Your Click and Print Newspaper
com OC Edition
Bush to Congress: Get a Move On
By Liza Porteus Viana (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:28:00 AM
Filed under: President Bush, Senate, House,
Democrats, Republicans, Iraq, Economy,
TerrorPresident Bush this morning called
on Congress to put some grease to the
wheels and get moving on several key
legislative items, including: funding the
war in Iraq, passing a bill that would help
homeowners avoid foreclosure amid the
subprime fallout and passing a surveillance
bill shielding telecommunications
companies from class-action lawsuits
stemming from post-Sept. 11, 2001,
eavesdropping.
"Allowing these lawsuits to proceed would
be unfair," Bush said. "If any of these
companies helped us, they did so after
being told by our government" their
assistance was legal. Allowing these firms
to be sued could "aid our enemies" and lead
to disclosure of surveillance methods "and
would give Al Qaeda and others a roadmap
as to how to avoid surveillance," the
president continued, periodically jabbing
his finger for emphasis.
This "is not a partisan issue," he stressed,
later saying that the trial lawyers suing the
companies, who would benefit from
Democrats' opposition from a liability
shield, are on a "financial gravy train."
There's a wiretapping showdown going on
now. A temporary Foreign Intelligence
Philips and Lite-On push out external Blu-ray drive
By Ryan Block (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:24:00 AM
Yeah, just another Blu-ray drive for your
perusal: this one, called the DX-4O1S,
reads at 4x, and will be the first by Philips
Surveillance Act recently expired. Bush
and the GOP want it swiftly renewed with
telecom protections but House leadership
isn't too keen on that provision.
"If House leaders would only stop blocking
an up or down vote and let the majority in
the House prevail," Bush said, noting that
there are enough House votes to pass the
bill. "The law expired, the threat to
America has not expired ... How can you
listen to the enemy if the phone companies
aren't going to participate with you?"
The Washington Post reported today that
Republicans are hoping the surveillance
issue will be a good one to hammer
Democrats on this election year, and are
honing in on the message that Americans
are more at risk because of the standoff.
Bush also talked about how he liked to hug.
Yes, hug. Other issues after the jump...On
Iraq:
The Senate Wednesday continued to
debate a bill that would begin pulling out
troops from Iraq within 120 days. Bush
spanked war opponents on Capital Hill who
he said are trying to "cut off funding" and
"tie the hands of our commanders in Iraq,"
particularly when signs show the surge is
working.
Bush: "See, no matter what happens in
Iraq, our oppoents have one answer:
Retreat." If we folllowed their advise, we'd
be more at risk at home and Iraq would be
more dangerous.
and Lite-On Digital Solutions, that joint
venture formed formed about a year ago.
27/02/08 - 28/02/08
On home owners:
Congress also needs to help homeowners
who can't pay their mortgages avoid
foreclosure. The Senate is debating
legislation now, some of which would
change the U.S. bankruptcy code, that the
president says would prolong market's
recovery, lead to higher interest rates. It's
"unfair" to home owners and future buyers.
On the economy:
With GDP barely growing in 2007, Bush
said: "There's no question the economy
slowed down ... I don't think we're headed
toward a recession." Some experts say a
recession is in fact in our future, if it's not
here already. The economic stimulus
package Bush signed into law month offers
rebates and tax incentives to businesses,
which should be going out the second week
of May. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told
Congress today he doesn't expect dreaded
stagflation.
On Russia:
Exciting stuff, this; due out next quarter.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
LibertyNewsprint.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's
assumed successor, Dmitry Medvedev
(election is Sunday), is largely an unknown.
Bush was asked what he knew about
Medvedev, particularly given the fact he
may have misjudged what kind of ally
Putin would be. Bush acknowledged he and
Putin had some "diplomatic head butts,"
and said he doesn't know much at all about
Medvedev. Let's see who represents Russia
at the G8 summit in Japan later this year.
On NAFTA:
"This agreement has meant prosperity on
both sides of our borders - north and
south." Bush said of NAFTA, adding that
more markets are needed to export
American goods. He also warned Congress
to carefully the consequences of rejecting
Colombia free trade agreement. Rejecting it
would, among other things, encourage
"false populism" and "undermine the
standing of courageous leaders like
President Uribe," Bush said. (You can read
more info on this agreement fro the White
House here.)
On energy:
"We need to be finding more oil and gas at
home" before becoming more dependent on
overseas energy sources. Bush also said
America needs to build more oil refineries.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
McCain's
Tennessee
Waltz
By Faye Anderson (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 2:58:00 PM
Filed under: RepublicansThere they go
again. A day after John McCain rebuked
conservative radio talk show host Bill
Cunningham for using Barack Obama's full
name, McCain is taking the Tennessee
Republican Party to the woodshed. The
party issued a press release that included
the photo of Obama dressed in traditional
African garb and used his full name under
the headline "Anti-Semites for Obama."
Tennessee GOP chairman Robin Smith
claims he merely wants to "set the record
straight about Barack Obama and where he
really stands on vital issues such as national
security and the security of Israel."While
Cunningham told McCain to stick it, the
renewed call for civility wasn't totally
ignored.
The Tennessee GOP has since deleted the
photo and Obama's full name from the
release saying: "Also, in order to diffuse
attempts by Democrats and the Left to
divert attention from the main point of this
release - that Sen. Obama has surrounded
himself with advisers and received
endorsements from people who are anti-
Semitic and anti-Israel - we have deleted
the use of Barack Obama's middle name."
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
2 Politics *
Bloomberg Closes the Door on Indy Run
By Tommy Christopher (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 3:16:00 PM
Filed under: Republicans, Breaking News,
2008 President, Michael BloombergIn a
New York Times op-ed piece running in
tomorrow's paper, but online now, popular
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg
announces he will not run for President in
2008:I believe that an independent
approach to these issues is essential to
governing our nation - and that an
independent can win the presidency. I
listened carefully to those who encouraged
me to run, but I am not - and will not be - a
candidate for president. I have watched this
campaign unfold, and I am hopeful that the
current campaigns can rise to the challenge
by offering truly independent leadership.
The most productive role that I can serve is
to push them forward, by using the means
at my disposal to promote a real and honest
debate. Bloomberg goes on to hint at whom
he might endorse:If a candidate takes an
independent, nonpartisan approach - and
embraces practical solutions that challenge
party orthodoxy - I'll join others in helping
that candidate win the White House. Of the
three remaining candidates, John McCain
and Barack Obama enjoy the widest
support across the political spectrum, but it
Agreement on AIDS Program Renewal Reached
By Mark Impomeni (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:00:00 AM
Filed under: President Bush, Bush
AdministrationThe Bush Administration
and the Democratic leadership in Congress
reached agreement yesterday on an renewal
and expansion of the President's
Emergency Program for AIDS Relief, or
PEPFAR. In his State of the Union Address
last month, the president called for the
program's funding level to be doubled from
the $15 billion provided to AIDS relief
programs in sub-Saharan Africa to $30
billion.
Democrats in Congress had pushed for
changes to the program, specifically its
seems unlikely that McCain will buck
"party orthodoxy" after he's spent this
entire primary campaign trying to convince
voters that he is a "true conservative."
A Bloomberg endorsement would be a
great feather for Barack or McCain, as both
are courting the same independents and
party moderates in their respective bids for
the White House. It will be interesting ti see
if a "Bloomberg Effect" emerges in the way
that the "Edwards Effext" did following his
requirements that one-third of the money is
spent on abstinence programs and that all
organizations receiving funding under the
program adopt policies against "prostitution
and human trafficking." Democrats also felt
that the proposed $30 billion funding level
was too low. On his African trip last week,
the president called on Congress to renew
the program with no changes. "I would ask
Congress to listen to leaders on the
continent of Africa, analyze what works,
stop the squabbling and get the program
reauthorized," he said. The agreement will
more than triple the size of the program, to
$50 billion, and will make slight changes in
emphasis on abstinence programs, but
contains no other major changes.
In addition to the funding increase, the
exit from the Democratic Primary race.
Bloomberg lays out his recipe for non-
partisan success: WATCHING the 2008
presidential campaign, you sometimes get
the feeling that the candidates - smart, all of
them - must know better. They must know
we can't fix our economy and create jobs by
isolating America from global trade. They
must know that we can't fix our
renewed PEPFAR will include $9 billion
for fighting malaria and tuberculosis,
supplement food purchases for victims of
AIDS, and provide support for women
victims and widows of the disease. In
exchange for the increase in funding,
immigration problems with border security
alone. They must know that we can't fix our
schools without holding teachers, principals
and parents accountable for results. They
must know that fighting global warming is
not a costless challenge. And they must
know that we can't keep illegal guns out of
the hands of criminals unless we crack
down on the black market for them. While
he throws a little boilerplate from each
party in there, I think he "must know
better." His own poll, released today, shows
that McCain's party is starving for some red
meat, while Obama already has moderate
positions on trade and education. I don't see
McCain contorting himself too much to
grab the brass Bloomberg ring, shaking his
party's base off of the carousel in the
process.
Tommy Links
Tommy Christopher Uncut l TomMySpace
l TommYoutube
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
Democrats backed off demands that the
renewed program allow funding for
"reproductive health" programs, a term
usually applied to programs that provide
abortions. The program will allow funding
for AIDS testing and treatment at
reproductive health centers, but prohibits
PEPFAR monies from being used for
contraception or abortions.
In the area of abstinence, a controversial
method of AIDS prevention, the new
program allows countries and organizations
receiving PEPFAR funds to spend less than
50% of the funds on abstinence education,
however, that must be justified to Congress
by the director of the program.
The PEPFAR program is considered by the
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Leave Mike
Huckabee Alone!
By Denise Williams (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 12:37:00 PM
Filed under: Mike Huckabee, Humor, Viral
Video
Lewis Black has new 1/2 hour show
starting on Comedy Central starting March
12 (10:30 pm ET) which will absolutely
give me a reason to turn off Anderson
Cooper a 1/2 hour earlier, thank you very
much!
CC has released this little tidbit teaser for
the show which you may have seen already.
I wanted to get it up sooner, but I was tied
up with all that primary and debate crap. If
you're not familiar with Black's work,
here's a little taste. And it very much
reflects the way I feel.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
Bush Administration as one of its signature
accomplishments. Tanzania President
Jakaya Kikwete praised the president for
the program and the Administration's
efforts in Africa saying, "we know for sure
that you, Mr. President, and your
administration, have been good friends of
our country and have been good friends of
Africa." The agreement on renewing the
program is the first major legacy item that
the Bush Administration has been able to
push through Congress. Others, like a
renewal of the Foreign Intelligence
Surveillance Act, are now up for debate.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Ann Richards' Family Split Over Clinton
Ad
By Denise Williams (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:31:00 AM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Endorsements,
Ads, Featured Stories, 2008 President
Former Texas Governor Ann Richards'
family is not in full agreement with the
premise of a Clinton internet ad. The spot
hypothetically assumes the late Governor's
endorsement and, in the process, targets
Clinton's core constituency in the Lone Star
state. Richards, who died in 2006, is
featured prominently in the ad. It is, in a
way, a moving tribute to one of the women
that inspired me in my life.
Richards' youngest daughter Ellen
approved the ad saying, "I believe that if
my mom were alive today that she would
be stumping across Texas and around the
country supporting Hillary for president".
However, the late Richards' sons, Dan and
Clark, disagree.
From the Associated Pressreport:
As her children, we never presumed to
know her mind when alive and we are not
prepared to make a claim as to who she
would endorse or what she would do if she
were still with us," they wrote in an e-mail
last week. "We are not granting permission
for her name to be used in advertisements
Anti-Hillary Media Bias Proven!
By Denise Williams (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:21:00 AM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, 2008
President, Humor, Viral Video
In case there was any doubt, the media bias
against Hillary Clinton is in full gear and
has been for some time. Rather than
spending time researching boring and dry
media think tanks like I should have, I
found my answer on my late-night tv
screen. Hillary fans, please now accept my
on behalf of either candidate."
The e-mail, provided to The Associated
Press by Dan Richards, was sent to Cathy
Bonner, a friend of their mother's and
member of Richards' administration.
Bonner is working with Clinton's campaign
and sent Dan and Clark Richards an early
formal apology for doubting you all these
weeks.
Reporting from the Anti-Hillary War Room
at the Paul Jones Convention Center is The
Daily Show's own Samantha Bee:
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
copy of the video on Feb. 19 "to make sure
you are okay with it.
Dan Richards said in an interview Tuesday
that they denied permission and he's angry
the campaign published the video anyway.
He said the campaign contacted him again
last Friday to ask him to reconsider, and he
repeated his objections.
"They asked me if I would sue the
campaign, and I said no, I wasn't in the
business of suing the campaign, but I didn't
think they should do it," he said in a
telephone interview. "To try to present who
she would endorse a year and a half after
she died is offensive to me."
A fourth child, Cecile, had not responded to
a request for comment as of Tuesday. In a
partial response to the Richards' son's
objections, the Clinton campaign did
remove any images of the family.
I wonder what Molly Ivins would think...
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
Politics * 3
White House E-Mails Gone
for Good
By Mark Impomeni (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 12:30:00 PM
Filed under: Bush Administration,
InvestigationsThe Republican National
Committee informed a House investigative
committee yesterday that it not longer
planned to retrieve lost White House e-
mails. The RNC had previously told the
House Committee on Government Reform
and Oversight that it was attempting to
locate e-mail records from the 2001-2003
time period by restoring computer backup
tapes. Prior to 2004, the RNC had a policy
of deleting e-mails from all of its accounts
after 30 days. This policy extended to
White House officials who held RNC e-
mail accounts.
Democrats have been investigating whether
Bush Administration officials complied
with Federal record keeping requirements.
They allege that top White House officials,
like former political director Karl Rove,
used the RNC e-mail accounts to send
sensitive communications that the missing communications. ""We are very
Administration did not want preserved. The energized about getting to the bottom of
White House has admitted that Rove and this," said Theresa Payton, chief
information officer at the Office of
others used the RNC accounts to conduct
routine government business, but contends Administration.
that the missing communications contain
nothing improper. The issue of missing White House e-mails
first came to light during the CIA leak
Committee Chairman Rep. Henry Waxman investigation. Special Prosecutor Patrick
(D-CA) said that the reversal of course by Fitzgerald revealed in 2006 that some
the RNC could have serious consequences.
"The result is a potentially enormous gap in
information relevant to the investigation
might not be available because of an
the historical record," he said. The ranking "archiving problem" at the White House.
Republican on the committee, Rep. Tom Missing e-mails were also an issue during
Davis (R-VA), dismissed the controversy the investigation of the firing of eight U.S.
Attorneys last spring. That investigation
as a partisan fishing expedition. He said
that the committee's hearing into the matter revealed the existence of the separate non-
was "less about preserving records and government e-mail accounts that were used
more about resurrecting the spurious claim by White House officials.
that the White House 'lost millions of
official e-mails.'" Meanwhile, the White
House said that despite the RNC's decision, Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
it is still trying to get to the bottom of the Comments
4 Politics * Business *
John SIDNEY McCain was Born in Panama!
By David Knowles (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:20:00 AM
Filed under: Republicans, John McCain,
Featured Stories, 2008 President,
HumorFrom the muckraking International
Herald Tribune comes confirmation of what
many have suspected for a long time: John
SIDNEY McCain is a one man sleeper cell
from Panama. Oddly, no one seems to have
noticed the fact that McCain was born in
the Panama Canal Zone in 1936, which
technically makes him ineligible to be
elected president, maybe:
McCain's likely nomination as the
Republican candidate for president and the
happenstance of his birth in the Panama
Canal Zone in 1936 are reviving a musty
Clinton's New Man
By Faye Anderson (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:45:00 AM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Democrats,
Breaking News, 2008 PresidentIt is said
that a drowning person will grab a razor
blade. Hillary Clinton is drowning in a sea
of tightening polls and bad press. She
reportedly has brought on board a longtime
adviser, Harold Ickes, to help her charm
superdelegates and prevent those already on
board from jumping ship.
salesforce.com (CRM) soars on Q4 earnings, Q1 guidance
By Brent Archer (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:23:00 AM
Filed under: Major movement, Earnings
reports, Good news, Options, Technical
Analysis, salesforce.com inc
(CRM)salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM)
shares are rising strongly today, after the
company announced Q4 earnings that beat
estimates by 2 cents and predicted that it
will earn between 6 and 7 cents per share
on $233 million to $235 million in revenue
in the first quarter, above Wall Street
estimates of 6 cents per share on $228.5
million in revenue. CRM also expects fiscal
debate that has surfaced periodically since
the founders first set quill to parchment and
declared that only a "natural-born citizen"
can hold the nation's highest office.
Of course, Barack HUSSEIN Obama was
born in Hawaii. And Hillary RODHAM
Clinton entered the world in Illinois.
None of this may actually matter, mind
you, since (surprise) John SHIRLEY
McCain's birth occurred on a military base.
Being posted there by the U.S.
Government, you can't exactly tell
McCain's parents their offspring don't
qualify as legitimate citizens. Who really
knows what the founding fathers really
meant anyway:
The phrase "natural born" was in early
I've met Ickes. He's as cuddly as a
porcupine. Indeed, New York State
Democratic Party Chairman Herman
Farrell, a superdelegate, told the New York
Times: "Harold isn't Mr. Charm. But he is
Mr. Mechanic. He's good at the nuts and
bolts and doing the counting, less so at the
persuading."
Oh really. In 2004, major donors counted
on Ickes to elect Democrats up and down
the ballot, including John Kerry. Instead,
Ickes burned through tens of millions of
dollars with little to show for their
2008 earnings to come to 32 to 33 cents per
share, in line with analyst estimates of 32
cents per share. If you think that the
company won't fall by too much in the
coming months, then now could be a good
time to look at a bullish hedged trade on
CRM.
After hitting a one-year low of $37.24 in
August, the stock hit a one-year high of
$65.52 in December. CRM opened this
morning at $52.88. So far today the stock
has hit a low of $57.54 and a high of
$63.47. As of 10:45, CRM is trading at
$61.87, up $9.25 (17.8%). The chart for
drafts of the Constitution. Scholars say
notes of the Constitutional Convention give
away little of the intent of the framers. Its
origin may be traced to a letter from John
Jay to George Washington, with Jay
investment.
Ickes attempted a replay of his failed game
CRM looks bearish and steady, while S&P
gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of
5) hold rating.
For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I
would consider a May bull-put credit
spread below the $40 range. A bull-put
credit spread is an options position that
combines the purchase and sale of put
options to hedge risk in case the stock
suggesting that to prevent foreigners from
becoming commander in chief, the
Constitution needed to "declare expressly"
that only a natural-born citizen could be
president.
OK, whatever, so Panama's a non-issue,
but still, what about SIDNEY? Surely
there's a good playground taunt, or hidden
meaning in that somebody can cook up
before the election, no?
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
plan in 2006 but Democratic donors told
him to get lost.
Will Clinton turn to Bob Shrum next?
Shrum has advised every Democratic
presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter.
With a won-loss record of 0-8, he's
probably available.
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs |
Comments
doesn't do what you think but still leverage
nice returns. For this particular trade, we
will make a 5.3% return in just three
months as long as CRM is above $40 at
May expiration. salesforce.com would have
to fall by more than 35% before we would
start to lose money. Learn more about this
type of trade here.
CRM hasn't been below $40 since August
and has shown support around $53
recently. This trade could be risky if the
company's earnings do not turn out to be as
good as they seem at first glance today, but
even if that happens, this position could be
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Priceline.com (PCLN):
Shares consolidate in
bullish 'flag'
By Larry Schutts (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:03:00 AM
Filed under: Earnings reports, Expedia Inc
(EXPE), Technical Analysis, Stocks to Buy
Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN) is an
online travel agency. It offers a range of
services, including airline tickets, hotel
rooms, car rentals, vacation packages and
cruises, as well as destination and travel
insurance services. The company operates a
Name Your Own Price system, which
allows users to make offers for travel
services at prices they set. It also markets
fixed-price travel products and offers
various online financial services. Expedia
(NASDAQ: EXPE) is a major competitor.
The firm pleased investors earlier in the
month, when it reported Q4 EPS of 96
cents and revenues of $334.9 million.
Analysts had been expecting 84 cents and
$329.3 million. In discussing the solid
quarter, the CEO emphasized continued
momentum in growth of gross bookings.
International growth accelerated to 113%
year over year and the domestic growth rate
increased 24% sequentially. Management
also guided Q1 EPS to 50-60 cents (53 cent
consensus) and FY08 EPS to $4.80-$5.10
($4.90 consensus).
Continue reading Priceline.com (PCLN):
Shares consolidate in bullish
'flag'Permalink | Email this | Comments
protected by the support the stock might
find at its 200-day moving average, which
is around $50 and rising.
Brent Archer is an options analyst and
writer at Investors Observer.
DISCLOSURE: Mr. Archer owns and/or
controls diversified portfolios of long and
short stock and option positions that may
include holdings in companies he writes
about. At publication time, Brent neither
owns nor controls positions in
CRM.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
The latest $500 billion
explosion in Wall Street's
bowl of alphabet soup
By Peter Cohan (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:17:00 AM
Filed under: Bad news, Recession
The Wall Street Journal [subscription
required] reports that we need to learn
about another acronym thanks to Wall
Street's financial engineers whose fragile
financial instruments keep blowing up.
Today's explosion is in variable-rate
demand notes (VRDN) -- which let issuers
borrow for long periods -- but at short-term
interest rates. Like auction-rate securities
(ARSs), interest payments adjust on a
weekly or even daily basis. The difference
is that securities firms sell VRDNs at
whatever interest rate meets the market's
demand.
This is a huge market -- $500 billion, or
52% bigger than the $330 billion ARS
market. I've been asked what I thought the
next shoe to drop would be after the ARS
blowup. And I'm happy to report that I said
I had no idea. I had never heard of VRDNs
before this morning. But the market for
VRDNs is freezing up -- just like the ARS
market.
Specifically, some VRDN auctions failed --
hitting some municipalities with sharply
higher interest because dealers of the debt
are having trouble selling it. Last week,
rates on $300 million of California's
variable-rate demand notes rose to 8.25%
from 2% the previous week. As with the
Valero (VLO) lower on
Congressional Energy bill
By Brent Archer (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:40:00 AM
Filed under: Major movement, Bad news,
Valero Energy (VLO), Options, Technical
Analysis, OilValero Energy Corp. (NYSE:
VLO) stock is trading lower today despite
rising oil futures after the US House of
Representatives passed an energy bill that
will pay for $17 billion dollars of tax
ARS market, this freeze up will lead to
more unpleasant surprises for holders of
VRDNs -- like the one I posted on
yesterday in which a journalist who thought
his ARS investment was as liquid as a
money market fund discovered his funds
were frozen.
The worst part for the investing public is
that we have no way of knowing where the
next explosion will take place. It looks like
some financial terrorists are winning.
Peter Cohan is President ofPeter S. Cohan
& Associates. He also teaches management
at Babson College and edits The Cohan
Letter. Permalink | Email this | Comments
credits for wind and solar energy
production by ending tax incentives for oil
and natural gas producers. Though the bill
still must pass the Senate and be approved
by the President, this could be a bad sign
VALERO page 6
Analyst initiations: PSEM,
STJ and CHINA
By Eric Buscemi (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:52:00 AM
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst
initiationsMOST NOTEWORTHY:
Pericom, St. Jude Medical and CDC Corp
were today's noteworthy initiations:
• B. Riley believes Pericom (NASDAQ:
PSEM) is in the early stages of a product
cycle-driven growth and feels shares are
significantly undervalued at current levels.
The firm started shares with a Buy rating
and $18 target.
• Rodman & Renshaw started St. Jude
Medical (NYSE: STJ) with a Market
Outperform rating and $50 target. The firm
is positive on St. Jude's recent investments
in its CRM product portfolio and sales
organization, which should increase
competitiveness and facilitates continued
market share gains.
• CDC Corp (NASDAQ: CHINA) was
Analyst upgrades: Restaurant
sector, BBI and PLXS
By Eric Buscemi (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:27:00 AM
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst
upgrades and downgrades, Brinker Intl
(EAT), Blockbuster Inc 'A' (BBI), Darden
Restaurants (DRI), Cheesecake Factory
(CAKE), Sotheby's (BID)MOST
NOTEWORTHY: The Restaurant Sector,
Blockbuster and Plexus were today's
noteworthy upgrades:
• Bear Stearns upgraded the Restaurant
Sector to Market Weight from Underweight
citing better investor sentiment following
Fed rate cuts and the economic stimulus
plan; upgraded shares include Brinker
International (NYSE: EAT), Cheesecake
Factory (NASDAQ: CAKE) and Darden
Restaurants (NYSE: DRI).
• JP Morgan upgraded shares of
Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI) to Overweight
from Neutral ahead of the company's Q4
initiated at Cantor with a Buy rating and $6
target, as they believe the stock is
significantly undervalued due to the
complexity of the company's corporate
structure and poor financial disclosure. The
firm believes this gap will close after the
company lists at least one of its subsidiaries
this year.
OTHER INITIATIONS:
• Kevin Dann initiated Orion Marine
Group (NASDAQ: OMGI) with a Buy
rating and $18 target.
• JP Morgan initiated Chimera Investment
(NYSE: CIM) with a Neutral rating.
• Credit Suisse started Perrigo Company
(NASDAQ: PRGO) with a Neutral rating
and $40 target.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
results on March 6, as they believe the
quarter will be at least in-line and 2008
guidance will be above Street expectations.
• Plexus (NASDAQ: PLXS) was raised to
Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse
as they believe current quarter sales and
bookings are tracking ahead.
OTHER UPGRADES:
• Maxwell Technologies (NASDAQ:
MXWL) was upgraded to Market Perform
from Market Underperform at JMP
Securities.
• The firm also raised Sotheby's (NYSE:
BID) to Market Outperform from Market
Perform.
• Goldman Sachs added Allianz AG
(NYSE: AZ) to its Conviction Buy List.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
Business * 5
Blackrock Health
Sciences (BME): Safe
haven in a 'healthly' ETF
By Steven Halpern (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:46:00 AM
Filed under: Newsletters, Mutual funds,
Stocks to Buy
"The current market volatility makes us
want to run for shelter, a safe haven," notes
Richard Lehmann, editor of The ETF
Investor. One such haven he sees is health
science, and offers an ETF for the sector.
"Other than Treasury bonds, which have
their own risks, cash is certainly the safest.
One might think of gold or natural
resources as a safe haven, but once
economies slow down, demand there will
fall as well. Either way these safe havens
are likely to be volatile in the near future.
"The health care sector is not as dependent
on the overall economy and may be a safe
harbor for now. There are a number of
ETF's and closed end funds that cover this
sector.
"The one we find most compelling is the
Blackrock Health Sciences Trust (NYSE:
BME) mainly because it captures the value
in volatility by writing options on their
holdings. The option writing activity
moderates price swings and adds income to
the fund.
"It invests in healthcare providers,
healthcare equipment, pharmaceuticals and
biotech companies. The fund is currently
trading at $27.80 a -6.84% discount from
its net asset value. The yield is 5.53%,
which helps as an additional cushion. The
expense ratio is high at 1.13%, but is
somewhat offset by the -6.84% discount
from net asset value."
Each day, Steven Halpern's
TheStockAdvisors.com offers the latest
market commentary and favorite
investment ideas from the nation's leading
financial newsletter advisors.Permalink |
Email this | Comments
6 Business * Tech Gadgets * Your Click and Print Newspaper

Analyst downgrades: RFMD, U.S. Q4 2007 GDP rises at 0.6%

WDC and BYD
By Eric Buscemi (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:42:00 AM
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst
upgrades and downgradesMOST
NOTEWORTHY: RF Micro Devices,
Western Digital and Boyd Gaming were
today's noteworthy downgrades:
• Jefferies downgraded shares of RF Micro
Devices (NASDAQ: RFMD) to Hold from
Buy to reflect the continued softness in the
China Market after Asian channel checks
suggested the March quarter will be weak.
• Citigroup downgraded shares of Western
Digital (NYSE: WDC) to Hold from Buy,
as they believe the HDD industry is nearing
a cyclical peak. They also view the
Sears (SHLD) quarterly profit
plunges 47.5% on weak sales
By Eliza Popescu (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:34:00 AM
Filed under: Earnings reports, Forecasts,
Products and services, Management, Wal-
Mart (WMT), Sears Holdings
(SHLD)Shares of department store retailer
Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD)
have moved higher this morning, despite
the fact that the company posted a 47.5%
decline in fourth-quarter profit, hurt by
increased markdowns and weak sales of its
products.
The retailer announced that its quarterly
profit dropped to $426 million, or $3.17 a
share on declining margins as sales at its
likelihood of consolidation as less likely
given the current conditions.
• Boyd Gaming (NYSE: BYD) was
lowered to Neutral from Add at Calyon
following its Q4 report.
OTHER DOWNGRADES:
• JP Morgan downgraded BorgWarner
(NYSE: BWA), Lea Corporation (NYSE:
LEA) and TRW Automotive Holdings
(NYSE: TRW) to Neutral from
Overweight.
• Merrill lowered Edison International
(NYSE: EIX) to Neutral from Buy.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
Kmart and Sears stores slipped due to the
weak U.S. economy and increased
competition. These numbers are down from
$811 million, or $5.27 per share reported in
the same period a year ago.
Included in the company's earnings
numbers was a one-time gain related to the
sale of some assets. Excluding that, Sears
earnings numbers would have come at
$3.04 per share. Analyst estimates (which
typically exclude one time items) was for
$3.10 per share in the quarter.
Continue reading Sears (SHLD) quarterly
profit plunges 47.5% on weak
salesPermalink | Email this | Comments
annual rate, up 2.2% for 2007
By Joseph Lazzaro (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:50:00 AM
Filed under: Economic data, Federal
ReserveThe U.S. economy expanded at an
annual rate of 0.6% in Q4 2007, below the
consensus estimate, as activity in
construction and consumer spending
declined, The U.S. Commerce Department
announced Thursday, in a statement.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News
had expected the economy to grow at a
0.7% annualized rate in Q4 2007. The
economy grew at a 4.9% pace in Q3 2007,
the Commerce Department said.
VALERO
continued from page 5
for the oil industry, long a beneficiary of
Congressional subsidies. If you think this
stock won't be rising too far in the coming
months, then it could be a good time to
look at a bearish hedged play on VLO.
After hitting a one-year high of $78.68 in
July, the stock hit a one-year low of $47.80
in January. This morning, VLO opened at
$60.93. So far today the stock has hit a low
of $57.92 and a high of $60.93. As of
11:00, VLO is trading at $58.01, down
For 2007, the economy grew at its weakest
pace in five years, with GDP increasing at
an inflation-adjusted 2.2%. GDP increased
2.9% in 2006. In 2007 the nation's GDP
totaled $13.84 trillion, not adjusted for
inflation.
In Q4 2007, a stronger performance in trade
offset sub-par performances in consumer
spending, business investment, residential
investment, and inventories.
Continue reading U.S. Q4 2007 GDP rises
at 0.6% annual rate, up 2.2% for
2007Permalink | Email this | Comments
$2.80 (-4.6%). The chart for VLO looks
neutral and improving slightly, while S&P
gives the stock a positive 4 STARS (out of
5) buy rating.
Continue reading Valero (VLO) lower on
Congressional Energy billPermalink |
Email this | Comments
Sprint debuts
"Simply Everything"
plan for $99 a month
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 1:12:00 AM
Filed under: Cellphones
We're not sure what took them so long, but
Sprint finally has joined its fellow major
carriers in offering an unlimited plan for a
flat rate -- the now industry standard $99 --
only this time it's for all the marbles.
Instead of just the unlimited voice offered
by AT&T and Verizon, or the voice + SMS
that T-Mobile has on offer, Sprint is
undercutting the competition with a $99
plan that includes voice, data, text, Sprint
TV, GPS and more. "Simply Everything" is
available today to both CDMA and iDEN
customers, and is open to existing and new
subscribers. If you've got a family plan, it's
$5 less for every line you add ($99 + $94 +
$89 and so on). While those with the gift of
gab but no desire to surf the mobile webs
might be disappointed that the rumored $60
unlimited voice plan didn't materialize, this
certainly undercuts the competition by
healthy margin for the smartphone crowd,
which is exactly what we were hoping for
out of Sprint.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Android gets handled, now with Street View

By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:44:00 AM
Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds
While Apple might have your attention at
the moment with that impending SDK, the
Android OS seems to be coming along
quite nicely over at Google and the Open
Handset Alliance. BBC's Darren Waters got
to peek "under the bonnet" with Andy
Rubin himself, and has video to prove it.
The OS was running on an unknown 3G
touchscreen prototype, which also had a
track ball at the bottom. The interface has
come a long way since we saw it first, and
browsing the web looks snappy and
intuitive. Andy also showed off a version of
Street View -- complete with smooth
panning and zooming, of course -- and the
fan-favorite Quake demo. Not bad at all for
a 300MHz-ish processor, and while
Android is still in "Alpha" stage, it's
already got a lot of good things going for it.
Video is after the break.
[Thanks, Omar A.]
Continue reading Android gets handled,
now with Street View
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Philips shows off "Imagination
Light Canvas" for the easily
entertained
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:08:00 AM
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets
Look, we're sorry, but 1,420 LEDs just isn't
cutting it anymore. Maybe back when we
were children a touchable 14-foot by 6-foot
wall lit up by a myriad of magical blue
lights would've managed to pull us away
from our Lincoln Logs for a minute or
three, but the kids of today grew up on
Baby Einstein and a post-Steve Blue's
Clues -- they aren't easily impressed. The
Philips "Imagination Light Canvas" is
being shown off at the Mercy Medical
Center in Rogers, Arkansas, and allows
visitors to touch the wall and "paint with
light." Whatever you draw slowly fades
over time, and apparently you can draw
using a bunch of different colors and
shapes, though we're only seeing blue
squares here. The wall can accomadate six
people drawing at once, and pulls about as
much electricity as a regular toaster. It'll be
unveiled on March 16th.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
AIBO matches real dogs in chasing
away loneliness, research claims
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:16:00 AM
Filed under: Robots
While robot / human relations seem to be
fairly solid at the moment, it looks like the
fight has long since been on between
canines and their robotic counterparts.
Some researchers at Saint Louis University
compared Sony's AIBO with a mutt named
Sparky at three different nursing homes, to
see how residents would respond. Maybe
Sparky just isn't that affable, but the
Tech Gadgets * 7
BBC broadcasting
Rugby Six Nations
match in 3D
By Richard Lawler (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:45:00 AM
Filed under: HDTVNot happy letting us
Yankees get away with all the 3D sporting
action, the BBC plans to test a 3D HD
broadcast of a Rugby Six Nations match
next month. A lot like the NBA's test with
last year's All-Star Game and NBA Finals,
the March 8th game between Scotland and
England will be captured by three camera
rigs and then transmitted via satellite --
unlike the fiber connection used by the
NBA -- to an audience watching a big
screen with 3D glasses. Can Communicate,
Inition and Axis are the companies forming
3DFirm, which is partnering with the Beeb
to make the whole thing happen, including
working out a new style of camera work
and post production. We won't say we're
waiting for a 3D broadcast of real football
to get excited about these tests (we'll just
think it.)
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
researchers found that AIBO and his living
breathing competition were both equally
successful in alleviating loneliness. AIBO
also has the added advantage of, erm,
cleanliness, and is easier for senior citizens
to take care of, so it looks like Sparky is
pretty much out of a job. Get used to it,
buddy, it's called outsourcing.
[Via Tech Digest]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
8 Tech Gadgets *
Asus shows off HDMI-equipped Xonar
DX and Xonar AV1 sound cards
By Richard Lawler (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:54:00 AM
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Media
PCs
Asus continues to crank up its media PC
relatedofferings, its latest are two HDMI
equipped sound cards aimed at HTPC users
or prosumers. Next week at CeBIT expect
to see the Xonar DX sound card, a slimmed
-down edition of its Xonar D2X card made
Digital Polaroid photo frame concept brings it all rushing back
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:29:00 AM
Filed under: Digital Cameras, Displays
Polaroid film may be gone, but for some of
us with fond memories of the format -- for
no discernible reason, Polaroids were slow,
blurry and expensive -- this digital picture
frame concept seems a fitting tribute.
There's a dry erase portion on the bottom,
to fit any PCI-E x1 equipped computer.
Dolby Digital Live and DTS connect
support is still part of the package, plus
EAX 5.0 compatibility. Next up is the
Xonar AV1, complete with three HDMI
jacks and Asus' Splendid HD chip to assist
audio and video mastering. Price or release
date on these is unknown but we're sure to
get a closer look once the show starts.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
and the frame can stand on its own or be
pinned to a cork board for added realism.
"Standard" mode emulates a regular digital
Sony's launching mylo labs to keep your
COM-2 in the widgets
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 1:05:00 AM
Filed under: Handhelds
If you've already dropped $299 on a second
-gen mylo COM-2 unit, then Sony has a
little treat for you -- while all of you early
adopters still poking around on an original
mylo probably feel pretty silly right now.
Sony is launching the "mylo labs" site for
nabbing mylo widgets, and while right now
frame, while "Classic" mode slowly fades
the picture into view. Yeah, maybe a little
too cute for its own good, but maybe we
like it that way.
[Via Gadget Lab]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
O2's bringing the
iPhone to Ireland on
March 14th
By Paul Miller (Engadget)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 1:46:00 AM
Filed under: Cellphones
We got wind of this in the early AM, but
now it's official: O2 is picking up the
iPhone in Ireland, selling the 8 gigger for
€399, and the 16GB for €499. Tariffs range
from €45 for 175 minutes to €100 for 700
minutes, and all plans include 1GB of data.
It sounds like quite the scam compared to
O2's iPhone plans in the UK, but we're
going to just chalk it up to cultural
differences not explored in Colin Farrell's
latest masterpiece, "In Bruges."
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
there are just a few Sony-built widgets,
Sony will open up the site to developers in
March to add their own. Widgets seem to
be a natural fit for a device like this, and
hey, they're free, so there's really no reason
not to love. It's just too bad those gen-one
types get left out in the cold.
[Via pocketables]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
We’re Sorting Through Some Crazy
Google/Yahoo Rumors
By Michael Arrington (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 6:25:39 PM
Google is continuing to try to disrupt
Microsoft’s bid for Yahoo, and, we’ve
heard, may even be considering a bid to
acquire a significant chunk of Yahoo’s
stock (keep reading though, we’re calling
this a long shot at best).
Google clearly wants to see the status quo
continue in the search space, and would
rather fight a fragmented market than a
single, stronger, Microsoft/Yahoo. That’s
why they weighed in shortly after the initial
Microsoft bid, saying “Microsoft’s hostile
bid for Yahoo! raises troubling questions.”
Sources with knowledge of the deal are
saying that Google also hired veteran M&A
expert George Boutros as Credit Suisse the
day after the Microsoft bid was made, to
advise them on how to respond to the deal.
That advice, one source says, may be
leading Google to place an unsolicited bid
to acquire just under 20% of Yahoo’s stock
at an inflated price.
The goal isn’t so much to close the deal,
which would almost certainly be opposed
by U.S. regulatory agencies. But rather to
throw another curve ball at the Yahoo
Board, which is already dealing with the
Microsoft bid and a likely challenge to their
board seats this June. If the Yahoo Board,
particularly the outside board members,
Picnik Now Offers Premium Features For Free
By Duncan Riley (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 6:16:12 PM
Online image editing startup Picnik has
announced that users will now have full
access to all of Picniks editing features for
free.
Tools now available to all users include
advanced edit tools, special effects,
additional fonts and shapes. The service
were preparing to fold to Microsoft, a
Google bid might give them pause. And
any delay buys Google time - during which
other factors can come into play to stop the
deal.
“It’s a relatively cheap way for Google to
confuse the situation further, and,
potentially delay or disrupt a Microsoft
acquisition” said one advisor to the deal,
requesting to remain anonymous.
While multiple sources have confirmed that
Google is being advised by Boutros, only
one is saying that Google might be
preparing to place a bid in the next couple
of weeks. Credit Suisse analyst Heath Terry
said last November “Over time, Google
will continue to gain share until they have
effectively reached 100 percent.”
Arbitrageurs, who today hold as much as
20% of Yahoo’s stock during this risky
will be ad supported, but those wanting an
ad free experience can sign up for Picnik
Premium for $24.95 a year.
Why the change? This is how Picnik spins
it:
We want to make everyone feel like a
photo editing superstar. Picnik is already
the world’s leading online photo editor, but
there are still a lot of people living tragic,
gloomy lives believing that powerful photo
period, have not heard this rumor, either,
according to another source. These are the
guys that hire private investigators to track
executives and known advisors, monitor
private jet traffic and otherwise gather
information about possible M&A deals
through any legal (and sometimes not so
legal) means at their disposal. Generally
they hear rumors first, and trade on the
information before the press gets their
hands on it. For example, some arbitrageurs
say they had already factored in News
Corp.’s possible Yahoo bid days before we
broke the news. The fact that the
arbitrageurs holding yahoo stock haven’t
heard anything about this makes the rumor
significantly less likely to be accurate.
Assuming Microsoft does not back away
from its bid, look for them to nominate
their own slate of directors for the Yahoo
board a few days in advance of the March
13 deadline. Google, or anyone else who
might try to disrupt this deal, will likely
make their move before then.
Thanks to Nathan Lipson at TheMarker
(he’s currently shaking down sources in
New York) for comparing notes with us on
the rumor mongering.CrunchBase
InformationYahoo!GoogleInformation
provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
editing tools cost hundreds of dollars, come
in unopenable boxes, and are impossible to
use. By offering an ad-supported version of
Picnik, we can make much richer, deeper,
and ultimately better photo-editing
It Took 16 Months, But
Google Relaunches Jotspot
By Michael Arrington (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 8:58:26 PM
Google acquired hosted wiki service
Jotspot in October 2006. The service
immediately stopped taking new users,
although existing users were supported.
Now, nearly sixteen months later, Jotspot
has been relaunched under the Google
Apps team, as Google Sites.
Google Sites looks absolutely nothing like
Jotspot, other than the fact that both are
hosted wikis. All of the structured data
templates launched by Jotspot in July 2006
have been stripped out. Users now have a
choice between just five basic templates - a
standard wiki, a dashboard where google
gadgets can be embedded, a blog-like
template for announcements, a file cabinet
for file uploads, and a page for lists of
items. Instead of creating structured
templates, users will now simply embed
spreadsheets, presentations and word
documents from Google Docs, as well as
Google Calendars, YouTube Videos and
Picasa Albums.
Like Google Docs, Google Sites wikis can
be made private, shared with others, or
made public. Users can select from a
variety of templates, but cannot yet
customize the look and feel of the site.
Somewhere down the road, Google says,
they’ll release an API for the new service
as well. Editing is done with a rich text
editor that allows for basic formatting.
Google Sites is a free product, with
limitations on support and storage (10 GB).
Users can upgrade their Google Apps
functionality available to more people
around the globe: Photo editing
awesomeness for everyone.
The more likely reason: they can afford to
do so due to the money they’re getting from
Yahoo for the Flickr deal, and in the face of
increased competition (both existing and
future) Picnik needed to offer more. Still,
Picnik was a good package before this
announcement, and now it’s better again.
Technology * 9
account to a standard edition, also free, and
map their own domains to the site. A
premier edition is also available for
$50/user/year that includes a service level
agreement, support and more admin
capabilities.
All wiki pages have RSS feeds associated
with them to allow users to track any
changes.
Existing Jotspot users will continue to be
supported on the old platform for the near
future, and they will also be given
instructions for porting their Jotspot wikis
to Google sites.
In an interview today, Google’s
Management Director of Enterprise
Matthew Glotzbach called the combined
products under Google Apps a “Microsoft
Sharepoint killer” because it’s allowing
businesses to collaborate without all that
expensive Microsoft software. It may not
be a Sharepoint killer yet, but Google Apps
constitutes 2-3% of Google’s total
revenues. Some point soon, its going to
start hurting Microsoft.
Sample screenshots:
CrunchBase InformationJotSpotGoogle
SitesInformation provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
See our February 2007 review of online
Photo editing sites here.CrunchBase
InformationPicnikInformation provided by
CrunchBase
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
10 Technology *
More Vaporware From Quarterlife Might Not Have A
Google Health. Just Launch Long Life On NBC
It Already.
By Erick Schonfeld (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 9:03:43 AM
Google’s Marissa Mayer put out another
teaser today about its long-anticipated,
much-delayed Google Health service. The
post on the Official Google Blog offers
some screen shots (below) and lays out
what consumers can expect. But other than
a pilot announced last week with the
Cleveland Clinic, there is no mention on
when Google Health will actually launch.
Meanwhile, Microsoft launched its own
rival HealthVault way back in October.
Like HealthVault, Google Health will allow
you to download your health records from
doctors and hospitals, and create your own
medical profile. Also like HealthVault, it
will let you search for doctors and provide
online tools to manage your health. When
you log in to Google Health, you will see
your health profile, complete with
information about your medical conditions,
medications, allergies, procedures, test
results, drug interactions, and medical
contacts. Security and portability of
medical records are key areas of focus for
the Google engineers building Google
Health.
The real battle, though, is which one can
become the de facto platform for third-
party health apps. HealthVault is already
signing up industry partners. Google has its
own approach. It is not quite OpenSocial
for healthcare, but that is the general idea.
The problem is that most healthcare
applications are not Web applications. They
work on the legacy technology you find at
most hospitals and doctor’s offices. Google
is working hard to help port those apps to
the Web. Mayer explains:
Right now, this means you’ll be able to
automatically import information such as
your doctors’ records, your prescription
history, and your test results into Google
Health in order to easily access and and
control your data. Later, this platform
strategy will mean that you will be able to
interact with services and tools easily, and
will be able to do things like schedule
appointments, refill prescriptions, and start
using new wellness tools.
Healthcare is still a largely untapped
market on the Web. Whoever can crack it
first will open up a huge new market. (For
both Google and Microsoft, the opportunity
here is health-related search and the very
valuable targeted ads that go with that). But
enough teasers already. It is time to launch
this thing for real. Funny that Google is the
one with the vaporware in this case, and not
Microsoft for a change.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s
time for you to find a new Job2.0
By Duncan Riley (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 7:48:12 PM
Quarterlife, the made for MySpace TV
show that became the first internet show
picked up by a TV network has bombed.
According to Nielsen Ratings for Tuesday
night, Quarterlife managed only 3.86
million viewers for its 10pm debut on
NBC, compared to the fan resurrected but
short second season of Jericho with 6.9
million viewers and Primetime: What
Would You Do Now? with 7.6 million
viewers.
Although no decision has been made as to
whether Quarterlife will return for a second
outing next week, these poor figures would
suggest that Quarterlife may not have a
long life on NBC.
Some may suggest that Quaterlife’s failure
to make a successful cross from online to
Akimbo Reinvents Itself Again,
Takes More Money
By Duncan Riley (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 6:55:42 PM
Online video provider Akimbo has
reinvented itself again as a white label
video service provider and has taken a new
round of funding.
Akimbo’s new white label video solution
includes an advertising system and
“supports multiple business models
including ad-supported, transactional,
subscription, download-to-own, download-
to-burn, pay-per-minute, gift cards and
account credits.”
The new round of funding came from
Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Kleiner Perkins
Caufield and Byers, and Zone Ventures,
although the amount was not disclosed.
Existing investors include AT&T and Cisco
and funding before the new round was
network TV isn’t a positive for future
shows following the same path; certainly it
doesn’t make things easier. A first failed
experiment won’t necessarily mean the
crossover idea will fail again in the future.
As more and more people turn to the
internet for entertainment, the volume of
professionally made video content will
continue to increase, and sheer numbers
would suggest that Quaterlife may become
the first of many crossovers to come as
television networks scramble to find new
content that viewers want to watch.
(via RWW)
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
$31.7 million.
San Mateo based Akimbo has had a
colorful history. Initially starting as a VOD
integrated hardware and content provider, it
later abandoned the hardware model for an
internet only solution that offered a
software interface for Microsoft Windows
Media Center Edition. That service was
discontinued in August 2007.
The first client for the new Akimbo is
M a v T V . C r u n c h B a s e
InformationAkimboInformation provided
by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s
time for you to find a new Job2.0
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Quintura Releases
Site-Specific Search
Cloud Widget
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 5:00:12 AM
Quintura, a site where you can search the
internet with the assistance of a keyword
cloud, is releasing a widget that brings the
same search cloud to individual websites.
Site owners can install the widget (shown
below) and the search results will come
only from their sites, or from a network of
sites if they so choose. Search
advertisements will show up in the cloud,
and proceeds from click-throughs to those
advertisements will be split with site
owners.
If you’re interested in trying it out on your
site, you can sign up here and Quintura will
begin indexing your site and/or RSS feed.
The cloud is customizable and so easily
embeddable that visitors to your site will
have the opportunity to embed the cloud for
your site on their own.
As you can see below, the widget’s
struggling a bit to search TechCrunch very
effectively. It seems to generate a lot of
results for tag pages, not actual articles,
which isn’t terribly helpful. In my testing,
the widget also loads only partially
sometimes, which prevents the results
themselves from actually showing.
Crunch Network: MobileCrunchMobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered Daily.
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Google Docs Gets A Visual
Overhaul, Now More Office
Like
By Duncan Riley (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 8:35:25 PM
Google has quietly updated the look of
Google Docs, offering a more Microsoft
Office (pre 2007) like interface.
First spotted by Philipp Lenssen, the
changes aren’t huge, but visually they’re
pleasing. Gone is the Google Docs blue
background toolbar with its unique layout.
In its place is a grey toolbar that will be
immediately familiar to users of other
offline and online office packages. Fonts
now have a dedicated box with the list
being rendered in the particular font listed.
Text sizing also gets a familiar drop down
box as well.
Magnify.net Raises $1M for Video
Discovery, Broadcasting
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 5:01:24 AM
New York-based Magnify.net has raised
$1M in a Series A round involving Next
Stage Capital, New York Angels, Rose
Tech Ventures, Active Angel Investors,
Ogden Capital, Gideon Gartner, and Chris
Anderson.
The company is also claiming to have
attracted 30,000 publishers and over three
million visitors per month. Each publisher
on Magnify.net sets up a so-called channel
where they can aggregate user generated
The changes have been rolled out across the
three core Google Docs products (Writely,
Spreadsheets and Presentations).
Although still not as fully featured as
offline alternatives, and even some online
competitors as well, Google Docs has
gained strong support in the first adopter
community and is slowly finding a market
in the business world as Google pushes its
corporate packages. The new look will
make it easier for new users to immediately
use Google Docs and that will help sell the
package.
Crunch Network: CrunchGeardrool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
videos found across the web on places like
YouTube. Magnify.net also recently added
webcam broadcasting capabilities so
presumably this figure includes webcam
channels as well.
Crunch Network: CrunchGeardrool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
LinkedIn Revamps Design, Adds
Status Updates
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 8:55:07 PM
Thursday morning LinkedIn will roll out a
new site-wide design featuring a tab-less
header and a persistent left column with
personal, account-related options.
LinkedIn is also adding status updates with
which users can broadcast their current
activities (professional or otherwise) to
their connections and/or networks.
Just as when the company added portraits,
these updates feel like an attempt to mimic
Facebook. The new design bestows upon
LinkedIn a similar layout to Facebook’s,
with the page divided into a header, a thin
left column, and a wide right one.
Facebook has also had featured status
Sneak Peek: Microsoft’s MIX08
Announcements
By Paul Glazowski (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 6:22:04 AM
Early next month, Microsoft plans to unveil
some new developments as well as a
number of progressions on existing services
at MIX08, the software company’s
conference pertaining to all things Web.
Dave Treadwell, the head of the Live
Platform Services division in Redmond,
writing on the Windows Live Dev blog, has
offered a sneak peak of what you can all
expect to see on the event floor at the
Venetian in Las Vegas.
As many of you know, Microsoft has spent
some time reflecting on its past choices
concerning technological openness and is
moving slowly but steadily to accept some
un-Redmond-like industry trends that,
years ago, the company would almost
habitually balk at. Well, you can look
forward to watching Microsoft move ahead
to work more closely with third parties with
its various developments, including its
social Live Messenger component, its
burgeoning Silverlight product, its evolving
Passport-esque Live ID service, and
numerous other facets of its Web-based
businesses. A term to be used exhaustively
at MIX08: API. Lots and lots of API.
Technology * Social Net *
updates for quite some time.
There are differences, of course, between
the two. LinkedIn has decided to place a
box at the bottom of the left column that
continually reminds you how many
connections you have, how many people
have recently joined your network, what
your status is, and more. The homepage
will also have modules that you’ll be able
to drag around to reorder.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoardbecause it’s
time for you to find a new Job2.0
One of the main released scheduled for
showcase at MIX08, Live Messenger, is
being opened up for third parties to
integrate into their own sites and services.
Messenger has so far built a user base of
some 300+ million purported registrants, so
this move could prove an enticing prospect
for companies that wish to add social
components to their creation(s) without
having to start largely from scratch.
Microsoft expects to deliver the new beta of
Live Messenger Library as something
secure and safe to use, with an added
dimension of visual adaptability. Look and
feel, after all, are important to sites and
services of all types. If Microsoft is able to
successfully bridge its Live Messenger
service with in an attractive fashion, it may
greatly increase the power and influence of
Messenger, potentially providing
interesting new networking possibilities for
11
TidalTV Raises $15
Million Somehow
for Something
By Mark 'Rizzn' Hopkins (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 11:00:52 PM
TidalTV has raised $15 million on a wing
and a prayer in their Series A from New
Enterprise Associates and Valhalla
Partners. There is no product, service, or
even much of a website. In fact, the biggest
thing they seem to have going for them is
its users throughout the world. In his post,
Treadwell also made a point to highlight
the beta release of the Windows Live
Contacts API.
Silverlight Streaming, Microsoft’s
“companion service to Silverlight,” its
alternative to Adobe’s imperial Flash
juggernaut, will be moving along into beta
form in early March. The company says it
will be increasing the storage and
bandwidth limits for users of the available
free offerings. Free reservations for cloud
space will soon amount to 10GB and
streaming will be possible to a height of
1400Kbps. (An example is provided by
Microsoft here.) Microsoft will also talk
about its new WebDAV API for Silverlight
Streaming, which will provide developers
with “file-by-file management and Web
Folders support.”
Other news to be delivered by Microsoft at
MIX08 are its investment in the Atom
publishing protocol, additions to its
Windows Live Tools developer utilities, an
API constructed for “application based
storage,” a refresh to the Windows Live
Photo API, and some Windows Live Quick
App updates.
ShareThis
12 Social Net *
TIDALTV
continued from page 11
that their chairman was a co-founder of
Advertising.com, and their CEO was an
executive at Advertising.com as well.
We covered the funding announcement
here a few days ago, but it keeps cropping
up in my daily reads, so I’ve scraped
together as many details as I can from the
varying press releases and blog writeups,
and here’s what I’ve got so far:
* It won’t be like Joost, it’ll be like Hulu.
* It won’t be like Hulu, it’ll be like Joost.
* It is an embedded video website.
* It has Flash in the architecture,
somewhere.
* There will be premium video content, and
some exclusive content.
* There will be UGC.
* There won’t be UGC.
* There also might be a remote control you
can use to watch stuff.
The most commonly agreed upon data-
points seem to be the remote control, the
premium content, and that there will be
video on the service. So essentially,
TidalTV seems to have raised $15 M on a
couple resumes and a remote. Good work,
CrunchyRoll Faces $4.05 M in VC; Also Faces
Copyright Issues
By Mark 'Rizzn' Hopkins (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 10:41:18 PM
Allen Stern pointed out a new video
sharing site I’d not yet heard of (and I
figured I’d heard of just about every single
one of them) - CrunchyRoll. It’s an
interesting story, too. The company has
fallen on hard times lately, and still in the
midst of it managed to land a $4.05 million
Series A venture round today.
Dubbed the Asian YouTube, the site seems
to have content focused primarily around
otaku-fare, but also a strong contingent of
if you can get it!
Here’s the thing, though: it’s pretty easy
and formulaic to create embedded video
websites, whether they have great premium
content that’s actually licensed, or if you
hire a RentACoder to build an embedded
site on an established domain you grabbed
from SitePoint - it’s going to get some
traffic, and if you host it right, it’ll make
money. The question is will you be able to
leverage that into something where you’re
able to sell direct in-stream advertisements
that approach the level of payout that
current content producers see with
traditional mainstream outlets.
If their experience at Advertising.com
allows them to do this, and they have the
know-how to make it work aesthetically,
we may have an actual breakout winner in
the genre of online premium content. If
not, we may have Yet Another Embedded
Video Website.
ShareThis
music-centric content.
The problems for CrunchyRoll come in the
form of copyright, an issue facing almost
every embedded video provider. The
stickier parts of this come in when you
consider that most of the copyrighted
materials are anime, and as we’ve discussed
in the past here at Mashable, the anime
industry isn’t quite sure whether to embrace
or sue to hell and back the anime pirate
community. Certainly, it is in their best
interests to let certain parts of the anime
pirate community flourish a bit, since that
is what has driven it’s initial success in the
Dragonfly HD Web Video
Distributor Raises $3M in
Angel Funding
By Paul Glazowski (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 5:19:09 AM
Dragonfly, a NY-based company
specializing in Internet video distribution,
founded in 2006, has announced today its
receipt of $3m in angel investments from a
variety of sources, including Ed Herrington
(VistaPrint funder), David Solomon, and
former NFL athlete Joe Theismann.
The Web video distributor purports to be
building a “next-generation HD video
network,” and is looking to secure
customers big and small with a technology
that “vastly improves the way online video
is compressed, delivered, and measured.”
Measured being the most prominent
keyword.
The company recognizes the potential of
the Web video market - one with a revenue
estimation of some $1.38bn in 2007 - and is
looking to deliver its so-called flagship
product, dubbed Movie Maker, to allow
content producers to “publish, track,
monetize, and analyze video” in order to
garner the best returns on their media
Americas. On the other hand, having no
piece of the pie can’t be good for the future
of their business.
What’s unclear is how long CrunchyRoll
can sustain their roll. Tony Hung pegs their
monthly income at around $75k a month,
which may not be adequate justification for
investments.
Whether Dragonfly can sell its software
and services convincingly in an industry
commanded by the likes of Adobe,
Microsoft, and other big, reputable brands,
can really only be effectively determined
through real-world experimentation.
Having taken a brief glimpse of the
company’s video, we can say that video
quality of a stream taken direct from
Dragonfly’s homepage appeared quite
impressive, visually speaking, but only
under substantial pressure from a large
number of end users can one truly gauge
the resilience of Dragonfly’s technology.
Recent Dragonfly customers include
Adweek, Stax Museum, Architecture for
Art, and Mediaweek.
ShareThis
a $4M funding round. CrunchyRoll has
done several things to quell the
compounding problems of copyright - like
removing the ads from content and dis-
allowing remote embeds. Conventional
wisdom says that these are not winning
strategies for video embed sites. Will the
VCs lose their shirts on this one? Unless all
us analysts are completely mistaken, all
signs lead to yes.
ShareThis
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Iomota: Building
the Ning for
Mobile?
By Kristen Nicole (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:39:16 AM
Iomota is a mobile applications service
that’s coming out with some tools for
brands that are looking to create and market
applications and communities across the
web. In what appears to be a mobile
platform offering similar to Intercasting
Corp.’s ANTHEM, Iomota’s latest product,
called Iomota Impact, provides the building
blocks for creating a mobile network or a
mobile marketing campaign to suit your
needs.
Consider it somewhat like a BricaBox for
mobile networks. You can create a video-
or image-sharing mobile network, a mobile
coupon system, or just a basic alert system,
which can be used for a number of add-on
capabilities necessary to accompany
existing web-based networks these days.
Combine it with Iomota’s marketing
services, and you’ll get options like
keywords or dedicated shortcodes. Deep
customization tools are fairly necessary
here, but integration is even more
important. Iomota does have an API
available, and mobile opt-ins for
multimedia, including TV, blogs, email,
and other social networks.
As we saw with MoFuse yesterday, the
necessity of offering application builders
for optimized mobile experiences is
becoming an easier process from a platform
standpoint, and subsequently levels the
playing field for just about anyone that
would like an entire mobile network or
mobile features for their existing network.
Plans start at about $50 per month. In the
same way that Ning has made it far easier
to create social networks online, tools like
Iomota Impact are hoping to do the same
on the mobile end of things.
ShareThis
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Podcast: A Conversation with
WhyGoSolo’s Ann Bernard
By Mark 'Rizzn' Hopkins (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:12:14 AM
WhyGoSolo is a niche social network that
is gaining traction in the blogging press.
What it is is a system that allows folks who
may not have a highly geographically-
centric social graph to find folks with
which to attend local events. There are a lot
of angles that might not be readily apparent
at first blush that make this an interesting
idea and a well concocted execution - and
that’s why I sat down with Ann Bernard to
talk about it.
We covered a lot of ground, including a bit
of our own social networking horror stories
when it came to meeting new folks, and our
wistful desires for the existence of a system
like WhyGoSocial in our past.
Folks who will be attending out MashMeet
DC event will get a chance to meet Ann
Quintura Launches Cloud Search
Widget
By Stan Schroeder (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:52:17 AM
Visual (read: cloud) search engine Quintura
has launched a widget that publishers can
use on their web sites. If the standard
search box bores you to death, with
Quintura’s widget you can spice your site a
little. The folks at Quintura call this
“affiliate program,” but let’s face it, it’s a
widget.
If you’re unfamiliar with how Quintura
works, you can try it out at Quintura.com.
In a nutshell, Quintura combines standard
Google-like search with a neat cloud which
shows you other related search terms. If
this is right up your alley, then Quintura the
Bernard, as she’ll be in attendance. For
those of you who have been so far unable
to secure a ticket to the event will want to
listen all the way to the end to find out a
way to secure a free pass to the event!
The embed is available below, or you can
download the MP3 file directly here.
Get the Mashable Conversations podcast
here.
Add directly to iTunes here (or give us a
rating).
Add directly to your Zune here.
You can check out WhyGoSolo here.
ShareThis
widget will be a great addition to your site.
You can see it in action over at
www.altsearchengines.com.
Publishers and blog owners can register at
affiliates.quintura.com and submit their
sites for indexing. The look of the search
cloud can be customized, and it’s place on
your site by simple cutting and pasting of a
code snippet.
ShareThis
Me.dium Adds Support For
Songbird Media Player,
Firefox 3
By Kristen Nicole (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:39:15 AM
Social browsing add-on Me.dium is
announcing support for Firefox 3 and the
Songbird Media Player today. Seeing as
Me.dium is among the most requested
extensions for Songbird, there should be a
lot of happy users out there. Me.dium has
always been about the incorporation of
social utility into the act of browsing, but
the company has also had a pretty large
focus on the music industry as well.
In the past, Me.dium has held virtual mosh
pits and other social discussions for various
live music events and online programs, so
the integration with the Songbird Media
Player seems pretty ideal for Me.dium.
Perhaps such integration in Songbird Media
Player will also encourage more artists to
What Google Health Looks Like (Screenshots)
By Adam Ostrow (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 5:13:20 AM
Marissa Mayer has posted some early
screenshots of what Google Health will
look like. If you didn’t quite understand
what Google was up to before, the above
screenshot makes it pretty clear; all of your
pertinent health information like
medications, allergies, immunizations, etc
in a Google account that you can manage.
Your doctors’ records, prescription history,
Last.FM Opens Gallery for Third Party Apps
By Stan Schroeder (Mashable!)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 4:25:34 AM
If you’ve been struggling to find good third
party applications for Last.FM, worry no
more, as they’re now gathered in one place:
build.last.fm.
There are only four categories, which
doesn’t seem enough to me: For your
Desktop, For the Web, For Social Networks
Social Net * 13
use Me.dium for live chat sessions, among
the other options already available for the
Me.dium social browsing plug-in. Me.dium
was already available for IE 7 and Flock,
although the time is near for an upgrade for
IE 8 (I don’t know how Me.dium got
anything to work on IE 7 in the first place).
With the latest upgrade support for Firefox
3 and Songbird Media Player, the Songbird
integration is probably the most notable
addition to mention, though both upgrades
nicely round out Me.dium’s list of
supported browsers.
ShareThis
ambitious and potentially a big step
forward in America’s incredibly confusing
healthcare system. Mayer has outlined
some specifics relating to the company’s
healthcare strategy on the Official Google
Blog.
Last week, the company announced a trial
of Google Health at the Cleveland Clinic.
and test results can be imported into your ShareThis
profile.
It’s a little scary, but also enormously
grows to several hundred or more, better
categorization will be needed.
So, all you Last.FM lovers now know
where to get your third party app fix, and if
you’ve developed a Last.FM related
application, you can submit it here.
ShareThis
and Scrobblers. True, it’s not a problem
now due to the relatively small number of
available apps, but if this number ever
14 TV *
In the Limelight: Michelle
Forbes
By Allison Waldman (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:01:00 AM
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, 24,
Battlestar Galactica, Prison Break, In the
LimelightMysterious. Mesmerizing.
Interesting. Dynamic. Compelling. Any and
all of these words accurately describe
actress Michelle Forbes. She is one of the
finest actresses in television, and yet she
has maintained a distinct quality that makes
her as elusive a performer to come around
since Garbo! Intensely private, there's not
much known about the Austin, Texas
native. (However, I can tell you that she
collects clocks -- broken clocks. As she told
me, quoting the movie Withnail and I,
"Even a stopped clock tells the right time
twice a day.")
She's currently making HBO's new drama
In Treatment appointment TV, drawing her
loyal following to find her latest work as
she did in 24, Prison Break, Homicide and
Battlestar Galactica. And that doesn't even
take into account the millions who first
discovered this chameleon when she first
ABC gives Miss/Guided a go
By Allison Waldman (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 1:21:00 AM
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows,
Programming, The Office, Celebrities,
Dancing With The Stars, Pickups and
RenewalsIn the flush of all the returning
series with fresh episodes comes this tasty
morsel of news. ABC will premiere
Miss/Guided, a new sitcom starring Judy
Greer (Love Monkey) on March 18.
Miss Guided is the story of Becky Freeley,
who returns to the same high school she
went to as a teenager as a guidance
counselor, sorta, kinda like Welcome Back,
Kotter. But Becky wasn't a sweat hog in her
high school days -- she was an ugly
duckling with braces and teenage anxieties.
Now, as an adult, she hopes to be able to
handle HS with more elan. Becky's hopes
hit a speed bump when she meets the sexy
mechanic-turned Spanish teacher, Tim
burst onto the scene in Guiding Light, and
then Star Trek: The Next Generation.
%Gallery-17052%
Continue reading In the Limelight:
Michelle Forbes
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
(Kristoffer Polaha), whom she likes...a lot.
Then, she learns that the new English
teacher is Lisa Germain (Brooke Burns),
her former nemesis back in school. And
wouldn't you know it, Lisa likes Tim, too!
Continue reading ABC gives Miss/Guided
a go
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Rosie and Fran teaming up for a
sitcom
By Allison Waldman (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:29:00 AM
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows,
Nip/Tuck, Daytime, Web, Celebrities, Talk
Show, Ratings, EmmysFunny ladies Rosie
O'Donnell (Nip/Tuck) and Fran Drescher
(The Nanny) are working together on
creating a new "fun, happy, family
comedy" for TV. On Rosie's website, Fran
and Rosie teamed up on camera to talk --
primarily about Fran's "cancer schmancer"
campaign for public awareness -- but at the
end, Rosie and Fran revealed a sitcom they
are planning in which they'll star together.
There's no question that Fran and Rosie are
funny women with loyal fans. The Nanny
was a CBS hit for six seasons. Rosie, who
more recently has been a source of
controversy like her very tumultuous time
as a cohost on The View, has also been a
success on TV. While she was on The
View, the ratings were higher than ever
before or since. She also had an Emmy-
Herskovitz calls quarterlife-on-
NBC experiment a failure
By Joel Keller (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:01:00 AM
Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Industry,
CancellationsWhen NBC picked up the
web-only show quarterlife to show on the
network as writers' strike filler, many were
wondering whether this internet-to-network
transition might be the wave of the future.
Well, it still may be, but according to the
show's co-creator, Marshall Herskovitz,
that wave shouldn't have started with
quarterlife.
According to The Hollywood Reporter,
Herskovitz told an audience at Harvard
Business School that after watching
quarterlife on the big screen, he realized
that the show about twentysomething angst
should have never aired on NBC. In fact,
within three minutes, he knew that the tight
shots and intimate stories he and his partner
award winning daytime talk show for six
years straight which had a vociferous
following.
Continue reading Rosie and Fran teaming
up for a sitcom
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Ed Zwick used were inappropriate for a
broadcast network show; it might have
worked better on cable, he thought, but not
on NBC.
Continue reading Herskovitz calls
quarterlife-on-NBC experiment a failure
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
America's Next Top
Model: New York
City, Here We Come
By JJ Hawkins (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 4:00:00 PM
Filed under: OpEd, America's Next Top
Model, Episode Reviews
(S10E02) I'm still a bit shocked that Tyra
went through all the trouble of opening up
the competition to 14 girls this season and
out of everyone she could have selected,
she went with Dominique.
I mean, I admit that Dominique is a little bit
exotic looking, but so were the baboons I
saw the last time I went to the zoo. Umm,
that came out wrong. That was horribly
insulting to all the innocent baboons of the
world. I take it back.
I kid, I kid. Dominique isn't that
unattractive, I just don't think she was the
right choice for this competition. It almost
seems like the only reason she's there is so
the judges can crack drag queen jokes about
her all episode long.
%Gallery-16564%
Continue reading America's Next Top
Model: New York City, Here We Come
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
The Daily Show: February 27, 2008
By Annie Wu (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:21:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, The Daily Show,
Episode ReviewsDaily Show/Colbert
Report audience members can get a little
enthusiastic and break the in-studio "no
shouting" rules, as demonstrated by that
one person who just had to yell out,
"Vagina!" Behave yourselves, why don't
you? Can't they see that Jon is still
suffering from the after-effects of Oscar
duties?
"Last Tango in Cleveland": Recently,
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton got
down and dirty at the Cleveland debates,
where "no rules" held back the candidates
("It's the Outback Steakhouse of debates!")
Of course, the two attacked each other back
and forth, but Brian Williams found
moments to chime in and be charming ol'
Mr. Williams. Clinton had a brief
Warner Brothers set to join Hulu
By Brad Linder (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:38:00 AM
Filed under: Industry, ER, PVR Wire, Web
Online video site Hulu is already one of the
best places to find full length episodes of
network TV shows. And it looks like Hulu
could be adding to its content library soon.
Warner Brothers president Bruce
Rosenblum says a deal with Hulu is
"imminent." Right now, all of the content
available on Hulu comes from NBC and
Project Runway: Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
By Annie Wu (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 1:04:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, Project Runway,
Episode Reviews(S04E13) These pre-finale
episodes are always interesting because the
viewers get to take a little peek into the
world of designers as normal people,
outside of the weird reality show setting.
This season's visit to the designers was
different though, for Rami and Chris still
conspiracy freak-out, pointing out that she
always gets the first questions.
Continue reading The Daily Show:
February 27, 2008
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
FOX News Corp.
At first glance, that means that you might
had to duke it out and figure out who would
compete in New York Fashion Week. Good
ol' Tim Gunn took a trip to the coasts to
Big Brother 9: Eviction #2 & HOH
#3
By Kristin Sample (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 12:03:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, Big Brother (US),
Episode Reviews(S09E08) And they're
okay! After their medical emergencies,
Allison and Amanda returned to the house
to open arms and new attitudes. The
hamsters went all "Care Bear" after their
ordeals. I don't like Care Bear hamsters. I
like cranky, hungry, irrational hamsters.
In other hamster news, Adam has been
fired from his job for his very off-color
comment about autistic children. Those of
you may remember that the houseguest
called autistic children "retards" and went
even further to say that since he worked
with them, he can call them whatever he
wants. Well, he doesn't work with them
anymore. And he'll find that out after he
gets out of the house.
be able to find WB-produced shows that air
on the CW network on Hulu. But Warner
Brothers also produces TV programs that
air on other networks, such as NBC's ER.
The studio also produces movies, and while
the movie section of Hulu isn't as fleshed
out as the TV section, we might soon see a
few more feature length films on the site.
Continue reading Warner Brothers set to
join Hulu
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
check in with each of the four designers
and make sure their collections were
chugging along.
%Gallery-17092%
Continue reading Project Runway: Hair
Today, Gone Tomorrow
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
After the jump, a recap of last night's Big
Brother 9...
Continue reading Big Brother 9: Eviction
#2 & HOH #3
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
SXSW Watch: 'We Are
Wizards' Trailer
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:32:00 AM
Filed under: Documentary, SXSW,
Fandom, DIY/Filmmaking, Movie
Marketing, Harry Potter, Trailers and Clips
I've said it before and I'll say it again: I
know nothing of this Harry Potter world. I
know enough to write about news regarding
the films, and occasionally I'll have to do
some research before writing a Potter-
related post, but to this day I have not
picked up one of the books or watched one
of the films in its entirety. Perhaps after the
seventh film comes out, I'll finally sit down
and embrace the Potter universe, but for
now, I know nothing. However, this new
documentary premiering at next month's
South by Southwest Festival looks pretty
damn interesting.
It's called We Are Wizards, and it follows
TV * Movies 15
American Idol: Top
10 Girls Perform
By Jason Hughes (TV Squad)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 3:29:00 PM
Filed under: American Idol, Reviewcaps,
Contestants, Performances, Episode
Reviews
(S07E15) The theme again was "Songs
from the '70s," and for the most part I think
the girls handled it better than the boys last
several hardcore Potter fans whose lives --
in one way or another -- all revolve around
that little boy wizard with glasses. From the
synopsis on YouTube: "WE ARE
WIZARDS tracks the influential figures
leading the creative subculture surrounding
the popular series. The film follows a set of
individuals ranging from web journalists,
authors, artists, filmmakers and musicians,
as they enhance and expand the Harry
Potter story, often in unexpected ways. WE
ARE WIZARDS is a portrayal of creative
fans with a common goal: to make their
voices heard." We'll be hitting this film up
at SXSW, so don't worry Potter fans -- we'll
let you know how it is. But you have to
admit the trailer looks rather fascinating.
Am I right?
We'll have an official SXSW hub launching
next week, but in the meantime, all of our
pre-festival coverage can be found
here.Permalink | Email this | Comments
16 Movies
AMERICAN
continued from page 15
night. And they also remained consistent
with their performances last week to the
most part. That is to say that the girls who
struggled last week seemed, at best, to do
only marginally better this week. The only
surprises for me were some of the girls who
blew me away last week turned around and
struggled with their vocals tonight.
Continue reading American Idol: Top 10
Girls Perform
Permalink | Email this | | Comments
Gervais and Merchant Re-
Team for New Film
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 3:02:00 AM
Filed under: Deals, Fandom, Scripts,
Newsstand
I think it's fairly safe to say that when
Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant get
together on a project, the outcome is
nothing short of comedic gold. These are
the men who brought us the original TV
version of The Office, and they're also the
guys who dreamt up the very awesome (but
no longer around) HBO series Extras.
These days, Gervais has officially crossed
over to Hollywood, and he's starring in all
kinds of films -- his latest being Ghost
Town (which he just wrapped) and This
Side of the Truth. Now, the BBC tells us
that Gervais and Merchant are reuniting
once again; this time, as writers on a film
script.
As of right now, the working title for the
film is The Men at the Pru, and according
to the BBC, it's "about a group of 20-
somethings in the early 1970s." Gervais
notes, "They work for the building society
and they're having a great time but it's
about them coming of age and having to
grow up." The idea of having to grow up is
a constant theme in their work, but it will
be interesting to see what Gervais and
Merchant can do with a screenplay -- a
feature film that clocks in at around an hour
and a half or so. He adds, "We're really
getting excited. We went down to the
Prudential headquarters and got all this old
footage so we're really getting into it."
Gervais has only co-written one script so
far, and that's the upcoming This Side of
the Truth (which he's also co-directing).
This new project will mark the first time
the duo has teamed on the script for a
feature. Unfortunately, there's no word yet
on when The Men at the Pru will be ready
for production. My only request is that they
please please please give Merchant a
starring role. That man is beyond
hysterical.Permalink | Email this |
Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
The Trailer for Tarsem
Singh's 'The Fall' is Online
By Jessica Barnes (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 12:32:00 PM
Filed under: Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy,
Family Films, Movie Marketing, Trailers
and ClipsSay what you want about Tarsem
Singh, but you can't deny the man has a
way with art direction. If you don't believe
me, take a look at the trailer over at IGN for
Singh's fantasy film, The Fall. Dan Gilroy's
story focuses on a young girl in a hospital
who befriends an American actor. The tales
he tells her to pass the hours begin to bleed
into the real world and suddenly everyone
around her becomes part of the story. Lee
Pace *(Friday Night Lights) stars as the
storytelling actor, and Catinca Untaru as his
captive audience. The trailer might not
explain much about the film, but it now David Slade (30 Days of Night) as director
on the thriller Unthinkable. The Fall is
carries the seal of approval from respected
directors David Fincher and Spike Jonze in proving to be no exception to Singh's track
record in Hollywood. The film was
the form of a 'so and so presents'. You
never know, maybe it was their combined completed back in 2006, and only a few
people got the chance to actually see it
star power that helped get the film a deal
with Roadside Attractions. when it premiered at TIFF. Hopefully
putting Fincher and Jonze's name on the
Unfortunately for Singh, his film career has marketing is going to help draw an
audience. The Fall is expected to go into
been filled with very few ups and plenty of
downs. Despite his success with music limited release in March.
videos, critical response to his debut film,
The Cell, wasn't exactly encouraging. As of *Correction: Pace stars in Pushing
DaisiesRead | Permalink | Email this |
late, it hasn't gotten much better for the
director, and he was recently replaced by Comments

Zac Efron Kicks Off His Sunday Shoes for 'Seventeen Again'
By Monika Bartyzel (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 4:02:00 AM
Filed under: Comedy, Music &
MusicalsAfter news that High School
Musical 3 was going to be the "last" in the
series, fangirls had to start dealing with the
thought of no more dancing Zac Efron.
Although really -- "last" never means what
it's supposed to these days, so that could
just mean a year or two hiatus. But,
whether this is it or not, MTV reports that
he will dance again -- and really soon.
No, he hasn't signed on for a new musical.
Rather, Adam Shankman says that the
young heartthrob will be singing and
dancing in Seventeen Again. You
remember, right? It's the comedy where a
kid who had it all gives up his sporting
aspirations to be with his high school
girlfriend -- but then he gets to Matthew
Perry age, and he's separated and in a dead-
end job. When he thinks about how great
things were at 17, he gets catapulted back
to youth in Efron form, and is forced to
become a kid again -- while going to school
with his own kids.
Shankman raves about Efron's work as a
comedian: "people are going to be so
surprised how seriously great he is in this
movie," and also says: "there's also this big
thing with Zac dancing with a lot of
cheerleaders that is very, very fun and
funny." Why so funny? This is what Efron
told the site during a set visit -- "It's all '80s
dance moves, and it's completely random.
The running man, a few moves from MC
Hammer - what is it, 'Can't Touch This,'
right? Yeah, it's pretty funny." Ah, yes Zac.
It's "Can't Touch This." But I wonder -- is
he too legit to quit?Read | Permalink |
Email this | Comments
Your Click and Print Newspaper
Discuss: What TV Show(s)
Will Hit the Big Screen
Next?
By Monika Bartyzel (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 1:02:00 PM
Filed under: RumorMonger, FandomWe're
only a few months away from Sex and the
City's big movie release. Of course, that
leads to the question: What television show
will get made into a movie next? We
usually get geek and retro fare making the
jump, but since this is a romantic comedy,
the door will be open for a whole bunch of
recently-wrapped series. Arrested
Development is getting yet another stab at
life, but what else could make it?
MTV recently talked with Birds of America
co-stars Lauren Graham and Matthew Perry
about the possibility of their super-popular
shows becoming feature films. Graham,
well, she says she doesn't know, no matter
how many times people keep asking her --
and she has no idea what it would be about:
"Nothing much happened; we just talked a
lot." That's true, but a feature film could
allow Amy Sherman-Palladino to finally
give us that ending she referenced for so
long, but that we never got, leaving us in an
unfulfilled, post-Gilmore disappointment.
Perry, meanwhile, says: "everyone's
running around doing different things. I
think we're trying to organize a thing soon."
However, by "thing" he means a dinner
with the Friends cast. Sneaky bugger.
Should SatC end up being a big money
maker, methinks we'll at least hear a bunch
of possible plans for these old shows. It's
just too bad that it's too late for more My
So-Called Life.
Which wrapped television series would you
like to see on the big screen?Read |
Permalink | Email this | Comments
New 'Step Brothers' and
'Get Smart' Trailers
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 2:02:00 PM
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Fandom,
Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips
Two new trailers for two films I was kinda
looking forward to have arrived online, and
I'm feeling a sense of discomfort. It's not
terribly strong, because it's early, but there's
definitely an uneasy vibe there. The first
trailer, for Step Brothers, makes it look like
the film has potential, but ultimately suffers
because it's way too long. Directed by the
reliable Adam McKay, and starring Will
Ferrell and John C. Reilly, this one tells of
two unemployed, spoiled grown men who
eventually become best friends after their
single parents marry. It's Ferrell, so it's
silly, but for a first trailer it's just so damn
long. I know we sometimes gripe about
teasers, and we itch for a longer look at
something, but there's something to be said
for leaving us itching for more. This first
trailer for Step Brothers leaves me
interested in seeing more (because I love all
three of these guys), but I'm not scratching
at anticipation hives. Watch it now at
Yahoo and let us know.
Next up, we have Get Smart. Hmmm.
Loved the TV show. I dig the idea. I dig
this cast. I get it. But do I want to see it? I
know the original was silly, but does this
new film take it too far? I'm still on the
fence -- though Anne Hathaway looks
pretty damn good -- so I'll leave it up to you
to decide what you think of this. And is it
just me, or do you half expect Steve Martin
to show up at some point wearing that
ridiculous mustache. Watch the trailer over
at Apple and let us know.Permalink | Email
this | Comments
Movies 17
Frank Miller's
Got 'The Spirit"
By Elisabeth Rappe (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 1:02:00 AM
Filed under: Action, Noir, Lionsgate Films,
M o v i e M a r k e t i n g ,
Comic/Superhero/GeekAnd here I was
thinking "Wow, we haven't heard much
about The Spirit lately."
Frank Miller has posted his third blog on
the film's official site and this one finds him
full of praise for his cast. "One outstanding
reason I am a lucky SOB is because I get to
work with beautiful goddesses and gods
who also, by the way, can ACT." Miller
certainly has lined up a fairly impressive
cast -- though even the fanboys are
skeptical that Jaime King and Eva Mendes
fall into the "great talent" category.
I don't know if it's my compute or the site,
but the blog goes blank about halfway
through, so if it works for you, you'll have
to fill me in on what else Miller says. All in
all, his blogs make one hope that Miller
directs as well as he writes about directing.
..
Sadly, while he opened the floor to heroic
discussion, a look at the forum reveals he
never actually stayed to listen. And here I
was hoping I'd discovered the secret place
where Miller hangs out and talks about
bullets, broads, and booze.Permalink |
Email this | Comments
18 Movies
Fox Loves a 'Wimpy Kid'
By Elisabeth Rappe (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:02:00 AM
Filed under: Deals, Family Films,
Comic/Superhero/GeekFox 2000 has
purchased the rights to Jeff Kenney's best-
selling illustrated novel Diary of a Wimpy
Kid. Yes, illustrated, not graphic -- there's
text in between the cartoons.
Diary is one of those Internet success
stories that are happening more and more
often these days. It was originally a web-
book on Funbrain before being published in
2007 in book form, where it became an
instant bestseller. The sequel was just
published on January 1, 2008.
The book follows young Greg Heffley
through a year of middle school, with all
the usual trials and tribulations of an
undersized weakling. From what I gather,
Greg is a regular James "Sawyer" Ford of
his middle school, even exploiting his
slower best friend if it'll get him out of a
jam. Will that come off as charming and
funny, or really bratty and unsympathetic?
And will it star Freddie Highmore, as all
young adult films do?
It's cool to see studios picking up kid-
friendly graphic (excuse me, illustrated)
novels though. Hopefully someone will
'WALL-E' Poster Premiere!
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/28/2008 2:31:00 AM
Filed under: Animation, Fandom, Movie
Marketing, Posters
Well folks, we were supposed to debut this
poster to you on Monday morning, but
someone has leaked it online and so here it
is now. Above you will find the final poster
for Pixar's WALL-E (click on the image for
a larger version) -- ya know, the one about
land on Mail Order Ninja soon.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
the adorable little robot who roams around
Earth searching for his meaning in life. The
film will arrive in theaters on June 27, and I
Your Click and Print Newspaper
'Juno' Sequel Already
Written!
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 2/27/2008 1:32:00 PM
Filed under: Comedy, Fandom, Remakes
and Sequels
Honest to blog, folks! Even though director
Jason Reitman has said there will not be a
sequel to the mega-hit Juno, the script for
the sequel was written and -- get this -- you
can own it for a crisp $100,001.00. Oh yes,
my friends, the sequel to Juno (Juno 2 or
Juno She's Pregnant Again?) is now
available (in script form) on eBay.
Unfortunately, Diablo Cody did not write
the script -- someone by the name of
screenwriter_in_paradise is the mind
behind this masterpiece.
Thanks to Slashfilm, we get the following
hilarious quote on the eBay page: "Juno Searchlight? Are you out there? Were you
aware that a sequel to Juno is already
grossed over $130 million domestically. I
have written the sequel. If Mr. Mudd, written ... and available on eBay? Why is
this not in development yet? I'd definitely
Mandate or Fox Searchlight don't buy than
it is available to any legitimate production be interested in reading that 4-page sample,
if only to see how it stacks up against the
company that wants to jump on the
bandwagon. Your lawyers will tell you the Juno sequel I wrote last week. Don't worry,
now that I know the starting price, I'll offer
names will have to be changed, so we will
call this 111 page script Juno-like or mine up for only $99,002.00. Beat THAT
screenwriter_in_paradise!
Junoesque. A 4-page sample is available
via e-mail." And how is Fox Searchlight Permalink | Email this | Comments
not all over this friggin' winner right now?
imagine we should just go ahead and give it
the Oscar for best animated film now -- that
would cut out a good 6 or 7 minutes from
next year's telecast. Anyway, we're curious
to see how this one does; whether the lack
of substantial dialogue (which is certainly
present in the trailers) will be enough for
audiences to grasp onto. Personally, the
film looks absolutely beautiful, and I'm
really looking forward to it. You?Permalink
| Email this | Comments