Business

Podshow and Apple?

Catching up on reading news from last week I came across a post by Dave Winer in which he theorizes:

Theory on why Podshow needs $25 million. To defend against a trademark infringement suit from Apple. Alternate theory, to re-brand, to avoid a trademark infringement suit from Apple.

I wonder if we've seen evidence to suggest there's not a Apple-Podshow partnership in the works? I don't give the idea much creedence, but Podshow partner Adam Curry did talk with Apple prior to Apple's release of iTunes to support podcasting.

Burger Joint

New businesses should make sure their phone numbers are readily available online. Especially if they depend on call-ins for any portion of their business. Such is the case for Down-N-Out. burger in Big Bear, California. It would have been a lot easier if we'd known their phone number was (909) 584-1300. Fortunately the folks at the pizza joint across the street were nice enough to give it to us.

Family business

We took a trip to the Utah Shakespeare Festival this weekend. On this Labor Day weekend I was struck by the labor going on. At the hotel and again at a restaurant today I was greeted by the spectacle of young people working. Eight and ten year-old children pushing laundry carts or handing out menus. It struck me as unseemly. It was interesting as soon as I began to compare these children with my own beliefs about children working in agriculture on the family interest from a young age. These young people were all dutifully engaged in their respective family undertakings. How should that be any different?

Demand and supply

Business Week reports WalMart is unhappy with the suggestion that the movie studios may be considering distributing movies through Apple's iTunes Music store.

The problem for WalMart is they are living in an ongoing brick and mortar dream world. iTunes certainly has it's detractor and some are worried about the restrictions of DRM. For many of us, though, we're perfectly willing to deal with the limits in exchange for the extreme convenience. We don't shop at WalMart but do frequent both Target and various bookstores that have music sections. Every once in a while I will even browse through the music collection (usually at the bookstore). If I find something interesting I'll make a note, or take a picture with the camera in my cell phone, and go home to purchase it from iTunes.

Back in the Compact Disc era I had several albums of The Beatles. I like listening to The Beatles. I ripped the albums into my iTunes library and still listen to them from time to time. However, since I cannot easily get their music from iTunes Music Store, The Beatles now make up an ever smaller portion of my music library and listening time. I could relatively easily buy a CD or two but the fact that I can readily find new and interesting music without the hassle and with no need to find a place to store the plastic artifacts of the data I want.

WalMart is ready to play the heavy in the way they always have. What they are missing, however, is that the brick and mortar rules have changed.

More troubles for Tower Records

Tower Records announced tonight that it will seek a buyer under the rules of a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy filing. A few weeks ago Tower made news when it was announced that several suppliers were no longer supplying product to the venerable record store chain. Tower Records emerged from bankruptcy in 2004 but has continued to struggle with the boom in online sales.

Chase angles for end-run around credit card companies

Browsing the Apple Store there is a new payment method available. Buy Now Pay Later appears to be Chase's end run around the credit card companies. The terms are little different from your standard high-interest credit cards. Conveniently for Chase they forget to mention how long the grace period is before the high rates kick in. Over and over the frequently asked questions it makes the claim that fraud protection is "like credit cards" with no liability for fraudulent transactions.

One is left to wonder how many banks will setup similar end-runs around the big credit card companies in an attempt to keep more of the processing fees for themselves.

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