Kobalt Music Founder and CEO Willard Ahdritz Wins BVCA Venture Capital Backed CEO of the Year Award for Southeast and London Region
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009Business Wire, Nov 24, 2009
LONDON — Willard Ahdritz, the CEO and Founder of Kobalt Music Group (Kobalt), has
received the Venture Capital backed CEO of the Year Award – Southeast
and London region, from the British Private Equity and Venture Capital
Association (BVCA) Ltd. of England and Wales.
The BVCA CEO Awards recognise and celebrate the achievements of PE and
VC-backed CEOs throughout the U.K.
Ahdritz, who founded and conceived the original Kobalt business concept
in 2001, was recognised for his leadership of the emerging global music
publishing company which has based its unique service-based business
model around a transparent, automated and centralised, online
administration service which collects between 10-50% more income for
clients up to 2.5 times faster.
Kobalt, which has grown to over 80 employees and six offices worldwide,
has more than 900 clients, including superstar artists and songwriters Dave
Stewart, Gwen Stefani, Moby, Nine Inch Nails,
Kelly Clarkson, Kid Rock, Tom Jones, Badly Drawn Boy,
The Hives, McFly, Herbie Hancock, Max Martin,
Andreas Carlsson, and companies 8 Mile Style (publishers
of Eminem), Big Life, Evergreen Copyrights,
National Geographic and Getty Images among many others.
The company has produced explosive, organic growth of over 60% per year
for the last three years, with turnover reaching over 37m in the year
ending June 2009. The company was named Independent Music Publisher of
the Year at the 2009 Music Week Awards held in London. In 2008, it was
the leading independent music publisher in the U.S
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Flowserve Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend of $0.27 Per Share
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009Business Wire, Nov 24, 2009
DALLAS — Flowserve Corp. (NYSE: FLS), a global leader in the fluid motion and
control industry, today announced that its Board of Directors has
authorized the payment of a quarterly cash dividend of $0.27 per share
on the company’s outstanding shares of common stock. The dividend is
payable on January 6, 2010 to shareholders of record as of the close of
business on December 23, 2009.
While Flowserve currently intends to pay regular quarterly dividends for
the foreseeable future, any future dividends will be reviewed
individually and declared by the Board at its discretion, dependent on
the Board’s assessment of the company’s financial condition and business
outlook at the applicable time.
About Flowserve
Flowserve Corp. is one of the worlds leading providers of fluid motion
and control products and services. Operating in more than 55 countries,
the company produces engineered and industrial pumps, seals and valves
as well as a range of related flow management services. More information
about Flowserve can be obtained by visiting the companys Web site at www.flowserve.com.
SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT: This news release includes forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of
1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which are
made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Words or phrases such as,
may, should, expects, could, intends, plans, anticipates,
estimates, believes, predicts or other similar expressions are
intended to identify forward-looking statements, which include, without
limitation, earnings forecasts, statements relating to our business
strategy and statements of expectations, beliefs, future plans and
strategies and anticipated developments concerning our industry,
business, operations and financial performance and condition.
The forward-looking statements included in this news release are based
on our current expectations, projections, estimates and assumptions.
These statements are only predictions, not guarantees. Such
forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and
uncertainties that are difficult to predict. These risks and
uncertainties may cause actual results to differ materially from what is
forecast in such forward-looking statements, and include, without
limitation, the following: a portion of our bookings may not lead to
completed sales, and our ability to convert bookings into revenues at
acceptable profit margins; risks associated with cost overruns on
fixed-fee projects and in taking customer orders for large complex
custom engineered products requiring sophisticated program management
skills and technical expertise for completion; the substantial
dependence of our sales on the success of the petroleum, chemical, power
and water industries; the adverse impact of volatile raw materials
prices on our products and operating margins; economic, political and
other risks associated with our international operations, including
military actions or trade embargoes that could affect customer markets,
particularly Middle Eastern markets and global petroleum producers, and
non-compliance with U.S. export/re-export control, foreign corrupt
practice laws, economic sanctions and import laws and regulations; our
furnishing of products and services to nuclear power plant facilities;
potential adverse consequences resulting from litigation to which we are
a party, such as litigation involving asbestos-containing material
claims; a foreign government investigation regarding our participation
in the United Nations Oil-for-Food Program; risks associated with
certain of our foreign subsidiaries conducting business operations and
sales in certain countries that have been identified by the U.S
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To reach the peak of fitness, take the stairs
Monday, November 23rd, 20090 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Nov 22, 2009 | by Sam McManis
Sometimes, late at night in the hospital when no one is around to bear witness, Dr. Peter Murphy will see an open elevator door just waiting for a passenger.
“It does look relatively attractive,” Murphy, 62, concedes.
Yet commitment triumphs over convenience every time. Murphy, a pulmonologist at Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Sacramento, made a vow nearly eight years ago to eschew the elevator at work in favor of the stairs.
Call it a gesture for health — the man is, after all, a doctor specializing in breathing issues — but also another in a series of physical challenges Murphy has undertaken.
Compared with the marathons Murphy has run and the legs of the Tour de France that he’s ridden with friends on vacations, taking the stairs would seem a rather pedestrian accomplishment.
“Yes, but that’s the thing,” Murphy says. “When most people in this country think about exercise, they think all or nothing — going out and running marathons. Frankly, probably 30 minutes of exercise five days a week would be incredibly helpful to most people’s well-being.”
Murphy just wants people at work or at shopping malls or hotels to stop taking the lazy person’s way up (the elevator, the escalator) and get vertical under human power.
A simple plan
“My idea is, basically, to incorporate exercise into your life,” he says. “I think, frankly, that it’s way, way easier done than most people think.
“For instance, try parking your car at the farther end of the parking lot instead of up close. Think about walking where we now use cars and other modalities of transport. You can very easily, with very minimum effort, incorporate a substantial amount of exercise into your life and do it in a relatively nonintrusive, non- boring way.”
At the six-story Mercy San Juan, Murphy works on the second floor. But he’s up and down a lot, making rounds to various floors.
“Our lounge is on the sixth floor, and many of our medical floors are higher up,” he says. “In my practice, it’s not unusual to go from the first floor to the sixth floor five times a day, sometimes considerably more (often). Over time, this would clearly add up.”
Murphy’s stair-taking occasionally draws stares from co-workers unaware of his resolution, which has been in place since Jan. 1, 2002. Sometimes, colleagues will hold the elevator doors for Murphy and motion for him to join them.
“I’ll explain that I’ve been doing this for years and, as much as I’d love to join them, I can’t break the resolution now,” he says.
Setting an example
Throughout the streak, Murphy has noticed more and more Mercy staff members taking the stairs. On a good day, he says, there’s a steady flow of traffic climbing and descending the steps.
“I was surprised yesterday that one of our discharge planners was coming up with me and was remarkably well conditioned,” Murphy says. “We get pretty much daily reminders of the facts of life here at the hospital.”
Murphy says the stairs at Mercy San Juan are convenient and in good shape. The same can’t be said for stairs in many of the nation’s office buildings.
Building designers apparently haven’t been stair-friendly, according to a study published in last summer’s Southern Medical Journal. Co-authors Dr. Ishak A. Mansi of the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, Shreveport, and his wife, architect Nardine M. Mansi, called for builders to make the stairs the star of office buildings, department stores and the like.
Hidden assets
“Stairs are frequently hidden from entrances, with only small signs denoting their locations, typically in connection to the fire exit,” the authors wrote.
They said fire exits are usually guarded by heavy doors, not carpeted and not air-conditioned. They report that architects find it challenging to comply with current building codes, which emphasize fire safety and accessibility.
“As a result,” the report concluded, “a conscious focus on health does not enter the design process.”
So, what exactly can designers do to make stairs more attractive to people who are used to riding up and down?
The authors suggest installing carpeting and air conditioning
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Connective Technologies, Inc. Announces TEAM-UP Agency Download Contract with American Independent Companies Inc.
Sunday, November 22nd, 2009Business Wire, April 07, 2009
HOUSTON — Connective Technologies announces the contract signing of TEAM-UP
Download with American Independent Companies Inc. (AICI) in
Pennsylvania for the premier servicing of agency download. With their
non-standard auto insurance being covered by their five underwriting
companies, including OMNI Insurance in Georgia, the TEAM-UP suite of
products provides once-and-done processing in an industry compliant,
data-secure environment for agency downloads.
Bruce Arneson, President of AICI said, Our commitment to agency
download represents our continuing support for our independent agents.
Our goal is to provide our agents with state-of-the-art seamless
efficiency allowing them to concentrate on profitable revenue
generation.
Jonathan C. Edwards, CIO of AICI stated, Were excited to have selected
the most secure agency interface solution in the industry. With
TEAM-UPs ease-of-use and accelerated roll-out capabilities, our
time-to-market for agency deployment is measured in a matter of weeks,
not months, for making it easy to do business with AICI.
Dic Marxen, CEO of Connective Technologies adds, AICI further expands
our presence on the east coast and adds another long-standing, well
established leader in the P&C; marketplace. We welcome AICI and their
recently acquired OMNI Insurance to our group of loyal, very satisfied
insurance carriers and agencies.
TEAM-UP Download is an Internet-secure offering being leveraged by more
than 55 P&C; carriers in providing accessibility to over 24,000
communicating agency pairs using more than 40 different agency
management systems throughout every region in the United States. Now in
its third major release, the product has matured to ensure agencies have
a seamless migration from other download processes. The improved
self-reliant features such as single-policy, real-time archival
retrievals by the agents, improved group management distribution and
tracking features that ease and accelerate the registration process for
both agencies and carriers, have been implemented with TEAM-UPs Service
Oriented Architecture. This environment ensures a seamless fit into
carriers existing agency portals and incorporates a single-process
entry point at the agency for accessing multiple carriers downloads.
About American Independent: American Independent Companies Inc.
is the parent company of growing group of auto insurance companies doing
business in twenty five states throughout the United States. The auto
insurance companies are American Independent Insurance, Personal Service
Insurance, Bankers Independent Insurance, Omni Insurance and Omni
Indemnity Insurance. The Groups Companies specialize in providing
affordable automobile insurance with low down payments and convenient
payment plans to fit any budget. Please visit our website at: www.aiico.com.
About Connective Technologies, Inc.:
Connective Technologies, Inc. is a leading provider of e-Commerce
business solutions for the property and casualty insurance industry,
specializing in Internet interface solutions for carriers and their
agents
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Aamir's totally spoilt me: Rajkumar Hirani [News & Interviews]
Sunday, November 22nd, 20090 Comments | Times of India, The, Oct 15, 2009 | by PHADKE, APARNA
In an industry, where the battle for spotlight is intense, this director is happy to see his work hog the attention.
His relaxed manner sets him apart from the rest of his ilk, so ask Rajkumar Hirani if he’s a shy guy and he smiles and says, “Shy? Not me! Actually, it’s the way I approach my work. I don’t feel the need to be talked about. Also, inherently I am not an insecure person, so whether I am in the news or not, doesn’t affect me.” CT got up, close and personal with the director and tried to unravel the secrets that make him Bollywood’s most sought after director.
Handling pressure After Munnabhai’s huge success, Hirani’s next film, 3 Idiots is being awaited with baited breath. Since he himself has raised the bar of excellence with his debut film and its sequel, is he now feeling the pressure? He says nonchalantly, “I don’t take pressure
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Your Turn: Times is right about Contra Costa County Sheriff Warren
Sunday, November 22nd, 20090 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Nov 21, 2009 | by Leo Garfield
As a professional law enforcement group of retired chiefs of police in Contra Costa County, we would like to go on record supporting the Times editorial concerning Sheriff Warren Rupf and dispute claims made by Thomas Portue criticizing it.
Many of us have known, and worked with, Sheriff Rupf for 30 years and more. We recognize, based on our professional experience, that he is one of the finest sheriffs anywhere.
Here is a man who came up from the ranks from street deputy to the top elected position with little or no opposition. Here is a sheriff who has been re-elected every time he ran with support from business, law enforcement, and the general community countywide.
Re-election after re-election does not happen where mismanagement, scandal, and graft abound. A grand jury investigation? For what and why? The suggestion is pure baloney by any measure. Oh, we forgot, we’re looking for endemic and systemic failures.
Apparently, Thomas Portue is upset that Sheriff Rupf did not identify and hang the officers in the Dugard case in the public square. Instead, he did exactly the right thing that any official in that position should do. He took the “hit” personally, and did not throw his deputies under the bus.
Congratulations Sheriff Rupf
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'I don't miss the Afternoon show at all..that's done and dusted '
Sunday, November 22nd, 20090 Comments | Daily Mirror, The; London (UK), Nov 21, 2009 | by MAEVE QUIGLEY
BLATHNAID Ni Chofaigh told last night how she didn’t shed a single tear when she left The Afternoon Show.
The presenter, who will be back on the box in the new series of The All Ireland Talent Show tomorrow night, said: “I didn’t cry at all. I’m 39 and I have 20 years of being on and off shows so it’s something that happens.
“And apart from anything else I feel so good now and it’s November. Life is good – I have the Santa letters from my kids and I know where I stand.
“It’s done and over. I don’t miss it, I miss the people on it but I don’t miss doing the show and all the work that went with it.”
The 39-year-old quit the programme in September on doctor’s advice after she underwent severe abdominal surgery.
Her departure was shrouded in controversy because of alleged allegations of bullying by her Afternoon Show co-star Sheana Keane.
Blathnaid admitted the last few months had been tough for her but said she has made the right decision.
She added: “I couldn’t do some of the things I am doing now if I was on The Afternoon Show. I have physio appointments during the day which I wouldn’t have been able to go to if I was still doing the show.
“And to be honest I don’t think it would have done me or anyone around me any good if I had gone back.”
Blathnaid had emergency surgery for a twisted bowel a year ago.
She said: “I didn’t know what was wrong but I was in severe pain and went to my GP after filming The Afternoon Show.
“If untreated, the problem could have done serious damage and I may have had to have part of my bowel removed.”
IBut in April the pain returned.
Blathnaid said: “I thought it was something to do with the previous operation but I was told it had twisted again. This time I had to get 19 staples in my bowel through keyhole surgery. It was a tough time but I was at the doctor yesterday and he’s really pleased with how I’m doing.
“And I’m alright – I’m I havn’t doing physio and pilates to strengthen my muscles.”
But Blathnaid said she hasn’t seen her co-presenter Sheana Keane since she went off sick last year. Sheana disappeared from screens before rumours of the allegations broke.
Blathnaid said: “I haven’t seen Sheana in about seven or eight months. But Ireland’s a small place so I am bound to bump into her and of course we’d have a chat.
The first thing I would ask her about would be her kids Arthur and Isabella.”
seen months Blathnaid said she has been moved by all the letters and cards she has been sent by well-wishers.
And she told how the last few months have been tough for her family and how her husband Ciaran had tried to protect her from the press coverage that surrounded her departure from the programme.
She said: “He did the school run and he screened the newsagents’ shelves. He would see some of the headlines and wouldn’t bring them back to the house, telling me I shouldn’t read them.
“But it’s hard not to. I suppose it has shown me who is kind and who isn’t but that’s life? “Some people like you and some people don’t. I don’t feel I have been treated badly at all – I got so many letters and from people all over the country wishing me well and great support from my colleagues.”
In spite of the tough time she has experienced Blathnaid can’t wait for the All Ireland Show to begin
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Oakland Raiders, Coliseum agree on new deal
Sunday, November 22nd, 20090 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Nov 18, 2009 | by Chris Metinko
The Oakland Raiders are likely to call the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum home at least through the 2013 season.
The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority and the team announced today that they have reached a tentative agreement to extend the term of the Raiders’ lease, which had been set to expire after the 2010 season.
The deal is not official yet. The Coliseum Authority, Oakland, Alameda County and the National Football League must approve the agreement. County Supervisor Scott Haggerty, chairman of the authority, and Oakland Councilmember Ignacio De La Fuente, vice chairman of the authority, anticipate that the authority, county and city will vote on the proposal before the end of the year.
De La Fuente said terms of the extension are basically the same as the current lease, which calls for the team to pay $525,000 per season and share some other revenue with the authority, such as what they get from concessions. The extension calls for the team to pay an additional $5 million over the additional three years. The team still would owe the $5 million if they decided to move to another stadium outside Alameda County.
“I don’t think you can see this as anything but a positive step for the Raiders, the city and the Coliseum,” De La Fuente said. “I think there is no doubt the best location for the Raiders is Oakland.”
De La Fuente dismissed talk of a rumored possible move to Los Angeles, saying a stadium down south is still years away and the team and the authority have a solid relationship.
That same sentiment was echoed by Raiders Chief Executive Amy Trask.
“We enjoy a productive working relationship with the city, the county and the joint powers authority, and we enjoy collaborating with them on many issues,” Trask said
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Social worker filmed up skirts
Saturday, November 21st, 20090 Comments | Daily Post; Liverpool (UK), Nov 20, 2009 | by Anonymous
A SOCIAL worker who filmed up women’s skirts during shopping trips for his own “personal gratification” was removed from the register yesterday.
Michael Bird, 55, admitted using a digital camera hidden in a sports bag to capture images of the unsuspecting females while visiting supermarkets and clothing stores in Newcastle.
A General Social Care Council (GSCC) conduct hearing in central London was told Bird worked as a senior social worker in North Tyneside Council’s emergency duty team at the time of carrying out the offences on four separate occasions in June 2008.
The panel heard how Bird was arrested on June 25 of that year by Northumbria Police, interviewed and later received a caution for voyeurism after admitting using observing equipment in a department store just before being detained.
Bird, of Newcastle, told officers he had used a tennis racquet bag to conceal a digital camera taping down the record button.
Police found some images had been edited and placed on his home computer and immediately alerted his employer.
The recovered images made reference to women’s upper thighs, bottoms and partially covered genitalia
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Utah, video gaming industry launch Web safety initiative
Saturday, November 21st, 20090 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Nov 20, 2009 | by Geoff Liesik Deseret News
In a state where officials estimate 75 percent of homes are connected to the Internet, online threats to Utah’s children seem to be everywhere.
On Wednesday, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and Michael D. Gallagher, president and CEO of the Entertainment Software Association, announced the availability of a free program — Wired With Wisdom — aimed at addressing those threats through improved parental education.
“Utah is wired, we just want it ‘Wired With Wisdom,’ ” Shurtleff said, flanked by Senate President Michael Waddoups, R-West Jordan, and House Speaker David Clark, R-Santa Clara.
The online tutorial, created by the nonprofit organization Web Wise Kids, is designed to teach adults how to keep children safe from actual and virtual harm on the Internet. Issues addressed include: e-mail safety, the creation of personal Web sites, the use of social media sites like MySpace and Facebook, and cyberbullying.
The Web-based program is designed so that “even the least Internet-savvy parent can understand these topics that our e- generation is now so eagerly embracing,” Gallagher said.
Web Wise Kids president Judi Westberg-Warren said many kids report that their parents know very little about their online activities. She said a significant percentage of those same kids report that they would modify their Internet activities if their parents were more aware of their Internet behavior.
“We know parents are so busy these days, but this is a very important part of parenting nowadays,” Westberg-Warren said.
Utah joins five other states — Arizona, California, Florida, Virginia and Washington — in adopting Wired With Wisdom. Shurtleff said he views the program as a vital component of the state’s ongoing fight against child pornographers and Internet predators who target children.
“Since I’ve been in office, we’ve put more than 550 of these Internet predators and child pornographers in prison and we saved a lot of kids that way,” the attorney general said. “However, we know that we just still hit the tip of the iceberg.
“The best way to protect our kids is to provide them with the tools to protect themselves,” Shurtleff added. “Education is absolutely critical.”
Individuals can access the Wired With Wisdom program by visiting www.webwisekids.org/WWW-UT
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