Thursday 27 September 2012

Spend, Spend, Spend

I came across this article about how status is balanced out with spending. The opportunity cost of debt versus the potential to better yourself. If you think about it, to truly benefit the next generation, the current generation must suffer. Fashion and the best comes at a price or does it? I think you need to decide. Here is your starting point.

Tuesday 25 September 2012

Party anyone?

We hear about these stories from time to time. Girl has party, posts invite with time and date but does not make it a private message. Private message is not private, message is open and available to the masses, word is passed on about the party and loads of people, a heap of damage, police and riot gear follow. Have a read for yourself and think about what you post online. Article

Grain Prices and knock on effects!

There is a shortage of Grain, prices have gone up. Farmers cannot afford to feed cattle and make a profit after sending them to market. Farmer slaughters cattle to minimize losses, thereby flooding the market with meat. Meat prices drop initially but are due to surge next year when there is a shortage. A great example of supply and demand, market forces and external forces. I suggest you do your own research on this one and see where else may be effected. Grain Prices

Monday 24 September 2012

iPhone and wider issues

The new iPhone 5 is out, demand is high, but could there be problem with the Supply? This is a great example of how something can trouble a company due to external influences. Read what it is.

Saturday 22 September 2012

Leadership Styles

Apple is a phenomenal company, churning out much rated products that are woven and integrated into many peoples lives worldwide.  Steve Jobs did a fantastic job of elevating Apple to the heights it is now and overtaking Microsoft as the largest earning company. His leadership style was fierce, he had vision and attention to detail, but intimidated and berated his staff on a regular basis. Some would say that this is not the way to run a company, but he got the results. Tim Cook is now the new CEO of Apple and as with anything people will always try and compare the new with the old. They are different leaders with different styles and focus. Where Steve Jobs was the visionary in terms of products and perfecting the products, Cook is about the operations of the business, the logistics and manufacturing and the motivation of his staff. Faster roll outs and distribution means even more revenue through sales. An interesting comparison.Read article on Jobs versus Cook

Monday 17 September 2012

Intellectual Property - Man of the Match!

In setting up Fortune and Venture, I have now Trademarked the name Fortune and Venture in a specific category and it is now protected from others using it to sell other educational products and games. Patents had been considered and Copyright is in force. There has been a huge court case with Apple and Samsung over the infringement of Patents which resulted in a billion dollar payout.

I recently applied for various email addresses for my business and the one I wanted had been registered by someone who wanted $5000 for it. It is not been used, but simply being held to be sold on for a profit This is not new. A lot of money has and is being made out of people registering  domain names etc and then selling them for a profit. Enterprising and definitely a niche. But how far does it go?

In the news today it was revealed that an intellectual property company have trademarked the phrase Man of the Match. This meas that if it is used in a commercial sense i.e. the Man of the Match in this game or the Man of the Match award goes to. A royalty will have to be paid this company. Clever but should it have been allowed? Read the article and You decide.

Inspirational

Next time you think you are hard done by and want to complain, have a think about this young lady who has overcome adversity and is embracing life. She was born without arms and has since adapted and got on with her life. It is easy to find things to complain about, but in all honesty, do people really want to hear about your complaints? I used to have a house mate years ago, that when you asked (being polite) how he was doing - he would break into a big complaints session. Conversations were very short and to the point after that!! Clive Woodward ( a World Cup Winning England Rugby Coach back in 2003) did not pick players who were complainers. He labelled them Sappers as the negativity detracted from the positivity that he was trying to build in the squad. Think about your complaints or whether your friends complain? Article Tisha unarmed

Tuesday 4 September 2012

Pink Lego?

I remember playing with Lego as a child. In fact when I was supposedly studying for my finals with a friend of mine,  his mother found us playing with his old Lego set that he was going to donate to a neighbor. We built airports, garages, houses and many other things that afternoon. Lego has recently brought out a nontraditional color Lego set which is aimed at girls. The colors include pink. There have been mixed reactions from the launch as there are some feminist groups saying that children should not be stereotyped and therefore the different colors are a bad thing.  

I have thought about this and yes there is merit in both sides. However if by the Lego being a different color gets girls more interested in the building side, then why not. Also Lego would not have done this unless their Market Research supported the launch. This could have been a risky product, but as it turns out their revenue has increased by 24%. to $1.5 bill, when the rest of the toy industry is in a slump. For more information read Girls Lego.

Apple Versus Samsung

I have been following the Apple Versus Samsung saga with regards patents and infringements. I have had quite a few discussions with people and watched various movies while also dealing with lawyers vicariously. At times I find the law extremely frustrating as it does not always take into account common sense. At times even though you are right, it does not necessarily mean you will win in court. There are times when the law does not protect the intended as there is a loophole or the law is either so vague or too specific and the common sense element does not come into play. I watched A Time to Kill the other night, and somehow common sense should have come into play and put something into context but it could not be discussed or entered into evidence during that movie, due to a technicality. Watch the movie - it stars Samuel L Jackson, Matthew McConaughey and Sandra Bullock and you will fully understand what I am saying.

I also find it absurd that a court case, back to Apple Samsung, that has so much at stake is not being held in a neutral place. Apple is based in California, where the court case was heard and decided upon and Samsung is not. $1 billion will have to be paid out in damages and now certain phones may not be potentially sold in the US due to this "infringement" which ultimately leads to less choice for the consumer. To put this further into perspective, Xerox had the original designs that Apple used. If Apple can do that to Xerox, why not Samsung to Apple?

One thing that I cannot do is blame Apple for seeking damages awards as they are simply playing by the laws that are in place regarding infringement. Samsung would do exactly the same, if roles were reversed, because that its the law.

We are quick to blame the bankers for lending to people who had no chance of paying the money back as it was all about hitting targets. Were the bankers greedy? - to a degree yes -were they allowed to do this? - to a degree yes. If you were paid for hitting your targets, with no consequences of how you got to those targets would you have done the same? Hopefully, no. Are traits of integrity and honor and "doing the right thing" overridden by making the bottom line look good?
 The system is at fault and therefore needs reviewing.

I found an article in the LA Times and is definitely worth taking the time out to read this. Apple Versus Samsung