Champagne loses fizz in Europe after tough year

PARIS (AP) ? Europeans are finding fewer reasons to pop open a bottle of Champagne as another year of economic troubles and high unemployment saps the region's appetite for the finer things. But while the latest industry figures show that sales might be on the wane in Europe, other markets, particularly Japan and the United States, are developing a taste for a glass of bubbly.

In what is certain to be bad news for the vineyards, France ? Champagne's largest market ? is drinking fewer bottles. Sales of Champagne for the country were down 4.9 percent, and 5 percent elsewhere in the 27-country European Union, in the first nine months of 2012 compared with the same period in 2011, according to CIVC, the national association of growers and producers of the wine.

Nineteen months of rising unemployment and growing fears that the worst is yet to come have taken their toll on France ? nearly seven in 10 French are worried about their country's future, according to a recent poll.

"The French are pessimist by nature," said Antoine Chiquet, whose family has been producing Champagne for three generations and wine for eight. "We had a difficult election, we're in an economy where Europe's foundations are being questioned."

Nonetheless, the country managed to drink 175.7 million bottles of Champagne from Nov. 1 2011 to Oct. 31 2012, according to CIVC ? enough for nearly 3 bottles a year for every man, woman and child but about 10 million bottles fewer than the previous year. In contrast, the U.S. consumed enough sparkling wine for about 1.5 bottles per person in 2010, the latest figures available from the California-based Wine Institute.

But while the news out of France and Europe is bad, CIVC figures show export sales were up 3 percent in the first three quarters of the year. Top markets included the U.S., Japan and, to a lesser extent, China. A total of 19.4 million bottles of Champagne went to the United States and 7.9 million went to Japan ? the only two countries outside Europe in the top seven export markets.

Takayasu Ogata, a Tokyo-based sommelier, said Champagne and sparkling wine consumption is climbing in Japan at a time when overall wine demand peaked about 2000. According to the French figures, Champagne consumption alone was up nearly 7 percent over a year there.

"Both individuals and restaurants are taking to Champagnes with personality, including those that are from small makers but taste good," he said.

Lower price is another reason. Gone are the days when a bottle of Moet & Chandon went for 5,000 yen ($60) or more in Japan. These days, you can get real Champagne for as little as 2,000 yen ($25).

Of course, for those with rich tastes and a budget to match there are still lots of expensive Champagnes, selling for 10 times that, according to Ogata, who works at Venture Republic, an Internet retailer, and is in charge of wines.

Beer remains the drink of choice for many "salarymen," but younger people and women are taking a liking to Champagne, Ogata says.

"It's about the bubble ? a sense of gorgeousness," he said in a telephone interview. "There's that thrill to opening up a bottle of Champagne."

China is also emerging as a potentially strong market for a glass of fizz, although the numbers remain small. In 2011, the latest figures available, it ranked 19th in export markets for Champagne, apparently because consumers are less discriminating about precise origins. According to an EU ruling, only sparkling wine made in a particular region in northeast France is allowed to carry the name Champagne. The United States makes some exceptions, as long as the labeling is clear.

"People enjoy the 'boom' moment of opening sparkling wine. It is fun. It offers a more festive atmosphere and it tastes good," said said Yu Ming, a 29-year-old who operated a bar in Beijing's Sanlitun nightlife district until 2010. In China, he added, "people call all sparkling wine Champagne. They don't care where it is from or whether the fermentation is inside the bottle."

The sales manager at the BHG supermarket in a luxury shopping mall in Beijing confirmed that Champagne budgets are largely out of reach in China, saying most customers at the chic store will instead choose sparkling wine: "The most expensive Champagne is 7,800 yuan ($1,250) a bottle at my store, but the most expensive sparkling wine is only 268 yuan ($43)," said the manager, who gave his surname, Hou.

Chiquet, whose label Gaston Chiquet produces about 200,000 bottles a year, said France and Europe generally will remain the most important markets for Champagne. But for the numbers to climb again "we'll have to rediscover optimism."

"Champagne remains a drink for celebrating the big events of life," said Chiquet. "Happily for sales, at the end of the year, the French rely on tradition. Still, we're not going to catch up. Unfortunately, what's lost already is lost."

___

Associated Press writer Yuri Kageyama in Tokyo and researchers Fu Ting in Shanghai and Flora Ji in Beijing contributed to this report.

___

http://www.gastonchiquet.com/

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/champagne-loses-fizz-europe-tough-111145034--finance.html

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Regis Jesuit's new baseball coach Anderson a former Nebraska skipper

Nebraska coach Mike Anderson (Sue Ogrocki, Associated Press file)

Regis Jesuit has hired former University of Nebraska coach Mike Anderson to lead its baseball program, according to the high school.

Anderson is filling big shoes, namely those of Walt Weiss, who was hired by the Rockies as their manager in November. Weiss was head coach at Regis for one season, guiding the Raiders to a 20-6 record.

Anderson was 337-196-2 at Nebraska and coached the Huskers to the College World Series in 2005. He was named the Big 12 Conference coach of the year in 2003 and 2005 but was fired by Nebraska after a 2011 season in which his team went 30-25 overall, 9-17 in the Big 12.

Anderson, a graduate of Eaton, was an All-Colorado selection as a shortstop. He played baseball at Northern Colorado from 1983-86 and was later in the California Angels' organization.

Regis Jesuit returns its top two hitters: senior Brody Weiss (Walt's son) and junior Max George. The Raiders' pitching staff will take a hit with the graduation of ace Peter Bayer, but junior David Peterson should slip into that role nicely.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dp-sports/~3/WQ883yjVFnc/regis-jesuits-new-baseball-coach-mike-anderson-is

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China tightens Internet controls, legalizes post deletion

4 hrs.

China unveiled tighter Internet controls on Friday, legalizing the deletion of posts or pages which are deemed to contain "illegal" information and requiring service providers to hand over such information to the authorities for punishment.

The rules signal that the new leadership headed by Communist Party chief Xi Jinping will continue muzzling the often scathing, raucous online chatter in a country where the Internet offers a rare opportunity for debate.

The new regulations, announced by the official Xinhua news agency, also require Internet users to register with their real names when signing up with network providers, though, in reality, this already happens.

Chinese authorities and Internet companies such as Sina Corp have long since closely monitored and censored what people say online, but the government has now put measures such as deleting posts into law.

"Service providers are required to instantly stop the transmission of illegal information once it is spotted and take relevant measures, including removing the information and saving records, before reporting to supervisory authorities," the rules state.

The restrictions follow a series of corruption scandals amongst lower-level officials exposed by Internet users, something the government has said it is trying to encourage.

Li Fei, deputy head of parliament's legislative affairs committee, said the new rules did not mean people needed to worry about being unable to report corruption online. But he added a warning too.

"When people exercise their rights, including the right to use the Internet, they must do so in accordance with the law and constitution, and not harm the legal rights of the state, society ... or other citizens," he told a news conference.

Chinese Internet users already cope with extensive censorship measures, especially over politically sensitive topics like human rights and elite politics, and popular foreign sites Facebook, Twitter and Google-owned YouTube are blocked.

Earlier this year, the government began forcing users of Sina's wildly successful Weibo microblogging platform to register their real names.

The new rules were quickly condemned by some Weibo users.

"So now they are getting Weibo to help in keeping records and reporting it to authorities. Is this the freedom of expression we are promised in the constitution?" complained one user.

"We should resolutely oppose such a covert means to interfere with Internet freedom," wrote another.

The government says tighter monitoring of the Internet is needed to prevent people making malicious and anonymous accusations online, disseminating pornography and spreading panic with unfounded rumors, pointing out that many other countries already have such rules.

Despite periodic calls for political reform, the party has shown no sign of loosening its grip on power and brooks no dissent to its authority.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Sally Huang; Editing by Nick Macfie)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Check for restrictions at: http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/china-tightens-internet-controls-legalizes-post-deletion-1C7755876

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Listing for Carlin- Custom Order( 3 cases) 2 Iphone 5's and 1 Iphone 4, all pics sent to Luckybrew email IP4C and IP5C by LuckybrewDesigns

Happy Holidays!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
***** DUE TO HIGH VOLUME, iPHONE 5 CASES HAVE APPROXIMATELY 1 WEEK SHIPPING DELAY ******

------------

Case for iPhone 5 - Sprint, Verizon, AT&T

Choose from a variety of different colors and materials:

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Upon purchase, please leave your case requests in the "notes to seller" section of your checkout.

If no color or material is sent to us, we we'll go a head and choose for you.

All of our cases:

- are custom made to fit all of the iPhone 5 models.
- have all openings for buttons, jacks and camera.
- made in house per order.
- are permanently printed and will not fade, crack or peel.

This item may be personalized! Just convo us with the name or text you would like to add and we'll e-mail you a mock-up for your approval upon request.

*-*-*- FAQ -*-*-*

Q: Is the image less sharp or clear depending on which material I choose?
A: No, the image is printed on a hard metal and is consistent no matter which material you choose.

Q: How long will it take to receive my order?
A: We try to get every order out promtly. We guarantee your item being shipped within 3 business days (holidays and weekends are not business days) of cleared payment. **PLEASE NOTE: iphone 5 cases will start shipping on 9/24**

Q: Can I request a change or addition to the design?
A: Absolutely! All designing is done in house so we can make any changes right on the spot. Simply put your requests in the "notes" section upon purchase.

Q: Will the iphone 4/4s cases fit my iPhone 3G?
A: No, unfortunately these cases are specifically for the iPhone 4/4s. We currently do not have any iPhone cases for the 3G.


Have any questions? Contact the shop owner.

Source: http://www.etsy.com/listing/119006710/listing-for-carlin-custom-order-3-cases

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Senate leaders work to avoid New Year's "fiscal cliff"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congressional negotiators burrowed into their Capitol offices on Saturday to see if they can stop the economy from falling off of a "fiscal cliff" in just three days when the biggest tax increases ever to hit Americans in one shot are scheduled to begin.

Aides to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell were expected to work through the day on a possible compromise that would set aside $600 billion in tax increases and across-the-board government spending cuts that are set to kick in next week.

A variety of lower taxes are scheduled to expire on December 31. If allowed to rise, the approximately $500 billion value of the revenue increases would represent a historic hike when taken together.

The combined punch of the tax increases and spending cuts would likely put the U.S. economy into a downward spiral, according to economists' forecasts.

"We're now at the point where, in just a couple days, the law says that every American's tax rates are going up. Every American's paycheck will get a lot smaller. And that would be the wrong thing to do for our economy," President Barack Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address, which was broadcast on Saturday.

At midday, McConnell walked into his office on the second floor of the Capitol. Asked by waiting journalists if he thought his efforts would be successful, McConnell responded: "I hope so."

A Senate Republican leadership aide said that it might not be known until sometime on Sunday whether these talks bear fruit. That is when leaders are expected to brief their rank-and-file members.

The Senate is scheduled to hold a rare Sunday session beginning at 1 p.m. EST (1800 GMT), but it was not clear whether the chamber would have fiscal cliff legislation to act upon.

Reid and McConnell and their staffs held last-ditch negotiations Friday night and resumed on Saturday with no guarantees that their efforts would pay off. Republicans remained opposed to Obama's demand that households making above $250,000 a year see their income tax rate rise to 39.6 percent, from the current 35 percent, in order to help tame budget deficits.

In recent days, some aides have said that a $400,000 threshold, instead of $250,000, has been discussed as a possible compromise.

PESSIMISTIC OUTLOOK

Democrats and Republicans also are jousting over what to do about inheritance taxes on estates.

Unless Congress acts, the tax is set to jump on January 1 to 55 percent with the first $1 million exempted for individuals. Currently, there is a 35 percent tax and a $5 million exemption.

One Democratic aide was pessimistic that McConnell would come up with a counteroffer that Reid would find acceptable. Such a counteroffer would have to be calibrated in a way that also could attract votes from conservative House Republicans, many of whom have balked at any tax rate increases.

Similarly, a senior House Republican aide on Saturday voiced pessimism about prospects for a deal.

"It's hard to see Reid agreeing to anything that can get the votes of the majority of the majority in the House, thereby allowing a bipartisan accomplishment," the aide said. A "majority of the majority" refers to the 241 Republicans who are in the 435-member House.

The Republican aide placed the blame squarely on Democrats, as many Republican members have done publicly, saying that going off the fiscal cliff is a "policy upside" for them. "Higher taxes, devastating defense cuts. The polls tell them they can win the PR war in January. From their perspective, why stop the cliff dive?"

Democrats, in turn, have publicly accused Republican House Speaker John Boehner of preferring to put off any tough fiscal cliff votes until after a January 3 House election in which he is expected to win another two-year term as speaker.

If McConnell and Reid can manage to reach a deal on inheritance taxes and raising income tax rates on the wealthiest, they likely would throw into the compromise some other fiscal cliff solutions.

Those could include extending an array of other expiring tax breaks, such as one that encourages companies to conduct research and development. Also, Congress wants to prevent a steep pay-cut in January for doctors who treat elderly Medicare patients.

Lawmakers also want to prevent middle-class taxpayers from inadvertently creeping into a higher tax bracket, known as the alternative minimum tax, intended for the wealthiest.

If the Reid-McConnell effort fails, Obama has asked the Senate to hold a vote on Monday on a "basic package" that would stop taxes from going up on the middle class and would extend long-term unemployment benefits that are about to expire. If it passed the Senate, its fate would be in the hands of the Republican-controlled House.

(Additional reporting by Thomas Ferraro and Jeff Mason; Editing by Fred Barbash and Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senate-leaders-last-ditch-fiscal-cliff-effort-012150621--business.html

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lysine superstitious: What is Pilates? | Health and Fitness Society ...

Updated: December 26, 2012

pilates-feature

Pilates is? a favorite among Hollywood starlets and well-versed fitness fanatics.

Pilates is a kind of exercise that improves flexibility, coordination and also strengthens muscles through controlled movements done as mat exercises or with equipment to tone and strengthen the body. It has been the favorite type of exercise for r dancers, athletes and actors.

Pilates Overview

Pilates daily workouts? will help your body to address unique issues or problem areas, and gets you in tune with your body as it is good for the mind and good for the body.? By doing routine Pilates exercises you can build a strong core, develop flat abdominals and create a strong back by strengthening the muscles that support your spine.

Pilates also improves mental and physical health by increasing flexibility and blood circulation. It particularly works on the body?s core or your torso. Pilates would also help you to have better posture, and in case of injury, Pilates exercises will help you to experience better overall health.

pilates founderThe founder of Pilates, Joseph H. Pilates, had some serious health problem such as asthma as a kid, he built his body and grew stronger and became an athlete. As a nurse in Great Britain during World War I, he designed exercise methods and equipment for immobilized patients and soldiers. He also developed a series of mat exercises that focus on the torso and by combining various exercise methods such as the mind-body formats of yoga and Chinese martial arts he created a new routine exercise.
The main point of the Pilates philosophy is that our physical and mental health is intertwined. He designed his exercise program around principles that support this philosophy, including concentration, precision, control, breathing, and flowing movements.

Benefits of Pilates

There are lots of benefits of doing Pilates such as general fitness, better sleep, increasing strength, to lose weight, to increase coordination, to get toned body with lean muscles, to help to heal injuries such as back pain, joint pain, to develop mind-body and for better sexual health. Pilates teaches proper breathing and spinal and pelvic alignment, helping you become more connected with your body. Breathing properly can also help to reduce stress.

Pilates gets different results in each individual. But one thing is the same. You feel great and it?s effective. It will help you to have a lean look without bulky muscles. Your body will be strong without looking Bulky and maybe that is why Pilates is a popular exercise for gymnasts and professional dancers.

Most conventional workouts tend to create bulky muscle, but Pilates does not rely on frequent repetition, and thus no overgrown muscles. It just focuses on the whole body, not just on sections of muscles. Your focus would be on the core and around the area of the abdominal muscles and the back and you will be benefiting a lot by a proper use of the Pilates program such as the ability to increase the strength of stabilizer muscles that may not commonly be worked out in a standard exercise program.

Pilates also stresses the use of fluid movements and circulation that can be a great way to get a better sense of the kinesthetic of your body. A lot of people feel that they are better able to balance themselves regardless of the position that they are in.

Like yoga and Chinese martial arts, by engaging the mind and enhancing body awareness Pilates not only helps you to tone your body, but your mind and spirit as well and you will be more mindful of your body. Breath movement is also emphasized to put you in touch with how breath moves through your body.

The mind-body connection

pilates for womenPilates has been demonstrated to reduce stress, anxiety, and helps lift depression. The mind-body connection is fundamental to the study and practice of Pilates. As you see Pilates has numerous benefits that one can attain through regular use of the exercise program. It also strengthens your body and helps prevent future injuries. Since no set of muscles is ever over or under trained, there is less risk for injury.
It teaches you how to become efficient with your body. Very few exercises can help your body become more efficient in its movement. By practicing Pilates on a regular basis, you can train your body more to move in a much safer and more efficient manner.

Benefits of Pilates for Older Adults

Unfortunately when we get older our bodies get stiff and we feel pain in our joints. Even if you start Pilates at the older age you can still get some of the benefits to prevent the elderly pain from arthritis and other bone problems.

Even adults undergoing serious rehabilitation therapy can use Pilates to increase their range of motion and overall muscle strength. ?As a senior you need to consult with your doctor or a medical professional to make sure that Pilates will benefit you, but in most cases it has been very helpful for adult with back and joint pain.? Make sure that you never feel pain while practicing Pilates and stop as you start to feel any pain. Pilates was designed to progress naturally from one movement to another. If you feel stopped at one movement, don?t give up. Start at the beginning and work your way back to the areas you found most challenging.

Remember that practice makes perfect and that you cannot do it all in one day.

Take your time practicing Pilates and you will reap the rewards this great exercise regimen.

Comments are Welcome!

Comments

Source: http://healthandfitnesssociety.com/what-is-pilates

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Marvell has options as it faces $1 billion patent verdict

NEW YORK (Reuters) - As Marvell Technology Group Ltd embarks on a legal process to void a $1.17 billion damages verdict in a patent dispute with Carnegie Mellon University, it has some reasons to be optimistic.

The verdict was delivered on Wednesday by a jury in Pittsburgh, which found that Marvell had infringed two patents owned by Carnegie Mellon related to how accurately hard-drive circuits read data from high-speed magnetic disks.

On Thursday, Marvell said that it would seek to overturn the verdict through post-trial motions at the district court.

Marvell also said that, if necessary, it would appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. That court, which oversees appeals in patent infringement cases, has proven willing to throw out large verdicts in the recent past.

Brian Love, a professor at Santa Clara University School of Law who specializes in patent law, said damages awards are reversed about 20 percent of the time on appeal. Further, he said, "the larger a damages award is, the more susceptible it is to attack." The award is one of the largest by a U.S. jury in a patent infringement case.

Other large verdicts have not held up on appeal. In February 2011, Abbott Laboratories, for example, succeeded in overturning a $1.67 billion verdict against it in a patent infringement verdict won by a Johnson & Johnson unit.

That verdict, the largest ever by a jury in U.S. patent infringement litigation, was delivered in 2009 by a jury in Texas which found that Abbott's arthritis drug Humira had infringed the Johnson & Johnson unit's patent. But the Federal Circuit ruled that the patents at issue were invalid and thus could not be infringed.

Microsoft Corp has also successfully cut down big patent infringement verdicts delivered against it. In 2007, it was hit with a $1.52 billion verdict in a case brought by Alcatel-Lucent SA over patents related to digital music technology.

But, after post-trial motions, the judge who oversaw the case set aside the verdict, finding that Microsoft's Windows Media Player did not infringe the patents held by Alcatel-Lucent. The Federal Circuit affirmed his decision.

It's unclear which issues Marvell will raise in its post-trial motions and appeals. In a statement on Thursday the company said it did not infringe Carnegie Mellon's patents and that those patents could not have practically been used in its products.

Legal experts said Marvell's lawyers could attack the jury's damages calculation. Love of Santa Clara Law noted that the award exceeds Marvell's annual profits and is more than one quarter of the company's market capitalization.

"The law of patent damages is fuzzy, and leaves parties leeway to argue for damages amounts that differ drastically, often by 100-fold and sometimes much more," he said.

Because it received precisely what it requested, an amount calculated by an outside expert based on assumptions that could later be questioned, this award may be in "greater jeopardy than usual," Love said.

Marvell may contest the jury's finding that it willfully infringed the patents, which allows Judge Nora Barry Fischer to treble the damages owed to Carnegie Mellon.

In a decision issued in June, the Federal Circuit gave judges discretion in determining whether infringement was willful. Before that decision, willfulness was often left entirely up to juries.

"Typically that is a focal point of post-trial motions," said Donald Dunner, a patent attorney who is not involved in the case.

Marvell may also renew arguments it made in a motion seeking a mistrial earlier this month based on allegedly improper arguments made by Carnegie Mellon's lawyers during closing arguments. Judge Fischer denied the motion, but said she would consider it at the conclusion of the trial "in light of the entire record, argument, and legal authority." (Reporting by Andrew Longstreth; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/marvell-options-faces-1-billion-patent-verdict-235631166--finance.html

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Longest-Running Earth Observation Satellite to Retire

After documenting the changing face of our planet since 1984, the longest-running Earth-observing satellite, Landsat 5, will retire soon, the U.S. Geological Survey has announced.

The satellite, which will be retired in the next few months, has long outlived its initial three-year mission. It has circled?Earth more than 150,000 times during its nearly 29 years in space, and has snapped more than 2.5 million images of the planet's surface along the way. Throughout its prolific career, Landsat 5 has captured images of the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the Chernobyl disaster, the?expansion of sprawl?around cities like Las Vegas, deforestation in Mexico, and even crowds descending on the U.S. capital to witness President Barack Obama's 2009 inauguration.

"Any major event since 1984 that left a mark on this Earth larger than a football field was likely recorded by Landsat 5, whether it was a hurricane, a tsunami, a?wildfire, deforestation, or an oil spill," USGS Director Marcia McNutt said in a statement. "We look forward to a long and productive continuation of the Landsat program, but it is unlikely there will ever be another satellite that matches the outstanding longevity of Landsat 5."?

The first series of maneuvers to safely lower Landsat 5 from its operational orbit is expected to occur next month, according to USGS officials.

This year marked the?40th anniversary of the entire Landsat program, which is a collaboration by NASA and the USGS, an agency of the Interior department. Besides Landsat 5, the only other currently operational craft from the program is Landsat 7, which launched in 1999 and has also outlived its three-year design. [Photos: Landsat's Best 'Earth as Art' Images]

With one mission ending, another is about to begin. NASA is scheduled to blast Landsat 8 ? also called the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) ? into orbit on the back of an Atlas 5 rocket in February 2013.?The new satellite arrived at its launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California last week, NASA officials said.

LDCM has two instruments. One is the Operational Land Imager, which will collect data in visible, near infrared and shortwave infrared wavelengths. It will also conduct observations in two new spectral bands ? one designed to help coastal waters, the other to detect hard-to-see cirrus clouds, according to NASA officials. The other instrument is the Thermal Infrared Sensor, intended to measure the temperature of the Earth's surface.

"Both of these instruments have evolutionary advances that make them the most advanced Landsat instruments to date and are designed to improve performance and reliability to improve observations of the global land surface," Ken Schwer, LDCM project manager at NASA Goddard, said in statement.

Follow SPACE.com on Twitter?@Spacedotcom. We're also on?Facebook?and?Google+.

Copyright 2012 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/longest-running-earth-observation-satellite-retire-102702953.html

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Apple Has A Lot of ?Tricks Up Its Sleeve? in 2013 ... - Yahoo! Finance

2012 has been a tumultuous year for both Apple (AAPL) and its investors. The stock, once a darling of Wall Street, has fallen precipitously from its intraday high of $705.07 on Sept. 21; shares are down nearly 23% in three months (the stock is up 26.7% YTD).

The maker of the iPhone and iPad has experienced both highs and lows this year.

Apple's 2012 highlights include:

  1. iPhone 5 Debut: Apple debuted its highly anticipated and widely speculated iPhone 5 to much fanfare. The tech giant sold a record-breaking 5 million iPhone 5 devices in its September opening weekend, with demand exceeding the company?s initial supply. According to Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, Apple now holds 53.3% of the U.S. smartphone market ? the first time Apple has surpassed the 50% mark. Apple?s dominance with smartphone users in the U.S. can largely be attributed to sales of the iPhone 5.
  2. Major Patent Win: Apple also decisively won its patent infringement suit against Korean competitor Samsung this summer. The nine-member jury ruled that Samsung copied the look and feel of its iPhone and awarded Apple more than $1 billion in damages.
  3. iPad Mini: This fall Apple unveiled the iPad mini, the smaller and less expensive alternative to its widely popular iPad tablets.

Apple's 2012 lowlights include:

  1. Maps Flap: Apple's Maps mobile app, designed to replace the popular Google Maps tool, was riddled with flaws and did not work correctly, forcing a rare public apology from CEO Tim Cook. Several senior executives including longtime iPhone and iPad software chief Scott Forstall, retail head John Browett and mapping app executive Richard Williamson were fired this year. Apple also missed its third-quarter and fourth-quarter profit forecasts, shocking analysts and investors and causing a sell-off in the stock. Prior to the third-quarter, Apple had beaten Wall Street estimates in 17 out of its last 18 quarters.
  2. Sweatshop in China: Foxconn, the Chinese manufacturer of the iPhone and iPad, continued to make news this year for its subpar and extreme working conditions. It was also blamed for delays of iPhone 5 shipments."The iPhone 5 is the most difficult device that Foxconn has ever assembled," according to a Foxconn official. "To make it light and thin, the design is very complicated. It takes time to learn how to make this new device. Practice makes perfect. Our productivity has been improving day by day."

Tech journalist and founder of the Techonomy Conference David Kirkpatrick says concerns over Apple?s future are overblown. He believes Tim Cook is a "brilliant" leader and the tech juggernaut has "a lot of tricks up its sleeve" in the coming year.

?I don?t think there?s any fundamental problem with Apple,? Kirkpatrick tells The Daily Ticker. ?In fact, Apple?s P/E is still ridiculously low. It?s still by the far the world?s most popular consumer electronics company. I would be a buyer of the stock.?

Kirkpatrick expects sales of the iPhone, iPad and iPad mini will continue to surprise to the upside next year but cautions that Apple?s margins for these products will fall as the consumer electronics market becomes tighter. The longtime Apple watcher also predicts 2013 will be the year of the Apple TV, which Kirkpatrick describes as a ?real, full-fledged screen TV? that?s built to connect to the Internet.

Got a topic you?d like covered? Have a guest you?d like to see interviewed? Send an email to thedailyticker@yahoo.com.

You can also find us on Facebook.

More Apple coverage from The Daily Ticker:

Who Wants An Apple TV? "Everyone" Says David Kirkpatrick

Windows Users Jumping Ship to Apple: Survey

Apple Represents the WORST of American Business, Not the Best: Barlett & Steele

Amazon Is Sucking the Profit Out of iPads -- Are iPhones Next?

Apple TV Is "Irrelevant," Piecyk Says: iPhone Wars, iPad Sales Hold Keys to Firm's Fate

Apple vs. Samsung: Is It the Trial of the Century?

Apple Scraps Google Maps, Puts Its Interests Ahead of Customers

After A Year Without Steve Jobs, What's Next For Apple?

Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-ticker/apple-lot-tricks-sleeve-2013-david-kirkpatrick-140333147.html

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There?s A Difference Between Private And Personal

3916007787_634844b73c_zWhile most of us were enjoying the holidays with our families all over the world, someone who is related to the CEO of Facebook posted a photo of her family to friends, and then some journalist person downloaded it and tweeted it. There?s a real difference between something being private and something being personal. And that, as the aforementioned incident highlights, is a notion that a lot of people — including Randi Zuckerberg — have forgotten, online and off. What I mean by this is that just because you post something online, doesn?t mean it?s meant for public consumption. Yes, this all sounds very conflated, and yes, Facebook privacy controls are about as easy to understand as left-handed scissors for a right-handed person. However, somewhere in this slow news big news cycle, publications started to tell the story that said Facebook CEO’s sister clearly didn’t understand Facebook’s privacy controls. This is simply not true, because the photo wasn’t private, it was personal.?Allow me to explain the difference. Private As A Peacock Private: confined to or intended only for the persons immediately concerned; confidential: a private meeting If something is “private” in your mind, it’s probably not a good idea to share it on the Internet…anywhere. I don’t care what types of controls a social network gives you. There’s no such thing as full-on “privacy” on the Internet. Do you know what is private? A good-old-fashioned photo in a scrapbook, passed around one by one at the dinner table during the holidays. If you see someone try to pull out their phone to snap a photo for Instagram purposes, you can say “HEY! That’s private.” This can’t be done on the Internet. Once something is out there, it can be screen-shotted, captured and re-shared just as easily as it was uploaded in the first place. As we learned with Snapchat and Poke, those sexy private photos and videos aren’t really “private” either. I’m not even going to get into the difference between public and private, because I feel like that’s fairly obvious. Privacy is a lost art in humanity these days. We’re so used to sharing every darn thing that happens to us, myself included, that we have lost a sense of self, therefore leaving ourselves open to the shit show that ensued during the boringest news week of the century. No matter what Randi Zuckerberg said after the fact, people

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/VpOtmj7HiAQ/

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