China’s Alibaba eyes biggest IPO by market value of all time |
- China’s Alibaba eyes biggest IPO by market value of all time
- ‘Bill Murray Day’ at Toronto film fest
- The Volkswagen Tiguan is in a class of its own (VIDEO)
- IFA trend: the selfie phone
- Rod Stewart sued for US$2.5m over picture
| China’s Alibaba eyes biggest IPO by market value of all time Posted: 05 Sep 2014 05:52 PM PDT
The company told US regulators it would offer some 320 million shares in a range of US$60 to US$66 per share. An option will be available for 48 million additional shares. The plan would raise a minimum of US$19.2 billion even if the option for additional shares is not exercised by the underwriters. And the maximum amount based on the range and the option would be US$24.3 billion, which would break the record of US$22.1 billion by China's AgBank in 2010, according to research firm Dealogic. No date was set for the market debut, but some reports have said the company would begin presentations to investors next week and the stock would trade around September 18 or 19. The initial public offering (IPO), which will be made on the New York Stock Exchange, is part of efforts by Alibaba to expand globally. Based on the price range, Alibaba would have a market value between US$148 billion and US$162.7 billion — roughly in line with that of US online giant Amazon (US$160 billion) and more than twice the value of eBay (US$66 billion). Alibaba operates China's most popular e-shopping platform, Taobao, which has more than 90 per cent of the online market for consumer-to-consumer transactions in the country. Taobao has more than 800 million product listings and over 500 million users. Alibaba's consumer services are similar to a mix of those offered by US Internet titans eBay, PayPal and Amazon.com, and it also operates services for wholesalers. However the China-based group does not sell products directly, instead hosting online venues such as Taobao where buyers and sellers can do business. The strategy has given Alibaba an enviable profit margin as an online middleman of sorts. Alibaba Group made a profit of nearly US$2 billion on revenue of US$2.5 billion in the quarter ending June 30 according to its latest filing. Revenue rose 46 per cent from the same period a year earlier. Founder Jack Ma set up Alibaba in 1999, convincing friends to fund him with US$60,000. The company started as a platform for Chinese manufacturers to connect with foreign buyers and later launched flagship site Taobao in 2003. The company earlier this year announced plans for a US marketplace called 11 Main, which is currently in a test phase. US Internet giant Yahoo bought 40 per cent of Alibaba in 2005 for US$1 billion and now stands to reap a handsome profit from that. Yahoo sold part of its stake in 2012, getting a gain of US$7.6 billion. Under the IPO plan, Yahoo will reduce its stake from the current level of 22.4 per cent to 16.3 per cent. The largest current shareholder is Japanese telecom group SoftBank, and its stake will fall from 34.1 per cent to 32.4 per cent. Ma's stake is expected to drop one percentage point to 7.8 per cent after the IPO. The company decided to list in New York because Hong Kong Stock Exchange rules prevented Ma and senior management retaining control over the board of directors. Alibaba wanted an alternative class share structure to give selected minority shareholders extra control over the board, but the Hong Kong bourse declined to change its rules. A US government panel warned earlier this year that Alibaba's complex corporate structure posed risks to investors. Alibaba and other big Chinese tech firms use a complex legal mechanism in which "ownership is deliberately obscured by a series of shell companies," the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission said in a June report. Because of this structure, any legal contracts may be on shaky ground, noting that "the contracts are only binding and enforceable if Chinese courts are willing to uphold them," the report noted. Alibaba Group is registered in the Cayman Islands and operates through a series of subsidiaries in Hong Kong, the British Virgin Islands and elsewhere. — AFP  |
| ‘Bill Murray Day’ at Toronto film fest Posted: 05 Sep 2014 05:51 PM PDT
The Toronto International Film Festival declared yesterday "Bill Murray Day," and called on fans of the quirky comedic actor to dress up as his beloved characters in a costume contest and see screenings of films "Stripes," "Groundhog Day" and "Ghostbusters." For two public sector workers and a barista dressed up as the three main characters from "Ghostbusters," the decision was a no-brainer. The trio were first in line for a free screening of the classic comedy, decked out in authentic-looking jumpsuits and proton packs that flash lights and make noise but do not shoot anti-apparition projectiles. "We're not at that stage with the technology. Maybe one day," said 25-year-old Solange Houle, the barista. Although Murray is famously elusive and unpredictable, organizers announced late Thursday that he will be here for his own day. Murray will take questions after "Ghostbusters" and the world premiere of his film "St. Vincent," a prospect that delighted fans like movie critic Mark Bell. "Every single time you hear a story about Bill Murray it's about all these crazy things he does that if any other human did them, people would be like 'we need to arrest this person.' But when Bill Murray does it it's just awesome. How does he pull it off?" he said. Scores of similarly enthusiastic fans, many of whom were too young to catch "Ghostbusters" when it hit big screens 30 years ago, packed a downtown Toronto theater for a free screening of what host and film programmer Jesse Wente dubbed "the greatest supernatural comedy ever made." "Toronto's celebration dedicated to the man is well-deserved and we are immensely excited that he'll be there in the flesh to celebrate with us and his huge legion of fans," Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, executive producer of "St. Vincent", said in a statement. The 63-year-old actor from the Chicago suburb of Wilmette got his foothold in American comedy on "Saturday Night Live" and went on to star in films "Meatballs," "Caddyshack," "Stripes," "Ghostbusters" and "Groundhog Day" in offbeat roles that earned him a following of hard-core fans. Murray later moved toward more dramatic roles, usually inflected with his trademark humour, like the fading actor in "Lost in Translation." In "St Vincent," Murray plays a cantankerous retiree with a few vices who becomes the unlikely mentor to a 12-year-old neighbour. Film industry worker John Reed, 28, attended both "Stripes" and "Groundhog Day" and was hoping to get into "Ghostbusters" too, making him eligible to win a ticket to "St Vincent." But he said it was the classics that mattered most to him. "To be honest I only just learned of St Vincent last night, I saw a trailer for it," he said. "It looked really good. Bill Murray just doing what he does, shooting from the hip." — Reuters |
| The Volkswagen Tiguan is in a class of its own (VIDEO) Posted: 05 Sep 2014 05:45 PM PDT NEW YORK, Sept 6 — The 2014 Volkswagen Tiguan SEL (the name is the unlikely combination of tiger and iguana) has admirable qualities. From its generous features to its solid construction, the Tiguan will get your attention with its quality interior and upscale details. But while this ageing German-made vehicle does maintain its moves, from a numbers perspective though, the Tiguan doesn't add up especially when other, more modern compact crossovers cost less. — New York Times
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| Posted: 05 Sep 2014 05:40 PM PDT
The smartphone self-portrait is becoming almost as ubiquitous as the devices themselves, and 2014 could well be remembered as the year that manufacturers started paying as much attention to their phone's front-facing camera capabilities as they traditionally do to the one on the rear. Even the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 flagship phablet, one of the most important products to launch at this year's event as it sets the precedent for all phablets that will follow in 2015, was revealed to have special selfie features. The device's front-facing camera boasts 3.7-megapixels and a very fast aperture to mitigate shakes that come from holding the handset at arms' length. But it also has an ultra-wide-angle setting for snapping group shots or for making sure as much of the landmark behind is also in the frame.
It will add a host of special effects to images captured with either the front or rear camera and also has a suite of editing tools powerful enough to whiten individual teeth or widen half-closed eyes. There's even an audible sensor for when you want to use the rear-facing camera. The phone can track your face and will beep faster and faster as you get closer to the centre of the frame and then will snap the shot.
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| Rod Stewart sued for US$2.5m over picture Posted: 05 Sep 2014 05:31 PM PDT
Bonnie Schiffman, who has snapped pictures of celebrities including Michael Jackson, Muhammad Ali, Steven Spielberg and Andy Warhol, said Stewart, Caesars and several others replicated her 1981 photo without permission or paying her, according to a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles federal court on Thursday. The photograph was used as the cover of Stewart's multi-platinum 1989 greatest hits album, "Storyteller." "It has a powerful punch for the millions of fans that know that album," said Schiffman's attorney, William Hochberg. "We think that's why they're using it." Representatives for the 69-year-old Stewart could not be reached for comment. A spokeswoman for Caesars said the company does not comment on pending litigation. The Caesars image is not the exact one captured by Schiffman, but both show Stewart and his tousled spiky hair from the back. Hochberg said that could still be called infringement. "It's a rip off of the photo my client took," he said. Stewart and his handlers offered Schiffman US$1,500 in 2013 to use her image for a billboard, but she balked at the low figure, the suit said. Later, Schiffman claimed, a replicated version of the image was being used for the singer's Caesars Palace residency and world tour, including in the shows themselves. "Defendants have not only turned their back on Plaintiff," the complaint said, "but also on the law." Schiffman, who is based in Los Angeles, is also seeking punitive damages and an order to stop the defendants from using the image. — Reuters |
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