Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Video of the Day: Disney's Brave Trailer
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Thursday, November 10, 2011
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
New Music : 3D Na'Tee-Switch
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Like Crazy
As most critics have noted it is a GOOD movie.
Well directed, brilliant acting from the leads and beautifully shot.
I have a bit of a soft spot for melancholy films so I quite enjoyed it. However, while I considered it a GOOD film it never became great film for me because I found the main characters Jacob and Anna unlikeable.
I found them incredibly selfish and impulsive. I'd call them assholes but they are beautiful assholes who hand make chairs and recite poetry in a lovely British accent so I guess that gives them a pass (I dunno maybe).
As an aside I loved Alex Kingston and Oliver Muirhead as the parents of Felicity Jones' Anna.
Solid B+. Go check it out.
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Tuesday, October 25, 2011
I am my own boss try it out for yourself.
Hi Friend! |
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Monday, October 17, 2011
Monday, October 3, 2011
Video of the Day: "Being Elmo" Trailer
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Friday, September 30, 2011
Video of the Day: Adele's "Someone Like You"
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Wednesday, September 14, 2011
ABC + Gilt Offering Free Online Screening of new series Revenge
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Friday, August 5, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Serious Shoes: 8 inch Louboutins en pointe
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Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tumblr of the Day: Disappointing Gay Best Friend
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Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Reason #459 why Tom Hanks is awesome: Dancing while doing the weather on Univision
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Monday, June 20, 2011
Need this: Chuck Taylors + Super Mario Brothers = Awesome
More images here: http://bit.ly/lOYEl1
via Ms. McQueen
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Friday, June 17, 2011
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Separated at Birth: The Greasy Hairstyle Edition-- 50 cent vs Haddaway
Am I right?
Seriously what is going on with 50?
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Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Sam Jackson narrates "Go The F*ck To Sleep"
The best work he has done in years.
Love it.
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Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
Why Groupon Is Poised For Collapse
Groupon is essentially holding a portfolio of loans backed by the receivables of small businesses. If a business goes under, consumers will come back to Groupon for their money back. Unless Groupon is actually doing credit assessments on businesses that it chooses to feature, this is a big risk for Groupon.
The onerous terms for participating in Groupon also create an adverse selection problem. The most successful businesses don’t need Groupon for customer acquisition or financing.
The assumption is that nothing will go wrong and all of these “loans” will be paid back. (At least the subprime mortgage lenders were able to sell that risk off to Wall Street and AIG.)
Like the mortgage lenders, Groupon doesn’t know exactly how much risk it has piled up. Because some merchants track redemptions on paper, Groupon has no way of knowing how many unredeemed Groupons are outstanding. If a business goes under and the records are unavailable, every buyer of that Groupon could try to make a claim against it. (The risk is mitigated by the fact that a lot of redemption occurs within the first 60 days, but we don’t know how much.)
Google, with more than $36 billion in cash on hand, is uncomfortable enough with that risk that it dumps it onto Google Offers buyers. Groupon could mitigate this risk by changing its terms and conditions so that the consumer is responsible in case a merchant goes bankrupt.
Relying on float
Where does Groupon get all the money to give to these merchants? Credit cards—yours. Groupon gets paid within a couple of days by its banks. It then takes that money and gives it to the merchant in three chunks. From Groupon’s S-1:
Our merchant payment terms and revenue growth have provided us with operating cash flow to fund our working capital needs. Our merchant arrangements are generally structured such that we collect cash up front when our customers purchase Groupons and make payments to our merchants at a subsequent date. In North America, we typically pay our merchants in installments within sixty days after the Groupon is sold.
We use the operating cash flow provided by our merchant payment terms and revenue growth to fund our working capital needs. If we offer our merchants more favorable or accelerated payment terms or our revenue does not continue to grow in the future, our operating cash flow and results of operations could be adversely impacted and we may have to seek alternative financing to fund our working capital needs.
Translation: They’re using money from new deals to pay for previous deals. They need to keep growing revenue. As of March 31, they owed merchants $290.7 million.
In the agreement I’ve seen, the first installment is 33% in 5 days. If they have to pay merchants faster, that could lead to problems.
And Google might force that to happen. According to Google Offers’ payment terms, merchants receive 80% of their share in 4 days—more than twice as much, 1 day earlier.
There’s no way that was an accident.
If Groupon matches these payment terms, they’ll need cash faster and need to grow faster. (Google Offers accelerates the rate at which Groupon’s scheme has to draw in new suckers.) If Groupon doesn’t match, it gives Google a key differentiator to win deals. If those businesses go with Google’s more generous terms, that too will starve Groupon of the cash it needs to pay earlier merchants.
Now here’s the crazy part. Not only is Groupon effectively giving loans to merchants, but it also works the other way around. The merchant is on the hook for the entire value of those deals until Groupon pays the merchant back its portion. Unlike other loan providers, the merchant is making a short-term loan to Groupon. (Not technically, but effectively.) They buy inventory in advance of the Groupon run. They also serve the initial rush of customers. The business is in a hole before they get their 30- and 60-day Groupon payouts.
While the chances might be small, Groupon merchants should know that they’re taking on the risk of Groupon’s collapse. If Groupon collapses, a lot of small merchants could be left holding the bag.
If you know of a business that closed after running a Groupon or other daily deal, please send an email with the name of the business to dailydeals@agrawals.org. And remember, correlation is not causation.
Photo credits: Rachel Lovinger and Rocky Agrawal.
Website: groupon.com Location: Chicago, Illinois, United States Founded: November 11, 2008 Funding: $1.14B Groupon (www.groupon.com) features a daily deal on the best stuff to do, see, eat, and buy in more than 565 cities around the world. By promising businesses a minimum number of customers, Groupon can offer deals that aren’t available elsewhere.
Information provided by CrunchBase
Really interesting read.
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Friday, June 10, 2011
Friday Fever: 9-year-old kid Vogue-ing like a Boss
So this is kind of amazing .
ME AT NINE, PERFORMING TO MADONNA IN SUMMER '91! from Robert Jeffrey on Vimeo.
Obviously I am now going to be bumping Madonna at my desk for the rest of the day.
Via The Hairpin http://bit.ly/kOk4j1
Thanks @ccurry
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Thursday, June 9, 2011
Thursday Morning Jams: Kilo Ali - Baby, Baby
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Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Tuesday Morning Jams (The Classic Reggae Edition): Foxy Brow "Sorry"
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Monday, May 23, 2011
What I’m Digging Right Now: Black Orpheus
I recently re-watched the 1959 Brazilian film Black Orpheus which, made obvious by the title, is a retelling of the classic Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice.
The film is set in a favela of Rio during caraval and if you have not seen it, it is a riot of color, beauty and drama all set to a samba beat.
What really struck me while watching it is the pervasiveness of black culture in the film. I rarely see the African elements of Brazilian society emphasised in popular culture (or at least what gets exported to the states), however it is the focus of this film from the people of the favela to the music to the Candomblé ceremony at the end.
From an aesthetic perspective I am in love with costume design with the bright colors and the 50's feminine silhouettes .
I’m inspired to incorporate these into my summer wardrobe making bright dresses with nipped in waists a staple. Something like this Boxing KItten dress would be right up my alley.
If you haven’t seen it I highly recommended checking it out.
Also I’ve been taking Samba classes at Alvin Ailey on Wednesdays from 7:30-9. If you are in NYC I really really recommend. Come shake your ass with me.
http://www.alvinailey.org/beginner-samba/afro-brazilian 
I’m inspired to incorporate these into my summer wardrobe making bright dresses with nipped in waists a staple. Something like this Boxing KItten dress would be right up my alley.
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Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Ads that I'm loving: Volkswagen Piñata
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Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Monday, May 2, 2011
Coincidence? The into to N.O.R.E’s SuperThug and the Bin Laden’s final whereabouts.
I know I’m weird but when I heard about the mansion in Pakistan this is what came to mind.
Lyrics
Im Im actually waitin on the boss now
He said we have some kind of special assignment or something
Hes supposed to be callin me like any minute now any minute
Hold on hold on lemme get the phone
Hello? Jackson here
Ya what? you found (Manuel Noreaga) Osama Bin Laden ?
In (the Phillipines) Pakistan?
He has a mansion?
Ok we on it on it right now... right
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Thursday, April 28, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Read Write Web: 2011: The Year the Check-in Died
Guest author Mark Watkins is the CEO and co-founder of Goby, an inspiration engine for finding fun things to do. Prior to Goby Mark led R&D at Endeca, a search and business intelligence software company. You can follow him at @viking2917.In July 2010, Foursquare had 2 million users performing 1 million check-ins per day. By the end of the year, that number had risen to 5 million users performing 2 million check-ins per day. Impressive growth, yet this means check-ins per user declined from 0.5 per person to 0.4. It also suggests that many of those five million users aren't active.
The trend for Facebook Places is even worse. Facebook had at least 30 million members check in at least once in a shorter time frame as a newer service with a larger built in user base. Yet Facebook Places offers even less value than a Foursquare check-in. There are no points to win and no discovery element like tips; it's just a flat statement that, "I am at Starbucks." As a result, early indications are that Facebook check-ins strongly lag Foursquare check-ins.
The other day, I checked in for lunch at the Ace Hotel in New York City, an epicenter of the digital elite, and, according the Foursquare, the single most checked-into hotel in the world. The place was packed and I could barely get through the door, much less find a place to sit down. Yet, over the course of my two-hour stay, only three other people checked in.
Why Check-ins Are Going to Falter
In 2011 check-ins are going to go the way of the eight-track tape and disappear. You probably already see this happening. How many of your friends are consistently checking in and broadcasting? How many "I just ousted Fred as the mayor of Starbucks" messages do you see in your stream? Across my network - a large and tech-savvy network - I see less than 1% of people checking in on any service, and the trend is down. Some people are undoubtedly checking in privately, but that has major (negative) implications for how a service can spread.
Both Yelp and Facebook have the advantage of huge audiences who visit the services with a clear purpose. People are on Facebook to socialize, and on Yelp looking for a great restaurant. Check-in services aren't going to replicate this scale or focus of audience in the short run, making it hard to make check-ins a mainstream activity. A number of check-in services have effectively already thrown in the towel; BriteKite abandoned its check-ins entirely and Gowalla integrated itself with Facebook and Foursquare check-ins.
All of this doesn't mean, however, that Gowalla, Foursquare, MyTown, Loopt and all the services with check-ins at their core are necessarily going out of business. It does mean they need to find a way to deliver deep value to people beyond the check-in. And unless Facebook and Google provide more value than they currently do, their check-in services will languish as well.
Let's take a look at why check-ins are going to falter and then explore some areas for delivery of deep, lasting value.
Why do people check in? Why should they?
- Finding people near you, a.k.a. serendipity: When your friends happen to be at the same location, it's like magic. Especially useful at conferences, this is check-ins at their best.
- Points and the hoped-for rewards: Whether it is rewards on SCVNGR or deals on Foursquare, people hope to get a discount: a free appetizer, a dollar off coffee. These deals are in their very early stages on location-based services.
- To remember things: In new cities or new venues, I'll often check in (privately) just to remember the place I went. Marshall Kirkpatrick has discussed this use case as well.
- Personal branding: While most people wouldn't use this term, it is what's going on. People are creating a personal online identity for themselves, showcasing who they are by telling everyone what they're doing. (Less charitably: they're bragging, and I'm just as guilty of it as most).
Here's why none of these are going to lead to significant growth for the LBS players.
Next page: How do check-in services go mainstream?
- The serendipity factor is very much a creature of big cities, certain demographic segments, and New York in particular. If you're in New York, where all your friends are within 10 blocks of you and can quickly get from one location to the next, this is actually awesome. But it's not so hot in big cities like Los Angeles that are too spread out for these serendipitous moments to happen.
- Games are fun for about two weeks, but most don't have staying power. Like a lot of folks, I really dig Call of Duty: Black Ops, but I can only kill so many zombies before it's time to do something else. Games are a novelty and have a very finite shelf life. So long as check-ins are "just a game", they'll be subject to the short life cycle of a game.
- Remembering things holds promise of long-term value; a digital memory bank of places I've been could be really handy. It's just not clear that most people really need it. Unless you spend all your time traveling and going new places, there's just not that much to remember.
- Personal branding is most common amongst the digital elite - the bloggers, social media mavens, tech execs (ok, I plead guilty). Outside a niche set of people who want the personal branding (or ego boost) of the check-in, most people not only don't want to check-in, but they don't know why they should. Most women I talk to are creeped out by broadcasting their location.
Photo by KecMec
See Also
Interesting post by Mark Watkins.
I personally rarely use Foursquare any more. I forget to check in and there is no real incentive for me to share my location.
The few times I do use it generally are in restaurants to view tips and recommendations.
I wonder what this means for the new wave of "check-in" platforms like Get Glue.
Perhaps consumers are reaching some type of threshold for adopting new platforms and social behaviors.
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Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Video of the Day: Woodkid's "Iron"
Circling around the office @BBH today.
Arresting music and imagery.
Although I'm kind of not into the Agyness Deyn appearance.
Woodkid - Iron from WOODKID on Vimeo.
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Game of Thrones vs. Camelot : Food Truck Face-Off
In the HBO v. Starz marketing showdown between epic, old-timey fantasy series there is an interesting duplicate effort in terms of using food trucks as a promotional tool.
In one corner we have HBO's Game of Thrones with a food truck featuring meals created by celebrity chef Tom Colicchio.
In the other corner we have Starz' Camelot with a "traveling dining hall' featuring free turkey legs.
FREE TURKEY LEGS!!!!!!!!
The weather in NYC is shit today so it's unlikely I will be trying the food at either but regardless of my enthusiasm for smoked poultry, the HBO option clearly wins.
I will still absolutely watch both shows.
Has anyone had a chance to check these out?
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Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Living With Chronic Bitchface
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Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Site of the Day: White Whine
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Friday, February 25, 2011
Oscar Predictions
Oh you thought these would come from me?
I have legit to add to the conversation BUT my friend Cory is a big film nerd and he has some intersting predictions.
Check em out: http://modage.tumblr.com/post/3503622079/oscar-picks-predictions
All I can say is I hope Annette Benning doesent win. I thought she was overly shrill and obvious and has been playing that same role since American Beauty. Also the thought of giving her the award as a consolation after loosing twice before is absurd.
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Aural Cure for Rainy Days
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Thursday, February 24, 2011
Oscar Talk with Mike Tyson & Leonard Maltin
<div style="text-align:left;font-size:x-small;margin-top:0;width:512px;">Oscar Talk with Mike Tyson & Leonard Maltin from Mike Tyson</div>
<p>
Not going to lie. I have kind of a soft spot for Iron Mike after the documentary Tyson.
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Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
T-Pain Got a Facebook 'Like' Button Tattoo
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Thursday, January 27, 2011
If the Best Picture nominee posters told the truth
Via The Daily What
Full list here: http://bit.ly/fEhxIV
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Questionable Casting: 'The Dark Tower', Javier Bardem offered lead role as Roland in Stephen King adaptation
I may have mentioned this before but I am kind of a nerd.
And in true nerd fashion I have read many many Stephen King books.
As a true fan of King I have spent dozens of hours pouring over his epic "Dark Tower" series and waited for the day when the books would be brought to life via film.
So the thing is: A. a movie is actually happening and B. Javier Bardem has been offered the lead as Rowland.
I mean, yay awesome Javier is talented and all but since King has freely admitted that Rowland was modeled after a 1970's Clint Eastwood, Javier just does not compute.
My ideal casting for Rowland would have been Daniel Craig who has the right look and evidenced by his portrayal of Bond can do the cold-hearted bastard that we all learn to love very well.
Hmm.. let's see where this goes.
Full story at EW.com http://bit.ly/gwnJwZ
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Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Ted Talks: Drawing upon humor for change
Great video from TedWomen featuring New Yorker cartoonist Liza Donnelly who uses her cartoons to talk about ways women can use humor to break gender norms.
For more on funny women shaking things up, I highly recommend watching the documentary "Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work" (it's on Netflix instant streaming). Joan is a bundle of contradictions when it comes to feminism but its hard to deny what she has done for women in comedy and entertainment, and if you watch E!'s Fashion Police you see she is still funny as hell.
Jean Claude Van Damme + Dubstep = Whaa??
See little kids act out Oscar nominated films that are totally inappropriate for little kids.
The Fighter:
Watch more Kids Act Out videos on AOL Video
127 Hours:
You’re watching Kids Act Out - 127 Hours. See the Web's top videos on AOL Video
The Social Network:
You’re watching Kids Act Out - The Social Network. See the Web's top videos on AOL Video
Black Swan:
You’re watching Kids Act Out - Black Swan. See the Web's top videos on AOL Video
The King's Speech:
You’re watching Kids Act Out - The King’s Speech. See the Web's top videos on AOL Video
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Video of the Day: Confessions of a Disney Employee
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Random News of the Day: Tom Hanks has a kid who is a rapper
Odd Facebook Promotion of the Day: Dentyne
