Did this year's Davos change people's view on the world? Monday, January 31, 2011
Nail-biting stuff
Did this year's Davos change people's view on the world? The World Economic Forum in Davos, for five days the stomping ground for more than 2,000 of the world's richest and most powerful people, is over.
It's been an unusual Davos. Normally one big topic dominates the event, say trade or poverty, China, climate change or the credit crunch.
Usually there's also a scapegoat being chased through snowy Davos: big polluters, banks, hedge funds, private equity or sovereign wealth funds. It allows the assembled elites to go into a frenzy of chest beating, before going back to business as normal.
This year we had none of this - "probably a very healthy thing, it allowed us to talk about the issues," the chief executive of a FTSE 100 company told me.
If one really had to find a theme, it could be called "uncertainty", "volatility", "risk" or simply "nagging doubt".
Most Europeans and Americans may find it difficult to swallow, but 2010 was a really good year, not just for Davos man.
Most emerging economies have been growing at a fast pace. Many companies had to become leaner and more efficient during the crisis, and are now reaping the rewards.
Most of the bosses in Davos spoke of outstanding profits and were brimming with optimism; at times it felt as if they had to stop themselves from punching the air.
Let's network... But with a few exceptions - like the banker who in a private session let down his guard and claimed that "boom times" were back again - they all had nagging doubts: Could all this be too good to be true?
Every admission of corporate success tempered with an aside that 2011 might not be quite as good, every forecast of economic growth came with a footnote that the recovery could be derailed by inflation, exchange rate fluctuations or trade wars.
One executive, in charge of a large multinational company, warned that volatility was "extremely up".
"I'm concerned that too many are too bullish, that this may end badly," he said during a session on "Globalisation 3.0".
Indeed, this year's Davos agenda looked a bit like a risk assessment form: Water scarcity? Check. War for talent? Check. India-China, friends or rivals? Check. Rebalancing the global economy? Tunisia, Egypt? Social Network addiction? Check. Check. Check.
As a result, companies find it difficult to plan ahead.
"In 2009, we had a visibility of one month ahead. In 2010 it was six months. Now it's at best a year, and that's really not long enough to make big investments," the chief executive of a large media company told me.
But risk harbours opportunity. Investors and especially hedge fund managers in Davos were hard at work trying to identify the big risks that would allow them to reap even bigger rewards.
The most important aspect of Davos, of course, is the networking: either planned well ahead with business partners and potential customers, or by chance, as participants cruise the hallways and crowd into sessions.
Rockstar Bono returned to Davos to boost the fight against polio One African executive based in Lagos spoke of an amazing dinner he had had with the presidents of five African countries; back home it might be a challenge to set up a meeting with a minister.
Wandering through the conference centre it was easy to find economists and financial regulators discussing the finer points of macroeconomics, hear company bosses sketch deals, find ministers lobbying for investment or being lobbied for support, and observe the first tentative soundings for job opportunities.
Trevor Richard Dougherty, a young American video blogger and community activist sponsored by the British Council to come to Davos as a "global changemaker", even managed to land a job.
He got talking with Loic Le Meur, the founder of social media company Seesmic. Five minutes later he had the offer for a paid internship to bridge the time until he starts university this autumn.
This year the schmoozing and networking extended well beyond the forum's perimeter.
If 2008 was the year when Davos was blogged, then 2011 was the year when Davos was tweeted.
Hundreds of participants sent Twitter updates from the event, at times giving a better feel for what was going on inside the congress centre than any news agency could.
The best Davos meetings are not planned The forum's organisers got in on the act. Instead of sending official e-mails to journalists, they simply put all their announcements on the official @davos twitterfeed.
Public sessions were webcast; top leaders were interviewed in the "social media corner" and the results published on the internet.
The world was even allowed a peek into the "closed sessions" from which many reporters are barred: all session summaries were published on the internet.
All this turned Davos into a bizarre mix of openness and secrecy, with social media transparency stopping well outside the ultra-private bilateral and industry meetings.
As always, security was heavy, with fences, barbed wire, snipers on the roof and airport-style checks to get into the extensively rebuilt conference centre of Davos.
The rebuilding by the way, removed some of the claustrophobia that used to haunt Davos events.
Unlike previous years, there were a couple of small demonstrations, a miniscule riot, and the explosion of some fireworks at a hotel, which shattered a window.
The participants barely noticed it, if at all. And it definitely didn't stop them from having a good time.
Yes, parties were still scaled down; banks especially continued to keep a low public profile (although they held plenty of very exclusive dinners and nightcaps for close friends and top business partners).
Even the official soiree on the last night of Davos, hosted once again by India, was a somewhat subdued affair - although a real (non-Indian) princess delighted the crowd with her Bollywood dancing skills.
The Google and McKinsey parties were still the best events in town, and by Saturday morning some of the older chief executives could not help but stifle a few yawns as they networked in the halls of the congress centre.
Did this year's Davos - committed by its logo to "improve the state of the world" - really make a difference?
Participants were shaken by their Refugee Run experience Of course not. Short of waving a magic wand, getting instant results at such a sprawling event would be impossible. And if the participants were to take action, they'd be accused of carving up the world amongst themselves.
What Davos achieved, though, was to make powerful people think - about social entrepreneurship and new technologies, about tackling pressing topics.
It's events like Davos that help giants like Pepsi, Coca-Cola and Unilever commit to ambitious sustainability targets, from reducing water usage to sustainable farming.
Some of the rich people went on a "refugee run" to experience - for just under one hour - the life of a refugee (organised by the UNHCR, the World Food Programme and Crossroads).
Of course, events like this trigger a cynic alert, but participants did return truly shaken and eager to help.
In some ways, it was Davos in action.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/business-12320184
Clashes over Dhaka airport plans
Police found themselves being pelted with bricks by angry villagers Police in Bangladesh have fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse villagers protesting against government plans to build a new airport south of the capital Dhaka.
The farmers, whose land the government wants to acquire for the project, set fire to a police camp, burned a police vehicle and blocked roads.
One policemen was killed and more than 50 people injured in the clashes.
The government says the farmers will be adequately compensated for their land.
Critics of the plans say the country's existing airports are not operating at capacity.
Police say about 20,000 villagers demonstrated on Monday against plans to build Bangabandhu International Airport, in Munshiganj district.
Protesters, some armed with sticks and axes, attacked police at the site in Srinagar sub-district, 40km (25 miles) south of the city.
Villagers say they will lose homes and farmlands.
The government wants the planned airport to be named after independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman - the father of current Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
He was killed along with most of his family members in a coup in 1975, four years after Bangladesh won independence from Pakistan.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-south-asia-12325667
750,000 'to pay higher tax rate'
The IFS estimates the average household will be £200 worse off Three-quarters of a million more people are set to become higher-rate taxpayers in April, according to a leading economic research body.
About 750,000 people will start paying the higher 40% income tax rate on their earnings from 5 April, says the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).
The threshold at which the higher rate kicks in is to be £35,001, down from £37,400 this financial year.
Chancellor George Osborne told the BBC he had to make hard economic decisions.
Speaking to the Politics Show on Sunday Mr Osborne said no politician liked cutting spending and increasing taxes, but he was trying to clear up the "mess" Labour had left.
He added: "I feel every day a huge responsibility to get these decisions right for Britain."
The IFS estimates the average household will be £200 a year worse off as a result of tax increases and benefit cuts.
From the start of the next tax year, the government is also increasing the main rate at which National Insurance is charged.
However, the IFS also says half a million people will no longer pay income tax, following the £1,000 increase in the amount people can earn tax-free being raised to £7,475.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/business-12321524
Mark Zuckerberg meets the fake Mark Zuckerbergs on Saturday Night Live (video)
Continue reading Mark Zuckerberg meets the fake Mark Zuckerbergs on Saturday Night Live (video)
Mark Zuckerberg meets the fake Mark Zuckerbergs on Saturday Night Live (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 Jan 2011 03:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Switched On: A suite segment for PlayStation games
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.
One thing that has set Sony apart from its home console rivals has been the extended lifecycles of its hardware. Riding the momentum of a massive install base, both the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 each kept selling strong nearly a decade after their debut, and years after their respective successors were introduced. In fact, as late as 2009, Audiovox began offering a PS2 integrated into an aftermarket ovehead car video system with a 10" screen. Sony could pursue this strategy in home consoles because the PS2 was the runaway unit volume leader of its generation. Not so with the PSP.
When Sony introduced the PlayStation Portable, it entered a portable console market with fierce, entrenched competition from the incumbent Nintendo, and the powerful widescreen handheld was outsold by the Nintendo DS and its later derivatives. Sony couldn't attain the market share it needed to steamroll existing competition.
With Sony's announcements this week, however, the PlayStation purveyors seem to have found a way to take their one-two punch on the road with a strategy that takes the PSP and segments its evolution.
When Sony introduced the PlayStation Portable, it entered a portable console market with fierce, entrenched competition from the incumbent Nintendo, and the powerful widescreen handheld was outsold by the Nintendo DS and its later derivatives. Sony couldn't attain the market share it needed to steamroll existing competition.
With Sony's announcements this week, however, the PlayStation purveyors seem to have found a way to take their one-two punch on the road with a strategy that takes the PSP and segments its evolution.
Continue reading Switched On: A suite segment for PlayStation games
Switched On: A suite segment for PlayStation games originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 29 Jan 2011 23:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/29/switched-on-a-suite-segment-for-playstation-games/
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Oman uncovers UAE 'spy ring'
The authorities in Oman says they have uncovered a network of spies working for the United Arab Emirates, according to the state news agency.
The alleged agents for the UAE are said to have spied on the Omani government and military.
The UAE government denies any knowledge of - or link with - such a network, according to its news agency.
The neighbouring countries are members of the Gulf Cooperation Council and normally enjoy good relations.
Government sources in Oman say the ring was discovered some months ago and that a number of Omani nationals have been arrested.
The spies may have been interested in the issue of the succession of Omar's Sultan Qaboos, according to a security official quoted by the Agence France-Presse news agency.
The Sultan is 70 years old and does not have children.
But others suggested the alleged spy ring could be more related to regional politics.
"One possibility is that the UAE wants to know more about Iran-Oman relations because of Tehran and Muscat's long ties in security and military cooperation," Theodore Karasik, from the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis, told Reuters news agency.
Oman has close relations with Iran, partly because the two countries are joint gatekeepers of the Strait of Hormuz, the route for 40% of the world's oil tanker traffic.
But the sultanate also has strong military and diplomatic ties with the West.
The UAE is a staunch ally of the United States.
UAE authorities received the news with "shock and surprise" according to the Wam news agency.
"The UAE expresses its full willingness to cooperate with ... Oman in any investigations that it carries out in full transparency to uncover (those) who try to mar relations between the two countries," said a foreign ministry statement.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-middle-east-12320859
Study shocker! Mobile users piddle around on the internet while watching TV
Study shocker! Mobile users piddle around on the internet while watching TV originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 29 Jan 2011 07:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nielsen / Yahoo [PDF] | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/29/study-shocker-mobile-users-piddle-around-on-the-internet-while/
Plantronics Calisto 800 speakerphone and Voyager Pro UC headset make concalls cool again
Also new is a revised version of the Voyager Pro UC, a rather more traditional Bluetooth headset with an extended boom for better voice pickup and the ability to pair to a mobile phone and a PC (via a tiny USB adapter) simultaneously. It'll even do A2DP so you hold music won't be the only tunes you hear. Both appear to be available now, and both start at $199.95, putting them out of reach for most non-corporate attendees.Plantronics Calisto 800 speakerphone and Voyager Pro UC headset make concalls cool again originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 22:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |Plantronics Calisto 800, Voyager Pro UC | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/28/plantronics-calisto-800-speakerphone-and-voyager-pro-uc-headset/
Somali 'pirates' flown to Seoul
The five young suspected pirates reportedly say they were only following orders from their boss A group of Somalis suspected of piracy have been flown to South Korea to face possible criminal charges.
Five men were seized when South Korean special forces stormed the Samho Jewelry, a cargo ship which had been hijacked in the Arabian Sea.
South Korean officials say eight of the 13 pirates on board at the time were killed during the rescue mission.
The five young men, who reportedly deny involvement in the kidnapping, were flown to Seoul and then taken to Busan.
Officials say they will face charges of maritime robbery and attempted murder.
The captain of the South Korean-owned cargo ship Samho Jewelry was shot in the stomach during the raid on the vessel and remains in a critical condition.
Seok Hae-kyun, 58, had two rounds of surgery at a hospital in Oman and was flown back to South Korea on Saturday for further treatment.
The other crew members - seven South Koreans, two Indonesians and 11 Burmese - were all rescued unharmed.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency says the suspects have already been questioned in the port city of Busan, in the presence of state-appointed lawyers and translators.
"The investigations will take place in Busan since the hijacking took place in international waters and both the hijacked ship and the wounded captain were based in this city," Kim Chung-kyu, the coastguard's Busan office chief, told reporters.
The injured captain of the ship has been flown home for more treatment Lawyers for the suspects say the men only acted as ordered by their boss and did not shoot the captain, according to Yonhap.
The 11,500-tonne cargo ship had been carrying chemicals from the United Arab Emirates towards Sri Lanka when it was hijacked in the waters between Oman and India on 15 January.
South Korea, which is part of a multinational anti-piracy force in the area, dispatched a warship and the unprecedented rescue mission took place six days later.
The Gulf of Aden, between Yemen and Somalia, is one of the world's busiest shipping routes and has become a hotspot for pirate attacks.
Forty-nine ships were hijacked in the area in 2010, and Somali pirates are currently reported to be holding 31 ships, with more than 700 crew on board.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-africa-12317578
Vandals destroy relics in museum
Vandals ripped the heads off two mummies and tossed relics onto the ground in Cairo's Egyptian Museum, the country's antiquities chief said Sunday. 
Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/cnn_topstories/~3/ScvFgbLGX5I/index.html
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