Description: Computer maker’s shares fall more than 5% after the company reports a drop in fiscal fourth-quarter earnings. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report  Date: 02/26/2010 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2010/02/23/f_tm_dell_hp.fortune/ Questions for discussion: Why is Dell’s stock value falling? What would management have to do in order to improve profits? Is Dell a good candidate for merger… Read more »
Monthly Archives: March 2010
Wall Street sours on Palm as smartphone sales stall
Description: Analysts say wireless-device maker has few options; few see buyout as likely. Source: Marketwatch – video report  Date: 02/26/2010 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/palms-survival-at-stake-if-smartphones-dont-sell-2010-02-26?siteid=nwtwk Questions for discussion: Do you think investors have properly valued Palm in the past or presently? On what basis would you set a stock value for the firm? Is there a marketing… Read more »
Buffett’s $50 million credit card blunder
Description: Peddling credit cards isn’t so easy that a caveman can do it. That seems to be the conclusion Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA, Fortune 500) chief executive Warren Buffett reluctantly reached last year, when he shut down a money-losing credit card business he had dreamed up for Berkshire’s Geico car-insurance unit. Source: CNNMoney.com  Date: 02/27/2010… Read more »
Cellphones Let Shoppers Point, Click and Purchase
Description: Shoppers will soon be able to stand outside the designer Norma Kamali’s boutique in Manhattan, point a phone at merchandise in the window and buy it  even late at night when the store is closed. Source: NYTimes.com Date: 02/26/2010 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/27/business/27shop.html?ref=business Questions for discussion: Do you think this shopping behavior will become more… Read more »
Bloom box challenges: Reliability, cost
Description: In the wake of Wednesday’s star-studded, feel-good rollout of Bloom Energy’s “Bloom box” server, the start-up now faces the gritty task of delivering products that are reliable and cheap. Source: CNET.com Date: 02/24/2010 Link: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-10458980-64.html?tag=rtcol;pop Questions for discussion: What are the implications for the conventional energy suppliers in the marketplace if these products prove… Read more »
