INDEX OF POSTS

MEDIA, COMMUNICATIONS, ENTERTAINMENT: as of 1/1/2025

Who Owns the Media "The past two decades have witnessed the number of major corporations that dominate television, movies, music, …OLD LINKS
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/07/who-owns-media-past-two-decades-have.html
Jul 8, 2007
label: Media Summary

COMCAST: NBC Universal (80% owned by General Electric, 20% owned by Vivendi Universal of France ), (from http://www.freepress.net/ownership/char...

https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-general-electric-owns-from-httpwww.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: General Electric, NBC/Universal

TIME-WARNER OWNS: Content: TV, Radio and Filmed Cable Systems, #2 in USA ISP (AOL) Magazines Books Games 1 radio station...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-time-warner-owns-tv-network-wb.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: Time-Warner

WALT DISNEY COMPANY OWNS: (FROM http://www.freepress.net/ownership/chart.php ) TV: The ABC Television Network: ABC Entertainment,...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-walt-disney-company-owns-from.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: Walt Disney Company

VIVENDI-UNIVERSAL OWNS: (FROM http://www.freepress.net/ownership/chart.php ) Music: 50 U.S. and International record labels: Barclay...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-vivendi-universal-owns-from.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: Vivendi-Universal

MURDOCH: NEWS CORPORATION (RUPERT MURDOCH) OWNS: (FROM http://www.freepress.net/ownership/chart.php ) TV: Cable channels: Fox...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-news-corporation-rupert-murdoch.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: News Corporation-Fox/Rupert Murdoch

BERTELSMANN OWNS: (FROM http://www.freepress.net/ownership/chart.php ) Magazine, Gruner+Jahr: owns more than 285 print titles, includ...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-bertelsmann-owns-from-httpwww.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: Bertelsmann

PARAMOUNT GLOBAL: CBS-VIACOM OWNS: (FROM http://www.freepress.net/ownership/chart.php ) (technically, two separate companies but with the same owner)...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-cbs-viacom-owns-from-httpwww.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: CBS-Viacom

IHM: Clear Channel Agrees to Sell Television Station Group to Providence Equity Partners; 56 stations. https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/clear-channel-agrees-to-sell-television.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: Clear Channel

Matrix of Big USA Media Monopolies DOES NOT ENLARGE WHEN CLICKED ON
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/blog-post.html
Oct 11, 2007
Media Summary

LIBERTY Media Group SOURCE: http://www.libertymedia.com/ir/asset_list.htm also cross-checked with wikipedia and http:...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/companies-owned-by-liberty-media-group.html
Oct 17, 2007
label: Liberty Media

IAC: Liberty Media-Controlled Interactive Corp. to be split up into 5 new pieces; was split in two in 2005 Interactive Corp. once o...to spin off Ticketmaster, HSN and others
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/1162007-liberty-media-controlled.html
Nov 6, 2007
label: Liberty Media

VERTICAL MONOPOLIES: Are the corporate suits ruining TV Network control and media consolidation are wringing the creativity out of entertainment. …In the mid 1990's, there were 40 indy producers of USA TV shows. In 1995, the FCC abolished the Fin/Syn rules, letting broadcasters own shows. Now there are zero independent show producers.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/are-corporate-suits-ruining-tv-network.html
Nov 7, 2007
label: Media Summary

MURDOCH: British Government Investigating Murdoch Media holdings; Murdoch wants British Sky News to be more like rightwing Fox …
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/british-government-investigating.html
Nov 25, 2007
label: News Corporation-Fox/Rupert Murdoch

Murdoch Deals Some of his TV Empire to the Tribune Company 12-24-2007 BACKGROUND: Tribune is the major carrier of the CW ...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/12/murdoch-deals-some-of-his-tv-empire-to.html
Dec 24, 2007
label: News Corporation-Fox/Rupert Murdoch, Tribune Company

TRIBUNE COMPANY: SUMMARY OF WHAT THEY OWN: 23 TV stations--Major carrier of the CW Network, which is owned by CBS and Time-Warner … ALL SOLD
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/12/tribune-company-summary-of-what-they.html
Dec 24, 2007
label: Tribune Company

Scam to get consumers to replace their DVD Collections Picks Up Steam (When they come up with some "high definition" writin... Format wars for DVDs may soon be irrelevant with streaming taking over https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/01/scam-to-get-consumers-to-replace-their.html
Jan 5, 2008
label: Stop Consuming--Buy Nothing

Cartoon: Tired of Poll-Driven News Coverage of Elections, Instead of Issue-Driven News Coverage Lie to a Pollster.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/01/tired-of-poll-driven-news-coverage-of.html
Jan 10, 2008

MILESTONES IN MEDIA MONOPOLISM: compiled by Rex Frankel, 1/19/2009 OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS, THE BIG 5 MEDIA CORPORATIONS BOUGHT UP THE M...Jan 19, 2009. History of big media cos purchases and divestitures
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/milestones-in-media-monopolism-compiled.html
label: CBS-Viacom, Media Summary, NBC/Universal, News Corporation-Fox/Rupert Murdoch, Time-Warner, Walt Disney Company

Like good dope dealers...May 13, 2009. TV and Film producers get around cable and satellite cos. By showing programs and films on the internet
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/05/like-good-dope-dealers.html
label: Monopoly Price Gouging, NBC/Universal, News Corporation-Fox/Rupert Murdoch, a la carte cable

Fox News--the choice of 1% of America...Oct 23, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/10/fox-stands-alone-against-massive.html
label: News Corporation-Fox/Rupert Murdoch, The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

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BROADCAST TV: Media Giants Say Anti-Monopoly Rules Governing the Public-Owned, but Corporate-Occupied Airwaves are Unfair...to Them. On broadcast TV station ownership limits. “We are deprived of reaching 65% of USA audience”. story is from 2001
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/12/boo-hoo.html
Dec 10, 2007,
label: Fairness Doctrine, Media Summary, The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

BROADCAST TV: Digital TV Changeover Really Just a Big Gift to the Broadcasters at the Expense of Consumers, Feb 18, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/is-digital-tv-changeover-really-just.html
label: the Digital TV Conversion Scam

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LIVE ENTERTAINMENT: Ticketmaster charges: A concert killer After paying a 30% to 40% premium ove r the face value of a ticket, some concert goers have had enou...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/ticketmaster-charges-concert-killer.html
Nov 12, 2007
label: Monopoly Price Gouging

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NEWSPAPERS:

NEWSPAPERS: CALIFORNIA DAILY NEWSPAPERS 117 total --45 out of 117 are owned by MediaNews Group -Only in L.A and the Bay Area...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/ownership-of-california-daily.html
Oct 9, 2007
Label: Newspaper monopolization in California

NEWSPAPERS: Time to start paying...May 26, 2009. Get readers addicted, then jack up prices
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/05/time-to-start-paying.html
label: Newspaper monopolization in California

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PHONES:

PHONES: Apple Computer and AT&T Tie Down I-Phone Buyers; Hackers Undo Problem; Apple Sends "Updates" to Wreck the Untied Phones Surpri...I-Phone buyers required to buy service from AT&T
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/apple-computer-and-at-tie-down-i-phone.html
Oct 25, 2007
label: AT+T

PHONES: Text message charges soar. It's the communication method of choice these days, but texting two-liners can totally add up. Charges even for spam.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/omg-text-message-charges-soar-its.html
Nov 12, 2007
label: Monopoly Price Gouging

PHONES: AT&T: Buying Back its Monopoly. AT&T is the U.S.’s dominant phone company. Despite the 1983 breakup of AT&T’s monopoly b...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/at-buying-back-its-monopoly-at-is-u.html
Nov 26, 2007
label: AT+T

PHONES: Watch Out for Sky-High Cell Phone Bills from Internet-Connected Phones! Cell Phone Bills that Truly Roam 1/7/2009 L.A. Times Jan 8, 2009 High roaming rates when traveling out of USA
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/watch-out-for-sky-high-cell-phone-bills.html
label: Monopoly Price Gouging

PHONES: Text-Messaging record, Two Men May Finally Get a Life... Slaves to their cell phone company rack up a $26,000 bill in 1 mo...Apr 22, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/04/after-setting-record-for-text-messaging.html
label: Stop Consuming--Buy Nothing

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RADIO:

RADIO: Right-Wing Radio Talk Show Business --analysis by Rex Frankel. A report by a progressive media watch group relea... What percentage of big radio station owners airtime is liberal vs conservative.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-companies-dominate-right-wing.html
Oct 8, 2007
label: Fairness Doctrine, Right-Wing Radio

RADIO: Clear Channel is in Trouble.... (next to Fox, the biggest media backer of the Bush regime) Clear Channe...Mar 26, 2008 Radio biz is stagnant
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/03/overvalued-and-generally-evil-clear.html
label: Clear Channel

Giving “Choice” to a Captive Audience is bad for media behemoths: The USA ’s Biggest Radio monopolies are selling off stations, B...Aug 2, 2008 CBS and Clear Channel selling non essential radio stations
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/08/giving-choice-to-captive-audience-is.html
label: CBS-Viacom, Clear Channel

"LA radio: two companies own nine of the top 11 stations..."
Apr 22, 2011
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2011/04/what-it-comes-down-to-is-that-two.html
Labels: CBS-Viacom, Clear Channel, Media Summary, Right-Wing Radio

IheartMedia: RADIO: Mitt Who (Bain Capital, Clear Channel radio is in trouble) Jun 22, 2013
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2013/06/mitt-who.html
Labels: Clear Channel, Right-Wing Radio

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CABLE:

CABLE a la carte still isn't on menu. .. Bundling vs a la carte
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/excuses.html .
Nov 26, 2007
label: a la carte cable

CABLE: smaller Cable owners group says it opposes bundling. From Bloomberg News January 5, 2008. A group representing 1,100 smaller … Bundling is when producers insist cable customers take low rated channels in exchange for getting highly sought channels
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/01/cable-group-says-it-opposes-bundling.html
Jan 5, 2008
label: Monopoly Price Gouging, a la carte cable

CABLE System Operators Have Fought Consumer Choice (aka A la carte) Cable, Consumers are taking their dollars elsewhere. In Response...Feb 18, 2009. Media corps sell off non-essential businesses
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/while-cable-system-operators-have.html
label: Media Summary, a la carte cable

CABLE Industry Fires Back Against Viewer Choice Feb 27, 2009 ??????
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/cable-industry-fires-back-against.html
label: Monopoly Price Gouging, a la carte cable

CABLE Customers Sue over Mandatory Sports Channel fees -- Jun 21, 2013
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2013/06/cable-customers-sue-over-mandatory.html
Label: a la carte cable

CABLE: You Can't Beat 'em If You Can't Join 'em (Cable Monopolies v Municipal internet providers)
Sep 1, 2014
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2014/09/you-cant-beat-em-if-you-cant-join-em.html
label: Monopoly Price Gouging

CABLE: Media Monopolists Want to Tighten their Grip --Sep 8, 2014
Comcast is buying Time Warner Cable, would get 19 of top 20 cable markets. Net neutrality.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2014/09/media-monopolists-want-to-tighten-their.html
labels: Monopoly Price Gouging, a la carte cable

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OIL, ENERGY, CARS. TRAINS:

A GUIDE TO WHO OWNS THE OIL INDUSTRY: (not advertising, just a fact!) http://www.oilwatchdog.org http://www.ol...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/07/guide-to-who-owns-oil-industry-not.html
Jul 8, 2007
label: Oil Company Greed

It's About Time—oil profits drop
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/its-about-time.html
Oct 11, 2007
label: Oil Company Greed

U.S. Automakers Smell the Winds of Change. Will Builders of Gas Hogs and SUVs Change their Products or just to whom they send politica...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/u.html
Nov 30, 2007
label: er...bribery

Note: While we'll never get a handle on global warming and smog as long as we continue to be tied to cars and oil as the main way...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/01/valero-steps-on-gas-in-state-companys.html
Jan 8, 2008
label: Oil Company Greed

Think Oil Companies Put their Huge Profits into Finding New Supplies of Oil, Think Again: Where Big Oil's profits go By John Porret...Jul 22, 2008
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/07/blog-post_22.html
label: Oil Company Greed

Moron-Math Used to Claim Exxon-Mobil is Overtaxed 8/18/2008 When oil-industry propagandists try to fool the public into showing sympat... Aug 18, 2008
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/08/moron-math-used-to-claim-exxon-mobil-is.html
label: Oil Company Greed

HOW THE 5 BIG OIL COMPANIES GOT SO BIG: 1/19/2009 compiled by Rex Frankel British Petroleum (major brand name in USA is ARCO): compet...Jan 19, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/how-5-big-oil-companies-got-so-big.html
label: Oil Company Greed

MONOPOLIZATION OF THE WORLD'S CAR INDUSTRY compiled by Rex Frankel, 1/19/2009 THE BIG 3 USA CAR MAKERS: General Motors, sells und...Jan 19, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/monopolization-of-worlds-car-industry.html
label: Car monopolies

THE BIG-4 RAILROAD MONOPOLIES: compiled by Rex Frankel, 1/19/2009 thanks to wikipedia.org and oligopolywatch.com for helpful data 4 Com...
Jan 19, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/big-4-railroad-monopolies-compiled-by.html
label: Railroad monopolies

In a bad economy, Oil companies still profit ...Mar 4, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/03/in-bad-economy-oil-companies-still.html
label: Oil Company Greed

Good News, and More Good News Feb 27, 2010. Fuel cell unveiled. GM to shut down Hummer.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/02/good-news-and-more-good-news.html
label: Car monopolies, Oil Company Greed

The Mass Sell-Off of Car Lines by USA Car Companies is near complete Coming after massive hikes in gas prices by the oil monopolies, Ameri...Jun 4, 2010 DRAFT NO LINK

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HEALTH INDUSTRY:

Exposing the Right-Wing's Lies about Health insurance reform Aug 19, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/08/exposing-right-wings-lies-about-health.html
label: Health Care v. Wealth Care

My Cure for Health Reform Fears... cartoons Aug 27, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/08/my-cure-for-health-reform-fears.html
label: Health Care v. Wealth Care

The USA is already the biggest health insurance company--and the private insurance companies still thrive! Feb 4, 2010
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/02/usa-is-already-biggest-health-insurance.html
label: Health Care v. Wealth Care

ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha , it's about freaking time! cartoon Mar 25, 2010
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/03/ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-its-about.html

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FOOD, APPLIANCES, FINANCE, AEROSPACE

Could No One See this Coming? – BANKS COLLAPSE Dec 7, 2008
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/12/could-no-one-see-this-coming.html

WHO MAKES ALL THE APPLIANCES, HARDWARE AND TOOLS compiled by Rex Frankel, 1/19/2009 THE BIG 3 APPLIANCE MAKERS: In recent years, Ameri...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/who-makes-all-appliances-hardware-and.html Jan 19, 2009
label: Appliances-Hardware-Tools

HOW THE 4 SUPER-BANKS GOT SO BIG... compiled by Rex Frankel, 1/19/2009 BANK OF AMERICA: 4800 branches, 15,000 ATM’s Bought...Jan 19, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/how-4-super-banks-got-so-big.html
label: Banking Monopolies

Aerospace and Defense Contractors...Jan 19, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/st1behaviorurlieooui-style-definitions.html
label: Aerospace and Defense Contractors

THE TEN BIGGEST FOOD PROCESSORS ON YOUR SUPERMARKET SHELVES Sept 27, 2016
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-ten-biggest-food-processors-on-your.html

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THE GAP BETWEEN RICH AND POOR:

The Rich are Getting Really Rich, Really Fast
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/rich-getting-richer-faster-new-studies.html
Jul 9, 2007

Gap between rich, poor seen growing. Income disparity reaches highest since 1920s, paper reports, with recent Wall Street boom partly to blam...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/gap-between-rich-poor-seen-growing.html
Oct 12, 2007
label: rich-poor gap

Rich getting richer faster. New studies spotlight a growing gap between top and bottom. The divide is widest in Arizona, narrowest in W...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/rich-getting-richer-faster-new-studies.html
Nov 26, 2007
label: rich-poor gap

How Much Would ...Oct 17, 2008, 6”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/10/how-much-would-you-pay-in-taxes-october.html

Noblesse Oblige my ass! CARTOON Oct 26, 2008. On the wealth gap
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/10/welfare-for-greedy-warfare-for-needy.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich, rich-poor gap

Tax Rates Fell by a Third for the 400 Richest Americans, Whose Average Income Doubled to $263 million a Year Under George Bush's Presi...Jan 31, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/tax-rates-fell-by-third-for-400-richest.html
label: rich-poor gap

Concern over "class warfare" depends on which class you're in.... Mar 4, 2009. By Michael Hiltzik
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/03/concern-over-class-warfare-depends-on.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich rich-poor gap

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ASSORTED:

Uncooperative Consumers Screw Up Corporate Innovation...on line bill paying, Story from 2001.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2006/09/uncooperative-consumers-screw-up.html
Jul 20, 2011

THE OTHER MONOPOLIES: FOOD, MONEY, BOMBS, DRUGS AND LAND WHO OWNS THE FOOD AND CONSUMER PRODUCTS MONOPOLIES: http://www.oligopolywatch.com/s...FIX LINKS, CANT BE FOUND ON ARCHIVE.ORG, 6”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/07/other-monopolies-food-money-bombs-drugs.html
Jul 8, 2007

A Guide to Corporate Ownership of Everything SUMMARY: the mega-monopoly corporations that control most major industries in America also fun... VARIOUS ITEMS, LONG.
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/07/guide-to-corporate-ownership-of_09.html
Jul 9, 2007

Twisted Irony...by George Will
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/10/twisted-irony.html
Oct 11, 2007
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

6/28/2005 Big contributors to GOP reap big post-election rewards....campaign cash
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/6282005-big-contributors-to-gop-reap.html
Nov 26, 2007. LONG
label: er...bribery, political campaign spending

MAKE BUY NOTHING DAY EVERY DAY! A Guide to Corporate Ownership of Everything SUMMARY: the mega-monopoly corporations that control mos... LONG
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/make-buy-nothing-day-every-day-guide-to.html
Nov 26, 2007
label: Stop Consuming--Buy Nothing

Biggest Wastes Of Space: They are famous simply for being famous ... Time magazine took a look at who are the biggest wastes of space of 2007...Bimbos who get rich and famous. 5”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2007/11/biggest-wastes-of-space-they-are-famous.html
Nov 30, 2007
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

The Britney Industrial Complex By Richard Cohen, Washington Post. How stupidity is profitable. 8”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/01/britney-industrial-complex-by-richard.html
Jan 22, 2008
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

(Untitled) USA map cartoon. Anti war WON'T ENLARGE, 2”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/03/blog-post.html Mar 24, 2008

"Only after the last tree has been cut down, only after the last river has been poisoned, only after the last fish has been caught, onl...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/04/only-after-last-tree-has-been-cut-down.html
Apr 21, 2008 LINKS NEED TO BE FIXED, 6”

(Untitled) Feigned Outrage cartoon Oct 8, 2008, 2”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2008/10/blog-post.html

CORPORATE CONSOLIDATION: 2001-2008
THE AFTERMATH OF THE BUSH YEARS—THE END OF CAPITALISM AS WE KNEW IT By Rex Frankel, 1/19/2009, the last day of George Bush’s term in off...
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/01/aftermath-of-bush-yearsthe-end-of_4101.html
Jan 19, 2009

Where were the Fiscally Conservative Republican/Conservatives that are Foaming at the Mouth Over Obama's Economy Fix; only care about deficits when a Dem is Prez. 3”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/where-were-fiscally-conservative.html
Feb 18, 2009

BUY IT NOW!!! THE NEW IMPROVED 2009 MODEL PIECE OF CRAP! Feb 20, 2009
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/02/buy-it-now-new-improved-2009-model.html
label: Stop Consuming--Buy Nothing. ONION VIDEO LINK NOT WORKING, SEARCH ONION SITE

Which "Losers" Should the Government Bail Out "Do We want to subsidize the loser's mortgages "
Mar 26, 2009 LINK to Daily Show NOT WORKING
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/03/which-losers-should-government-bail-out.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

The Middle Class Fights Back , cartoon Mar 29, 2009, against corporate attacks
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/03/middle-class-fights-back.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

English as a second language for the looney-right, 2 cartoons Nov 2, 2009. Language/propaganda
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2009/11/english-as-second-language-for-looney.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

The "heavy hand of government" is often that of the public interest, yelling "Stop Thief!" cartoon
Feb 14, 2010, 6%
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/02/heavy-hand-of-government-is-often-that.html

Mass Firings Lead to Economic Boom--for big corporations...Mar 24, 2010
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/03/mass-firings-lead-to-economic-boom-for.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

Crybaby Bullies Need your help! or at least your cash....donate now.....Apr 14, 2010
On Dennis Prager's whining COMMENT, 4”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/04/crybaby-bullies-need-your-help-or-at.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

A message to the Tea Party: Nov 10, 2010, by Mark Murford, SF Chronicle....LONG
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/11/message-to-tea-party.html
label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

What really happened in last week's election: Nov 11, 2010. DINO's lost, 2”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2010/11/what-really-happened-in-last-weeks.html

Republicans start sounding like "socialists" --Jan 11, 2012, Romney likes firing people, 4”
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2012/01/republicans-start-sounding-like.html
Label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich, rich-poor gap

CARTOON: And this is why the rich shouldn't pay 3% more in taxes --Jan 24, 2012
Romney pays less tax rate than Obama, 6%
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2012/01/and-this-is-why-rich-shouldnt-pay-3.html
Label: The Unfairly Picked-On Super Rich

!!!!!!!!!!!! 2 cartoons Jul 14, 2012, jail for corporate criminals
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2012/07/blog-post.html

Hi, friends, For those that wonder why no posts lately.. Jun 1, 2013, still in law school
https://greedwatch.blogspot.com/2013/06/hi-friends-for-those-that-wonder-why-no.html
OLD LINK, 2”

Uncooperative Consumers Screw Up Corporate Innovation

"but the problem is, those people don't want to pay for it.''


Online billing, an idea that looked like a winner, has held its own but has
not caught on in a big way.

Bob Tedeschi.  New York Times
June 4, 2001.  p. C.8
Copyright New York Times Company

AMONG all the half-baked Internet ideas that made it onto investors' plates in
recent years, online billing was one of the few that seemed to offer some real
nourishment.

Here, after all, was a technology that promised to save time and money for
consumers and the companies that bill them, while giving a potentially valuable
new service to banks and online portals like Yahoo and MSN. And it created a
business opportunity for new types of e-commerce companies like Checkfree,
Spectrum and Transpoint, which provided the portals and bank sites a way to let
customers view and pay multiple bills.

That was the theory, at least. But the so-called e-billing category is still
mainly a frog, waiting for consumers to kiss it and turn it into something
charming.

According to the Gartner Group, the technology consulting firm, only about
three million of the nation's estimated 130 million Internet users use the
Internet to pay any of their bills -- and most of those customers still receive
the billing statement on paper through the mail. A far smaller number, about
100,000, actually go to a single Web site to view their incoming bills and
electronically pay them, according to Gartner.

Already, Transpoint, which was backed by Microsoft, First Data and Citibank, is
a thing of the past, having been swallowed up by Checkfree last August for
about $1.3 billion. And Spectrum is still rolling out its services. In light of
such underwhelming activity, some analysts are beginning to question the basic
logic behind the business plans of the e-billing companies.

''Things aren't necessarily bleak for online bill payment,'' said Susan Landry,
research director at Gartner. ''But it may be rather bleak for companies
looking to make a business out of this. The way things are structured right
now, it's a losing proposition.''

Ms. Landry said that while Checkfree and other so-called online bill
consolidators must charge for their services, the banks and online portals that
pay the consolidators cannot necessarily pass on those costs to consumers.
Consumers are loath to pay an extra fee for the privilege of seeing and paying
their bills, Ms. Landry and other analysts said, no matter how convenient it
may be to do so online.

As a result, banks and portals have offered the service, but have not yet
advertised it widely. ''Banks don't want to charge their best customers for
this, because they don't want to risk losing them,'' said David Easthope, an
analyst with the investment bank Friedman, Billings, Ramsey. ''They end up
charging people who aren't their best customers $5 a month, but the problem is,
those people don't want to pay for it.''

Yahoo, which was the first portal to offer online bill payment, in late 1999,
does not charge customers for the service, hoping instead to make money from
advertising and from luring users to its paid financial services. So Yahoo,
which would not disclose how many people use the feature, absorbs the fees
charged by Checkfree.

Without discussing the specifics of the Yahoo arrangement, a Checkfree
spokesman said the company's fees typically included a $75,000 set-up charge,
plus a monthly fee of about $4 per subscriber. Another Checkfree customer,
Microsoft's MSN, charges users nothing for the first three bills they pay;
beyond that, the fee is $6 a month.

Ms. Landry said that she expected most consumers to choose not to view and pay
all of their bills at one site, and opt instead to go to each biller's site
directly. And in a few years, technology may enable a consumer to set up a
software ''agent'' that will assemble ''all the information on who you pay, how
you pay them and when, and will romp around the Internet on your behalf,'' Ms.
Landry predicted. ''Why would you need a consolidator when you had that?'' she
added.

Others, though, are not ready to give up on the consolidators. ''It may be that
we see the customer base grow by 5 percent a year, and we never see a big
break-out year,'' said Mr. Easthope, of Friedman, Billings, Ramsey. ''But we
probably will see mass adoption.''

Investors seem to share that optimism. Checkfree's market value of $3.36
billion is nearly twice that of Travelocity, Ariba and Doubleclick, just to
name a few other types of e-commerce companies. Checkfree's shares closed at
$38.76 on Friday, well above their 52-week low near $24 in early April.

The billing consolidators and billers are not the only ones waiting for
customers to warm to the idea of clicking through their monthly statements.
Consider Billserv, which takes a billing company's paper bills and converts
them to a form that can be posted on a Web site. Billserv's clients, which
include Chevron, AT&T and dozens of other companies, send out 15 percent of the
20 billion bills produced in the United States each year, said Michael R. Long,
Billserv's chief executive.

BillServ receives 30 to 40 cents for every paper bill it posts on a Web site.
But so far, less than 2 percent of its clients' bills are handled this way.

''We're actually much farther along than I would've anticipated,'' Mr. Long
said. ''But we really would like to see those adoption rates kick in.''

Mr. Easthope, the Friedman, Billings analyst, predicted that the e-bills market
would benefit from -- among other forces -- increasing competition by Spectrum,
a consortium of banks including Wells Fargo, FleetBoston and J. P. Morgan
Chase. The competition could bring about better financial terms and product
features, he said, making it more attractive for billers to aggressively market
these services.

He said that at least one bank, Bank of America, planned to step up advertising
for its online billing feature. Bank of America and Checkfree said in April
that they would jointly commit $45 million over the next two years to advertise
online billing. Linda Mueller, a Bank of America spokeswoman, said the company
charged a typical customer about $6 a month for the service, which began
nationally in February.

Ms. Mueller would not say whether the company made or lost money on its
Checkfree service. But she contends that customers are willing to pay for it,
because the price equals the amount a consumer would spend on postage for about
18 checks.

But that math might not convince would-be customers. The average consumer
receives 12 to 18 bills a month, but only 275 billers are sending their bills
to Checkfree each month, said Peter Sinisgalli, Checkfree's president. That
means that the average consumer can receive only four or five bills today
electronically, Mr. Sinisgalli said, ''although our goal is to push that to 10
or more by the end of the year.''

Many utility companies, trash collectors and other companies, meanwhile, have
been somewhat slow to offer their bills online -- whether through their own Web
sites or through a site served by one of the consolidators. Ms. Landry, of the
Gartner Group, said of online billing, ''Billers hate it.'' Setting up an
online billing system is not only costly, she said, but can clutter the line of
communication a biller previously had with its customers.

But some billers are much more enthusiastic. George McGrath, senior vice
president of Norcal Waste Systems, a trash collection and recycling company
based in San Francisco, said he was ''truly excited'' about the company's
online billing system, even though just 28,000 of his 400,000 customers use it.

Mr. McGrath said his customers can view and pay their bills on Norcal's Web
site for no charge. In the future, he said, those customers will also be able
to do so on another Web site affiliated with Spectrum, although that might
entail a service charge. Mr. McGrath would not disclose how much the company
spent on the online billing system, but he said that online bill processing
cost half as much as traditional bill processing, given the expense of
printing, mailing and handling paper bills.

Mr. McGrath said customers had also responded favorably to a feature, rolled
out last month on his site, that automatically debits their checking accounts
when their bills come due, and then notifies them by e-mail. ''They're telling
us, 'We don't want to go into your site; just take the money and let us know
you're doing it,' '' Mr. McGrath said. ''So that's what we're giving them.''

___________________________________________________________________________

6/28/2005
Big contributors to GOP reap big post-election rewards
By Jim Drinkard, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON - Just six months into a new term for
President Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress,
some of their heaviest donors are scoring victories on
the legislative and regulatory fronts.
From rewrites of the laws governing bankruptcy and
class-action lawsuits to relief for oil, timber and
tobacco interests, GOP supporters who gave millions of
dollars last year are reaping decisions worth billions
from a Congress with more Republicans.

"Clearly, the election outcome has helped," says Bruce
Josten, executive vice president of the U.S. Chamber
of Commerce. "We are heading in the right direction. A
lot more has been done by this time in a new session
than usual."

While much public attention has been focused on Bush's
sputtering effort to sell an overhaul of Social
Security, legislation long sought by the GOP and its
business allies have been enacted with bipartisan
support. In February, Congress passed and Bush signed
a bill that sharply limits class-action lawsuits. The
savings will likely come to several billion dollars a
year, says Russ Sutter of Tillinghast-Towers Perrin,
an actuarial firm that studies tort costs.

The business sector that includes manufacturing and
retail was among top GOP donors last election cycle.
It directed three of every five political dollars to
Republicans--almost $121 million, according to the
non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics.

There was a similar partisan tilt in political giving
by the finance industry, which won passage in April of
a law making it harder to erase debts by declaring
bankruptcy. Credit card companies and banks sought the
change as a way to collect more debts.

The finance sector gave nearly $195 million to the GOP
in the 2004 elections. And 105 of Bush's 548 elite
fundraisers--those who raised $100,000 or more--were
from the world of finance, making it his biggest base
of top-dollar support, at $34 million.

"Many of the traditional business supporters are
really getting the agenda they wanted, and it seems to
be speeding up," says Larry Noble, director of the
Center for Responsive Politics, which studies the
impact of money on politics.

Still to come: Congress is pushing to complete an
energy bill. Business interests want limits on
liability for water contamination caused by MTBE, a
fuel additive designed to reduce auto emissions, and
oil companies seek to open the Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge to drilling. The Senate passed its
version Tuesday.

Bush supporters also have had good luck outside the
legislative arena:

--Justice Department lawyers this month abruptly
scaled back their request for a penalty in the
government's lawsuit against tobacco companies. Rather
than the 25-year, $130 billion smoking cessation
program their own expert had recommended, they are
asking for a $14 billion remedy. The tobacco industry
favored Republicans three-to-one over Democrats last
year, giving $2.7 million to the party and its
candidates.

The Justice Department's Office of Professional
Responsibility is looking into whether politics
influenced the decision.

--After Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman
William Donaldson resigned under fire from business
groups who complained about overzealous regulation,
Bush replaced him with someone with a pro-corporate
record: Rep. Christopher Cox, R-Calif.

"It's hard to imagine somebody with a more nakedly
deregulatory agenda," says William Lerach, a trial
lawyer who has brought shareholder lawsuits against
corporations accused of securities fraud. Securities
and investment firms gave $47.8 million to Republicans
last election.

--The administration last month reversed a ban on road
construction, timber harvesting, mining and energy
development on undeveloped national forest land. The
government also has expanded oil and gas development
on federal lands, including areas in New Mexico and
Wyoming.

Energy and natural resources interests gave $39.3
million to the GOP last year, three times the amount
given to Democrats.