New Tech and New Horizons for Home Media Installers

On August 18, 2009

New Tech and New Horizons for Home Media Installers

The current recession and the steep decline in the construction and sales of new homes are forcing dealers and installers to reevaluate their current product offerings. Average 2008 revenues were down almost 11 percent from 2007, and dealers are actively looking for new avenues to expand their business and make up for the shortfall in 2009.


On August 18, 2009

Sales Evolution in a High-Risk Economy

These days it's hard to have a conversation that doesn't eventually roll around to the state of THE ECONOMY. What's amazing is that, at this point, no one needs to use adjectives when they refer to THE ECONOMY. We've stopped bothering with words like "bad," "down" or "tough." We all know how things are, and we all know that we don't have a lot of control over when things are going to get better.


On August 18, 2009

China Unicom Closes In on iPhone Deal

State-owned China Unicom said Friday it is talking with Apple about becoming an iPhone carrier but denied a report it has reached a deal and will buy 5 million handsets. China is the world's most populous mobile phone market, and iPhones are produced in China by an Apple contractor for export. Apple has yet to sign up a Chinese partner, but thousands of unlocked iPhones brought in from other markets are in use in China.


On August 18, 2009

Avoiding Nutcases 2.0

Whether you're considering taking a new a job, choosing who to work with on a project or making your way through the dating scene, the ability to spot a nutcase early can save a massive amount of hassle. Today on the American Express Open Forum blog Guy Kawasaki offers a very 21st century way to screen out the crazies. He found his technique, he says, when his children started selling things on Craigslist. Great for cash flow, not so great if you're worried about being exposed to loonies. (Sorry, Craigslist, you know I love you, but you do harbor your fair share of nut jobs). His solution: a social media gizmo called Spokeo: This is how it works: You enter...


On August 18, 2009

Shoppers Still Cling to Staycation And Sew-it-Yourself

News that a number of economies around the world are emerging from recession doesn't seem to have rubbed off on domestic consumers. Does this mean British Shoppers have adopted a sort of self-imposed frugality? This week, Japan announced it had grown GDP in the first three months of the year. This follows similar news from France and Germany. Yet, in the UK there is little sign of a sustained upswing. It appears shoppers are staying away from the high street altogether or spending less when they are there. When they do spend, it is on value goods or articles where there is some element of self-production. The spirit of do-it-yourself seems to have found a home in the lives of shoppers...
On August 18, 2009

England Continues Plan To Privatize Military Training

The United Kingdom's military is much smaller then the United States and as a force multiplier they have moved to maximize the privatization of support functions. They already have spun off their test organizations and facilities into QinetiQ as well as selling their ammunition plants to BAE. One of their more ambitious programs is to privatize all types of training from flight to maintenance to weapon systems. QintetiQ formed a consortium of various companies to handle this task. This new company is called Metrix and was awarded a contract worth up to $20 billion dollars to handle the task. Part of the contract was to rehabilitate and run the former military facilities and Metrix was going to borrow money to...
On August 18, 2009

Keep Your CV Squeaky Clean

With jobs harder to come by in most sectors now, it will come as no surprise that more candidates appear to be telling porkies on their CVs than at any time in the recent past. It’s hardly surprising to learn from a recent poll that a large amount of applications for jobs have been found to be somewhat creative in their content. Over 4,500 applications for jobs made between May 08 and June 09 were screened and a few less than truthful details came to light such as hidden criminal records and CCJ’s or bankruptcies, plus untruths about academic achievements, professional qualifications, responsibilities and dates. Discrepancies increased during this time to 19 per cent overall, is highest for 3 years. The largest...
On August 18, 2009

Turnbull’s Fatal Flaw

One of the great benefits of living in a democracy like Australia is that you can see and read about the actions of political leaders and learn from their mistakes. We have just seen Malcolm Turnbull, the leader of the Opposition, because a fatal flaw in his personality, shoot himself dramatically in the foot. Malcom Turnbull, before becoming a politician, was a successful lawyer and merchant banker. He is exceptionally intelligent but his personality is dominated by the desire to win. Unfortunately he lacks the self-restraint which is so necessary in politics. To those overseas readers unfamiliar with the issue, Turnbull was supplied an email by a public servant, Gordon Grech, which implied that Labor Prime Minister Rudd and...
On August 17, 2009

Greening Your Business | Useful Commute Podcast

So, you recycle your paper waste and use a ceramic mug instead of paper cups. What else can you do to reduce your carbon footprint at work? In this podcast, Greenhance's Jennifer Kaplan offers some easy ways to make your workplace more eco-friendly -- from reusing toner cartridges to using Web conferencing to reduce business travel. She also give tips on getting all employees to cooperate with environmental efforts. Greenhance is a Washington D.C.-based firm that helps small businesses go green. Click the play button to hear the podcast. If you don’t see the player window, click refresh on your browser. If it still doesn’t appear, let our customer service team know. Subscribe to BNET’s Useful Commute through iTunes.
On August 17, 2009

New IPO Window: Fragile, Handle with Care, Remember DOVP

With initial public offerings priced last week by Cumberland Pharmaceuticals and Emdeon, it looks like only a matter of time before the true biotech IPOs. But buy-siders, venture capitalists and even bankers are worried about the wrong candidates ruining everyone’s fun.
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