How Apple has a shitload more profit not on the books and not taxed in the US

Apple’s foreign profits are funneled through different countries to reside in a country where there is no or little tax on profits. They don’t pay taxes in the US untill the money is repatriated to the US, but they do mark a portion of the money as being taxed in the US and take that Read more about How Apple has a shitload more profit not on the books and not taxed in the US[…]

Payment alternatives to plastic – an interactive map

Not using a credit card is becoming a much more viable method over the internet (22% of the overall e-commerce payments), with iDeal and Paypal, but also many other methods used to pay for porn or gambling. Worldpay has made an interactive map showing the predominance of specific alternative currencies per country. Worldpay Globe Data. Read more about Payment alternatives to plastic – an interactive map[…]

Why Economic Models Are Always Wrong

Basically it’s because econonmists allways calibrate the data – ie. change certain parameters to try to represent reality. Carter proved that even small changes to parameters make huge differences in the predictive power of a model. Economists calibrate and recalibrate their models all the time, leading to worse and worse predictions. Why Economic Models Are Read more about Why Economic Models Are Always Wrong[…]

RIAA Accounting: How To Sell 1 Million Albums And Still Owe $500,000

As for what kinds of tricks the labels use, well, Frascogna notes “breakage fees” of 20%, which are based on breakage rates for vinyl from half a century ago. That CDs don’t break so much and that digital files don’t break at all, doesn’t matter. The labels still try to get a super high breakage Read more about RIAA Accounting: How To Sell 1 Million Albums And Still Owe $500,000[…]

Bitcoin crashes slowly and interestingly

It has decided to roll back a days’ trading as a result of the stolen bitcoins, which were dumped on the market, crashing the value of a single bitcoin. Apparently there wasn’t that much cash involved (only $1000,-) which means that the bitcoin currency isn’t very strong at all. Concurrently, a trojan has been found Read more about Bitcoin crashes slowly and interestingly[…]

Russian President Proposes Creative Commons-Style Rules Baked Directly Into Copyright

Well, this is getting interesting. Last week, we noted that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, alone among the other G8 leaders, questioned today’s copyright laws, suggesting that they did not fit with the times, and pointed out that these century-old laws don’t seem to fit with today’s internet. What the ‘free’ west can learn from ‘oppressive’ Read more about Russian President Proposes Creative Commons-Style Rules Baked Directly Into Copyright[…]

KPN mobile wants extra money for voip and chat services

KPN: Where unlimited means limited! I guess this is their strategy for people using whatsapp and skype services more often. It’s not a very good one, it’s like going back to the days where we paid a few cents per email… that business model didn’t last that long either. KPN wil klanten extra laten betalen Read more about KPN mobile wants extra money for voip and chat services[…]

EU Votes on copyright extension soon – mail your local JURI MEP today!

Background: In 2009, the EU discussed the issue of a term extension for the ”neighbouring rights” that record companies have to recorded music. These neighbouring rights are now 50 years from the recording of a song. The proposal was to extend them to 95 years. After a lively debate in the European Parliament, it was Read more about EU Votes on copyright extension soon – mail your local JURI MEP today![…]

Facebook not a place for corporate pages say studies

A new study by Forrester Research found that maintaining a Facebook presence is less effective at drumming up business than plain old email newsletters or search ads. Companies interviewed for the study “received little benefits from Facebook,” according to the Wall Street Journal. Another recent study found that even print ads were better at fostering Read more about Facebook not a place for corporate pages say studies[…]

Dutch govt calculators fuck up on Open Source benefits model

A study conducted by the Dutch calculators came up with the conclusion that open source didn’t save any money. Not so, says the MOD – they didn’t take into account things like the same costs incurred for 2500 users are now spent to service 6000 users, a savings of 66%! Rekenkamer blundert bij berekening open Read more about Dutch govt calculators fuck up on Open Source benefits model[…]

EU Emissions Trading System down after hack siphons off $38 million from Czech traders

The European Commission (EC) suspended trading in carbon credits on Wednseday after unknown hackers compromised the accounts of Czech traders and siphoned off around $38 million, according to published reports. EU countries including Estonia, Austria, The Czech Republic, Poland and France began closing their carbon trading registries yesterday after learning that carbon allowances had been Read more about EU Emissions Trading System down after hack siphons off $38 million from Czech traders[…]

Lord Blackheath has laundered GBP 1bn of IRA money and has a foundation X willing to invest GBP 5bn in the UK

For the past 20 weeks I have been engaged in a very strange dialogue with the two noble Lords, in the course of which I have been trying to bring to their attention the willing availability of a strange organisation which wishes to make a great deal of money available to assist the recovery of Read more about Lord Blackheath has laundered GBP 1bn of IRA money and has a foundation X willing to invest GBP 5bn in the UK[…]

American Express Identifies ‘A New Era of Pause and Purchase’ With Five Key Trends Driving Consumer Spending in 2011 and Beyond

American Express Identifies ‘A New Era of Pause and Purchase’ With Five Key Trends Driving Consumer Spending in 2011 and Beyond Report Finds Locally-Sourced Goods, Digital Shopping and “Give-a-nomics” Are Among Top Trends Re-Shaping the American Consumer More Than Half (54%) of Americans Said They Try to Support Their Local Economy Over a Third (38%) Read more about American Express Identifies ‘A New Era of Pause and Purchase’ With Five Key Trends Driving Consumer Spending in 2011 and Beyond[…]