Netflix suffers Christmas Eve outage, points to Amazon

 An outage at one of Amazon's web service centers hit users of Netflix Inc.'s streaming video service on Christmas Eve and was not fully resolved until Christmas day, a spokesman for the movie rental company said on Tuesday.
The outage impacted Netflix subscribers across Canada, Latin America and the United States, and affected various devices that enable users to stream movies and television shows from home, Netflix spokesman Joris Evers said. Such devices range from gaming consoles such as Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3 to Blu-ray players.
Evers said that the issue was the result of an outage at an Amazon Web Services' cloud computing center in Virginia, and started at about 12:30 p.m. PST (2030 GMT) on Monday and was fully restored Tuesday morning, although streaming was available for most users late on Monday.
"We are investigating exactly what happened and how it could have been prevented," Evers said.
"We are happy that people opening gifts of Netflix or Netflix capable devices can watch TV shows and movies and apologize for any inconvenience caused last night," he added.
An outage at Amazon Web Services, or AWS, knocked out such sites as Reddit and Foursquare in April of last year.
Amazon Web Services was not immediately available for comment. Evers, the Netflix spokesman, declined to comment on the company's contracts with Amazon.

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Netflix blames Amazon for Christmas Eve outage

An outage at one of Amazon's web service centers hit users of Netflix Inc's streaming video service on Christmas Eve and was not fully resolved until Christmas Day, a spokesman for the movie rental company said on Tuesday.
The outage impacted Netflix subscribers across Canada, Latin America and the United States, and affected various devices that enable users to stream movies and television shows from home, Netflix spokesman Joris Evers said. Such devices range from gaming consoles like the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3 to Blu-ray DVD players.
Netflix, which is based in Los Gatos, California, has 30 million streaming subscribers worldwide, of which more than 27 million are in the Americas region that was exposed to the outage and could have potentially been affected, Evers said.
Evers said the issue was the result of an outage at an Amazon Web Services' cloud computing center in Virginia and started at about 12:30 p.m. PST (2030 GMT) on Monday and was fully restored before 8:00 a.m. PST Tuesday morning, although streaming was available for most users by 11:00 p.m. PST on Monday.
The event marks the latest in a series of outages from Amazon Web Services, with one occurring in April of last year that knocked out such sites as Reddit and Foursquare.
"We are investigating exactly what happened and how it could have been prevented," Evers of Netflix said.
"We are happy that people opening gifts of Netflix or Netflix capable devices can watch TV shows and movies and apologize for any inconvenience caused last night," he added.
Officials at Amazon Web Services were not available for comment. Evers, the Netflix spokesman, declined to comment on the company's contracts with Amazon.

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Number of e-book readers increasing in United States: survey

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The popularity of electronic books is increasing in the United States, with nearly one-quarter of American bibliophiles reading e-books, according to a survey released on Thursday.
The number of e-readers aged 16 years and older jumped from 16 percent in 2011 to 23 percent this year, while print readers fell from 72 to 67 percent in 2012, in a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center.
"The move toward e-book reading coincides with an increase in ownership of electronic book reading devices," the organization said. Its report analyzed reading trends among the 75 percent of Americans who read at least one book in the last year.
"In all, the number of owners of either a tablet computer or e-book reading device ... grew from 18 percent in late 2011 to 33 percent in 2012."
E-book owners increased from 4 percent in May 2010 to 19 percent in November 2012, while people with tablets jumped from 3 percent to 25 percent during the same period, according to the report.
People most likely to read e-books are well-educated, 30- to 49-year-olds who live in households earning $75,000 or more.
More women, 81 percent, read books, compared to 70 percent of men, and the number of readers declines as people age. The trend toward e-books impacted libraries, which stocked and loaned more e-books.
"The share of recent library users who have borrowed an e-book from a library has increased from 3 percent last year to 5 percent this year," according to Pew.
Even awareness that library stock e-books has grown, from 24 percent late last year to 31 percent now.
The findings were based on a telephone survey of 2,252 people, aged 16 years and older, across the United States and a similar poll the year before. It had a 2.7 percent margin of error.

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China tightens Internet controls, legalizes post deletion

 China unveiled tighter Internet controls on Friday, legalizing the deletion of posts or pages which are deemed to contain "illegal" information and requiring service providers to hand over such information to the authorities for punishment.
The rules signal that the new leadership headed by Communist Party chief Xi Jinping will continue muzzling the often scathing, raucous online chatter in a country where the Internet offers a rare opportunity for debate.
The new regulations, announced by the official Xinhua news agency, also require Internet users to register with their real names when signing up with network providers, though, in reality, this already happens.
Chinese authorities and Internet companies such as Sina Corp have long since closely monitored and censored what people say online, but the government has now put measures such as deleting posts into law.
"Service providers are required to instantly stop the transmission of illegal information once it is spotted and take relevant measures, including removing the information and saving records, before reporting to supervisory authorities," the rules state.
The restrictions follow a series of corruption scandals amongst lower-level officials exposed by Internet users, something the government has said it is trying to encourage.
Li Fei, deputy head of parliament's legislative affairs committee, said the new rules did not mean people needed to worry about being unable to report corruption online. But he added a warning too.
"When people exercise their rights, including the right to use the Internet, they must do so in accordance with the law and constitution, and not harm the legal rights of the state, society ... or other citizens," he told a news conference.
Chinese Internet users already cope with extensive censorship measures, especially over politically sensitive topics like human rights and elite politics, and popular foreign sites Facebook, Twitter and Google-owned YouTube are blocked.
Earlier this year, the government began forcing users of Sina's wildly successful Weibo microblogging platform to register their real names.
The new rules were quickly condemned by some Weibo users.
"So now they are getting Weibo to help in keeping records and reporting it to authorities. Is this the freedom of expression we are promised in the constitution?" complained one user.
"We should resolutely oppose such a covert means to interfere with Internet freedom," wrote another.
The government says tighter monitoring of the Internet is needed to prevent people making malicious and anonymous accusations online, disseminating pornography and spreading panic with unfounded rumors, pointing out that many other countries already have such rules.
Despite periodic calls for political reform, the party has shown no sign of loosening its grip on power and brooks no dissent to its authority.

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Hunger strike pressures Canada PM, aboriginal protests spread

A Canadian aboriginal chief in the third week of a hunger strike is urging Prime Minister Stephen Harper to "open his heart" and meet with native leaders angered by his policies as small impromptu protests spread beyond Canada's borders.
Chief Theresa Spence from the remote northern Ontario community of Attawapiskat has been fasting since December 11 and has vowed to continue until Harper commits to talks on a litany of complaints, including new legislation that she says will harm native lands.
"He's a person with a heart but he needs to open his heart. I'm sure he has faith in the Creator himself and for him to delay this, it's very disrespectful, I feel, to not even meet with us," she said in an interview in Ottawa.
Spence is at the center of an unprecedented Canadian aboriginal protest movement called "Idle No More" that began with four women in the province of Saskatchewan raising awareness about the Conservative government's budget legislation passed earlier this month.
The legislation, which has also been criticized by opposition politicians, reduces environmental protections for lakes and rivers and makes it easier to sell reserve lands.
Aided by Facebook and Twitter, their protest proliferated and is now drawing comparisons to the "Occupy Wall Street" movement.
"Flash mob" protests with traditional dancing and drumming have erupted in dozens of shopping malls across North America. There have been rallies, marches and highway blockades by aboriginal groups across Canada and supporters have emerged from as far away as New Zealand and the Middle East.
The campaign aims to draw attention to dismal conditions faced by many of the country's 1.2 million natives, including poverty, unsafe drinking water, inadequate housing, addiction and high suicide rates.
'I'M WILLING TO DIE'
Camped out in a traditional teepee within sight of Ottawa's Parliament buildings, Spence appeared weak and short of breath but resolute on Thursday, Day 17 of her hunger strike, staying warm by a wood stove as a snow storm raged outside.
To critics who question her strategy and say her demands are too vague, Spence replies that she has run out of patience.
"I know it's hard for people to understand what I'm doing but it's for this pain that's been going on too long with our people," she said, sitting on her makeshift bed and flanked by supporters.
Blankets hung from the inside walls of the teepee and a faint aroma of cedar rose from branches spread on the ground. Spence is consuming only water, fish broth and a medicinal tea.
"It has to stop and I'm willing to suffer until the meeting goes on. Even if I don't make it, people will continue my journey. Like I keep saying, I'm willing to die for the people of First Nations because the suffering is too much," Spence said.
Spence was in the headlines last year when a housing crisis in her community forced people to live in tents in temperatures of minus 40 Fahrenheit (minus 40 Celsius).
The Canadian government suggested taxpayer funds were being squandered and appointed an outside adviser to oversee the town's finances, a move seen as insensitive and later rejected by the courts.
At the core of Spence's protest are what aboriginal groups say are unfulfilled promises by the federal and provincial governments dating back to treaties in the early 1900s that would give aboriginal groups a stake in natural resources development, among other benefits.
Many native communities are affected by mining developments or projects like Enbridge Inc's planned C$6 billion ($5.9 billion) Northern Gateway Pipeline. The project, which has yet to win government approvals, would take oil sands crude to the Pacific coast.
Harper met with native leaders in January but Spence says he imposed his own agenda. Harper's office declined to comment.
A spokesman for Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan said the minister has tried repeatedly to reach Chief Spence.
"We will continue trying to engage the chief and other First Nation leaders to discuss how we can build on the progress we have made since 2006," said the spokesman, Jason MacDonald.
MacDonald said Ottawa had built and renovated schools and homes, invested in safe drinking water, introduced legislation to protect the rights of women on reserves and settled over 80 land claims.
Health minister Leona Aglukkaq, the one aboriginal member of Harper's cabinet, urged Spence on Friday to resume eating and to meet with Duncan.
SIMILAR TO 'OCCUPY' MOVEMENT?
Meanwhile, with the help of social media the Idle No More movement has taken on a life of its own in much the same way the first "Occupy Wall Street" camp gave birth to a multitude of "occupy" protests with no specific demand or leadership.
But Peter Russell, an expert in aboriginal politics at the University of Toronto, says unlike the "99 percent" campaign, aboriginals at just 3 percent of the population historically have taken drastic action to be recognized. He sees no sign "Idle No More" will dissipate soon.
Events listed on the group's Web site for Friday include rallies in Los Angeles and London, where protesters plan to present Queen Elizabeth with a letter.
But organizers say they've lost track. Their initial Facebook page has 33,000 members and the Twitter hash tag was mentioned 40,000 times in a single day at its peak on December 21.
"This has spread in ways that we wouldn't even have imagined," said Sheelah McLean, an instructor at the University of Saskatchewan who was one of the four women who originally coined the "Idle No More" slogan.
"I don't think the hash tag is the most important thing that has happened," she said.
"What this movement is supposed to do is build consciousness about the inequalities so that everyone is outraged about what is happening here in Canada. Every Canadian should be outraged.

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Retailer John Lewis posts record Christmas sales

 John Lewis said on Wednesday it had posted a 14.8 percent rise in sales in the run-up to Christmas and the first days of its clearance, helped by demand for technology and a leap in online offerings.
Britain's biggest department stores group reported sales of 684.8 million pounds for the five weeks to December 29, including a record take of 31.7 million pounds for the first day of its sales in stores on December 27. Like-for-like sales, which strip out the impact of new stores, rose 13 percent.
John Lewis has traditionally outperformed its high-street rivals in recent years due to its strong online offering, new modern stores and more affluent customer base.
Online sales for the five weeks rose 44.3 percent on a year ago, and now accounted for a quarter of the total John Lewis business, the employee-owned group said on Wednesday.
Electrical and home technology sales were 30.9 per cent up, it said, while fashion and beauty increased 10.4 percent.
Managing director Andy Street said: "I am delighted that John Lewis has delivered record breaking sales figures over the Christmas period and the first five days of clearance.
"In an economic climate which continues to be volatile, to have achieved these results is testimony to the strength of the John Lewis brand and the commitment of all our partners to give outstanding service.

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UK norovirus sickness cases reach over 1.1 million

 More than 1.1 million people in Britain have succumbed to the norovirus winter vomiting disease so far this season, and health officials expect cases to jump higher after a Christmas and New Year dip.
Britain's Health Protection Agency (HPA) said cases of highly contagious norovirus have risen earlier than expected this winter - a trend that has also been seen across Europe, Japan and other parts of the world.
Health officials in the United States said last week that more than 400 people on two cruise ships had been taken ill with a sickness suspected of being due to the norovirus, and hospital wards and nursing care homes in Europe have been forced to close to try to stop infections spreading.
Norovirus is transmitted by contact with infected people or contaminated surfaces, food or water.
HPA data released on Wednesday showed there have been 3,877 laboratory-confirmed cases of norovirus in Britain this winter, 72 percent higher than the number of cases reported at the same point last year. The reason for the rise in not known.
For every laboratory-confirmed case, scientists estimate some 288 unreported cases, as the vast majority of those affected don't go to a doctor. This means the number of people affected in the UK so far is likely to be more than 1.1 million.
"As we have seen in previous years, there has been a dip in the number of confirmed laboratory reports owing to the Christmas and New Year period," said John Harris, the HPA's norovirus expert.
But he added that the HPA expected to see a rise in the number of laboratory reports in the next few weeks.
Norovirus symptoms include a sudden onset of vomiting, which can be projectile, and diarrhoea, which may be profuse and watery. Some victims also suffer fevers, headaches and stomach cramps.
"If you think you may have the illness then it is important to maintain good hand hygiene to help prevent it spreading," said Harris. "We also advise that people stay away from hospitals, schools and care homes as these environments are particularly prone to outbreaks."

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Governor announces lawsuit vs NCAA over Penn State scandal

 Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett said on Wednesday he will ask a federal court to throw out the multimillion-dollar sanctions levied by the NCAA against Penn State University over the Jerry Sandusky sex-abuse scandal, saying the punishment threatens to cause devastating damage to the state's residents and economy.
The sanctions, which included an unprecedented $60 million fine, are "overreaching and unlawful," the governor said at a news conference in State College where the university is located.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association, the governing body of U.S. collegiate sports, fined Penn State $60 million in July and voided its football victories for the past 14 seasons in a dramatic rebuke for its failure to stop Sandusky's sexual abuse of children.
"This was a criminal matter, not a violation of NCAA rules," Corbett said. He added that he believed the NCAA acted as it did because it benefited from the sizable penalty.
"These punishments threaten to have a devastating, long-lasting and irreparable effect on the state, its citizens and its economy," the governor said. "I cannot and will not stand by and let it happen without a fight."
The NCAA said it was disappointed by Corbett's move.
"Not only does this forthcoming lawsuit appear to be without merit, it is an affront to all of the victims in this tragedy - lives that were destroyed by the criminal actions of Jerry Sandusky," NCAA General Counsel Donald Remy said in a statement.
Sandusky, Penn State's former defensive coordinator, was convicted in June of 45 counts of sexually abusing 10 boys over 15 years, some in the football team's showers. He is now serving a prison term of 30 to 60 years.
The scandal sparked a national discussion and awareness of child sex abuse, embarrassed the university and implicated top officials in the cover-up, including the late Joe Paterno, the legendary football head coach.
Corbett said a lawsuit, to be filed later on Wednesday, will ask a federal court to throw out all Sandusky-related sanctions against Penn State.
James Schultz, general counsel for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, who will be handling the case for the governor, said the NCAA failed to follow its own bylaws in determining the penalties against Penn State.
Schultz said Corbett has the proper legal standing to sue the NCAA because he is acting on behalf of state residents and businesses "collaterally damaged" by the NCAA sanctions.
The sanctions hurt businesses and residents, particularly in State College where fall football weekends bring heavy visitor traffic, he said.
"In the wake of this terrible scandal, Penn State was left to heal and clean up this tragedy that was created by the few," Corbett said.
The university recently made the first payment of $12 million of the sanctions toward a national fund to support the victims of child abuse. Other sanctions included a ban on its football team from appearing in bowl games for four years.
According to the governor's office, Penn State football was the second most profitable collegiate athletic program in the nation in 2010-11 when it brought in $50 million, generating more than $5 million in tax revenue.
Penn State released a statement saying it was not party to the lawsuit and reiterated its commitment to comply with the NCAA sanctions.
The governor was asked about the report into the Penn State scandal produced by former FBI director Louis Freeh that was the basis of the NCAA sanctions. The report was scathingly critical of the university and said Penn State leaders covered up Sandusky's sexual abuse of children for years.
"The Freeh report is an incomplete report," Corbett said.
The family of Joe Paterno, who was fired by the Penn State board of trustees who said he failed to do enough when he was alerted to suspicions about Sandusky, said: "The fact that Governor Corbett now realizes, as do many others, that there was an inexcusable rush to judgment is encouraging."
The family, which took strong exception to the Freeh report, had said it was convening its own experts to review the case and the actions of the board and school administration. Paterno died a year ago of lung cancer.
His family said on Wednesday it expects to release its findings "in the near future."
The Sandusky scandal was revealed by a state grand jury convened in 2009 by Corbett, then Pennsylvania's attorney general.
Attorney General-elect Kathleen Kane, a Democrat, has vowed to probe Corbett's handling of the case. She has said that by convening a grand jury, Corbett failed to protect children by delaying prosecution for more than two years.
Corbett, a Republican, has said he welcomes an investigation into how he handled the case.
A poll of Pennsylvania voters in September found they had a poor view of his handling of the scandal as attorney general.
The Franklin & Marshall College survey noted only one in six registered voters thought he did an excellent or good job, and nearly two thirds thought he did a fair or poor job.
Also, more than half of respondents believed the NCAA sanctions imposed as a result of the Sandusky case were unfair.

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Catholic Church closes London's gay-friendly "Soho Masses"

 The Catholic Church will stop gay-friendly Masses in the central London church that has held them for the past six years, London's archbishop said on Wednesday.
The 18th-century church in Soho, the heart of London's gay scene, has been hosting the twice-monthly Masses with the support of the local Church hierarchy, but Archbishop Vincent Nichols said in a statement that gay Catholics should attend Mass in their local parishes rather going to separate services.
"The Mass is always to retain its essential character as the highest prayer of the whole Church," Nichols said, stressing there would still be pastoral care to help gay Catholics "take a full part in the life of the Church."
The Vatican teaches that gay sex is sinful but homosexuals deserve respect.
The decision on the "Soho Masses" came after sharp criticism of same-sex marriage by Pope Benedict and bishops in Britain and France, where the governments plan to legalise gay nuptials.
Nichols has spoken out in recent weeks against same-sex marriage but Church officials and a spokesman for the Soho gay congregation said the decision to stop the Soho Masses was not explicitly linked to that debate.
"We don't see any direct cause and effect," said Joe Stanley, chairman of the Soho Masses Pastoral Council.
London's approved gay-friendly Masses were launched in early 2007 while the Vatican's top doctrinal official was Cardinal William Levada, the former archbishop of San Francisco, a city with a large gay community and several gay-friendly churches.
Nichols reaffirmed his support for them last February. Since then, Levada was replaced by Archbishop Gerhard Mueller, who German Catholic media have said wanted to clarify the apparent contradiction between them and Church teaching on homosexuality.
The Our Lady of the Assumption church will now become a parish for disaffected Anglicans who became Catholics in protest against moves in their churches towards allowing female and gay bishops.
Conservative Catholics in Britain have long complained to the Vatican about the Soho Masses, saying they flouted Church teaching on homosexuality, and small groups sometimes protested outside the church during the services.
The archbishop's office declined to comment on his statement or any discussions with the Vatican.

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Malala's father given diplomatic role in UK

The father of a teenage Pakistani activist shot in the head by Taliban for advocating girls' education has been given a diplomatic post in the U.K.
Malala Yousufzai has been recovering at a hospital in Birmingham, England, after she was shot in October in Pakistan. The Taliban have vowed to target her again.
Pakistan's High Commissioner to Britain, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, confirmed a BBC report Wednesday saying that Malala's father, Ziauddin, has been appointed Pakistan's education attache in Birmingham.
The position — with an initial 3-year commitment — virtually guarantees Malala will remain in the U.K.
Malala's case won worldwide recognition for the struggle for women's rights in Pakistan. In a sign of her reach, the 15-year-old made the shortlist for Time magazine's "Person of the Year" for 2012.

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Mobile Device Accessory Manufacturer New Trent Announces CES Products and Distribution

Established supplier of mobile power accessories, hard-shell cases and tablet keyboards to meet marketplace demand through new distribution alliances.

Fremont, CA (PRWEB) December 31, 2012
New Trent, a trusted manufacturer of battery technology for leading electronics products, has announced its presence at CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas in it's plan for expansion of its mobile accessory distribution program of cutting-edge accessories for Apple® and Android® mobile devices.  
The five year-old Fremont, CA-based company plans to add at least six new products to their vast consumer product line of affordable mobile accessories that are noted for increasing iPad® and iPhone® battery life by up to six times, integrating low-profile keyboards with hard-shell cases, and miniaturizing external batteries for use on a long list of phones, games and GPS devices.
New Products include mobile accessories catered towards the newly released Apple® iPad Mini and a new facelift to their existing product line of mobile backup batteries. New Trent invites all individuals attending CES to come by their booth, at North Hall #4437 to the first to check out their new products, and leave with free gifts.
According to Johnson Jeng, Director of New Trent’s marketing and business development, “After demonstrating the potential of our product line with highly successful results on Amazon, Buy.com and our own e-store, we are confident that with our newly designed products, we will be able to forge alliances with top names in B2B and B2C product sales. We look forward to meeting new distributors at CES and make 2013 a great year."

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Start the New Year With a Clear Mind and Body by Eliminating Clutter From the Home

And Make Some Extra Money Selling Those Unwanted Things on eBid.net

Miami, FL (PRWEB) December 31, 2012
The positive physical and psychological effects of clearing clutter from your life have been well-documented. Benefits include creating a focused mind, finding extra time in the day to exercise, reducing accidents - and earning some extra cash selling unnecessary clutter online. One of the best options for selling goods is the online worldwide marketplace eBid (http://www.ebid.net) because with its zero listing fees and only 0% - 3% final value fees, sellers earn the best profits out of any other online auction site. And with over 5.3 million live auction listings, New Years' cleaners will be able to tap into a huge audience of potential buyers for their stuff.
Mark Wilkinson, co-founder of eBid said, "Multiple studies and articles have shown that eliminating clutter is one of the healthiest things a person can do for their lives. And likewise, independent measurements have shown that eBid is one of the best values on the Net for generating a little profit from some of those extra nicknacks just laying around. Of course, after the holidays it's an even better time to keep your house cleared, keep those unneeded gifts in the box and sell them on eBid."
eBid represents a $5.7 billion marketplace spanning 23 territories, covering more than 100 countries and five continents. Competitive features like zero insertion fees, low final cost fees, a "Make An Offer" button and "Multiple Item Checkout" as well as a generous affiliate program and wide territorial coverage have all combined to propel eBid into this top bracket. Transactions on eBid may be completed using multiple, secure payment systems, either PPPay.com, Google Wallet, PayPal, or Skrill (Moneybookers).
With eBid's affiliate program, participants who add banners/links to their website, emails or Facebook pages can earn up to $104.99 for a single referral. Affiliates are rewarded for not only sign-ups to the basic eBid "BUYER" account status but also when the referral makes a free upgrade to "SELLER" status and, most impressive of all, affiliates are rewarded with 50% of any upgrade fees when their referrals upgraded to "SELLER+" status. eBid's "SELLER+" status is a great advantage for higher volume merchants. A one-time fee of $49.49 gives the seller a lifetime of zero listing fees and zero final value fees. Merchants may also opt for a short-term subscription upgrade to zero fees ($1.99 for 7 Days / $6.99 for 30 Days / $16.99 for 90 Days). http://us.ebid.net/help_affiliate.php
About eBid.net

Founded in the UK in 1999, eBid.net is now a global company with a presence in 23 territories across the UK, Europe, USA and Canada, Africa, Asia, Australasia and South America. With a commitment to person to person online auctions, eBid.net is recognized as the "best eBay alternative" by Webuser Magazine.

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ListedBy’s Stephan Piscano Perspective Featured In REI Voice Magazine’s 2013 Market Predictions

Feature projects outlook from ten prominent U.S. city, state and national real estate industry leaders and city executives.

Napa, CA (PRWEB) December 31, 2012
ListedBy (http://www.ListedBy.com), the first free online real estate marketplace and social network with live bidding public real estate auctions and ‘Best Offer’ functionality today announced that its CEO and Founder Stephan Piscano’s outlook for the real estate industry has been featured by REI Voice Magazine (http://www.reivoice.com) as part of its 2013 Market Predictions feature.
“2013 could be your last opportunity to realize huge returns on investment properties,” wrote Piscano, for REI Voice 2013 Market Predictions. “We started telling all of our partners, clients and investors at the end of 2011, that 2012 would be the last opportunity to see deals like we had been seeing for the last 3 years, and I personally told all those close to me that we would look back at 2012 and ask, how much did we capitalize on it?”
Opinions and forward outlook from ten high profile experts in real estate make up this year’s predictions. The article covers perspectives at the city, state and national levels, and features thoughts from prominent insurance, asset management and real estate investment senior managers as well as REALTOR® council, county assessment and city economic development executives.
Continued Piscano: “I believe that interest rates remaining low, combined with lack of inventory, combined with the potential for rapid inflation will cause the market to continue to rise in 2013 and beyond. There will still be exceptional investment opportunities. It will be several years before the market is fully recovered but this year could be your last opportunity for a while to capitalize on the unreal 23% ROI (Return On Investment) type of investment properties for a while. Investors will start seeing more types of real estate investments take place such as owner-carry-financing, due to the millions of Americans who have damaged credit but still may have solid income or in some cases even be multimillionaires who are tired of buying everything cash and want leverage.”
ListedBy also published The 2013 Real Estate Market, a forward looking opinion on the market based on two possible economic scenarios for the coming year. The article can be viewed at http://blog.listedby.com.
# # #
About ListedBy
ListedBy is the first free online real estate marketplace and social network with live bidding auction and ‘Best Offer’ functionality. Buyers, sellers, real estate professionals and service providers join ListedBy to network and to list, research, buy and sell real estate assets in a collaborative, transparent environment. ListedBy is headquartered in Napa, and is privately funded. For ongoing news, please visit http://www.listedby.com/about.
ListedBy, LB Social and the ListedBy logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of ListedBy, LLC and / or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. Third party trademarks and brands mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

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Congressional Dairy Fix Would Still Raise Milk Prices

Dairy Manufacturers and Consumer Groups Oppose New Program
WASHINGTON, Dec. 31, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) stated today that the legislation proposed by Congressional Agriculture Committee leaders would still cause a problem in the marketplace because it includes a controversial new program designed to limit the milk supply. That proposal, championed by Representative Collin Peterson (D-MN) yet resisted by consumer groups, food manufacturers and many dairy farmers, is known as the Dairy Security Act (DSA) and would require the government to intervene in milk markets to manipulate the supply of milk in order to keep milk prices artificially high.
"It is ironic that the threat of higher dairy prices for consumers, caused by the possible implementation of the 1949 Act, is being used to force Congress to pass a new program that will result in higher prices," said Jerry Slominski, IDFA senior vice-president for legislative and economic affairs.
The new program is included in a bill that would extend most existing farm programs for one year; it was placed on the House calendar by House Committee on Agriculture Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK). That bill completely rewrites U.S. dairy policies, including the new program to control milk production, yet leaves all other agriculture programs unchanged. By insisting on its inclusion in the "fiscal cliff" legislation, its supporters are making it more difficult to pass that important legislation, should leaders come to an agreement on its details.
"The Dairy Security Act is a problem, not a solution," Slominski said. "IDFA supports an extension of existing dairy policies in the current farm bill to give Congress time to complete action on a new five-year farm bill and to allow for consideration of the alternative to the Dairy Security Act offered by Representatives Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) and David Scott (D-GA). We believe that alternative will pass if it is brought to the full House of Representatives for an up or down vote.
"A clean extension of the 2008 Farm Bill will avoid having the 1949 Act become relevant law and allow payments to dairy farmers when milk prices fall. The 1949 Act represents agriculture policies from the past and unless Congress passes a clean extension of the Farm Bill, Secretary Vilsack would be placed in the unenviable position of proposing rules to implement such policies. Although he will be able to delay any increase on consumer dairy prices for weeks if not months, Congress should still take action to avoid that situation," Slominski concluded.
Read IDFA's letter to Secretary Vilsack here.
Read the letter from consumer groups to Secretary Vilsack here.
The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), headquartered in Washington, D.C., represents the nation's dairy manufacturing and marketing industries and their suppliers, with a membership of 550 companies representing a $110-billion a year industry. IDFA is composed of three constituent organizations: the Milk Industry Foundation (MIF), the National Cheese Institute (NCI) and the International Ice Cream Association (IICA). IDFA's 220 dairy processing members run more than 600 plant operations, and range from large multi-national organizations to single-plant companies. Together they represent more than 85% of the milk, cultured products, cheese and frozen desserts produced and marketed in the United States. IDFA can be found online at www.idfa.org.

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Astrology Secrets Revealed: New Online Website PsychicTarot.us Reveals Astrology Advice for $5

Astrology has been a cornerstone of every known civilization, and PsychicTarot.us has announced the release of their new online marketplace for readers and clients. The new system allows readers to list their readings and sell to a global market.

Santa Barbara, CA (PRWEB) December 31, 2012
To further enhance the options for site users, the metaphysical market place PsychicTarot.us has added Astrology readings marketplace and astrological advice to their online offerings. Site users will be able to have a detailed and professional astrological reading that can tell them about their future, their love interests, or the best time to transact a business deal.
The new astrology readings section is available now, and professional readers are encouraged to create offers to share their services. People who would like to get their own reading can browse providers and choose the most interesting for their needs.
"Astrology history is long and rich with a devoted following, so we wanted to make this service available to our users as quickly as possible. There are so many talented astrologers out there, we are sure that this is going to be one of our most popular categories. Plus, with our marketplace, the astrologers will have a broader reach and the users will be able to get affordable astrology advice," PsychicTarot.us representative Katia Shayk said in a statement.
While many people immediately associate astrology with horoscopes, this is just one branch of the astrological science. From the Great Pyramids in Egypt to the ruins of Machu Picchu in Peru, there has been a deep respect for the movements of the stars and planets, along with a belief that they influenced every aspect of each person's life and the planet's fate.
Astrology has been used to describe many different things, among them:

Human personality traits
Prediction of future events
The identification of auspicious events or times
The existence of extraterrestrial beings
Ms. Shayk continued; "We know that, along with tarot card reading, star readings are one of the most popular of the metaphysical sciences. The rich, famous and powerful have been known to use astrology to help guide their daily lives and actions. There is no reason to believe that everyone can't benefit from accurate astrological advice, it can be insightful, and quite a bit of fun."
One of the most powerful astrological signs is the eclipse, either lunar or solar. A reading of the eclipse legends brought to light in this Examiner article sound eerily similar to events occurring around the world today. Should events come to pass as suggested by the article, it would certainly lead additional credence to the power of astrological predictions to explain the events occurring in the world as well as predicting what may come.

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