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EXCLUSIVE: Former Dick Smith CEO Facing Bullying Claims

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Desperate to prove himself after being passed over by Myer, the former CEO of Dick Smith Nick Aboud is today facing serious questions, including possible action by former Dick Smith management who have accused him of “bullying” staff as things got desperate at the mass retailer.

Aboud has also been accused of “blatantly lying” to supplier’s days out from the collapse of the mass retailer who now owe suppliers more than $280M for stock they have no chance of getting a return from.
 
ChannelNews has been told that Aboud who quit the retailer earlier this month is set to be retained by Anchorage Capital the Company that pocketed $320M out of the float of Dick Smith. 
 
According to sources several Dick Smith head office staff have move to lodge complaints with Fair Work Australia.

Earlier today Dick Smith management placed full page advertisments in national newspapers advertising that Dick Smith Stores were “Open”. 


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Last week buyers at Dick Smith were ordered not to talk to the media with all existing buyers forced to sign none disclosure agreements.

Questions have also been raised as to happened to millions of marketing and Co-Op dollars that Aboud and his management team extracted from suppliers running into the end of the 2015 financial year. 
  
According to senior Dick Smith management Aboud ran a blackboard at the Company’s NSW headquarters that listed how much additional money, buyers could extract from vendors for marketing activities, between May and June 2015.

We know that Aboud and former marketing Manager Neil Merola met with senior executives of several consumer electronic suppliers in an effort to shore up cash flow by extracting additional revenues from suppliers.
 
The CEO of one major supplier was asked for an additional $2M in CO-OP dollars. Several suppliers were told that their products could be pulled from shelves if they did contribute additional support.  

Back in June Marketing Director Neil Merola categorically denied that Dick Smith was trying to extract above average Channel dollars from vendors.

Dick Smith’s buyers pushed them to bring forward anything that could support earnings, such as rebates for advertising or discounts on stock, in the past year.

On 16 Jun 2015 I sent the following email to Neil Merola “We have been told by several vendors and we have had it confirmed by one of your buyers that Dick Smith is asking vendors to put up large sums of money to get their products ranged and marketed by Dick Smith, with the money having to be agreed by June 30th.

With one vendor you recently agreed terms and then your buyer came back and asked for an additional 20% margin or a “large payment” that has to be paid to Dick Smith by June 30th.

Several of your suppliers have told me the same story including both big brand and small brand vendors. 

The last time I raised this with you. I was told that my facts were plain “wrong”.

We have now seen an email between Dick Smith and a major vendor. What I am doing is giving you an opportunity to comment.’

Merola came back claiming that our claims were “pure fiction”.  

Within days of the receivers taking control of the Dick Smith electronics chain Aboud was in contact with Anchorage Capital management.

The former Chandlers executive who is known for his questionable management style has not commented despite leaving staff, suppliers and customers out of pocket.

Real Estate agents in Mosman claim that Aboud is looking to place his multimillion dollar beachside property on the market.
  
Abboud, has told Anchorage Capital executives that he was shocked by the appointment of receivers.

The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has received several calls and written correspondence calling on the Federal Government organisation to investigate what went wrong at the mass retailer.
 
Some are calling for the Federal Police to be called in to investigate.

Aboud is believed to be concerned that it is his signature, that is on a lot of the documents relating to the performance of Dick Smith stores prior to the float and not those of Anchorage Capital executives who benefited from the float.
 
There are also claims Abboud relied on provisions in Dick Smith’s accounts to support the underlying operation’s performance in the first few years. 

He was hoping, that he could build momentum in that time to sustain the operation’s performance once these provisions were expended claim s former Dick Smith senior management. 

Anchorage Capital Partners finally broke cover on Friday to defend the performance of the retailer under its stewardship.

A spokesman said Anchorage managing director Phil Cave stayed on as chairman of Dick Smith for 12 months after its public listing in December 2013 to ensure continuity.

He said in December 2014 the company still held more than $95 million in cash and remained debt free.

Dick Smith shares were suspended at 35?.

Unlike Abboud, who held on to his 6.5 per cent stake in Dick Smith, Anchorage sold its remaining 20 per cent interest in September 2014 at $2.22, crystallising a $370 million profit from its two-year investment in the business.

Abboud’s financial interest in the business has plummeted from $34 million to about $5.4 million.
 
When asked about cash flow and Dick Smith ability to pay suppliers Aboud allegedly said “There are no issues, we have everything under control, suppliers will be paid. Money has been tight running into Xmas I can guarantee you will be paid”.

One of the Companies hard hit is Ingram Micro who is exposed for over $14M.

Since acquiring Tech Pacific, Ingram Micro Australia believed to have lost over $200M.

Matt Sanderson the CEO of Ingram Micro Australia has not returned our calls.

Also exposed is Melbourne based distributor Synex who is owed over $18M.

According to the CEO of Synex Kee Ong, the collapse of Dick Smith is set to have a major impact on both the IT and consumer electronics industries, with several industry executives claiming that several small distributors “will go to the wall”.

At the recent creditors meeting not a single question was asked of voluntary administrators McGrath Nicol.

Over 100 interested parties representing over 350 unsecured creditors, owed about $250 million, including trade creditors, landlords and some 330 employees, attended the meeting at the Wesley conference centre.

About 3300 staff are owed $15 million in annual and long service leave ?as well as wage entitlements.

McGrath also warned that more claims could arise as the Dick Smith saga unfolds.
 
Mr Hayes acknowledged the lost deposits and gift cards that are no longer redeemable by customers, noting they were “the legal reality facing creditors”.

There are 200 unsecured trade creditors, 150 landlords and an unknown quantum of customers owed roughly $250 million.

WiMax On Hold As Media ISP Struggles For Cash

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Wireless broadband provider Unwired is struggling to find the money for its planned national metropolitan WiMax network, according to Australian IT.

Wireless broadband provider Unwired is struggling to find the money for its planned national metropolitan WiMax network, according to Australian IT.

The network was expected to be rolled out in capital cities at a cost about $200 million, the Oz says. But Unwired chief executive David Spence said increases in financing costs caused by the global financial crisis have increased the price tag by 10-15 percent.

The company now needs to tweak the funding package so the network can be built at “a much lower cost”, he said.

Spence said the WiMax project is not facing cancellation by Unwired’s owner, Kerry Stokes’s Seven Group. He reckons the company could start building “in the next few months” but conceded that Seven was keeping a close eye on the budget.

Some observers believe WiMax may have missed its big opportunity, with 3G HSPA networks – led in Australia by Telstra’s 3G – already servicing up to 98 percent of the population.

 

COMMENT: Choice Bangs On About Cheap Pricing But Fail To Identify The Risks Associated With Cheap CE Pricing.

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Harvey Norman who in the past have been labelled Australia’s most expensive consumer electronics and appliance retailer have again been singled out for selling expensive CE goods, despite several major brands moving to match overseas pricing prior to the decline in the value of the Australian dollar.

Choice who are constantly looking for publicity to spruik subscriptions to their publication is now claiming that Australians pay an average of 50 per cent more for PC games, 34 per cent more for software, 52 per cent more for iTunes music and 41 per cent more for computer hardware than the US. Several of the comparisons were made based on Harvey Norman pricing Vs overseas web sites.  

According to Gary Munitz, managing director of data analytics firm Invigor Group and creator of price comparison site ShoppingNinja, big retailers are facing a serious problem unless they can become more price-competitive.

news.com.au claims that ‘consumers are turning to VPN services in droves to navigate around geoblocks, online stores are increasingly importing products through the back door and reselling them at significantly cheaper prices than traditional bricks-and-mortar retailers such as Harvey Norman’.

ShoppingNinja now attracts more than 50,000 users a month and Mr Munitz says the majority of its sales are being funnelled to grey importers, with the mobile phones, cameras, tablets and headphones the most popular categories.

ShoppingNinja collects a commission on all sales made via the platform. It’s aiming for $3 million in revenue in the first 12 months, and expects that to increase to $20 million over the following two years.

The average discount is 20 to 30 per cent, with phones generally at the higher end. Other comparisons are even more stark. A Nikon Coolpix P610 digital camera is $384 from grey importer CameraSky, compared with $599 at Harvey Norman – more than 55 per cent more expensive.


“It’s more to do with old-world commercial models,” said Mr Munitz, a highly regarded tech entrepreneur who founded Global Group and helped develop platforms including Menulog and Get Price.

“Across every product category now there are a significant number of grey importers that sell online, and as consumer behaviour increasingly shifts online, this is going to be a big problem for Australian bricks-and-mortar retailers.”

Mr Munitz said the likes of Harvey Norman were still operating on business models put in place decades ago. “Sony would say, okay, [Australia] has a population of 20 million, this is what our profit needs to be. But the internet has bridged the gap.
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Choice spokesman Tom Godfrey said local providers had been holding up prices for so long, that frustrated Australian consumers were finally taking things into their own hands”.

What Godfrey has failed to communicate on behalf of Choice is that retailers such as Harvey Norman, JB Hi Fi and Dick Smith are actually employing tens of thousands of Australians who expect to be paid each week. 

They also have operating costs such as rent and warehousing and for Choice to single out Australian retailer pricing Vs online retailers who are selling products that often have no warranty in Australia or have been manufactured in questionable factories that don’t necessarily comply with Australian manufacturing regulations especially electrical goods raises questions as to whether Choice actual care about Australian consumers or whether they are isolating issues to create publicity for themselves like they did with their recent Samsung washing machine stunt.  


Mr Godfrey said local companies needed to start competing on price. “If they haven’t realised by now then they’re a bit late to the party,” he said.

Maybe Mr Godfrey and the team at Choice, should pay a visit to the family of Sheryl Aldeguer who left behind two young children and a husband when she was electrocuted by a cheap faulty USB phone charger.

Authorities used Ms Aldeguer’s death to warn consumers against buying cheap USB chargers from online stores.

GE Money Thugs Bought Into Line By ASIC

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GE Money who are renown for heavy handed collection practises and massive interest rates has been slammed by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission. The Company who partner with several major consumer electronic retailers have been known to send in “thugs” to collect payments and in some cases have used “intimidating practises”, according to State government sources.

ASIC say that consumer complaints about harassment from the debt collection practices of GE Money included excessive or inappropriate contact with customers, contact at unreasonable hours, and an inflexible approach to repayment arrangements.

The government agency  has taken action over the sales and debt collection practices of companies in the GE Money group relating to the advice provided by parts of its insurance advice and sales business and also, the debt collection practices of the GE Money consumer credit businesses.

ASIC has imposed conditions on the Australian financial services license (AFSL) of GE Money’s Hallmark General Insurance Company Ltd and Hallmark Life Insurance Company Ltd after those companies failed to comply with commitments each made in a 2006 Enforceable Undertaking (EU) to ASIC.

ASIC found that parts of the insurance advice and sales business were often poorly managed and not meeting the legal obligation requiring there be a ‘reasonable basis’ for personal advice given to customers. Specifically, ASIC was concerned that staff were selling insurance to customers whose needs had not been identified or understood.

Given that the Hallmark companies did not comply with a number of key undertakings given to ASIC in 2006, the regulator has decided the best way to protect consumers is to impose conditions on the AFSLs of GE Money’s Hallmark companies.

 

The more stringent conditions now included in the AFSLs of the GE Money’s Hallmark companies replace the 2006 EU.

These additional license conditions require the Hallmark companies:
to engage an independent expert, over a period of up to 15 months, to review and assess the advice, sales, training, management and corporate governance processes in its branch network and make recommendations to correct any deficiencies, to ensure these processes are at an industry best practice level;
to engage the same expert to assess the steps already taken by the Hallmark companies to compensate their customers and make recommendations as to any additional compensation steps that may be necessary;
if the expert makes recommendations, to provide ASIC with an Action Plan to implement those recommendations; and
to provide ASIC with full details of the compensation already paid to customers by means of a director’s statutory declaration, by 18 July 2008.

Furthermore, the Hallmark companies are now required to limit the insurance advice their staff provide to ‘general advice’ only and not ‘personal advice’.

Separate to the imposition of additional licence conditions on the Hallmark companies, GE Money has entered into an EU to address ASIC’s concerns about the debt collection practices of its consumer credit business. This is in response to consumer complaints about harassment from the debt collection practices of that business. Those practices included excessive or inappropriate contact with customers, contact at unreasonable hours and an inflexible approach to repayment arrangements.

As part of this EU, the GE Money consumer credit business is required:
to engage an independent expert, over a period of two years, to review and assess its debt collection processes to ensure that it complies with the ASIC/ACCC Debt Collection Guidelines and make recommendations to correct any deficiencies;
if the expert makes recommendations for improvements, to provide ASIC with an Action Plan to implement those recommendations;
to pay compensation to affected customers in accordance with guidelines prepared by the Banking and Financial Services Ombudsman; and
to arrange and pay for an industry workshop to promote best practice in the debt collection industry.

 

‘ASIC’s approach to these serious issues has taken into account the major changes in personnel to GE Money’s senior management and the substantive and voluntary changes undertaken by the new regime, including compensation payments and the stated desire of the new management to ensure better compliance with the law’, ASIC Executive Director of Enforcement, Ms Jan Redfern said

‘However, financial services licensees should note that GE Money’s previous failure to live up to its undertakings has resulted in conditions being imposed on its AFSL. ASIC will continue to monitor GE Money closely and will not hesitate to pursue additional regulatory options, if required’.

Projectors Still Growing

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Both professional and consumer projector sales rose 17% to more than 4.1 million global units in the first quarter of 2006.

Shipments for the last quarter of 2005 reached 1,219,000 units, which was nearly 20% higher than 4Q ’04 and beat the previous quarterly high set in the third quarter of 2005 claims projector research group PMA.

“In 2005, we saw innovative consumer products come to market, such as instant theater models – with build-in DVDs – and the first pocket projector,” said PMA Vice President Michael Abramson. “We also saw the introduction of higher-performance 720p models as well as the first of many attractively priced 1080p models. In the professional market, the news was more than just XGA breaking the US $1,000 barrier. In 2005, we saw the beginnings of a shift toward even higher resolution with more affordable, portable SXGA+ projectors as well as the burgeoning market for 1080p digital cinema projectors.”

In the Americas, a large tender in Mexico helped the region register the highest annual growth in the world. In the U.S. market, strong holiday sell-in of instant theater projectors and enhanced 720p models drove the market to an all-time quarterly high in shipments of widescreen projectors.

In Australia sales of consumer models helped lead the market to another quarter of overall double-digit growth. Sales of professional projectors eased Among the big winners in the projector market were BenQ.

BREAKING News: Gerry Harvey Avoids Strike Motion Over Executive Salary Packages

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BREAKING NEWS: Retailer Harvey Norman has avoided a second strike against the Companies pay packages for executives.

The spill motion that was proposed by the Australian Shareholders Association was dismissed when approximately 94.6 per cent of shareholders voted in favour of the remuneration report and 5.36 per cent voted against it.

Executive chairman Gerry Harvey, his wife, managing director Katie Page, Directors David Ackery and John Slack Smith and other key management personnel on the board were not entitled to vote their shares. 

Mr Harvey dismissed the ASA’s concerns, saying Harvey Norman did not pay directors or executives too much and directors needed to have “skin in the game”.

“A lot of (under performing) retailers are not run by people who have skin in the game … they have had a lot of independent directors on the board, ” Mr Harvey told shareholders.

Shareholders concerned about the lack of independent directors were being “fooled by experts who had never run a retailer in the lives,” he said.

Mr Harvey said pre-tax earnings had risen 27.8 per cent in the first quarter of 2016, which compared with a 26 per cent increase in the year-earlier period.

Logitech Becomes ‘Logi” as Company Drops Tech

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Swiss based Company Logitech, does not want to be the mouse and keyboard company” anymore so they have dropped the tech in their name, in the future they will be simply known as “Logi”.

Overnight Logitech has announced a major rebranding, which will see the firm shake up its company culture and product range with the new branding set to be rolled out in Australia this year. 

They said that the new name is part of its evolution into being a more design-focused manufacturer. 

It has decided to drop the “tech” in its name for certain lines because, unlike when the company was founded in 1981, technology now “rules our lives,” a company spokesman said.  

“The presence of it is implied, making ‘tech’ nonessential to the name.” The PC accessories stalwart turned tablet accessories standout said the new Logi brand will be featured on both former and upcoming products, most notably new categories it enters and products in its mobility and gaming categories. 

Its core computer peripherals are also scheduled to integrate the new Logitech logo and bright colours, the spokesman said. Logitech just recently completed a three-year turnaround designed to combat the falling PC sales to which it had once hitched its wagon.

 It was the No. 1 seller of both PC keyboards and mice for the April 2014 to April 2015 period, according to The NPD Group, while its Ultimate Ears division was the No. 4 seller of Bluetooth speakers. 

A spokesman said the company plans to launch something with the new label “just around the corner,” with more products due by December in Australia.

The most obvious change concerns the Logitech logo. It has been radically altered, with the abstract, odd-looking eye completely dropped. The font is friendlier, all letters are now lower case, and the “g” almost looks like its smiling.

The Swiss company says it wants to be more modern, friendly, open, approachable and simple, and a heavier focus on design will be of utmost importance.

“We’ve been reinventing Logitech for a while,” said Logitech president and CEO Bracken Darrell. “We’re putting design at the centre of everything we do. Our products have come a long way, and now it’s time to bring the brand forward too.”

Charlotte Johs, Logitech’s global VP of brand development said “Design has become as important as engineering,” she said during a Trusted Reviews interview last night “We are design-led. We are focused on design.”

Moving forward, Logitech says its products will be deliberately eye-catching. While the company’s biggest focus has traditionally been PC-centric peripherals, it now intends to put aesthetics right at the top of its list of priorities.


The company doesn’t appear to be doing this by halves, all their meeting rooms are now named after famous artists, including Picasso, Warhol and C?zanne.

“We want to be at the intersection of art and science,” said Johs.

However, she adds that it would be a step too far to push the new Logitech as a fashion brand. “Maybe eventually,” she tells us, but that certainly isn’t the current state of affairs.

Johs also says that the transformation was largely triggered by the decline of the PC market, which wounded Logitech. 

When asked, she concedes that the rebranding might never have come about if the PC was still going strong.

There were a number of internal issues too.

“The company was too hierarchical before,” said Johs, adding that Logitech had become big and clumsy, building hundreds of products for everybody, yet nobody in particular.

The company has been trying to turn things around for several years, but Johs reckons it’s now in a good place.

“We didn’t need an evolution, we needed a revolution,” said Johs. “We don’t want to be known as ‘that mouse and keyboard company’ anymore.”

“Less is more” now appears to be Logitech’s new mantra, although “more is more” could also be applied. While embracing a larger range of product categories, the company will flog fewer products in total.

Johs says that Logitech will now split its business into three areas of focus: trees, plants and seeds.

Trees represent the profit-maximising PC-centric products that are Logitech’s staple. Johs says that these will continue to fund the company’s future.

Plants, meanwhile, signify Logitech’s gaming, video collaboration, speaker and peripherals portfolio, which the company says it needs to nurture and grow.

Seeds are more exciting. While the company hasn’t yet provided any specific details, it says it’s currently trying things it’s never done before, and will soon launch a number of brand-new product categories.

To do this, Johs says it had to adopt a start-up mindset: intending to fail or succeed quickly, and then move on to the next project.

She adds that no product categories will be dropped, but under-performing areas – such as webcams and headsets – will be “streamlined”. Keyboards and mice are still selling well, according to Johs, but will also require some tweaking.

Naughty Digital Camera Lens Launched

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A camera lens that allows one to see through clothes and other hard surfaces has been introduced by a US Company.

The lens that could well result in it being banned because of its perve potential is called the “Infrared See-Through Filter PF”. The PF is a special optical device that helps to visually penetrate an object’s surface in order to view whatever lies below. The PF makes it possible for you to see images that are normally invisible to the human eye. It sounds like science-fiction but it isn’t, this new product has been developed using newly developed advanced optical technology.


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The lense

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The original Image

 Kaya Special Optics have specialised in manufacturing special optical devices for the past 30 years and their new lense is set to be a big hit with perves and security companies. The 52mm Infra See through PF4 lense has to be fitted to either a digital still or video camera. The manufacturers claim that the Infrared See-Through Filter PF can’t totally penetrate all surfaces but it can provide  a high degree of “see-through”.

 It really is see through. see for yourself: http://www.kaya-optics.com/products/experiments.shtml

Reflected “See-Through”

Perhaps you are wondering what makes this ability possible. The answer lies in infrared rays. All reflected light that we can see with the naked eye represents a fractional portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, which is infinite. We refer to this section as “visible light”. All around us, light is reflected which the human retina cannot detect, such as ultraviolet and infra-red radiation.


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What You See. OOP’s

The visible part of the spectrum falls between the wavelengths of 430nm~690nm. (1nm=10-9m) Infrared rays have much larger wavelengths than this. We divide them into “Near Infrared Rays” (690nm-4,000nm) and “Extreme Infrared Rays” (over 4,000nm).

Unlike ultraviolet and visible rays, infrared rays tend to penetrate any medium rather easily because of their large wavelengths. This also means that infrared rays are not refracted much at all when passing from one medium to another. When we shine sunlight through a prism, it is refracted at an angle according to its wavelength. The blue end of the visible spectrum has the shortest wavelength, so is refracted the most. At the other end of the spectrum, beyond the red, visible light, infrared rays are barely refracted at all because of their long wavelength.

The KAYA PF exploits this characteristic of infrared light. It only lets through these long-wavelength rays, which have low refractive rays, and not all the ultraviolet and visible rays. Here’s how this relates to the mannequin experiment:

  1. Light source
  2. Mannequin
  3. Clothes
  4. Infrared rays
  5. Ultraviolet and visible rays
  6. KAYA PF
  7. Camcorder

Almost all of the ultraviolet and visible rays are unable to permeate the fiber and are reflected back instead. Conversely, almost all of the infrared rays can easily permeate the material due to its low refractive rate. Having passed through the cloth, the infrared rays fail to penetrate the mannequin’s surface and are reflected back.

The PF is struck by ultraviolet & visible rays that are reflected from the cloth and also the infrared rays that are reflected from the mannequin’s surface. But the PF only lets the infrared rays pass through. The infrared rays are then transformed into electrical signals by the CCD of a camcorder, which forms those signals into a visible-light image.

In conclusion, the observer will be able to view the scene as though infrared light has become visible.

Of course, if you were to simply look through the PF, you would not see anything at all. Remember, the PF lets through infrared light only, which is invisible to the human eye. Therefore there must be some media, or device, installed to detect and record, or convert, the image. As mentioned previously, camcorders and digital cameras are suitable devices for this purpose because they employ a CCD which responds to both visible and infrared light.

Strictly speaking, it would be more accurate to regard these “See-Through” pictures as “near-infrared images” rather than “infrared images” since almost all CCDs can only respond up to 1400nm. Thus from hereon we shall use the term “near-infrared”, or “NIR” when talking about the images the PF allows.

Fluoresced “See-Through”

The principle of “Fluoresced See-Through” is very different to the “Reflected See-Through” principle above.

When some substances are illuminated by certain wavelengths they reflect back not only those same wavelengths but also they may transform some of these into other, usually longer, wavelengths. For example, some substances may transform the illuminating visible light energy into longer-wavelength infrared energy.

What causes this phenomenon? The answer can be found in atomic physics and quantum mechanics. Within atoms, electrons orbit about a central nucleus. If a packet of light energy (a “photon”) is absorbed by the atom, it causes one of the electrons to move out to a wider orbit. As described by quantum mechanics, atoms will only ever absorb radiation which has the right amount of energy to make one of the electrons perform this “quantum leap” to the next electron “shell”. A photon’s energy is dependent on its wavelength (and therefore, its colour), with violet being higher energy than red. However, an atom with an electron out of place is not stable for long so the electron falls back, re-releasing a ‘photon’ of energy. Some energy is lost so the photon given off is shifted towards the red end of the spectrum compared with the one absorbed.

A Fluoresced See-Through image is slightly more difficult to achieve. Besides the PF filter, an Infrared Cut Filter (“ICF”) is required to create one. This filter performs the exact opposite task to the PF – it lets through visible light but cuts all infrared light from passing through. To capture a Fluoresced See-Through image, the ICF is placed over the light source to limit the incident light and prevent any infrared rays emitted by the source from reaching the subject. Some of the visible rays, which remain, striking the subject are changed to longer, invisible infrared rays and then the PF filter allows only these newly created infrared rays to pass into the camcorder or digital camera.

This Fluoresced See-Through technique often reveals characteristics of a subject that are not readily apparent through other examination methods including Reflected See-Through. For example, chlorophyll in plants does not reflect infrared rays, but it does fluoresce. This may provide a means for studying certain plant diseases. Similarly, this technique can be used for the study of inks, hardwoods, forged documents or paintings and sometimes startling results can be obtained.

To take more effective Fluoresced See-Through pictures, note the suggestions below:

EnvironmentIf possible, total darkness.
Light sourceTungsten or Electronic Flash.
ICFKAYA’s ICF1 over the light source.
This is not required if there is another way to ensure the subject is only illuminated by visible light. For example, wavelength-tunable lasers or blue-green lasers are ideal. Wavelength-tunable lasers have the advantage of being able to easily select from a wide range of wavelengths.
PFPF2 or PF4.

Camera’s that the lense will work with: http://www.kaya-optics.com/check_cameras/digital_cameras.shtml

Sony Samsung Relationship At Breaking Point

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Sony, who is fed up playing second fiddle to its LCD TV manufacturing partner Samsung, is considering a proposal to merge with a Taiwanese maker of LCD screens.

Makoto Kogure, head of Sony’s TV group, was recently quoted  as saying that Sony is considering using Taiwanese Company M&A to secure panel supply, as opposed to continuing to invest in S-LCD, its joint venture with Samsung Electronics.

Sony currently manufactures its large LCD screens via its joint venture partner  S-LCD however the relationship between Sony and Samsung has beome strained. Samsung has its own LCD TVs and recently overtook Sony to become the top TV brand worldwide. Internal memo’s at Sony claim that Samsung production needs are being priotised ahead of those of Sony. Other Sony executives claim that Samsung is “deliberatly” slowing down production of Sony branded LCD TV’s as they both fight for market share. S-LCD is 51% owned by Samsung with Samsung management being responsible for the day to day management of the S-LCD plant.

A senior Sony executive in Japan told SHN that the relationship was doomed from day one. “Trying to get the Koreans and the Japaneses to work together while also competing against one another was never going to work. The quicker sir Howard Stringer gets out of the relationship the quicker Sony’s LCD business will grow”.

In the overall TV market Samsung overtook Sony last quarter with Sony falling to the third position as it lost share in most TV segments, DisplaySearch said. To be effective Sony needs to secure a regular supply of smaller-size LCD TV panels (20- to 32-inch), as the main segments supplied by its seventh-generation (7G) plant (overseen by S-LCD) are 40- and 46-inch panels. In recent weeks Sony placed orders with two Taiwanese manufacturers.

Digi Times in Taiwan claims that Sony needs to forge relationships with companies that have 5G, 5.5G or 6G plants, which include Japan-based IPS Alpha Technology, a joint venture between Hitachi, Matsushita Electric Industrial and Toshiba, Taiwan-based panel makers and China-based Shanghai SVA-NEC Liquid Crystal Display (SVA-NEC) and Beijing BOE Optoelectronics Technology (BOE OT).

However It is unlikely that Sony will cooperate with IPS Alpha, as the joint venture was established to meet the needs of the three investors for 32-inch LCD TV panels and Sony is a competitor to these home appliance makers. Nor is it likely that it will partner with the two China-based makers, as the makers are not as experienced as their Taiwan-based counterparts.

AU Optronics (AUO) and Chi Mei Optoelectronics (CMO) are currently the only two panel makers in Taiwan able to supply large amounts of LCD TV panels and they are already shipping TV panels to Sony. However, it will be difficult for Sony to acquire the companies, as the scale of the two Taiwan-based companies is too big.

In addition, the 6G plants from Chunghwa Picture Tubes (CPT) and Quanta Display are still in their initial stages, while HannStar Display’s 5G technology is from its partnership with Hitachi.Sony insiders now claim that it is far more feasible, for Sony to  purchase a Taiwanese LCD plant rather than merging with an entire panel maker.


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Sony Corp. Executive Deputy President Katsumi Ihara unveils Sony Corp’s new Bravia brand LCD TV models in Tokyo Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2005. Electronics was once Sony’s mainstay. Now it’s a huge money-loser. Sony has fallen miserably behind in televisions, watching Samsung Electronics Co. rake in profits from popular flat-panel TVs. Apple Computer Inc.’s iPod players now dominate the handheld music market Sony’s Walkman once ruled. Such are the challenges facing the sprawling Japanese technology and entertainment company as it prepares to announce a far-reaching turnaround strategy Thursday, Sept. 22 in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Katsumi Kasahara)
 

Sony has fallen miserably behind in televisions, watching Samsung rake in profits from popular flat-panel TVs. Apple’s iPod players now dominate the handheld music market Sony’s Walkman once ruled. Such are the challenges facing the sprawling Japanese technology and entertainment company as it prepares to announce a far-reaching turnaround strategy today  in Tokyo.

The expected shake-up also marks the first major test for Sony’s new leader, Howard Stringer, a dual American and British citizen who took over as chief executive earlier this year — the first foreigner to ever head Sony. Whatever Stringer may have in mind, analysts say it better be quick and decisive.

Battered by the plunge in prices of electronics products that experts say have turned once fancy gadgets into mere commodities, Sony has lost money in its electronics operations for two years straight and has relied on hits from its movie division such as the “Spider-Man” series to bail out its earnings. “Sony has to get out of the cycle of making things for its own self-satisfaction and then having to sell them at bargain prices,” says Mitsuhiro Osawa, analyst with Mizuho Investors Securities in Tokyo.

But Osawa hasn’t given up hope on Sony because of its historical technological finesse and is expecting new management to come up with a convincing revival plan — although no one is expecting an overnight cure. “All they have to do is show us enough to give us a good feeling about future prospects for Sony,” he said.

The Tokyo-based company has fallen behind in TVs to South Korea’s Samsung as well as domestic rivals Matsushita Electric, creator of the Panasonic line, and Sharp. It’s been slow in developing new types of TVs with liquid-crystal and plasma displays that are proving a hit worldwide. Sony also fell behind Apple’s iPod in players that handle the popular MP3 music files, choosing to stick to its own more proprietary format, fearing copyright violations of products dear to its music division, which includes artists such as pop singer Beyonce and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

Sony, which built its fame over the last half-century with first the transistor radio and later the Walkman portable, has fallen into troubled times in recent years. In the last five years, its stock price has lost about two-thirds of its value, and in recent months has been hovering at about 4,000 yen (A$42).

In July, Sony lowered its group profit forecast for the fiscal year through March 2006, citing tumbling television prices and higher than expected restructuring costs at the ailing electronics unit.

Sony projects a 10 billion yen (US$89.3 million) profit, compared with an April forecast for 80 billion yen (US$715 million) profit.

Sony, which employs more than 151,000 people worldwide, has been carrying out cost cuts and other restructuring for years.

But it’s only in recent months the results are starting to show in products, such as the recently announced Bravia TVs, including liquid-crystal display and rear-projection models, some co-developed with Samsung that Sony says marks a break from its older-style CRT, or cathode ray tube, TVs known as Wega.

And after brushing off the iPod for years, Sony is now coming out with various MP3 players, including the Walkman Bean that’s round and shaped like a lima bean, unlike the rectangular Walkman models of the past.

Some analysts say Sony has spread itself out too thin.Japan’s top business daily said Sony is considering discontinuing its esoteric and extremely expensive Qualia brand products. It also said Sony may shrink its Aibo and Qrio robot operations, which may be eye-catching but don’t bring much profits. Sony declined comment, saying the plan was still being hammered out.

But it denied a report in the same paper that Sony will sell off its financial businesses, such as its bank and insurance companies, to better concentrate funds on developing electronics products. Yuji Fujimori, analyst with Goldman Sachs (Japan) Ltd. in Tokyo said Sony needs to do more. And there’s no question Sony faces an uphill battle.

“The reform contents would appear an extension of strategies pursued thus far and leave an impression of not going far enough,” he said in a report, adding that Sony should expand investment in entertainment and software businesses because electronics profitability is bound to be low. Sony has promised a powerful computer chip called “Cell” that will drive its next-generation video-game console PlayStation 3, scheduled to go on sale in spring next year, as a way it will one-up rivals.

The Cell, codeveloped with Japan’s Toshiba Corp. and IBM Corp. of the U.S. will also power new digital home gadgets although no one has yet to see any specifics. That’s causing some skeptics to doubt its potential beyond video games.

Meanwhile, Sony continues to face the challenge of a wide range of rivals, all of which would love to see the company stumble further. Fumio Ohtsubo, a senior managing director who oversees Matsushita’s TV business, is determined to keep Sony at bay for good. “Our mission is to do our utmost to prevent Sony’s Bravia offense from beating us,” he said at a party with Matsushita executives this week in Tokyo.

JB Hi Fi To Take On Officeworks & Staples In B2B Market

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EXCLUSIVE: JB Hi Fi is moving into the SMB and telecommunications market in an effort to capture a larger share of the Australian business market.

According to JB HI Fi CFO Richard Murray the mass retailer is in an excellent position to offer small medium business customers who have up to 50 employees a range of services including access to Telstra telecommunication products.

Earlier this week the Company appointed Tony Nikolovski as B2B Telecommunications Manager, his job according to Murray is to work with store managers across Australia in developing a business engagement program with business customers who are looking for a combination of software, hardware and telecommunication services.

“There is a big of opportunity for us to grow the office side of JB HI Fi from providing gift cards for business to delivering their telecommunication and hardware needs. As one of Telstra leading retail partners, this is a natural extension of our successful Consumer telecommunications business”.

“We have the buying power with partners to deliver value for money and in the same way that we deliver for our consumer customers we can deliver for small medium businesses in Australia”.

Murray said that in 2013 the Company will look at delivering a separate business web site that allows small medium business to engage with the mass retailers. Services such as cloud based software to IT and display hardware along with communication services and devices will be offered”.
 
Tony will work within our Commercial Division to development and implement JB’s National BSB Communications Strategy, focusing on mobility, fixed and data.

 “The appointment of Tony Nikolovski who was most recently a National Account Manager with Telstra Retail delivers for JB Hi Fi a person who is experienced in the needs of small medium business. He will be responsible for utilising JB Hi Fi resources and engaging with our partners to deliver a new service for business in Australia”.