NSW:Carbon tax to cost billions: NSW Treasury

AAP General News (Australia)
08-04-2011
NSW:Carbon tax to cost billions: NSW Treasury

Eds: Not for use before 0001 AEST, Thursday August 4

SYDNEY, Aug 4 AAP - The federal carbon tax will have a devastating impact on NSW, says
a treasury review that found it would cost the state's economy $3.7 billion a year, wipe
out 31,000 jobs and inflate household power bills by almost $498.

NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell on Thursday released details of the Treasury study, saying
the carbon tax would "tear the heart out of many industries".

The review found the Hunter, Illawarra and Central West would be hardest hit.

Output of coal-fired generators and aluminium smelters would decline by nearly 50 per
cent by 2050, while growth in the mining industry will sink to 60 per cent of what it
would have been without the tax, Mr O'Farrell said.

Power prices would rise by at least 15 per cent, with households paying up to an additional
$498 annually, and businesses between $927 and $4191 more a year.

"A carbon tax will result in the loss of more than 18,500 jobs in the Hunter region
alone," Mr O'Farrell said in a statement.

"This is an area which needs more jobs, not a crippling tax which is going to push
up the unemployment rate."

Mr O'Farrell said his government would seek compensation from the commonwealth for
the impact of the carbon tax on the state's purse.

Dividends the government receives from power generators would be hit by $45 million
this financial year, increasing to $290 million by 2014-15.

A further $71 million of taxpayers money would be lost through higher power prices each year.

"We cannot stand by and allow the federal Labor government to continually damage the
state's economy and revenues," Mr O'Farrell said.

"We have a duty to seek compensation from the commonwealth so the revenue earmarked
by new rail, road, hospital, and school projects is not lost to NSW."

AAP ab/tr/ht

KEYWORD: CARBON NSW (EMBARGOED)

� 2011 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Aussies open door to super foreigners.

Provided by 7DAYS.ae

AUSTRALIAN teams in Super 14 will be able to sign two players from overseas after the Australian Rugby Union lifted its ban on foreigners.Provinces will be allowed to sign one marquee foreigner - who will never be available to play for the Wallabies - and a developing player yet to represent his country at Test, Sevens or A-team level.The developing player will be allowed to play for the Wallabies after three years of consecutive residency as per IRB regulations.Teams looking to recruit top foreign stars will need to apply to the ARU and the length of a marquee foreigner's contract will beA a maximum of two years.ARU chairman Peter McGrath insists the new policy will strengthen the Super 14 competition both on and off the field, as they look to halt a drop in attendances."There is no doubt the injection of world-class foreign players will create added interest in the Super Rugby competition," said McGrath. "We're also confident overseas players will be excited about the potential opportunities."It will not stop foreign Test players continuing their international careers outside Australia.

"The idea that marquee players might want to come to Australia is something we should allow our Provincial teams to explore," added McGrath. "French fly-half Frederic Michalak played with the Sharks in South Africa this year."

THE OSPREYS have boosted their squad for the Magners League season by signing New Zealand A scrum-half Jamie Nutbrown on a two-year deal from Waikato Chiefs.The 27-year-old had a year left on his contract with the New Zealand Rugby Union but the Welsh region successfully negotiated an early release."As a person and a player, he has an excellent work ethic and sets very high standards on and off the pitch," said Elite Performance Director Andrew Hore.

"The esteem in which Jamie is held in his home country is clear as the NZRU were so keen to keep hold of him."

[c] 2007 Al Sidra Media LLC

Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company

VIC:Main stories in the Melbourne newspapers

AAP General News (Australia)
04-08-2011
VIC:Main stories in the Melbourne newspapers
MONITOR FRONTERS VIC

MELBOURNE, April 8 AAP - Main stories in Friday's Melbourne newspapers:

HERALD SUN

Page 1: VicRoads audit shows hundreds of Victorians hold multiple driver's licences.

Page 3: Australia is set to become the first country to put cigarettes in plain packaging.

Mum finds a deadly tumour in baby son's eye after examining his photo.

World: Late night budget talks with congress leaders edge closer to averting a government
shutdown in US.

Finance: Network Ten's new management team warns of hard decisions ahead to reverse
cost blow-out.

Sport: Magpie CEO Gary Pert says top players are sticking with Collingwood.

MORE jxt/sn

KEYWORD: MONITOR PAPERS (SYDNEY)

� 2011 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

SA:SA judge urged to jail refugee

AAP General News (Australia)
12-17-2010
SA:SA judge urged to jail refugee

By Tim Dornin

ADELAIDE, Dec 17 AAP - A judge has been urged to jail a former refugee for indecent
assault despite his history of being tortured by the Taliban in Afghanistan and his treacherous
boat trip to Australia.

Sayed Mohammad Sidaqat, 34, has admitted indecently assaulting a 16-year-old girl on
an Adelaide train in July this year, just a month after his release from immigration detention.

He sat next to the teenager and held her hand on his erect penis and also kissed her
neck and fondled her breasts.

The teenager told police she was scared and powerless and had tried to get the attention
of other passengers on the train, but no one came to her aid.

In sentencing submissions in the South Australian District Court on Friday, defence
counsel Shane Spence outlined some of the man's history including how he paid people smugglers
in Iran for passage on a boat to Malaysia and then on to Australia.

He spent four months on Christmas Island before being released on humanitarian grounds
and travelling to Adelaide to live in June.

Ms Spence described Sidaqat's severe treatment at the hands of the Taliban in his native
Afghanistan where he was imprisoned at one stage.

She said in one incident he was stabbed with a bayonet.

"He was left on the side of the road to die," she said.

Ms Spence said Sidaqat now accepted what he had done was wrong and she said his "heart
stopped beating" when he was shown video footage on the incident on the train.

But she asked the judge to suspend any jail sentence to allow his rehabilitation and
English language lessons to continue.

In a victim impact statement the 16-year-old girl said she still had nightmares of
her attacker's "disgusting, grubby hands touching my body".

Prosecutor Susan Agnew urged Judge Simon Stretton to jail Sidaqat immediately for what
was a serious offence aggravated by the age of the victim.

She said the assault continued over a protracted period and the girl had made it clear
by her gestures that his advances were not welcome.

Judge Stretton will sentence Sidaqat on January 21.

AAP tjd/it/nb

KEYWORD: SIDAQAT

� 2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED:Keep PBS working, govt told

AAP General News (Australia)
08-10-2010
FED:Keep PBS working, govt told

CANBERRA, Aug 10 AAP - Keeping medicines cheap and the local industry churning should
be priorities for the next federal government, Medicines Australia says.

In its election platform released on Tuesday, the medicines industry group urged all
political parties to get behind the sector that "keeps Australians out of hospital (and)
prevents disease".

Top of the wishlist includes a promise to ensure the efficiency and sustainability
of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

The organisation's CEO Brendan Shaw on Tuesday said he was concerned Australians were
waiting longer for new medicines to be listed on the scheme.

In May, Labor signed a memorandum of understanding with the health body committing
to PBS reforms, and Dr Shaw wants the other parties to do the same.

"The MoU will provide industry with business certainty, ensure patients get medicines
and protect Australian jobs," Dr Shaw said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Parties must also support innovation and help keep Australia competitive."

Increasing global competition meant ensuring business certainty for the local industry
was more important than ever, he said.

Protecting intellectual property, making research and development more tax-friendly
and luring more clinical trials to the country were also priorities, Dr Shaw said.

The next government should increase the cost threshold for new medicines before they
require cabinet approval.

It should be lifted from $10 million a year to $20 million, Dr Shaw said.

"It could wipe 12 months off the time it takes some important new medicines to become
available," he said.

Dr Shaw said the $10 million threshold was set almost 10 years ago but had not been
revised since.

AAP cj/rl/mp/apm

KEYWORD: POLL10 MEDICINE

� 2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED: Diabetes plan not flawed, says gov't

AAP General News (Australia)
04-01-2010
FED: Diabetes plan not flawed, says gov't

The federal government's denied its 436 million dollar sweetener to improve diabetic
care will encourage doctors to pocket the funds.

Health Minister NICOLA ROXON has told told ABC TV the details aren't yet finalised
.. but she doesn't believe there's any incentive for a doctor to pocket the money and
not provide the care for the patient.

She says the average GP stands to be 10 thousand dollars better off under the scheme
.. which would overhaul the way chronic disease is managed.

The plan's copped some early flak .. with the AMA calling it policy on the run .. and
criticising the lack of consultation with doctors.

AAP RTV cj/rt

KEYWORD: HOSPITALS DIABETES (CANBERRA)

2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld: Hendra patient complains of mistreatment

AAP General News (Australia)
08-19-2009
Qld: Hendra patient complains of mistreatment

By Angela Harper

BRISBANE, Aug 19 AAP - Queensland's chief doctor has offered an olive branch to a patient
claiming those given potentially life-saving experimental treatment to fend off the deadly
Hendra virus were mistreated in hospital.

Two horses died from the virus on August 7 and 8 at the J4S stud at Cawarral, east
of Rockhampton, and a number of handlers were put at risk of infection after exposure
to secretions and blood.

Tests performed on a veterinarian, stud manager Debbie Brown and colleagues Adrian
Daniels and Angela Webber have so far returned negative results for the virus, but final
results won't be known until the end of August.

There have only been six human cases of the virus worldwide - three of whom died -
and little is known about the killer disease.

Bats carry the disease and horses can pass it to humans.

Chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young told AAP the situation is terrifying, but none
of Ms Brown's concerns, voiced on ABC Radio on Wednesday morning, could be reviewed unless
Ms Brown complained directly to her.

Ms Brown, one of four patients hospitalised for the five-day treatment at Rockhampton
hospital and released on Tuesday, said the treatment wasn't up to par.

"It (the therapy) was highly experimental, and they didn't know what would happen,
and (health staff said) we would be monitored throughout," Ms Brown told ABC radio.

The entire time Ms Brown said she had to write down her own symptoms, which included
vomiting, diarrhoea and swelling.

Throughout the five days, hospital staff recorded only their temperature, pulse and
blood pressure and failed to make any other observations noticeable to the patients, Ms
Brown said.

"If you're going to send people to be guinea pigs, do what you say you're going to
do - monitor us for Christ's sake," Ms Brown said.

"We thought an expert on Hendra would be there to monitor us."

Upon discharge, all of them felt ill and the veterinarian has since been readmitted.

Dr Young said she offered to talk to Ms Brown at the hospital last Friday, and the
offer remains on the table.

"I'm very happy to speak with her now and we can go through what issues she has and
then I'm very happy to go and look into those," Dr Young said.

"She must be absolutely terrified, this is an awful thing to happen to anyone.

"To not even know if you've got it (the virus), to not know when you know if you've
got it and it's got a shocking prognosis. We've only had six of them - but three of them
have died."

Monitoring at the hospital was meant to focus on the possibility of anaemia and any
other side effects from the treatment, Dr Young told ABC Radio earlier on Tuesday.

"There were medical staff and nursing staff there on the ward, and the four people
were admitted to hospital for the period that they received the drug, so they were monitored,"

Dr Young said.

"We don't know whether or not the treatment is of benefit.

"Ribavirin is a drug commonly used to treat other viruses, but we don't know whether
it will have any impact on Hendra virus."

She praised Ms Brown for taking notes of her side effects during the experimental treatment
and said there would be follow-up blood tests for anaemia.

Final tests for the disease would be done at the end of the month, after the 21-day
incubation period, Dr Young said.

AAP ahe/pjo/ash/mn

KEYWORD: HENDRA WRAP

2009 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

SA: Greens call for universal sporting code of conduct

AAP General News (Australia)
04-09-2009
SA: Greens call for universal sporting code of conduct

ADELAIDE, April 9 AAP - Officials and club captains from all sporting codes nationwide
should be called to a meeting to discuss player misconduct, the Greens say.

Greens South Australian Senator Sarah Hanson-Young says recent incidents of footballers
behaving badly should prompt a roundtable meeting to determine a universal code of conduct
for all sports.

The AFL has been the centre of sporting scandals this week, with Adelaide defender
Nathan Bock charged with assaulting his girlfriend and North Melbourne players apologising
for producing a video showing a condom-clad rubber chicken performing sex acts on a chicken
carcass.

"This code of conduct would be built around universal behavioural benchmarks and appropriate
sanctions for breaches," Senator Hanson-Young said in a statement on Thursday.

"We must remember that, especially in this sport-loving nation, sportspeople hold a
high role model status and their behaviour should reflect this.

"It's clear from incidents that have occurred even in just the last week that better
awareness raising and training is needed among our elite sportspeople.

"In particular, healthy, respectful attitudes towards women need to be talked about
by those at the top of their respective games to take back to the clubs."

AAP sl/ht/

KEYWORD: CONDUCT

2009 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Kevin Rudd's travel budget

AAP General News (Australia)
12-05-2008
Fed: Kevin Rudd's travel budget

In the first seven months of the Rudd government .. the prime minister's overseas trips
cost taxpayers just over 600-thousand dollars .. according to a register of parliamentary
travel released on Thursday.

But it wasn't just money being spent.

KEVIN RUDD's handed back 105 dollars related to a trip to Hong Kong in December .. 2005.

It was revealed earlier this year that Mr RUDD used the visit to get out of a dinner
with disgraced former Western Australia premier BRIAN BURKE.

The biggest ticket item on Mr RUDD'S travel itinerary was an 18-day round-the-world
trip .. which took him to the United States .. Romania .. Belgium .. Britain and China
.. at a cost of 427-thousand dollars.



Mr RUDD'S travel expenses for the second half of 2008 .. which will be released in
mid-2009 .. are likely to be just as substantial.

AAP RTV so/kms/wz/psm/

KEYWORD: TRAVEL (CANBERRA)

2008 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED: Milestones of the week

AAP General News (Australia)
08-01-2008
FED: Milestones of the week

SYDNEY, Aug 1 AAP - Milestones of the week:



SOFTENED - The federal government's mandatory detention laws, meaning that asylum seekers
will only be detained when they pose a threat to the community.



CLOSED - 61 Starbucks coffee shops in Australia, resulting in almost 700 job losses,
and two factories of iconic Australian company Don Smallgoods, axing 640 jobs.



DEPARTED - Bulldogs rugby league star Sonny Bill Williams, bound for France to play rugby union.



MERGED - Queensland's Liberal and National parties, to form a new conservative force
called the Liberal National Party (LNP).



AAP pbc/wf

KEYWORD: MILESTONES

2008 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

SA: Hicks in hiding after release from custody

AAP General News (Australia)
12-30-2007
SA: Hicks in hiding after release from custody

ADELAIDE, Dec 30 AAP - Confessed terrorism supporter David Hicks remains in hiding
after being released from a maximum security Adelaide jail.

A control order on the 32-year-old commenced immediately on his release from the Yatala
Prison yesterday.

Under the control order conditions, Hicks has to be fingerprinted by South Australian
Police within 24 hours of his release.

Hicks also must abide by a midnight to 6am curfew and is banned from using telephones
or internet servers not preapproved by Australian Federal Police.

Tomorrow, Hicks must attend an Adelaide police station - which the father of two must
do three times a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

Hicks yesterday pleaded for privacy as he tries to assimilate into society after being
held in custody for six years, including five and a half years detained by the US at Guantanamo
Bay, Cuba.

His lawyer, David McLeod, read a statement from Hicks after his release.

In his statement, Hicks pleaded for the media and public to allow him "breathing space
to get on with my life".

"Right now I am looking forward to some quiet time with my wonderful Dad, my family
and friends," he said.

"I ask that you respect my privacy as I will need time to readjust to society and to
obtain medical care for the consequences of five and a half years at Guantanamo Bay.

"I have been told that my readjustment will be a slow process and should involve a
gentle transition away from the media spotlight."

In March this year, Hicks pleaded guilty to providing material support for terrorism
at a US military hearing at Guantanamo Bay.

He was sentenced to seven years jail, with all but nine months suspended, and was returned
to Australia in May to serve the remainder of the custodial term, which expired yesterday.

AAP sl/cjh/mn

KEYWORD: HICKS DAYLEAD

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Small business conditions grow for 2nd quarter in a row

AAP General News (Australia)
08-21-2007
Fed: Small business conditions grow for 2nd quarter in a row

By Colin Brinsden

CANBERRA, Aug 21 AAP - Small business conditions strengthened for a second consecutive
quarter in the three months to June, but skills shortages remain a constraint on investment
planning, a survey released today shows.

The St George-Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) small business survey
for the June quarter showed employment, wages and non-wage labour costs at their highest
level of growth since the survey began 11 years ago.

It also showed increasing profits, sales and selling prices, as well as increased investment
plans.

"The survey shows very strong small business conditions," ACCI chief executive Peter
Hendy told journalists in Canberra.

The survey's small business conditions index rose to 56.1 in the June quarter, from
54.7 in the previous three months.

An index level of above 50 indicates the conditions are expanding.

For the September quarter, the survey of 1,292 respondents is predicting an index level of 62.6.

Employment grew to 55.1 in the June quarter from 54.7, wages rose to 69.1 from 68.6,
and non-wage labour costs increased to 67.8 from 67.4.

The only component to stand below the 50-mark was profit growth, although this did
increase to 48.9 from 48.3 in the June quarter, and is forecast to spike to 60.9 in the
September quarter.

"Not surprisingly given all that, the survey also when looking at what the major constraints
on further investment planning are, finds that the availability of suitably qualified
employees is the number one constraint on further investment," Mr Hendy said.

"Skills shortages, therefore, across Australia are a huge issue for small business.

"Obviously, I think both sides of politics are aware that their education and training
policies will be very, very important for the future of the business community."

AAP cb/sb/apm/cdh

KEYWORD: SMALL BUSINESS

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Calls for calm on ETimor voting day by Aust delegation

AAP General News (Australia)
04-05-2007
Fed: Calls for calm on ETimor voting day by Aust delegation

DARWIN, April 5 AAP - The head of an Australian delegation that will visit East Timor
on polling day has called for a calm and fair process.

Northern Territory MP David Tollner will lead the official Australian parliamentary
group, which will arrive in East Timor on April 7, two days before the nation's first
presidential poll since the country was granted independence from Indonesia in 2002.

Also in the group is Queensland Senator Claire Moore and officials from the Australian
Electoral Commission and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Recent campaigning has deteriorated into occasional violence in Dili, with police firing
warning shots and tear gas to disperse fighting between supporters of rival political
parties across the capital.

As most of the eight candidates vying to become president in next Monday's poll wound
up their election campaigns ahead of the Easter break, Mr Tollner today said it was important
that voting was conducted in a democratic manner.

"I would like to call on all sides to support free and fair elections on 9 April, and
to participate in a peaceful manner to allow citizens to vote without fear or intimidation,"

he said.

"These elections are another important step in the development of East Timor's democracy
and electoral institutions, and I am delighted to be able to play a role in support of
this important event."

While the voting was in progress, Mr Tollner said the Australian delegation would visit
the district of Liquica, stopping off at a number of polling centres before leaving the
following day.

"The presidential elections and subsequent parliamentary elections provide an excellent
opportunity for the East Timorese to resolve their differences and address the many challenges
facing the country," he said.

AAP tr/cp/mn

KEYWORD: TIMOR AUST DELEGATES

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Vic: Rudd denies he has blood on his hands

AAP General News (Australia)
12-05-2006
Vic: Rudd denies he has blood on his hands

KEVIN RUDD denies he has blood on his hands .. after yesterday's Labor leadership spill.

He says former Opposition leader KIM BEAZLEY always said if there was a question over
his leadership .. he'd throw it open to a ballot .. and he kept his word.

Mr RUDD's told Southern Cross Broadcasting .. there was no campaign to undermine Mr
BEAZLEY in the run-up to the caucus vote .. and no deals were done to hand him the party's
top job.

AAP RTV mi/gfr/jmt/bart

KEYWORD: LABOR RUDD BLOOD (MELBOURNE)

2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED: Govt getting tough with cartel behaviour

AAP General News (Australia)
04-29-2006
FED: Govt getting tough with cartel behaviour

SYDNEY, April 29 AAP - The federal government will crack down on serious cartel behaviour
by allowing whistleblowers to receive immunity from prosecution in the early stages of
antitrust investigations.

The plans were flagged by Attorney-General Philip Ruddock at an antitrust conference
in Sydney yesterday, The Weekend Australian Financial Review reports today.

Under the plan, the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) will amend its
immunity policy to ensure criminal cartel investigations were more effective, the paper
says.

The changes, part of the joint immunity arrangements being developed by the Australian
Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and the Commonwealth DPP, will help bring the
prosecution of cartels into line with international best practice.

The offence would apply to both individuals and corporations and to businesses of
all sizes, the papers said.

The moves come amid the corporate watchdog's lengthy and controversial cartel prosecution
on civil charges against billionaire Richard Pratt's Visy Industries.

AAP af/rs

KEYWORD: WHISTLEBLOWERS

2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Vic: Two homes destroyed in out of control bushfire in Victoria

AAP General News (Australia)
12-31-2005
Vic: Two homes destroyed in out of control bushfire in Victoria

By Jamie Duncan

MELBOURNE, Dec 31 AAP - A bushfire burning out of control has destroyed at least two
houses in Victoria's west tonight.

The fire is at Deep Lead, west of Stawell, about 240 kilometres west of Melbourne.

A Country Fire Authority (CFA) spokesman said the fire had destroyed two houses on
the Stawell-Pomonal Road, south-west of Stawell, a CFA spokeswoman said.

There are unconfirmed reports a third house has also been destroyed.

Properties in areas near the Stawell-Pomonal Road, the Stawell Town Pipeline Road,
Mullers Road and Lake Fyans Road are under threat, the spokeswoman said.

The fire was first reported in the Illawarra state forest shortly before 5.30pm (AEDT)
and has burned about 800 hectares.

The fire is burning in a south-easterly direction, fanned by hot, dry north-westerly winds.

About 125 firefighters and 30 tankers, supported by three water-bombing aircraft, are
on the scene.

Seven strike teams comprising a further 35 trucks in total are preparing to join the battle.

"Those residents in this area should expect smoke and burning embers to reach their
property, and are advised to patrol their houses to find and put out any burning embers
that may be landing," the spokeswoman said.

Residents and motorists in the area should seek shelter as the fire front approaches, she said.

Meanwhile, the CFA has warned residents and holidaymakers at the towns Bonnie Doon
and Maindample to beware a grassfire that has so far burned 120 hectares.

The area, on the shores of Lake Eildon, is a popular holiday spot.

The fire is travelling south and might threaten residents and campers at Geelong Hill
and Neely Point, the CFA spokeswoman said.

"Residents and campers in this area should expect smoke and burning embers to reach
their property, and are advised to patrol their houses to find and put out any burning
embers that may be landing," she said.

Temperatures soared well above 40 degrees Celsius in western Victoria today.

A total fire ban has been in force across most of Victoria today and will remain in
place until midnight (AEDT) tomorrow.

AAP jrd/cdh

KEYWORD: BUSHFIRES VIC SECOND NIGHTLEAD

2005 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

WA: Man and woman dead after separate road accidents in WA

AAP General News (Australia)
12-30-2005
WA: Man and woman dead after separate road accidents in WA

PERTH, Dec 30 AAP - A man and a woman are dead after two separate accidents in Western
Australia, taking that state's holiday road toll to five.

A 27-year-old woman died when she lost control of her car and crashed into an embankment
while driving along Stoneville Road, Stoneville, in the Perth Hills about 1.40am (WST)
today.

Earlier, a 30-year-old man died in Onslow in Western Australia's north west after being
hit by a car about 7.55pm yesterday.

A WA police spokesman said it appeared the man was intoxicated and walked onto the
road where a car struck him from behind.

These incidents follow the death of a 92-year-old Perth woman on Wednesday after she
was struck by a car while crossing the road on a motorised scooter in Perth's east on
December 23.

The deaths bring the national toll for the 15-day holiday period to 31.





(EDS: AAP's Xmas/New Year road toll figures are for the period 0001 December 23 to
2359 January 6. Some state and territory police forces may use different road toll periods.)



AAP smb/lma/de

KEYWORD: TOLL WA

2005 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

NSW: Govt to review school sponsorship guidelines

AAP General News (Australia)
08-26-2005
NSW: Govt to review school sponsorship guidelines

The New South Wales government says it will review sponsorship guidelines for schools
after being stung by claims that parents and teachers are seeking corporate dollars to
make up for dwindling public funding.

Education Minister CARMEL TEBBUTT has denied the government is stripping schools of
vital funding and says there's record spending on education.

It's been revealed Sydney's Sylvania Heights Public School sold advertising space to
businesses, including fast-food outlets, and let companies display logos in the school
grounds for $500.

Federal Education Minister BRENDAN NELSON says such deals are inappropriate.

Ms TEBBUTT, who'll contest a by-election for a lower house seat on September the 17th,
says there have been guidelines to govern sponsorship of schools since 1991.

But she says it may be time they are reviewed.

AAP RTV dcr/was/bk/sco

KEYWORD: ADVERTS (SYDNEY)

2005 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: no jobs, no protection, no maps on Tas forests - Labor

AAP General News (Australia)
12-24-2004
Fed: no jobs, no protection, no maps on Tas forests - Labor

CANBERRA, Dec 24 AAP - The federal government has already broken two promises on its
Tasmanian forests plan, producing no maps and no certainty on jobs, the environment or
funding, Labor said today.

Prime Minister John Howard had gotten away with a cynical election ploy in promising
to preserve 170,000 hectares of old-growth forest in the state, opposition environment
spokesman Anthony Albanese said.

Environment Minister Ian Campbell today conceded the government had again failed to
meet a deadline to seal the promised deal on the forests.

The government had promised during the election campaign to have a deal in place to
save 170,000 hectares of forests in Tasmania by December 1 and save thousands of jobs.

After failing to meet that deadline it expressed hope the deal would be finalised by Christmas.

However, Senator Campbell today said the deal between the federal and Tasmanian governments
had still not been finalised.

"You now have no maps, no certainty with regard to areas to be protected but also no
certainty as to employment, industry plans or funding," Mr Albanese told AAP.

"It's pretty extraordinary that every Australian saw the Prime Minister, three days
before the election, trumpeting in Launceston that he had a plan that would involve 170,000
ha, that there was $50 million allocated and that the detail of the plan, as in the maps
of areas to be saved would be released prior to December 1.

"That was a self-imposed deadline.

"When they failed to meet that deadline they set another one of prior to Christmas,
which they've also breached."

Mr Albanese said the government had had nine years to establish a policy to achieve
what the prime minister said was his objectives of saving the old-growth forests and preserving
jobs.

"The visit to Tasmania by the prime minister was nothing more than a cynical election
stunt, rather than a serious policy response to an environmental issue of concern to all
Australians," he said.

Senator Campbell said this morning the process was complicated but he was confident
of a good outcome being achieved.

"I think overwhelmingly the (election) commitments will be kept and that's the prime
minister and the premier both very focused on achieving those goals, and they are not
easy goals to meet," he said.

"But we think that by and large that the two can be met."

AAP dep/bes

KEYWORD: FORESTS LEAD

2004 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

CoSine's IP Service Delivery Platform Selected by Covad to Provide Private Networking Services to Its Growing Subscriber Base.

Covad Deploys CoSine Platform to Provide Secure Private Network Solutions

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Dec. 18 /PRNewswire/ --

CoSine Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: COSN), today announced that Covad Communications (Nasdaq: COVD) -- the nation's leading provider of broadband services utilizing DSL technology -- is utilizing CoSine's IPSX 9000(TM) Service Processing Switch to offer real private networking services to its access subscriber base. CoSine, the leading provider of network-based IP Service Delivery Platforms for Service Providers, also offers Covad the ability to provide other advanced data services, such as VPNs.

"Our platform provides a comprehensive suite of revenue-generating services for DSL broadband Service Providers like Covad-above and beyond basic service selection," said Dean Hamilton, president and CEO, CoSine Communications. "The IPSX 9000 allows Covad the flexibility to cost effectively deliver high-value services to DSL subscribers in key markets on demand and expand to deliver additional services as their customer requirements change and applications evolve."

As part of the initial product rollout, Covad has deployed CoSine IPSX 9000 units in several regional Points of Presence (POPs). As part of the agreement, Covad will also use CoSine's extensive Global Service and Support (GSS) program, which provides 24x7 technical assistance, network design, installation support, training and professional services.

"We looked at other network-based solutions and were impressed by the scalability and reliability of CoSine's platform," said Rich Wong, vice president of marketing for Covad. "The IPSX 9000's ability to support a large number of virtual routers per switch enables us to provide each customer its own routed private network, reduces costs and gives us the flexibility to roll-out additional services."

About CoSine's IP Service Delivery Platform

CoSine's solution includes its IPSX 9000 Service Processing Switch, a carrier-class solution that marries scalable computing, switching, and routing hardware with an open architecture operating system and market-leading application software. The platform also includes the InVision Service Management System (SMS), and the InGage(TM) Customer Network Management (CNM) system. This solution enables Service Providers to create, manage and deliver value-added IP services to enterprise customers, who in turn, can monitor and control their services over the public IP network.

CoSine's platform is designed to support managed, network-based IP application services such as VPNs; managed Network Associates Gauntlet Firewalls; McAfee WebShield Virus Scanning; PGP Security's CyberCop Monitor Intrusion Detection; IP-Enabled Frame Relay, Frame Relay to IPSec Interworking and Frame Relay over IPSec; Secure DSL; Secure Virtual LAN; URL filtering; virtual routing and more.

About CoSine Communications, Inc.

Founded in 1998 and based in Redwood City, Calif., CoSine Communications, Inc. develops, markets, and sells managed IP service delivery platforms designed for Service Providers who risk losing profitability with today's low-value Internet access services. The CoSine solution enables Next-Generation Telcos, Competitive IXCs, International Service Providers, Application Service Providers and PTTs to quickly and reliably turn up value-added services to their wholesale and retail subscribers.

For more information about CoSine Communications, visit the company's Web site at www.cosinecom.com, or contact Suzanne Panoplos at 877-4-COSINE.

This release as it relates to revenues and other company matters, contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Except for historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The company may use words such as "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "expect," "intend," "future" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Our actual results may vary significantly based on a number of factors including, but not limited to, product development, commercialization and technology difficulties, manufacturing costs, the impact of competitive products, pricing, changing customer requirements, timely availability and acceptance of new products, and change in the economic conditions of the various markets CoSine serves. We refer you to the Risk Factors section and other information contained in the company's filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

CONTACT: Megan Burnett of Gallagher PR, 510-749-6800, ext. 216, or megan@gpr.com, for CoSine Communications; or Suzanne Panoplos of CoSine Communications, 650-637-4777, or spanoplos@cosinecom.com.

ITT BEATS RAYTHEON FOR $46.5 MILLION COMMUNICATION SYSTEM.

ITT [IIN] has defeated a bid from Raytheon [RTNA/RTNB] to win a $46.5 million contract award from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a prototype situation awareness and communication system for individual soldiers.

The Small Unit Operations/Situation Awareness System (SUO/SAS) is intended to bring together several technologies to provide jamproof communications as well as "assured geolocation information" even when the Global Positioning System is not available, according to the ITT statement.

"What we are building is a soldier system that brings everybody into the tactical internet," said John Kirkwood, an ITT spokesman. Raytheon said it was "disappointed" by the decision.

According to DARPA, the SUO/SAS prototype development program will last until July 2002.

The goal, DARPA said, is to demonstrate the prototype technology and not to develop an actual system for fielding. However, future acquisition systems could benefit from the prototype SUO/SAS work.

"The SUO/SAS is a potential technology that could be used in [other] programs. It will be [a program manager] choice in the future to use whatever technology is applicable to their systems," DARPA spokeswoman Jan Walker told Defense Daily. "It would be unusual for a system to transfer directly from DARPA" into an acquisition system.

Kirkwood said a driving force behind the communications capability of the SUO/SAS is the Joint Tactical Radio System (JTRS) architecture.

The JTRS program has recently decided upon an architecture definition proposed by a Raytheon [RTNA-RTNB]-led team (Defense Daily, June 24). According to Kirkwood, SUO/SAS is to be built in conformity with that architecture.

Another program for which SUO/SAS has mission applicability is the Army's Raytheon Land Warrior soldier system.

Kirkwood and Walker said the government and ITT plan to work closely with the Land Warrior project office at Ft. Belvoir, Va., and the JTRS joint program office at Arlington, Va.

The objective for the SUO/SAS is a hand-held multimedia terminal that links individual soldiers into the tactical internet and provides them with key information on their location, the location of friendly forces and the location of enemies.

"We are looking to get to cell phone or palm pilot sized systems," Kirkwood said. "Everything has shrunk...you are doing more now in smaller packages. A lot of that is computer driven" following the advent of digital signal processing (DSP).

DSP allows radios to alternate between communications wave forms, depending upon specific mission needs, without requiring new hardware. With DSP, a radio's wave forms can be changed by adding software alone.

Actions Semiconductor Expands Product Offering with the Introduction of New Series 70 Android MID Products.

ZHUHAI, China, July 28, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- Actions Semiconductor Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq: ACTS), one of China's leading fabless semiconductor companies that provides comprehensive mixed-signal system-on-a-chip (SoC) and multimedia digital signal processing (DSP) solutions for portable consumer electronics, today announced the introduction of its new Series 70 product family to address the fast growing Android based smart handheld device market (e.g. mobile internet device (MID) and intelligent portable media player (iPMP)). Following a successful sampling program, the new Series 70 product family has been adopted by top tier Chinese brand name customers, with volume production scheduled to begin in August.

With this latest product introduction, Actions is bringing a compelling product offering to the internet-accessible smart handheld device (such as MID and iPMP) market. With the 720P (1280*720 pixel) video engine, built-in HDMI Transmitter (HDMI Tx) and Android 2.2 (Froyo) support, Series 70 allows the user to enjoy a variety of high definition content on a portable device or through television. The support of embedded WiFi or external 3G connectivity and Android Froyo operating system, provides users mobile internet capabilities such as internet browsing, streaming video and instant messenger (IM) on the go. The abundant Android application available today also offers rich sources to extend its applications such as game, eReader, and streaming entertainment. The first two members of the Series 70 family, available now for market, are ATM7001c focused on compact design to support touch panels of 4.3 inches or below, and ATM7001 on five to seven inch LCD touch panels. Series 70 enables a superior performance to cost ratio for Android based smart handheld applications.

"As always, our goal is to create a powerful platform with differentiated features and cost-efficient total solution," stated Mr. Niccolo Chen, CEO of Actions Semiconductor. "With the Android 2.2 support, our customers can easily turn the Series 70 platform to a PMP, Game console, eReader or MID. In addition to the embedded power management unit (PMU) and HDMI Tx, the Series 70 product family also supports DDR2 memory and the latest TLC NAND Flash under 40-bit ECC architecture to achieve the best cost structure at the system level. With its competitive advantages, Series 70 has captured interests from both China-based and international customers."

About Actions Semiconductor

Actions Semiconductor is one of China's leading fabless semiconductor companies that provides mixed-signal and multimedia SoC solutions for portable consumer electronics. Actions Semiconductor products include SoCs, firmware, software, solution development kits, as well as detailed specifications of other required components and the providers of those components. Actions Semiconductor also provides total product and technology solutions that allow customers to quickly introduce new portable consumer electronics to the mass market in a cost effective way. The company is headquartered in Zhuhai, China, with offices in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. For more information, please visit the Actions Semiconductor website at http://www.actions-semi.com.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

Statements contained in this release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements, as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements include statements concerning signs of positive indicators in the industry for next year, growth in the market driven by continued proliferation of applications within the PMP market and incremental rebound of overall demand for these products, Actions Semiconductor's belief that it is positioned to capture some upside from these trends, and Actions Semiconductor's future expectations with respect to revenue, gross margin, operating expenses and share-based compensation expense. Actions Semiconductor uses words like "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "project" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These forward-looking statements are estimates reflecting current assumptions, expectations and projections about future events and involve significant risks, both known and unknown, uncertainties and other factors that may cause Actions Semiconductor's actual performance, financial condition or results of operations to be materially different from those suggested by the forward-looking statements including, among others, customers' cancellation or modification of their orders; our failure to accurately forecast demand for our products; the loss of, or a significant reduction in orders from, any of our significant customers; fluctuations in our operating results; our inability to develop and sell new products; defects in or failures of our products; the expense and uncertainty involved in our customer design-win efforts; the financial viability of the distributors of our products; consumer demand; worldwide economic and political conditions; fluctuations in our costs to manufacture our products; our reliance on third parties to manufacture, test, assemble and ship our products; our ability to retain and attract key personnel; our ability to compete with our competitors; and our ability to protect our intellectual property rights and not infringe the intellectual property rights of others. Other factors that may cause our actual results to differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements contained in this press release and that may affect our prospects in general are described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recently filed Forms F-1, 20-F and 6-Ks. Other unknown or unpredictable factors also could have material adverse effects on Actions Semiconductor's future results, performance or achievements. In light of these risks, uncertainties, assumptions and factors, the forward-looking events discussed in this press release may not occur. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date stated, or if no date is stated, as of the date of this press release. Except as required by law, Actions Semiconductor undertakes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statement to reflect subsequent events or changed assumptions or circumstances.

Investor Contacts:
Lisa Laukkanen	Edward Chen
The Blueshirt Group	Investor Relations at Actions Semiconductor
lisa@blueshirtgroup.com	edward@actions-semi.com
415-217-4967	+86-756-3392353*1110

SOURCE Actions Semiconductor Co., Ltd.

How to avoid "haircuts".(Mergers, IPOs, and Venture Finance: Equities)(Professional standards)

Just before an M&A deal closes, sellers are sometimes shocked to hear that the buyer insists on a downward adjustment of the selling price--a so-called "haircut." At this point, the balance of power has shifted to the buyer, who's generally better able to walk if the seller doesn't agree to the new, lower price.

In fact, many "haircut" adjustments are quite reasonable. During due diligence, the buyer may have uncovered financial irregularities (particularly in the way revenue is recognized), undisclosed liabilities, or overvalued assets. Or else the seller may have badly missed a revenue forecast for the closing period. From the buyer's perspective, these are all grounds for re-opening negotiations about price.

Is there a way to avoid a last-minute haircut? There are three areas to watch carefully:

* The letter of intent: The best way to hold the line on an agreed-upon price is to spell out the ground rules for closing adjustments in the letter of intent. The seller should make sure the agreement is specific about what happens in the event that due diligence uncovers some unpleasant surprises.

* The closing period: The final weeks between the LOI and the closing can be intensely distracting, and it's easy to let the sales effort slip and to approve expenditures that might otherwise get turned down. Yet this is arguably one of the most critical periods in the seller's financial history and should be managed with extra care.

* Final cash: In a deal that's structured fairly, price is adjusted downwards or upwards based on cash or current assets on hand. If the balance is above the negotiated number, the difference adds to the selling price; if less, it subtracts. Thus, a last-ditch effort to collect receivables or book new sales may actually produce a haircut adjustment in the seller's favor.

Ward Carter, executive vice president, Corum Group, 10500 NE Eighth St., Bellevue, Wash. 98004; 425/455-8281. E-mail: wardc@corumgroup.com.

 Company/       Acquired by     Price/Terms         Revenues   Multiple Description  NetChip        PLX             $30,000,000        $9,000,000    3.33 Technology     Technology        Terms: Stock & earnout (1)                (PLXT)    * High-performance semicondictors  Systems        Infocrossing    $36,500,000       $33,000,000    1.11 Management     (IFOX)            Terms: Cash & stock Specialists    * Business process outsourcing of computer operations  OpTX           Varian          $18,000,000       $9,000,000     2.00                Medical           Terms: Cash                Systems                (VAR)    * Software for medical oncology practices in cancer clinics  Compendit      Inforte         $5,500,000        $9,900,000     0.56                Corp.              Terms: Cash                (INFT)    * SAP business intelligence implementation services  Prospect       Kintera         $3,600,000        $4,500,000     0.81 Information    (KNTA)          Terms: Stock Network    * Prospect screening solutions for non-profit fundraising  (1.) $20 million in stock, $10 million in earnout. 

Why radio tunes us into happiness; The grumpiest man on the airwaves on...(Features)

Byline: by John Humphrys

MY NEW boss took me to one side after the formal welcome and lowered his voice. This was not only my first day in the job: it was a new post altogether.

The BBC had never had a reporter based in Liverpool covering the North-West for both regional and national news bulletins and in those days there was an awful lot of news in the region -- what with endless docks strikes and The Beatles and so on -- and I was a bit worried about how I'd cope. 'Look,' said the boss, 'you're meant to be responsible for both radio and television coverage but, between the two of us, I wouldn't worry too much about radio. It's on the way out. It's yesterday's medium. Television is It's yesterday's medium. Television is what we need to care about.'

It seemed to make sense. The main television news programmes on the BBC and ITN were attracting audiences of nine or ten million. The Today programme -- the biggest of the radio shows even then -- struggled to get half that. TV was soaring away. Radio was in decline.

That was 40 years ago. My boss, it turns out, was spectacularly wrong. The figures have been reversed. The latest figures show that radio listening in Britain has reached a record high.

My own programme, Today, has just passed the seven million mark -- the biggest audience it has ever registered. The main television news programmes often struggle to get half that figure.

Now this is very odd when you think about it for even a moment. We have never been subjected to so many moving images. There are so many television channels that I defy you to name more than a fraction of them.

But who needs television when you can get even more stuff on your laptop? And who needs to be tied to a laptop when all you need do is pull your smartphone or iPad out of your pocket and watch a Hollywood film or a million clips from YouTube while you're on the bus?

Surely there is no way that boring old radio -- which has scarcely changed in the past half-century -- can presume to challenge the might of the instantly available moving image. True, we now have digital, but it's struggling to make the big breakthrough and most of us are perfectly happy with good old FM or even hanker after the ancient, mellow sound of Long Wave.

As it happens, part of the answer lies in that single word: 'happy'. A report published yesterday showed that people who listen to radio are happier and have more energy than those who don't. There are some similar benefits from watching television or using a computer, but radio has far and away the most potent mood-enhancing effect.

The report, based on interviews with more than 1,000 people, said: 'Radio is chosen as a lifestyle support system to help people feel better as they go about their daily lives. Rather than the peaks and troughs that people have claimed to experience with TV and the internet, radio provides a consistent environment themed and shaped to suit the listener's needs at any given time of day and one that is generally upbeat in tone.'

THAT strikes me as a fairly odd conclusion. Do you listen to radio to help you 'feel better'? No. Neither do I. And if that's what you're after -- feelgood broadcasting -- there's plenty on the telly. No, I think the startling success of radio over the past decade or so is precisely because so much of it doesn't set out to make you feel better. It sets out to make you think, to challenge you in one way or another. That's why people say their energy levels are raised by radio.

The great trap so many TV schedulers have fallen into over the years is to assume that if a particular format pulls in the punters they must reproduce it -- again and again ad infinitum. Big Brother was a massive success, so let's flog it to death, finding endless ways to try to titillate an increasingly bored audience with increasingly outrageous, pathetic inadequates acting out lives that have as much to do with reality as the 'house' has to do with a semi on a council estate in Newcastle. Or let's find another reality TV format. Doesn't matter what it is so long as the poor saps out there on the sofas know what to expect. Talent show television inevitably began to follow the same trajectory.

Radio doesn't do that. Let's be sceptical and suggest that it doesn't because it can't afford to. The budget for an hour of peak-time radio is a tiny fraction of even pretty low-life TV shows.

But I'd prefer to believe radio doesn't follow that route because it has more respect for its listeners than some of the more cynical TV moguls have for their viewers. And, in case you haven't guessed, I am a Radio 4 addict. I happen to believe that Radio 4 is one of the nation's great -- if not its greatest -- civilising influences.

This is not meant to suggest that there's no rubbish on the radio. I can happily live the rest of my days without ever hearing another one of those frantic and foul-mouthed disc jockeys who seem to forget occasionally that children are listening at breakfast time.

NOR do I believe that all television is rubbish. How could I? I've been presenting Mastermind for eight years and successive controllers have resisted the temptation to dumb it down. If you don't believe me, try sitting in the black chair yourself. I wouldn't dare.

The best stuff on telly is as good as it's ever been, if not better. If you didn't see The Killing -- the Scandinavian crime drama which captivated millions of BBC4 viewers -- when first broadcast, you have a treat in store. The notion that we have a thousand channels and nothing worth watching is hogwash.

But it's the watching that's the problem and this takes us back to the curious survey finding in relation to energy levels.

There was a time when the family would actually sit around the old Bakelite wireless set and listen (I can remember doing that with my parents during the Suez crisis), but we lead different lives now. When we listen to radio we tend to be on the move in one way or another. We are not slumped on a sofa. That must be part of the explanation. But it's much more than that.

It is the intellectual effort that good radio demands that gives us energy and, yes, enhances our mood. I try to imagine a television producer going to her boss with an idea for a new series.

'What we'll be doing,' she says, 'is getting together a group of academics most people have never heard of and talking to them at great length about, say, Maimonides or maybe the Taiping Rebellion in China or the age of the universe or the ancient enigma of free will or ...'

She's still frantically reeling off ever more obscure subjects, hardly noticing that the boss is edging closer to the door so that he can signal to his secretary to summon the men in white coats.

But that was precisely the offer presented to Radio 4 more than a decade ago and the series was not only commissioned, it's still running strong. It is called In Our Time. It's chaired brilliantly by a sometimes irascible but always enthusiastic Melvyn Bragg and it attracts an audience of a million people.

I suspect half of them (including me) have no more than the haziest notion of the subjects under discussion, but they want to know more. Most of us -- despite what the most cynical of the prime-time TV moguls might believe -- have an instinctive curiosity. We don't need endless -- and often profoundly irritatingly simplistic -- visual gimmicks. We want to be forced to use our brain from time to time.

That's what gives us energy. And that's what enhances our lives.

AeroVironment Sets Date for 4th Quarter and Full Fiscal Year 2011 Earnings Release and Conference Call.

AeroVironment, Inc. announced it will issue financial results for the Company's fourth quarter and full fiscal year ended April 30, after the market closes on Tuesday, June 21.

Management will host a conference call and live audio webcast to discuss the results at 1:30 p.m. PT that day.

Hosting the call to review results for the fiscal fourth quarter will be Timothy E. Conver, chief executive officer, Jikun Kim, chief financial officer, and Steven A. Gitlin, vice president of investor relations.

According to a release, dial in information includes:

U.S.: 877-561-2749

International: 678-809-1029

Investors with Internet access may listen to the live audio webcast via the "Investors" section of the AeroVironment, Inc. website, investor.avinc.com.

An audio replay of the call will be available on Tuesday, June 21, at approximately 4:30 p.m. PT through Tuesday, June 28, at 9 p.m. PT. Dial 800-642-1687 and enter the passcode 71377219. International callers should dial 706-645-9291 and enter the same passcode number to access the digital replay.

More company information:

www.avinc.com

((Comments on this story may be sent to newsdesk@closeupmedia.com))

INVE SqueezeTrigger Price is $3.26. There is $1,793,204 That Short Sellers Still Need To Cover.

M2 PRESSWIRE-May 24, 2011-BUYINS.NET: INVE SqueezeTrigger Price is $3.26. There is $1,793,204 That Short Sellers Still Need To Cover.(C)1994-2011 M2 COMMUNICATIONS

RDATE:23052011

BUYINS.NET / www.squeezetrigger.com is monitoring IDENTIVE GROUP INC (NASDAQ:INVE) in real time and just received an alert that INVE is crossing above its primary SqueezeTrigger Price, the price that a short squeeze can start in any stock. There are 522800 shares that have been shorted at the volume weighted average SqueezeTrigger Price of $3.26. To access SqueezeTrigger Prices ahead of potential short squeezes beginning, visit http://www.squeezetrigger.com .

From August 2009 to April 2011, an aggregate amount of 27855682 shares of INVE have been shorted for a total dollar value of $83567046. The INVE SqueezeTrigger price of $3.26 is the volume weighted average price that all shorts are short in shares of INVE. There is still approximately $1,793,204 of potential short covering in shares of INVE.

SqueezeTrigger.com has built a massive database that collects, analyzes and publishes a proprietary SqueezeTrigger Price for each stock that has been shorted. The data has then been integrated into an automated trading platform which can be used to connect to a live online broker and automate your trading of short squeeze events. It is extremely powerful with lightening fast execution at a very low price. Both the trading software and SqueezeTrigger data feed are available at http://www.squeezetrigger.com .

IDENTIVE GROUP INC (NASDAQ:INVE) - Identive Group, Inc. provides products and solutions in the areas of physical and logical access control, identity management, and radio frequency identification (RFID) systems to governments, commercial and industrial enterprises, and consumers worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Security and Identity Solutions and Digital Media and Connectivity. The Security and Identity Solutions segment offers a range of contact, contactless, and mobile smart card reader technology; access control products; and digital identity and transaction platforms, as well as systems that integrate physical access control, secure data storage and transmission, digital certificates, biometrics, and digital video. It markets its solutions under the Hirsch Electronics and SCM Microsystems brand names to various industries in security, identity, contactless payment, e-health, and electronic government services. This segment also offers a range of smart card-based productivity solutions, which include readers and software, for small and medium-size businesses under the CHIPDRIVE name. The Digital Media and Connectivity segment provides commercial digital media readers used in digital photo kiosks to transfer digital content to and from various flash media. In addition, the company provides automatic identification and RFID technologies, products, services, and solutions used in the fields of security, identification, and tracking applications. Identive Group sells its products directly, as well as through original equipment manufacturers, distributors, dealers/system integrators, value added resellers, resellers, and Internet sales. The company was formerly known as SCM Microsystems, Inc. and changed its name to Identive Group, Inc. on June 16, 2010. Identive Group was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in Santa Ana, California.

The SqueezeTrigger database of approximately 1 billion short sale transactions goes back to January 1, 2005 and calculates the exact price at which the Total Short Interest is short in each stock. This data was never before available prior to January 1, 2005 because the Self Regulatory Organizations (primary exchanges) guarded it aggressively. After the SEC passed Regulation SHO, exchanges were forced to allow data processors like SqueezeTrigger.com to access the data. Total Short Interest is the number of shares shorted but not yet covered, and is different from total short volume. To access SqueezeTrigger Prices ahead of potential short squeezes beginning, visit http://www.squeezetrigger.com

About SQUEEZETRIGGER.COM

WWW.SQUEEZETRIGGER.COM is a service designed to help bonafide shareholders of publicly traded US companies fight short selling. SqueezeTrigger.com has built a proprietary database that uses Threshold list feeds and short sale time and sale data from NASDAQ, AMEX and NYSE to generate detailed and useful information to combat the short selling problem. For the first time, actual trade by trade data is available to the public that shows the attempted size, actual size, price and average value of short sales in stocks that have been shorted. This information is valuable in determining the precise point at which short sellers go out-of-the-money and start losing on their short trades.

SQUEEZETRIGGER.COM has built a massive database that collects, analyzes and publishes a proprietary SqueezeTrigger for each stock that has been shorted. The SqueezeTrigger database of nearly one billion short sale transactions goes back to January 1, 2005 and calculates the exact price at which the Total Short Interest is short in each stock. This data was never before available prior to January 1, 2005 because the Self Regulatory Organizations (primary exchanges) guarded it aggressively. After the SEC passed Regulation SHO, exchanges were forced to allow data processors like SqueezeTrigger.com to access the data.

The SqueezeTrigger database collects individual short trade data on over 7,000 NYSE, AMEX and NASDAQ stocks and general short trade data on nearly 8,000 OTCBB and PINKSHEET stocks. Each month the database grows by approximately 50,000,000 short sale transactions and provides investors with the knowledge necessary to time when to buy and sell stocks with outstanding short positions. By tracking the size and price of each month's short transactions, SQUEEZETRIGGER.COM provides institutions, traders, analysts, journalists and individual investors the exact price point where short sellers start losing money and a short squeeze can begin.

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SEC ANNOUNCES AGENDA AND PANELISTS FOR ROUNDTABLE ON MONEY MARKET FUNDS AND SYSTEMIC RISK.

WASHINGTON -- The following information was released by the Securities and Exchange Commission:

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the panelists and final agenda for the Money Market Funds and Systemic Risk Roundtable to be held May 10.

The roundtable will address:

The potential for money market funds to pose a systemic risk to broader financial markets - what makes money market funds vulnerable to runs and how should the role of money market funds be viewed through the prism of systemic risk analysis.

Possible options for further regulatory reform and their implications, including floating NAV, bank regulation, and options that reflect a hybrid of these regulatory approaches: a private liquidity bank; mandatory reserve or capital requirements; and liquidity fees.

The agenda and list of panelists can be found on the SEC website.

The roundtable discussion will begin at 2 p.m. and be available by webcast on the SEC website. The webcast also will be archived for later viewing. Public seating to view the webcast will be available in the auditorium at the SEC's headquarters at 100 F Street NE in Washington, D.C.

Members of the public who wish to provide their views on the matters to be considered at the roundtable discussion may submit comments to the comment file for the President's Working Group Report on Money Market Fund Reform, as noted below. Comments to the Commission may be submitted by any of the following methods:

Electronic Comments

Use the SEC's Internet comment form or send an e-mail to rule-comments@sec.gov and include File Number 4-619 on the subject line; or

Use the Federal eRulemaking portal (www.regulations.gov). Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Paper Comments

Send paper comments in triplicate to Elizabeth Murphy, Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street NE, Washington, D.C. 20549-1090.

All submissions should refer to File Number 4-619. To help process and review your submissions more efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all public comments on the SEC website. Please note that all comments received will be posted without change. The Commission does not edit personal identifying information from submissions. Submit only information desired to be made available publicly.

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Apartment Guide Launches Facebook "Search with Friends".

Website functionality enables consumers to search for apartments along with Facebook friends

ATLANTA -- Apartment Guide, a leading resource for apartments for rent nationwide, announced that its new "Search with Friends" website functionality is now available for users. This industry first helps consumers engaged in the apartment search process as well as apartment communities looking to better leverage social media tools and reach the more than 150 million people in the United States who are currently accessing Facebook.

Consumers looking for apartments on ApartmentGuide.com will have the opportunity to invite their Facebook friends to join them in their apartment search. Once the invitation is sent, Facebook users have the ability to add friends and form a search group, look for and save favorite apartments for rent, and add apartments to their My Favorites section on ApartmentGuide.com. Once a user saves the apartment to the My Favorites section, others in the apartment search group will see it in their Facebook activity feeds and will also be able to comment on the property. The "Search with Friends" functionality also provides roommates an easy, quick method to search for apartments together.

"The majority of people who are using Facebook are ages 18 to 34 and we aim to provide them with an easier apartment search process both on our site and in social media forums," said Arlene Mayfield, president, Apartment Guide. "By offering consumers this online community to discuss apartment options through a communication tool they are already embracing, we are enhancing the online renter experience and increasing engagement."

In order to further reach this demographic, Apartment Guide has also entered into a custom brand integration with Apartment Therapy Media, an online destination for all things home, which has more than five million unique readers each month. The relationship includes sole sponsorship by Apartment Guide of Apartment Therapy's popular "Before & After" content, which is geared towards inspiring readers to create their dream living spaces, no matter what the size.

About Apartment Guide

A 36-year apartment industry expert, Apartment Guide is the flagship product of Consumer Source Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of PRIMEDIA Inc. (NYSE: PRM). Apartment Guide helps millions of consumers nationwide find an apartment through innovative Internet, mobile and print solutions. A trusted brand, it is a primary apartment search resource, offering potential renters content-rich apartment listings and information. For more information visit http://www.apartmentguide.com or advertise on Apartment Guide for listing information.

PRIMEDIA, Apartment Guide and ApartmentGuide.com are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of PRIMEDIA Inc. Facebook([R]) is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc. Apartment Therapy is a trademark of Apartment Therapy, LLC. [c] PRIMEDIA Inc. 2011. All rights reserved.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6686673&lang=en

Endicia Helps Customers Make 'Cents' of Upcoming U.S. Postal Service Price Change.

Palo Alto, Calif., Apr 23, 2009 (PRWeb.com via COMTEX) -- Endicia, the trusted leader in Internet Postage with more than $3B in postage printed, is offering existing and new customers creative ways to save money during the next U.S. Postal Service(R) price change. On May 11th, the price of First-Class Mail(R) postage will change from 42 to 44 cents.

With this USPS price change, Endicia makes it easier than ever for small businesses to try Internet Postage and save money. Effective immediately through September 30, 2009, the first 20,000 customers that register for Endicia's special offer will get a free Printable Postage sheet in the mail. In addition, when they sign up for a no monthly fee DYMO Printable Postage account, they will receive 50 cents of postage deposited in their account. Users can then print a full sheet of 24 2-cent stamps to help use up any extra 42-cent stamps after the price change. Customers also have the option to buy additional postage and print any of the postage prices available in the software. To take advantage of this offer, visit www.endicia.com/cents.

In addition, to make sure customers are informed about the changing prices, Endicia will host educational webinars beginning Tuesday, April 28 at 1 p.m. Pacific through Tuesday, May 12 at 8 a.m. Pacific. To make it easy to adapt to the new USPS pricing structure, Endicia software will also automatically update to prepare for the change. A full webinar schedule is available at http://www.endicia.com/Support/Webinars/.

"The U.S. Postal Service and Endicia continue to offer their customers the best value, especially in tougher economic times," said Harry Whitehouse, chief development officer for Endicia. "In order for it to have a minimal impact on our users, we will continue to educate and prepare our customers in advance."

This price change will affect all U.S. Postal Service customers -- including Endicia users -- who mail using First-Class Mail letters; however, prices for the most common shipping classes, Priority Mail(R) and Express Mail(R), will not change. Customers can also expect prices for extra services such as Delivery Confirmation(TM), Signature Confirmation(TM), COD and USPS(R) Insurance to increase along with Media Mail(R), Parcel Post(R) and Library Mail. For customers who primarily print business mail postage, their most notable changes will be the price for a one-ounce First-Class Mail letter increasing by two cents and Certified Mail(TM) service costs increasing by 10 cents to $2.80. For businesses producing their own presort (bulk) mailings, the prices for First Class and Standard Class automation letters, flats, and postcards will also change.

As always, Endicia products allow customers to print complete, prepaid postage for any single-piece domestic mail class available at the Post Office(TM) retail counter, avoid surcharges such as Saturday Delivery, and compute exact postage needed to avoid overpaying or risking packages arriving to recipients 'postage-due.' Endicia customers can learn about the full details of the price change by visiting www.endicia.com/pricechange.

U.S. Postal Service(R), USPS(R), Priority Mail(R), Express Mail(R), Express Mail International(R), First-Class Mail(R), Media Mail(R), and Parcel Post(R) are registered trademarks; and Delivery Confirmation(TM), Signature Confirmation(TM), Certified Mail(TM), and Post Office(TM) are trademarks of the United States Postal Service.

About Endicia: With over 25 years of experience in the postal industry, Endicia is the leading Internet Postage service provider in terms of postage volume printed. Endicia lets users print postage with just a computer, printer, and an Internet connection. Integrated into more than 60 applications, Endicia's PC and Mac solutions allow users to print postage and shipping labels for all domestic and International mail classes that can be purchased at the Post Office(TM) retail counter. Endicia's functionality includes discounted Delivery Confirmation(TM) and Signature Confirmation(TM), discounted Parcel Insurance made available by Endicia, Stealth Postage(TM) and pre-filled customs forms. Endicia's PictureItPostage(TM) service allows businesses and individuals to print customized postage with their logos, images, or pictures. In 1989, the company received the first annual U.S. Postal Service Quality Supplier Award, the Industry Star Award in 2004, and the U.S. Postal Service Corporate Business Achievement Award for Outstanding Performance in 2008. For more information, visit www.endicia.com.

About Newell Rubbermaid Technology Global Business Solutions: In a world that demands greater productivity and measures it at every opportunity, Newell Rubbermaid's global technology solutions provide businesses, educational institutions, and consumers with innovative and easy ways to share, manage and organize information with improved efficiency and satisfaction.

Our global technology brands are organized into four solutions: DYMO(R) Printing and Labeling Solutions are comprised of DYMO label makers and label printers, postage printing and CD/DVD printing solutions (www.dymo.com). CardScan(R) Contact Management Solutions are comprised of CardScan business card scanners and contact management software featuring CardScan At Your Service(TM) (www.cardscan.com), and DYMO File(TM) software for document scanning into digital files (www.dymofile.com). Endicia(R) Internet Postage Solutions are comprised of Endicia online shipping and mailing solutions (www.endicia.com) as well as customized postage solutions (www.pictureitpostage.com). mimio(R) Interactive Teaching Solutions are comprised of mimio interactive whiteboard technology, digital ink recorders and student response systems (www.mimio.com). These global technology brands complement the growing family of leading Newell Rubbermaid brands including Calphalon(R), EXPO(R), Goody(R), Graco(R), Irwin(R), Lenox(R), Paper Mate(R), Parker(R), Rolodex(R), Rubbermaid(R), Sharpie(R) and Waterman(R).

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Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/04/prweb2353294.htm.

PRWeb.com

PRWEB.COM Newswire

WRC-TV, NASA make weather on 'Net. (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Internet)(Brief Article)

WRC-TV Washington has taken its state-of-the-art weather forecasting to the Internet.

With support from NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology and the National Weather Service, WRC-TV has launched a Web site that puts the latest weather imaging techniques into cyberspace. The station and NASA each invested $2.3 million in the three-year project, the goal of which, says WRC-TV meteorologist Dave Jones, "is to increase the use of earth and space data over the Internet."

The primary idea is to use high-resolution imagery to focus on severe weather conditions, says Jones. WRC-TV is using Silicon Graphics Indy desktop workstations to create graphics for the site, which received 36,000 hits per hour during the Blizzard of '96.

The WeatherNet 4 Web site (wxnet4.nbc4.com) features regional radar, Doppler and skycam images of the Northeast, national radar maps, updated forecasts and almanac information.

JPL will process real-time satellite data to enable a resolution that can distinguish city blocks in relation to landmarks such as the Washington Monument. The site also features a hot link to NASA's Web site.