loadntxt.com blog

Source: Wired Blog

Finally U.S. mobile users seem to see the value in typing out a few quick words on their phone, instead of leaving long voicemails.

The typical U.S. mobile subscriber now sends and receives more SMS text messages than they do mobile telephone calls, says Nielsen Mobile——something the rest of the world has long been at.

As of the second quarter of 2008, a typical U.S. mobile subscriber sends or receives 357 text messages a month, compared to placing or receiving 204 phone calls, says Nielsen.

While the number of calls has remained relatively steady, the number of text messages is up 450% from two years ago.

Second quarter 2008 was also the second consecutive quarter in which the average number of text messages sent was significantly higher than the average number of phone calls placed, says Nielsen Mobile. In the first quarter of the year, an average user made 207 calls compared with sending 288 text messages.

Not surprisingly, teenagers seem to be the biggest users of the service. The typical U.S. teen mobile user now sends or receives 1,742 text messages a month, compared with making or receiving 231 mobile phone calls, says Nielsen.

The US communications regulator this week set down the requirements for the nation’s wireless carriers to transmit alerts and critical information to consumer mobile devices during disasters or other emergencies.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said that during emergencies, Americans increasingly rely on wireless telecoms services and devices to receive critical, time sensitive information.

Once fully implemented, the Commercial Mobile Alert System (CMAS) will help ensure that US subscribes receive emergency alerts when there is a disaster or other emergency situation.

In compliance with the Warning, Alert and Response Network Act (WARN Act), this week’s Order adopts relevant technical requirements based on the recommendations of the Commercial Mobile Service Alert Advisory Committee (CMSAAC).

Wireless carriers that choose to participate in the will initially transmit text-based alerts, but as technology evolves, the CMAS may eventually include audio and video as well as ensuring the services are accessible by the disabled.

Participating wireless carriers will be required to comply with the rules adopted in the Order within 10 months from the date of announcement that a Federal agency has been designated to collect and transmit the alerts to the wireless carriers. (Source: Telecoms.com)

The US government is scrambling to make sense how in the world did the current subprime crisis emerge, and more importantly, what actions to take to stave off the looming recession. NYTimes has an excellent article that points to the "shadow banking system" as the culprit or maybe, as one of the major causes of the current crisis. Bill Gross explained it already last year at CNNMoney saying that the US has a secret banking system built on derivatives and untouched by regulation. Paul Krugman adds:

As the years went by, the shadow banking system took over more and more of the banking business, because the unregulated players in this system seemed to offer better deals than conventional banks. Meanwhile, those who worried about the fact that this brave new world of finance lacked a safety net were dismissed as hopelessly old-fashioned.

In fact, however, we were partying like it was 1929 — and now it’s 1930.

The financial crisis currently under way is basically an updated version of the wave of bank runs that swept the nation three generations ago. People aren’t pulling cash out of banks to put it in their mattresses — but they’re doing the modern equivalent, pulling their money out of the shadow banking system and putting it into Treasury bills. And the result, now as then, is a vicious circle of financial contraction.

Aside from derivatives, the Feds are looking into credit default swaps (CDS). A bank analyst at Oppenheimer said that the Feds’ bailout of Bear Stearns was 100 percent related to credit default swaps. Analysts estimate that Bear Stearns carry CDS contracts with outstanding value of $2.5 trillion.

Lawmakers are now coming up with suggestions like requiring investment banks to disclose off-balance-sheet risks while also making the firms subject to audits — much like commercial banks are now. Also, investment banks must set aside reserves for potential losses to provide a greater cushion during financial panics.

THERE is an emerging consensus that the ability of mortgage lenders to package their loans as securities that were then sold off to other parties played a key role in allowing borrowing standards to plummet.

Ratings agencies have similarly been under fire ever since the credit crisis began to unfold, and new regulations may force them to distance themselves from the investment banks whose products they were paid to rate.

In the meantime, analysts say, a broader reconsideration of derivatives and the shadow banking system is also in order. “Not all innovation is good,” says Mr. Whalen of Institutional Risk Analytics. “If it is too complicated for most of us to understand in 10 to 15 minutes, then we probably shouldn’t be doing it.”

The FTC spelled it out with 3 Ds. Deter. Detect. Defend. According to Get Rich Slowly blog,

a study conducted for the FTC [PDF], in 2005, 3.7% of the U.S. adult population were victims of identity theft. Though the median value of the damage caused was $500 per victim, ten percent of victims reported that the thief obtained $6,000 or more. The median time to repair the damage was four hours, but ten percent of victims spent at least 55 hours resolving their trouble.

Deter

The first step is to deter identity thieves by safeguarding your information.

• Shred financial documents and paperwork with personal information before you discard them.
• Protect your Social Security number. Don’t carry your Social Security card in your wallet or write your Social Security number on a check. Give it out only if absolutely necessary or ask to use another identifier.
• Don’t give out personal information on the phone, through the mail, or over the internet unless you know who you are dealing with.
• Never click on links sent in unsolicited e-mail. Instead, type in a web address you know. Use firewalls, anti-spyware, and anti-virus software to protect your home computer, and keep them up-to-date. OnGuard Online is a government-sponsored site to help you guard against internet fraud.
• Don’t use an obvious password like your birth date, your mother’s maiden name, or the last four digits of your Social Security number.
• Keep your personal information in a secure place at home, especially if you have roommates, employ outside help, or are having work done in your house.

Detect

Detect suspicious activity by routinely monitoring your financial accounts and billing statements. Be alert to signs that require immediate attention:

• Bills that do not arrive as expected.
• Unexpected credit cards or account statements.
• Denials of credit for no apparent reason.
• Calls or letters about purchases you did not make.

Defend

If you suspect that you may have been (or may become) a victim of identity theft, you can file a “fraud alert” on your credit reports. This alert tells creditors to follow certain procedures before they open new accounts in your name or make changes to your existing accounts. The three nationwide consumer reporting companies have toll-free numbers for placing an initial 90-day fraud alert; a call to one company is supposed to be sufficient:

• Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
• Experian: 1-888-397-3742
• TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289

Source: NYTimes.com

Foreign investors poured a record $414 billion into securing stakes in American companies, factories and other properties through private deals and purchases of publicly traded stock, according to Thomson Financial, a research firm. That was up 90 percent from the previous year and more than double the average for the last decade. It amounted to more than one-fourth of all announced deals for the year, Thomson said.

During the first two weeks of this year, foreign businesses agreed to invest another $22.6 billion for stakes in American companies — more than half the value of all announced deals.

Proponents of investment from overseas note that finance from sovereign wealth funds is a mere trickle of the overall flow from abroad. Indeed, the bulk comes from Europe, Canada and Japan. Just as Americans have scattered investments around the world in pursuit of profit — with holdings of foreign stock and debt exceeding $6 trillion in 2006, according to the Treasury Department — foreigners are looking to the United States, with their capital generating economic activity, proponents say.

Canada still spends the most money buying stakes in American companies — more than $65 billion in 2007, according to Thomson. But other countries’ purchases are growing rapidly. South Korea’s investments swelled to more than $10.4 billion last year from just $5.4 million in 2000. Russia went to $572 million from $60 million in that span; India to $3.3 billion from $364 million.