Yahoo Finance kills app for beleaguered RIM's BlackBerry ...

Jan 30, 2012 - 05:30 PM EST ? AAPL: 453.01 (+5.73, +1.28%) | NASDAQ: 2811.94 (-4.61, -0.16%)

Monday, January 30, 2012 ? 12:39 pm ? 13 Comments

?On Friday afternoon, Internet giant Yahoo announced that it was decommissioning 10 of its mobile apps, saying on a company blog that ??Our plan is to keep moving, to keep innovating, and to continuously measure and scrutinize what?s working and what isn?t ? so we can make room for great new products,?? Michael Comeau writes for Minyanville. ?Now I can understand Yahoo pulling back to reassess its app strategy on the ultra-competitive Apple iOS and Google Android platforms. However, I was truly surprised to see the company pull the Yahoo Finance app for Research In Motion?s Blackberry.?

?I remember a day when Blackberry was standard-issue equipment for all the soldiers in corporate America, a crowd that, as you can imagine, would be very likely to demand financial news and data on the go. Yahoo Finance is one of just a handful of Web properties that have stood the test of time. Think about it. Very few of the content sites that dominated in the late 1990s still have kingpin status today, and Yahoo Finance is one of them,? Comeau writes. ?Its position at the absolute top of the finance vertical hasn?t ever been even remotely threatened by competitors, including Google.?

?The fact that the dominant Web finance property is pulling away from the business-centric Blackberry platform is truly a sign of the times. Given that, maybe I shouldn?t have been surprised by Yahoo?s move,? Comeau writes. ?from an anecdotal perspective, I?ve been awfully surprised at the increasing number of ?suits? I see around New York City sporting iPhones and iPads. And when I say suits, I don?t mean young, dashing folks in fashion or media ? I?m talking about Fortune 500 types in their 40s, 50s, and 60s. Again, a crowd that would seem to want financial news and data on the go. And Yahoo [Finance] just decided that crowd isn?t big enough to support [on BlackBerry].?

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: In the early days of iPhone, we used to say to those still toting BlackBerry phones, ?Nice stylus.? Lately, we can?t find anybody with a BlackBerry to whom to be snide.

Source: http://macdailynews.com/2012/01/30/yahoo-finance-kills-app-for-beleaguered-rims-blackberry/

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Euro jobs crisis puts Germany at core of growth debate (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) ? The euro zone creaked under the weight of record unemployment at the end of 2011 while jobless rates in Germany fell to historic lows, putting the onus firmly on Europe's top economy to take the lead in steering the struggling region back to recovery.

Joblessness in Italy rose to its highest since current records began in 2004, underlining the divergent fortunes of nations at the region's core and its periphery.

The data came a day after Europe's leaders met at a summit to try to shift the economic debate from fighting a deepening debt crisis to reviving growth.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel put her stamp firmly on the continent at the summit when 25 out of 27 EU states agreed to a German-inspired pact for stricter budget discipline.

Ticking both the growth and austerity boxes is tough. It means steering a policy course that promotes stimulus to revive a regional economy teetering on the edge of recession while also pursuing tough cutbacks to keep at bay market players harrying the weaker links in the euro zone debt chain.

As its economy becomes ever more dominant in the region, Germany faces mounting pressure to front the unenviable task of squaring that policy circle, and end an acute balance of payments crisis in the region.

"Germany is showing that there is life and fun after austerity," Holger Schmieding, economist at Berenberg Bank in London, said, referring to the German jobs data.

But hopes that traditionally export-focused Germany has much leeway to persuade its citizens to buy more goods and services from other parts of Europe may be misplaced, and the more urgent task would appear to be restoring market faith in the euro zone.

"The key for the near-term outlook is not for government spending, it is for the return of (market) confidence," Schmieding said.

In that respect, Germany - along with the European Central Bank - could be "a bit more generous." "I would like them both to sign up to a stronger safety net for Italy," Schmieding said.

Jobless rates in Italy and Spain, both struggling to persuade markets they can manage their debts against the backdrop of stagnating economies, have risen to multi-year highs.

Joblessness in Italy rose to 8.9 percent, its highest since current records began in 2004, the country's statistics institute said on Tuesday - a figure dwarfed by the 17-year high of 22.85 percent with which Spain ended the year.

German unemployment, by contrast, fell a tenth of a percentage point in January from December to 6.7 percent.

BALANCE OF PAYMENTS

Germany's economy has revived strongly since the crisis of 2008/9, while many of its euro zone peers have stagnated.

Its rebound has been driven in large part by exports, with domestic demand growing at a slower rate, meaning outflows of goods and services between it and its euro zone partners have been heavily weighted in Berlin's favor.

Reversing those flows - or at least ironing out the imbalances - would boost the region's weaker economies.

But getting this done, perhaps by allowing more stores to open on Sundays to boost consumer spending, would have a limited effect.

Germany is also not immune to the currency global slowdown.

Its economy is now at risk of contacting in at least one quarter this year, so German employers also need to be wary of granting inflation-busting pay awards such as the 6.5 percent sought by the IG Metall union for its 3.3 million electronics and metal industry workers.

Across the bloc as a whole, meanwhile, concerns about the outlook for the euro zone seem to have dampened the traditional pre-Christmas shopping spree in the region's top two economies, data showed on Tuesday.

In France, consumer spending unexpectedly dropped by 0.7 percent in December in a sign consumers are tightening their purse strings as uncertainties over jobs and economic growth weigh.

"What's obvious is that we've got a real stagnation in consumer spending which raises questions about France's economic model which is based largely on dynamic consumption," Gilles Moec, economist at Deutsche Bank, said.

Data suggested a similar problem in Germany, where retail sales unexpectedly fell 1.4 percent.

GERMANY LEADS

But economists said anecdotal evidence as well as recent consumer surveys suggest German demand remains buoyant and the figure would be revised up.

"As long as the labor market is doing well, consumption will be strong," Commerzbank's Ulrike Rondorf said.

That is a lesson Europe's weaker nations may learn by following Germany's lead.

Back in 2005, Germany's jobless rate soared to above 12 percent, while Spain's fell to below 8.5 percent.

Since then, Berlin has implemented root-and-branch labor reforms, matching work hours more closely to demand and introducing job sharing and encouraging part-time work.

By the end of 2011 that picture had dramatically reversed, with Germany falling to a post-reunification low and Spain clocking off the year at 22.85 percent, its highest jobless rate in 17 years.

"Germany, in putting into place reforms, has showed that there is a way to prevent this rise in unemployment," Etienne de Callatay, economist at Bank Degroof in Brussels, said.

"... If we want to fight against unemployment you need to follow the German example."

Spain's government will unveil major labor reforms later this month, but even if they are far-reaching, the country's central bank only expects jobless rates to fall in the medium term.

Growth will only come "from a return of core Europe to where it was before July of last year," when concerns about peripheral nations' ability to service their debts triggered a bout of market contagion, Berenberg Bank's Schmieding said.

(Reporting by Sarah Marsh, Brian Rohan, Robin Emmott and Vicky Buffery. Editing by Jeremy Gaunt.)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120131/bs_nm/us_eurozone_economy

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Gingrich wants panel to look at in vitro clinics (The Arizona Republic)

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300 arrested in daylong Occupy Oakland protests

Occupy Oakland protestors burn an American flag found inside Oakland City Hall during an Occupy Oakland protest on the steps of City Hall, Saturday, January 28, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Beck Diefenbach)

Occupy Oakland protestors burn an American flag found inside Oakland City Hall during an Occupy Oakland protest on the steps of City Hall, Saturday, January 28, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Beck Diefenbach)

A woman pleads with Occupy Oakland protestors to not burn an American flag found inside Oakland City Hall during an Occupy Oakland protest, Saturday, January 28, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. Police were in the process of arresting about 100 Occupy protesters for failing to disperse Saturday night, hours after officers used tear gas on a rowdy group of demonstrators who threw rocks and flares at them and tore down fences. (AP Photo/Beck Diefenbach)

Oakland Police block the entrance to City Hall after Occupy Oakland protestors gained access into the building during an Occupy Oakland protest, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. Oakland officials say police are in the process of arresting about 100 Occupy protesters for failing to disperse on Saturday. (AP Photo/Beck Diefenbach)

Oakland police block off a street in downtown Oakland during an Occupy Oakland protest, Saturday, January 28, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. Police were in the process of arresting about 100 Occupy protesters for failing to disperse Saturday night, hours after officers used tear gas on a rowdy group of demonstrators who threw rocks and flares at them and tore down fences. (AP Photo/Beck Diefenbach)

An Oakland City police officer stomps out a burning American flag after Occupy Oakland protestors set City Hall's flag on fire during an Occupy Oakland protest, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/Beck Diefenbach)

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) ? Dozens of police maintained a late-night guard around City Hall following daylong protests that resulted in 300 arrests. Occupy Oakland demonstrators broke into the historic building and burned a U.S. flag, as officers earlier fired tear gas to disperse people throwing rocks and tearing down fencing at a convention center.

Saturday's protests ? the most turbulent since Oakland police forcefully dismantled an Occupy encampment in November ? came just days after the group said it planned to use a vacant building as a social center and political hub and threatened to try to shut down the port, occupy the airport and take over City Hall.

An exasperated Mayor Jean Quan, who faced heavy criticism for the police action last fall, called on the Occupy movement to "stop using Oakland as its playground."

"People in the community and people in the Occupy movement have to stop making excuses for this behavior," Quan said.

Protesters clashed with police throughout the day, at times throwing rocks, bottles and other objects at officers. And police responded by deploying smoke, tear gas and bean bag rounds, City Administrator Deanna Santanta said.

Interim Police Chief Howard Jordan said about 300 arrests were made.

"These demonstrators stated their intention was to provoke officers and engage in illegal activity and that's exactly what has occurred today," Santana said.

The group assembled outside City Hall late Saturday morning and marched through the streets, disrupting traffic as they threatened to take over the vacant Henry Kaiser Convention Center.

The protesters walked to the vacant convention center, where some started tearing down perimeter fencing and "destroying construction equipment" shortly before 3 p.m., police said.

Police said they issued a dispersal order and used smoke and tear gas after some protesters pelted them with bottles, rocks, burning flares and other objects.

The number of demonstrators swelled as the day wore on, with afternoon estimates ranging from about 1,000 to 2,000 people.

A majority of the arrests came after police took scores of protesters into custody as they marched through the city's downtown, with some entering a YMCA building, said Sgt. Jeff Thomason, a police spokesman.

Quan said that at one point, many protesters forced their way into City Hall, where they burned flags, broke an electrical box and damaged several art structures, including a recycled art exhibit created by children.

She blamed the destruction on a small "very radical, violent" splinter group within Occupy Oakland.

"This is not a situation where we had a 1,000 peaceful people and a few violent people. If you look at what's happening today in terms of destructing property, throwing at and charging the police, it's almost like they are begging for attention and hoping that the police will make an error."

Dozens of officers surrounded City Hall, while others swept the inside of the building looking for protesters who had broken into the building, then ran out of the building with American flags before officers arrived.

The protest group issued an email criticizing police, saying "Occupy Oakland's building occupation, an act of constitutionally protected civil disobedience was disrupted by a brutal police response today."

Michael Davis, 32, who is originally from Ohio and was in the Occupy movement in Cincinnati, said Saturday was a very hectic day that originally started off calm but escalated when police began using "flash bangs, tear gas, smoke grenades and bean bags."

"What could've been handled differently is the way the Oakland police came at us," Davis said. "We were peaceful."

City leaders joined Quan in criticizing the protesters.

"City Hall is closed for the weekend. There is no excuse for behavior we've witnessed this evening," City Council President Larry Reid said during a news briefing Saturday.

Oakland Councilman Ignacio De La Fuente, echoed Reid's sentiments and said that what was going on amounts to "domestic terrorism."

The national Occupy Wall Street movement, which denounces corporate excess and economic inequality, began in New York City in the fall but has been largely dormant lately.

Oakland, New York and Los Angeles were among the cities with the largest and most vocal Occupy protests early on. The demonstrations ebbed after those cities used force to move out hundreds of demonstrators who had set up tent cities.

In Oakland, the police department received heavy criticism for using force to break up earlier protests. Quan was among the critics, but on Saturday, she seemed to have changed her tune.

"Our officers have been very measured," Quan said. "Were there some mistakes made? There may be. I would say the Oakland police and our allies, so far a small percentage of mistakes. "But quite frankly, a majority of protesters who were charging the police were clearly not being peaceful.

Earlier this month, a court-appointed monitor submitted a report to a federal judge that included "serious concerns" about the department's handling of the Occupy protests.

Jordan said late Saturday that he was in "close contact" with the federal monitor during the protests.

Quan added, "If the demonstrators think that because we are working more closely with the monitor now that we won't do what we have to do to uphold the law and try keep people safe in this city, they're wrong."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-29-Occupy%20Oakland/id-88d2af986fec4fc0bdce725e7e8e2dfd

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Slave port unearthed in Brazil

The Valongo Wharf in Rio de Janerio was the busiest of all slave ports in the Americas and has been buried for almost two centuries.

? A local, slice-of-life story from a Monitor correspondent.

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Not far from here at least 500,000 Africans took their first steps into slavery in colonial Brazil, which took in far more slaves than the United States and where now half of its 200 million citizens claim African descent.

The ?Cais do Valongo? ? the Valongo Wharf ? was the busiest of all slave ports in the Americas and has been buried for almost two centuries under subsequent infrastructure projects and dirt.

That is, until developers seeking to turn Rio?s shabby port neighborhood into a posh tourist center allowed teams of archaeologists to check out what was being unearthed.

?We knew we had found the wharf,? says archaeologist Tania Andrade Lima, showing a ramp made up of knobbly, uneven stones used by slaves. It lay beneath a layer of smoother cobblestones from a dock installed later for the arrival of a Portuguese royal.

Ms. Lima and other community leaders are creating a walking tour that will include the wharf, a nearby cemetery for Africans who died soon after their arrival, and a holding pen called the ?Lazareto,? derived from Jesus? parable about a beggar named Lazarus, where newly arrived Africans were checked for diseases.

The wharf alone is nearly 22,000 square feet. ?This gives a dimension to how huge the influx of slaves was,? says Lima.

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Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/C8HzhyUXmb0/Slave-port-unearthed-in-Brazil

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Will, Jaden Smith: Buzzed Head Buddies (PHOTOS)

Media Takeout:

We always knew that LIL MAN looked like his pops. But now he's Will's SPITTING IMAGE!!!

Read the whole story: Media Takeout

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/28/will-jaden-smith-buzzed-hair-twitter-photos_n_1239121.html

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Israel says Iran 'drifting' toward nuke goal line (AP)

DAVOS, Switzerland ? Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak says the world must quickly stop Iran from reaching the point where even a "surgical" military strike could not block it from obtaining nuclear weapons.

Barak says tougher international sanctions are needed against Tehran's oil and banks so that "we all will know early enough whether the Iranians are ready to give up their nuclear weapons program."

Iran insists its atomic program is only aimed at producing energy and research, but has repeatedly refused to consider giving up its ability to enrich uranium.

Barak told reporters Friday in Davos, Switzerland that the situation is "urgent, because the Iranians are deliberately drifting into what we call an immunity zone where practically no surgical operation could block them."

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) ? U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon urged a resumption of dialogue between Western powers and Iran on their nuclear dispute Friday, and said Tehran must comply with Security Council resolutions and prove conclusively that its nuclear development program is not directed to making arms.

"The onus is on Iran," said Ban, speaking here at a press conference during the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.

"They have to prove themselves that their nuclear development program is genuinely for peaceful purposes, which they have not done yet." he said.

Ban expressed concern at the most recent report of the International Atomic Energy Agency that strongly suggested that Iran nuclear program, which it long has claimed is for development of power generation, has a military intent.

In spite of his tough words to Iran, Ban said that dialogue with the "three-plus-three" ? Germany, France and Britain plus Russia, China and the United States ? is the path forward.

"There is no other alternative for addressing this crisis than peaceful ... resolution through dialogue," said Ban.

Ban noted that there have been a total of five Security Council resolutions so far on the Iranian nuclear program, four calling for sanctions.

As tensions have been on the rise recently, some political leaders in Israel and the United States have been speaking increasingly of the possibility of a military strike to eliminate, or at least slow down, what they allege is a determined effort by Iran to obtain nuclear weapons.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iran/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120127/ap_on_re_eu/eu_davos_forum_iran

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