The modern Internet has been around for roughly 25 years, more or less. There's still a few companies that have been there from the start. Amazon is one of those examples. Jeff Bezos founded it in 1994 started off small, and it has grown to extremely high levels of success. It is worth billions, especially with all the stuff they have been doing for the last 10 years, trying to be ahead of competition. That could change with the recent divorce announcement.
Bezos and his wife, MacKenzie, are going to be getting their divorce. The speculation on why this happened is up in the air. There is thought on some sites that Jeff was cheating and being with a television anchor, Lauren Sanchez. Sanchez was married to Patrick Whitesell a top man at Endeavor Talent Agency. That's a tough thing to discuss right off the bat. It wouldn't stun me if cheating was involved. At the same time, I've read things from time to time about MacKenzie not caring for certain Amazon stuff and having competitor products. Maybe the focus on business was too much for her. Either way, this is a guessing game, so we're going to hear something rather soon in the next 24 hours to possibly a week.
How does this affect Amazon? There could be position changes. It won't be as bad as Papa John's Pizza the last two years, but a shakeup could happen. A lot of settlement stuff is likely to be discussed. I got a feeling MacKenzie will want some of that Amazon money and some of the properties that she and Jeff owned together. As far as company ownings, it could mean millions of shares go to MacKenzie, and that could be a huge effect on the stock.
I'm sure we'll hear more about this. It's funny seeing what Bill Gates has done for the past 25 years with his wife Melinda. Those two have a deep love for each other and the work they do to provide to needy people and to change the world. Even if there is cheating involved, something tells me that there was a rift between Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos before having an affair. Even very long marriages can unravel into a messy separation.
Showing posts with label amazon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amazon. Show all posts
Thursday, January 10, 2019
Thursday, July 12, 2018
Toys R Us Killed Itself
At the end of this June, Toys R Us closed all their stores in the United States. This was following bankruptcy news in the fall and hope that the holiday season could have helped them. Alas it didn't. But to play the blame game is dumb. Some people like to blame millennials. That's not event true. What killed Toys R Us was itself.
Some companies spend money that they don't have or can't recuperate the money they had just spent. One example was Ames, which after buying a company in 1998, shut down because of going bankrupt a second time and being finished in 2002. That's what Toys R Us' situation was. Not to mention competition. Now these days, you have Target, Wal-Mart, and a few other stores that can sell toys, but also more than just that with food, clothing, you get the picture.
The failure to adapt to the modern day era of Internet is also something that bit Toys R Us. It's inability during the infancy of it rubbed people the wrong way (https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/23/business/toys-r-us-falls-behind-on-shipping.html) Even struggles with Amazon which culminated in a lawsuit which they won still hurt them.(http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/news/2009-06-12-amazon-toys_N.htm) While they may have recovered and got better at doing online, there was still a bit of hurt from some of these moments during the late 90s and early 2000s.
Unfortunately, it was a specialty store. Although it was a place you could have kids come to and check out the cool stuff, it was also a place that you had to make your way to. And that's why it's part of the casualties of all these stores that have shut down in the last 20 or so years. People want all their stuff in one place and I would, too. There's also the ones who will take the Internet route, which is very easy to do in 2018 compared to the mid to late 90s. Before you blame it on a generation of people, take a look at what killed Toys R Us before saying millennials caused them to go bankrupt.
Some companies spend money that they don't have or can't recuperate the money they had just spent. One example was Ames, which after buying a company in 1998, shut down because of going bankrupt a second time and being finished in 2002. That's what Toys R Us' situation was. Not to mention competition. Now these days, you have Target, Wal-Mart, and a few other stores that can sell toys, but also more than just that with food, clothing, you get the picture.
The failure to adapt to the modern day era of Internet is also something that bit Toys R Us. It's inability during the infancy of it rubbed people the wrong way (https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/23/business/toys-r-us-falls-behind-on-shipping.html) Even struggles with Amazon which culminated in a lawsuit which they won still hurt them.(http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/news/2009-06-12-amazon-toys_N.htm) While they may have recovered and got better at doing online, there was still a bit of hurt from some of these moments during the late 90s and early 2000s.
Unfortunately, it was a specialty store. Although it was a place you could have kids come to and check out the cool stuff, it was also a place that you had to make your way to. And that's why it's part of the casualties of all these stores that have shut down in the last 20 or so years. People want all their stuff in one place and I would, too. There's also the ones who will take the Internet route, which is very easy to do in 2018 compared to the mid to late 90s. Before you blame it on a generation of people, take a look at what killed Toys R Us before saying millennials caused them to go bankrupt.
Sunday, March 26, 2017
Losing Stores
Change is a double edged sword. Sometimes, certain things happen at particular places that you will enjoy. Other times however, it would be annoying as well since you can't replace it, no matter what. My local mall has Radio Shack and like many other parts of the United States and maybe the world, the decision has been made to close off a number of stores due to bankruptcy. You find it a little hard to believe and then it's gone. Who knows when exactly they will shut down in the one near me. It seems like maybe another few weeks.
It says a lot about my local mall. When I was very young, they had a lot of stuff. Big named stuff with a few local stores. Around 1996, there was JCPenney, KB Toys, Fashion Bug, Foot Locker, GNC, Payless ShoeSource, and K-Mart. The rest off the top of my head was the movie theater, a local pizzeria, and an arcade. Now these days, a lot of changes have been made. Unfortunately, they have a hard time selling space to people who may be open for only a few months on end. Most of the big named stores are gone with JCPenney, Payless, and GNC still existing. There has been expansions around that area since at least 1995 and not just the mall.
Now, one place I really wanted to go to in that mall was a used game store. It had been around for quite a bit of time before I started going there a little often around 2009. I found it a bit surprising that they were shutting down in 2014 due to the owners going for retirement. A few weeks before they closed up, I managed to get quite a bit of stuff that was 30 percent off. After that, the closest used game store that isn't GameStop (not a bad place) is 50 to 60 miles away. There was a point where you could get everything at your local mall. To be fair, they are trying to get back to what they were about 20 years ago.
A place my mother really liked going to was Ames. It was an outlet store. They sold all sorts of stuff there for reduced prices. It was a place both my parents went to quite a bit. Probably the last time going there was 2003 after the company filed for bankruptcy a few years prior. In that particular area, there was Napa Auto (which is still there), a couple gas stations and a Burger King. (which shut down around the same time as Ames) There was a Grand Union that shut down around the mid to late 90s with Wal-Mart and a few other grocery stores coming around and overtaking where people would go to. Sometimes, those competitors can cause a huge decline.
Speaking of decline, I do believe people will still go to a store and buy things that they need that isn't food. There are still people who are not willing to go online to an Amazon or Ebay to buy stuff like clothes or garden supplies. Concern is always a big factor. Some people may not be willing to sell stuff or take a long time get. The product could be broken or ruined. It's not simple like in the movies or television. I'm not saying don't shop online, but take it with caution. That being said, going to a store, that product you are looking for may not be there at all. Options could be going to another store that is similar to the one you were at, or taking the online route. Either way, retail is not going to disappear anytime soon. They are still important in today's society.
It sucks to lose a store.
It says a lot about my local mall. When I was very young, they had a lot of stuff. Big named stuff with a few local stores. Around 1996, there was JCPenney, KB Toys, Fashion Bug, Foot Locker, GNC, Payless ShoeSource, and K-Mart. The rest off the top of my head was the movie theater, a local pizzeria, and an arcade. Now these days, a lot of changes have been made. Unfortunately, they have a hard time selling space to people who may be open for only a few months on end. Most of the big named stores are gone with JCPenney, Payless, and GNC still existing. There has been expansions around that area since at least 1995 and not just the mall.
Now, one place I really wanted to go to in that mall was a used game store. It had been around for quite a bit of time before I started going there a little often around 2009. I found it a bit surprising that they were shutting down in 2014 due to the owners going for retirement. A few weeks before they closed up, I managed to get quite a bit of stuff that was 30 percent off. After that, the closest used game store that isn't GameStop (not a bad place) is 50 to 60 miles away. There was a point where you could get everything at your local mall. To be fair, they are trying to get back to what they were about 20 years ago.
A place my mother really liked going to was Ames. It was an outlet store. They sold all sorts of stuff there for reduced prices. It was a place both my parents went to quite a bit. Probably the last time going there was 2003 after the company filed for bankruptcy a few years prior. In that particular area, there was Napa Auto (which is still there), a couple gas stations and a Burger King. (which shut down around the same time as Ames) There was a Grand Union that shut down around the mid to late 90s with Wal-Mart and a few other grocery stores coming around and overtaking where people would go to. Sometimes, those competitors can cause a huge decline.
Speaking of decline, I do believe people will still go to a store and buy things that they need that isn't food. There are still people who are not willing to go online to an Amazon or Ebay to buy stuff like clothes or garden supplies. Concern is always a big factor. Some people may not be willing to sell stuff or take a long time get. The product could be broken or ruined. It's not simple like in the movies or television. I'm not saying don't shop online, but take it with caution. That being said, going to a store, that product you are looking for may not be there at all. Options could be going to another store that is similar to the one you were at, or taking the online route. Either way, retail is not going to disappear anytime soon. They are still important in today's society.
It sucks to lose a store.
Thursday, February 23, 2017
Too Many Commercials
As television has grown to where there are lots of cable networks competing, there is always a constant. That is the constant feed of commercials. In a time of watching stuff on AMC and Spike, you will always find five minutes of commercials before going back to the show or film before getting another five minutes. With that in mind, here is one that will creep up and anger people more. It is seven minutes of commercials per break.
Last year, I watched a few movies on cable. Early in the year, I watched an airing of Jackass: The Movie on MTV. It's not lengthy, but there was a point in the middle of the film where it was bombarded with two straight breaks of seven to eight minutes. A few months later, I watched the 60s version of The Jungle Book on Freeform. That film was not lengthy, either, but it was reaching points where it had some of the commercial lengths as Jackass did and had a two hour fifteen minute air time on the channel. As I look at some of these channels, it's been very evident for years that they are desperate for money and a few extra commercials is their way of getting more revenue in a time where people are going to Amazon, Netflix, Hulu, and other sites to get their TV or movie fix. The thought of every channel going seven minutes is a scary one.
As of now, the biggest offender is Viacom. Most of their channels employ tactics to get extra commercials. The air times on stuff like Comedy Central, MTV, and BET is beyond absurd and stupid. Looking at what is on for films for the rest of the week, two films had three and a half hour air times. These weren't dramas or even mob films. They were comedies that aren't that long. One clocked at below an hour fifty and the other was a few minutes past two hours. The tactic might work for Viacom in the short term, but long term is going to be a rough road if it backfires.
Syndication cuts are pretty obvious when it boils down to TV shows, but that's for another topic if it gets made. The tactic is time compression, which is speeding up shows to fit in the half hour time span of the syndicated version of the show to get more commercial time. Some movies do that, but they go more for cutting stuff for both time and content. This was a big deal a few years ago when sites and a few entertainment shows talked about a video one did on YouTube in 2013 on Seinfeld reruns ten years earlier at the time. He did a test in 2015 to see how much of a difference it was and it was sped up a little more.
It's not just TBS. It's pretty much the case with any network that has shows up until the 90s to early 2000s. Even some of the early SpongeBob SquarePants episodes suffer because of the era it was in. Yeah, original content like The Walking Dead may get millions of viewers, but for anyone wanting reruns of shows, the choice is obvious now these days. Networks are still going to wonder why they keep losing viewership. Netflix, Hulu, and other sites have access to all episodes of a show and barring certain things like Saturday Night Live and South Park, should be uncut and unaltered. You can watch as many times as you want before deals expire on shows.
Movies, on the other hand, is tougher. It's hard to know when a deal can be made on some films, popular or unpopular. Networks envy the most recent ones and try to get them on HBO or Showtime before going to a cable network like FX or AMC. Companies are making deals to stream exclusively on one platform, though, making them adjust pretty well to the modern era of watching things. Unfortunately, not every film will make it to an online site and unless you're not able to find on DVD or Blu-ray, you might be stuck with the cable version.
Could we see a time where there is ten minutes of commercials in one break? I hope not. With losing viewership from a number of networks (some of which cannot be blamed on commercials) and rising costs per household, it could be a reality that will be dreaded, even if you are dedicated to something like a 15-hour South Park marathon. Only time will tell, and it may look no good.
Last year, I watched a few movies on cable. Early in the year, I watched an airing of Jackass: The Movie on MTV. It's not lengthy, but there was a point in the middle of the film where it was bombarded with two straight breaks of seven to eight minutes. A few months later, I watched the 60s version of The Jungle Book on Freeform. That film was not lengthy, either, but it was reaching points where it had some of the commercial lengths as Jackass did and had a two hour fifteen minute air time on the channel. As I look at some of these channels, it's been very evident for years that they are desperate for money and a few extra commercials is their way of getting more revenue in a time where people are going to Amazon, Netflix, Hulu, and other sites to get their TV or movie fix. The thought of every channel going seven minutes is a scary one.
As of now, the biggest offender is Viacom. Most of their channels employ tactics to get extra commercials. The air times on stuff like Comedy Central, MTV, and BET is beyond absurd and stupid. Looking at what is on for films for the rest of the week, two films had three and a half hour air times. These weren't dramas or even mob films. They were comedies that aren't that long. One clocked at below an hour fifty and the other was a few minutes past two hours. The tactic might work for Viacom in the short term, but long term is going to be a rough road if it backfires.
Syndication cuts are pretty obvious when it boils down to TV shows, but that's for another topic if it gets made. The tactic is time compression, which is speeding up shows to fit in the half hour time span of the syndicated version of the show to get more commercial time. Some movies do that, but they go more for cutting stuff for both time and content. This was a big deal a few years ago when sites and a few entertainment shows talked about a video one did on YouTube in 2013 on Seinfeld reruns ten years earlier at the time. He did a test in 2015 to see how much of a difference it was and it was sped up a little more.
It's not just TBS. It's pretty much the case with any network that has shows up until the 90s to early 2000s. Even some of the early SpongeBob SquarePants episodes suffer because of the era it was in. Yeah, original content like The Walking Dead may get millions of viewers, but for anyone wanting reruns of shows, the choice is obvious now these days. Networks are still going to wonder why they keep losing viewership. Netflix, Hulu, and other sites have access to all episodes of a show and barring certain things like Saturday Night Live and South Park, should be uncut and unaltered. You can watch as many times as you want before deals expire on shows.
Movies, on the other hand, is tougher. It's hard to know when a deal can be made on some films, popular or unpopular. Networks envy the most recent ones and try to get them on HBO or Showtime before going to a cable network like FX or AMC. Companies are making deals to stream exclusively on one platform, though, making them adjust pretty well to the modern era of watching things. Unfortunately, not every film will make it to an online site and unless you're not able to find on DVD or Blu-ray, you might be stuck with the cable version.
Could we see a time where there is ten minutes of commercials in one break? I hope not. With losing viewership from a number of networks (some of which cannot be blamed on commercials) and rising costs per household, it could be a reality that will be dreaded, even if you are dedicated to something like a 15-hour South Park marathon. Only time will tell, and it may look no good.
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