We Asked 'The Walking Dead' Creator If He Wants To Emulate Marvel's 'The Avengers' | ||
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We interviewed Robert Kirkman – the creator of "The Walking Dead" – at New York Comic Con 2014. Produced by Matthew Stuart and Alana Kakoyiannis. Special thanks to Kirsten Acuna. Follow BI Video: On Facebook Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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REVEALED: The Demographic Trends For Every Social Network | ||
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The demographics of who's on what social network are shifting — older social networks are reaching maturity, while newer social messaging apps are gaining younger users fast. In a new report from BI Intelligence, we unpack data from over a dozen sources to understand how social media demographics are still shifting. Access The Full Report By Signing Up For A Free Trial >> Here are a few of the key takeaways from the BI Intelligence report:
The report is full of charts (over 20 charts) and data that can be downloaded and put to use. In full, the report:
For full access to all BI Intelligence reports, briefs, and downloadable charts on the digital media industry, sign up for a free trial. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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In One Slide, Box CEO Aaron Levie Explains Why Now Is The Best Time To Start An Enterprise Startup | ||
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Startup incubator Y Combinator’s Sam Altman created a course called “How to Start a Startup” at Stanford University this fall. The 20-session class has a star-studded lineup of guest speakers, including Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen, and Ron Conway. This week’s lecture was done by Box CEO Aaron Levie. During the 46-minute class, Levie touched upon a number of subjects, from how he started Box to the best business books he’s ever read. At one point during the lecture, Levie also spoke about how the tech landscape has changed in the past five years to make it a “magical” time to build an enterprise software company. Here’s the slide where he breaks down his reasoning behind that:
Levie basically says the biggest disruption has come from the move to the "cloud." In the past, enterprise software had to be built in every single customer’s individual datacenter (“on-premise”), and it just wasted lot of time and money for everyone involved. But now with cloud servers, like Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure, businesses can use servers remotely, on-demand, simplifying the entire process. Because of this, the whole cost of starting an enterprise software business has dropped. There’s no need to build customized software anymore, either. And since it’s become easier and cheaper to install enterprise software, customers from all over the world can afford to use it, as opposed to the past when only the biggest companies had the budget to buy it. Levie makes a lot of good comments about the enterprise business during the lecture, so if this is an area you’re interested in, the video below is a must-watch: Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Melinda Gates: Warren Buffett Taught Me How To Be A Good Friend | ||
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Melinda Gates is often credited for helping her husband develop his kinder, gentler side. During his formative years Bill Gates was notoriously hard-nosed. There are many stories of his tantrums when he and Microsoft were young, such as this one: Microsoft employed a person to count of how many times F-bombs he would drop during a meeting, according to a former Microsoft employee. The lower the count, the happier Gates was with the meeting. After marrying Melinda and having a family, Gates mellowed. While he's still opinionated, he's clearly a happier, more cordial person. His philanthropic work to end poverty and disease makes him a role model for other leaders to follow.
And the person who taught her how to do that was fellow billionaire Warren Buffett. (Buffett and the Gates are famously good friends.) Here's how that happened, Melinda says: One of the things I was most impressed about when Bill and I met Warren Buffett very early on was he introduced us to his friends. And Warren has the most high quality set of friends you could meet, and these are friends that he has had over his lifetime. And it really got me thinking, "wow, I better cultivate my friends." Warren does little things with his friends, like he will send you an article of something he is thinking about, reading about. That was a way to help me think about my friends. Melinda also says that another friend helped her learn how to balance work and home when her kids were young and she was feeling stressed out about it. The man told her, "Melinda, you don’t get a do-over with your kids." and she says, "I always have to remember that, at the end of the day, my kids come first." She feels so strongly about this that it trumps all of her charity work. "On the day I die, I want people to think that I was a great mom and a great family member and a great friend. I care about that more than I care about anything else," she said. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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But the woman who helped tame Bill Gates had to learn how to be a good friend herself, uBeam's $10 Million Investment Has Caused A Big Debate | ||
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Last week, a startup called uBeam, working on way to let you charge your iPhone without plugging anything into a power outlet received a $10 million investment from Upfront Ventures. It had already recieved about $1.7 million from a bunch of famous angels. uBeam is the latest moonshot startup darling in the Valley, founded by 25-year-old Meredith Perry. Angel investors include Google’s Marissa Mayer and Zappos co-founder Tony Hsieh. Perry is working on something unprecedented. She is creating a device that will convert electricity into ultrasound, meaning sound waves not audible to the human ear, beam them into a charging device that will convert them back into electricity to power your mobile devices. The device will require a charger (which can be attached to a wall) and a receiver put on each device you want to charge. You are free to roam about the room with your device, even as it charges. But a physicist, named "Danny" has posted a blog called "How putting $10M into UBeam illustrates everything that is wrong with tech investing today." He argues that the physics of uBeam at best won't work and at worst, will be unsafe for your family, especially your pets. Other folks in the tech industry, also physicists, are already disputing Danny's post. "There's almost nothing right about his physics. It's mind-boggling," one of them tweeted. The whole thing has sparked a big discussion on Hacker News, Tumblr and elsewhere on if venture capitalists really have the technical chops to recognize true scientific breakthroughs from ideas that are fundamentally flawed. When VC Mark Suster wrote about the $10 million investment on Medium, he called it "the most ambitious project I’ve seen since I became a VC." (He joined the firm in 2007 after selling the startup he co-founded, Koral, to Salesforce.com.) uBeam was the "largest A-round check" Suster ever wrote, he said. So he lined up experts to help him investigate the company and its tech before investing. He wrote: Did the physics actually work? Check The proof will be in the product. uBeam says it has a few patents. Perry has created a prototype that the Valley has been buzzing about for years. Perry showed it around the TechCrunch Disrupt New York conference in 2012. The year before, she gave a demo at the AllThingsD conference. Those demos gained her the attention of the famous angels, which helped land that $10 million investment. By the way, uBeam isn't the only one trying to safely capture electricity from the air and use it power our mobile products. A company called WiTricity, for instance, is also working on that, with Intel. WiTricity is not using sound but magnetic fields to transfer energy. The company claims that this form of wireless electricity "is safe for operation around people and animals." We'll leave it to the scientists to figure out how to make all of this – or any of it – work. But it does seem like one day, battery life will not be an issue. Our devices will somehow sip all the electricity they need directly from the air. SEE ALSO: 'Blended Reality' Is The Next Tech Buzzword And HP's Plans For It Are Really Spectacular Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Ex-Apple Supplier Says A Soured Deal With Apple Forced It Into Bankruptcy | ||
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A former Apple supplier, GT Advanced Technologies (GTAT), is in the middle of filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy after a potentially lucrative partnership with the tech goliath fell apart. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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David Lee Roth's Sister Has Turned A Bunch Of Classic Rock Songs Into Lullabies | ||
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If you grew up loving classic rock and roll, you may want to pass that love onto your own kids, raising them on heavy metal from the time they're born. But as any new parent can tell you, nothing, NOTHING is more important than getting your little bundle to fall asleep and stay asleep. And rock music may not be the best choice for that. Enter Lisa Roth, the sister of David Lee Roth, former front man for 1980's rock band Van Halen. Lisa Roth is a music mogul in her own right, as vice president of music production company CMH Label Group. She's taken a bunch of classic rock songs, and even some popular current songs, and turned them into sweet lullabies. It's a music brand called Rockabye Baby that launched in 2006. "I was shopping for a baby shower gift for a friend that loves music and I didn’t see anything out there that was exciting or fun," she told us. She wanted something that would appeal to the parents as much as the baby. She had just started working at CMH Label Group when she thought of the Rockabye Baby idea. Flash forward to 2014 and she's sold 1.6 million lullaby albums and about 1.3 track downloads. Brother David Lee wasn't, for the most part, involved. "It's not a good idea to mix family and business," she laughs. But he did help her understand what it would take to get an artist to agree to license music to her "I take great care with the songs," she says. "I saw what my brother had to do to make it. Those were the days that were pre Voice, pre YouTube. I have the great respect for artists." By the way, she says she, personally, can't carry a tune, the only one in her family who can't sing. Running a record label is her musical outlet. CMH Label Group has a number of other brands that produces traditional lullaby albums, meditation music, country/bluegrass albums, and so on. Here are some snippets of three classic rock songs turned into lullabies. This is "Jump" by Van Halen. Click the box below to hear a snippet. (Here's the original on YouTube.) Here's "Yellow Submarine" from the Beatles. (Here's the original.) And here is David Bowie's Space Oddity. (Original.) SEE ALSO: WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Look What Happened To LinkedIn's First Employees Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Mark Zuckerberg Will Be Answering Your Questions On Thursday (FB) | ||
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Have you ever wanted to ask Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg a question? You'll soon get your chance. On Thursday, November 6 at 2 p.m. PT Zuckerberg will be doing a public Q&A, answering questions submitted to him via Facebook. While he hasn't exactly vowed to answer every question posed to him, that's the generally the idea. He explained in Facebook post: We have a tradition at Facebook, where every Friday we have a Q&A and all employees can come and ask me questions about anything they want. It's an important part of Facebook's culture. People ask thoughtful questions about why our company is going in certain directions, what I think about things happening in the world, and how we can continue improving our services for everyone. I learn a lot from these Q&As, and the questions people ask help us build better services. Now I want to extend this tradition to our whole community. ... On Thursday, November 6 at 2pm Pacific, I’ll be hosting our first public Q&A at Facebook. Ask me a question below in the comments, or vote on a question you want me to answer by liking it. I’ll be answering questions for about an hour, and will try to get through as many as I can. You can watch the livestream here on Thursday, and we’ll post the video afterwards. I look forward to answering your questions and hope you’ll tune in next week. Over the years, Zuckerberg has gone from an awkward public speaker to an elegant and thoughtful one. So this could be an interesting hour. Some of the questions posed to him so far: Why doesn't he use Twitter? Why did Facebook force people to install a new messenger app on their mobile phones? And what beer was he drinking when he created Facebook? Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Google Epically Screwed Up Its Flu Prediction Tool Last Year | ||
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Flu season has arrived and all eyes will be turning to Google's Flu prediction tool, which warns where the flu will hit next by watching people's internet searches. Google Flu was hailed as the shining example of how big data could be put to use for the public good when Google first launched it in 2008. And it worked well back then. Google compared its predictions against the cases that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) confirmed and its predictions were pretty darn close. But something went horribly wrong over the past two years, with Google over predicting the number of flu cases by 75% to 95%, the Wall Street Journal reports. The flu season was bad last year, but nearly not as bad as Google thought it would be. Essentially what happened was this, Google admitted in a blog post on Friday: When the flu hit, the media wrote stories about the flu and then people to jumped on Google and start searching about the flu. That caused Google Flu to predict huge outbreaks of the flu which caused the media to write even more stories about the flu, using the Google Flu prediction engine as a source ... and so on. Google also made another mistake with the tool. It only looked at the year-earlier CDC data once. As the CDC started reporting actual cases, Google didn't keep using the CDC data to check the accuracy of its predictions. Google says it has updated the tool and will now be using actual CDC data all season long. The good news is that both Google and the CDC say that flu cases are low so far this season. But it's early days yet and there are signs that the flu is starting to hit, the CDC says. Last year, the flu hit epidemic levels in some places in January. The CDC recommends getting a flu vaccine and if you are thinking about getting one, now would be a pretty good time. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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The Real Reason You'll Want An Apple Watch: Your Health Insurance Will Go Down (AAPL) | ||
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Last week, we attended WSJD Live, a tech conference out in Southern California. We bumped into a venture capitalist investing lots of money into startups in the healthcare space. We asked her what the coolest healthcare application for the Apple Watch will be. Her answer: apps that connect your body to your health insurance company. She offered, as an example, the car insurance industry. Right now insurace companies offer gadgets that you install in your car. These monitor how you drive — whether you stay inside the speed limit, brake too much, and generally obey traffic laws. If you're a safe driver, insurance companies will cut the rates you pay on car insurance. The same thing will happen for Apple Watch, this startup investor predicts. Apple Watch applications will monitor how you sleep, how much you exercise, and what you eat. If you follow certainly guidelines, your health insurance premiums will go down. No doubt some people will find this idea very creepy. Some of us will be glad to pay less to Aetna every two weeks — over longer lives. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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How E-Commerce Is Finally Disrupting The $600 Billion-A-Year Grocery Industry | ||
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At $600 billion a year in sales, food and beverage is by far the largest retail category in the U.S. by a wide margin. However, it's also the category that has been the least disrupted by e-commerce; less than 1% of food and beverage sales currently occur online, according to BI Intelligence's estimates. But shopping habits are changing, and niche online grocery services that compete on convenience and selection are gaining traction. Meanwhile tech giants like Amazon are fronting the cost of expensive delivery infrastructure that has so far held back grocery e-commerce. In a new in-depth report, BI Intelligence looks at why the grocery business has proved so challenging to e-commerce companies — from consumer reluctance to complicated and expensive logistics — and what new strategies e-commerce startups and big-name tech companies are pursuing to push more grocery sales online. Between 2013 and 2018, online grocery sales will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.1%, reaching nearly $18 billion by the end of the forecast period. For comparison, offline grocery sales will rise by 3.1% annually during the same period. Access The Full Report And Downloadable Charts By Signing Up For A Free Trial>> Here are some of the key findings explored in the report:
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60 Million People Have Watched A Millionaire YouTuber Transform Herself Into Barbie | ||
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Michelle Phan is one of the most well-known YouTube celebrities in the game. She has 37 million followers, a startup, a book, and much more on the way. She's not just a person, she's an empire. Back before she became totally famous, she was making makeup tutorial videos for her YouTube fans. Her Barbie tutorial is the most-watched YouTube video that has to do with makeup...with about 60 million views. In it, she transforms herself from normal and natural to the spitting image of Barbie. So how did Michelle Phan transform from regular woman... to the spitting image of Barbie? Makeup... See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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Here's What Nine Inch Nails' Frontman Thinks Went Wrong With U2's Album Release (AAPL) | ||
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Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor was in Cupertino when Tim Cook announced that U2's "Songs of Innocence" would be free for all iTunes customers. Now Reznor is speaking out about the album release, which angered many who found themselves unable to delete it, in an interview with Billboard's Joe Levy. Reznor said the album release would have been receieved very differently if users had been given the option of downloading "Songs of Innocence" rather than finding it in their libraries: I think the misstep was the wording: If it would've been, "Here it is, if you want it, come grab it..." I am assuming the momentum of that situation led to the oversight in not thinking that people might feel intruded upon. Reznor was with Bono right after Cook unleashed the album on iTunes customers worldwide: As an artist, when I make a piece of music, I'd like you to know it's out there. I don't want to force it down your throat, but I would like you to know that if you'd like to, you might brush against it -- it exists somewhere. So I can see the incentive behind what they wanted to do. I was with Bono that day. I was at the Apple event and we were hanging out after they did it. There's an immense sense of pride toward the album he just spent several years making. He was very proud of what he did. Bono's pride notwithstanding, Apple had to create a webpage to show users how to delete the album. That might not have bothered Bono, though. Apple reportedly paid U2 $100 million to distribute "Songs of Innocence." SEE ALSO: More Than 2 Million People Have Downloaded U2's New Album Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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26-Year-Old Successfully Crowd Funds To Pay For Her $362 Halloween Uber Ride | ||
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A woman named Gabby woke up on her 26th birthday and discovered the 20-minute Uber ride she took the night before, on Halloween, had cost her over $360, leaving her unable to pay her rent, she says. She posted a plea on the crowdfunding site "GoFund.Me" desperately asking for help. It worked. She raised $512 in 12 hours. We first saw the photo of the receipt on Instagram, which used the hashtag #uber.
On her GoFund.me site, which raised over $500 on Nov. 1, she writes: Last night was Halloween. Great time. Today is my 26th birthday. Not so great time. I live in Baltimore and went out with my friends to celebrate my birthday at midnight. When 3 AM rolled around, I suggested we take an Uber hole to avoid drunk driving (#responsibility/#MADD). I live 22 minutes , tops, from the party I was leaving. I feel taken advantage of and cheated by the Uber name. $367 for a 20 minute ride should never be justified, even on Halloween. Please donate even just $1 if you think this is utter and complete bullshit and also hilarious and very, very depressing at the same time. Neither Gabby nor Uber have responded to Business Insider's request for comment. | ||
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How To 'Undo' A Sent Message In Gmail — And 6 Other Essential Tips | ||
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So many of us use Gmail, but there's a lot you don't know about it. Here are some tips. Produced by Matt Johnston Follow BI Video: On Facebook Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Toshiba's New Chromebook Is Super Affordable And Has A Battery That Can Last | ||
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For the past few years, Chromebooks have been relatively limited. Now, as Google has worked to expand the functionality of its internet-based laptops, manufacturers have done their part to offer more variety too. The Toshiba Chromebook 13 is an example of that. Toshiba was among the first PC makers to offer a larger-sized 13-inch Chromebook, and this year it’s refreshed that model with a slimmer, more attractive design. If you’re not familiar with Chromebooks, there are a few important things you should know. A Chromebook looks like a standard laptop, but it’s not. Instead of running Windows, Mac OSX, or Linux, it runs Google’s own operating system called Chrome OS. Chromebooks are designed to be used while connected to the internet, and can’t do too much otherwise. So, if you typically use your laptop to browse the web and use services like Google Drive and Gmail often, a Chromebook may be a good fit for you. But if you use a lot of desktop software, such as iTunes, Photoshop, and any other service you can’t get on the web, you might want to stick with a traditional laptop. I’ve spent a week with Toshiba’s new Chromebook, and it’s one of the best I’ve used yet. Here’s what I came away with. The BasicsToshiba’s new Chromebook 2 comes with a 13.3-inch display, and it’s available in two resolutions: 1366 x 768 and 1920 x 1080. Our review unit featured the latter, which costs $349, while the version with a lower-resolution display is priced at $249. Since Chromebooks aren’t designed to handle heavy computing tasks, they can get by with Intel’s entry-level line of Celeron processors. These chips are made to take on simple tasks such as browsing the internet, answering emails, and creating documents. Toshiba’s new Chromebook runs on one of these Intel Celeron processors. The Toshiba Chromebook 2 comes with 16GB of storage packed into a solid state drive, and since it’s a Chromebook you also get 100GB of cloud storage in Google Drive for two years. How It Looks And Feels
The lid and underside of Toshiba’s new Chromebook are encased in a somewhat coarse, textured material. It’s not exactly the sexiest finish, but I’m confident I can throw this thing in my bag and it won't get scratched or dirty. The inside of the Chromebook is much more polished, with a smooth finish that looks like brushed metal and a black backlit keyboard. The edges are ever so slightly tapered in a teardrop shape, faintly resembling the razor thin design of Apple’s MacBook Air. Toshiba’s Chromebook is nowhere near as thin and light as Apple’s ultra-thin laptop, but it also costs a fraction of the price. The important thing: it is definitely light enough to schlep around and use in your lap. Using ItThe Toshiba Chromebook 2 is perfectly suitable as a personal computer for casual users. I’ve been using it as my home PC for the past two weeks, and it was exactly what I needed for checking email, streaming Spotify, looking at my Facebook feed, and doing some light work. The Chromebook boots up extremely fast, so it was easy to get some work done, shut it down, and pick up where I left off later on. The Chromebook 2’s screen is also incredibly gorgeous and detailed, making it enjoyable to watch Netflix, look at photos, and read text. The speakers, however, left a little something to be desired. Toshiba partnered with Skullcandy on the speakers in its new Chromebook, but when blasting music the sound came through a bit shallow and weak. It almost sounded as if I was playing music through a smartphone or tablet rather than a laptop.
Toshiba’s new Chromebook lasts a long time on a single charge, too. When using the device sparingly to check email here and there after work, I was able to get a solid 4-5 days out of it. If you’re using the Chromebook as your everyday work device, or plan to use it in long sessions, you’ll probably get about seven hours or so out of it. The Chromebook 2 worked wonderfully as a personal laptop, but there are a few reasons I don’t think I could get by using it as a full-fledged work computer. For one, the keyboard just isn’t as sturdy as what you would get with a desktop computer or premium laptop. It gets the job done, but the keys feel shallow which doesn’t make it ideal for typing really long research papers or articles. Plus, the Google Chrome ecosystem still doesn't provide for every computing need that comes up in my typical workday. It is completely capable of handling maybe about 85% of all the things I do on a regular basis. But sometimes I need more advanced photo editing software than what Chrome has to offer so far, for example. That being said, Google is doing its part to make sure its super-cheap laptops come as close as possible to providing a full PC experience. Google’s Chrome app store offers a bunch of apps that work offline too, and it keeps adding more. You can also enable apps like Google Drive to work offline, so you can continue to edit and create documents and spreadsheets without an internet connection. Is This The Chromebook To Buy?
Toshiba’s new Chromebook 2 is among the best Chromebooks I’ve used. It has a beautiful screen, great battery life, and it’s comfortable to use in your lap. That’s not to say it’s perfect (the sound could be better), but it’s definitely worth the price. It’s also a bit cheaper than Samsung’s 13-inch Chromebook 2, which starts at $499 for similar specifications. I would definitely recommend the Toshiba Chromebook 2 if you’re looking for a 13-inch Chromebook. But if you want something a bit smaller and lighter, check out Acer’s C720 Chromebook (Acer offers 13-inch Chromebooks too) or Samsung’s new Chromebook 2. SEE ALSO: Should You Buy A Chromebook? Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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'Blended Reality' Is The Next Tech Buzzword And HP's Plans For It Are Really Spectacular | ||
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You've probably heard of "virtual reality." That's what you get when you put on an Oculus Rift headset and feel like you've entered a completely new world. Maybe you've heard of "augmented reality." That's what you get when you put on Google Glass and it projects Google-y facts or images on the world. Or you run an app like Star Chart on your smartphone, hold it up to the sky and it superimposes the constellations on your view of the sky. Surely you've heard of real reality, the stuff that happens when you aren't sleeping. But a few days ago, with the introduction of HP's jaw-dropping new "Sprout" PC, something called "blended reality" has arrived. The sprout PC replaces a keyboard and mouse with touchscreen, scanner and other features that let you take actual objects and easily "put" them into your PC. For instance, you can set an object on a computer pad, and it scans a 3D image of it into your machines.
But the real magic happens when you take the Sprout PC (available next week, November 10) and combine it with a 3D printer, a device that instantly manufacturers things, as easily as printing a document. HP also announced a new 3D printer (expected 2016), that could be a breakthrough in 3D printing, able to use a wider variety of materials at a lower cost than current printers. If HP's plans for it pan out, it could put 3D printing into the hands of every business and home. (First up, HP has a plan to put 3D printers into places where people can share them, along the lines of a FedEx Kinko's, as Recode's Arik Hesseldahl describes the plan.) Put the Sprout and 3D printer together and you'll be able make actual objects move in and out of your computer with a swish of your hands. For instance, you scan an object, make changes to it, hit print, and in a few minutes, you get the real life thingy-me-bob you just dreamed up. But that could be just the first step for "blended reality" just like a Fitbit or Pebble smartwatch is a first step in the wearable computer market. "Blended reality" is a term used five years ago by futurist think tank Institute For The Future. The IFTF envisioned it as a sort of tech-enabled sixth sense, which will be worn or maybe even implanted into our bodies and interface with our computers. "We are literally beginning to see and feel the world through a new set of eyes and ears—things that were previously invisible become visible, and we see the familiar in a new way," as the IFTF describes it. For instance, with blended reality glasses, you can add a "good mood" filter to keep you happy. Here's how the IFTF imagined blended reality back in 2009. And if you really want to understand where all of this might be going, read Kim Stanley Robinson's 2012 sci-fi bestseller "2312." It describes a mind-blowing world 300 years in the future based on technologies being developed today. You won't be able to forget it. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Smartwatches Are The Breakout Category That Will Finally Ignite The Wearable Computing Market | ||
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For now, most of the devices need to connect with a smartphone or tablet for most of their functionality. Wearables also suffer from a perception problem. Consumers still don't understand how a wearable might really benefit them. In a recent report on the wearable computing market from BI Intelligence, we also discuss other barriers to adoption, including price, lack of functionality, and style. We also look at how how the wearables market will perform in the long run. We forecast out shipments numbers, explain why the smartwatch will be the leading wearable device category going forward, and analyze proprietary results from our BI Intelligence consumer survey on smartwatch purchase intent. Access The Full Report And Data By Signing Up For A Trial Today >> Here are some key points from the report:
The report is full of charts and data that can be downloaded and put to use. In full, the report:
For full access to all BI Intelligence's charts, data, and analysis on the mobile and Internet of Things industry, sign up for a two-week trial.
Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Wearables face unique obstacles that will lead them to have less of an immediate market impact compared with tablets and smartphones.
Ginni Rometty Has A Plan To Turn IBM Around And She's Spending Billions Of Dollars On It | ||
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Billionaire Mark Cuban, who slammed IBM last week, clearly isn't paying close-enough attention. Cuban said that "IBM is no longer a tech company ... they have no vision." But IBM CEO Ginni Rometty does have a vision – to dominate the next high-profit areas of computing – and she's already launched a huge number of creative ideas to get IBM there. Fresh New PartnersFor instance, this week alone she signed two big cloud computing deals. On Friday, IBM announced an agreement with huge Chinese internet provider Tencent to build a new cloud for Chinese businesses. Tencent provides Internet to 1 billion users. The companies are going to build a bunch of new apps hosted on that new cloud. IBM already has multiple cloud data centers in China. Rometty could have tried to go it alone to write apps and attract Chinese businesses. But by partnering with a big, local name, she greatly increased the company's chances to be a player in the world's fastest growing economy. IBM also signed a huge partnership deal with Twitter on Wednesday. Rometty worked directly with Twitter CEO Dick Costolo to make it happen, she said. IBM and Twitter will write new business apps, hosted on IBM's cloud, that make better use of Twitter data. These apps are not just about watching for mentions in a tweet or measuring sentiment. They will use tweets to analyze information in real time, so companies can make faster, better business decisions. Imagine an app for a pharma company that uses Twitter to track the flu, so it knows when to up production of antiviral medication, for instance. IBM will also train 10,000 consultants to write custom twitter-analysis apps for companies. The Twitter deal follows IBM's landmark deal with Apple to sell more iPads and iOS phones to enterprises by writing more custom mobile apps for them. The fruits of that will begin next month, with the first dozen apps available this quarter, being tested by the first 50 customers.
11 Months Of Creative ManeuversThose deals follow a whole bunch of other interesting, creative announcements under Rometty's reign. Since January IBM has: ... committed $1 billion to turn its mind-blowing natural language analytics engine Watson into a cloud service. Watson powers everything from new cancer treatments to a personalized shopper app (you can ask Watson if you should buy that shirt). ... launched a new cloud service called Bluemix, which lets developers write and host apps in the cloud. This competes with services from Microsoft, Google, Salesforce.com, and includes access to Watson. ... expanded its partnership with SAP where SAP will offer its software via IBM's cloud internationally, a major win over competitor Amazon. ... launched a new family of hardware with the new Power 8 chip. These systems are geared toward the cloud and can quickly crunch through massive amounts of data. IBM is also giving away the Power 8 designs as a free and open source project, so any company can take them, change them. (We'll see if any of this helps Power 8 become popular, but it is a creative approach.) ... spending $3 billion to invent new kinds of microchips, possibly ones that don't use silicon. These announcements are in addition to the typical things you'd expect Rometty to do: spending more than $1 billion to build more data centers globally, launching software to help companies build clouds in their own data centers, supporting cloud apps for the Internet of Things.
At A CrossroadsThere's no doubt that IBM is at a crossroads right now. IBM's revenues have shrunk 10 quarters in a row as companies shift from buying expensive hardware, software and consulting to renting it all, at lower costs, from service providers (AKA cloud computing). Earlier this month Rometty had to admit that IBM's years-long promise to create $20 earnings per share profit by 2015 was not going to happen. The stock had been riding high on her repeated promise that IBM was on target to meet this goal. It's since crashed about 10% to about $164.
Rometty and the board had been twisting IBM into pretzels over that promise, borrowing billions of dollars to buy back shares, laying off thousands of workers and ditching underperforming business units to trim expenses. IBM even signed an unusual deal to shed its microchip business to GlobalFoundries, paying GlobalFoundaries $1.5 billion to take over the money-losing unit. But with declining revenues, IBM had to admit it wouldn't meet that goal. It hasn't, however, completely given up those tactics. The board this week said it will add another $5 billion to the share buyback program. That's in addition to the $1.4 billion it still has in the kitty to buy back shares. IBM has already spent $13.5 billion to repurchase stock in the first nine months of the year (more than double its net income), Reuters reports. Since 2000, IBM has spent $108 billion buying back shares. And that's why Cuban told CNBC last week that IBM has no vision. "What they've evolved into is a company that does [arbitrage] on acquisitions. It's stock buybacks. Who is IBM anymore?" The jury is still out as to if and when Rometty's efforts will turn the tide. But she's definitely working all the angles. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Lena Dunham Goes On Twitter 'Rage Spiral' After Conservative Site Accuses Her Of Molesting Her Sister | ||
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Actress and writer Lena Dunham went on a Twitter offensive Saturday after an article on the conservative website "Truth Revolt" accused her of "sexually abusing her little sister." The article, which was published on Wednesday, referred to an anecdote in Dunham's recent book, "Not That Kind of Girl" where she describes an incident that occurred when she was seven-years-old and she "spread open" her one-year-old sister's vagina to see whether it was "like mine." Truth Revolt, which is run by the conservative pundit Ben Shapiro and the David Horowitz Freedom Center, initially claimed the incident occurred when Dunham was seventeen, but later added a correction. The anecdote also attracted the attention of the conservative magazine National Review. On her Twitter page Saturday afternoon, Dunham described the anecdote as "a story about being a weird 7 year old" and said she found the coverage of it "upsetting and disgusting. She did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. View her tweets below.
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COMMERCIAL DRONES: Assessing The Potential For A New Drone-Powered Economy | ||
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Not too long ago, when most people heard the word “drones,” they thought of unmanned military aircraft engaged in highly controversial clandestine operations. But when Jeff Bezos announced that Amazon was testing the idea of delivering packages via drones, he made drones with popular commercial application suddenly seem like a viable proposition. While drones are unlikely to become a part of our daily lives in the immediate future, they will soon begin taking on much larger roles for businesses and some individual consumers, from delivering groceries and e-commerce orders to revolutionizing private security, to changing the way farmers manage their crops — perhaps even aerial advertising. In a new report from BI Intelligence, we size the commercial and military drone market to estimate how big the drone industry could become, and which industries are most likely to see drones become part of their business model in the next few years. We also look at what components industries, like GPS and sensors manufacturers, will be working to become drone-ready. And we assess how drone development will proceed in light of stiff safety and privacy concerns and regulatory hurdles. Access The Full Report By Signing Up For A Free Trial Today>> Here are some of the issues and opportunities that will impact how the drone industry develops:
In full, the report:
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How Homeless People Use Technology: A Photo Essay On Street Poverty And Consumer Gadgets | ||
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It could be easy to assume that those living on the streets of New York City don't own any gadgets, but that's not always the case. Over the course of two weeks last year, we interviewed dozens of homeless people to find out what kind of consumer electronics they own — and more importantly, what they use them for. From laptops and iPhones, to government-provided phones, it quickly became clear that many homeless people use gadgets to stay connected, search for jobs, and pursue their own creative interests. Note: All people shown have given their permission for us to take their picture, though some requested we not show their faces. This is Calvin, who owns both a Dell Inspiron laptop and a Samsung smartphone. Calvin uses his phone mostly for listening to music, and if he turns down the graphics settings on his laptop, he can run most modern games. "I can run 'Oblivion' or 'Skyrim' just fine," he said. "King" is originally from Virginia. While he has been in New York for most of his life, King is trying to change that. "I'm trying to move away as we speak," he said. "I would like to go to North Carolina." See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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Apple Is Reportedly Planning A 12-Inch iPad That Will Be Like Microsoft's Surface (AAPL) | ||
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Here's the oddest Apple rumor that just won't go away. Apple is planning a 12.2-inch iPad that will rival Microsoft's Surface tablet. The big iPad, which many are calling the "iPad Pro," will be thinner than the iPhone 6 Plus, according to Japanese site Macotakara, via Apple Insider. The iPad Pro will supposedly have better speakers than an iPad Air 2, but it will be similar to an iPad Air. There have been numerous reports about Apple developing a larger iPad, so we believe it's going to happen. The larger iPad seems like it would fill the gap between the current iPad and a laptop if Apple were able to change the software and add an attachable keyboard like Microsoft does with the Surface. The iPad has lost its footing lately. Perhaps this new screen size, and the use case that comes with it, could inject life back into iPad sales. If Apple does an iPad Pro it will be a bit of a surprise since the company's executives have been overwhelmingly dismissive of the Surface. In 2012, Apple CEO Tim Cook was asked about two-in-one laptop/tablet hybrids. This is what he said: I think, Tony, anything can be forced to converge. But the problem is that products are about trade-offs, and you begin to make trade-offs to the point where what you have left at the end of the day doesn't please anyone. You can converge a toaster and a refrigerator, but those things are probably not going to be pleasing to the user. And so our view is that the tablet market is huge. And we've said that since day one. We didn't wait until we had a lot of results. We were using them here, and it was already clear to us that there was so much you could do and that the reasons that people would use those would be so broad. And that's precisely what we've seen. ... Now having said that, I also believe that there is a very good market for the MacBook Air, and we continue to innovate in that product. And -- but I do think that it appeals to somewhat -- someone that has a little bit different requirements. And you wouldn't want to put these things together because you wind up compromising in both and not pleasing either user. Some people will prefer to own both, and that's great, too. But I think to make the compromises of convergence, so -- we're not going to that party. Others might. Others might from a defensive point of view, particularly. But we're going to play in both. And then earlier this year Phil Schiller, SVP of Marketing, told MacWorld: It’s not an either/or. It’s a world where you’re going to have a phone, a tablet, a computer, you don’t have to choose. And so what’s more important is how you seamlessly move between them all… It’s not like this is a laptop person and that’s a tablet person. It doesn’t have to be that way. When Apple releases an iPad Pro, we expect the software will be different, which will allow Apple to defend its previous statements. It won't have Mac software and iPad software. Instead it will only be iPad software. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Here's Richard Branson's Vision For The Future Of Virgin Galactic | ||
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One pilot died Friday after Virgin's SpaceShipTwo crashed in the Mojave desert following what the company called "an in-flight anomaly." On Saturday Virgin Group founder Richard Branson told reporters: "We would love to finish what we started some years ago." In September, Branson spoke to our own Henry Blodget on a range of issues, including his friendly rivalry with Elon Musk about their competing visions for space. Branson also discussed the future of Virgin Galactic. Produced by Justin Gmoser Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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7 Cool Things You Didn't Know You Could Do On Facebook | ||
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Facebook has a lot more to offer than you may think. From 'pirate language' to turning all baby photos into cute kittens, these 7 features will improve your daily Facebook experience. Produced by Justin Gmoser Follow BI Video: On Facebook Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Murakami says Japan ignoring WWII, Fukushima role: report | ||
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Tokyo (AFP) - Japanese writer Haruki Murakami has chided his country for shirking responsibility for its World War II aggression and the Fukushima nuclear disaster in an interview published Monday. Speaking to the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper, the 65-year-old author said: "No one has taken real responsibility for the 1945 war end or the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident. I feel so." "After the war, it was eventually concluded that no one was wrong," said Murakami of the pervasive attitude in Japan. Japanese people have come to consider themselves as "victims" of the war, he added. Murakami, one of Japan's best known writers who has repeatedly been tipped as a future Nobel Literature laureate, said that it was natural for China and the Koreas to continue to feel resentment towards Japan for its wartime aggressions. "Fundamentally, Japanese people tend not to have an idea that they were also assailants, and the tendency is getting clearer," he said. Japan's lack of repentance over its behaviour in the first half of the 20th century continues to strain relations with regional neighbours. Murakami also said Japan did not seriously pursue who was really responsible for the 2011 crisis at Fukushima -- when powerful earthquake and tsunami caused a reactor meltdown and radiation leaks -- choosing instead to blame the disaster on uncontrollable natural events. "I'm afraid that it can be understood that the earthquake and tsunami were the biggest assailants and the rest of us were all victims. That's my biggest concern." Murakami's latest novel "Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage" was released in Europe and the United States this summer. He lost out on this year's Nobel to Patrick Modiano, a historical novelist who writes about France's painful experience of Nazi occupation. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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SORRELL: Publicis' Acquisition Of Sapient 'Looks Like The Behavior Of A Jilted Lover' (WPP) | ||
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Sir Martin Sorrell, the chief executive of the world's biggest advertising agency holding group WPP, has reacted quickly to the news this Monday morning that rival Publicis Groupe is acquiring digital advertising company Sapient for $3.7 billion. He told Business Insider: "It looks like the behavior of a jilted lover. Christmas came early for Sapient shareholders." Sorrell is presumably referring to Publicis failed $35 billion merger with Omnicom, which was due to create the world's largest advertising group, overtaking WPP, but which collapsed in May this year. Sorrell is currently traveling and could not be reached for further clarification, but this story will be updated when he sends an additional response. Last month on Publicis Groupe's Q3 earnings call, the company's chief executive Maurice Levy admitted his company's poor results in the quarter were his fault for being distracted by the doomed Omnicom merger. He also admitted Publicis was the more interested party in the plans than Omnicom, a company he said was more keen on a takeover than a merger. This story is developing, please click here to refresh the page. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Publicis Groupe Is Acquiring Sapient For $3.7 billion (PUB) | ||
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French advertising holding group Publicis Groupe has announced it is to acquire US-based digital marketing company Sapient in an all-cash transaction for $25 per share, worth $3.7 billion. Publicis says the acquisition will give the agency group access to new markets and the ability to create new revenue streams. It also means the group wil achieve its target of deriving 50% of its revenues from digital three years ahead of its 2018 plan. The transaction will also create a communications, marketing, omni-channel and technology group with combined revenues in excess of €8 billion and combined EBIDTA of approximately €1.3 billion. It also means Publicis will now have a workforce of more than 75,000 people worldwide. Publicis says the new group will deliver around €50 million in cost savings, through the integration of digital production, particularly leveraging Sapient's production infrastracture in India, some real estate consolidation, G&A reductions and procurement savings. The purchase is Publicis' latest effort to bolster its digital offering and comes five months after Publicis called off its attempt to form a merger with Omnicom Group. Sapient's share price last closed at $17.32 and its stock has seen a sharp run up since late October, suggesting investors knew an acquisition could be approaching. Publicis Groupe's stock is currently up on its close last night of $54.04. The acquisition wil create a platform to be named Publicis.Sapient, which the companies say in statement will create the "largest and most advanced" platform focused exclusively on digital transformation and "the dynamics of an always-on world across marketing, omni-channel commerce, consulting and technology." Publicis.Sapient will also include other Publicis digital agencies including DigitasLBI, Razorfish Global and Rosetta. Publcis.Sapient will be led by Sapient CEO Alan Herrick. He first joined the company in 1995 and became the company's chief and a member of the board of directors in 2006. He was named co-chairman of the board in June 2012. Sapient's clients include Coca-Cola, Unilever and Audi. The company has delivered compound annual revenue growth of 15% from 2010 to 2013. In a statement, Publicis Groupe CEO and chairman Maurice Levy says: "Sapient is a 'crown jewel,' a one of a kind company born in the technology space with strengths in marketing, communications, consulting and omni-chanel commerce, all of which are equally important to best help clients achieve their digital transformation." The transaction has been approved unanimously by the management and supervisory boards of both companies. It is still subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015. News of the acquisition comes just a few days after the chief executive of rival advertising holding group WPP, Sir Martin Sorrell, said his company's $25 million stake in AppNexus left Publicis and Omnicom with "nowhere to go" when it comes to digital advertising. This story is developing, please click here to refresh the page. SEE ALSO: SORRELL: WPP's $25 Million Stake In AppNexus Leaves Publicis And Omnicom With 'Nowhere To Go' Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Why Ryanair Thinks That Europe's Dismal Economy Will Give It A Boost | ||
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Ryanair hiked its profit forecast by 18 percent on Monday on better-than-expected winter bookings and said it would cut fares by up to 10 percent in the spring to boost its share of the European short-haul market. The Irish airline said it would carry 2.2 million passengers more than previously forecast in the six months to March. According to Bloomberg, on a results call, Ryanair's outspoken CEO Michael O'Leary explained why a slowing European economy would be good news for the budget airline: "I always have concerns about the European economy, but customers are getting more and more price sensitive and are switching to Ryanair even more," he said. That should allow it to boost its profit after tax for the 12 months to March to between 750 and 770 million euros, up from to a previous forecast of 620 to 650 million euros, it said in a statement. It expects to fly 89 million passengers in the year to March compared to 82 million in the same period last year. The hike comes after the airline announced a series of improvements to its customer service and a new business product that allows passengers to change their bookings for free. Higher-cost rivals Lufthansa and Air France have both lowered their profit forecasts in recent days on higher competition and the cost of industrial action. (Reporting by Conor Humphries; Editing by Edwina Gibbs) SEE ALSO: The Euro Zone Is The World's Biggest Economic Problem Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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British banker appears in Hong Kong court charged with double murder | ||
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Hong Kong (AFP) - A British banker appeared in a Hong Kong court on Monday charged with the grisly murder of two women whose bodies were found in his upmarket apartment, one of them decomposing in a suitcase. Rurik Jutting, a 29-year-old former securities trader at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, appeared calm as he was charged with two counts of murder. He was remanded in custody to appear in court again on November 10.
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Bangladesh court upholds top Islamist's death sentence | ||
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Dhaka (AFP) - Bangladesh's highest court Monday upheld the death sentence against a leader of the largest Islamist party after he was convicted of committing war crimes, including mass murder, during the 1971 independence conflict. The Supreme Court appeals panel headed by Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha read out the judgement, saying the original execution order handed down against Mohammad Kamaruzzam in May last year would stand. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Terminally ill US woman who fought for right to die kills self | ||
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Los Angeles (AFP) - A young American woman with terminal cancer has committed suicide, following promises to do so that had triggered shock and controversy over the right to die. Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old brain cancer sufferer, made headlines earlier this month when a video of her making her suicide threat went viral and was seen by millions of web users. "Goodbye to all my dear friends and family that I love. Today is the day I have chosen to pass away with dignity in the face of my terminal illness, this terrible brain cancer that has taken so much from me... but would have taken so much more," she wrote in a message circulated widely on social media. "The world is a beautiful place, travel has been my greatest teacher, my close friends and folks are the greatest givers. I even have a ring of support around my bed as I type... Goodbye world. Spread good energy. Pay it forward!" Sean Crowley, spokesman for Compassion & Choices, an end-of-life activist group that supported Maynard, said she died peacefully in her home on November 1. "Brittany has died, but her love of life and nature, her passion and spirit endure," the organization's president, Barbara Coombs Lee, added. "In Brittany's memory, do what matters most. And tell those you love how much they matter to you. We will work to carry on her legacy of bringing end-of-life choice to all Americans." In January, Maynard was given six months to live and told her death would be painful because of the aggressive nature of her cancer. She had been trying for a first child with her husband Dan Diaz at the time, but gave up due to her disease. Maynard and her husband, who had just married when she began having severe headaches, moved from their home in California to Oregon, one of a handful of US states with a "right-to-die" law. A doctor could therefore prescribe her the medication she needs to end her own life, surrounded by her family in the bedroom she shares with her husband. On Thursday, she had released a new video in which she said she might temporarily delay her appointment with a self-administered cocktail of potentially deadly drugs. But the delay was a short one. Her story has made headlines around the world, and she was featured on the cover of last week's People magazine in the United States. Maynard has in recent weeks and months been working to tick off items on a "bucket list" of what she wants to do before she dies -- including traveling to the Grand Canyon last week. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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F1 driver Hamilton thanks fans, flag power as title looms | ||
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Austin (AFP) - A serene Lewis Hamilton increased his lead in the world championship to 24 points and then thanked his fans for their support after he swept to victory in the United States Grand Prix. It was his fifth consecutive victory, his 10th of the season and the 32nd of his career -– one more than Nigel Mansell -– making him the British driver with the most career successes in Formula One. "I feel very privileged to be at the top of the British winners," he said. "It means so much. "I did my homework for this race last night. I felt confident I could win and I had great energy from the British fans with all the flags here today. The fans were great and I never had any doubt I could win." The 29-year-old, who started second behind his pole sitting Mercedes teammate and nearest rival Nico Rosberg, took the lead with a bold move after 24 laps on his way to a perfectly-measured triumph ahead of the German by 4.314 seconds. His triumph meant he also became the first Briton since Mansell, in 1992, to win five races in a row. Hamilton, the 2008 champion, now has 316 points to Rosberg's 292 following the Englishman's dominant success, earned by clever tyre preservation and well-judged speed, with two races remaining, including the final race in Abu Dhabi where double points are scored. Hamilton added: "It is such a privilege to represent my country and to be top of the drivers' standings. It's been an incredible run. This whole season has been incredible." "For me, I think it goes back to growing up in Stevenage where I never thought I would be in this position and have people supporting me all over the world, wearing my top, the cap and waving the flags. "I have made a conscious decision these last few years, I have felt more mature and I know this is a great sport, but it is also a great platform for me to inspire others -– to inspire people never to give up and to keep pushing and keep working at it to achieve what you want." The result left the two Mercedes men as the only drivers now capable of winning the title contest which will go down to the wire in Abu Dhabi on November 23, no matter the result in Brazil next weekend. Sunday's triumph was also the Mercedes team's 10th one-two triumph of the year, equalling the 1998 record set by McLaren's pairing of Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. Hamilton also became the first Briton to win 10 races in a season, a feat achieved by two Germans Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel. Mansell said on Twitter: "Brilliant for Lewis and Mercedes. Nico put up a strong fight but Lewis did a fantastic job. "Many congratulations –- five wins on the trot and 32 wins altogether." Rosberg was downcast at his latest setback. "It kind of sucks," he said. "It took too long for me to find my rhythm. It's pretty simple. In the overtake, I knew there was a chance he could try it. I tried halfway defensive, but Lewis did a good job and that was it. "Five to 10 laps later, I started to feel ok, but unfortunately it was too late. I never gave up, I was determined to put pressure on Lewis all the way and try to get closer, but it just wasn't possible. "What is clear is that I still have a chance and so I go to Brazil and keep pushing, flat out, try to be on pole and win and that is it. There are many points to be won and a lot can still happen." Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Van Gaal says beaten Manchester United getting closer | ||
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Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) - Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal feels his side are getting closer to the Premier League's leading teams despite having made their worst start to a season since 1986. After drawing 1-1 with league leaders Chelsea the previous weekend, United lost 1-0 at derby rivals Manchester City on Sunday, with Sergio Aguero scoring the winning goal after United defender Chris Smalling was sent off. United also lost Argentine centre-back Marcos Rojo to a dislocated shoulder, but although the result left the 20-time champions 13 points adrift of Chelsea, Van Gaal believes they are making progress. "In spite of all the injuries, we were very close with Chelsea last week and also this week we were very close, but not close enough, and we have to make steps still to improve," he said. Aguero struck in the 63rd minute after Smalling was shown two yellow cards in the first half for attempting to block a clearance by Joe Hart and then sliding in on James Milner, but United finished the match strongly. "Of course as a coach or as a manager you can be proud of the last 20 minutes because they showed unbelievable willpower and we could have scored at that moment," said Van Gaal, who described Smalling's dismissal as "stupid". "I have seen the willpower of this team that I said to the players is fantastic, but we have still only 13 points out of 10 games and that is not so much." Van Gaal's assessment of United's display was echoed by his captain Wayne Rooney, who played as a deep-lying number 10 on his return to the team after a three-match suspension. "We have to focus on ourselves. You can see every week we are getting better," the England striker told Sky Sports. "We are not far away from being back up there and being a very good side. We came here for a result and leave with no points, so we are disappointed."
- Kolarov injured -
City's victory brought them four consecutive league successes over United for the first time since 1970 and ended a damaging run of three matches without a win in all competitions. The English champions face a key Champions League fixture at home to CSKA Moscow on Wednesday and City captain Vincent Kompany said the victory over United would allow his team to approach the game with confidence. "The derby win is massive. For a minute, the league doesn't matter," said the Belgium centre-back. "It is a boost for us and we will do our job again in the Champions League on Wednesday." City manager Manuel Pellegrini said that French centre-back Eliaquim Mangala should be fit to face CSKA Moscow after sitting out Sunday's game with a thigh problem, but Aleksandar Kolarov is unlikely to play after injuring his calf in the warm-up. City had three strong penalty appeals waved away before Aguero turned in Gael Clichy's cut-back to claim his 10th goal of the season, but Pellegrini refused to criticise match official Michael Oliver, saying: "It is very difficult to be a referee." United finished the game with midfielder Michael Carrick and 19-year-old Paddy McNair at centre-back, while an injury to Rafael da Silva meant that winger Antonio Valencia started the game at right-back. With Phil Jones and Jonny Evans currently sidelined, Van Gaal has a defensive headache ahead of United's next game at home to Crystal Palace, but he believes there is sufficient depth in his squad to compensate. "We have a lot of injuries in defence, as you know, but you have also seen how Michael Carrick has come in and Paddy McNair has come in," said the Dutchman. "We have still 11 players to play and also very good players, so I don't cry for that. It is sometimes difficult to select the best team, but I think I can manage that." Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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We Asked 'The Walking Dead' Creator If There Will Be A Spinoff | ||
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We interviewed Robert Kirkman – the creator of "The Walking Dead" – at New York Comic Con 2014. Produced by Matthew Stuart and Alana Kakoyiannis. Special thanks to Kirsten Acuna. Follow BI Video: On Facebook Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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British banker to appear in Hong Kong court charged with double murder | ||
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Hong Kong (AFP) - A British banker will appear in a Hong Kong court Monday to face murder charges after the grim discovery of two women's bodies, including one in a suitcase, in his upmarket apartment, police said. Investigators said a holding charge of two counts of murder had been laid against the 29-year-old man, who worked for Bank of America Merrill Lynch as a securities trader and was identified in local media as British expatriate Rurik Jutting. He was arrested after calling police to his flat on the 31st floor of the residential block in the popular expatriate district of Wanchai in the early hours of Saturday morning. Investigators found a naked woman with knife wounds to her neck and buttock in the living room of the flat. The corpse of the other woman was discovered decaying inside a suitcase on the balcony. The woman found in the living room, described by police as a foreigner aged between 25 and 30, was declared dead at the scene, with the cause thought to be a cut to her throat. Police were scouring thousands of photographs stored on a mobile phone seized from the suspect, including some showing one of the corpses wrapped in a carpet inside a suitcase on the balcony, the South China Morning Post reported. On social network platform LinkedIn, Rurik Jutting is listed as a graduate of Cambridge University. "A person with that name previously worked at this firm," Bank of America Merrill Lynch spokesman Paul Scanlon told AFP. A person by the name posted on social media last week he was embarking on a "new journey". "Stepping down from the ledge. Burden lifted; new journey begins. Scared and anxious but also excited. The first step is always the hardest," said the posting uploaded to Facebook on Monday.
- Body in suitcase -
The victims are believed by police to be sex workers of Southeast Asian origin, local reports said. One of the victims was thought to be a 25-year-old Indonesian, the government in Jakarta said, adding that its consulate in Hong Kong was coordinating with police to identify her. Officers said earlier maggots were found in the corpse hidden in a suitcase. "From what we can see it was intentionally hidden because it was put in a travel suitcase," police assistant district commander Wan Siu-hung told reporters. "This body belonged to a person who has passed away for quite some time." A resident said a "disgusting" smell had been emanating from the building. "It was the smell of a dead body. Maybe the police were moving it," the man, who lived on the 11th floor and refused to give his name, told AFP on Sunday. Britain's Foreign Office confirmed that a British national had been arrested in the southern Chinese city. "We are in touch with the local police and stand ready to provide consular assistance," it said. Hong Kong, a city of seven million, has low crime rates and only 14 cases of homicide were reported in the first half of the year. But in recent years the public was gripped by a lurid case dubbed the "Milkshake Murder" in which American housewife Nancy Kissel killed her banker husband. Kissel, now serving a life sentence, was convicted of drugging her husband -- a senior executive at Merrill Lynch -- with a sedative-laced strawberry drink before clubbing him to death with a lead ornament at their luxury home in 2003. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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This Map Shows Your State's Favorite Band | ||
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Paul Lamere is the director of developer platform for The Echo Nest, a group that calls itself a "music intelligence company" for major music firms. In a February study, Lamere calculated the relative number of streams for a given artist for all 50 states, using a database of his clients' users. The result: A map showing which artist enjoys the most outsized support in each state. To be clear, these aren't necessarily the most-listened-to bands in each state, but rather the bands that have unusually high support in each state. So for example, Vermonters skew more toward Phish than other Americans do, and Texans are bigger George Strait fans than anyone else. (Via Digital Music News)
His model also allows users to compare two states' favorites. Here's New York vs. California:
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Five-in-row Hamilton eyes title after US victory | ||
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Austin (AFP) - Lewis Hamilton increased his lead in the drivers world championship to 24 points on Sunday when he swept to his fifth consecutive victory and 10th of the season by winning the United States Grand Prix. The 29-year-old Briton, who started second behind his pole sitting Mercedes team-mate and nearest rival Nico Rosberg, took the lead with a bold move after 24 laps on his way to a perfectly-measured triumph ahead of the German by 4.314 seconds. It was the 32nd win of Hamilton's career, a landmark statistic that lifted him one victory clear of Nigel Mansell as the British driver with most career successes in Formula One. Hamilton now has 316 points to Rosberg's 292 following the Englishman’s dominant success earned by clever tyre preservation tactics with two races remaining, including the final race in Abu Dhabi where double points are scored. After thanking his team on the radio, Hamilton was equally generous and effusive from the victors’ podium. "I have an incredible team and an incredible car and I had a great opponent today," he said. "It is such a privilege to represent my country and to be top of the drivers' standings. The car was great today." The result left the two Mercedes men as the only drivers now capable of winning the title contest which will go down to the wire in Abu Dhabi on November 23, no matter the result in Brazil next weekend. Sunday's triumph was also the Mercedes team's 10th one-two triumph of the year. "It kind of sucks for me today," said Rosberg. "It took too long for me to find my rhythm. Once Hamilton got by I found my rhythm, but it was too late." Australian Daniel Ricciardo finished third to deliver his eighth podium for Red Bull this year ahead of the two Williams of fourth-placed Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas. "We are doing what we can," said Ricciardo. "I'm really happy with third place. You can overtake here. I got Magnussen and then Alonso on the restart so it wasn't too boring out there for me." Two time champion Fernando Alonso of Ferrari was sixth for Ferrari after a series of battles to finish ahead of four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull, Kevin Magnussen of McLaren and Jean-Eric Vergne of Toro Rosso. Pastor Maldonado came home 10th for Lotus to score his first points of the season.
- Pass under braking -
On another clear day of blue skies and an air temperature of 24 degrees Celsius, with a track temperature of 33 degrees, Rosberg's start was as flawless as the weather. As the lights went out, he pulled clear with Hamilton behind him while a slow start from Bottas allowed Massa through to third. The first lap was interrupted, however, when Sergio Perez crashed his Force India into the Sauber of luckless Adrian Sutil and a Safety Car was deployed. "So disappointing and so unnecessary," said Sutil, who had qualified in the top ten for the first time this year. To compound his team's misery, Nico Hulkenberg retired with an engine failure after 18 laps. After a rash of early pit-stops, racing resumed on lap four with Hamilton sticking close to Rosberg's car as they pulled away from the pack, but never close enough to consider an attacking move. Rosberg was the first to pit after 15 laps, switching to the harder medium compound tyres. Rosberg, however, was less dominant on his second set of tyres and was unable to open a clear gap ahead of Hamilton who closed steadily before seizing his chance to pass him on lap 24. Hamilton had sized him up for several laps before moving into Rosberg's slipstream on the back straight and, with the aid of DRS, drew alongside before passing on the inside under braking at turn 12. Rosberg glanced askance and considered defending, but was too late to stop the move as he was eased slightly off line, and circuit, by Hamilton’s act of decision. Within a lap, the Briton led by 1.3 seconds. Behind the leaders, there was a notable battle between Alonso and Button before, in response to Ricciardo’s rapid Red Bull, he made a second pit stop. That gave Rosberg the lead for a lap again, before they resumed with Hamilton ahead again after 35 laps. Rosberg cut the advantage to 2.6 seconds with a fastest lap on lap 36, setting up a 20-lap dash for glory that saw Hamilton respond with his own fastest lap as he kept his lead at 2.3sec or better to the delight of the Texan crowd. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Burkina army vows unity govt as protesters denounce power grab | ||
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Ouagadougou (AFP) - Burkina Faso's military vowed to install a unity government after tightening its control over the west African nation on Sunday, firing tear gas and shots in the air to disperse protesters denouncing an army power grab. Troops moved into Place de la Nation in the capital Ouagadougou and took over the national television headquarters in a show of force, despite calls by the international community and protesters for a return to civilian rule. As international mediators brandished the threat of sanctions if the army refused to back down and allow a civilian transfer of power, the military pledged to put in place a transition government formed by "broad consensus." The military had stepped into the power vacuum left by president Blaise Compaore, who was forced to resign in the wake of violent street demonstrations over his 27-year-rule of the impoverished country that some have likened to the Arab Spring. But the army said that it was acting only with the interest of the nation at heart and that "power does not interest us." "What is currently at stake is more than self interest," it said in a statement issued after Isaac Zida -- the man it named as interim chief -- met with opposition leaders. International observers watching in alarm urged the army to return power to the civilians, with UN envoy for west Africa, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, saying that he and African leaders had pressed the demand in a meeting with the country's top military brass. If the army refuses, "the consequences are pretty clear", he said. "We want to avoid having to impose sanctions on Burkina Faso." The US State Department also called on the military to immediately transfer power to civilian authorities, while the European Union urged the army to respect the people's right to peaceful protest. Hundreds of thousands of protesters, furious at plans to extend Compaore's rule in the impoverished landlocked country, had massed on the streets of Ouagadougou on Thursday, some going on a rampage and setting the parliament and other public buildings ablaze. Under Burkina Faso's constitution, the speaker of parliament was supposed to step in as interim head of state following the president's resignation.
- 'Four presidents in three days' -
But the army instead named Zida, the second-in-command of the presidential guard, as head of the transitional authority. Zida, 49, beat out an earlier claim by army chief Nabere Honore Traore to the top job, winning the military's endorsement on Saturday. He said he was appointed to ensure a "smooth democratic transition" and promised to consult with the political opposition and civil leaders. The army reiterated that stance after Zida met with opposition leaders, who, along with civil society leaders, had called Sunday's rally in protest at a military take over. Several thousand people answered the call to protest, carrying banners bearing the slogans "The soldiers have stolen our revolution", "Zida get out!" and "Zida is Judas." Some protesters also headed to the national television headquarters, where two opposition leaders made separate attempts to go on air to declare themselves interim chief. Former defence minister Kouame Lougue -- whose name was chanted by thousands in the streets following Compaore's downfall -- told AFP: "The people have nominated me. I came to answer their call." But the technicians walked out, interrupting transmission, also foiling a bid by Saran Sereme, a former member of the ruling party, to make her claim as leader of the transition. "Compaore stayed 27 years, but that's no excuse to have four presidents in three days," said a bemused Burkinabe in a tweet. West African regional bloc ECOWAS urged dialogue and restraint as one person was killed Sunday close to the television headquarters, where soldiers fired shots in the air to disperse protesters. The army said the victim was likely struck by a stray bullet. Opposition figures have said around 30 people have been killed in a week of violent protests. Hospital sources told AFP that there had been at least six deaths, including two by gunshot wounds.
- Bitter disillusion -
The crisis in Burkina Faso -- known as Upper Volta in its era as a French colony before becoming independent in 1960 and changing its name in 1984 -- is the worst since a wave of unrest three years ago. From March to June 2011, a wave of army mutinies swept the country, alongside public protests over high food prices, unemployment and the looting of property by troops. Compaore was only 36 when he seized power in a 1987 coup in which his former friend and one of Africa's most loved leaders, Thomas Sankara, was ousted and assassinated. In the manner of a number of sub-Saharan African leaders, he clung to power for the following decades, being re-elected president four times since 1991. The uprising that finally forced him out was sparked by plans to change the constitution to allow Compaore to stand yet again for elections next year. He leaves bitter disillusion behind. Burkina Faso languishes at 181 out of 187 countries on the UN Human Development Index. Compaore and his wife meanwhile have taken refuge in neighbouring Ivory Coast where they are being put up in a luxury government mansion in the capital Yamoussoukro. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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REVEALED: The Demographic Trends For Every Social Network | ||
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The demographics of who's on what social network are shifting — older social networks are reaching maturity, while newer social messaging apps are gaining younger users fast. In a new report from BI Intelligence, we unpack data from over a dozen sources to understand how social media demographics are still shifting. Access The Full Report By Signing Up For A Free Trial >> Here are a few of the key takeaways from the BI Intelligence report:
The report is full of charts (over 20 charts) and data that can be downloaded and put to use. In full, the report:
For full access to all BI Intelligence reports, briefs, and downloadable charts on the digital media industry, sign up for a free trial. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Kobe Bryant Has A Classic Response When Asked If The Lakers' Horrific Record Bothers Him | ||
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The Los Angeles Lakers have started the season badly, so badly that some are wondering if they're secretly tanking. L.A. is 0-4 after a 127-104 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night. They're getting outscored by 17 points per game, the worst point differential in the league. Kobe Bryant, who has taken heat for everything from his $48-million contract extension to his frosty relationship with potential free agent targets, isn't used to this sort of losing. He has only played on two sub-.500 teams in his career. Combine this unprecedented losing with Kobe's penchant for saying whatever is on his mind, and we're going to get a lot of classic Kobe quotes this year. On Saturday night we got a great one. Kobe was asked if the 0-4 start bothered him. He gave this sarcastic response, which was accompanied by an incensed head shake: "No it doesn't bother me. I'm festively jovial about it." The video is fantastic: Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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In One Slide, Box CEO Aaron Levie Explains Why Now Is The Best Time To Start An Enterprise Startup | ||
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Startup incubator Y Combinator’s Sam Altman created a course called “How to Start a Startup” at Stanford University this fall. The 20-session class has a star-studded lineup of guest speakers, including Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen, and Ron Conway. This week’s lecture was done by Box CEO Aaron Levie. During the 46-minute class, Levie touched upon a number of subjects, from how he started Box to the best business books he’s ever read. At one point during the lecture, Levie also spoke about how the tech landscape has changed in the past five years to make it a “magical” time to build an enterprise software company. Here’s the slide where he breaks down his reasoning behind that:
Levie basically says the biggest disruption has come from the move to the "cloud." In the past, enterprise software had to be built in every single customer’s individual datacenter (“on-premise”), and it just wasted lot of time and money for everyone involved. But now with cloud servers, like Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure, businesses can use servers remotely, on-demand, simplifying the entire process. Because of this, the whole cost of starting an enterprise software business has dropped. There’s no need to build customized software anymore, either. And since it’s become easier and cheaper to install enterprise software, customers from all over the world can afford to use it, as opposed to the past when only the biggest companies had the budget to buy it. Levie makes a lot of good comments about the enterprise business during the lecture, so if this is an area you’re interested in, the video below is a must-watch: Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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France's Hollande in Canada to drum up trade | ||
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Banff (Canada) (AFP) - President Francois Hollande began the first visit to Canada by a French leader in a quarter of a century on Sunday, flying in to the country's oil-rich west to drum up transatlantic trade. A new trade pact between Canada and the European Union is due to come into effect in the coming years, eliminating 98 percent of tariffs on goods and services and potentially boosting commerce by a fifth. France is keen to win its share of any new deals and to increase research ties with Canadian universities, as well as to pay tribute to a close ally in the struggle against violent extremism. On Monday, Hollande will speak before Canada's federal parliament in Ottawa, which less than two weeks ago was the scene of a shootout between police and a lone gunman with jihadist sympathies. Officials told AFP that this would be an "important moment" for Hollande to show solidarity with a country that is fighting alongside France in a US-led coalition against jihadist militants in Iraq. Then he will head to the French-speaking province of Quebec, which has traditionally had strong economic and cultural ties with France. France is hoping to persuade the regional government to drop a plan to halt an arrangement that allows French students to pay the same as local people to attend Quebec universities. But first, Hollande's journey took him to Alberta, home of Canada's vast oil reserves. Officials said he was keen to show that France is also interested in stronger ties with English-speaking Canada. The first French president to come to Canada since Francois Mitterrand in 1987 was welcomed to Calgary by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and headed to Banff in the foothills of the Rockies. The presence of some 40 French business leaders in Hollande's party was testament to the economic focus of his visit. Hollande and his party were to meet with the leaders of Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories, mainly English-speaking provinces in the west with growing economic potential.
- Greenhouse gases -
Western Canada is enjoying an economic boom on the back of Alberta's oil industry, including the controversial exploitation of oil sands and shale gas, which environmentalists see as harmful. The environment will be one of the trickiest topics of Hollande's trip, as the French leader begins preparations for the next global climate conference on ways to slow climate change in Paris next year. Canada is one of the world's top polluters and Harper's government pulled the country out of the 2011 Kyoto Protocol designed to slow global warming by cutting greenhouse gas emissions. "France and Canada have decided to act together, not only for the good of our countries but for the planet," Hollande said. "That's what motivates the Canadian prime minister and French government." Harper did not publicly disagree, but Canada may prove a stumbling block to France's efforts to build a front against climate change. In November next year, Hollande will gather leaders from all over the world in the French capital for the United Nations Climate Change Conference or COP21, seeking to negotiate new emissions limits. Energy exporters and major developed economies like Canada will be asked to make sacrifices, but Canada has shown no willingness to rein in its energy industry and is planning huge new pipelines. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Melinda Gates: Warren Buffett Taught Me How To Be A Good Friend | ||
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Melinda Gates is often credited for helping her husband develop his kinder, gentler side. During his formative years Bill Gates was notoriously hard-nosed. There are many stories of his tantrums when he and Microsoft were young, such as this one: Microsoft employed a person to count of how many times F-bombs he would drop during a meeting, according to a former Microsoft employee. The lower the count, the happier Gates was with the meeting. After marrying Melinda and having a family, Gates mellowed. While he's still opinionated, he's clearly a happier, more cordial person. His philanthropic work to end poverty and disease makes him a role model for other leaders to follow.
And the person who taught her how to do that was fellow billionaire Warren Buffett. (Buffett and the Gates are famously good friends.) Here's how that happened, Melinda says: One of the things I was most impressed about when Bill and I met Warren Buffett very early on was he introduced us to his friends. And Warren has the most high quality set of friends you could meet, and these are friends that he has had over his lifetime. And it really got me thinking, "wow, I better cultivate my friends." Warren does little things with his friends, like he will send you an article of something he is thinking about, reading about. That was a way to help me think about my friends. Melinda also says that another friend helped her learn how to balance work and home when her kids were young and she was feeling stressed out about it. The man told her, "Melinda, you don’t get a do-over with your kids." and she says, "I always have to remember that, at the end of the day, my kids come first." She feels so strongly about this that it trumps all of her charity work. "On the day I die, I want people to think that I was a great mom and a great family member and a great friend. I care about that more than I care about anything else," she said. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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uBeam's $10 Million Investment Has Caused A Big Debate | ||
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Last week, a startup called uBeam, working on way to let you charge your iPhone without plugging anything into a power outlet received a $10 million investment from Upfront Ventures. It had already recieved about $1.7 million from a bunch of famous angels. uBeam is the latest moonshot startup darling in the Valley, founded by 25-year-old Meredith Perry. Angel investors include Google’s Marissa Mayer and Zappos co-founder Tony Hsieh. Perry is working on something unprecedented. She is creating a device that will convert electricity into ultrasound, meaning sound waves not audible to the human ear, beam them into a charging device that will convert them back into electricity to power your mobile devices. The device will require a charger (which can be attached to a wall) and a receiver put on each device you want to charge. You are free to roam about the room with your device, even as it charges. But a physicist, named "Danny" has posted a blog called "How putting $10M into UBeam illustrates everything that is wrong with tech investing today." He argues that the physics of uBeam at best won't work and at worst, will be unsafe for your family, especially your pets. Other folks in the tech industry, also physicists, are already disputing Danny's post. "There's almost nothing right about his physics. It's mind-boggling," one of them tweeted. The whole thing has sparked a big discussion on Hacker News, Tumblr and elsewhere on if venture capitalists really have the technical chops to recognize true scientific breakthroughs from ideas that are fundamentally flawed. When VC Mark Suster wrote about the $10 million investment on Medium, he called it "the most ambitious project I’ve seen since I became a VC." (He joined the firm in 2007 after selling the startup he co-founded, Koral, to Salesforce.com.) uBeam was the "largest A-round check" Suster ever wrote, he said. So he lined up experts to help him investigate the company and its tech before investing. He wrote: Did the physics actually work? Check The proof will be in the product. uBeam says it has a few patents. Perry has created a prototype that the Valley has been buzzing about for years. Perry showed it around the TechCrunch Disrupt New York conference in 2012. The year before, she gave a demo at the AllThingsD conference. Those demos gained her the attention of the famous angels, which helped land that $10 million investment. By the way, uBeam isn't the only one trying to safely capture electricity from the air and use it power our mobile products. A company called WiTricity, for instance, is also working on that, with Intel. WiTricity is not using sound but magnetic fields to transfer energy. The company claims that this form of wireless electricity "is safe for operation around people and animals." We'll leave it to the scientists to figure out how to make all of this – or any of it – work. But it does seem like one day, battery life will not be an issue. Our devices will somehow sip all the electricity they need directly from the air. SEE ALSO: 'Blended Reality' Is The Next Tech Buzzword And HP's Plans For It Are Really Spectacular Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Australia's Westpac Bank annual net profit jumps 12% | ||
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Sydney (AFP) - Australian banking giant Westpac on Monday posted a 12 percent jump in full-year net profit to Aus$7.56 billion (US$6.60 billion), driven by growth in lending and customer deposits. The result in the 12 months to September 30 compared to Aus$6.82 billion the previous year, with chief executive Gail Kelly calling it "high quality". Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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America Votes During A Busy Week For The Economy — Here's Your Complete Preview | ||
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The Federal Reserve finally put an end to its quantitative easing program on Wednesday in a move that had been widely anticipated for a very long time. Meanwhile, the stock market roared back to record highs. This week brings us a lot of important economic data including the jobs report, auto sales tallies, and manufacturing PMIs. The US will also be holding its midterm elections on Tuesday, which should clear out some more uncertainty for investors. Or it might not. "If we have a really uncertain situation, where the Senate is divided and candidates are threatening recounts, that's really not good," said Newedge's Robbert van Batenburg to Reuters. Here's your Monday Scouting Report: Top Stories
Economic Calendar
Market Commentary Wall Street's equity strategists are more or less telling clients "I toldja so" in the wake of the S&P 500's incredible rebound from October 15 lows. Like we said above, the focus has shifted to the midterm elections. Deutsche Bank's David Bianco argues that the most important policy issue for the stock market is how the US taxes foreign corporate profits. From Bianco's October 9 note: "Most large US multinationals are exasperated by a high US corporate tax rate and especially by taxes imposed on foreign profits when repatriated. The S&P earns 40% of its profits abroad, up from 15% in mid 1990s. US companies cannot compete effectively abroad if they must pay taxes that companies headquartered elsewhere don’t. The slew of inversions, which Treasury recently rushed to impede, is evidence that US politicians don’t understand global businesses. Executives, while plenty patriotic, have a duty to put the company’s future first. Current US corporate tax rules impede globalization and thus growth everywhere. Visibility on a fix is key post election. The US doesn’t build walls to keep in and it shouldn’t tax like a global empire." As far as stock market returns are concerned, there are obviously always a lot of variables to consider. But generally speaking, the stock markets inclination is to go up. "Since World War II, post-midterm election returns have averaged 17.5%, so time appears to be on our side for returns from October 2014 to October 2015," S&P Capital IQ's Sam Stovall said. For more insight about the middle market, visit mid-marketpulse.com. SEE ALSO: Wall Street's Brightest Minds Reveal The Most Important Charts In The World Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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How Much Of The World's Commodity Supply Is Exposed To Ebola | ||
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The outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa has been tragic and the outlook remains frightening. Because of the region's importance as a supplier of commodities, investors and economists also worry about what a disruption in production could mean for prices. "So far the impact on global commodity markets has been relatively contained," Deutsche Bank's Anna Mulholland said in October. "This most likely reflects the fact that Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea combined represent less than 2% of global production/exports of cocoa, coffee, cotton, rubber and palm oil." "However, a more widespread outbreak to other countries in the region would hold significant implications for cocoa production since West Africa accounts for over 70% of world production."
SEE ALSO: This Map Answers One Of The First Questions Asked Every Time Turmoil Hits The Middle East Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Saudi bank ends 'mother of all' share offers | ||
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Riyadh (AFP) - A share offer by Saudi Arabia's National Commercial Bank was 16 times oversubscribed late Sunday, in what one financial analyst called "the mother of all IPOs". The initial public offering by the NCB, which was hoping to raise $6 billion, is one of the largest in the world this year and the biggest in the kingdom's history. In preliminary figures on the final day of the offer, NCB said subscribers had reached 1.166 million for a value of 215.76 billion riyals ($57.54 billion). Beginning on October 19, NCB offered 300 million shares to the Saudi public at 45 riyals each. Final figures from the offer will be released within a few days, the bank said in a statement obtained by AFP. "This is the mother of all IPOs," said Beshr Bakheet of the privately held Osool and Bakheet Investment Company. But he cautioned that the value is exaggerated because banks offered generous loans to people wishing to buy the shares. They are expected to begin trading on the country's Tadawul All-Shares Index, the largest Arab bourse, within one or two weeks. Bakheet said the shares were sold at a discount and he expects their price to double from the offered 45 riyals when trading starts, potentially valuing the public portion of the issue at $7.2 billion. An additional 200 million shares are allocated to the state pension fund. While the value was unprecedented, the number of subscribers was slightly below normal for the kingdom. That figure could still rise to two or three million when final figures are in, Bakheet said. NCB is the last of 12 Saudi banks to go public. Only three of them are fully compliant with Islamic sharia laws. The investor interest came despite a ruling from the kingdom's top Muslim cleric that the share offer is forbidden under Islam, which bans usury. Chinese online giant Alibaba, which made its market debut in September, broke the record for the largest IPO offering when it raised $25.02 billion. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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