The PajamasMedia concern is preparing to cut back services. Essentially deleting the blogger services that they were providing to sites like Protein Wisdom. It appears they are headed for a TV stream format. But the bigger question is, can you think of a more mealy mouthed way to send a pink slip –
Dear Jeff,
As you know, last September Pajamas Media began a new initiative in Internet television called Pajamas TV. When we started with our RNC coverage from Minneapolis, we noted that we would be in a Beta Phase through the first quarter of 2009. In the last few months we have strengthened the PJTV lineup with shows covering Media Bias, Education Bias, Middle East Update, Sharia and Jihad, Powerline Report, Ask Dr. Helen, Hugh News, Poliwood, Conservatism 2.0, Economy and Finance, National Security, and others.
As the end of the first quarter approaches and we near the production phase of Pajamas TV, we will continue to build our emphasis in this area. As a result we have decided to wind down the Pajamas Media Blogger and advertising network effective March 31, 2009. The PJM portal and the XPressBlogs will continue as is.
Since our ad relationship continues for the time being, you should note that in order to be paid for the 1st quarter of 2009, you must leave the current Pajamas ads up until 12:01AM April 1. We will be sending you information in mid-March on removing the ads. As of April 1, 2009, you will be free to arrange syndication or re-sale deals.
We thank you very much for participating during the formative years of Pajamas Media and we look forward to working with you in other ways. One of those is, of course, Pajamas TV. If you have any ideas in that regard, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Our best wishes in the new year and again our deepest gratitude for your participation in Pajamas Media.
Sincerely,
Roger L. Simon
CEO, Pajamas Media
For a medium that has championed the idea of transparency and forthright dealings this sure ain’t it. Fact this is about as cheap as it gets in the obtuse dept. Here would be my version –
Time are tough as we are both aware. In reviewing our outgo and revenue streams, analysis has indicated that the sites not garnering XXX,XXX page views a month are not returning sufficient revenue for the expense streams incurred.
Sadly your site is among those in that category. As a consequence PajamasMedia must terminate the relationship at this time. We will be assisting you and others in a transition effort to everyone’s benefit and the least disruption of the viewer base.
This is a decision we do not take lightly and regret we have to do it at all. If after the transition your site can meet the new criteria we would welcome the opportunity to discuss the matter with you.
Sincerely,
The Boss,
CEO
Granted not as flowery but it delivers the reason why, that you are terminated and we would review your situation if something materially changes. Yes its in your face. But hey that is business.
Just an opinion. By the way, if you can, support the Protein Wisdom site. Its good work and worth the read when you can.
Link at protein wisdom.
As part of the stimulus package, there are provisions for tax abatements for rural wireless broadband deploys. Now we have been saying here for years now that rural was ripe for wireless broadband. In fact so that they really don’t need the stimulus to make it. Anyhow here are some particulars –
The Senate Finance Committee later today is expected to make tax credits available to wireless carriers and others in the telecom industry that expand broadband networks to rural and low-income urban areas with little or no high-speed Internet access.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), a senior member of the finance panel and chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, plans to offer an amendment this afternoon that provides a 10% tax credit to service providers that invest in current generation broadband (defined as at least 5 Mbps downlink and 1Mbps uplink) infrastructure in unserved and underserved portions of the country A 20% tax credit would be available to carriers that bring next-generation broadband (100 Mbps downlink and 20 Mbps uplink) networks to those areas. However, commercial mobile wireless carriers would be eligible for the 20% tax credit if they offer broadband service at speeds of at least 3 Mbps downlink and 768 Kbps unlink in unserved and underserved locales.
The irony for somebody like Verizon is that they have been selling off anything that even smells ‘rural’. So some WISPs might have a shot at this. Fact Clearwire ought to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of this largess.
More here.
If you are a one trick pony type device then what you do you have to do well. Not just better than the competition, but laps ahead of the competition. Roku, the TVoIP streaming box is in that genre of devices. And it does it with aplomb –
One of the best examples I’ve come across in the last year is the Netflix player from Roku. It’s a tiny little box that streams anything from Netflix’s on-demand library straight into your television, and that’s all it does.
It’s a wonderfully elegant little device. The user interface is clean, and the menus are super easy to navigate. It has outputs that range from RCA to composite video and HDMI, as well as digital audio. The remote has nine buttons on it – that’s fewer than I have on my cell phone – and they mimic the controls we’re all used to on a DVR or DVD player. It’s so small and simple to set up, my wife and I frequently move it between the two TVs we have in our house, and I’ve tossed it into my backpack and taken it with me to friends’ houses for movie nights.
Set up was incredibly simple, and it took less than ten minutes from the time I opened it until I was watching my first movie. Speaking as a life-long technology geek, the highest praise I can give it is this: I still haven’t opened the manual, and don’t think I’ll ever need to.
So I love it, but is it worth $99 to you? It depends on your movie-watching habits and your network speed. If your ISP throttles your bandwidth, or your download speed is slower than 3Mbps, you won’t get the best quality picture. I didn’t realize how much that really mattered to me, until I was forced to watch a bunch of movies that looked like they were VHS quality on my HDTV. I upgraded my service to a faster bitrate so I could get maximum resolution, though, and the next movie my son and I watched, Vanishing Point, was indistinguishable from DVD.
The Roku is one of those class of devices that ‘Just Works’. It lets the experience stand for itself. And no worries about the time showing ’12:00′ all the time. There is no clock!
NEC the CES octopus has reported a net loss of $1.46Bn for the current qtr reporting (Oct-Dec). Their response? Layoff 20,000 people on a global basis. –
Electronics giant NEC Corp. said it will cut 20,000 workers worldwide to stanch mounting losses, joining a slew of other Japanese corporate heavyweights who are slashing jobs to survive the deepening global downturn.
NEC’s net loss for October-December swelled to 130 billion yen ($1.46 billion) from 5.2 billion yen a year earlier as the global slump hit semiconductors and other businesses, it said Friday. Tokyo-based NEC said it would sink into the red for the full year through March, as well.
The job cuts, which include nearly 7 percent of the company’s permanent work force, will be completed by March 2010 and are part of a broader plan to restore the company’s profitability. NEC also aims to cut 80 billion yen in overhead costs at struggling semiconductor subsidiary NEC Electronics over the next two fiscal years.
NEC is a company like Sony, Daewoo, and others that are horizontally integrated and make things from electronics to household appliances to Telco gear. I would expect however that since this current downturn is consumer driven that the consumer lines at NEC are prepared to take the brunt of this layoff.
Well it looks like the House, not having been satisfied with whipping itself the first go around is coming back for a second round. We have already pontificated enough on the stupidity of this move. Check the archives if you are interested. You want to put your healtcare in the hands of these idiots? –
After failing to get the required two-third majority on Wednesday, the House is expected next week to pass legislation delaying the digital television transition to June 12, according to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. The Senate has already voted to extend the deadline, and President Obama has indicated he will sign the bill.
Just Do It Already!
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