[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
newsfox.digest
|
From: |
newsfox.com |
|
Subject: |
newsfox.digest |
|
Date: |
Wed, 12 Feb 2003 22:10:24 +0100 (CET) |
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
News of the day
Message digest by newsfox from 02/12/2003
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Google named leading world brand
Nokia first in Europe
(pte030212019)
2. Intracom stake in Siemens approved
(pte030212020)
3. BP invests billions in Russian oil venture
New company expected to supply 1.2 million barrels a day
(pte030212023)
4. German music industry plans download site
New platform to go online by mid 2003
(pte030212028)
5. Climate change may affect poor regions of Italy
Severe loss of biodiversity expected in next decades
(pte030212032)
6. Swiss cement industry agrees to CO2 cuts
First sector to set common targets with government
(pte030212033)
7. Croatian doctors urged to end strike
Union measures blamed for unnecessary deaths
(pte030212034)
8. Coulthard against secret deals in F1 circuit
Scottish star fears agreements could harm Grand Prix
(pte030212038)
9. Austrian ISPs on the verge of bankruptcy
Price war will soon lead to significant reduction
(pte030212050)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212019
Google named leading world brand
Nokia first in Europe
New York (pte, Feb 12, 2003 11:58) - The popular search engine Google has
received the title "Brand of the Year" for 2002 in a study carried out by
the marketing agency Interbrand http://www.interbrand.com. Among 1,315
participants, Google achieved first place with a 15 per cent hold on the
global market ranking.
Google was followed by computer producer Apple (14 %) and soft drink
giant Coca-Cola (12 %). Fourth and fifth in the world ranking were
Starbucks (11 %) and Ikea (10 %).
Nokia http://www.nokia.com took first place in Europe, achieving 19 per
cent of the vote among 1,290 participants, followed by Ikea at 16 per
cent and Mini at 15 per cent. Fourth place went to BMW (12 %), and fifth
place went to the Swedish brand Absolut.
Target http://www.target.com was the leader in the United States,
receiving 19 per cent of the vote, followed by Apple (18 %) and Starbucks
(13 %). Places four and five were occupied by Krispy Kreme doughnuts (12
%) and the airline JetBlue. In total, 1,983 people took part in the US
survey.
LG Electronics http://www.Ige.co.kr dominated the Asian market by earning
24 per cent of the vote, followed by Samsung (22 %) and Sony Playstation
(19 %). Only 800 people in this region filled out the questionnaire.
The survey was carried out online in November and December 2002 in a
cooperation with Business Week and Brandchannel.com
http://www.brandchannel.com.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Astrid Nolte,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212020
Intracom stake in Siemens approved
Athens (pte, Feb 12, 2003 12:15) - Greek telecom equipment producer
Intracom has received permission to acquire a 41 per cent stake in the
local branch of German industrial group Siemens AG. As reported by
Seeurope, the European Commission gave the deal its official approval
yesterday.
Intracom http://www.intracom.gr/ plans to purchase a 29 per cent stake
directly from Siemens, and another 12 per cent in shares from the
National Bank of Greece. Together Intracom and Siemens would then hold 41
per cent each. The Greek National Bank would retain 18 per cent of shares
in the form of Siemens Teleindustrie.
According to Siemens http://www.siemens.com Information and Communication
Networks, the sale of this sizeable stake to Intracom is part of its
strategy to boost production units around the world and offer expanded
services in southeast Europe.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Astrid Nolte,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212023
BP invests billions in Russian oil venture
New company expected to supply 1.2 million barrels a day
Moscow/London (pte, Feb 12, 2003 12:44) - British energy group BP
http://www.bp.com is investing billions of dollars in a new Russian joint
venture, which will form Russias third largest oil and gas business.
In the deal BP has agreed to join together with Russias Alfa Group and
Access-Renova (AAR), with each partner holding a fifty per cent stake.
Over the next four years, BP plans to invest a total of 6.75 billion
dollars in cash and shares.
The new oil supplier will incorporate TNK and Sidanco. Together they
produce approximately 1.2 million barrels of oil a day. It will also own
significant exploration interests in Siberia and Sakhalin, together with
a major downstream business that includes interests in five refineries
and a retail network of over 2,100 sites in Russia and the Ukraine.
BP estimates that the new company will have production of some 1.2
million barrels of oil a day, and that the oil and gas resources of the
new concern are at least 5.2 billion barrels.
In a BP press release Chief Executive Lord Browne called the transaction
"a major strategic step into a country with massive oil and gas reserves
and immense potential for future growth. He further said: "These prudent
measures, combined with Russia's greatly improved economic stability,
improved legal system and increasing commitment to international rules of
trade and business, have convinced BP that now is the time to deepen our
partnership with AAR."
The transaction, which will be effective from 1 January 2003, is
scheduled for completion in the summer.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Astrid Nolte,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212028
German music industry plans download site
New platform to go online by mid 2003
Dusseldorf (pte, Feb 12, 2003 13:12) - The German music industry may soon
have its own communal platform for music downloads.
According to Handelblatt http://handelsblatt.com, the German industry
plans to launch a new portal by mid 2003, which should initially serve as
a business-to-business platform for music dealers and online services.
The driving force behind the project is Phononet GmbH
http://www.phononet.de, which is owned by six music companies including
Universal and Edel Music. Unlike the unsuccessful US industry download
sites, the German version should offer clients a more unified and
centralized business location.
German phonographic association head Gerd Gebhardt told Handelsblatt:
"The music industry has understood that there must be an alternative to
illegal music exchange sites.
Negotiations are being held with several providers, including Deutsche
Telecom, over who should provide the technical infrastructure of the
platform.
The platform will be directed at business clients looking for a
ready-made music portal, which can be listed as a logo and link on their
own websites.
Phononet GmbH currently runs a website called Muscline.de
http://musicline.de, which could potentially be restructured as a
download portal.
While the portal would show a unified face to its clients, the
participating labels would individually profit from their music sales.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Astrid Nolte,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212032
Climate change may affect poor regions of Italy
Severe loss of biodiversity expected in next decades
Rome (pte, Feb 12, 2003 13:50) - Changes in climate could have a
devastating effect on several impoverished regions of Italy, according to
a new study by the Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy
and the Environment (Enea) http://www.enea.it.
As new research by Enea shows, much of Italy will experience
desertification, loss of biodiversity, and less rainfall yet more
flooding within the next few decades. Experts expect these effects of
climate change to hit the poorest areas of the country particularly hard.
Among the regions most affected will be mountains, coastlines, the south
and the two major islands of Sardinia and Sicily, the report states.
Because of their heavy dependence on agriculture and tourism, Italys
southern regions are likely to experience the most severe economic
setbacks.
The Venice area in the northeast of the country and several river
estuaries will have a higher risk of flooding. Researchers say a total of
4,500 square km of land could be at risk, 62.6% of which is located in
the south.
Reduced rainfall and higher temperatures, especially in the summer, could
also put considerable strain on the south and the islands, where many
areas are already undergoing a process of desertification.
The experts involved in the study have urged the government and local
authorities to be quick in focusing on preventative measures. They
caution that better coastal protection is needed to prevent the erosion
of the coastline, and that farmers should prepare to adapt to more
efficient methods of irrigation.
Eneas declared mission is to provide research and innovation for the
sustainable development of the nation.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Astrid Nolte,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212033
Swiss cement industry agrees to CO2 cuts
First sector to set common targets with government
Bern (pte, Feb 12, 2003 14:04) - Switzerlands cement industry has become
the first sector to join forces with the government in setting targets to
reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. In a signed agreement, the sector
has pledged to reduce emissions between now and 2010.
The agreement was made under the government's Energy Switzerland
programme, which aims to achieve a ten per cent reduction in CO2
emissions compared with 1990 levels. The target is required by national
law.
Under the agreement, the cement industry is prepared to reduce the amount
of CO2 produced by fossil fuel combustion processes by 44 per cent. This
should largely be achieved through the replacement of fossil carbon-based
fuels with renewables. A second binding target is to reduce the amount of
CO2 resulting from manufacturing processes by 30 per cent.
Switzerland's federal agency for the environment, forests and landscape
(Buwal) http://www.buwal.ch/ expects to conclude around 30 similar
agreements with various financial sectors under the Energy Switzerland
programme this year.
Despite expected progress, Buwal says the government has not ruled out
the introduction of a special CO2 tax to help it meet the ten per cent
target.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Astrid Nolte,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212034
Croatian doctors urged to end strike
Union measures blamed for unnecessary deaths
Zagreb (pte, Feb 12, 2003 14:18) - Croatian doctors have been warned to
end a one-month strike action amid claims that 13 people have died as a
direct result of their actions, as reported by HRT Web
http://www.hrt.hr/.
The Croatian Department of Health confirmed that it believed the
month-long industrial action organised by the Croatian Doctors Union
(HLS) over pay and conditions had claimed lives, but declined to say how
many patients this was in total.
The Department of Health has however set up a special free phone
complaints hotline for people to call to report doctors who they accuse
of breaking their Hippocratic oath, a move unions say is a way of putting
pressure on the strikers.
Croatian media have carried a spate of reports about what they claim are
13 alleged deaths, including a report in the weekly news magazine the
Feral Tribune which carried the headline "Croatian Doctors Killed My
Mother.
Speaking at a press conference in the wake of media outrage, Croatian
Prime Minister Ivica Racan said concern was now so great the government
planned to force the union to back down and let doctors go back to work
in an effort to "protect patients and the dignity of doctors as well".
He said: "The government will take clear action."
The HLS, which represents 90 per cent of the countrys doctors, called
the strike to back its demands for a 27 per cent hike in wages. The
average salary for a doctor in Croatia is roughly 750 pounds per month.
Under the terms of the strike doctors will only deal with patients
requiring essential or urgent medical attention.
The Croatian Health Ministry spokesman in Zagreb said that if the doctors
rejected the Prime Ministers appeal then they could be ordered to return
to normal service by invoking a provision in the Croatian constitution
which allows the government to force people working in the public sector
to call off strikes. The spokesman did not give a timetable, but added if
that failed for whatever reason, they could then sue the organizers of
the strike.
Union leader Ivica Babic speaking last night (Mon) on Croatian television
dismissed the Health ministry claims and media reports of deaths as a
result of the strike, and insisted that no-one had died.
He accused the media of acting as the puppet of the government and
conspiring to influence public opinion by turning it against doctors. He
also pledged that the strike would continue regardless of what legal
action was taken.
A doctors union spokesman in the southern town of Split who asked not to
be named said: "We could set a limit of 40 minutes per patient
consultation, as we are allowed to under law. That wouldn't be a real
strike, but would create chaos. We still have a lot of options whatever
they do."
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Mike Leidig,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212038
Coulthard against secret deals in F1 circuit
Scottish star fears agreements could harm Grand Prix
Bratislava (pte, Feb 12, 2003 14:38) - Scottish F1 ace David Coulthard
fears behind the scenes deals between teams on the Formula One circuit
http://www.formula1.com/ could destroy attempts to make Grand Prix more
interesting.
The 31-year-old McLaren driver said that under new rules on qualifying
and car set-ups this season every Grand Prix would see some of the best
drivers on the circuit forced to fight their way into leading positions
from the back of the grid.
But while that would be exciting, the star said, it could become
artificial if drivers from one F1 outfit help those of another.
He told Slovak daily Pravda http://www.pravda.sk: "Its going to be
more interesting. At every Grand Prix therell be a couple of good
drivers who will start from the back. If they want to get higher up
theyll have to do a lot of overtaking, which is what the fans like.
"But I hope that no groups behind the scenes get in the way of that
contest. Ferrari supply motors to the Sauber team. It could happen that a
Sauber driver would have to free up the track for a Ferrari driver, which
would destroy the entire attempt to make Grand Prix more dramatic.
"I dont want to tempt the devil but these things can happen.
Under new rules introduced for this season by the sports governing body,
the FIA, drivers will be able to drive only one lap after coming out of
the pits to set their fastest time during qualifying.
In previous seasons drivers were allowed to race twelve laps in a
qualifying session, and as many as they wanted after coming out of the
pits, and take their best time from those laps.
The FIA has also ruled that any driver who changes his set up between
qualifying and the actual race will have to start from the back of the
grid.
Coulthard said: "Qualification will be a challenge for every driver.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Harry Miltner,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: + 43 1 811 40 319
___________________________________________________________________________
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
http://www.pressetext.com/pte.mc?pte=030212050
Austrian ISPs on the verge of bankruptcy
Price war will soon lead to significant reduction
Vienna, Austria (pte, Feb 12, 2003 18:36) - Every second internet service
provider in Austria is on the verge of bankruptcy, according to a study
by Arge, which examined the internet activities of around 70.000
organisations. http://www.argedaten.at The survey found that 140 of the
600 internet service providers are competing for contracts from the most
attractive 500 big companies, four fifths of which use the services of
more than one company.
Experts predict that the fierce price war will soon lead to a reduction
in the number of internet service providers, as many are pushed into
bankruptcy. The survey predicted that the price of internet services
would not go much lower next year and that companies would seek to win
new clients by offering services such as the atomisation of data, or by
specialising in certain sectors and themes and by focussing on regions.
According to the study, the relatively large number of internet service
providers in Austria means that customers will continue to be able to
dictate the price. Telekom Austria is the market leader with a 15 per
cent share of the company internet share provider market followed by UTA
and Inode with market shares of ten per cent.
(end)
Submitter: pressetext.europe
Contact: Newfox Desk,
E-Mail: editor@newsfox.com,
Phone: ++43-1-81140-319
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Update Your personal subscription profile:
http://www.pressetext.com/abo/modification.mc?md5=70776a3951b4484a60221733e0d13196&action=update
Unsubscribe from newsfox services:
http://www.pressetext.com/abo/delete.mc?md5=70776a3951b4484a60221733e0d13196
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(c) pressetext.com: http://www.pte.com
pressetext.austria: http://www.pressetext.at
pressetext.deutschland: http://www.pressetext.de
pressetext.schweiz: http://www.pressetext.ch
newsfox: http://www.newsfox.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+++ pressetext.europe +++ newsfox.com +++ pressetext.europe +++
- newsfox.digest, newsfox.com, 2003/02/11
- newsfox.digest,
newsfox.com <=