| Al Gore's cable TV business plans IPO
Cable TV upstart Current Media will go public during the first half of this year, giving investors a chance to assess the entrepreneurial skills of its co-founder, former Vice President Al Gore. Current Media is small with just $64 million in annual revenues, but Gore's involvement ensures the company's IPO will attract plenty of attention. "If Mr. Gore were no longer actively involved in our business or no longer to hold a substantial ownership stake in us, our relationships with key distributors and our business could be materially and adversely affected," the SEC filing said. The current target for the IPO is $100 million, but the final amount is expected to change after investment bankers gauge the demand for shares in the company. Gore helped create Current Media in 2002 and still plays a prominent role as a major shareholder and the company's executive chairman.
Industry dragging feet on 'piggyback' antidote
So-called "piggyback" credit-score inflation schemes for mortgage applicants haven't been reined in, despite industry pledges to do so at the end of summer. As a result, lenders continue to be misled into treating loan applicants with poor credit as prime-credit candidates - worsening already critical fraud and delinquency problems in the mortgage market. Fair Isaac Corp., developer of the FICO score widely used for home loan underwriting, confirmed that its "FICO '08" scoring model is not yet available at any of the three national credit bureaus. .
Try clicking not clipping coupons
Supermarket chains are trying out paperless, or digital, coupons to help the thrifty-minded save time while saving money. Shoppers load the online discounts onto their store loyalty cards, receiving credit at the checkout. Grocers see the innovation as a way to build customer loyalty, drawing consumers who are increasingly spending time online to their Web sites and ultimately, their stores. The move could increase coupon use by attracting shoppers who don't bother with paper coupons. It offers convenience for the companies in reducing handling, tallying and shipping of coupons, as well as cutting paper use. Kroger Co., the nation's largest traditional grocery chain, and Procter & Gamble Co., the largest consumer products company, are partners in a digital coupon trial that began last month.
Facebook, Scrabulous, and the End of Innocence
Oh no. I'd finally managed to kick the Scrabulous habit – at one stage I had eight games going simultaneously – when news came through that the Facebook application was under threat from the makers of Scrabble. After a couple of months in rehab, I had to start another game – just so that we could get some television pictures, you understand. But the bust-up over a game which is currently enjoyed daily by nearly 600,000 users is not just of interest to the addicts. It tells us something about what happens when bright young internet brands start to grow up. Remember when Youtube was young, all those years ago? It started life by maintaining that it was merely a playground for the video activities of its users – so if a teenager posted a happy-slapping video from a mobile phone or grabbed the latest episode of Lost and puts it up for friends to enjoy, that was not their fault.
Putting daughter on your credit card
Q. Is it true that authorized users on credit cards will no longer build up their own credit history? We're planning on making our high school senior an authorized user when she goes to college in the fall.-- A. Riley, Davie
A. No, it's not true. What will change, though, is that authorized users won't be able to get a FICO credit score unless they have some other form of credit in their own name, said Craig Watts, spokesman for Fair Isaac, which issues FICO scores. That change will be introduced sometime this year.When your daughter becomes an authorized user, the issuer will notify the credit reporting bureaus. If she has no other credit history, it will open a file in her name. At that point, she starts building her own history. The information arising from her use of your card will also be duplicated on your credit reports.Since she will be bombarded with credit card offers the moment she arrives on campus, make sure she understands how credit works and how, if abused, it will affect her ability to purchase a car, rent an apartment and even get a good job.
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