I love me some Redbox. I’m ashamed to admit that I’m probably a good 5-years behind on movies I want to see. Buying any DVD (with the exception of kids’ movies) is a waste of money, in my opinion. I contemplated signing up for Netflix, but I doubt I would utilize the service enough to justify the expense. Redbox neatly fills that void by allowing me to pick up new releases at my convenience, all for the low price of $1 plus tax.
Posts Tagged: USD
3
Nov 09
The Iron Paywall?
Saul Friedman, an 80-year old print veteran at Newsday, hops over the paywall (via BoingBoing):
Customers of Cablevision, the cable and Internet provider that owns Newsday, and people who subscribe to Newsday in print will still be able to browse Newsday.com unfettered. But Newsday recently announced that everyone else will have to pay $5 a week to see much of the site, making it one of the few newspapers in the country to take such a plunge.
27
Feb 09
PMH CEO Brian Tierney’s Leadership Lunch at the University of Pennsylvania
I was unable to attend Tierney’s Wharton Leadership Lunch at the University of Pennsylvania. Fortunately, I am a close friend with someone who did. This anonymous writer is well grounded in the disciplines of business, politics, economics, and the business of journalism.
These are his thoughts, presented without any of my commentary (previously).
Brian Tierney — CEO of Philadelphia Media Holdings, CEO and Publisher of The Philadelphia Inquirer, and CEO of The Philadelphia Daily News — visited the University of Pennsylvania today for a “Leadership Lunch” with undergraduate students. He arrived 20 minutes late, bustling and jovial, no apology. His public relations background shows; he is an optimistic, outsized media personality, all confident and energetic. He uses the pronouns “my” and “I” often, very few references to the credit due his employees or co-investors — except editor William Marimow, to whom we will return. (Perhaps, given the current state of the company, they are grateful that he takes all the credit.)
Tierney opened with a brief biography, then segued into the challenges of the Inquirer and Daily News.
23
Sep 08
The gPhone cometh…
The webcast is due to begin at 10:30 EST. I can’t justify spending money for a new phone and a bigger data plan ($5.99 T-Zones and a 5-year old Nokia 3650 are fine by me). Even the appeal of faster 3G connections is not enough. $0.89 per DRM-free song from Amazon isn’t enough. I’m just not ready. I’d rather buy a used iPhone off eBay or wait for the second or third round of gPhones.
I’m prepared to be let down by the gPhone. The initial leaked specs are a little weak – no video recording? Really? Most carriers free phones have video ability! And no stereo bluetooth? No inline headphone jack?
23
Sep 08
The Political Component of the Bailout.
First off, the die has been cast. No matter how much money we’ve thrown at the situation, it will simply have the effect of taking your shoes off at the airport – creating an illusion of safety. Post-bailout, we will have $1.3T reasons to feel that all will be well, and that the disaster has passed. But those will be illusions.
21
Sep 08
No Blank Checks.
Congress was shook to the bone by the Bald Banker and Bearded Professor:
Mr. Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. had made an urgent and unusual evening visit to Capitol Hill, and they were gathered around a conference table in the offices of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
“When you listened to him describe it you gulped,” said Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York.
Their reaction calls to mind the reaction to the Bush saber rattling over Iraq as well as this little bit of research:
19
Sep 08
Bailout.
Make no mistake, it is coming. They are clearly in panic mode [nakedcapitalism via Economist's View]:
“We have lost control,” said Hale, quoting [Federal Reserve Chairman] Bernanke. “We cannot stabilize the dollar. We cannot control commodity prices.”
(Please note that they really could never control it anyway, regardless).
The NYT says:
The head of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve began discussions on Thursday with Congressional leaders on what could become the biggest bailout in United States history. While details remain to be worked out, the plan is likely to authorize the government to buy distressed mortgages at deep discounts from banks and other institutions. The proposal could result in the most direct commitment of taxpayer funds so far in the financial crisis that Fed and Treasury officials say is the worst they have ever seen.



