Google has been teasing consumers with tidbits about its driverless cars for several years now, but it wasn't until this week that it revealed what this futuristic technology would actually look like.
The prototype is a subcompact car that looks like a computer mouse, has no steering wheel or gas and brake pedals and reaches a maximum speed of roughly 40 kilometres an hour.
Google says that 100 of these prototypes will be built in the Detroit area, and the company expects them to be on the road by next year.
At the Code Conference in Los Angeles this week, Google co-founder Sergey Brin said the self-driving car concept "is about changing the world for people who are not well-served by transportation today."
The futuristic car clearly has its backers, but some analysts, while intrigued, are skeptical about whether this concept is as game-changing as Google thinks.
While they acknowledge a driverless car would have immediate benefits for seniors and the disabled, a self-driving car raises a number of legal and regulatory issues.
Here's a look at some of the applications — and complications — of putting Google's driverless car on the road.
Increased mobility for seniors and people with disabilities
The prototype, which was revealed on Tuesday, has buttons that a passenger presses to begin and end the ride. The passenger sets the route by identifying the destination on a map or by using spoken commands.
In lieu of human operation, the vehicle is outfitted with sensors and cameras mounted on the roof that allows it to analyze what surrounding cars are doing and react accordingly.
The most obvious beneficiaries of a self-driving car would be seniors or the disabled, who may not be able to operate a conventional automobile.
A car such as this would go a long way in restoring some independence for someone with a physical disability, says Tony Dolan, chair of the Council of Canadians with Disabilities and a partial quadriplegic.
As a person with disabilities, he says, "you're always striving for that ability to live as normally as you can." And often as cheaply as you can.
Dolan owns a retrofitted Dodge Caravan minivan, which has a powered ramp, a modified driver's seat, hand controls for acceleration and braking, and a spinner knob on the steering wheel.
It cost him $43,000 US, and he says he had to buy it in the U.S. because the cheapest comparable vehicle he could find in Canada would have cost $68,000 CDN.
Dolan acknowledges that Google's self-driving car would alleviate some of the issues that prohibit many disabled people from driving, but he is concerned about the potential cost. (Google hasn't announced a price tag.)
"The first thing a person with a disability would say about the Google car is, Oh, that's great – but can I afford it? How am I going to pay for that?"
Not necessarily a fun ride
Thilo Koslowski, an automotive analyst with the Gartner consultancy group, says that with a current top speed of 40 km/hr (25 mph), the Google car would not make a particularly effective or fun consumer vehicle.
While there is undoubted curiousity about a car that drives itself, most people still prefer to drive themselves. Koslowski cites a recent poll that showed 35 per cent of respondents would be interested in purchasing such a vehicle, while the rest still preferred a traditional car.
Koslowski says he sees a greater potential for the Google car as an automated taxi or a means to transport goods. He also believes that it could be a valuable mode of transport in low-traffic areas, such as universities, factories or airports.
"There is an opportunity for these kinds of self-driving vehicles to be used at lower speeds on campuses or very specific city areas," says Kozlowski.
And while there may well be greater consumer interest in the future, he suggeststhose vehicles "would have to look very different from the prototype that was shown" this week.
Street legal?
Champions of driverless cars say they would nullify speeding, drunk driving and distracted driving, the prime causes of automobile accidents.
However, there are currently very strict regulations governing the use of these sorts of vehicles on the streets in both Canada and the U.S.
Koslowski points out that the state of California recently announced that in order for a self-driving car to be on the street, there must be two certified engineers sitting in the front seat in order to assume control in case things go awry.
Peter Henein, a product liability lawyer and partner at the Toronto firm Cassels Brock & Blackwell, also sees a number of liability issues with a concept such as this.
Because the vehicle is wholly automated, Henein says the most obvious concern is computer error or failure. As well, because the car relies on an internet connection to identify and navigate to its destination, a drop in the signal could bring the car to a halt — possibly in a very precarious situation.
"If the map is being updated remotely, and there's a lack of connectivity, the car may not know where to go and then the car may not move," says Henein.
Henein also points out that the current prototype is a small car with little apparent safety protection, and would be unlikely to survive a collision with a large truck.
"That doesn't make the [driverless] vehicle dangerous, but it means you have to carefully regulate where it can be driven."
Another question with the car is the liability when a vehicle such as this gets into an accident — would it be the fault of the passenger, the owner or the manufacturer?
A spokesperson for the Insurance Bureau of Canada says it's "too early for us to comment on the insurance implications of the Google driverless car."
Henein says determining liability in the case of an accident between a driverless car and a conventional car would be no different than a collision between two conventional automobiles.
It would require an investigation of the specific circumstances and a determination of whether the accident was created through the actions of the people in the vehicle or a malfunction of the vehicle itself.
'A whole other set of data'
Because the car is fully automated and reliant on geo-location information to determine its routes, the vehicle's computer — and, by extension, Google — will inevitably gather data on passengers habits, Matt Braga, a Canadian tech journalist, told CBC News.
Google currently collects data on consumers through its search engine and email services, which it sells to third parties. Braga says that the self-driving car could provide Google with even more personal information.
"You have this company that already knows things like your purchasing behaviour and who you talk to.
"They'll now have this extra data. They'll know things like, 'Stacy goes to the gym every Thursday,'" Braga said.
"It's a whole other set of data that could be exciting or terrifying."
Saturday, May 31, 2014
NBA moving forward with Steve Ballmer purchase of Clippers
The NBA has called off a hearing to oust embattled Los Angeles Clippers co-owner Donald Sterling in advance of a vote on a potentially record-breaking deal negotiated by his wife Shelly Sterling to sell the team to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer for $2 billion US.
Shelly Sterling negotiated the deal despite objections expressed through her estranged husband Donald Sterling's attorneys. She said in a statement late Thursday that she agreed to sell the team to Ballmer "under her authority as the sole trustee of The Sterling Family Trust, which owns the Clippers."
The NBA said in a statement Friday that the league, Shelly Sterling and The Sterling Family Trust had "resolved their dispute over the ownership of the Los Angeles Clippers."
"Under the agreement, the Clippers will be sold to Steve Ballmer, pending approval by the NBA Board of Governors, and the NBA will withdraw its pending charge to terminate the Sterlings' ownership of the team," it said.
The ownership hearing had been scheduled for next Tuesday.
Donald Sterling was stripped of his ability to act as a trustee of the family's fortunes, including the Clippers, after two neurologists determined he was suffering from dementia earlier this month, according to a person close to the Sterling family.
The individual, who is familiar with the trust and the medical evaluations but wasn't authorized to speak publicly, said Sterling was deemed "mentally incapacitated" according to the trust's conditions because he showed "an inability to conduct business affairs in a reasonable and normal manner."
Donald Sterling made voluntary visits to two prominent neurologists who conducted extensive tests, including brain scans, earlier this month, the person said. Though Donald Sterling is no longer a co-trustee of The Sterling Family Trust, he still retains his 50 percent ownership and still receives proceeds from the sale, the individual said.
"There is specific language and there are protocols about what to do, and steps in order to get a sole trustee position and that's what took place in the last couple of days," the individual said.
Sterling can try to reinstate his trusteeship by appealing to the California Probate Court.
Donald Sterling's attorneys contend, however, that as a co-owner he must also give his consent for the deal to go through. They say he won't be giving it. His attorney, Bobby Samini, said "the assertion that Donald Sterling lacks mental capacity is absurd" and that he'll fight to not sell given the NBA's conduct.
The NBA's statement said that Shelly Sterling and The Sterling Family Trust also "agreed not to sue the NBA and to indemnify the NBA against lawsuits from others, including Donald Sterling."
Ballmer said in a statement that he is honored to have his name submitted to the NBA for approval and thanked the league for working collaboratively with him throughout the process.
Shelly Sterling negotiated the sale after Donald Sterling made racist remarks that were made public. The remarks included Sterling telling girlfriend V. Stiviano not to bring blacks to Clippers games, specifically mentioning Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.
Franchise sale prices have soared since the current collective bargaining agreement was ratified in 2011. The Milwaukee Bucks were just sold to New York investment firm executives Marc Lasry and Wesley Edens for about $550 million, an NBA record.
Failed bid for Kings
Last year, Vivek Ranadive's group acquired a 65 percent controlling interest in the Sacramento Kings at a total franchise valuation of more than $534 million.
This is not Ballmer's first foray into potential NBA ownership. Ballmer and investor Chris Hansen headed a group that agreed to a deal to buy the Kings from the Maloof family in January 2013 with the intention of moving the team to Seattle, where the SuperSonics played until 2008.
But Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson lobbied the NBA for time to put together a bid to keep the team in California, and though the Ballmer-Hansen group later increased its offer, owners voted to deny the bid for relocation and the Kings were sold to Ranadive.
The former Microsoft CEO helped Bill Gates transform the company from a startup with fewer than 40 employees and $12 million in annual revenue into the world's most valuable business. The pair met in 1973 while living down the hall from each other in a Harvard dorm.
During his tenure at Microsoft, Ballmer was known for his competitive drive and wild displays of emotion and hand-waving.
Shelly Sterling negotiated the deal despite objections expressed through her estranged husband Donald Sterling's attorneys. She said in a statement late Thursday that she agreed to sell the team to Ballmer "under her authority as the sole trustee of The Sterling Family Trust, which owns the Clippers."
The NBA said in a statement Friday that the league, Shelly Sterling and The Sterling Family Trust had "resolved their dispute over the ownership of the Los Angeles Clippers."
"Under the agreement, the Clippers will be sold to Steve Ballmer, pending approval by the NBA Board of Governors, and the NBA will withdraw its pending charge to terminate the Sterlings' ownership of the team," it said.
The ownership hearing had been scheduled for next Tuesday.
Donald Sterling was stripped of his ability to act as a trustee of the family's fortunes, including the Clippers, after two neurologists determined he was suffering from dementia earlier this month, according to a person close to the Sterling family.
The individual, who is familiar with the trust and the medical evaluations but wasn't authorized to speak publicly, said Sterling was deemed "mentally incapacitated" according to the trust's conditions because he showed "an inability to conduct business affairs in a reasonable and normal manner."
Donald Sterling made voluntary visits to two prominent neurologists who conducted extensive tests, including brain scans, earlier this month, the person said. Though Donald Sterling is no longer a co-trustee of The Sterling Family Trust, he still retains his 50 percent ownership and still receives proceeds from the sale, the individual said.
"There is specific language and there are protocols about what to do, and steps in order to get a sole trustee position and that's what took place in the last couple of days," the individual said.
Sterling can try to reinstate his trusteeship by appealing to the California Probate Court.
Donald Sterling's attorneys contend, however, that as a co-owner he must also give his consent for the deal to go through. They say he won't be giving it. His attorney, Bobby Samini, said "the assertion that Donald Sterling lacks mental capacity is absurd" and that he'll fight to not sell given the NBA's conduct.
The NBA's statement said that Shelly Sterling and The Sterling Family Trust also "agreed not to sue the NBA and to indemnify the NBA against lawsuits from others, including Donald Sterling."
Ballmer said in a statement that he is honored to have his name submitted to the NBA for approval and thanked the league for working collaboratively with him throughout the process.
Shelly Sterling negotiated the sale after Donald Sterling made racist remarks that were made public. The remarks included Sterling telling girlfriend V. Stiviano not to bring blacks to Clippers games, specifically mentioning Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.
Franchise sale prices have soared since the current collective bargaining agreement was ratified in 2011. The Milwaukee Bucks were just sold to New York investment firm executives Marc Lasry and Wesley Edens for about $550 million, an NBA record.
Failed bid for Kings
Last year, Vivek Ranadive's group acquired a 65 percent controlling interest in the Sacramento Kings at a total franchise valuation of more than $534 million.
This is not Ballmer's first foray into potential NBA ownership. Ballmer and investor Chris Hansen headed a group that agreed to a deal to buy the Kings from the Maloof family in January 2013 with the intention of moving the team to Seattle, where the SuperSonics played until 2008.
But Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson lobbied the NBA for time to put together a bid to keep the team in California, and though the Ballmer-Hansen group later increased its offer, owners voted to deny the bid for relocation and the Kings were sold to Ranadive.
The former Microsoft CEO helped Bill Gates transform the company from a startup with fewer than 40 employees and $12 million in annual revenue into the world's most valuable business. The pair met in 1973 while living down the hall from each other in a Harvard dorm.
During his tenure at Microsoft, Ballmer was known for his competitive drive and wild displays of emotion and hand-waving.
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Harper government rejects offer to save $500M on new icebreaker
Public Works Minister Diane Finley has firmly rejected an offer by Quebec's Davie shipyard to save the government half a billion dollars on a new icebreaker.
Finley told reporters Thursday that "it's very hard to believe" that Davie could actually build the icebreaker for the budget originally set six years ago.
"I don't see how any reasonable person could suddenly believe they can do the same job for half the price," she said.
The new icebreaker — dubbed the Diefenbaker — was originally priced in 2008 at $720 million. However, since construction has been delayed for at least 10 years, that figure's been drastically revised to $1.3 billion.
Although no construction contract has been signed yet, the work has been assigned to the Seaspan shipyard in North Vancouver. However, Seaspan requires a $200-million upgrade before it can handle the job, and has also been assigned two new supply ships for the navy.
Since the work on the Diefenbaker won't even begin until those two ships are finished, it's not likely to enter service for a decade at least.
Finley was responding to an offer Davie made six months ago, but made public only this week, to start work on the icebreaker immediately, for delivery in two years. Davie is Canada's largest shipyard and requires no upgrade to do the work, according to Alex Vicefield, the CEO of Davie's parent company.
Vicefield told CBC News Thursday that his offer is both firm and realistic.
"We'll guarantee the costs. We're not asking for a cost-plus arrangement. We can guarantee the price," said Vicefield.
He added that the reason the government's budget for the job has soared to over a billion dollars is that costs in the shipbuilding industry commonly rise between five per cent and 10 per cent a year.
"Each year you wait to build the ship, the more expensive it gets."
Finley, however, insists that Davie lost out in the original bidding for the job and that its offer comes too late.
"Davie did not qualify. That procurement is done. It's over. And there's absolutely no reason to believe that those numbers would be credible. We already have a contract in place and we're going to move ahead with that."
When a reporter noted that there is, in fact, no construction contract with Seaspan, the minister added, "Well, we don't have a contract, but we have made an award under that procurement based on the credibility, the viability, the reliability of the companies at the time."
"They had a chance to compete. At the time, they weren't successful."
When the government made that decision in 2011, however, the Davie shipyard was in bankruptcy. Today, Vicefield says that's history, because Davie is now part of a competitive international shipping conglomerate.
"We're a competitive international shipbuilder today," he said.
"We're building these ships today. We're building similar vessels. What we would do here is, we would add this vessel[(the Canadian icebreaker] into our existing schedule, which maybe helps us to reduce some of the costs as well, compared to other shipyards where you really have to build the shipyard to build the ship. We have it going today."
The Davie yard recently finished a 130-metre offshore construction vessel for a Norwegian customer. Named the Cecon Pride, it was delivered on time for $200 million. The yard is now building two similar ships.
Finley told reporters Thursday that "it's very hard to believe" that Davie could actually build the icebreaker for the budget originally set six years ago.
"I don't see how any reasonable person could suddenly believe they can do the same job for half the price," she said.
The new icebreaker — dubbed the Diefenbaker — was originally priced in 2008 at $720 million. However, since construction has been delayed for at least 10 years, that figure's been drastically revised to $1.3 billion.
Although no construction contract has been signed yet, the work has been assigned to the Seaspan shipyard in North Vancouver. However, Seaspan requires a $200-million upgrade before it can handle the job, and has also been assigned two new supply ships for the navy.
Since the work on the Diefenbaker won't even begin until those two ships are finished, it's not likely to enter service for a decade at least.
Finley was responding to an offer Davie made six months ago, but made public only this week, to start work on the icebreaker immediately, for delivery in two years. Davie is Canada's largest shipyard and requires no upgrade to do the work, according to Alex Vicefield, the CEO of Davie's parent company.
Vicefield told CBC News Thursday that his offer is both firm and realistic.
"We'll guarantee the costs. We're not asking for a cost-plus arrangement. We can guarantee the price," said Vicefield.
He added that the reason the government's budget for the job has soared to over a billion dollars is that costs in the shipbuilding industry commonly rise between five per cent and 10 per cent a year.
"Each year you wait to build the ship, the more expensive it gets."
Finley, however, insists that Davie lost out in the original bidding for the job and that its offer comes too late.
"Davie did not qualify. That procurement is done. It's over. And there's absolutely no reason to believe that those numbers would be credible. We already have a contract in place and we're going to move ahead with that."
When a reporter noted that there is, in fact, no construction contract with Seaspan, the minister added, "Well, we don't have a contract, but we have made an award under that procurement based on the credibility, the viability, the reliability of the companies at the time."
"They had a chance to compete. At the time, they weren't successful."
When the government made that decision in 2011, however, the Davie shipyard was in bankruptcy. Today, Vicefield says that's history, because Davie is now part of a competitive international shipping conglomerate.
"We're a competitive international shipbuilder today," he said.
"We're building these ships today. We're building similar vessels. What we would do here is, we would add this vessel[(the Canadian icebreaker] into our existing schedule, which maybe helps us to reduce some of the costs as well, compared to other shipyards where you really have to build the shipyard to build the ship. We have it going today."
The Davie yard recently finished a 130-metre offshore construction vessel for a Norwegian customer. Named the Cecon Pride, it was delivered on time for $200 million. The yard is now building two similar ships.
Sunday, May 25, 2014
McDonald's and America's new low-wage economy explained
The demonstrations in Oak Brook, Ill. are a reminder of the growing economic inequality in America. At McDonald's, workers making the federal minimum wage earn $7.25 an hour, while those in Illinois take in $8.25 at the state's minimum wage. By contrast, the chain's CEO Don Thompson made approximately $9.5 million last year, which means it would take a minimum wage worker more than a million hours of work to earn Thompson's annual salary.
We could blame greedy corporate executives for the pay gap, but that would be too simplistic. It doesn't capture the changing corporate structures central to understanding the rise of low-wage work at some of America's biggest companies.
McDonald's, for instance, doesn't actually employ most of its workers; instead, they work for individual franchise restaurants that operate as independent businesses and pay fees to use the company's brand and sell its products. Beyond that, however, the individual franchise owner is technically the employer and therefore responsible for setting and paying workers' wages.
We could blame greedy corporate executives for the pay gap, but that would be too simplistic. It doesn't capture the changing corporate structures central to understanding the rise of low-wage work at some of America's biggest companies.
McDonald's, for instance, doesn't actually employ most of its workers; instead, they work for individual franchise restaurants that operate as independent businesses and pay fees to use the company's brand and sell its products. Beyond that, however, the individual franchise owner is technically the employer and therefore responsible for setting and paying workers' wages.
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Google, Costco and Facebook best employers: US poll
Google, Facebook and wholesale retailer Costco offer the best pay and benefit packages in the United States, according to employee ratings compiled by the US job site Glassdoor.
Apart from Costco, whose generous social benefits stand out, four of the five top employers are high-tech firms, according to the survey.
Top was Google, where a software engineer earns an average base salary of $119,000 a year and where employees have free access to a gym, laundromat, billiards and pet boarding.
But "I've never met anybody at Google who actually took time off on weekends or on vacations," a former employee who worked there for eight years wrote.
Facebook, sitting in third -- behind Costco -- is hailed for the autonomy it grants to its workers. It is followed in the rankings by Adobe, the computer software company.
At the bottom of the list, in 25th, is eBay, which employs more than 5,000 people.
At least 75 current or former employees of each firm responded to the survey.
Apart from Costco, whose generous social benefits stand out, four of the five top employers are high-tech firms, according to the survey.
Top was Google, where a software engineer earns an average base salary of $119,000 a year and where employees have free access to a gym, laundromat, billiards and pet boarding.
But "I've never met anybody at Google who actually took time off on weekends or on vacations," a former employee who worked there for eight years wrote.
Facebook, sitting in third -- behind Costco -- is hailed for the autonomy it grants to its workers. It is followed in the rankings by Adobe, the computer software company.
At the bottom of the list, in 25th, is eBay, which employs more than 5,000 people.
At least 75 current or former employees of each firm responded to the survey.
Real Madrid beats Atletico Madrid 4-1 to win Champions League final
LISBON, Portugal - Real Madrid broke down Atletico Madrid's resistance in extra time to win the Champions League final 4-1 on Saturday and finally deliver the club's record 10th European title.
Real struck three times in the second period of extra time, through Gareth Bale's header in the 110th minute, Marcelo's shot in the 118th and a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty.
It was an unfairly lopsided score after Atletico was on the brink of victory in regulation time.
Sergio Ramos's headed goal equalized for Real in the third minute of stoppage time at the end of 90 minutes.
Diego Godin put Atletico ahead when his 35th-minute header looped into a Real goal left vacant by captain and veteran goalkeeper Iker Casillas's reckless rush out.
Real struck three times in the second period of extra time, through Gareth Bale's header in the 110th minute, Marcelo's shot in the 118th and a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty.
It was an unfairly lopsided score after Atletico was on the brink of victory in regulation time.
Sergio Ramos's headed goal equalized for Real in the third minute of stoppage time at the end of 90 minutes.
Diego Godin put Atletico ahead when his 35th-minute header looped into a Real goal left vacant by captain and veteran goalkeeper Iker Casillas's reckless rush out.
Friday, May 23, 2014
WTO to examine US solar trade spat with India
Washington on Friday took its battle to get India to open its solar market a step further, demanding that the WTO create a panel to review the dispute.
The United States told the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement board that consultations with India had gone nowhere, insisting the global body step in.
Washington maintains New Delhi’s requirement that only locally made products be used in its solar industry impedes competition.
India, which has some of the world's most ambitious plans for expanding solar power, expressed disappointment at the move, saying that "the United States has chosen to litigate rather than negotiate."
Friday marked the second time the United States has asked the WTO to set up a panel of experts to review the dispute.
India blocked the first request, but the WTO, which polices global trade accords in an effort to offer its 159 member economies a level playing field, is required to grant any panel request made a second time.
In its statement to the WTO, the United States said that it had repeatedly tried to resolve the problem, but to no avail.
"Not only did these consultations fail to resolve the dispute, but India actually chose to expand the scope of the domestic requirements following initial consultations in 2013," it said.
It insisted that such requirements were "inconsistent with WTO obligations and do not promote solar power."
India, whose solar industry has grown rapidly in the past few years as the government looks to ease reliance on imported fossil fuels and coal, has meanwhile defended its solar policies as compliant with WTO regulations and stressed that a number states in the US have similar rules.
On Friday, it insisted it had "participated in the consultations with an open mind and had shown willingness to explore all options for a mutually satisfactory solution."
WTO panels are in general composed of three people tasked with investigating complaints and providing recommendations to resolve the dispute.
In principle the investigating panel has six months to deliver its findings, and can authorise retaliatory trade measures by the wronged party.
The United States told the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement board that consultations with India had gone nowhere, insisting the global body step in.
Washington maintains New Delhi’s requirement that only locally made products be used in its solar industry impedes competition.
India, which has some of the world's most ambitious plans for expanding solar power, expressed disappointment at the move, saying that "the United States has chosen to litigate rather than negotiate."
Friday marked the second time the United States has asked the WTO to set up a panel of experts to review the dispute.
India blocked the first request, but the WTO, which polices global trade accords in an effort to offer its 159 member economies a level playing field, is required to grant any panel request made a second time.
In its statement to the WTO, the United States said that it had repeatedly tried to resolve the problem, but to no avail.
"Not only did these consultations fail to resolve the dispute, but India actually chose to expand the scope of the domestic requirements following initial consultations in 2013," it said.
It insisted that such requirements were "inconsistent with WTO obligations and do not promote solar power."
India, whose solar industry has grown rapidly in the past few years as the government looks to ease reliance on imported fossil fuels and coal, has meanwhile defended its solar policies as compliant with WTO regulations and stressed that a number states in the US have similar rules.
On Friday, it insisted it had "participated in the consultations with an open mind and had shown willingness to explore all options for a mutually satisfactory solution."
WTO panels are in general composed of three people tasked with investigating complaints and providing recommendations to resolve the dispute.
In principle the investigating panel has six months to deliver its findings, and can authorise retaliatory trade measures by the wronged party.
Yao Ming eyeing deal to buy Clippers
Retired Chinese superstar Yao Ming is lining up investors to make a bid for the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers if embattled owner Donald Sterling has to sell, ESPN.com reported on Friday.
Yao is just the latest celebrity to be linked to a potential Clippers bid since Sterling was engulfed in a scandal over racially charged remarks that became public in April.
ESPN, citing unnamed sources, said that Yao and another former NBA player, Grant Hill, were working separately to find investors to launch bids.
The Clippers are valued at nearly $600 million by Forbes magazine and could fetch substantially more given the publicity surrounding the team and its location in a major US market.
Yao became an NBA star with the Houston Rockets, who made him the first pick in the 2002 NBA draft.
Although his size was his strength, the rigors of top-flight basketball proved too much for Yao's massive 7 foot 6 inch (2.29 meter) frame and his career was marked by lengthy absences from the court due to a succession of mostly foot and leg injuries.
He announced his retirement in July of 2011 following a trail-blazing career that made him China's best-known athlete and helped spur the game's growth all across Asia.
He owns a team in China, the Shanghai Sharks, and maintains close ties with the NBA.
Hill is just completing his first year in retirement after a 19-season career that ended with the Clippers after seven All-Star berths.
Other big names said to be interested in purchasing the clippers include software billionaire Larry Ellison, entertainment mogul David Geffen and television powerhouse Oprah Winfrey, along with former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson and unbeaten boxer Floyd Mayweather.
Yao is just the latest celebrity to be linked to a potential Clippers bid since Sterling was engulfed in a scandal over racially charged remarks that became public in April.
ESPN, citing unnamed sources, said that Yao and another former NBA player, Grant Hill, were working separately to find investors to launch bids.
The Clippers are valued at nearly $600 million by Forbes magazine and could fetch substantially more given the publicity surrounding the team and its location in a major US market.
Yao became an NBA star with the Houston Rockets, who made him the first pick in the 2002 NBA draft.
Although his size was his strength, the rigors of top-flight basketball proved too much for Yao's massive 7 foot 6 inch (2.29 meter) frame and his career was marked by lengthy absences from the court due to a succession of mostly foot and leg injuries.
He announced his retirement in July of 2011 following a trail-blazing career that made him China's best-known athlete and helped spur the game's growth all across Asia.
He owns a team in China, the Shanghai Sharks, and maintains close ties with the NBA.
Hill is just completing his first year in retirement after a 19-season career that ended with the Clippers after seven All-Star berths.
Other big names said to be interested in purchasing the clippers include software billionaire Larry Ellison, entertainment mogul David Geffen and television powerhouse Oprah Winfrey, along with former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson and unbeaten boxer Floyd Mayweather.
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Cavaliers continue remarkable lottery luck, win No. 1 pick for second straight year
NEW YORK, N.Y. - The Cleveland Cavaliers' lottery luck just keeps going.
The Cavaliers continued their remarkable run Tuesday, winning the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft for the second straight year and third time in the last four. They moved up from the ninth spot, when they had just a 1.7 per cent chance of winning the top selection.
"It seems surreal," Cavs vice chairman Jeff Cohen said. "This is three out of four years and we had a 1.7 per cent chance of coming up with the first pick and we pulled it off again."
They drafted Kyrie Irving first in 2011 and will hope to do better with this win than last year, when they took Anthony Bennett, who had a forgettable rookie season.
Nick Gilbert, the son of Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert, was on the podium for the previous two wins, but general manager David Griffin was there this time.
Griffin had a pin on his lapel from his late grandmother and was carrying one of Nick Gilbert's bowties, which was as lucky in his breast pocket as it was with Nick wearing it.
The Cavs can now choose among the likes of Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid of Kansas, Duke's Jabari Parker, or another player from what's considered a deep draft.
"This means everything," Cohen said. "This is the deepest draft arguably since LeBron (James) and Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony came out."
The Cavs won that one, too, in 2003, when they picked James. But they have been lottery regulars since he bolted for Miami in 2010, and they want that to stop.
"Rebuilding is a process and we lost a player a number of years back that it was going (to take) some time. Quite frankly it's taken a little bit longer then we'd like, but we've been patient," Cohen said.
"I think now is the time we're going to reap the rewards of our patience."
The Milwaukee Bucks fell one spot to second and the Philadelphia 76ers will draft third. The Bucks had a 25 per cent chance of winning after a league-worst 15-67 record, but the team with the best odds hasn't won since 2004.
The expected strength of the class led to speculation that teams were tanking in hopes of getting a high pick. But the Cavs had playoff expectations, hoping a strong season could make them attractive to James if he was interested in returning home as a free agent.
Nick Gilbert said last year he expected the Cavs to be done with the lottery, but they were right back in Times Square after a disappointing season that resulted in them firing Mike Brown after just one year and a 33-49 record in his second stint with the team. Another top selection surely will make Cleveland more attractive to prospective coaches.
The city of Cleveland may be on a 50-year championship drought, but sure does have this lottery thing figured out.
The 2011 win was also a stunner, when the Cavs moved up from the No. 8 spot with a pick they had acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers.
And by moving up this year, they hurt the Detroit Pistons, who started eighth but by falling back, had to trade the pick to Charlotte as part of a deal for Ben Gordon.
Orlando dropped a spot to fourth and also will have the No. 12 pick from Denver. Utah is No. 5 and the Lakers and Boston Celtics couldn't make the most of rare lottery appearances, with Los Angeles at No. 7 and Boston at No. 6.
The 76ers couldn't move up even with Hall of Famer Julius Erving representing them, but they will have two top-10 picks: their own and New Orleans' at No. 10 from last year's trade that sent Jrue Holiday to the Pelicans.
"If we had No. 3 alone, I would be a little disappointed and so would our group. But the fact that we also have the 10th pick, we may have done better than anyone else," Erving said. "We can get two players out of this draft or leverage those two picks."
Nick Gilbert was the hit of the 2011 lottery, his big glasses and bowtie charming viewers. This time it was Mallory Edens, the 18-year-old daughter of incoming Bucks co-owner Wes Edens. She gained thousands of Twitter followers after her brief on-camera interview.
But her Bucks pin wasn't lucky enough to end the run of back luck for the worst teams.
"I was really nervous, but I'm really happy we got the second pick," Mallory Edens said.
Things kept rolling for the Cavs, who duplicated the feat of Orlando, which went back-to-back at No. 1 in 1992-93. The latter win, after the Magic had gone 41-41 in Shaquille O'Neal's rookie season, caused the league to change the lottery to a weighted format that gave the worst teams the most chances.
The tanking talk has led to discussions to change it again, something Commissioner Adam Silver has said will be discussed this summer. But he has also said that if there was an ideal solution, the league would have implemented it by now.
The Cavaliers continued their remarkable run Tuesday, winning the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft for the second straight year and third time in the last four. They moved up from the ninth spot, when they had just a 1.7 per cent chance of winning the top selection.
"It seems surreal," Cavs vice chairman Jeff Cohen said. "This is three out of four years and we had a 1.7 per cent chance of coming up with the first pick and we pulled it off again."
They drafted Kyrie Irving first in 2011 and will hope to do better with this win than last year, when they took Anthony Bennett, who had a forgettable rookie season.
Nick Gilbert, the son of Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert, was on the podium for the previous two wins, but general manager David Griffin was there this time.
Griffin had a pin on his lapel from his late grandmother and was carrying one of Nick Gilbert's bowties, which was as lucky in his breast pocket as it was with Nick wearing it.
The Cavs can now choose among the likes of Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid of Kansas, Duke's Jabari Parker, or another player from what's considered a deep draft.
"This means everything," Cohen said. "This is the deepest draft arguably since LeBron (James) and Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony came out."
The Cavs won that one, too, in 2003, when they picked James. But they have been lottery regulars since he bolted for Miami in 2010, and they want that to stop.
"Rebuilding is a process and we lost a player a number of years back that it was going (to take) some time. Quite frankly it's taken a little bit longer then we'd like, but we've been patient," Cohen said.
"I think now is the time we're going to reap the rewards of our patience."
The Milwaukee Bucks fell one spot to second and the Philadelphia 76ers will draft third. The Bucks had a 25 per cent chance of winning after a league-worst 15-67 record, but the team with the best odds hasn't won since 2004.
The expected strength of the class led to speculation that teams were tanking in hopes of getting a high pick. But the Cavs had playoff expectations, hoping a strong season could make them attractive to James if he was interested in returning home as a free agent.
Nick Gilbert said last year he expected the Cavs to be done with the lottery, but they were right back in Times Square after a disappointing season that resulted in them firing Mike Brown after just one year and a 33-49 record in his second stint with the team. Another top selection surely will make Cleveland more attractive to prospective coaches.
The city of Cleveland may be on a 50-year championship drought, but sure does have this lottery thing figured out.
The 2011 win was also a stunner, when the Cavs moved up from the No. 8 spot with a pick they had acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers.
And by moving up this year, they hurt the Detroit Pistons, who started eighth but by falling back, had to trade the pick to Charlotte as part of a deal for Ben Gordon.
Orlando dropped a spot to fourth and also will have the No. 12 pick from Denver. Utah is No. 5 and the Lakers and Boston Celtics couldn't make the most of rare lottery appearances, with Los Angeles at No. 7 and Boston at No. 6.
The 76ers couldn't move up even with Hall of Famer Julius Erving representing them, but they will have two top-10 picks: their own and New Orleans' at No. 10 from last year's trade that sent Jrue Holiday to the Pelicans.
"If we had No. 3 alone, I would be a little disappointed and so would our group. But the fact that we also have the 10th pick, we may have done better than anyone else," Erving said. "We can get two players out of this draft or leverage those two picks."
Nick Gilbert was the hit of the 2011 lottery, his big glasses and bowtie charming viewers. This time it was Mallory Edens, the 18-year-old daughter of incoming Bucks co-owner Wes Edens. She gained thousands of Twitter followers after her brief on-camera interview.
But her Bucks pin wasn't lucky enough to end the run of back luck for the worst teams.
"I was really nervous, but I'm really happy we got the second pick," Mallory Edens said.
Things kept rolling for the Cavs, who duplicated the feat of Orlando, which went back-to-back at No. 1 in 1992-93. The latter win, after the Magic had gone 41-41 in Shaquille O'Neal's rookie season, caused the league to change the lottery to a weighted format that gave the worst teams the most chances.
The tanking talk has led to discussions to change it again, something Commissioner Adam Silver has said will be discussed this summer. But he has also said that if there was an ideal solution, the league would have implemented it by now.
Sunday, May 18, 2014
'I had to step on my friends' bodies to escape': mine survivor
Murat Yokus may have escaped Turkey's deadliest mine explosion, but he is unable to erase the memories of his friends falling one by one to the ground, suffocated by thick fumes that engulfed the tunnels where they were trapped.
"I had step on the bodies of my friends to escape, I had to trample on them," he recounted, his eyes swimming with tears, five days after the tragedy which claimed 301 lives.
The 29-year-old was among 485 miners who managed to get out alive from the explosion and fire in a coal mine in the western town of Soma on Tuesday.
And only just.
"What happened is indescribable," Murat recalled.
"I was about to get out of the mine to go home when we saw fumes arriving," he said. "At first, my boss told us to wait, but we started to get impatient."
More on mine explosion
-Families bury dead amid protests
-Blast spotlights mine safety concerns
About a hundred of them were crammed in an area of 300 square metres (1,076 square feet).
And when he learnt that colleagues who were located in another part of the mine had all died from asphxiation, he decided to disobey his boss's orders.
"I told myself 'I am not going to die here, not now'," Murat said.
"I took the oxygen mask that I had not used until then and I started to walk. When I looked back, I saw many of my friends on the ground."
They were "suffocating, fighting to survive like sacrificial animals."
"They were struggling against death."
Convinced then that he would breathe his last underground, Murat said he thought of "his two young children, his wife, his family".
"I recited my last prayer," before passing out, he said.
Luckily, he was quickly evacuated.
As he was carried out by rescue workers, Murat regained consciousness and chose to walk out on his own.
"You cannot imagine the panic, my colleagues pacing back and forth, the stress, the fear," he said.
Even if miners are aware that theirs is a dangerous job, Yokus said no one is ever really prepared for such an accident.
A preliminary expert report on the accident, obtained by the Milliyet newspaper, pointed to several safety violations in the mine, including a shortage of carbon monoxide detectors and ceilings made of wood instead of metal.
But Yokus, who risked his life for 800 euros a month, would not criticise his company or question if safety standards had been met in the mine.
Despite everything, he is planning to go back underground for another ten years in order to qualify for an early retirement.
"We cannot do anything else. There is no farming here, no companies, no other jobs," said Yokus, whose father also worked as a miner.
"But I will go to another mine," he said.
"In this one, I have lost too many friends to be able to step in there again."
"I had step on the bodies of my friends to escape, I had to trample on them," he recounted, his eyes swimming with tears, five days after the tragedy which claimed 301 lives.
The 29-year-old was among 485 miners who managed to get out alive from the explosion and fire in a coal mine in the western town of Soma on Tuesday.
And only just.
"What happened is indescribable," Murat recalled.
"I was about to get out of the mine to go home when we saw fumes arriving," he said. "At first, my boss told us to wait, but we started to get impatient."
More on mine explosion
-Families bury dead amid protests
-Blast spotlights mine safety concerns
About a hundred of them were crammed in an area of 300 square metres (1,076 square feet).
And when he learnt that colleagues who were located in another part of the mine had all died from asphxiation, he decided to disobey his boss's orders.
"I told myself 'I am not going to die here, not now'," Murat said.
"I took the oxygen mask that I had not used until then and I started to walk. When I looked back, I saw many of my friends on the ground."
They were "suffocating, fighting to survive like sacrificial animals."
"They were struggling against death."
Convinced then that he would breathe his last underground, Murat said he thought of "his two young children, his wife, his family".
"I recited my last prayer," before passing out, he said.
Luckily, he was quickly evacuated.
As he was carried out by rescue workers, Murat regained consciousness and chose to walk out on his own.
"You cannot imagine the panic, my colleagues pacing back and forth, the stress, the fear," he said.
Even if miners are aware that theirs is a dangerous job, Yokus said no one is ever really prepared for such an accident.
A preliminary expert report on the accident, obtained by the Milliyet newspaper, pointed to several safety violations in the mine, including a shortage of carbon monoxide detectors and ceilings made of wood instead of metal.
But Yokus, who risked his life for 800 euros a month, would not criticise his company or question if safety standards had been met in the mine.
Despite everything, he is planning to go back underground for another ten years in order to qualify for an early retirement.
"We cannot do anything else. There is no farming here, no companies, no other jobs," said Yokus, whose father also worked as a miner.
"But I will go to another mine," he said.
"In this one, I have lost too many friends to be able to step in there again."
Don Meyer, among coaches with most wins, has died
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Don Meyer, one of the winningest coaches in college men’s basketball, has died in South Dakota.
Family spokeswoman Brenda Dreyer says the former Northern State coach died of cancer at 6:52 a.m. Sunday. He was 69.
Meyer led his teams to the playoffs 19 times and compiled a 923-324 record. He retired in 2010, after a decade at Northern State in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and 24 seasons at Lispcomb in Tennessee.
Four months after a near-fatal car accident in 2008 and a cancer diagnosis, Meyer was coaching from a wheelchair when he passed Bobby Knight as the NCAA’s winningest coach in men’s basketball history. Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski took the title in 2012.
Meyer was a standout athlete at Northern Colorado. He began his head coaching career at Hamline in Minnesota.
Family spokeswoman Brenda Dreyer says the former Northern State coach died of cancer at 6:52 a.m. Sunday. He was 69.
Meyer led his teams to the playoffs 19 times and compiled a 923-324 record. He retired in 2010, after a decade at Northern State in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and 24 seasons at Lispcomb in Tennessee.
Four months after a near-fatal car accident in 2008 and a cancer diagnosis, Meyer was coaching from a wheelchair when he passed Bobby Knight as the NCAA’s winningest coach in men’s basketball history. Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski took the title in 2012.
Meyer was a standout athlete at Northern Colorado. He began his head coaching career at Hamline in Minnesota.
Don Meyer, among coaches with most wins, has died
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Don Meyer, one of the winningest coaches in college men’s basketball, has died in South Dakota.Family spokeswoman Brenda Dreyer says the former Northern State coach died of cancer at 6:52 a.m. Sunday. He was 69.
Meyer led his teams to the playoffs 19 times and compiled a 923-324 record. He retired in 2010, after a decade at Northern State in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and 24 seasons at Lispcomb in Tennessee.
Four months after a near-fatal car accident in 2008 and a cancer diagnosis, Meyer was coaching from a wheelchair when he passed Bobby Knight as the NCAA’s winningest coach in men’s basketball history. Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski took the title in 2012.
Meyer was a standout athlete at Northern Colorado. He began his head coaching career at Hamline in Minnesota.
Meyer led his teams to the playoffs 19 times and compiled a 923-324 record. He retired in 2010, after a decade at Northern State in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and 24 seasons at Lispcomb in Tennessee.
Four months after a near-fatal car accident in 2008 and a cancer diagnosis, Meyer was coaching from a wheelchair when he passed Bobby Knight as the NCAA’s winningest coach in men’s basketball history. Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski took the title in 2012.
Meyer was a standout athlete at Northern Colorado. He began his head coaching career at Hamline in Minnesota.
Cuba mobile email experiment causes chaos
HAVANA - On an island where most people have no Internet access, the arrival of mobile phone email service was embraced with joy.
Tens of thousands of Cubans began emailing like crazy in March — for days, until the service started to fail, taking much of Cuba's already shaky voice and text-messaging mobile service down with it
The island's aging cellphone towers became swamped by the new flood of email traffic, creating havoc for anyone trying to use the system. Users had to make eight or nine attempts to successfully send an email. Even voice calls by non-subscribers' began to drop mid-conversation. Callers sounded like they were phoning from the bottom of the sea. Ordinary text messages arrived days late, or not at all.
Since then, the state telecom monopoly Etecsa has issued a rare apology and the troubles have eased. But problems with the service, dubbed Nauta, offer a rare window into the Internet in Cuba, where the digital age has been achingly slow to spread since arriving in 1996, leaving the country virtually isolated from the world of streaming video, photo-sharing and 4G cellphones.
Cuba's government blames the technological problems on a U.S. embargo that prevents most American businesses from selling products to the Caribbean country. Critics of the government say it deliberately strangles the Internet to halt the spread of dissent. Other observers offer a less political explanation: a government desperate for foreign exchange is investing little in infrastructure improvements while extracting as much revenue as possible from communications services largely paid for by Cubans' wealthier overseas relatives.
Experts say that last explanation appears to be the primary culprit in the case of Nauta, in which the government tried to open connections with the world but floundered due to apparent poor planning and underinvestment.
"Cuba is extremely broke," said Larry Press, a professor of information systems and expert on Cuban telecommunications at California State University, Dominguez Hills. "If they had access to tons of capital they would probably expand (Internet service) further."
About 100,000 people — around 5 per cent of Cuban cellphone users — had subscribed to the service even though it cost 50 times that of many U.S. data plans.
Radio scriptwriter Lisandra Ayala, 36, stood in line for hours in March outside an Etecsa office, dreaming of zipping emails back and forth with her favourite cousin in Canada. Like many Cubans, she has long had a smartphone — a status symbol frequently brought in by visiting relatives.
She paid $1.50 to sign up for a Nauta contract that was supposed to let her send emails with the ability to attach photos, but not send video or check the Web. Even the price of $1 per megabyte, many times higher than in virtually any developed country, didn't deter her.
"I was so excited at first, but then the experience turned into a total disaster," Ayala said. After a week of decent service, she found it impossible to open the icon for Nauta without trying at least six times; voice calls dropped or didn't go through and text messages disappeared mid-air.
"We have been preparing for more than a year," Hilda Arias, director of Etecsa, told official media late last month. "Customers' expectations really exceeded our vision ... this provoked an overload."
She promised that the situation would improve, albeit slowly.
With cellular rates as high as 35 cents a minute for domestic calls, Etecsa earned roughly $500 million last year, revenue that's been rising slowly since 2008, according to Emilio Morales, a systems engineer who heads the Miami-based Havana Consulting Group, a private consultant that analyzes Cuba's scanty public information about government revenues and operations to produce estimates widely considered reliable by Cuba-watchers.
"There are few businesses in Cuba that work as well as Etecsa," he said.
The group's studies show that 54 per cent of payments to Etecsa come directly from the Cuban diaspora. Morales believes Cubans pay much of the rest out of the estimated $2.6 billion a year in remittances from abroad. And, while most state workers only make $20 a month, a new class of roughly 400,000 independent businessmen and their employees also make heavy use of cellphones for advertising with text-message as well as ordinary business calls.
Authorities here say they are trying to offer a range of new Internet services by year's end, including mobile Web access and unrestricted home Internet access, currently limited to select government officials and employees of foreign businesses and embassies.
But customers remain wary.
"Nauta failed and stopped the whole mobile communication system from working properly," said Indira Perez, a 24-year-old university employee "If they don't prepare themselves better when they want to broaden Internet access, it's going to be total chaos."
Tens of thousands of Cubans began emailing like crazy in March — for days, until the service started to fail, taking much of Cuba's already shaky voice and text-messaging mobile service down with it
The island's aging cellphone towers became swamped by the new flood of email traffic, creating havoc for anyone trying to use the system. Users had to make eight or nine attempts to successfully send an email. Even voice calls by non-subscribers' began to drop mid-conversation. Callers sounded like they were phoning from the bottom of the sea. Ordinary text messages arrived days late, or not at all.
Since then, the state telecom monopoly Etecsa has issued a rare apology and the troubles have eased. But problems with the service, dubbed Nauta, offer a rare window into the Internet in Cuba, where the digital age has been achingly slow to spread since arriving in 1996, leaving the country virtually isolated from the world of streaming video, photo-sharing and 4G cellphones.
Cuba's government blames the technological problems on a U.S. embargo that prevents most American businesses from selling products to the Caribbean country. Critics of the government say it deliberately strangles the Internet to halt the spread of dissent. Other observers offer a less political explanation: a government desperate for foreign exchange is investing little in infrastructure improvements while extracting as much revenue as possible from communications services largely paid for by Cubans' wealthier overseas relatives.
Experts say that last explanation appears to be the primary culprit in the case of Nauta, in which the government tried to open connections with the world but floundered due to apparent poor planning and underinvestment.
"Cuba is extremely broke," said Larry Press, a professor of information systems and expert on Cuban telecommunications at California State University, Dominguez Hills. "If they had access to tons of capital they would probably expand (Internet service) further."
About 100,000 people — around 5 per cent of Cuban cellphone users — had subscribed to the service even though it cost 50 times that of many U.S. data plans.
Radio scriptwriter Lisandra Ayala, 36, stood in line for hours in March outside an Etecsa office, dreaming of zipping emails back and forth with her favourite cousin in Canada. Like many Cubans, she has long had a smartphone — a status symbol frequently brought in by visiting relatives.
She paid $1.50 to sign up for a Nauta contract that was supposed to let her send emails with the ability to attach photos, but not send video or check the Web. Even the price of $1 per megabyte, many times higher than in virtually any developed country, didn't deter her.
"I was so excited at first, but then the experience turned into a total disaster," Ayala said. After a week of decent service, she found it impossible to open the icon for Nauta without trying at least six times; voice calls dropped or didn't go through and text messages disappeared mid-air.
"We have been preparing for more than a year," Hilda Arias, director of Etecsa, told official media late last month. "Customers' expectations really exceeded our vision ... this provoked an overload."
She promised that the situation would improve, albeit slowly.
With cellular rates as high as 35 cents a minute for domestic calls, Etecsa earned roughly $500 million last year, revenue that's been rising slowly since 2008, according to Emilio Morales, a systems engineer who heads the Miami-based Havana Consulting Group, a private consultant that analyzes Cuba's scanty public information about government revenues and operations to produce estimates widely considered reliable by Cuba-watchers.
"There are few businesses in Cuba that work as well as Etecsa," he said.
The group's studies show that 54 per cent of payments to Etecsa come directly from the Cuban diaspora. Morales believes Cubans pay much of the rest out of the estimated $2.6 billion a year in remittances from abroad. And, while most state workers only make $20 a month, a new class of roughly 400,000 independent businessmen and their employees also make heavy use of cellphones for advertising with text-message as well as ordinary business calls.
Authorities here say they are trying to offer a range of new Internet services by year's end, including mobile Web access and unrestricted home Internet access, currently limited to select government officials and employees of foreign businesses and embassies.
But customers remain wary.
"Nauta failed and stopped the whole mobile communication system from working properly," said Indira Perez, a 24-year-old university employee "If they don't prepare themselves better when they want to broaden Internet access, it's going to be total chaos."
Ottawa seeks public input on wireless radiation
TORONTO - Health Canada has opened an online public consultation process so Canadians can comment on proposed updated guidelines governing safe exposure to radiofrequency waves emitted by cellphones and other electronic devices.
Called Safety Code 6, the draft revised guidelines have been posted on Health Canada’s website — http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ewh-semt/consult/_2014/safety_code_6-code_securite_6/index-eng.php — which is open for comment from Canadians until July 15.
The federal department said Friday it will consider comments related to the scientific and technical aspect of Safety Code 6 in the development of its final revised guidelines, expected to be published this fall.
Recommended limits to exposure to radiofrequency waves are based on established scientific evidence and provide protection against all known adverse health effects, said Health Canada, noting that Canada’s limits are consistent with those in such countries as the United States, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.
The public consultation follows an April 1 report by a Royal Society of Canada expert panel on Safety Code 6, which is aimed at protecting the health of workers and the general public.
The panel was asked by Health Canada to recommend any necessary changes to the code following a review of the latest research on adverse health effects linked to radio waves from mobile phones, Wi-Fi equipment, cellular phone towers and TV/radio broadcast antennas.
While the eight-member panel concluded that current exposure limits are designed to avoid all known health hazards and no additional precautionary measures should be introduced, there was one caveat.
Panel members said Health Canada should pursue research aimed at determining if there is a link between exposure to radiofrequency waves from ubiquitous wireless devices and cases of cancer.
Paul Demers, the director of Toronto's Occupational Cancer Research Centre who chaired the panel, said at the time that studies investigating a potential association between exposure to radio waves and the development of cancer have had inconsistent results.
The non-profit group Canadians for Safe Technology, whose stated goal is to educate Canadians and policy makers about the dangers of exposure to unsafe levels of radiofrequency radiation, reacted angrily to the findings.
The organization accused the panel of siding with the wireless industry and ignoring scientific data warning of health risks related to the technology.
Health Canada said the proposed update to Safety Code 6, which was reviewed by the Royal Society panel, includes radiofrequency exposure limits that are more restrictive than those in the current version, written in 2009.
Called Safety Code 6, the draft revised guidelines have been posted on Health Canada’s website — http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ewh-semt/consult/_2014/safety_code_6-code_securite_6/index-eng.php — which is open for comment from Canadians until July 15.
The federal department said Friday it will consider comments related to the scientific and technical aspect of Safety Code 6 in the development of its final revised guidelines, expected to be published this fall.
Recommended limits to exposure to radiofrequency waves are based on established scientific evidence and provide protection against all known adverse health effects, said Health Canada, noting that Canada’s limits are consistent with those in such countries as the United States, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.
The public consultation follows an April 1 report by a Royal Society of Canada expert panel on Safety Code 6, which is aimed at protecting the health of workers and the general public.
The panel was asked by Health Canada to recommend any necessary changes to the code following a review of the latest research on adverse health effects linked to radio waves from mobile phones, Wi-Fi equipment, cellular phone towers and TV/radio broadcast antennas.
While the eight-member panel concluded that current exposure limits are designed to avoid all known health hazards and no additional precautionary measures should be introduced, there was one caveat.
Panel members said Health Canada should pursue research aimed at determining if there is a link between exposure to radiofrequency waves from ubiquitous wireless devices and cases of cancer.
Paul Demers, the director of Toronto's Occupational Cancer Research Centre who chaired the panel, said at the time that studies investigating a potential association between exposure to radio waves and the development of cancer have had inconsistent results.
The non-profit group Canadians for Safe Technology, whose stated goal is to educate Canadians and policy makers about the dangers of exposure to unsafe levels of radiofrequency radiation, reacted angrily to the findings.
The organization accused the panel of siding with the wireless industry and ignoring scientific data warning of health risks related to the technology.
Health Canada said the proposed update to Safety Code 6, which was reviewed by the Royal Society panel, includes radiofrequency exposure limits that are more restrictive than those in the current version, written in 2009.
Saturday, May 17, 2014
NY Attorney General Calls for Ban of Soaps Containing Microbeads
New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman has called for a state-wide ban of soaps containing microbeads, citing recent studies that show how harmful the tiny cosmetic abrasives can be to the environment.
The office of Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman released a new report detailing the damages that microbeads - tiny plastic beads that are used as cleansing abrasives in cosmetic products - cause to New York waterways.
According to the report, which was prepared by the Attorney General's Environmental Protection Bureau (EPB), "nineteen tons of microbeads are washed down the drain each year and many end up in New York's waters, where they remain for decades, acting as sponges for toxic chemical pollutants."
The tiny "toxic sponges" can then be eaten by fish and wildlife, spreading toxin contamination throughout entire food chains and threatening the New York ecosystem, the authors of the report write.
Alongside this release, nine additional officials and political figures joined Schneiderman to support the passing of the Attorney General's Microbead-Free Waters Act, which was first proposed earlier this year. This bill would make New York State the first in the nation to ban the sale of any-and-all products containing microbeads.
"New York has always been at the forefront of national progress when it comes to addressing the issue of plastic pollution," Schneiderman said in a prepared statement. "By passing the Microbead-Free Waters Act, we will show that New York remains a leader in protecting the health of our families and our environment."
The bill was unanimously passed by the Assembly on May 5 and is currently being considered in the Senate.
However, research has shown that microbeads are not just a New York problem. Similar battles are being fought in other parts of the United States and Europe as well. "Beat the Microbead" is an international campaign dedicated to eliminating the use of the plastic abrasives in cosmetics. According to the organization - which is supported by the United Nation Environmental Programme - approximately 11 percent of all environmental problems caused by marine debris can be directly linked to microbeads. Eliminating this threat could take a significant chunk out of the water pollution problem that some experts call "the plastic soup."
Encouragingly, at least 21 companies around the world have already expressed a commitment to "phasing out" microbeads in their products. Other companies have not acknowledged the threat of these beads, but none have taken pains to deny the claims of environmental experts, according to the EPB report.
The office of Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman released a new report detailing the damages that microbeads - tiny plastic beads that are used as cleansing abrasives in cosmetic products - cause to New York waterways.
According to the report, which was prepared by the Attorney General's Environmental Protection Bureau (EPB), "nineteen tons of microbeads are washed down the drain each year and many end up in New York's waters, where they remain for decades, acting as sponges for toxic chemical pollutants."
The tiny "toxic sponges" can then be eaten by fish and wildlife, spreading toxin contamination throughout entire food chains and threatening the New York ecosystem, the authors of the report write.
Alongside this release, nine additional officials and political figures joined Schneiderman to support the passing of the Attorney General's Microbead-Free Waters Act, which was first proposed earlier this year. This bill would make New York State the first in the nation to ban the sale of any-and-all products containing microbeads.
"New York has always been at the forefront of national progress when it comes to addressing the issue of plastic pollution," Schneiderman said in a prepared statement. "By passing the Microbead-Free Waters Act, we will show that New York remains a leader in protecting the health of our families and our environment."
The bill was unanimously passed by the Assembly on May 5 and is currently being considered in the Senate.
However, research has shown that microbeads are not just a New York problem. Similar battles are being fought in other parts of the United States and Europe as well. "Beat the Microbead" is an international campaign dedicated to eliminating the use of the plastic abrasives in cosmetics. According to the organization - which is supported by the United Nation Environmental Programme - approximately 11 percent of all environmental problems caused by marine debris can be directly linked to microbeads. Eliminating this threat could take a significant chunk out of the water pollution problem that some experts call "the plastic soup."
Encouragingly, at least 21 companies around the world have already expressed a commitment to "phasing out" microbeads in their products. Other companies have not acknowledged the threat of these beads, but none have taken pains to deny the claims of environmental experts, according to the EPB report.
Atletico Madrid win La Liga title after draw at Barca
BARCELONA - A towering Diego Godin header secured Atletico Madrid a 1-1 draw against Barcelona and a first La Liga title for 18 years in a thrilling climax to the campaign on Saturday.
Barca needed to beat Atletico in a final-day showdown to snatch the title away and Alexis Sanchez gave the hosts hope when he rifled home from an acute angle after 33 minutes at a packed Nou Camp.
But four minutes after the break Godin powered home from a corner and Atletico defended robustly to earn the draw they needed and claim their first championship since 1995-96.
The result prompted Barcelona's Argentine coach Gerardo Martino to announce his resignation after just one season in the job.
"The work and effort of this team is the key and nobody makes any compromises. The team understands this," Atletico coach Diego Simeone told a news conference.
"Today will be one of the most important days in the history of the club. To become champions against Barcelona is a great feeling."
Following the final whistle, the Nou Camp crowd applauded the new champions as they celebrated on the pitch.
"This was something unimaginable at the start of the season but totally deserved," Atletico captain Gabi told Spanish television as his delirious team mates celebrated on the pitch behind him.
"It is a honour to be part of this and to be able to compete with the big clubs.
"We always believed in ourselves, even when we fell behind today," he added.
"Let the fans enjoy this now because they deserve it. We will celebrate this great title now and from Monday we will focus on the Champions League which is the priority now."
Atletico, who contest next Saturday's European showpiece against Real Madrid in Lisbon, finished with 90 points, with Barca second on 87 and Real, also with 87, in third.
It is the first time in 10 years that either Barca or Real Madrid did not win the league and Barca finished without major silverware for the first time in six years.
"We had it within our grasp for 45 minutes but all we can do now is congratulate Atleti," Barca playmaker Andres Iniesta told Spanish TV.
"After we went ahead their goal really hurt us and they are worthy champions," added the Spain international.
"We tried to the very end but today we are left empty-handed. This season is over for us and now we just have to move forward."
Gerard Pique and Neymar were back in the Barca side after injury while the surprise in coach Martino’s lineup was the choice of Cesc Fabregas in midfield ahead of Xavi.
Pique’s return was a boost due to Atletico’s strength in the air and he was soon in the thick of the action as the visitors looked to test the Barca defence. He was booked after just five minutes for a foul on Koke.
The visitors suffered a blow as Diego Costa went off injured after 15 minutes as his hamstring problems continued. Shortly afterwards Arda Turan also limped off.
Needing only to draw, Atletico tried to slow the game down, while the tension meant a scrappy contest only came to life in spurts.
Sanchez was looking the most lively for Barca in the first half and having gone close with a header, he rifled home a shot from a tight angle, beating Thibaut Courtois at his near post.
It would be harsh to blame the Atletico keeper, however, such was the ferocity of the strike.
Atletico came out in determined mood after the restart and once Godin got the equaliser from a Gabi corner they always looked in control.
Messi made some dangerous runs and found the net with an effort that was ruled offside, while Neymar, the marquee signing ahead of the season, also failed to make an impact with the Atletico defence staying rock solid.
After months of speculation about his future, Barcelona coach Martino said he was standing down in the wake of the result.
"I would like to thank the club for putting their confidence in me and I am sorry that I was unable to deliver," the Argentine told a news conference.
Barca needed to beat Atletico in a final-day showdown to snatch the title away and Alexis Sanchez gave the hosts hope when he rifled home from an acute angle after 33 minutes at a packed Nou Camp.
But four minutes after the break Godin powered home from a corner and Atletico defended robustly to earn the draw they needed and claim their first championship since 1995-96.
The result prompted Barcelona's Argentine coach Gerardo Martino to announce his resignation after just one season in the job.
"The work and effort of this team is the key and nobody makes any compromises. The team understands this," Atletico coach Diego Simeone told a news conference.
"Today will be one of the most important days in the history of the club. To become champions against Barcelona is a great feeling."
Following the final whistle, the Nou Camp crowd applauded the new champions as they celebrated on the pitch.
"This was something unimaginable at the start of the season but totally deserved," Atletico captain Gabi told Spanish television as his delirious team mates celebrated on the pitch behind him.
"It is a honour to be part of this and to be able to compete with the big clubs.
"We always believed in ourselves, even when we fell behind today," he added.
"Let the fans enjoy this now because they deserve it. We will celebrate this great title now and from Monday we will focus on the Champions League which is the priority now."
Atletico, who contest next Saturday's European showpiece against Real Madrid in Lisbon, finished with 90 points, with Barca second on 87 and Real, also with 87, in third.
It is the first time in 10 years that either Barca or Real Madrid did not win the league and Barca finished without major silverware for the first time in six years.
"We had it within our grasp for 45 minutes but all we can do now is congratulate Atleti," Barca playmaker Andres Iniesta told Spanish TV.
"After we went ahead their goal really hurt us and they are worthy champions," added the Spain international.
"We tried to the very end but today we are left empty-handed. This season is over for us and now we just have to move forward."
Gerard Pique and Neymar were back in the Barca side after injury while the surprise in coach Martino’s lineup was the choice of Cesc Fabregas in midfield ahead of Xavi.
Pique’s return was a boost due to Atletico’s strength in the air and he was soon in the thick of the action as the visitors looked to test the Barca defence. He was booked after just five minutes for a foul on Koke.
The visitors suffered a blow as Diego Costa went off injured after 15 minutes as his hamstring problems continued. Shortly afterwards Arda Turan also limped off.
Needing only to draw, Atletico tried to slow the game down, while the tension meant a scrappy contest only came to life in spurts.
Sanchez was looking the most lively for Barca in the first half and having gone close with a header, he rifled home a shot from a tight angle, beating Thibaut Courtois at his near post.
It would be harsh to blame the Atletico keeper, however, such was the ferocity of the strike.
Atletico came out in determined mood after the restart and once Godin got the equaliser from a Gabi corner they always looked in control.
Messi made some dangerous runs and found the net with an effort that was ruled offside, while Neymar, the marquee signing ahead of the season, also failed to make an impact with the Atletico defence staying rock solid.
After months of speculation about his future, Barcelona coach Martino said he was standing down in the wake of the result.
"I would like to thank the club for putting their confidence in me and I am sorry that I was unable to deliver," the Argentine told a news conference.
Global sponsorship deal between FC Barcelona and Stanley Black & Decker
FC Barcelona has reached an agreement with Stanley Black & Decker by which the global tools provider will become an official Club sponsor. The deal relates to the power, hand and security tools pertaining to the brands in the group, namely STANLEY, BLACK+DECKER, DEWALT and FACOM. This partnership will run until July 2017, with the possibility of it being extended for a further season, and is a strategic alliance designed to create synergies between the two brands on a worldwide level.
Stanley Black & Decker, through its status as an official Club sponsor, thus acquires image association and digital marketing rights; sponsorship rights for tours and friendly matches; and hospitality rights in the Camp Nou.
The agreement will enable both entities to work together on promotional campaigns such as “Striker Challenge” by which consumers, when they purchase the group’s products, will have the chance to access different activities related with FC Barcelona (http://www.stanleytools.eu/striker-challenge).
This alliance is a further example of FC Barcelona’s desire to partner with leading and ambitious companies, with a global outlook and shared values, such as the passion for innovation. Stanley Black & Decker, meanwhile, will enjoy a high-profile presence in the Club’s different distribution channels.
Stanley Black & Decker, headquartered in Connecticut (United States), is a global provider of hand tools, power tools and related accessories, engineered fastening systems, storage, as well as solutions for electronic security, mechanical access, healthcare, infrastructure and more. Since 1843, with its dedication to excellence in products, people and practices, the company is committed to sustainable business policies and initiatives that reduce its impact on the environment, and improve the lives of its customers and their communities.
“For FC Barcelona it is a pleasure to unite our name with that of a leading global brand in the tools and electronic security sector like Stanley Black & Decker. This is a strategic alliance that goes much further than a traditional sponsorship deal, because it unites two internationally prestigious entities, both of which feature prominently in the everyday lives of so many homes around the world, who will seek to achieve common objectives and to create highly beneficial synergies. Barça fans and Stanley Black & Decker customers will be the main beneficiaries of this association”.
“This partnership with FC Barcelona demonstrates our continued investment and ongoing commitment to the world of football. It provides the perfect stage to highlight Stanley Black & Decker’s brand portfolio and engage with our customers by delivering exciting content and promotions across all global markets”.
"To maximise the new partnership amongst Barca’s wide-reaching fan base, as well as our own customers around the world, we’ll be creating a series of highly engaging marketing promotions through both traditional and online media. Coupled with exclusive in-store promotions and unique live events, this partnership will heighten global brand exposure to our key target audiences”.
Stanley Black & Decker, through its status as an official Club sponsor, thus acquires image association and digital marketing rights; sponsorship rights for tours and friendly matches; and hospitality rights in the Camp Nou.
The agreement will enable both entities to work together on promotional campaigns such as “Striker Challenge” by which consumers, when they purchase the group’s products, will have the chance to access different activities related with FC Barcelona (http://www.stanleytools.eu/striker-challenge).
This alliance is a further example of FC Barcelona’s desire to partner with leading and ambitious companies, with a global outlook and shared values, such as the passion for innovation. Stanley Black & Decker, meanwhile, will enjoy a high-profile presence in the Club’s different distribution channels.
Stanley Black & Decker, headquartered in Connecticut (United States), is a global provider of hand tools, power tools and related accessories, engineered fastening systems, storage, as well as solutions for electronic security, mechanical access, healthcare, infrastructure and more. Since 1843, with its dedication to excellence in products, people and practices, the company is committed to sustainable business policies and initiatives that reduce its impact on the environment, and improve the lives of its customers and their communities.
“For FC Barcelona it is a pleasure to unite our name with that of a leading global brand in the tools and electronic security sector like Stanley Black & Decker. This is a strategic alliance that goes much further than a traditional sponsorship deal, because it unites two internationally prestigious entities, both of which feature prominently in the everyday lives of so many homes around the world, who will seek to achieve common objectives and to create highly beneficial synergies. Barça fans and Stanley Black & Decker customers will be the main beneficiaries of this association”.
“This partnership with FC Barcelona demonstrates our continued investment and ongoing commitment to the world of football. It provides the perfect stage to highlight Stanley Black & Decker’s brand portfolio and engage with our customers by delivering exciting content and promotions across all global markets”.
"To maximise the new partnership amongst Barca’s wide-reaching fan base, as well as our own customers around the world, we’ll be creating a series of highly engaging marketing promotions through both traditional and online media. Coupled with exclusive in-store promotions and unique live events, this partnership will heighten global brand exposure to our key target audiences”.
Pinterest valued at $5 bn after fresh funding
Pinterest on Friday confirmed that another $200 million has been pumped into its coffers to build up search capabilities at the booming, bulletin board-style social network.
The latest round brings to $764 million the total amount of funding raised by the San Francisco-based start-up and gives Pinterest an overall value of $5 billion.
"Pinterest has a vision of solving discovery and helping everyone find things they'll love," said start-up co-founder and chief Ben Silbermann.
"This new investment gives us additional resources to realize our vision."
The latest infusion of cash came from existing Pinterest backers SV Angel, Bessemer Venture Partners, Fidelity, Andreessen Horowitz, FirstMark Capital, and Valiant Capital Partners.
Uses for the money were to include paying for technology and talent to develop Pinterest into a "discovery platform" in a potential challenge to Internet search king Google.
Pinterest last month launched a tool to help people quickly sift through the roughly 30 billion 'Pins' on the service's online bulletin boards to find what they like.
In a move similar to one made last year by Facebook, Pinterest is tapping into its rich trove of user-posted content to tackle questions that traditional search engines such as Google or Bing handle less well.
Pinterest users can turn to the new Guided Search feature for answers to questions such as how to make a yummy breakfast, where to go on vacation or how to customize a motor scooter.
The company has not disclosed the number of users, although estimates from digital analytics firm comScore put the figure at around 60 million.
There are more than 750 million online bulletin boards with a combined total of about 30 billion Pins hand-picked by people sharing images on myriad interests from travel to food to sports and more, according to Pinterest.
Guided Search was billed as being tailored for exploring, "whether you know exactly what you want, or you’re just starting to look around."
The tool is available on smartphones and tablets that are increasingly the preferred options for accessing the Internet. It begins with keyword searches that trigger suggestions.
Money from the latest round of funding was to also be used to continue expanding internationally.
Pinterest is currently available in 31 countries and reported that about 30 percent of its users are outside the United States.
Pinterest said it will also invest in its revenue-generating advertising program.
Pinterest this week began pinning ads to its popular online bulletin boards in the form of "promoted Pins."
Facebook and Twitter both bring in money from ads in the form of posts "promoted" to prominent positions in streams of updates at the social networks.
Pinterest has become one of the Internet's hottest young websites, particularly among women, by giving people virtual bulletin boards that they personally curate with pictures showcasing interests in anything from food to sports, fashion or travel.
The latest round brings to $764 million the total amount of funding raised by the San Francisco-based start-up and gives Pinterest an overall value of $5 billion.
"Pinterest has a vision of solving discovery and helping everyone find things they'll love," said start-up co-founder and chief Ben Silbermann.
"This new investment gives us additional resources to realize our vision."
The latest infusion of cash came from existing Pinterest backers SV Angel, Bessemer Venture Partners, Fidelity, Andreessen Horowitz, FirstMark Capital, and Valiant Capital Partners.
Uses for the money were to include paying for technology and talent to develop Pinterest into a "discovery platform" in a potential challenge to Internet search king Google.
Pinterest last month launched a tool to help people quickly sift through the roughly 30 billion 'Pins' on the service's online bulletin boards to find what they like.
In a move similar to one made last year by Facebook, Pinterest is tapping into its rich trove of user-posted content to tackle questions that traditional search engines such as Google or Bing handle less well.
Pinterest users can turn to the new Guided Search feature for answers to questions such as how to make a yummy breakfast, where to go on vacation or how to customize a motor scooter.
The company has not disclosed the number of users, although estimates from digital analytics firm comScore put the figure at around 60 million.
There are more than 750 million online bulletin boards with a combined total of about 30 billion Pins hand-picked by people sharing images on myriad interests from travel to food to sports and more, according to Pinterest.
Guided Search was billed as being tailored for exploring, "whether you know exactly what you want, or you’re just starting to look around."
The tool is available on smartphones and tablets that are increasingly the preferred options for accessing the Internet. It begins with keyword searches that trigger suggestions.
Money from the latest round of funding was to also be used to continue expanding internationally.
Pinterest is currently available in 31 countries and reported that about 30 percent of its users are outside the United States.
Pinterest said it will also invest in its revenue-generating advertising program.
Pinterest this week began pinning ads to its popular online bulletin boards in the form of "promoted Pins."
Facebook and Twitter both bring in money from ads in the form of posts "promoted" to prominent positions in streams of updates at the social networks.
Pinterest has become one of the Internet's hottest young websites, particularly among women, by giving people virtual bulletin boards that they personally curate with pictures showcasing interests in anything from food to sports, fashion or travel.
Tim Hortons celebrates 50 years, but faces new challenges beyond coffee
TORONTO - As the candles burn out on Tim Horton's 50th Anniversary celebration this weekend, the iconic Canadian brand is looking to avoid a mid-life crisis.
Saturday marks the official half-century birthday of the original "Tim Horton Donuts" restaurant in Hamilton, Ont., which opened on May 17, 1964, after it was renovated from an auto repair garage.
Starting from its modest roots, the company, which took its name from Toronto Maple Leafs player and founder Tim Horton, has found a home in seemingly every Canadian neighbourhood and, in some places, nearly every street corner.
With more than 3,600 locations across the country, Tim Hortons is at a crossroads between maintaining its steadfast reputation and staying relevant in an increasingly competitive quick-service business where coffee is just another menu item.
"Tim Horton's has done an impeccable job of managing their brand experience to date," said Axle Davids, a brand strategist at Distility Branding in Toronto.
"It's not splashy or cutting-edge — the name Tim Hortons and the brand are simply containers for all of the hard work and loyalty they've built up over time."
A study from marketing research firm Ipsos Reid found that Tim Hortons ranked as the sixth most influential brand in the country last year, a prominence which is supported by how instilled coffee slang like the "double-double" has become in Canadian culture.
Recently, the company launched a social media campaign where customers could pick which discontinued menu item they'd like to see back in its restaurants. The chocolate eclair won the popularity contest.
And last week Tim Hortons did what few other companies could when it opened a replica of its first restaurant for a single day of celebration. The event, held in the heart of downtown Toronto, included shelves stacked with decades of memorabilia like retro Timbits boxes and desserts that once graced the menu.
While nostalgia runs through the veins of Tim Hortons (TSX:THI), staying true to the company's famous image won't be enough to keep it relevant as the $4.6-billion business of Canadian coffee evolves, and competitors vie for a bigger chunk of the market.
Starbucks has spent years focused on an aggressive rollout across most of the country, chasing the high-end coffee drinker who prefers lattees and frappuccino while, more recently, McDonalds began to lure more cost-conscious customers with a cheaper brew and free giveaways.
Somewhere in the hustle, Tim Hortons lost some focus as it dabbled in alternative food and drink items to mixed success.
The company launched smoothies and frozen lemonade drinks as an answer to the broader selections of some of its biggest competitors, and while they still remain on the menu, a foray into larger submarine-sized sandwiches didn't last long before it was yanked from the offerings.
In 2009, Tim Hortons dove into the frozen treats business with the installation of U.S. chain Cold Stone Creamery at some of its Canadian restaurants. The concept failed to ignite much interest, and five years later the ice cream bars were torn out, at a cost of $19 million.
Despite some failed launches, chief executive Marc Caira, who started at the company last summer, believes there's potential to get more customers thinking about Tim Hortons during their lunch breaks.
He recently unveiled a five-year strategic road map for Tim Hortons' future growth, which positions the company as a coffee spot foremost, but also the home of various other items that might not immediately spring to mind, like the Extreme Italian sandwich and the crispy chicken sandwich.
"(You need) to be able to have the consumer realize, 'Hey, if I'm going to have a crispy chicken, maybe I'll go to the Tim Hortons, rather than Burger King or KFC,''' Caira said in a recent interview.
Tim Hortons is already making progress, Caira said, citing research from the NPD Group, which says the restaurant has been generating lunchtime traffic that's comparable to McDonalds, its biggest competitor.
Tim Hortons had a 21.8 per cent share of quick-service restaurant traffic in the three months ended in February, just slightly above McDonalds' 21.7 per cent share in the same period, the research found.
However, there can be a danger in trying to associate an established brand with new products, said Brynn Winegard, a marketing analyst at Winegard and Company.
"Any time you walk away from the core promise to your loyal customers, in the interest of attracting new customers ... you risk your diehards," she said.
But at the same time, "it's no longer adequate to say, 'I'm a coffee company.'"
While Tim Hortons continues the fight for market share in Canada, the company is also looking abroad for further growth.
In February, Tim Hortons announced plans to open 300 new U.S. locations by 2018, which will add to the 870 restaurants already operating south of the border.
The Persian Gulf region is also in the sights for massive growth, as the company wants to boost the number of locations there from 44 to 200.
The wider rollout will take some patience and experimentation, Caira said.
"I'm not going to be evaluated one month at a time — this is a journey," he said.
"We need to make (financial targets) every month, we need to make (them) every year, but we need to build."
Saturday marks the official half-century birthday of the original "Tim Horton Donuts" restaurant in Hamilton, Ont., which opened on May 17, 1964, after it was renovated from an auto repair garage.
Starting from its modest roots, the company, which took its name from Toronto Maple Leafs player and founder Tim Horton, has found a home in seemingly every Canadian neighbourhood and, in some places, nearly every street corner.
With more than 3,600 locations across the country, Tim Hortons is at a crossroads between maintaining its steadfast reputation and staying relevant in an increasingly competitive quick-service business where coffee is just another menu item.
"Tim Horton's has done an impeccable job of managing their brand experience to date," said Axle Davids, a brand strategist at Distility Branding in Toronto.
"It's not splashy or cutting-edge — the name Tim Hortons and the brand are simply containers for all of the hard work and loyalty they've built up over time."
A study from marketing research firm Ipsos Reid found that Tim Hortons ranked as the sixth most influential brand in the country last year, a prominence which is supported by how instilled coffee slang like the "double-double" has become in Canadian culture.
Recently, the company launched a social media campaign where customers could pick which discontinued menu item they'd like to see back in its restaurants. The chocolate eclair won the popularity contest.
And last week Tim Hortons did what few other companies could when it opened a replica of its first restaurant for a single day of celebration. The event, held in the heart of downtown Toronto, included shelves stacked with decades of memorabilia like retro Timbits boxes and desserts that once graced the menu.
While nostalgia runs through the veins of Tim Hortons (TSX:THI), staying true to the company's famous image won't be enough to keep it relevant as the $4.6-billion business of Canadian coffee evolves, and competitors vie for a bigger chunk of the market.
Starbucks has spent years focused on an aggressive rollout across most of the country, chasing the high-end coffee drinker who prefers lattees and frappuccino while, more recently, McDonalds began to lure more cost-conscious customers with a cheaper brew and free giveaways.
Somewhere in the hustle, Tim Hortons lost some focus as it dabbled in alternative food and drink items to mixed success.
The company launched smoothies and frozen lemonade drinks as an answer to the broader selections of some of its biggest competitors, and while they still remain on the menu, a foray into larger submarine-sized sandwiches didn't last long before it was yanked from the offerings.
In 2009, Tim Hortons dove into the frozen treats business with the installation of U.S. chain Cold Stone Creamery at some of its Canadian restaurants. The concept failed to ignite much interest, and five years later the ice cream bars were torn out, at a cost of $19 million.
Despite some failed launches, chief executive Marc Caira, who started at the company last summer, believes there's potential to get more customers thinking about Tim Hortons during their lunch breaks.
He recently unveiled a five-year strategic road map for Tim Hortons' future growth, which positions the company as a coffee spot foremost, but also the home of various other items that might not immediately spring to mind, like the Extreme Italian sandwich and the crispy chicken sandwich.
"(You need) to be able to have the consumer realize, 'Hey, if I'm going to have a crispy chicken, maybe I'll go to the Tim Hortons, rather than Burger King or KFC,''' Caira said in a recent interview.
Tim Hortons is already making progress, Caira said, citing research from the NPD Group, which says the restaurant has been generating lunchtime traffic that's comparable to McDonalds, its biggest competitor.
Tim Hortons had a 21.8 per cent share of quick-service restaurant traffic in the three months ended in February, just slightly above McDonalds' 21.7 per cent share in the same period, the research found.
However, there can be a danger in trying to associate an established brand with new products, said Brynn Winegard, a marketing analyst at Winegard and Company.
"Any time you walk away from the core promise to your loyal customers, in the interest of attracting new customers ... you risk your diehards," she said.
But at the same time, "it's no longer adequate to say, 'I'm a coffee company.'"
While Tim Hortons continues the fight for market share in Canada, the company is also looking abroad for further growth.
In February, Tim Hortons announced plans to open 300 new U.S. locations by 2018, which will add to the 870 restaurants already operating south of the border.
The Persian Gulf region is also in the sights for massive growth, as the company wants to boost the number of locations there from 44 to 200.
The wider rollout will take some patience and experimentation, Caira said.
"I'm not going to be evaluated one month at a time — this is a journey," he said.
"We need to make (financial targets) every month, we need to make (them) every year, but we need to build."
Swiss vote Sunday on world’s highest minimum wage
GENEVA—In a nation of mostly haves and have-mores, Swiss voters head to the polls Sunday to decide on a union proposal that would create a new nationwide minimum wage at 22 Swiss francs ($24.70 U.S.) an hour — the world’s highest.
But the proposal “to protect equitable pay” is only the most prominent of several referendums on the ballot: Others include a controversial plan to buy new Swedish-made Gripen fighter jets for the Swiss Air Force and to impose a lifelong ban against convicted pedophiles working with children.
Most attention is focusing on the push to set a minimum wage at 4,000 francs ($4,500 U.S.) a month for those working a 42-hour week. The Swiss Trade Union Federation has based its proposal on 2010 figures when the median wage was almost 6,000 francs monthly.
The union submitted the referendum in 2012 in keeping with Switzerland’s tradition of direct democracy. Voters in the country who collect 100,000 signatures can force a binding referendum on any issue.
Groups representing Swiss employers are opposed to the plan to create a minimum wage that is more than three times the rate in the United States and more than double Germany’s current proposal for 8.50 euros ($11.64 U.S.) per hour as of 2017. Opponents say it would tinker too much with the economy and hurt businesses by causing production costs to rise.
Switzerland’s seven-member Federal Council of ministers — which has relatively limited power over the 26 cantons (states) — doesn’t support the creation of a minimum wage.
“A legal minimum wage is a bad way to help people with low incomes,” the Council said in a statement. “There would be a high risk that jobs disappear ... It would be a greater help to those affected by providing them with jobs and supporting them with tax breaks and social policy measures.”
Wages have to be high in the Alpine nation to keep up with what some surveys have found to be the world’s highest prices. However, there is now a growing scrutiny over who earns what following criticism of “fat cat” bosses.
There was particular outrage last year at the news that the outgoing chairman of Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG, Daniel Vasella, was to receive a leaving package worth 72 million francs. Vasella later said he would forego his deal.
Unia, a Swiss trade union with over 200,000 members, gathered activists and organizers beneath a statue of an immigrant in Geneva to argue that “the fight against poverty” must include fast-food workers and coffee chains.
But the proposal “to protect equitable pay” is only the most prominent of several referendums on the ballot: Others include a controversial plan to buy new Swedish-made Gripen fighter jets for the Swiss Air Force and to impose a lifelong ban against convicted pedophiles working with children.
Most attention is focusing on the push to set a minimum wage at 4,000 francs ($4,500 U.S.) a month for those working a 42-hour week. The Swiss Trade Union Federation has based its proposal on 2010 figures when the median wage was almost 6,000 francs monthly.
The union submitted the referendum in 2012 in keeping with Switzerland’s tradition of direct democracy. Voters in the country who collect 100,000 signatures can force a binding referendum on any issue.
Groups representing Swiss employers are opposed to the plan to create a minimum wage that is more than three times the rate in the United States and more than double Germany’s current proposal for 8.50 euros ($11.64 U.S.) per hour as of 2017. Opponents say it would tinker too much with the economy and hurt businesses by causing production costs to rise.
Switzerland’s seven-member Federal Council of ministers — which has relatively limited power over the 26 cantons (states) — doesn’t support the creation of a minimum wage.
“A legal minimum wage is a bad way to help people with low incomes,” the Council said in a statement. “There would be a high risk that jobs disappear ... It would be a greater help to those affected by providing them with jobs and supporting them with tax breaks and social policy measures.”
Wages have to be high in the Alpine nation to keep up with what some surveys have found to be the world’s highest prices. However, there is now a growing scrutiny over who earns what following criticism of “fat cat” bosses.
There was particular outrage last year at the news that the outgoing chairman of Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG, Daniel Vasella, was to receive a leaving package worth 72 million francs. Vasella later said he would forego his deal.
Unia, a Swiss trade union with over 200,000 members, gathered activists and organizers beneath a statue of an immigrant in Geneva to argue that “the fight against poverty” must include fast-food workers and coffee chains.
Friday, May 16, 2014
Barca's Messi to be world's highest-paid footballer
MADRID - Barcelona and Lionel Messi have agreed an improved contract that will reportedly make the four-times World Player of the Year soccer's best-paid player with a net annual salary of $27.4 million.
Barca did not publish details of the deal but Spanish media said Messi, 26, would remain tied to the club until June 2018, as in his previous contract, and could earn around 5 million euros more per season in performance-linked bonuses.
The Argentina captain would also regain control of his image rights, one report said, further boosting the income of a man Forbes magazine estimates is the 10th highest-earning athlete, with annual revenues of $41.2 million including wages and endorsements.
"FC Barcelona has reached an agreement to adjust the terms in the contract binding Leo Messi to the club as a professional first team player," Barca said in a brief statement on Friday.
"The revised and updated contract will be signed over the next few days," they added.
Messi, who had been earning a net 13 million euros per season, will top soccer's earnings list ahead of Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo on 18 million euros and Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Paris St Germain on 14.7 million, sports daily Marca said.
Messi is Barca's all-time leading scorer with 354 goals in 424 official games and news of the deal is a boost for the club before Saturday's La Liga showdown against Atletico Madrid.
"Anything that is good for Messi is good for Barca," coach Gerardo Martino told a news conference on Friday. "It is a very good piece of news for both parties."
Since Messi made his debut in the 2004-05 season, Barca have won 21 titles, including three Champions Leagues and six La Liga crowns.
He joined Barca's academy at the age of 13 after a spell at Newell's Old Boys in his native Rosario.
Messi and his father last year paid 5 million euros to the Spanish authorities as a "corrective payment" after they were accused of filing false tax returns.
The pair, who both denied wrongdoing, allegedly hid more than 4 million euros by filing incomplete returns for the years 2006 to 2009.
The sale of Messi's image rights had been hidden using a complex web of shell companies in Uruguay, Belize, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, the prosecutor's office for tax crimes in Catalonia said.
Barca did not publish details of the deal but Spanish media said Messi, 26, would remain tied to the club until June 2018, as in his previous contract, and could earn around 5 million euros more per season in performance-linked bonuses.
The Argentina captain would also regain control of his image rights, one report said, further boosting the income of a man Forbes magazine estimates is the 10th highest-earning athlete, with annual revenues of $41.2 million including wages and endorsements.
"FC Barcelona has reached an agreement to adjust the terms in the contract binding Leo Messi to the club as a professional first team player," Barca said in a brief statement on Friday.
"The revised and updated contract will be signed over the next few days," they added.
Messi, who had been earning a net 13 million euros per season, will top soccer's earnings list ahead of Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo on 18 million euros and Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Paris St Germain on 14.7 million, sports daily Marca said.
Messi is Barca's all-time leading scorer with 354 goals in 424 official games and news of the deal is a boost for the club before Saturday's La Liga showdown against Atletico Madrid.
"Anything that is good for Messi is good for Barca," coach Gerardo Martino told a news conference on Friday. "It is a very good piece of news for both parties."
Since Messi made his debut in the 2004-05 season, Barca have won 21 titles, including three Champions Leagues and six La Liga crowns.
He joined Barca's academy at the age of 13 after a spell at Newell's Old Boys in his native Rosario.
Messi and his father last year paid 5 million euros to the Spanish authorities as a "corrective payment" after they were accused of filing false tax returns.
The pair, who both denied wrongdoing, allegedly hid more than 4 million euros by filing incomplete returns for the years 2006 to 2009.
The sale of Messi's image rights had been hidden using a complex web of shell companies in Uruguay, Belize, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, the prosecutor's office for tax crimes in Catalonia said.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
FCC votes to proceed with net rules
US telecom regulators have voted to proceed with a plan that critics say could sound the death knell for net neutrality - the principle that all internet traffic is treated equally. The plan could allow internet service providers (ISPs) to charge a fee for prioritised access to their networks. Critics argue that the new rules could create a two-tiered internet, with a slow lane for those unprepared to pay. The proposals will now be open to public consultation.
The controversial proposals have drawn an unprecedented level of scrutiny to the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) and its vote, which was passed with three commissioners voting in favour and two against. The meeting of the five commissioners was repeatedly interrupted by protesters, several of whom were removed from the room. Each commissioner gave his or her views on the proposal with both of the Republican commissioners opposing the new rules. All acknowledged that the issue had attracted a huge number of critics and agreed that the rules being discussed would govern the "future of the internet". But those in favour of the proposals pointed out that they were just that - proposals - and said that the vote merely "started an important process" of consultation. Several commissioners rejected the idea that the proposals meant that content providers would have to pay to have their traffic delivered faster. The plan is the brainchild of FCC chairman Tom Wheeler who had had to rethink his open-internet rules following a court case in January, which left them in legal limbo. The court ruled that the FCC did not have the right to prevent ISP Verizon charging a fee for traffic to be carried on its network. Since then both Comcast and Verizon have started charging Netflix to carry its service. The new rules are, according to Mr Wheeler, intended to preserve an open and free internet. He said he understood the issue "in his bones". "The consideration we are looking at today is not about whether the internet should be open but how and when we have rules in place to ensure an open internet," he said. Details of the plan were widely leaked ahead of the vote and there has been mounting opposition from tech firms, consumer groups and venture capitalists, particularly over a proposal that ISPs be allowed to charge fees if they were "commercially reasonable". Thousands of people have written to the FCC in the past few weeks urging it to rethink its plans. As the commissioners voted, a growing group of activists gathered outside the FCC headquarters, with "Save the Internet" banners. Many are campaigning for the FCC to reclassify ISPs as utilities, which would allow greater regulation. The public now has until 15 July to make its opinions known. Mr Wheeler said the FCC would "listen closely" to the views.
The controversial proposals have drawn an unprecedented level of scrutiny to the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) and its vote, which was passed with three commissioners voting in favour and two against. The meeting of the five commissioners was repeatedly interrupted by protesters, several of whom were removed from the room. Each commissioner gave his or her views on the proposal with both of the Republican commissioners opposing the new rules. All acknowledged that the issue had attracted a huge number of critics and agreed that the rules being discussed would govern the "future of the internet". But those in favour of the proposals pointed out that they were just that - proposals - and said that the vote merely "started an important process" of consultation. Several commissioners rejected the idea that the proposals meant that content providers would have to pay to have their traffic delivered faster. The plan is the brainchild of FCC chairman Tom Wheeler who had had to rethink his open-internet rules following a court case in January, which left them in legal limbo. The court ruled that the FCC did not have the right to prevent ISP Verizon charging a fee for traffic to be carried on its network. Since then both Comcast and Verizon have started charging Netflix to carry its service. The new rules are, according to Mr Wheeler, intended to preserve an open and free internet. He said he understood the issue "in his bones". "The consideration we are looking at today is not about whether the internet should be open but how and when we have rules in place to ensure an open internet," he said. Details of the plan were widely leaked ahead of the vote and there has been mounting opposition from tech firms, consumer groups and venture capitalists, particularly over a proposal that ISPs be allowed to charge fees if they were "commercially reasonable". Thousands of people have written to the FCC in the past few weeks urging it to rethink its plans. As the commissioners voted, a growing group of activists gathered outside the FCC headquarters, with "Save the Internet" banners. Many are campaigning for the FCC to reclassify ISPs as utilities, which would allow greater regulation. The public now has until 15 July to make its opinions known. Mr Wheeler said the FCC would "listen closely" to the views.
Sunday, May 11, 2014
Real Madrid is reeling, Barcelona smells blood, and Atletico zeroes in
Yesterday, prior to their respective La Liga clashes today, Real Madrid, CF Barcelona, and Atletico de Madrid, put their cards on the table in their three-way fight for the Champions League and La Liga trophies.
Recent results, Real Madrid's 1-1 draw with Valladolid, Barcelona's 2-2 draw with Getafe, and Atletico's 0-2 loss to Levante, have set up a squeaker of a La Liga home stretch.
Real Madrid will play their match away to Celta de Vigo without Pepe, Angel di Maria, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Dani Carvajal, among others. This did not mean they were conceding their mathematical shot at the La Liga title, but that instead, with a pretty strong roster to draw on for domestic play, they were going to focus on the Champions League as the bigger of their year's objectives.
For that final, it is likely Pepe, with a calf tear, will not play. Similarly Xabi Alonso is already out of the final due to accumulated yellow cards. While Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel di Maria are not quite yet recovered from their injuries, both should be ready in two weeks' time.
For that final, it is likely Pepe, with a calf tear, will not play. Similarly Xabi Alonso is already out of the final due to accumulated yellow cards. While Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel di Maria are not quite yet recovered from their injuries, both should be ready in two weeks' time.
Carlo Ancelotti said, at yesterday's press conference in Madrid, that he would "Not risk playing either of them [di Maria and Ronaldo] until they are fit to play at their best."
Meanwhile, Tata Martino was making no bones about the fact that Barcelona have been given a reprieve in what just a couple of weeks ago seemed a year destined for the trash bin by Barca standards. Now, with the La Liga title in play, should they win their last two games, Martino is planning on playing, not resting, his World Cup bound stars in an all-out bid to at least salvage the domestic season.
Martino, at yesterday's pre-game press conference said: "Just a week or so ago, the players were already talking about the future, about next year. I was feeling like I did not deserve my job because we had not won anything during my tenure. Now we have a chance to rewrite that [script]. We will seize it."
Atletico Madrid find themselves at a historic crossroads. In a matter of two weeks they will play three matches that will determine whether their magical year bears fruit or falls agonizingly short of the tantalizing summits they could attain.
If the Colchoneros can win all three matches they would be crowned La Liga and Champions League champions. To accomplish this, they must beat the two strongest Spanish Football teams at a time when they are both vying for titles that have great import for each of them. The Decima has been the Holy Grail for Madrid since before Jose Mourinho was in charge and reaching the finals is what Ancelotti has been gunning for since his arrival. Ronaldo and company see it as their club's marker. At the Camp Nou, Lionel Messi and company do not want to go into the Brazilian summer on a downer and nothing would revive their moribund demeanors of late more than two back-to-back La Liga wins.
Atletico's talisman, Diego Costa, is still fighting for fitness due to a hamstring problem. But Atletico coach Diego Simeone does not have the luxury to chose not to play his star, unless Costa is truly unable, so he will wait until the last possible moment to make his call. "We will have some tests before Sunday's game and we will know then," he said.
So how does Simeone see his team's next two weeks? "There is no pressure, only responsibility. This is a great moment. All of us who work in football want to reach important situations like this one. We need to keep going, without looking ahead and hoping. That is the best way to prepare for this period. Our future and destiny is marked out for us moving forward. We just need to do what we have to do."
According to ESPN's Sid Lowe "There are 243 combinations of results involving the three teams in the final two weeks. In 177 of them, Atletico will be champions; Barcelona emerge victorious in 59 and there are only seven combinations by which Real Madrid can win the title." But it would seem that for Diego, Tata, and Carlo those combinations are reduced to three, two, and one, respectively.
Recent results, Real Madrid's 1-1 draw with Valladolid, Barcelona's 2-2 draw with Getafe, and Atletico's 0-2 loss to Levante, have set up a squeaker of a La Liga home stretch.
Real Madrid will play their match away to Celta de Vigo without Pepe, Angel di Maria, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Dani Carvajal, among others. This did not mean they were conceding their mathematical shot at the La Liga title, but that instead, with a pretty strong roster to draw on for domestic play, they were going to focus on the Champions League as the bigger of their year's objectives.
For that final, it is likely Pepe, with a calf tear, will not play. Similarly Xabi Alonso is already out of the final due to accumulated yellow cards. While Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel di Maria are not quite yet recovered from their injuries, both should be ready in two weeks' time.
For that final, it is likely Pepe, with a calf tear, will not play. Similarly Xabi Alonso is already out of the final due to accumulated yellow cards. While Cristiano Ronaldo and Angel di Maria are not quite yet recovered from their injuries, both should be ready in two weeks' time.
Carlo Ancelotti said, at yesterday's press conference in Madrid, that he would "Not risk playing either of them [di Maria and Ronaldo] until they are fit to play at their best."
Meanwhile, Tata Martino was making no bones about the fact that Barcelona have been given a reprieve in what just a couple of weeks ago seemed a year destined for the trash bin by Barca standards. Now, with the La Liga title in play, should they win their last two games, Martino is planning on playing, not resting, his World Cup bound stars in an all-out bid to at least salvage the domestic season.
Martino, at yesterday's pre-game press conference said: "Just a week or so ago, the players were already talking about the future, about next year. I was feeling like I did not deserve my job because we had not won anything during my tenure. Now we have a chance to rewrite that [script]. We will seize it."
Atletico Madrid find themselves at a historic crossroads. In a matter of two weeks they will play three matches that will determine whether their magical year bears fruit or falls agonizingly short of the tantalizing summits they could attain.
If the Colchoneros can win all three matches they would be crowned La Liga and Champions League champions. To accomplish this, they must beat the two strongest Spanish Football teams at a time when they are both vying for titles that have great import for each of them. The Decima has been the Holy Grail for Madrid since before Jose Mourinho was in charge and reaching the finals is what Ancelotti has been gunning for since his arrival. Ronaldo and company see it as their club's marker. At the Camp Nou, Lionel Messi and company do not want to go into the Brazilian summer on a downer and nothing would revive their moribund demeanors of late more than two back-to-back La Liga wins.
Atletico's talisman, Diego Costa, is still fighting for fitness due to a hamstring problem. But Atletico coach Diego Simeone does not have the luxury to chose not to play his star, unless Costa is truly unable, so he will wait until the last possible moment to make his call. "We will have some tests before Sunday's game and we will know then," he said.
So how does Simeone see his team's next two weeks? "There is no pressure, only responsibility. This is a great moment. All of us who work in football want to reach important situations like this one. We need to keep going, without looking ahead and hoping. That is the best way to prepare for this period. Our future and destiny is marked out for us moving forward. We just need to do what we have to do."
According to ESPN's Sid Lowe "There are 243 combinations of results involving the three teams in the final two weeks. In 177 of them, Atletico will be champions; Barcelona emerge victorious in 59 and there are only seven combinations by which Real Madrid can win the title." But it would seem that for Diego, Tata, and Carlo those combinations are reduced to three, two, and one, respectively.
Manchester City wins Premier League for 2nd time in 3 seasons
Manchester City won the Premier League for the second time in three seasons on Sunday, completing its campaign with a comfortable 2-0 victory over West Ham that lacked any of the drama of its previous title.
Unlike the stoppage-time comeback required in the 2012 title decider, goals either side of halftime by Samir Nasri and Vincent Kompany provided a more serene end to what had been an exhilarating season.
"You can't repeat what happened last time," City goalkeeper Joe Hart said. "This year, we've really come on strong at the end when we needed to."
Two years ago, City won the title on goal difference ahead of neighbour Manchester United after coming from behind to beat Queens Park Rangers on the final day. Sunday's victory, though, meant Liverpool's 2-1 win over Newcastle at Anfield was meaningless as City finished two points above the Merseyside club.
As soon as the final whistle was blown, thousands of fans flooded onto the Etihad Stadium pitch, setting off blue flares. For a club that has spent so much time in the shadow of United — last year's champion — it was just the fourth time in its 134-year history that fans could celebrate a league title.
Just 15 years ago, City was playing in the third tier of English football, but the club's fortunes were transformed after the influx of Abu Dhabi cash following a 2008 takeover.
Making this victory all the sweeter is the fact that United, which beat City to the title by 11 points last May, ended this campaign in seventh place after imploding in the post-Alex Ferguson era.
Although City spent just 15 days at the summit during a campaign when the lead changed hands 25 times, Manuel Pellegrini's side surged to the top when it mattered most. The 60-year-old Chilean is ending his first season in English football as a double winner, having already won the League Cup victory over Sunderland in March.
However, the league title looked out of reach for City just weeks ago after losing to Liverpool at Anfield. However, Liverpool collapsed toward the end with a loss to Chelsea and a draw at Crystal Palace which meant City only needed a draw at the Etihad to secure the title.
But after an edgy start, Nasri scored with a shot from outside the area in the 39th minute and Vincent Kompany added the second from close range shortly after the break to let fans celebrate for much of the second half.
"Liverpool's game against Chelsea, I think that's the twist of the season," Nasri said.
All City required was a draw, but after an edgy start this energetic and attacking team seized on the opportunity to finish the season in style. Against an uninspiring West Ham, City was in complete control, calmly knocking the ball around the pitch.
However easily City unpicked the West Ham defence, finding a route to goal was proving more difficult. David Silva, so dynamic in this title-winning side, lashed the ball over from distance and Aleksandar Kolarov had a long-range strike tipped over by goalkeeper Adrian.
But the goal that settled nerves in the stands came in the 39th minute, with Yaya Toure teeing up Nasri, who took two touches before curling the shot into the net off the inside of the post.
Although Silva was denied by the woodwork in stoppage time, City's second came just four minutes into the second half. From a corner, the ball bounced off striker Edin Dzeko, and the unmarked Kompany swept in City's 102nd league goal this season from close range.
The captain slid across the pitch in celebration, and the party truly started in the stadium. Unlike the rollercoaster season finale against Queens Park Rangers here two years ago, it was job done for City.
West Ham was never going to spoil these celebrations, and City is at the pinnacle of English football once again. The challenge now is retaining the trophy for the first time, and replicating the electrifying domestic form in Europe to conquer the Champions League.
These title celebrations, though, could be short-lived in the City boardroom, with UEFA on the verge of imposing sanctions on the club for overspending in breach of Financial Fair Play rules.
Unlike the stoppage-time comeback required in the 2012 title decider, goals either side of halftime by Samir Nasri and Vincent Kompany provided a more serene end to what had been an exhilarating season.
"You can't repeat what happened last time," City goalkeeper Joe Hart said. "This year, we've really come on strong at the end when we needed to."
Two years ago, City won the title on goal difference ahead of neighbour Manchester United after coming from behind to beat Queens Park Rangers on the final day. Sunday's victory, though, meant Liverpool's 2-1 win over Newcastle at Anfield was meaningless as City finished two points above the Merseyside club.
As soon as the final whistle was blown, thousands of fans flooded onto the Etihad Stadium pitch, setting off blue flares. For a club that has spent so much time in the shadow of United — last year's champion — it was just the fourth time in its 134-year history that fans could celebrate a league title.
Just 15 years ago, City was playing in the third tier of English football, but the club's fortunes were transformed after the influx of Abu Dhabi cash following a 2008 takeover.
Making this victory all the sweeter is the fact that United, which beat City to the title by 11 points last May, ended this campaign in seventh place after imploding in the post-Alex Ferguson era.
Although City spent just 15 days at the summit during a campaign when the lead changed hands 25 times, Manuel Pellegrini's side surged to the top when it mattered most. The 60-year-old Chilean is ending his first season in English football as a double winner, having already won the League Cup victory over Sunderland in March.
However, the league title looked out of reach for City just weeks ago after losing to Liverpool at Anfield. However, Liverpool collapsed toward the end with a loss to Chelsea and a draw at Crystal Palace which meant City only needed a draw at the Etihad to secure the title.
But after an edgy start, Nasri scored with a shot from outside the area in the 39th minute and Vincent Kompany added the second from close range shortly after the break to let fans celebrate for much of the second half.
"Liverpool's game against Chelsea, I think that's the twist of the season," Nasri said.
All City required was a draw, but after an edgy start this energetic and attacking team seized on the opportunity to finish the season in style. Against an uninspiring West Ham, City was in complete control, calmly knocking the ball around the pitch.
However easily City unpicked the West Ham defence, finding a route to goal was proving more difficult. David Silva, so dynamic in this title-winning side, lashed the ball over from distance and Aleksandar Kolarov had a long-range strike tipped over by goalkeeper Adrian.
But the goal that settled nerves in the stands came in the 39th minute, with Yaya Toure teeing up Nasri, who took two touches before curling the shot into the net off the inside of the post.
Although Silva was denied by the woodwork in stoppage time, City's second came just four minutes into the second half. From a corner, the ball bounced off striker Edin Dzeko, and the unmarked Kompany swept in City's 102nd league goal this season from close range.
The captain slid across the pitch in celebration, and the party truly started in the stadium. Unlike the rollercoaster season finale against Queens Park Rangers here two years ago, it was job done for City.
West Ham was never going to spoil these celebrations, and City is at the pinnacle of English football once again. The challenge now is retaining the trophy for the first time, and replicating the electrifying domestic form in Europe to conquer the Champions League.
These title celebrations, though, could be short-lived in the City boardroom, with UEFA on the verge of imposing sanctions on the club for overspending in breach of Financial Fair Play rules.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Manchester City captain Kompany pleased to see off 'intense' Everton
Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany has praised his side for their victory over an "intense" Everton at Goodison Park.
Edin Dzeko notched a brace as City secure a gripping 3-2 win to edge ahead of their opponents' local rivals Liverpool on goal difference at the top of the table.
An Everton victory would have left Liverpool well placed to secure a first title for 24 years, leading to suggestions of mixed emotions in the Goodison Park stands on Saturday.
That was certainly not the case on the field as Everton threw everything at City in a thrilling finale, but saw their hopes of Champions League qualification ended.
"It was hard and very intense as well - I was thinking that the Everton players have got a lot of friends at Liverpool," Kompany joked when interviewed by Sky Sports after the match.
"It was tough and we ultimately got a great result."
Sergio Aguero cancelled out Ross Barkley's superb opening strike to set City on their way to ending a run of four straight defeats at Goodison - a streak their captain attributed to Everton's competitive spirit and a lack of luck.
"To be honest we've not had a lot of great results but we’ve never really had took many bad games either," Kompany said.
"It's just one of those places. When we take the lead it’s never finished - they always find a way to make it difficult and they always find a way to score a goal that put them back in the game.
"Today was the same. I thought until the last minute both teams had to keep giving everything they had to keep in the game."
City have passed up a handful chances to take a firm hold on the title race since February's 1-0 home loss to Chelsea, seemingly in the most damaging fashion when they slipped to a 3-2 defeat at Liverpool three weeks ago.Now wins in back-to-back home games against Aston Villa and Chelsea next week will give them a second Premier League crown in three seasons.
But the dramatic manner in which his team clinched glory against struggling QPR in 2012 means Kompany knows nothing can be taken for granted.
He added: "We've had a lot of tough times during the season but I think that we've had a lot of wonderful games.
"The most important thing is to pick up the form at the right time and if we can carry on like this in the next two games, hopefully it should be enough to win those two games. I guess the past will tell us to be careful."
Edin Dzeko notched a brace as City secure a gripping 3-2 win to edge ahead of their opponents' local rivals Liverpool on goal difference at the top of the table.
An Everton victory would have left Liverpool well placed to secure a first title for 24 years, leading to suggestions of mixed emotions in the Goodison Park stands on Saturday.
That was certainly not the case on the field as Everton threw everything at City in a thrilling finale, but saw their hopes of Champions League qualification ended.
"It was hard and very intense as well - I was thinking that the Everton players have got a lot of friends at Liverpool," Kompany joked when interviewed by Sky Sports after the match.
"It was tough and we ultimately got a great result."
Sergio Aguero cancelled out Ross Barkley's superb opening strike to set City on their way to ending a run of four straight defeats at Goodison - a streak their captain attributed to Everton's competitive spirit and a lack of luck.
"To be honest we've not had a lot of great results but we’ve never really had took many bad games either," Kompany said.
"It's just one of those places. When we take the lead it’s never finished - they always find a way to make it difficult and they always find a way to score a goal that put them back in the game.
"Today was the same. I thought until the last minute both teams had to keep giving everything they had to keep in the game."
City have passed up a handful chances to take a firm hold on the title race since February's 1-0 home loss to Chelsea, seemingly in the most damaging fashion when they slipped to a 3-2 defeat at Liverpool three weeks ago.Now wins in back-to-back home games against Aston Villa and Chelsea next week will give them a second Premier League crown in three seasons.
But the dramatic manner in which his team clinched glory against struggling QPR in 2012 means Kompany knows nothing can be taken for granted.
He added: "We've had a lot of tough times during the season but I think that we've had a lot of wonderful games.
"The most important thing is to pick up the form at the right time and if we can carry on like this in the next two games, hopefully it should be enough to win those two games. I guess the past will tell us to be careful."
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