A wave of new streaming services backed by vast amounts of money are about to hit American consumers' Internet connections. With the explosion in new supply will likely come a reckoning in the streaming market. Holman W. Jenkins, Jr. reports at The Wall Street Journal: Who’s going to benefit when the streaming TV bubble pops? Maybe one answer is to be found here: In March the tiny Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment bought a controlling stake in Crackle, the free, ad-supported streaming service that Sony nurtured with millions of dollars without ever quite finding the sweet spot. When a … [Read more...]
Archives for July 2019
Captain’s Log from Your Survival Guy’s Fourth of July Weekend
Here are some observations from Your Survival Guy’s Fourth of July weekend, when my family and I took our boat—the Tom Sawyer—to Mattapoisett to visit my parents, and on the way home got stuck in the fog (more on that shortly). Family trips are a little different now than they were a few years ago when the four of us (plus our dog Louis) would travel by boat. This year our daughter had “things” she needed to do, and met us by car. This worked out well since Louis is not a huge fan of the boat. He loves it when it’s at the dock or on a mooring. But when it’s underway, he’s less sure of … [Read more...]
Global Supply Chain Shifting Away from China
In response to tariffs on Chinese goods, companies such as Intel, Apple, and Amazon are said to be considering alternatives for their supply chains. The uncertainty isn’t good for anybody, but doesn’t paint a positive picture for Chinese manufacturing sector. Li and Fung CEO, Spencer Fung, suggests firms are "very worried" about their Chinese business. Bloomberg reports: China will see more factory shutdowns as the trade war that’s roiled the global supply chain exacerbates an exodus, said Spencer Fung, chief executive officer of Li & Fung Ltd. The company, which designs, sources and … [Read more...]
Are Dollar Stores Ruining Rural America?
NPR's Planet Money discusses the proliferation of dollar stores and their effect on rural America. Here's a snippet from the transcript of the discussion: STEVE INSKEEP, HOST: A new dollar store will open up every six hours this year in this country. There are more dollar stores than there are Walmarts and McDonald's combined, according to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, which is an advocacy group. How do those dollar stores affect a community? Sarah Gonzalez of NPR's Planet Money podcast has more. SARAH GONZALEZ, BYLINE: There are more than 30,000 dollar stores in the U.S. By … [Read more...]
Don’t Be a Bettor, Be a Planner
In April of 2011, I wrote: My job is to help you separate fact from fiction and lay out a game plan for you and your family that will ensure your personal and financial security in the unstable and unsettling times that lie ahead. The broad battle plan that I’ll cover over the next few months will include the complete scope of the energy consumption/investment/personal security issue. Here is what separates what you read from me from most others: (A) I have no financial axe to grind and no ulterior motive. (B) I am not looking to make any new friends or curry favor. I am not, not … [Read more...]
The IRS is Coming after Your IRA with this Hidden Tax
More sausage is being made down in Washington D.C.—never a good thing especially when “revenue” and “IRA” are used in the same sentence. It’s called the SECURE Act, which laughably stands for Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement. It sailed through the House 417-3 and is expected to pass under unanimous consent by the Senate. The insurance industry loves the Secure Act. Uh-oh. At the heart of their love affair with this foul ball is the introduction of annuities as investment options for 401(k) plans. The reason they haven’t been offered in the past is because … [Read more...]
Cook County Residents Forced from Their Homes
Chicago-area politicians have given their constituents something special this year, a major property tax increase. In a state already near the top for income taxes, residents of Chicago and Cook County are facing property tax bills that have skyrocketed. In the face of property tax bills that have even climbed by 60%, some residents are being forced by the bills to move out of the area. Dana Kozlov reports for CBS: Property tax increases in Cook County are going beyond sticker shock. For some families it’s life-changing, and they say they will have no choice but to move. “This is out of … [Read more...]
Targeted TV Advertising is Huge Opportunity
Advertisers are spending more of their money on targeted TV ads. With streaming video gaining more market share, ads targeted directly to consumers have become more popular. Alexandra Bruell writes for The Wall Street Journal: Audience targeting is hardly new to television, of course. It was rolled out years ago with select cable and satellite providers, but never lived up to its promise. That’s because advertisers could reach only people in the geographic footprints of those providers, and there was a lack of ad space—the providers generally sell only two minutes of ads per each hour of TV … [Read more...]
Hospitals Take a Step Back from Amazon’s Healthcare Push
After initially accepting Amazon's push into healthcare supply enthusiastically, hospitals are now cooling on the e-commerce giant's efforts. Tatiana Darie reports for Bloomberg: Amazon.com Inc.’s push into distribution of health-care supplies and equipment has lost momentum, according to a survey by UBS Group AG. Hospital purchasing managers say they are buying fewer medical supplies from Amazon compared to last year, while increasing their purchases of office supplies from the online retailer, UBS analyst Kevin Caliendo wrote in a research note on Monday. One reason could be that … [Read more...]
If You Are in Pain, this May Help. It Helped Me
Are you in pain? Does your body ache? Well, it’s called life. But there’s something you can do about it. We all have heard about mind over body. This is different. Let me introduce you to the late Dr. John E. Sarno, who during his life helped relieve the pain of people like Harvard Medical School grad and guru of alt medicine Dr. Andrew Weil, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Seinfeld creator Larry David, TV personality John Stossel, and shock-jock Howard Stern. What Dr. Sarno has done for them and for others is to understand that sometimes our mind-body connection is disconnected. Our … [Read more...]