste gets recycled, but most of the leftover food doesn’t.
Harvest Power, a young Waltham, MA-based company with an office in Seattle and a processing center near Vancouver, BC, that generates high-quality compost and renewable fuels, wants to fix that. This week, it got a big boost from a major strategic partner, the Houston, TX-based waste hauling goliath Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE: WM).
Harvest announced yesterday that Waste Management has agreed to invest to help the company expand to more cities, starting with the East and West Coasts. But even more important, according to co-founder and CEO Paul Sellew, the giant partner will provide Harvest with raw material for its composting process and, in the near future, its biogas and syngas production systems.
“It’s all about feedstock,” says Sellew. “We need feedstock to manage, and WMI, being the largest waste management company in North America, has many millions of tons of material that we will have access to.”
Formed in 2008 by Sellew, a composting industry veteran, and former Bain Capital vice president Nathan Gilliland, Harvest Power is headquartered in Waltham and has collected more than $40 million in capital so far through a combination of equity offerings, debt, and grants. Its backers include Menlo Park, CA-based Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers—which incubated and provided seed funding for the company—as well as German venture firm Munich Venture Partners, and now Waste Management.
The $40 million total includes a $9.85 million equity round disclosed in a regulatory filing in December. The company isn’t saying exactly who participated in that round, or whether WMI’s investment was part of it. But it did say that as part of the agreement with WMI, Kleiner Perkins and Munich Venture Partners have increased their investments.
Harvest isn’t an aggressive technology developer like most venture-backed cleantech firms, Sellew acknowledges. So far, the main technology it has pursued is large-scale composting, an age-old process in which bacteria act to break down huge, aerated piles of yard and food waste. The company’s sole existing facility, in the Richmond section of greater Vancouver, can handle 300,000 metric tons of waste each year, turning it into odor-free compost that can be sold as fertilizer to farmers, garden centers, landscapers, and municipal governments.
By the end of 2010, according to Sellew, the company intends to bring two more technologies online at the Richmond facility. The first is anaerobic digestion, in which waste material is loaded into closed chambers where microorganisms break it down into carbon dioxide and methane. This “biogas” can be burned to produce heat or electricity, or it can be processed and compressed into natural gas. The second is wood gasification, in which wood chips are fed into a high-temperature combustion chamber and broken down into carbon monoxide, hydrogen, and methane—a combination known as “syngas” that can also be burned to generate power. (Two Massachusetts startups that Xconomy has covered, Ze-gen and IST Energy, are among the other companies pursuing waste gasification as a power source.)
The new investment from Waste Management, Kleiner Perkins, and Munich will help the 50-employee company add staff, especially engineering talent, Sellew says. But there’s no new technology to invent here, he says—it’s all a matter of expanding processing capacity and adapting existing waste-handling technologies to the kinds of organic food waste that’s commonly generated in North America. “Composting and anaerobic digestion and gasification are all well-understood processes, so we don’t view that there’s any kind of substantive research and development risk,” Sellew says. “These technologies are ready to be rolled out.”
With Waste Management as a new partner, Harvest will be able to do that faster. It’s the second deal in less than a year Waste Management has made with a Boston-area cleantech firm: last June the company said it would become the exclusive distributor of solar-powered trash compacting receptacles built by Needham, MA-based Bigbelly Solar.
Aunque por el momento no ha sido confirmado de forma oficial, el medio Autoblog acaba de publicar una noticia en la que afirma que General Motors finalmente ha decidido vender Saab a la compañía Spyker.
Por el momento no podemos ofreceros datos más concretos sobre la venta pero se afirma que la venta se ha cerrado tras pagar 50 millones de euros en efectivo y 230 millones en acciones preferentes, además de que el gobierno sueco ha aportado un crédito de 400 millones de euros.
En cuanto se confirme de forma oficial la venta, podremos dar el resto de detalles, aun así, es grato saber que Saab se ha salvado de ser desmantelada poco a poco.
Related posts:
Los Angeles police detectives have arrested a known sex offender who allegedly solicited youngsters at the William Mead Homes project near downtown.
Marco Julio Gonzales, 41, of San Gabriel, was arrested Monday for annoying a child under 14 and soliciting an act of prostitution, both misdemeanor crimes.
“This man is a sex registrant for indecent exposure,” said Lt. Paul Vernon. “The one sole incident he’s charged with occurred at the William Mead Housing Project. There’s a good chance he’s been to other neighborhoods, too.”
Vernon released a photo of the man and asked anyone with information on other crimes involving him to contact the LAPD detectives.
Vernon said a mother first reported that a man had approached her 12-year-old daughter a year ago and offered the girl $100 for oral sex.
“The little girl was so innocent, she did not understand the euphemism the suspect used,” Vernon said.
Authorities were not able to identify the suspect until last week, when he was seen again. A resident saw the car, recognized the man and wrote down the license plate.
“It wasn’t a surprise he was a sex registrant,” Vernon said.
Gonzales was booked on an arrest warrant and released in lieu of $40,000 bail.
The alleged crimes were misdemeanors, so police needed to identify the suspect and get a warrant from a judge in order to make an arrest.
“Otherwise, police would have had to catch him in the act, or a witness would have had to apprehend him and make a private person’s arrest,” Vernon said. “It was probably better for Gonzales the police got him and not the residents.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Det. Josh Riggs at (213) 972-1235. During non-business hours, call (877) LAPD-24-7.
— Richard Winton
Photo: LAPD
Kelly Osbourne — known as much for her acid tongue as she is for her outspoken nature — has a bit of a soft spot for The Hills’ villainess Heidi Montag. The 25-year-old is saddened that the reality personality is “obviously insecure” about her appearance.
Earlier this month, a barely-recognizable Heidi revealed that she underwent ten plastic surgery operations in one day back in November.
“She was so pretty before, and now she looks like a Barbie doll – I feel sorry for Heidi, she’s obviously insecure,” Osbourne wrote in an essay for Britain’s Closer Magazine.
Kellz, on the other hand, does have some strong words for Heidi’s plastic surgeon.
“It’s the surgeon who should be ashamed – he should be struck off for giving her so much work when she clearly didn’t need it.”
We’ve seen figures from inside the Android Market. We’ve seen numbers that show Android’s growth. Today, we get to see some numbers that give insight into the people behind the apps. Distimo‘s latest monthly report is out and it sheds some light on Android developers and their apps.
Found within the report are the following statistics:
The highest ranked paid apps in the Android Market for December are twidroid PRO, Advanced Task Manager, and MyBackup Pro. The highest ranked free titles were T-Mobile My Account, Pandora Radio, and The Weather Channel.
I liked No More Heroes, but I didn’t love it. I do love developer Grasshopper Manufacture, though, so I always expect something promising from them, even if it lets me down. Sure, NMH took something as simple as jerking the Wii remote in one direction and made a competent, if not entirely satisfying, action game, but there were lots of weaknesses too, causing me to wonder why Wii fans were so quick to put it on a pedestal. Regardless, it struck a nerve, and became a go-to recommendation. With time and love on their side, Grasshopper pushed ahead with the sequel, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, and delivered a pleasantly surprising (and guiltily pleasuring) game that I, well, love.
The story involves returning hero Travis Touchdown, the slightly punkified otaku who, after two years of retirement from the assassin scene, finds out that his friend Bishop (owner of Beef Head Video) is murdered, seemingly without pretense. Travis goes into a blind rage and vows to find his friend’s killer(s), all of this happening at the same time that Sylvia Christel, the sultry agent of the United Assassins Association, invites Travis back to the world of ranked assassin combat.
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Filed under: Truck, Government/Legal, Hatchback, Chevrolet, Ford, GM
Government waste takes on a whole new meaning today as a Chevrolet HHR and a flex-fuel Ford F-150 powered by ethanol roll into Washington D.C. for the Auto Show. Granted, a couple of E85-powered vehicles in our Nation’s Capitol isn’t all that interesting in and of itself, but these have their tanks filled with alcohol fuel derived from government office waste paper and waste cardboard.
The demonstration is masterminded by Novozymes, which has partnered with Maryland-based Fiberight to show off that firm’s biofuel enzyme technology. This fuel can reportedly be created using a wide variety of materials, including agricultural residues, municipal waste and so-called energy crops – feedstock grown specifically for biofuel use.
Interestingly, Novozymes’ research into the enzyme biofuel technology was also fueled by taxpayer dollars: the first DOE grant totaled $2.2 million and was given in 2002; the second for $12.3 million was given in 2008. Why do we care? Well, it’s generally argued that biofuels like ethanol reduce overall carbon emissions and don’t require drilling for fossil fuels. Deriving ethanol from corn or other food crops, though, isn’t exactly an ideal situation. So, the promise of cheap alcohol fuels from waste is a fine one indeed. Click past the break for the official press release.
Gallery: Novozymes E85 Vehicles
[Source: Novazymes, The Detroit Bureau]
D.C. Follies: Chevrolet HHR and Ford F-150 fueled by government waste debut in Washington originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Filed under: Motorsports, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, South America
The USF1 team has ended months of speculation by announcing the first of two drivers for its debut in the upcoming 2010 Formula One season. Actually, it was the President of Argentina, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, who announced the contract between the team and one Jose Maria “Pechito” Lopez, hinting at just how much support the Argentine driver received from his home country.
Although the start-up – the first F1 team based in the U.S. in some 40 years – initially said it wanted to field American drivers, in the end it comes down to financial backing for USF1 and the other three teams slated to join the grid this year. That’s not to say that Lopez is undeserving; although a rookie in technical terms, Pechito has three years of testing with the Renault F1 team under his belt, along with several years in karting, Formula 3000, GP2 and other racing series.
When he makes his race debut, Lopez will be the 24th Argentine driver to make the grid, following such greats as De Tomaso, Fangio and Reutemann. And the announcement brings the 2010 line-up one step closer to completion, with only a seat each at Renault, Campos and USF1 remaining unconfirmed.
In a related development, the Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso teams announced the promotion of reigning British F3 champion Daniel Ricciardo and former Formula Renault 2.0 champion Brendon Hartley – of Australia and New Zealand respectively – as their shared reserve drivers for this year. Details on the Lopez announcement in the press release after the jump.
[Source: USF1]
Continue reading Officially Official: USF1 signs Jose Maria Lopez to drive in 2010
Officially Official: USF1 signs Jose Maria Lopez to drive in 2010 originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The California Public Utilities Commission has announced a nearly statewide financial incentive for solar hot water that will bring down costs for most utility customers by 51% to 60%, into a 3 year payback period. Customers of California’s three largest utilities can now get a 30% rebate for solar hot water. If they add the rebate to the new 30% Federal tax credit, they are saving 60%. The credit cap for apartment owners is set at $500,000, and the credit cap for commercial buildings is $250,000. This will significantly help California reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, since it is estimated that buildings who install solar hot water reduce natural gas use by 25% to 90%.
via Cleantechnica
The FCC has just sent letters inquiring about Early Termination Fees to each of the major wireless carriers in the United States — AT&T, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless — and one outlier: Google. We’ve embedded all five letters below. The inquiry is the first action taken by the FCC’s recently formed Consumer Task Force. The inquiry comes only a few weeks after the FCC questioned Verizon about its high $350 ETF for “advanced devices” and deemed Verizon’s response to be “unsatisfying, and, in some cases, troubling”.
The text of the letters to each of the carriers is very similar, explaining that the FCC is looking to ensure that customers are being fully and transparently informed about any ETFs they may face. But the letter to Google includes some interesting passages explaining why the company is being questioned alongside the carriers:
Google’s introduction of the Nexus One handset presents consumers with new
options for obtaining mobile wireless service, from a new entrant in the wireless phone
market. The Commission welcomes new choices for consumers and new entry into the
market because it recognizes that robust competition benefits consumers by
accommodating the wide variety of consumers’ communications needs.
At the same time, where new options may subject consumers to substantial ETFs,
potentially from more than one entity, the Commission has a special interest in ensuring
that consumers have a clear and complete understanding of the rates, terms, and
conditions on which the communications services are being offered and the rationale for
those rates, terms, and conditions. The combination of ETFs from Google and T-Mobile
for the Nexus One is also unique among the four major national carriers. Consumers
have been surprised by this policy and by its financial impact. Please let us know your
rationale(s) for these combined fees, and whether you have coordinated or will coordinate
on these fees and on the disclosure of their combined effect.
While the explanations for why each company is being questioned vary, it appears that the questions being asked are identical. Here are the twelve questions each company is being asked:
1. Do your ETFs apply to all service plans or only some? If so, which ones?
2. What is the amount of the ETF for each service plan where ETFs apply? If there are different ETFs for different plans, what is the rationale for those differences?
3. How much of a discount on handset purchase is given in return for a consumer accepting an ETF? Does the amount of the discount differ by device, and if so, how?
4. Does the ETF itself vary by device (e.g., higher ETFs for advanced devices)? If higher ETFs apply to a certain class of devices, exactly how is that class defined?
5. Is it possible for consumers to buy a handset from you at full price to avoid an ETF? If this is possible, can consumers buy unsubsidized handsets online, as well as at brick-and-mortar stores?
6. Do monthly service rates and terms differ: (1) between customers who assume a term commitment and accept an ETF, and those who don’t, and (2) between customers who purchase an unsubsidized device (either from your company or a third party), and those who purchase a subsidized device? If so, how do they differ, and what is the rationale for the difference? Can customers easily determine the impacts of their decisions and their rates and terms?
7. Are ETFs prorated so that the customer’s liability decreases over time? If so, what is the exact schedule by which they are prorated?
8. If a customer renews his or her contract without buying a new handset, does his or her monthly service fee change in any way?
9. How long is the trial period during which consumers can cancel their service without an ETF penalty? If they cancel, can they return the handset? If they return it, will they receive a full refund, no refund, or a refund minus a restocking and/or refurbishing fee?
10. When do consumers receive their first bill under your service plans? How does the trial period relate, if at all, to receipt of the first bill?
11. Are there consumer fees or charges in addition to ETFs if consumers buy handsets and/or service plans from online phone dealers, such as Amazon, LetsTalk, and Simplexity (d/b/a Wirefly), or from a service provider, if a customer does not complete the contract term? If so, what are they, and what are their levels, terms, and conditions? Do the fees or charges affect the ETFs and if so, how?
12. Press reports and public statements from wireless companies have attributed ETFs to several different factors. What is the rationale for your ETF(s), and how specifically do the structure and level of those ETF(s) relate to that rationale?
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America’s largest wireless carrier announced that this year will be much like last two in that Verizon will once again cut 13,000 workers. Nearly all cuts will come from the company’s wireline workforce of 117,000, the Wall Street Journal reported after the company’s quarterly earnings call.
“The economy won’t help us as much as we thought,” Chairman and Chief Executive Ivan Seidenberg said on the call. He expects things won’t turn around until at least the end of the year.
Revenue actually jumped 9.9%from a year ago to $27.09 billion. Yet Verizon reported a loss of $653 million, compared with a 2009 Q4 profit of $1.23 billion.
Verizon shares fell 2% to $30.06 on the news.
[Image: Musings for a Darkened Room]
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With Apple’s big secret product launch less than 24 hours away, we’re still looking for readers to comment below or email me with their predictions for what the Great Big New Feature in Apple’s tablet computer will be.
What will make this Apple gadget unique and special beyond the iMac and iPhone? We’re looking for very specific details on what you think will wow us. Not just “a new way to read newspapers,” but a specific detail of how the inevitable New York Times app will rock our socks.
The first person to email or post the correct answer gets — no, not a tablet, you’ll get written up here for your prescience, that’s what you’ll get. What bigger reward is there in the blogosphere than getting credit for being first?
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Metal commodities website Mineweb has written up an argument that metal commodities are the biggest thing in 2010.
Sure, there may be a little bias involved, but the points they touch on are well worth considering.
What it essentially boils down to is this: China is growing and isn’t stopping anytime soon.
Same with India.
More and more people are moving from the countryside to cities at a rapid pace and with this comes accelerated growth.
Throw in the need for automobiles and that’s a lot of metal being spread around for manufacturing and housing.
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Continue reading NetTalk responds to MagicJack founder’s comments
NetTalk responds to MagicJack founder’s comments originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Bruce V. Bigelow wrote:
Prometheus Laboratories, a San Diego-based specialty pharmaceutical and diagnostics company, says it has executed a commercialization deal with Novartis that gives Prometheus exclusive rights to sell aldesleukin (Proleukin) in the United States. Aldesleukin is a recombinant human interleukin-2 for treating metastatic melanoma and metastatic kidney cancer, and generated about $75 million in U.S. sales last year. PE Hub reports that Prometheus is in registration for a $100 million IPO, and has raised $73 million in venture funding from DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, Split Rock Partners, New Leaf Ventures, Apax Partners, Wachovia Capital Partners, and Brentwood Venture Capital. Earlier this month, Prometheus secured a $210 million loan and a $50 million revolving line of credit.
Home Depot (HD) has laid off 1000 workers that were part of its nationwide support operations.
In addition to the staff cuts, Home Depot will close three pilot program stores and will slash additional jobs from its real estate team.
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