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Amazon has long drawn hackles from bricks-and-mortar retailers that allege the Seattle Web giant enjoyed an unfair advantage in states where it didn’t have to collect sales tax. That advantage came to an end recently when Amazon began collecting sales tax in Pennsylvania and Texas and in California starting over the past weekend. But it may not matter anymore.
A new survey by Wells Fargo analyst Matt Nemer showed that consumers in Texas, the second most populous state in the nation, essentially haven’t changed their buying habits since the online sales tax went into effect in July. Nemer found that among 1,000 Texans surveyed in September, 27% shopped regularly on Amazon.com, down from 30% in June. That, he noted, was within the margin of error of 3% to 4%. Among attributes that contributed most to Texans’ shopping habits, a lack of sales tax was least important, trailing convenience
The Sales-Tax Effect on Amazon: Nada
A new trade coalition dedicated to representing the voice of the Internet infrastructure industry — including cloud computing providers, domain registrars and Web hosting companies — launched.
The Internet Infrastructure Coalition, or i2Coalition for short, will represent Internet infrastructure companies' views on public policy matters and advocate for policies that will support the continued growth of the industry. The i2Coalition has 42 inaugural members, including cloud computing company Rackspace and Web hosting provider ServInt. The idea for the i2Coalition was born out of the wave of protests that led to the defeat of the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) earlier this year.
New coalition representing Internet infrastructure industry launches
After two consecutive years of record growth, the cable advertising market has cooled down considerably—and if the current scatter market is any indication, the networks could be in for a long, cold winter.
According to calculations made by the Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau, ad-supported cable networks this summer generated nearly $9.8 billion in upfront commitments, and while that represents a record haul, it’s also just $511 million more than the 2011-12 total. That 5 percent year-over-year improvement pales in comparison to the 16 percent volume increase delivered in last year’s bazaar when cable nets took in $9.29 billion in advance sales, or $1.28 billion more than in the 2010-11 upfront. Cable upfront sales have been on the rise for the last three years, soaring 45 percent since the “correction year” 2009-10 bazaar. But a stagnant economy threw cold water on what sales execs hoped would be yet another strong summer selloff, and there’s been little relief on the scatter front.
Good News/Bad News: Cable Notches Record Upfront Haul, but Market Is Slumping
Political campaigns could face up to a $16,000 fine per violation from the Federal Communications Commission if they make robocalls to cellphones, according to a new warning from the agency.
That’s in line with the FCC’s existing regulations, which were first proposed two years ago. “Prerecorded voice and autodialed calls (including live calls, prerecorded voice messages, and text messages) may NOT be delivered to cell phones, pagers, or other mobile devices without the prior express consent of the called party,” the advisory states. “This restriction governs all prerecorded voice and autodialed calls, including political ones.” Some campaigns may find themselves unknowingly in violation of the law, as a voter may have put his or her number on a party roll. There’s no obvious way for a campaign to immediately know if that number is a cellphone or not, after all.
Political campaigns will be hit with $16,000 fine for robocalls, FCC says
Broadcasters have asked a federal court to delay hearing its appeal of the Federal Communications Commission's political file online posting requirement, suggesting that experience gained from this election cycle will help it determine how, and if, to proceed. The National Association of Broadcasters says the FCC and its supporters are OK with pushing back the schedule. In a petition to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, the NAB asked the court to defer NAB's opening brief from Oct. 4 to Feb. 15, 2013. NAB offered to provide a status report to the court in January on any "relevant developments."
NAB Asks Court to Delay Broadcaster Political File Appeal Broadcasters consider dropping suit over FCC's political ad database (The Hill)
Marketers are well aware of the upside of reaching millennials - those in the 13-34 age demo -- but a new study by Nielsen says advertisers need to be careful of how they reach out to each gender, finding that males and females are drawn to very different types of TV commercials.
As far as the tone of the commercials, female millennials like upbeat ads with high-energy scenes and lively music. Male millennials like action-oriented or humorous commercials. Female millennials prefer commercials with strong and inspirational female celebrities, while male millennials like commercials with competition and extreme imagery. In the area of humor, female millennials like commercials that are silly but not mean-spirited, while males like commercials that are edgy, sarcastic and a bit offbeat. Female millennials appreciate characters in pleasant situations that they can identify with, while males like to see regular guys in exaggerated situations.
Message to Marketers: How Male and Female Millennials Respond to Different TV Ads
Cable companies will be allowed to acquire local phone companies, thanks to a Federal Communications Commission order. Such deals are prohibited under a strict reading of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, although cable and telephone companies were permitted to enter into joint ventures, and under certain conditions, phone companies are permitted to acquire cable systems. The order, technically a "limited forbearance," announces that the FCC will not apply the letter of the law, in an effort to "harmonize" the rules for both cable and telephone companies. In the order, the FCC pointed out that the "competitive effect of [such] mergers ... will be similar, irrespective of which of the merging parties initiates the purchase of the other."
FCC Order Deregulates Cable-Phone Deals FCC (read the order) Statement (Chairman Genachowski) Statement (Commissioner McDowell) Statement (Commissioner Pai) FCC OKs Cable/CLEC Purchases (B&C)
From true fanatics to casual viewers, TV remains the dominant channel through which consumers get their sports fix. One-half -- 49.8% -- of all sports fans say the television is still their primary source for sports information, according to a recent survey of 950 U.S. online adults by Burst Media. Still, more than a quarter -- 26.5% -- now cite content Web sites as their main connection to sports. Interestingly, among all sports fans, the divide between television and content sites is reduced significantly -- by 17.4% -- when it comes to which medium respondents say is the best for sports news and information, versus what they indicated was their primary medium.
Sports Fans Turn More To Web, Social Media
The Wi-Fi Cold Spot, a project created by Ben Brady, a graduate of Harvard’s Graduate School of Design, provides a haven of disconnectedness in a sea of connectivity. "We’re quick to assume connectivity is better," says Brady, now a teaching fellow for Harvard’s Library Test Kitchen seminar. "We think of places with Wi-Fi disconnection as dead spots. But disconnection deserves the same kind of craft and care that we’re giving the digital."
The Wi-Fi Cold Spot Shields You From The Pressures Of Modern Technology
An official of Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei Technologies said he is concerned that new Australian laws to protect communication networks from cyber-attacks could exclude companies from tendering for work simply because they're Chinese. Huawei's Australian subsidiary was last year barred on security grounds from working on a national broadband network that is now under construction. Its chairman John Lord told a parliamentary committee hearing on the proposed law that Australia could lose its competitive edge if it excluded companies from sensitive projects based on their nationality alone.
Huawei: Australia law could exclude China firms