The retail term “showrooming” got a lot of attention in early December, when Amazon offered special discounts encouraging shoppers to use brick-and-mortar stores merely as showrooms, allowing consumers to scope out items in …
No Snow, No Problem: How Wall Street Profits from Weird Weather
Never discount Wall Street’s ability to turn the most basic parts of life into profits. Mother nature is the latest money spinner for financial firms. Despite the recent Northeast snowstorm, the unseasonably warm winter, and in …
5 Steps To Settling Your Debts For Less Than You Owe
Bank of America’s $5 Debit Fee Led to More Account Closings, CEO Says
A lot of people got really bent out of shape when Bank of America announced last fall that it would start charging a $5 monthly debit card fee. Online petitions were launched as the blogosphere and social media sites like Twitter overflowed with messages denouncing banks in general and Bank of America in particular.
Another Swipe-Fee Battle Looms — This Time Over Credit Cards
Most Americans began 2011 having never heard the phrase “debit interchange fee.” But by year’s end, a few more of us were aware that it refers to the money paid by retail merchants to card-issuing banks when we use our debit cards to make purchases. These fees turned out to be an important battleground in the broader bank fee wars that …
The Over Thirty Crowd Doesn’t Understand How Easy It Is to Pirate Content
Internet companies like Google and Mozilla dealt backers of SOPA and PIPA a pretty vicious, if not deadly, blow last week with a coordinated online protest against the proposed laws, which seek to curb online piracy of …
New RIM CEO Fails to Impress as Shares Tank After Shakeup
Investors greeted new Research in Motion CEO Thorsten Heins by promptly dumping the company’s shares on Monday, as analysts and industry observers questioned whether the shakeup will reverse the Blackberry-maker’s waning …
The Super Bowl Has Morphed into an Entire Season—for Advertising
Now that the New England Patriots and the New York Giants are set to play in Super Bowl XLVI, the hype for the “Super rematch” of the championship from four years ago can begin. (Where is David Tyree these days anyway?) The hype …
How Much You Spend Each Year on Coffee, Gas, Christmas, Pets, Beer, and More
A new report estimates that the average American worker drops nearly $1,100 annually on coffee. That’s not much less than what the average worker spends to commute to the job.
The Heavy Hitters of Davos 2012
Each year, the world’s most important decision makers in business, politics and the nonprofit world descend upon Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum to rub elbows and discuss the year to come. With the specter of a Eurozone breakup looming and the world economy clinging to a fragile recovery, these big-wigs will have plenty …
Why This Stock Rally Can’t Be Trusted
This may be one of those rare moments when market strength is a signal of growing danger, rather than a sign of better times to come.
The Economics of Everest
When Everest Base Camp opens for the spring climbing season in March, Prince Harry may be among the climbers hoping to conquer the world’s tallest mountain, according to The Telegraph. The 27-year-old prince trekked across the …