guronelogoh.blogspot.com
Hotel consultant Drew Dimond expects hotels in Greater Nashvillew to see occupancy plummet 15 percent to 20 percenft fromlast year’s levels. But the is battlingh the decline, in hopes of keeping any occupanc drop-off below 5 percent. Bureau staf is Twittering, Facebooking and sending out e-blasts to announcw free stuff to do, last-minuter travel deals, CMA Music Festiva l updates andattractions specials. “Wes certainly don’t think it’s going to be some greatg summer,” says Butch Spyridon, presidentt of the visitors bureau. “Ift we were flat to last year, I’d be ecstatic.
I expect that we will be down Spyridon hopes the value of Nashvillwe will draw visitors because ofthe city’ds wealth of free, live, around-the-clock has brought back its free music poolside and is offering “kide eat free” inside the hotel for the firsty time this summer. “At every we’re creating events, promoting and marketing and adding extra valurewith events,” Spyridon says, such as offering flight-hotel packagexs when touted $49 flights to Nashville during a one-day sale in The Nashville Symphony has half-price ticketx for select shows, the Country Musicf Hall of Fame has been givinh out $5 off coupons through June 7, and Gaylorx is offering four-night hotel and attractions packagesd at 40 percent off.
Keith Wright, presidenyt of the , says attractions are sweetening discounts this summert and focusing onthe drive-in “Regional tourism has become extremely important to us, and we are marketinhg more to that audience,” he says. Nashville’sz biggest months for tourism are June and mainly because of the CMA Music Festival thatpumps $25 milliomn into the city every Officials at the would not say how tickegt sales are going for this summer’s festival, which kicks off next week. Octoberr is a popular convention month because of the fall Nashville tourism has been hit in recent In April, the averag e nightly hotel rate dropped 6.3 percent to $92.8 5 from $99.
05 in the same month last according to Smith Travel Research in Hotel occupancy plunged 15 percent in April to 56.9 percent, down from 67 perceng a year ago. Revenue per available room, a key metricv for hoteliers, was down 20.5 percen in April. The amoung of attendees for booked conventions this summer is down about 24 percentt fromlast year. Nashville’s hospitality however, is outperforming much of the rest ofthe country. For the firs t quarter of 2009, Nashville’sa average daily rate dropped 4.5 percent. Only five cities did better, and 19 of the top 25 marketasdid worse.
The decline in hotel tax collections is greater than the drop in which shows tourists are coming but choosinb lessexpensive hotels, says Walt executive director of the . Nashville’s hotel occupancy dropped 11.6 percentr in the first quarter compared to theyear before, a drop that registeredf eighth best among the top 25. Travel has continue to descend atthe , nearing 2005 says airport spokeswoman Emilh Richards. Passenger counts were down 9.5 percent in April as compared to theyear before, and down 9.3 percent in the first four monthxs of the year.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
'Insidious' Is the Most Profitable Film of 2011 - Hollywood Reporter
ukatekexo.wordpress.com
Ology | 'Insidious' Is the Most Profitable Film of 2011 Hollywood Reporter The microbudgeted horror film marks another win for "Paranormal Activity" team Jason Blum, Oren Peli and Steven Schneider. They say lightning doesn't strike twice. Don't tell that to the Paranormal Activity team of Jason Blum, Oren Peli and Steven ... Horror "Insidious" the year's most profitable film Insidious Most Profitable Movie of 2011! Insidious is ... The Most Profitable Film of the Year |
Monday, April 25, 2011
Oregon Senate to vote Monday on health exchange - Stamford Advocate
uqudenlid.blogspot.com
KATU | Oregon Senate to vote Monday on health exchange Stamford Advocate (AP)  The Oregon Senate is scheduled to take up legislation creating a health insurance exchange to benefit individuals and sm » |
Friday, April 22, 2011
Law to protect workers has others fearing for jobs - Kansas City Business Journal:
ralawizewy.wordpress.com
The state’s Independent Contractor law, also known as the Misclassificatiobn Law, was created in 2004 to protect construction workerss from beingdeliberately “misclassified” by companies as contract workers who receivw no benefits, instead of as employees who by law are entitled to a varietyt of benefits. Companies that violate the law are subjecgt totreble damages, as well as potentialk criminal charges. Since the law was the attorney general’s office has gone afterr construction firms, the apparent intent when the measure passesd throughthe Legislature.
But the law is in no way limitec toconstruction companies, whic h left some lawyers specializing in employment matters wondering in recen years whether other businesses might become Moreover, the law explicitlyh holds top executives liable for Earlier this month, executives at Pearson a textbook publisher in Upper Saddle River, N.J., apparentlyu decided to interpret the law more broadly. Not wanting to risk prosecutiohn byMassachusetts authorities, the company decidef to discontinue work with all of its freelancerws in the state.
Freelance editorr and writer John Sisson counted Pearson Educatiohn as one of his largest clientws until hereceived e-mails from the company notifying him citing the Independent Contractor Law, no longee would use Massachusetts contract workers. “I’ved lost business and I stand to lose more said Sisson, a Newton resident. “Iy hurts firms in Massachusetts because it does not allows them to outsource the work they need to do and it hurtx independent professionals who rely onthat work,” Sissoj said. “The fact of the mattet is that theattorney general’s officd is between a rock and a hard It’s a bad law and they’res in charge of enforcing it.
” A Pearson spokeswoman declined to comment for this story. Critics of the law are also concerneed that a successor to Attorney General Martha Coakley could choose to interprett the law more broadly than she or her stafcapparently has. “A number of employment lawyers have worriex since the law was enacted that a different attorneyy general might take a much broader and aggressivw approachto it,” said Joshua M. Davis, managinhg shareholder of the labor and employment law firm in Boston. “The law was designed to protec folks who the Legislature believee were being wrongfullydenied benefits.
” Daviz notes that some clear guidance from the AG’s office about the scope of the law is The fact that an out-of-stated firm has decided not to work with Massachusetts freelancers is worrisome, but not yet a crisis, said Stephemn Adams, a small-business advocate in the ’x Boston office. “We don’t know if it’s isolated and we don’t know if it’s warranted,” Adams said.
“The problem is for the you’re relying on the AG’x interpretation and power to set Ultimately, you do want to fix the
The state’s Independent Contractor law, also known as the Misclassificatiobn Law, was created in 2004 to protect construction workerss from beingdeliberately “misclassified” by companies as contract workers who receivw no benefits, instead of as employees who by law are entitled to a varietyt of benefits. Companies that violate the law are subjecgt totreble damages, as well as potentialk criminal charges. Since the law was the attorney general’s office has gone afterr construction firms, the apparent intent when the measure passesd throughthe Legislature.
But the law is in no way limitec toconstruction companies, whic h left some lawyers specializing in employment matters wondering in recen years whether other businesses might become Moreover, the law explicitlyh holds top executives liable for Earlier this month, executives at Pearson a textbook publisher in Upper Saddle River, N.J., apparentlyu decided to interpret the law more broadly. Not wanting to risk prosecutiohn byMassachusetts authorities, the company decidef to discontinue work with all of its freelancerws in the state.
Freelance editorr and writer John Sisson counted Pearson Educatiohn as one of his largest clientws until hereceived e-mails from the company notifying him citing the Independent Contractor Law, no longee would use Massachusetts contract workers. “I’ved lost business and I stand to lose more said Sisson, a Newton resident. “Iy hurts firms in Massachusetts because it does not allows them to outsource the work they need to do and it hurtx independent professionals who rely onthat work,” Sissoj said. “The fact of the mattet is that theattorney general’s officd is between a rock and a hard It’s a bad law and they’res in charge of enforcing it.
” A Pearson spokeswoman declined to comment for this story. Critics of the law are also concerneed that a successor to Attorney General Martha Coakley could choose to interprett the law more broadly than she or her stafcapparently has. “A number of employment lawyers have worriex since the law was enacted that a different attorneyy general might take a much broader and aggressivw approachto it,” said Joshua M. Davis, managinhg shareholder of the labor and employment law firm in Boston. “The law was designed to protec folks who the Legislature believee were being wrongfullydenied benefits.
” Daviz notes that some clear guidance from the AG’s office about the scope of the law is The fact that an out-of-stated firm has decided not to work with Massachusetts freelancers is worrisome, but not yet a crisis, said Stephemn Adams, a small-business advocate in the ’x Boston office. “We don’t know if it’s isolated and we don’t know if it’s warranted,” Adams said.
“The problem is for the you’re relying on the AG’x interpretation and power to set Ultimately, you do want to fix the
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Heat need to be careful with 2-0 lead - FS Florida
uraa-quartely.blogspot.com
Heat need to be careful with 2-0 lead FS Florida Follow the Heat and Lakers as these favorites shoot for the NBA Finals. » Visit Heat or 3Peat Central Sometimes there's no such thing as a commanding 2-0 series lead. Sometimes it's a myth. Things are going along fine, the series shifts sites and, bam, ... |
Monday, April 18, 2011
Advanta agrees to refund customers up to $35M in FDIC agreements - Dayton Business Journal:
http://www.kreativamente.com/workforce/page19.html
That agreement addresses charges that theSpringf House, Pa.-based company violated federao trade laws through its pricinf strategies on business credit cards, and in its marketing of cash-back rewardsz on the cards. Advanta said it did not admitf wrongdoing and that it entered theagreementss “in the interest of expediency and to avoisd litigation.” Advanta said it took a $14 millionj charge to cover refunds tied to the allegef marketing violations in third-quarter 2008 and will take a second-quarterr 2009 charge to cover refunds over its pricin strategies, which it said could total $21 Advanta also agreed to a $150,0009 fine.
In a separate agreement with the Advanta’s ability to use cash and pay dividend hasbeen restricted. The compang must submit a plan to remain and submit a plan to terminateits deposit-taking operations and deposit insurance once its deposits are repaid in a process expected to take a few years. The seconcd agreement with the FDIC placese restrictionson Advanta’s use of its cash assets, paymen of dividends and transactions that would materiall y alter its balance sheet composition and takingb of brokered deposits.
Advanta said the secondx order does not in any way restrict it from continuing to service itsmanaged credit-card accounts and In an effort to limit losses and erosiom of its capital as credit deteriorates, Advantaw said in early May that its securitization trusty will go into early amortizationn — where the company uses receivables from customeres to accelerate payment to investor bondholders. While that protectes investors from prolonged exposure to a pool of receivablez whose credit performancehas deteriorated, Advant a would have needed an alternative way to fund new purchasesa on its customers’ credit cards. So it had to shut down future use, effective May 30.
It has since referred some customer s to AmericanExpress Co. Advanta’s stock closed 2 7 percentg lower Wednesday at42
That agreement addresses charges that theSpringf House, Pa.-based company violated federao trade laws through its pricinf strategies on business credit cards, and in its marketing of cash-back rewardsz on the cards. Advanta said it did not admitf wrongdoing and that it entered theagreementss “in the interest of expediency and to avoisd litigation.” Advanta said it took a $14 millionj charge to cover refunds tied to the allegef marketing violations in third-quarter 2008 and will take a second-quarterr 2009 charge to cover refunds over its pricin strategies, which it said could total $21 Advanta also agreed to a $150,0009 fine.
In a separate agreement with the Advanta’s ability to use cash and pay dividend hasbeen restricted. The compang must submit a plan to remain and submit a plan to terminateits deposit-taking operations and deposit insurance once its deposits are repaid in a process expected to take a few years. The seconcd agreement with the FDIC placese restrictionson Advanta’s use of its cash assets, paymen of dividends and transactions that would materiall y alter its balance sheet composition and takingb of brokered deposits.
Advanta said the secondx order does not in any way restrict it from continuing to service itsmanaged credit-card accounts and In an effort to limit losses and erosiom of its capital as credit deteriorates, Advantaw said in early May that its securitization trusty will go into early amortizationn — where the company uses receivables from customeres to accelerate payment to investor bondholders. While that protectes investors from prolonged exposure to a pool of receivablez whose credit performancehas deteriorated, Advant a would have needed an alternative way to fund new purchasesa on its customers’ credit cards. So it had to shut down future use, effective May 30.
It has since referred some customer s to AmericanExpress Co. Advanta’s stock closed 2 7 percentg lower Wednesday at42
Friday, April 15, 2011
Blue Clover making international push for newest client Futurex - San Antonio Business Journal:
tarpleypymibujuh1491.blogspot.com
“I think we become more effective as businesses andmore results-drivehn for our clients,” Sena says. With Blue Clover’s recent signinf of cyber securityclient Futurex, Sena intendds to prove his theory. More than 15,000o financial institutions and related entitiee currentlyuse Futurex’ encryption solutions to protec t their highly sensitive financial Futurex has a goal of beingf the leading provider of cryptographic solutions in the world and has tapped Blue Clover to present its capabilities on a globakl scale. Blue Clover’s first marketing efforts will be initiated in Centrak andSouth America.
Blue Cloveer PR Director Jeanne Albrecht says her priority is to present the benefits of encryption solutions ina user-friendly way. “Whenever your credit card is swipeed at a restaurant orgrocerty store,” she explains, “encryptio n hardware systems ensure your transaction is safe and highly secure, both from the retailer’ws end and your bank. Futurex create s these systems and provides the most innovatived and robust data encryption security inthe industry.” While Futurex’ technolog has potential on a global scale, it’s the company’s focus on a specififc industry and product that attracted Blue Clover.
“Inh these economic conditions, Futurex is exactly the type of clienrt that we are searching for in 2009 to fulfilol ourstrategic direction, which is focusing in niche markets,” Sena says. originally owned by and located in Californi a for nearly25 years, was acquired in 2001 by Bret Smith, a financial services and electronic payments industry veteran. Smith relocated the company headquarterssto Bulverde, Texas, in 2005, wherw it has continued to be an industr leader.
Marketing on a worldwide scale is a task that Blue Clover isup for, Sena says, noting the firm’sx existing multicultural, global relationship network it has in “With this account, we get to capitalizee on our excellent global relationships to satisft their international sales objectives — something we really enjoyt doing but don’t always get to, with most of our Sena says. Blue Clover’s current international clients includwe architecturalfirm , and Paris-based Hotels Preference.
“Futurex is excited to work withBlue Clover,” says its CEO “With the help of Blue Clover’s PR we’ll be able to vastlt expand our international presence.” If anyonw ever doubted the fine line between genius and insanity, The (AAF) San Antonio will test it as they host the AAF 10th regional advertising conference Jan. If you haven’t been involvedr with AAF, organizers say it’s time to experimenf a little. The American Advertising Federation is the oldest nationalp advertisingtrade association, representinb 40,000-plus professionals in the advertising industry.
Nurturing younbg ad sprouts rates highon AAF’s priority “One of our main goals as an organization is to connectt students considering careers in advertising, graphic design and communications, with professionals who can help mentodr them,” explains Beverly AAF San Antonio president. The conference, A Method to the Madness,” will be attenderd by 28 advertising clubsd ina four-state area.
Taking place at El Tropicanp Hotel, MadLab will feature notable conference topicxs suchas “The Big Pitch: Pitching the NCAA Finall Four Committee” — a panel discussion with the ; “Colotr Trends” by Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the ; and “Maximize Your On-location Experience: Working with Today’s Film a panel discussion with the . For more go to www.sanantonioadfed.org/madlab or e-mail madlab09@yahoo.com. Some may argues that antique hunting is an artwithin itself.
With this inspiration, the artistic minds at The have hatcheed a unique outreach andawarenesx tool/fundraiser designed to pull in support for a variett of treasures (including thosre sporting tutus) titled “CIRCA Antiques Appraisal Fair.” The Conservatory’ss “CIRCA” will take place on Friday, Jan. 23 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the at 2415 Boardwall St. (at Broadway.) San Antonio’s top appraisers and renowned antiquities experts will appraisegeneralk antiques, including items such as pottery, china, art, western items and firearms. A brief live antiquwe auction will take placeat 7:30 p.m.
For detail on the Conservatory’s fundraiser, contact Jill Garciza at 210-387-6513 or by e-mail at jillg@satx.rr.com.
“I think we become more effective as businesses andmore results-drivehn for our clients,” Sena says. With Blue Clover’s recent signinf of cyber securityclient Futurex, Sena intendds to prove his theory. More than 15,000o financial institutions and related entitiee currentlyuse Futurex’ encryption solutions to protec t their highly sensitive financial Futurex has a goal of beingf the leading provider of cryptographic solutions in the world and has tapped Blue Clover to present its capabilities on a globakl scale. Blue Clover’s first marketing efforts will be initiated in Centrak andSouth America.
Blue Cloveer PR Director Jeanne Albrecht says her priority is to present the benefits of encryption solutions ina user-friendly way. “Whenever your credit card is swipeed at a restaurant orgrocerty store,” she explains, “encryptio n hardware systems ensure your transaction is safe and highly secure, both from the retailer’ws end and your bank. Futurex create s these systems and provides the most innovatived and robust data encryption security inthe industry.” While Futurex’ technolog has potential on a global scale, it’s the company’s focus on a specififc industry and product that attracted Blue Clover.
“Inh these economic conditions, Futurex is exactly the type of clienrt that we are searching for in 2009 to fulfilol ourstrategic direction, which is focusing in niche markets,” Sena says. originally owned by and located in Californi a for nearly25 years, was acquired in 2001 by Bret Smith, a financial services and electronic payments industry veteran. Smith relocated the company headquarterssto Bulverde, Texas, in 2005, wherw it has continued to be an industr leader.
Marketing on a worldwide scale is a task that Blue Clover isup for, Sena says, noting the firm’sx existing multicultural, global relationship network it has in “With this account, we get to capitalizee on our excellent global relationships to satisft their international sales objectives — something we really enjoyt doing but don’t always get to, with most of our Sena says. Blue Clover’s current international clients includwe architecturalfirm , and Paris-based Hotels Preference.
“Futurex is excited to work withBlue Clover,” says its CEO “With the help of Blue Clover’s PR we’ll be able to vastlt expand our international presence.” If anyonw ever doubted the fine line between genius and insanity, The (AAF) San Antonio will test it as they host the AAF 10th regional advertising conference Jan. If you haven’t been involvedr with AAF, organizers say it’s time to experimenf a little. The American Advertising Federation is the oldest nationalp advertisingtrade association, representinb 40,000-plus professionals in the advertising industry.
Nurturing younbg ad sprouts rates highon AAF’s priority “One of our main goals as an organization is to connectt students considering careers in advertising, graphic design and communications, with professionals who can help mentodr them,” explains Beverly AAF San Antonio president. The conference, A Method to the Madness,” will be attenderd by 28 advertising clubsd ina four-state area.
Taking place at El Tropicanp Hotel, MadLab will feature notable conference topicxs suchas “The Big Pitch: Pitching the NCAA Finall Four Committee” — a panel discussion with the ; “Colotr Trends” by Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the ; and “Maximize Your On-location Experience: Working with Today’s Film a panel discussion with the . For more go to www.sanantonioadfed.org/madlab or e-mail madlab09@yahoo.com. Some may argues that antique hunting is an artwithin itself.
With this inspiration, the artistic minds at The have hatcheed a unique outreach andawarenesx tool/fundraiser designed to pull in support for a variett of treasures (including thosre sporting tutus) titled “CIRCA Antiques Appraisal Fair.” The Conservatory’ss “CIRCA” will take place on Friday, Jan. 23 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the at 2415 Boardwall St. (at Broadway.) San Antonio’s top appraisers and renowned antiquities experts will appraisegeneralk antiques, including items such as pottery, china, art, western items and firearms. A brief live antiquwe auction will take placeat 7:30 p.m.
For detail on the Conservatory’s fundraiser, contact Jill Garciza at 210-387-6513 or by e-mail at jillg@satx.rr.com.
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