Archive | November 9, 2009

The DVD Price War

Nov9

dvds

(From the Huffington Post)

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. started another price war Thursday, trimming the online preorder prices of some upcoming DVDs following its price cut on books last month. And, once again, competitors Amazon.com and Target scrambled to match the prices.

It’s the latest salvo in an ongoing online push by Wal-Mart designed to make sure everyone knows it intends to be the low-price leader on the Web, as well as in stores.

The retailer, based in Bentonville, Ark., said late Thursday that it would lower the online prices of new DVDs such as “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince” and “Star Trek XI” to $10.

But when Amazon reduced some of its DVD prices to $9.99, Wal-Mart shot back by cutting its DVDs to $9.98 as of Friday morning. Target got into the act Friday morning, too. All three companies also sweetened the pot by offering free shipping for the DVDs being sold.

The goal of such tactics is to drive higher volume, said BMO Capital Markets analyst Wayne Hood. He noted that some businesses like Wal-Mart and Target can afford to lower their prices and still be profitable because of their low-cost distribution models.

Hood said it is important for some of Wal-Mart’s rivals to remain competitive on price, but that trying to undercut Wal-Mart, with its huge scope and buying power, is a losing game. The retail giant sells enough products in enough categories to make up for any losses on individual items that it uses to pull people into stores or onto its Web site.

“On an everyday basis, customers expect Wal-Mart to be the benchmark or standard for pricing,” he said.

…………………………………………………………………..

I don’t think anyone will ever beat out Walmart prices, as the article mentioned, their buying power and portfolio of products is very strong in the consumer industry.  I think this DVD Price war is actually great for consumers as we will be receiving the best price for new LEGAL dvd’s, lol.  DVD’s are great presents for the upcoming holiday season, so I suggest you to go to Walmart’s website soon during this DVD Price War (includes free shipping temporarily)!

Not a Cougar, Call Her a Puma

Nov9

demi-moore-w-02-300x400

In the December issue of W magazine, Demi Moore, 47, talks about everything from being labeled a “cougar” for her relationship with Ashton Kutcher, 31, to aging in Hollywood.

demi-moore-w-300x400

The ageless beauty, who stars in two upcoming indie films “Happy Tears” and “The Joneses” — and is also the face of the new Helena Rubinstein women’s fragrance “All You’ve Ever Wanted,” — says getting older has affected her acting career. “The frustrating part is that the type of roles I’d be interested in are not really coming to me,” says Moore, whose buff physique helped her attain roles like “G.I. Jane” and “Striptease.” “I hate to say it’s a function of my age—but yes, I think in some ways it is. The majority of [female] roles are geared between 25 and 35.”

cess_demi_03_v

And about her “cougar” title, Moore prefers “puma.” “I’m certainly not the first person to be in a relationship with a younger man, but somehow I was plucked out as a bit of a poster girl,” says Moore, who first met Kutcher six and a half years ago. “I don’t know why that is. But I just kind of step back sometimes and say, ‘There is some reason, and what is it that I have to share in a positive way?” See the full interview with Demi at wmagazine.com.

cear_demi_h

I don’t even really consider Demi Moore a TRUE cougar puma since she does not even look her age! She can pass for the same age as Ashton, seriously.  I think older women date younger guys because they like the excitement and challenge.  It’s more often that you see older men with younger women, so when an older woman links up with a younger man, it’s a “big deal.” The relationship is obviously a successful one, so while some people want to focus on her and Ashton’s age, I think they are just knit-picking a situation to find something [negative] to talk about. These two have managed to make it work – and look good doing it.

Inspiration vs. Duplication

Nov9

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, Beyonce is being called to the courts next month. Keep reading the article below.

beyonce-cater 2 u

In dispute is a song titled “Cater 2 U” released by Destiny’s Child in a 2004 from their “Destiny Fulfilled” album. But Chicago songwriter and performer Rickey Allen says it’s his song, and a judge has given the green light for a jury to hear his claims against Mrs. Jay-Z.

Allen first copyrighted his “Cater 2 U,” — with the same spelling — in the mid-1990s. He performed the song locally and updated the copyright three times, as recently as 2000.

Allen’s song is about “relieving the stress of a significant other, and getting them to relax.” He says Destiny Child’s version contains similar steamy lyrics.

When Allen’s song says: “I want to rub you down,” Destiny’s Child asks: “Want a foot rub?”

Allen’s lyrics say: “The tub has hot steam rising,” and “I’m waiting to soak your body through.” The Destiny’s Child song offers to: “Let me run your bath water.”

Allen says he passed a copy of his “Cater 2 U” to Chicago remixer Maurice Joshua, and the two planned to collaborate on a demo.

U.S. District Judge James Holderman has ruled there’s enough evidence for the case to go before a jury, pointing to Joshua as the link and saying it’s possible he could have provided a copy of Allen’s song before they released their hit. The trial was delayed once because of conflicts with Knowles’ schedule but is set for Dec. 10.

To read the complete story, click here.

Do you think this is a legitimate claim against Beyonce from Allen?  Was his song just a simple inspiration to Destiny Child’s “Cater 2 U?” I think Allen has a lot of valid points, with the song title being spelled EXACTLY the same and the similar lyrics and all – he was cautious enough to copyright the songs 3 times to try to avoid situations like these.  I wonder how things will pan out for Bey.