Kids will be kids, even those of vid game executives
Bobby Kotick — CEO of Activision, “Moneyball” actor -- stopped by the Reuters Global Media Summit on Monday to give us his take on Black Friday (Anecdotally: a success, though Saturday not so much) and to throw some cold water on rival EA’s upcoming release of “Star Wars.”
But it was what his 9-year-old daughter dressed up as for Halloween that really caught our attention. (Hint: Not Brad Pitt)
If you are betting person, you would likely throw some dough that she donned a costume involving one of Activision’s popular games. Perhaps a character from Skylanders? The game aimed at 6-to-10 year olds involving toy monsters.
Nope. Kotick let slip that she dressed up as an Angry Bird. A Rovio executive must be smiling somewhere.
Tech wrap: Bargain hunting may hurt retailers
Broader bargain hunting driven by budgetary fears may depress overall holiday spending, mitigating any hefty gains retailers reaped from long lines of shoppers snaked around malls across the U.S.
While Black Friday has been the busiest day for years in terms of traffic at stores, it does not always mean that sales will soar for the season. Despite brisk sales right after Thanksgiving, total holiday season sales fell in both 2008 and 2009 when the recession took its hold on America’s wallets.
Shopper-related injuries were popular topics on social networks such as Twitter. A shopper at a Los Angeles-area Walmart used pepper spray on a throng of shoppers and there was a shooting in a Walmart parking lot in the Oakland area.
Apple is well ahead of rivals in building brand loyalty among its users in a mobile market where the key brands are rushing to build as large a foothold as possible, a study by research firm GfK showed. Some 84 percent of iPhone users said they would pick iPhone also when they replace their cellphone, while 60 percent of consumers who use smartphones running Google’s Android said they would stick with phones using the same software.
The Department of Justice and Immigration and Customs Enforcement resumed “Operation In Our Sites”, seizing over 100 domain names in a bid to crack down on online piracy and counterfeiting, BitTorrent blog TorrentFreak writes.
Compared to previous seizure rounds, there are also some notable differences to report. This time the action appears to be limited to sites that directly charge visitors for their services. Most of the domains are linked to the selling of counterfeit clothing (e.g. 17nflshop.com), and at least one (autocd.com) sold pirated auto software.
Unnerved by a second profit warning in a month, investors sent HTC shares tumbling for a second straight day on concern the world’s No.4 smartphone maker may be running out of ideas in an increasingly competitive market. Sales at HTC — whose models include Desire, Sensation, Wildfire, Rhyme and ChaCha — grew four-fold in a year and a half, and in the third quarter of this year it sold more smartphones in the U.S. than any of its rivals. But its cracking performance is sputtering as it fails to bring out new products to rival the iPhone and Galaxy in the high-end smartphone market.
Tech wrap: Microsoft allowed looks at Yahoo’s books
Microsoft has signed a confidentiality agreement with Yahoo, allowing the software giant to take a closer look at Yahoo’s business, according to a source familiar with the matter. Microsoft joins several private equity firms that are also poring over Yahoo’s books and operations, as they explore various options for striking a deal with the struggling Internet company. Microsoft’s signing of a nondisclosure agreement with Yahoo occurred “recently,” according to the source.
Shares of Groupon fell for a third day , sinking below the company’s initial public offering price of $20 less than three weeks after the daily deal company went public. Groupon raised more than $700 million in an IPO in early November, making it the biggest IPO by a U.S. Internet company since Google raised $1.7 billion in 2004. Analysts have cited concerns about increased competition, a greater availability of the company’s stock for short-selling, and a sharp reversal of market sentiment that is taking down more speculative companies. Groupon shares ended the day down 15.5 percent at $16.96.
Big-Box retailer Best Buy has no regrets about stocking Research In Motion’s PlayBook tablet, despite the product’s poor reception and subsequent sharp discounting. RIM says it has shipped 700,000 PlayBooks since its launch, a figure dwarfed by the millions of iPads Apple sells each quarter. “When a product is less successful, you do what you need to do, and you move to the next thing,” Best Buy’s president for the Americas, Mike Vitelli, told Reuters. “That kind of quick reaction by the suppliers, whether it is BlackBerry or HP with their product, I actually think that is good for consumers too,” Vitelli said.
Nokia Siemens Networks, the world’s second-largest maker of mobile phone network equipment, is axing 17,000 jobs, nearly a quarter of its workforce, to help save about 1 billion euros ($1.35 billion) a year. NSN, which has struggled to make a profit since being set up in 2007, did not say where it would make the cuts, part of wider changes that analysts said looked aimed at gearing up the company for an initial public offering.
Google said on Tuesday that it was pulling the plug on seven projects, including Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal as well as a Wikipedia-like online encyclopedia service known as Knol. The plans, which Google announced on its corporate blog, represent the third so-called “spring cleaning” announcement that Google has made since Google co-founder Page took the reins in April.
Apple’s Black Friday deals were revealed ahead of time by tech blog 9to5Mac. The blog said Apple’s offerings were similar to those of years past, but gave better discounts on higher capacities of iPads and iPods. Apple’s Macs will cost $101 less, iPads discounts will range from $41 to $61 discounts and the iPod nano will $11 less for both the 8GB and 16GB versions, the blog wrote. The biggest discount will be on the base level MacBook Air, which will now start at $898 in the U.S.
Black Friday sprint begins for video game industry
Black Friday marks the beginning of the most critical time of the year for video game makers, as customers jam stores on the day after Thanksgiving to pick up games and consoles as gifts.
As a brutal 2009 winds to a close, the gaming industry is hoping that a strong six weeks of sales in the United States, the largest market, could help them salvage something from the year.
Nintendo said Monday its Wii home console — the long-time U.S. champ that has been struggling lately — sold more than 550,000 units in the U.S. during Thanksgiving week. To put that in perspective, the company sold around 500,000 Wiis in all of October, according to industry tracker NPD.
Not to be outdone, Sony announced Tuesday that demand for its PlayStation 3 console over the Thanksgiving week “was at an all time high.” The company said it sold 440,000 units for the week in the U.S.
Both Nintendo and Sony have recently slashed prices on their consoles, as has Microsoft with its Xbox 360. The PS3, which is more popular with hard-core gamers, has seen plenty of momentum since the price cut. At the same time, Nintendo has set up holiday kiosks in malls across the country to give consumers the opportunity to play its casual and family-friendly games.
A more complete picture on who turned in the best Black Friday performance will come later this month, when NPD releases its November sales data.
from Shop Talk:
Chicago Tribune treats Cyber Monday shoppers – in stores
The Chicago Tribune is giving the gift of a free issue to Cyber Monday shoppers. Online, right? Wrong. This free newspaper (a 75 cent value) only applies to shoppers who actually venture out to stores today.
The bankrupt newspaper appears to understand the discrepancy. In a statement, the Tribune defines Cyber Monday as the online version of Black Friday, which is the day when millions of shoppers hit stores.
Today, many of those shoppers are back in the office --- and who knows, maybe they're using their fast Internet connections to shop online. At least, that's why Cyber Monday grew in popularity a few years ago, when many people still had dial-up or even no Internet connections at home.
"Chicago Tribune is here this season to help you make the holidays memorable on a budget. We hope this free copy highlighting the best deals will help so you can spend more time with friends and family and less wondering where to find bargains," senior vice president of advertising Bob Fleck said in a statement.
It's a bit of a strecth to say that the issue really highlights Cyber Monday. Readers must flip to page seven for offers the paper suggests readers take advantage of (during their lunch break). What can they choose from? If someone is spending the day online, why not do it from the comfort of a new $139.97 Sweetheart Rocker chair from Classic Oak Designs? If their eyes hurt from squinting to look at a small computer screen, they could upgrade to a 21.5 inch model from Staples, and save $60 or $70 -- $60 according to Staples.com, $70 according to the paper.
The newspaper also has an online page dedicated to holiday sales and deals.
We're not sure, but perhaps the Trib is making the paper free today to cheer up readers who had to shell out $1.99 for Thursday's Thanksgiving issue filled with ads aimed at Black Friday shoppers. It was the second year in a row that the paper raised the Thanksgiving price at newsstands to $1.99. The normal daily price is 75 cents.
Icahn helps himself to some Yahoo
Activist investor Carl Icahn helped himself to some early Thanksgiving turkey, buying more shares in Yahoo on Wednesday.
Here’s Silicon Alley Insider’s Henry Blodget with the basics:
Well, don’t accuse Carl Icahn of cutting and running. After losing $1 billion on his massive Yahoo bet–he bought 69 million shares last spring at about $25–Carl Icahn has (figuratively speaking) doubled down.
In the past three days, the raider has bought another 6.7 million shares of Yahoo for about $65 million, bringing his total to 75.6 million shares. At today’s closing price of $10.58, Carl’s stake is worth $800 million, about $900 million less than he paid for his original position. The 76 million shares amount to 5.4% of the company.
The Associated Press explains why this could be important:
Yahoo is looking for a new leader after co-founder Jerry Yang said earlier this month that he will step down as chief executive as soon as the company’s board finds a successor.
Icahn has been among the loudest voices arguing for a new direction at Yahoo. He threatened to nominate a new slate of directors after the Sunnyvale, California, company rejected a $47.5 billion takeover offer from Microsoft this summer. Yahoo gave him a seat on its board and two other slots for members of his choosing.
Sony offers big PS3 price cut, if you can get the credit
With Black Friday only a few days away and projections for the holiday shopping season bleak, it’s not surprising that Sony is making a price cut move on its PlayStation 3 video game console to lure cash-strapped shoppers.
Now, you can get a hearty $150 price cut on the PlayStation 3 console. The caveat: you’ve got to sign up for a shiny new PlayStation credit card first.
There’s two ways to take advantage of the deal, it just depends how badly you want the PS3.
If you can’t wait to get your hands on the console, go to www.sony.com/newpscard to get instant approval for the PlayStation credit card and the visit the Sony Rewards site to purchase the PS3. You’ll receive a $150 credit for the PS3 after you’ve been approved for the card. What’s more, gamers who receive instant approval for the credit card will receive a coupon from Sony for a buy one, get one free offer on any Blu-Ray DVD purchase.
For those who are slightly more patient, sign up for the card at www.sony.com/getpscard and use it at any Sony retailer to purchase the PS3. The $150 credit will show up on the next billing statement.
The offer from Sony comes after rival Microsoft cut the price of its entry-level Xbox 360 console from $279 to $199 in September – but with no credit card sign-up required. Microsoft also lowered the prices of its mid-range and high-end Xbox 360 consoles by $50 each.
Just FYI
Found This on another site dated 3/17/09 …..
Sony senior vice president of marketing Peter Dille says “there are still no immediate plans to cut the prices of the PS3 consoles.”
Sony Exec: Don’t worry, buy happy
Give the “Glass is Half Full” award to Stan Glasgow, Sony’s top U.S. electronics executive, ahead of what could be the most crucial (and potential painful) “Black Friday” shopping weekend in many years. It’s normally a happy time of year, filled with family gathering, gifts, etc.
This year its different. Read the papers, or a blog. Things look pretty gloomy.
Perhaps, just perhaps, things aren’t as bad as they seem, Glasgow told a gathering of journalists on Thursday, suggesting that there are great bargains to be had on cool gadgets and big TVs, if consumers can overcome their apprehension.
Glasgow, a passionate engineer-by-trade, whose casual briefings with the tech press are usually chock full of geek-y chatter about flat screen TVs, Digital SLR Cameras and OLED displays, took on the economy, such as it is.
His message in short: Yes We Can shop our way out of this mess:
All of us get shell-shocked a little, that we have been disappointed by the events that have happened in the economy. We’d like to think that it’s an opportunity. I’ve asked our employees to get out there and get aggressive, to come up with new ideas how to do things better for Sony, but also to begin to talk to their friends and family about ‘its a good time to buy products — the values are good right now.’
Prices have gone down on every product. It’s almost a deflationary time period in terms of good and services in this country. What that means is that everything is going down in price, including oil and gold and stocks and bonds and everything. It is not a bad time to buy products, it is not a bad time to make investments. So I’m encouraging our people — and I’m encouraging all of you around the table — that we can play a part in helping restore consumer confidence.
Yes, it is always better to save first and spend later on the required items. Main advantages in this method will be
1. people learn to save
2. people come out of instant gratification
3. some items prices will come down with time
