The Career Spots Blog

MarketWatch First Take: Yelp trades show favor for brand over profits

> SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — The enthusiastic reception for the IPO of Yelp Inc. on Friday is further evidence that in the current market, a recognizable brand name can fare well with investors, even if the financials are less appealing.

Yelp’s  shares jumped more than 60% from their IPO price of $15, giving the review site a total market capitalization of more than $1.4 billion. Read full story on Yelp IPO.

As with many IPOs in the social-media sector, Yelp is still spending big bucks on marketing and is still losing money. Its revenue is growing at a fast clip, up 75% in 2011 to $83.3 million from the previous year. But marketing costs are part of what’s keeping the company in the red, as it spent about 65% of revenue on marketing and advertising and ran up a total net loss of $16.7 million in 2011. Yelp has yet to generate a profit, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

But it’s likely that after the initial IPO hoopla, investors will sober up and see Yelp as yet another Internet play spending big to garner more eyeballs. Shades of the dot-com boom and bust are starting to appear in of these social-media IPOs, which are duplicating some of their business strategies.

Yelp prices IPO above range

Local-review website prices its deal of 7.15 million shares at $15 apiece, above its expected range, Lynn Cowan reports on Markets Hub. (Photo: AP)

At least this time around, most of these companies have a lot more longevity before they step into the public markets and have a reasonably proven businesses. Yelp, for example, said it had 66 million unique visitors on a monthly average for the quarter ended Dec. 31, up 67% from the same quarter in 2010.

Whether Yelp, like daily-deal service Groupon Inc. , can continue its current pace of growth while bringing down marketing spending remains a question that investors are going to have to ponder in the long term.

— Therese Poletti

MarketWatch First Take: Yelp trades show favor for brand over profits

BMW 328i runs fine with four cylinders

CNET reviews the 2012 BMW 328i, testing out the new four cylinder engine, general handling ability, and the copious cabin electronics http://my.opera.com/imradiologist/blog/2012/02/12/american-academy-of-pediatrics-specific-disorders.

Going from a six to a four cylinder engine is a fairly drastic change, and one that could ruin the reputation of even such a stalwart as BMW. But the automaker is in good company, as downsizing engines in favor of fuel economy is in fashion.

And the new 328i shows that those two cylinders may have been extraneous, as technologies such as a twin scroll turbocharger and direct injection make up for the displacement loss. The real upside comes in the form of fuel economy averaging close to 30 mpg.

Less successful is the idle-stop feature, which is more intrusive on the driving experience than most American drivers will like.

If you have an iPhone, the 328i is a wonderland of cutting edge features, letting you listen to Pandora or MOG, and check Facebook and Twitter feeds on the car's own LCD. The navigation system, digital audio features, and phone system all show best of breed features.

Check out CNET's review of the 2012 BMW 328i.

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Source: BMW 328i runs fine with four cylinders

Neusoft, primera en lanzar RCS-e en las tiendas de aplicaciones móviles

Para más información, contacte con:

Markus Jakobsson Director comercial Neusoft Mobile Solutions Tel +358-40-0749-835 E-mail: markus.jakobsson@neusoft.com     Terry Du Director de RR.PP. Neusoft Corporation Tel: +86-24-8366-2306 E-mail: duch@neusoft http://radiologydegreeonline.net/pediatric-radiologist/.com

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Source: Neusoft, primera en lanzar RCS-e en las tiendas de aplicaciones móviles

Study: No Evidence Hydraulic Fracturing Pollutes Water

A new study finds no evidence that the controversial practice to extract natural gas known as hydraulic fracturing is contaminating ground water.The report, "Separating Fact from Fiction in Shale Gas Development," published by the University of Texas Energy Institute, attempts to allay fears that fracking poses a threat to public health and the environment. According to Charles Groat, associate director of the institute, fracking, which injects water and chemicals into a well at high pressure to shatter the gas-bearing rock deep underground, is not to blame for polluted wells.

“However, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t other parts of the process of shale gas development that could get things you don’t want in shallow ground water or surface water,” Groat says.  The rush to develop new domestic sources of energy in the United States has led to a surge in drilling across the country in more than 30 states.

The northeastern state of Pennsylvania is issuing 2,500 permits a year to drill the Marcellus Shale, estimated to be the largest underground reservoir of natural gas in the United States.VOA - R. SkirbleWhile the University of Texas report finds no evidence that fracking contaminates groundwater, this rig located next to a dairy concerns local residents.

While the stepped-up gas extraction promises to boost employment and stimulate the economy, activists who oppose the practice for environmental and health concerns, are working to ban it.

The oil and gas industry insists that fracking is both efficient and safe.The analysis of major gas drilling operations in Pennsylvania, Texas and Louisiana finds that many reports of groundwater problems can be traced to surface chemical spills, leaky open air ponds or mishandling of wastewater and not fracking. University of Texas environmental engineer Danny Reible believes natural sources of gas leaks must also be considered. “There are certainly examples of natural gas wells that have casing leaks and have led to natural gas moving into drinking water wells," Reible says. "There are certainly examples of natural sources of gas both in the deep or subsurface as well as in the near subsurface that have also contaminated water supplies.”   According to the data, most media reports about fracking have cast it in a negative light and contain little scientific research. Groat says as drilling moves closer to where people live, science must play a greater role in evaluating the long-term, cumulative effects and risks associated with the process. “Because if there is a phenomenon, what’s the cause and I think we really feel hobbled by the lack of baseline information. How much gas was there before?  How much was developed in prior times? Remember a lot of these areas, particularly the Marcellus, have really old shallow gas wells that have been abandoned for a long time.  What’s their situation?”The report finds many problems associated with hydraulic fracturing are related to processes common to all gas and drilling operations, such as drill casing failures.  The study concludes that there is no need for new regulations on gas development. It emphasizes, however, that states must aggressively enforce regulations already on the books to protect the environment, and that industry compliance will be necessary if fracking is to gain public acceptance.

Study: No Evidence Hydraulic Fracturing Pollutes Water

Saint Paul’s College Well Represented At National Conference

Saint Paul’s College (SPC) CEO and Interim President, Eddie N. Moore, Jr. and Mr. Saint Paul’s College, Kedrick Williams carried the flag for SPC at the United Negro College Fund’s national conference this month in Orlando, Florida http://onlinedegreespro.onsugar.com/Unconventional-Methods-Treatment-21829734. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  Soledad O'Brien poses with Kedrick WilliamsPRLog (Press Release) - Feb 17, 2012 - Saint Paul’s College (SPC) CEO and Interim President, Eddie N. Moore, Jr. and Mr. Saint Paul’s College, Kedrick Williams carried the flag for SPC at the United Negro College Fund’s national conference this month in Orlando, Florida. Williams, a senior and business administration major from Winston-Salem, NC, received a $2,000 scholarship honoring academic achievement by students who are active in UNCF programs on campus.  The merit award is named in memory of William “Bill” McGill, who was an avid supporter and volunteer for the Fund for many years.“I’m so proud that Kedrick and Saint Paul’s enjoyed this moment in the spotlight at a prestigious national conference,” said Moore.  “This young man exudes the qualities of an outstanding student leader who maintains high academic achievement and I was honored to accompany him to the conference.”“I’m very thankful to the United Negro College Fund for choosing me to receive such a distinguished award and for helping fund my education,” said Williams.  “And I was excited to be able to meet individuals at the conference who are making a difference in America.”Williams says he was honored to speak with Cynthia M. A. Butler-McIntyre, the 24th National President of Delta Sigma Theta, the national sorority acclaimed for its commitment to community service.   He also met with Terry W. Prather, President of SeaWorld, Orlando.  Prather was the first African-American general manager of a major theme park, Jazzland Theme Park in New Orleans.  But Williams admits he was downright star-struck by Soledad O’Brien, the anchor of CNN’s morning show Starting Point.  “The funny thing is, she actually wanted to meet me,” chuckled Williams.  “Mrs. O’Brien encouraged me t

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> SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — The day started off innocently enough for Intel Corp., as Google Inc. chose to turn its home-page logo into a microchip as a tribute to Intel co-founder Robert Noyce, who would have been 84 on Monday.

But the time the market opened, there was nothing funny about what was happening to Intel . 

Whatever pride Noyce’s descendants might have taken from the Google “doodle” was likely eclipsed by the company’s 4% stock decline at $24 a share, with investors selling on the announcement that Intel would cut its fourth-quarter revenue forecast by as much as $1.3 billion.

Stocks tumble on Europe, Intel

Sharp criticism of last week's European sovereign-debt summit by credit-rating firms sends markets stumbling, underscoring investor worries that Europe's crisis will last well into next year and could trigger a global recession.

The chip maker now expects sales for the quarter to be $13.7 billion, or in the company’s words, “plus or minus $300 million,” down from an earlier forecast of $14.7 billion, “plus or minus $500 million.” Read more about Intel’s lowered sales outlook.

Why Intel didn’t just give a standard revenue-range estimate — which would now be between $13.4 billion and $14 billion — is a matter for its executives to address. What does matter is that there is nothing ordinary as to why Intel cut its forecast.

It’s all about the floods.

In Thailand, where nearly 50% of the world’s hard-disk drives are made, recent flooding ravaged parts of the country and caused hard-disk drive makers such as Western Digital Corp.  to temporarily shut down or relocate production.

That Intel cut its forecast should come as no surprise. For weeks now, companies such as Western Digital, Dell Inc.  and even Apple Inc.  have commented on the supply-chain disruptions resulting from the Thai floods, and Intel’s warning is the latest example of the disaster rippling through the tech sector.

Although it lowered its sales forecast, Intel said PC sales are likely to be up in the fourth quarter from the third quarter. The company also trimmed its gross-margin estimate to 64.5% “plus or minus a couple of percentage points” from an earlier forecast of 65%. Yet even that lowered estimate could still be higher than the 63.4% margins Intel reported in its September business quarter.

“It’s notable that Intel still appears to be on track to improve gross margins by about a percentage point from in September,” wrote Wells Fargo Securities analyst David Wong, in a research note. “Profitability is still very good, in our view.”

Part of that is due to supply constraints likely being offset by higher average-selling prices of PC components. Another reason, according to Wong, is because Intel isn’t seeing the same product restraints hitting its higher-end, more-profitable server systems. “Intel has seen no change in server order patterns” or demand for Romley, the name of its upcoming server-chip platform, he said.

Daniel Amir, of Lazard Capital Management said the new server platform “will be a growth driver for Intel and the [server-chip] ecosystem,” in the 2012 fiscal year.

Along with the strengths Intel has in its server business, from an investment perspective this has been a bad year for Intel’s shareholders, as the company’s stock has risen about 13.5% even with Monday’s supply-related selloff.

But for those gains to continue, Intel will need to prove it can rise above the waters that are going to linger around the PC market for some time. “The near-term [outlook] is weak, given inventory reductions at major customers and hard-disk drive supply,” said Craig Berger of FBR Capital Markets.

If the market doesn’t turn around by next spring, the next Google doodle for Intel could be an image of a lifeboat.

Rex On Techs: Intel doodles away while supplies shrink

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Source: ICPI - Train2Teach-Online is the Winner of HP & Intel’s, ‘SMB - Make IT Happen 2011’