Author: Robin Speziale

Canadian Cell Phone Providers Uncompetitive

Investing

Walk into Bell, Telus and Rogers and the prices just hit you. Why should we pay $699 (no contract) for a Blackberry Storm? Well, I called Bell today and asked that question. The ‘customer care’ rep had no answer.

Hold on, Blackberry’s are made in Canada and we pay more to hold one than our friends to the South? But, don’t blame it on RIM, blame it on our fat, overweight, greedy cell providers… oh and the government – but that’s a different story.

Financial Post has done some recent digging and it can be safely said, the telecom industry in this country is at an appalling state. “Canada’s wireless industry is one of the weakest in the developed world”. And thats not even the kicker. Merrill Lynch ranks current Canadian wireless penetration at 65% – just ahead of Indonesia and Iraq. Just ahead of Indonesia and Iraq? Wow.

So, what this means it that we’re getting screwed. Among developed nations Canada ranks dead last in penetration, meaning that competition is extremely low in this country. And we pay a higher price because of this fact.

So what does this mean for Bell, Telus and Rogers stocks? Well, for now they are riding high but at the same time shaking in their boots. Why? Because a group of new wireless providers are ready to crash their party.

Soon you’ll be seeing ads for Globealive, Shaw, Quebecor selling phones to you. Take a peak at Globealive’s Wind Mobile website – they actually want to treat us as PARTNERS, not lowly, desperate customers.rim-blackberry-bold.

In 2008, Canada held a spectrum auction, meaning the federal Government put wireless space up for sale. So, companies jumped on the opportunity, bid on wireless regions in Canada, some coming out as nation- wide wireless providers and others not.

I have a long term sell on Bell, Telus and Rogers. At the moment they’ll suck as much money out of us until the party ends. Wireless Intelligence indicated that as of the end of Q1 2009, profit margins for Canadian wireless providers were amongst the highest in the developed world – about 44%. Theres no stopping them from selling us $699 Blackberry’s… until the new kids in town arrive. Look forward to healthy competition, lower prices, better phones in the near future.

Analysts will put an axe through Rogers, Telus and Bell, once profit margins on wireless divisions are squeezed due to increased competition. But analysts aside, we – consumers – will determine the fall of these behemoths.

My Wikipedia Page Was Deleted

Startups

Today, I made my Wikipedia page. And today, my Wikipedia Page was deleted. Those Wiki editors are fast. I thought that after reading blogs and articles on boosting your personal brand by creating a page on Wikipedia, I would give it a try.

At 12:10 PM today I submitted my Wikipedia page. And at 12:15 PM I received a deletion notice. Apparently, Wikipedia wants notable people on Wikipedia. MC hammer, Vanilla ice and other people are apparently notable, which leads me to ask: Who is a notable person?

Below is a screenshot of my Wikipedia page minutes before it was deleted. Did Wikipedia delete your page? Comment about it.

Robin_Speziale_Wikipedia_Page_deleted

Must See: Axe Toronto Summer Job

Jobs

axe_job_opportunity

Axe Canada is hiring in Toronto for Summer 2010. According to the Axe Consumer consultant job description:

– A guy and girl will be hired
– $10,000 salary for 2 months
– Free apartment for job duration

But get this. “Work both individually and as a team to conduct in-depth field research on the Canadian dating landscape. In other words, date and tell.” Sounds crazy? fun?

Apply here

Facebook versus Myspace: Internet Popularity Contest

Startups

The battle between Facebook and Myspace for the social networking crown has long been talked about. However, I find it interesting how with the advent of the internet – websites and internet companies quickly come and go.

I think back to Netscape. Explorer came onto the scene then Firefox now Chrome. These major browsers all within little more than a decade. The rise and fall of websites and browsers in this case hits home that the internet does not completely reflect the traditional marketplace. For example, brands such as Tide, Coca Cola, and Mcdonald’s have been popular brands for decades.

My theory is that because entrance into the internet market is a easy as setting up a website with low capital requirements in most cases, many are encouraged to capitalize on the internet. However, keeping competitive is key else risk being pushed off the internet landscape.

Below is as an example of the rise and fall of social networking on the internet (Google Trends). Myspace once held the crown, now passing it to Facebook. And Facebook is definitely experiencing amazing growth.
Facebook versus Myspace

Review – Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2

Media

marvel-ultimate-alliance-2-game-case

The following review of Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 was written by great friend and Technical Consultant for Buddingup, Edward Lau:

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Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 is awesome! It’s an enjoyable game with a good story. It also doesn’t get too RPGy, which some people complain about, since the last few Ultimate Alliance games had more RPG elements. However in my opinion, I found this to be better, since this means that there aren’t useless powers to accidentally give points to. And seriously, its a superhero game – we want the action.

its a superhero game – we want the action.

Overall, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2  a good experience, both single player and multiplayer (by that I mean offline co-op, I haven’t tried online yet). The only complaint I have are the loading times, but its not that bad. Loading times are only around half a minute or so… which is far better than Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.

it strikes a good balance between being easy and too hard

I’m quite happy that I preordered Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2, since it looks like they were sold out very quickly, and I got Juggernaut! While Juggernaut isn’t one of my favourite characters, he’s actually quite fun to use, so that’s good. And I’m pleased with how the developers included some of the lesser known heroes instead of only the popular ones. Plus, its not an easy game either, but it strikes a good balance between being easy and too hard. You should definitely try out the game.

Check back for more reviews by Edward Lau in the future.

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Edward Lau is currently attending the University of Waterloo for computer science. He is also Technical Consultant for buddingup.com.

Does Increase in Starbucks Spending Mean the End of Recession?

Investing

starbucks

I have seen more and more people drinking Starbucks. Does this signal the end of the recession?

When the financial crisis hit the U.S. , Starbucks suffered from cut back in consumer spending. In the news, reporters claimed consumers slashed Starbucks coffee from their daily routine in order pay off credit cards, fill up gas, and buy groceries.

So logically, an increase in Starbucks spending should mean that consumers are again confident in the economy and their financial status, thus signalling a broader trend in increased consumer spending i.e. cars, houses that will thrust us out of recession for good.

Invest in Starbucks.

EB Games + GameSpot in Canada

Media

gamestop logo
EBGAMES LOGO

Lately I’ve noticed EB Games in Canada are converting to Gamestop. For background information, Gamestop is EB Games parent company, with over $8 billion in revenue. On top of EB Games coverting its stores to Gamestop branding, all new stores are using the Gamestop brand. Is EB Games dead?

No. Gamestop seems to be riding on the model Best Buy used with Futureshop in Canada. Canada’s market isn’t incredibly saturated, so there is definitely room for more competitors in electronics, mobile and gaming. Best Buy realized that Futureshop was operating solo as a major general electronic store in Canada. So instead of re-branding each Futureshop to Best Buy when Best buy bought them out, they let Futureshop keeps its branding.

Why? Best Buy figured that if they owned the competition, they could watch the revenue roll in, keep customers happy and most importantly block out new electronic entrants into the market. To further their strategy, Best Buy made sure Futureshop and Best Buy were 2 different experences.

Gamestop seems to be running on the same model Best Buy used in Canada. By branding some EB Games as Gamestop and opening new stores as Gamestop, the parent company ensures entrants are blocked out from the market, while giving consumers a real or arguably perceived choice to video game purchases and game trade-in’s.

Warren Buffets Investing Lessons from Financial Crisis 2008

Investing

Warren_Buffet

Warren Buffet. Investor extraordinaire and one of the rishest individuals in the world. He is also one of the calmest individuals in the world. The financial crisis 2008 did not sway him like many investors, politicians etc. In fact, Warren Buffet was so confident in the strength of the U.S. and world economy that he plowed money into GE, Goldman Sachs and BYD near the low point of the financial crisis.

I like Warren Buffet’s lesson here. Buy stocks when the market is at a low point. The credo to buy low and sell high is very important to investing. Warren Buffet hits it home when he says: “Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful”. With Buffets logic, when investors are greedy stocks are inflated and when investors are fearful stocks are low.

Another Buffet investing lesson comes from what stocks he invested in during the financial crisis. Is every stock out there a good buy when the stock is low? No. Buffet would be the first to stress a stock is literally a piece of a company. And if you buy a piece of a terrible company, you own a piece of a terrible company. GE, Goldman Sachs and BYD are great companies. Warren Buffet scored by investing in these stocks when prices were depressed.