IN THE PAPERS
In The Papers 22 July
22-07-2009
by Sylvia Leatham
Intel cuts Leixlip jobs | Lehman Bros take to eBay selling
The Irish Times reports that chipmaker Intel is to mothball one of its four Irish production facilities, with the resulting loss of almost 300 jobs. In a statement Intel said it was closing its Fab-14 factory due to a "reduction in demand" for the older products it produces. The 294 compulsory redundancies follow 200 voluntary redundancies at the plant last February. The closure of the facility will reduce employment at the company's Leixlip operations to 4,200.
The paper also says that an online service allowing people to see the classification and content details of any new DVD release before renting it has been launched by the Irish Film Classification Office (Ifco). When a film or television DVD title is entered into the search box on www.ifco.ie, details of the film's genre, director, cast, duration and release date will appear along with its age certification. The site also describes the contents of the film through four categories: violence, drugs, sexual content/nudity and use of offensive language. The service is already available for films which have had a cinema release.
The paper also says that the Government has announced a major new strategy to create up to 30,000 'green collar' jobs by pushing Ireland to the forefront of the 'digital technology revolution'. Read more on this story as reported by ENN on Tuesday.
The Irish Independent reports that Electro Automation, the company that owns half of M50 tag-seller eTrip, posted sales of more than EUR23 million last year and losses of EUR3 million. The latest accounts show Electro Automation (Group) Ltd's sales for the year ended October 2008 were marginally ahead of 2007's result. Pre-tax profits dropped, however, from EUR861,000 in 2007 to EUR716,000 in 2008, largely because of a trebling in interest costs.
The paper also notes that Lehman Brothers' liquidators have launched a massive garage sale on eBay of the trinkets it produced for staff and clients in happier times. The items on sale run the gamut from the ordinary -- stationery and bags -- to the bizarre, such as a silver-plated baby rattle. Lehman says it discovered there was public demand for these items when former employees began posting their memorabilia on eBay when the company collapsed last September.
The Irish Examiner notes that the Government plans to adopt 17 initiatives for economic recovery from the Ideas Campaign, as reported by ENN.
The paper also says that people claiming jobseeker's benefits may soon be able to use their phone to register their details with social welfare offices. The Department of Social and Family Affairs is tendering for "a suitably experienced economic operator to work with the department in the rapid development and support of a mobile phone-based solution" for selection of, and self-certification by, claimants of jobseeker's benefits. According to the tender document, "this solution will have to incorporate the use of voice and handset authentication", as well as integration with the department's new and old departmental software.
The Financial Times reports that Yahoo's advertising business suffered a bigger dent than expected in the latest quarter as the internet giant wrestled with weakness across all parts of its operations. Net revenues fell by 16 percent overall in the second quarter to USD1.136 billion. Thanks to a one-off gain, it met consensus earnings expectations of USD141 million, or USD0.10 a share, an increase of 8 percent from the year before. Carol Bartz, chief executive, warned that it was "too early to call" whether the online advertising markets had stopped shrinking. The company's third-quarter financial projections were below some analysts' expectations, prompting concerns about higher costs linked to its efforts to revive the Yahoo brand.
The paper also says that Apple surged past most analysts' expectations with its fiscal third quarter results, thanks to sales of 5.2 million iPhones, more than seven times the volume of a year earlier. Apple posted profits of USD1.23 billion, or USD1.35 a share, compared with USD1.07 billion, or USD1.19 last year. Revenue grew to USD8.34 billion, up from USD7.46 billion. The company projected fourth-quarter earnings per share of about USD1.18 to USD1.23 on revenue of USD8.7 billion to USD8.9 billion. Analysts pointed out that Apple routinely underestimates its future results.
The Wall Street Journal says that the auction for Nortel Networks' most profitable assets is causing a stir, with BlackBerry maker Research in Motion urging the Canadian government to intervene, saying it was blocked from bidding. Final bids were due Tuesday for a Friday auction, guided by rules meant to ensure that the assets fetch the highest price as Nortel sells off pieces of itself in bankruptcy court. On the eve of the deadline to submit bids, RIM released a statement blaming Nortel, its advisers and the monitors overseeing the bankruptcy process for preventing it from bidding for its wireless assets. Nortel said RIM refused to comply with court-approved procedures.
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