Apple's Tim Cook to billionaire Carl Icahn: Step aside

In Friday's proxy statement, Apple ignored Icahn and spoke directly to its serious investors.

Cook and Icahn

FORTUNE -- We don't know what Apple's (AAPL) CEO said to Wall Street's favorite activist investor at their "meet and tweet" dinner last September -- the one where Carl Icahn says he "pushed hard for a 150 billion buyback."

But on Friday we got the company's official response -- one that was approved, if not drafted, by Tim Cook. It's buried on p. 62 of a 65-page preliminary proxy statement.

Not surprisingly, the board of directors recommends that shareholders vote AGAINST (emphasis Apple's) a proposal that would commit the company to repurchasing the amount of shares Icahn wanted -- cut after that dinner from $150 billion worth (representing all of Apple's accumulated cash) to a minimum of $50 billion in 2014.

Even at $50 billion, that's roughly twice what Apple was already on track to spend in one of the largest buybacks in corporate history.

But Apple's statement goes further, telling Icahn and the rest of Apple's investors in no uncertain terms -- using language that sounds a lot like the way Tim Cook talks -- that Apple is playing in the big leagues and that it knows what it's doing better than any tweet-writing corporate raider who's just trying to increase the value of shares he's owned for less than a year.

After a brief, pro forma paragraph about "seeking input from shareholders," Apple's Statement in Opposition to Proposal No. 10 gets serious:

The Company's success stems from the Company's unique ability to combine world-class skills in hardware, software and services to deliver innovative products that create new markets and delight hundreds of millions of customers. This success has created tremendous value for the Company's shareholders.

With breakthrough products and services such as the Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad and App Store, the Company has created huge market opportunities, and the Board and management team believe the opportunities that lie ahead are just as exciting. Given such large and global markets, the Company competes with large companies around the world, many with their own significant technical capabilities and significant capital. This dynamic competitive landscape and the Company's rapid pace of innovation require unprecedented investment, flexibility and access to resources...

In the first six quarters of the capital return program, dividend payments and share repurchases totaled over $43 billion. Dividends and share repurchases must be funded by domestic cash, and the Company has returned to shareholders or invested all of the domestic cash generated by its business and raised through the issuance of debt since the beginning of the program.

In other words, forget about it Carl. We'll do what serves our long-term interests, not yours. Meanwhile, we've got bigger fish to fry.

See also

:by:http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2013/12/28/apple-cook-icahn-proxy/?iid=obnetwork 

How GM is making it near impossible to steal a Tahoe

January 2, 2014:

 

The automaker has introduced several new anti-theft features to its 2015 line of big SUVs, which have been top targets among thieves.

By Doron Levin

2015

FORTUNE -- A new 2013 Chevrolet Tahoe, with every possible option, retails for more than $61,000. Owners seem to love the vehicle, as do thieves, who have found it a juicy target.

Later in 2014, when the 2015 versions of the Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Chevrolet Suburban appear, all three should be somewhat less tempting targets. GM has added several anti-theft features that come standard in these models, and it has introduced several new optional features as well.

Bill Biondo, who is in charge of security technology for GM (GM) models, said the company has "engineered a layered approach" to defeating thieves. According to the latest figures from the National Insurance Crime Bureau, the Tahoe was the second-most stolen SUV, after the Ford (F) Escape.

MORE: Microsoft's Chromebook headache

Starting with the new standard locking steering column, it will be much more difficult to tow or push the car away, an increasingly common theft method. A new type of key will deter lock picking, and stronger door lock cylinders and shields should defeat access with slim jims and similar tools.

Another upgrade: bolted-in third-row seats. Seats that slipped in and out were convenient for users -- and just as convenient for anyone wishing to smash the rear window and steal them.

The new vehicles will also include a nifty hidden compartment behind the infotainment screen. Small valuables, wallets, sunglasses, and so forth can be rendered hidden and inaccessible in that space.

According to the FBI, more than 721,000 vehicles were stolen in 2012, up 0.6% from a year earlier and the first annual increase since 2003. By far, most car thefts occur in the western U.S., primarily in California. Carjackings currently account for about 3% of all thefts.

In fancier versions of the new Tahoe, Yukon, and Suburban, a protection package includes glass breakage sensors, interior motion sensors, and a tilt sensor that sounds an alarm if the vehicle is lifted from the ground. The key control system can be reinforced further to make ignition impossible without an authorized key.

And if all of these features aren't sufficient to motivate bad guys (and they are usually guys) to look elsewhere, there's GM's OnStar satellite-based system. With OnStar's Stolen Vehicle Assistance feature, law enforcement can locate the stolen vehicle, slow it down, and remotely block its ignition.

MORE: Walt Mossberg on Apple: 'Attention fanboys and fangirls'

Security against theft does not rank high among the reasons a consumer buys a vehicle. But any kind of high-tech gadgetry will only add to a model's desirability. In this case, big GM SUVs have been a favorite chop-shop item for a while because they've been relatively vulnerable and because, stripped down to parts, they fetch big revenue.

Thieves are nothing if not ingenious. But with so many Explorers, Grand Cherokees, Durangos, and Range Rovers to choose from, GM's reinforced full-size SUVs may soon draw less attention.

Posted in: anti-theft features, auto theft, Chevrolet Tahoe, General Motors

 

 

by : http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2014/01/02/gm-chevy-tahoe-theft/?iid=obnetwork

What Costco can teach you about cash

Mastering the cash conversion cycle can speed your company's growth.

By Verne Harnish

FORTUNE -- Every business can learn an important lesson from Costco. The fast-growing warehouse retailer did $103 billion in sales in the fiscal year ending in September, with pre-tax earnings of $3 billion. Membership fees brought in $2.3 billion -- equal to about 75% of its profit.

That influx of cash helps the company pay for new stores, where it looks to get about a 15% cash-on-cash return on investment in building them. And renewals show no signs of slowing down. "Our membership renewal rates have gone up each year and now exceed 90%," notes CFO and executive vice president Richard Galanti. That's not surprising, given that Costco only charges customers a markup on its products of about 11%. Those in Costco's (COST) popular Executive Membership program, which charges a higher membership fee than its basic membership, get extra discounts and rewards -- a great loyalty builder that keeps those membership fees rolling in.

As I've written before, the first entrepreneurial law of gravity is that growth sucks cash. To fuel rapid growth, you've got to master the cash conversion cycle -- which, simply put, is the time it takes to get a dollar back that you've spent on the business. Finding a source of internally generated cash to get money into the business quickly, as Costco has done, can speed that cycle. It delays the point at which you have to go out and beg and borrow money to grow, a project that can slow you down greatly and doesn't always bear fruit.

MORE: Is it okay for a company to have co-CEOs?

Here are some other strategies to make the cash conversion cycle work in your favor.

1. Shorten the sales cycle. It can cost you a lot of money to go after customers. Most companies don't think about the fact that the faster you can land a sale, the quicker you can get a return on that investment (and the more likely you are to block competitors from getting there first). Get off email and pick up the phone or meet your customer face to face. Spending 20 minutes this way will bring you closer to a sale more quickly than going back and forth by email for three days.

2. Eliminate errors. Most entrepreneurs don't think about how even tiny mistakes -- anywhere from the delivery of the product to the invoice -- can slow payments dramatically. A customer who is upset about an error you made is going to be slower to pay.

Many entrepreneurial companies get sloppy about sending out invoices. They're so busy making and selling things that their paperwork starts to slip. Even something as simple as using the wrong format for an invoice can delay your payment for weeks or months at a big company.

If you can't stay on top of invoicing, hire someone to help you. This person should get to know the accounts payable people at any big companies you serve, and make sure your invoices are structured right, so they flow through clients' systems as quickly as possible. At one company I know, hiring a pro to handle accounts receivable helped cut 15 days out of its cash conversion cycle. Yes, you will have to pay an extra person to do this job -- but it's worth it. Shortchanging your accounts payable function is pennywise, but dollar foolish.

3. Rethink your business model. There may be ways you are doing business that are slowing the cash conversion cycle. For instance, many companies send out invoices every 30 days. Speeding that up to every 15 days will get cash into your company more quickly.

MORE: The real reason why Millennials love Snapchat

Not accepting credit cards can also slow the cash conversion cycle. One company I know, which makes printed circuit boards, found that it was easier and faster for clients at big corporations to buy its wares on their corporate cards -- which often had a $5,000 limit -- than to get a purchase order prepared. That sped up the cash conversion cycle dramatically.

At my own business, I ask a number of customers to pay in advance, which gives them special access to our offerings, as well as discounts. In return, this ensures that I always have a year's worth of payroll in the bank, in case of emergency.

Look for ways to speed delivery of your product or service, too. The sooner you get what you sell to customers, the quicker you can send out invoices and get paid.

Each business has unique opportunities to speed up cash flow. Uncovering the best ones will help you unlock the growth potential of your business.

Posted in: accounts payable, Cash conversion cycle, Cash flow

 

by : http://management.fortune.cnn.com/2013/12/24/what-costco-can-teach-you-about-cash/?section=money_topstories&iid=obnetwork,

Apple Stores are now able to replace cracked iPhone 5C screens while you wait.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Apple Stores are now able to replace cracked iPhone 5C screens while you wait.

The $149 screen-repair service is being offered for the first time on Monday for Apple's new "budget" phone. Apple began offering screen repairs for the iPhone 5 in June. Apple's flagship iPhone 5S and the older-model iPhone 4S are still not eligible for in-store screen repairs.

Replacing screens on site marks a big policy change for the Apple Store. Before Monday, Apple would ship customers' phones to an off-site repair center to fix cracked screens, costing customers $229.

An Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) Store employee confirmed to CNNMoney that it began offering iPhone 5C screen replacements on Monday. A spokesman for Apple declined to comment. The on-site screen fix story first surfaced as a rumor on 9to5mac last week

The iPhone 5C was released in September as Apple's lower-cost smartphone. The move to offer in-store repairs is seemingly a response to the rising popularity of third-party repair services, which are cheaper but void iPhone warranties.

by : http://money.cnn.com/2014/01/20/technology/apple-store-iphone-5c/index.html

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Apple Stores are now able to replace cracked iPhone 5C screens while you wait.

The $149 screen-repair service is being offered for the first time on Monday for Apple's new "budget" phone. Apple began offering screen repairs for the iPhone 5 in June. Apple's flagship iPhone 5S and the older-model iPhone 4S are still not eligible for in-store screen repairs.

Replacing screens on site marks a big policy change for the Apple Store. Before Monday, Apple would ship customers' phones to an off-site repair center to fix cracked screens, costing customers $229.

An Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) Store employee confirmed to CNNMoney that it began offering iPhone 5C screen replacements on Monday. A spokesman for Apple declined to comment. The on-site screen fix story first surfaced as a rumor on 9to5mac last week

The iPhone 5C was released in September as Apple's lower-cost smartphone. The move to offer in-store repairs is seemingly a response to the rising popularity of third-party repair services, which are cheaper but void iPhone warranties.

First Published: January 20, 2014: 1:22 PM ET

Brief Timeline of the Internet

When we talk about the Internet, we talk about the World Wide Web from the past four or five years. But, its history goes back a lot further; all the way back to the 1950s and 60s.

"Where was I," you ask, "while all this was happening?" Well, it's quite simple really: the Space Program. America was so fascinated with sending men into outer space, hundreds of miles away, it never saw what was being invented to bring everyone closer together -- eventually.

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So, just in case you missed the development of the Internet, here is a brief timeline highlighting some of the major occurrences over the past 49 years that have shaped the Internet of today. For more extensive info, you'll find links to other timelines at the bottom of this page.

 

1958	. President Eisenhower requests funds to create ARPA. Approved as a line item in Air Force appropriations bill.
1961	. Len Kleinrock, Professor of Computer Science at UCLA, writes first paper on packet switching, "Information Flow in Large Communications Nets." Paper published in RLE Quarterly Progress Report.
1962	•J.C.R. Licklider & W. Clark write first paper on Internet Concept, "On-Line Man Computer Communications." • Len Kleinrock writes Communication Nets, which describes design for packet switching network; used for ARPAnet
1964	. Paul Baran writes, "On Distributed Communications Networks," first paper on using message blocks to send info across a decentralized networktopology(Nodes and Links)
Oct. 1965	. First Network Experiment: Directed by Larry Roberts at MIT Lincoln Lab, two computers talked to each other using packet-switching technology.
Dec. 1966	. ARPA project begins. Larry Roberts is chief scientist.
Dec. 1968	. ARPANet contract given to Bolt, Beranek & Newman (BBN) in Cambridge, Mass.
Sept. 1, 1969	. First ARPANet node installed at UCLA Network Measurement Center. Kleinrock hooked up the Interface Message Processor to a Sigma 7 Computer.
Oct. 1, 1969	. Second node installed at Stanford Research Institute; connected to a SDS 940 computer. The first ARPANet message sent: "lo." Trying to spell log-in, but the system crashed!
Nov. 1, 1969	. Third node installed at University of California, Santa Barbara. Connected to an IBM 360/75.
Dec. 1, 1969	. Fourth node installed at University of Utah. Connected to a DEC PDP-10.
March 1970	. Fifth node installed at BBN, across the country in Cambridge, Mass.
July 1970	. Alohanet, first packet radio network, operational at University of Hawaii.
March 1972	. First basic e-mail programs written by Ray Tomlinson at BBN for ARPANET: SNDMSG and READMAIL. "@" sign chosen for its "at" meaning.
March 1973	. First ARPANET international connections to University College of London (England) and NORSAR (Norway).
1974	. Intelreleases the 8080 processor. • Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn publish "A Protocol for Packet Network Interconnection," which details the design of TCP.
1976	. Apple Computer founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. • Queen Elizabeth II sends out an e-mail. . Vint Cerf joins ARPA as program manager.
1978	. TCP split into TCP and IP.
1979	. Bob Metcalfe and others found 3Com (Computer Communication Compatibility).
1980	. Tim Berners-Lee writes program called "Enquire Within," predecessor to the World Wide Web.
1981	. IBM announces its first Personal Computer. Microsoft creates DOS.
1983	. Cisco Systems founded.
Nov. 1983	. Domain Name System (DNS) designed by Jon Postel, Paul Mockapetris, and Craig Partridge. .edu, .gov, .com, .mil, .org, .net, and .int created.
1984	• William Gibson writes "Neuromancer." Coins the term "cyberspace". • Apple Computer introduces the Macintosh on January 24th.
March 15, 1985	. Symbolic.com becomes the first registered domain.
1986	. 5000 hosts on ARPAnet/Internet.
1987	• 10,000 hosts on the Internet. • First Cisco routershipped. • 25 million PCs sold in US.
1989	• 100,000 hosts on Internet. • McAfee Associates founded; anti-virus software available for free. Quantum becomes America Online.
1990	. ARPAnet ends. Tim Berners-Lee creates the World Wide Web.
1992	"Surfing the Internet" is coined by Jean Armour Polly.
1993	. Mosaic Web browser developed by Marc Andreesen at University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. . InterNICcreated. • Web grows by 341,000 percent in a year.
April 1994	. Netscape Communications founded. • Jeff Bezos writes the business plan for Amazon.com. . Java's first public demonstration.
Dec. 1994	Microsoft licenses technology from Spyglass to create Web browser for Windows 95.
May 23, 1995	. Sun Microsystems releases Java.
August 24, 1995	. Windows 95 released.
1996	. Domain name tv.com sold to CNET for $15,000. Browser wars begin. Netscape and Microsoft two biggest players.
1997	. business.com sold for $150,000.
January 1998	. Microsoft reaches a partial settlement with the Justice Department that allows personal computer makers to remove or hide its Internet software on new versions of Windows 95. . Netscape announces plans to give its browser away for free.
1998	. US Depart of Commerce outlines proposal to privatize DNS. ICANN created by Jon Postel to oversee privatization. Jon Postel dies.
1999	•AOL buys Netscape; Andreesen steps down as full-time employee. • Browsers wars declared over; Netscape and Microsoft share almost 100% of browser market. • Microsoft declared a monopoly by US District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson. •Shawn Fanning creates Napster, opening the possibilities of peer-to-peer file sharing and igniting a copyright war in the music industry.
2000	. Fixed wireless, high-speed Internet technology is now seen as a viable alternative to copper and fiber optic lines placed in the ground. . The Dot-Com Bubble bursts. A majority of the dot-coms ceased trading after burning through their venture capital, often without ever making a net profit.
January 10, 2000	• AOL Merges with Time-Warner. AOL shareholders take 55% stake in newly formed company.
February 2000	. A large-scale denial of service attack is launched against some major Web sites like Yahoo! and eBay, alerting Web sites to the need for tighter security measures. . 10,000,000 domain names have been registered.
September 2000	. There are 20,000,000 websites on the Internet, numbers doubling since February 2000.
July 2001	. A federal judge rules that Napster must remain offline until it can prevent copyrighted material from being shared by its users. .  The Code Red worm and Sircam virus infiltrate thousands of web servers and email accounts, respectively, causing a spike in Internet bandwidth usage and security breaches.
November 2001	. The European Council adopts the first treaty addressing criminal offenses committed over the Internet. . First uncompressed real-time gigabit HDTV transmission across a wide-area IP network takes place on Internet2.
January 2002	. .name begins resolving
January 2003	. The SQL Slammer worm causes one of the largest and fastest spreading DDoS attacks ever, taking only 10 minutes to spread worldwide. . The Internet celebrates its 'unofficial' 20th birthday.
September 2003	. The RIAA sues 261 individuals for allegedly distributing copyright music files over peer-to-peer networks
December 2003	. The Research project "How much information 2003" finds that Instant messaging generates five billion messages a day (750GB), or 274 Terabytes a year and that e-mail generates about 400,000 terabytes of new information each year worldwide.
2005	. YouTube.com launches
2006	. There are an estimated 92 million Web sites online
May 2006	. A massive DDOS assault on Blue Security, an anti-spam company, is redirected by Blue Security staff to their Movable Type-hosted blog. The result is that the DDOS instead knocks out all access to over 1.8 million active blogs.
August 2006	. AOL announces that they will give for free virtually every service for which it charged a monthly fee, with income coming instead from advertising.
October 2006	. There are an estimated 92 million Web sites online (some stats say over 100 million) . Google Inc. acquires YouTube for $1.65 billion in a stock-for-stock transaction.
January 2007	.  Microsoft launches its various consumer versions of Microsoft Vista.
February 2007	. Apple surpasses one billion iTunes downloads.
March 2007	.  1.114 billion people use the Internet according to Internet World Stats.
April 2007	. Search engine giant Google surpasses Microsoft as "the most valuable global brand," and also is the most visited Web site.

Related Links

• Keith Lynch's Timeline
• From Gutenberg to The Internet Timeline
• A Brief History of the Internet
• Nerds 2.0.1 Internet Timeline

• Who Owns the Internet?
• Who's Who in Internet and Computer Technology
• Hobbes' Internet Timeline