XM, Sirius Deal Nears Finality As Companies Agree to Fines - Washington Post
XM Satellite and Sirius Satellite yesterday agreed to pay almost $20 million in fines for past technical violations, paving the way for federal approval of a merger between the nation’s only satellite radio providers. Federal Communications

Satellite radio companies to pay $19.7 million - Seattle Times
The nation’s two satellite radio companies have concurred to pay $19.7 million to settle rules violations, a move that is expected to lead to quick approval of their merger. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin told The Associated

Paulson’s Fannie-Freddie Deal Scraps Bush’s Free-Market Push - Bloomberg
July 25 (Bloomberg) — In October 2003, Treasury Secretary John Snow told Congress “we need to be on guard” against the “perception” that the U.S. government stood behind the stocks and bonds of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac . This week his

Fortescue faces $7m fines over deaths - News.com.au
COMPANIES owned by Australia’s wealthiest individual, Andrew Forrest, face fines of up to $7 million over the death of a worker and serious injuries to five others during a cyclone at a Pilbara construction camp last year. George, a category five

Companies plan to tap landfill’s gas to generate power - 14 WFIE
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (AP) - Two companies plan to tap gas from a southern Indiana landfill’s decomposing garbage and turn it into enough power to light more than 1,500 homes. Veolia Environmental Services and Vectren’s Energy Systems Group state they will

Emerging debt-Asian bonds weaken, Shimao hit by downgrade - Reuters
HONG KONG, July 25 (Reuters) - Asian bond spreads widened on Friday as weak global economic data and disappointing corporate earnings worldwide reinforced expectations for slowing growth at a time of surging inflation. The iTRAXX Asia ex-Japan high

Microsoft seeks an ad friend in Facebook - International Herald Tribune
Microsoft has tried various tactics to expand its share of the lucrative on the internet search business. It recently failed in its pursuit of Yahoo. It is paying people to use its search engine. Now Microsoft thinks it has found a promising source of users

Exxon and BHP announce large Australia gas project - Miami Herald
A subsidiary of ExxonMobil Corp. and BHP Billiton Ltd on Friday announced a $1.25 billion project to tap oil and gas reserves in Bass Strait off southern Australia. The joint venture will build an offshore platform off Victoria state at a site called

China Stocks Decline; Financial Shares, Merchants Bank Slide - Bloomberg
July 25 (Bloomberg) — China’s stocks fell, led by financial companies, on concern credit-market losses will widen and a slowing U.S. economy will reduce demand for exports. China Merchants Bank Co. and Ping An Insurance (Group) Co. declined for the

China says has more people surfing the Web than US - Boston Globe
BEIJING— China’s booming Internet population has surpassed the United Says to become the world’s biggest, with 253 million people on the internet despite government controls on Web use, according to government data reported Friday. The latest figure on

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PimpYourWork

This week I’ve collected some articles in the blogosphere which speak about microblogging and the different microblogging platforms. While many people enjoy these services, others feel like they’re just a distraction and add to their information overload.  But, like any other on the web tool, microblogging platforms can have many benefits if used properly.  The question is, how do you do that?

Twitter in the Office: Fast, Aware, Open Teams from Newly Corporate

Eight Ways Twitter is Useful Professionally at Web Worker Daily

Twitter vs. Pownce - Which Microblogging Platform is Good for You? by KrisKrug.com

Plurk: Like Twitter, in good and bad ways from WebWare

Finally, from Tris Hussey, How Can I Use Twitter for Business?

What do you think?  Do you find microblogging sites useful, or are they just producing more digital clutter?

Photo Credit: Image from Celine Roque from Blue Rabbit Media

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Filed under: Estates

I first saw this home back in April as part of the Sunday Real Estate Round-Up but it deserves full estate of the day treatment. As the New York Observer’s Manhattan Transfers column mentioned back then, this converted 19th-century chapel belongs to investor and environmental philanthropist. Dan Lufkin. The five-bedroom spread at 455 Central Park West has been lovingly restored and includes details such as antique French oak floors, arched windows, gold-leafed walls, stone columns, Gothic fireplace and the most jawdropping detail, the living room with a 28-foot-high vaulted ceiling. The home has Park views, an interior private elevator, mezzanine library and a balcony sitting room. There is also a separate one-bedroom staff apartment. The apartment is listed at around three times what Lufkin paid three years ago. The chapel is listed at $17.5 million. These are some of the most intriguing rooms in New York City but the private spaces in this home are a tiny devoid of charm compared to the high drama of the main living/dining space.

For more prime properties and lush locations, see Luxury Homes and Mansions.

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What books would YOU suggest for a baby boomer starting a business? Give me your book selection and enter a contest to win a business book.

I have been asked to put together a list of books that I would recommend to people who are starting new business.  This is a fun job for me, since it requires me to go through my (extensive!) library of business books and pick out the best.  I’ll be sharing some of them with you over the next few weeks. 

Here’s where the CONTEST comes in- I’d like your suggestion  on business books.  And as incentive, I’m giving away a copy of each of my favorite TWO business books to one commenter:

1.  The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber. 

2.  The Warren Buffett Way, by Robert G. Hagstrom.

Yes, both!  The rules:

1.  Submit a comment to THIS post giving me a book recommendation for baby boomers starting a business.  Include your email address (no one but me will see it) so I have the ability to notify you if you win.

2.  The deadline is August 7 at midnight (Central Daylight Time). 

3.  Only U.S. and Canadian entries will be considered (shipping costs).

4.  The winner will be selected by a randomized number selection process.  You might enter as many times as you want, as long as you include a different book with each entry.

Tags: baby boomers, business books, Michael Gerber, starting a business, Warren Buffett

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Ramius Named One of Ten Canadian Web 2.0 Companies to Watch - MarketWatch

Ramius Named One of Ten Canadian Web 2.0 Companies to Watch MarketWatch Share This Share This No Comments » 24 07 2008 Zynga scores $29 million in venture capital Posted by: in Small Business Filed under: Electronic Arts (ERTS), Small business The smart money continues to pour into social networking deals. The latest comes from a tier-one VC: Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. This day, the firm announced a $29 million round for Zynga Game Network. Essentially, the company combines two hot categories - social networking and casual games. No doubt, this deal is a massive validator. After all, Kleiner only adores companies that have the potential of being game-changers. So, what makes Zynga different? Well, for the most part, the company has devised innovative techniques to create highly addictive games (some say the process is scientific). Plus, there are opportunities to expand onto mobile platforms and to even create virtual worlds. Keep in mind that Kleiner has invested in a variety of break-out gaming companies in the past, such as Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS). In fact, a Kleiner partner, William “Bing” Gordon - the former CEO of EA - will come on the board of Zynga. Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar On the web Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com. Share This Share This No Comments » 24 07 2008 7 Ways to Keep Employees on the Payroll Posted by: in Your Business In tough times, it’s sometimes necessary to let employees go (nice way of saying you’re laying them off).  However you state it, it’s not a pleasant task, for either of you. But sometimes there are ways to keep employees on the payroll.  Here are some suggestions: 1.  Reduce Hours.  This is the easiest one, for you.  Particularly for hourly employees, you can cut back on hours.  Make sure that you are also slicing back on duties and not expecting that person to work fewer hours and accomplish the same tasks. 2.  Cut Benefits.  I know, this isn’t something you want to do either, but if it’s a question of reducing benefits or laying someone off, this might be an substitute. 3.  Ask employees to share more of the benefit costs.  An employee might have health coverage and also have a spouse who is working.  If you increase the costs of health coverage, the employee might just drop his/her coverage, thereby saving you money.  If not, you are still lowering your costs.  Another substitute is to drop family coverage and tell the employee you’ll pay for single coverage for the employee but not the family cost. 4.  Let attrition work.  When someone leaves, don’t automatically replace that person.  Find ways to incorporate that person’s duties into those of other employees.  You might have to compensate them a tiny more, but this is a whole lot cheaper than hiring/training/paying an entire new employee. A couple more ideas, from a recent Wall Street Journal small business article: 5.Ask for volunteers.  Some employees might want a couple of months off, if they know they have the ability to have their job back.  (Without pay, of course.) 6.  Give employees a chance to take different jobs.  It gets people out of their “comfort zones” and lets them exercise new skills.  For managers, this might be a great chance to see how another area operates, and a subordinate might have a chance to show his/her stuff as an interim manager in the department. 7.  Fire your out-sourcing companies.  Give employees the opportunity to make more money by doing the jobs you have outsourced.  For example, an employee who has had a pay cut might want to do some lawn work or cleaning to make up the difference. In all of these recommendations, one principle comes out clearly: be creative.  Don’t state, “we’ve never done it; we can’t do it.”  Give employees a opportunity to be creative along with you and offer recommendations.  You might create a better company.  Hard times bring out the ideal in people, so let them shine. What other recommendations do you have for saving employee jobs or minimizing layoffs in tough economic times? Tags: , cut-backs, employees, layoffs Share This Share This Share This No Comments » 24 07 2008 Who are Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and why do their problems matter to your small business? Posted by: in Your Business Fannie Mae, the nickname of the Federal National Mortgage Association,and Freddie Mac,  the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Association, are in trouble because of the subprime mortgage crisis.  Last week the Federal Reserve announced that it would loan these entities money, if necessary.  The press release explained their action: This authorization is intended to supplement the Treasury’s existing lending authority and to help ensure the capability of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to promote the availability of home mortgage credit during a period of stress in financial markets. The federal government is considering bailing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac out (with taxpayer money, of course), because if they fall, they could take the lending markets with them.  Not a pretty picture. FM 1 and 2 (”Thing 1″ and “Thing 2″) are  “government-sponsored enterprises” (GSE’s).   Fannie Mae is the older of the two entities, having been around since 1938.  Freddie Mac was chartered in 1970, primarily to be a competitor to Fannie Mae.  They both have essentially the same function (as I see it, and I’m no expert): to keep the flow of money going into mortgages. So how does the news about the support of the Federal Reserve for Fannie and Freddie help your business?  If you need a mortgage for a new building or other expansion, it will mean you might have a better chance of getting this money. I have just two questions: 1.  How do I get to be a “Government Sponsored Enterprise?” 2.  If the government can devise creative acronyms like “Fannie Mae” and “Freddie Mac,” how come they can’t figure out creative ways to solve the current mortgage crisis? Tags: baby boomers, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, mortgage financing, small businesses, subprime crisis Share This Share This Share This No Comments » 24 07 2008 What did your lunch box look like? Posted by: in Your Business Image details: Canine Farewell served by picapp.com My post yesterday about “brown-bagging it” reminded me of lunch boxes.  Remember when we all carried our lunches to school?  What did your lunchbox look like? Since many baby boomers are carrying lunches again to save money, maybe we should bring back the good old-fashioned lunch box, including the thermos (soup? milk?) Tags: baby boomers, brown bag lunches, money-saving ideas Share This Share This Share This No Comments »

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