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Business - BostonHerald.com

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 01 Desember 2012 | 20.25

Business - BostonHerald.comBusiness - BostonHerald.com

http://www.bostonherald.com/business/?srvc=rss The Boston Herald online: The closest distance between you and the news en-us Copyright 2012, Herald Interactive, Inc. Sat, 01 Dec 2012 08:11:40 -0500 systems@heraldinteractive.com (Web Developers) 120 http://cache.heraldinteractive.com/images/siteImages/rss_logo.jpg http://www.bostonherald.com/business/?srvc=rss 100 48 The Boston Herald online: The closest distance between you and the news http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178572&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178572&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178572&srvc=rss A Cambridge real estate developer's bet on an Everett industrial site could pay off big if Las Vegas tycoon Steve... business Sat, 01 Dec 2012 05:56:49 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178585&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178585&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178585&srvc=rss The U.S. trustee overseeing the Upper Crust pizza chain's bankruptcy case wants the court to order the owners to... business Sat, 01 Dec 2012 05:56:25 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178567&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178567&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178567&srvc=rss Staples is getting into the three-dimensional printing business. The Framingham office products retailer has... business Sat, 01 Dec 2012 05:53:45 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178145&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178145&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178145&srvc=rss In an epic Facebook meltdown, the owner of one of the Hub's fanciest French dining destinations went schoolyard... business Sat, 01 Dec 2012 01:27:44 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/real_estate/view.bg?articleid=1061178563&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/real_estate/view.bg?articleid=1061178563&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/real_estate/view.bg?articleid=1061178563&srvc=rss This just-built townhouse in Jamaica Plain is one of six units in three architect-designed duplex buildings off... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 23:31:51 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178527&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178527&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178527&srvc=rss Mathew Martoma knew from an early age he wanted to blend his interests in health care, business and law into a... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 22:22:00 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178587&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178587&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178587&srvc=rss On her daily bicycle rides to and from the MIT Media Lab's Information Ecology Group where she is a research assistant,... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 22:07:34 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178589&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178589&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178589&srvc=rss Dollar bill endangered? Congressional auditors say doing away with dollar bills entirely and replacing them... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 21:58:45 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061178562&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061178562&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061178562&srvc=rss Despite being one of the best sellers in the crossover class and having the gravitas of 11 production years... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 21:12:53 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178540&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178540&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178540&srvc=rss A Canadian man was charged yesterday with using kickbacks in order to trigger investments in two lightly traded... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:44:08 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178541&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178541&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178541&srvc=rss WASHINGTON - Health insurance companies will have to pay to play in new health insurance markets coming under President... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:43:39 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178501&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178501&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178501&srvc=rss A Newton man was ordered to pay $700,000 and received a suspended jail sentence for paying kickbacks to workers... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:31:55 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061178538&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061178538&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061178538&srvc=rss Emanate, a midsize marketing communications company, said today it has opened an office at Atlantic Wharf in downtown... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:30:04 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061178534&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061178534&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061178534&srvc=rss DETROIT - Ford is recalling more than 89,000 new Escape SUVs and Fusion sedans because the engines can overheat... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:15:31 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178531&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178531&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178531&srvc=rss One of the three companies that had been pursuing a casino license in Springfield is dropping out of the race. Ameristar... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:08:53 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/healthcare/view.bg?articleid=1061178514&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/healthcare/view.bg?articleid=1061178514&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/healthcare/view.bg?articleid=1061178514&srvc=rss Partners HealthCare and its founding hospitals, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital,... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 14:32:26 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178512&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178512&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178512&srvc=rss The Wilcox Hospitality Group said it's bringing a new restaurant to the South End tomorrow designed to embody a... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 14:31:26 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178507&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178507&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178507&srvc=rss PROVIDENCE, R.I. - The federal government says it plans to sell leases for wind farms off the coasts of Rhode... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 13:50:43 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178502&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178502&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178502&srvc=rss A Swampscott demolition company has been ordered to pay the Commonwealth $100,000 in civil penalties for the alleged... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 12:45:50 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178498&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178498&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178498&srvc=rss WASHINGTON - American consumers have shown about as much appetite for the $1 coin as kids do their spinach. They... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 12:21:40 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178370&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178370&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178370&srvc=rss Bay State business leaders remain confident a "fiscal cliff" compromise will be achieved, yet many don't expect... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:58:37 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178491&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178491&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178491&srvc=rss The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit against Chelsea business Boston Hides & Furs Ltd. and company... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:54:46 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178488&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178488&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178488&srvc=rss NeuroMetrix Inc., a Waltham-based medical device company focused on the diagnosis and treatment of the neurological... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:51:02 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178490&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178490&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178490&srvc=rss When it comes to the 100 largest companies in Massachusetts, women now hold 12.7 percent of board seats, an increase... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:39:54 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178492&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178492&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061178492&srvc=rss Diversified Agency Services, a division of Omnicom Group Inc., said it has acquired overseas consulting company... business Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:38:31 -0500

Business - BostonHerald.comBusiness - BostonHerald.com

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Aflac chief quacks about quick response to quake

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 30 November 2012 | 20.25

Aflac chief Daniel Amos won't wait very long to break the bad news.

"Those who work closely with me know that I have a saying that I live by and that is that 'Bad news does not improve with age.' By this I mean that even if it isn't good ... don't wait to deliver it," Amos said yesterday during a Boston College Chief Executives' Club of Boston luncheon.

To a roomful of rapt executives, Amos recounted two crises that hit the insurer in rapid succession.

The first was the March 2011 earthquake-tsunami disaster in Japan, where Aflac gets more than three-quarters of its revenue. The company quickly announced that all of its employees in the country — nearly 5,000 — were safe, and Amos hopped on a plane to Japan despite warnings about nuclear radiation.

"Lack of information does not mean that you can stand back and let uncertainty fester. We take our responsibility to communicate with our shareholders seriously," he said. "It's the right thing to do and over time it establishes credibility and consistency with investors, employees, customers and sales agents."

As the disaster unfolded, comedian Gilbert Gottfried — the voice of Aflac's iconic duck brand — tweeted "hurtful and insulting" jokes about Japan, Amos said. Gottfried was fired 30 minutes after Amos first learned of the Twitter outburst.

Aflac was forced to pull all commercials featuring Gottfried and rely solely on a silent movie-style spot until the duck's voice was revived through a nationwide audition that drew 11,200 online applicants — and positive publicity.

"The events we faced proved to me that when you're decisive, you're transparent and ultimately when you're trying to do the right thing, it will reflect in your company and in your image," Amos said.

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UMass prez sweats performance report

The University of Massachusetts is making strides toward greater transparency and accountability with plans to release a report next spring on its performance, experts said. But that transparency could come at a cost.

As an institution beholden to the state for much of its funding, UMass also has more than its reputation at stake in reporting its performance. At a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce forum yesterday, UMass President Robert Caret said the state has already cut funding to the school by about $30 million.

"It's completely reasonable for policymakers to hold higher education institutions accountable when they're appropriating money for them," said Andrew Kelly, a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a Washington, D.C., think tank. "But it's important not to get hung up on one particular measure of their performance."

The report will measure the university's performance in student experience and success, producing an educated citizenry, world-class research and development enterprise, enhancing social well-being, good stewards of resources, and telling and selling the UMass story.

The university could go even further, Kelly said, by following the lead of states such as Florida, Tennessee and Texas, which compare students' post-secondary school records with the likelihood that they're employed three to five years after they leave school and how much they earn.

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What $300G buys

Here are five examples of what $300,000 can buy you across the state:

Just a short walk from the water, 38 Bowes Ave. in Quincy is a two-bedroom, ranch-style home listed by Marla Osborne of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage.

The property was built in 1956, but has been updated with new bathrooms and a new kitchen with ceramic tile flooring, granite counter tops and stainless appliances.

Also included in the 1,261 square feet is a large living room with fireplace and bay window.

The basement is carpeted and includes a family room with a bar, laundry, full bath and space for an office or additional bedroom.

There is a sun room in the rear of the house that looks out to the fenced-in back yard.

Unit 107D at the Powder Mill Square Condos in Andover is a one-bedroom, one-and-a-half bath open plan home with two parking spaces.

There is a spiral staircase leading to the bedroom as well as exposed brick walls, high ceilings, wood posts and rugged exposed beams.

There is a contemporary kitchen with birch cabinets, stainless steel appliances and granite counters.

The monthly condo fee of $392 includes water, sewer, master insurance, elevator, exterior maintenance, landscaping, and snow removal and exercise room.

Built in 1912 and converted to condos in 2006, the development has 60 residences.

The 1,250-square-foot home, close to the commuter rail, is listed by Silvija Aprans of Home Sellers Edge.

Nestled in a Victorian-style home in the Neponset neighborhood of Dorchester at 582 Freeport St. is the Unit 1 condo.

Converted to condominiums in 2005, the building has three units, all with private storage in the basement.

Listed by Jason G. Mahoney of Vitruvius Realty, the two-bedroom, two-bath, 1,078-square-foot home has an open floor plan, hardwood floors, central air and an in-unit washer and dryer.

The kitchen features cherry cabinets with stainless steel appliances and granite counters.

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Starbucks $7 cup of Joe's jolting

How deep are coffee lovers willing to dig for a cup?

Starbucks is pushing the limit with the latest offering from its "Reserve" line of premium coffee. A 16-ounce "grande" cup of its Costa Rica Finca Palmilera is selling for $7.

The Seattle java giant attributes the jolting price to the rarity of the Geisha coffee, a naturally low-yielding, heirloom varietal that only grows at extremely high altitudes.

"This price is based on limited availability and appeals to a particular audience, like one who loves sampling boutique wines that are available in limited quantities," spokeswoman Alisa Martinez said.

The coffee is only being sold in 46 Starbucks in Seattle and Portland, Ore. Good thing, because bean-heads in South Boston's Seaport District roasted the new offering yesterday.

"It's ridiculous," said Vanessa Eusse of Everett, a 23-year-old restaurant server and self-described Starbucks fanatic who prefers lattes. "That's way too much — unless it had little pieces of gold in it."

If someone wants to pay $7 for a coffee, that's their prerogative, but don't count in lawyer Erik Weibust. "I don't like coffee that much," he said.

Starbucks says coffee connoisseurs will appreciate the intense flavors of Finca Palmilera, whose half-pound bags go for $40.

"A trained nose and palate will pick up delicate floral aromas, flavors of white peach and pineapple, and a juicy herbal complexity," Martinez said.

There's a good market for premium products in almost every retail category, according to Ron Paul, president of Technomic, a food industry research and consulting firm in Chicago.

"Maybe they'll put it in a special cup, so when you're walking down the street, people will say, 'Hey, there's someone who really knows premium coffee,' " he quipped.

But Melvin Gonzales' eyes widened in disbelief at such a costly cup of Joe.

"Why buy a $7 coffee, when McDonald's got it for a dollar?" said Gonzales, who works for a refrigeration company.

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Biz leaders foresee cliff-hanger

Bay State business leaders remain confident a "fiscal cliff" compromise will be achieved, yet many don't expect real progress by congressional leaders until days before the year-end deadline.

"You're playing Russian roulette right now and I think the stock market will reflect the poor behavior in the last week-and-a-half, two weeks in December," said John Fish, CEO of Boston's Suffolk Construction. "I hope it doesn't come to that, but unfortunately I think it will."

Talks between Democrats and Republicans over how to avoid the fiscal cliff's automatic tax increases and spending cuts ended in partisan bickering yesterday. House Speaker John Boehner declaring "no substantive progress has been made" with the White House, while Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he's "still waiting for a serious offer from Republicans."

Thomas Glynn, head of the Massachusetts Port Authority, said he had more confidence a compromise could be reached "10 days ago."

"It's just like labor negotiations — until it's 48 hours out, it doesn't get serious," Glynn said, adding that the agency could lose funding from the Federal Aviation Administration for future construction projects if the nation goes over the cliff.

Andrew Dreyfus, CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, expressed similar concerns regarding federal funding for both health care and life sciences.

"If those were put at risk, it could have a substantial impact on jobs and on the ability of the local economy to grow," Dreyfus said.

Mike Sheehan, CEO of Hub advertising agency Hill Holliday, said a compromise would be reached by year's end, but it would not be permanent.

"We represent a ton of clients in the consumer space and it'll affect everybody," he said. "There isn't a business that we work with that ... wouldn't be affected by this no matter what, whether it's solved or not solved."

Richard Holbrook, CEO of Eastern Bank, said uncertainty over the issue is "the biggest cliff we face," adding the nation could stumble back into a recession if a budget deal is not reached in Washington.

"Many folks will suffer in a slower-growth economy, banks among them," he said. "If we do go over the cliff, my personal belief is that it will be short-lived before the next Congress starts to address some of the issues."

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Co. developing spinal-cord injury drug settles in Cambridge

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 29 November 2012 | 20.25

BioAxone BioSciences yesterday celebrated the opening of its scientific and clinical headquarters at the Cambridge Innovation Center.

The company is developing a drug called Cethrin to reduce paralysis after a spinal cord injury by promoting the regrowth of broken fibers.

In its first clinical trial in patients, 31 percent of cervical spinal cord patients regained some motor function, with no serious adverse effects, said Lisa McKerracher, who started the company last year.

"We're very optimistic our next clinical trial will lead to drug approval," McKerracher said.

Traumatic spinal cord injury affects more than 12,000 Americans each year, mainly from motor vehicle accidents.

The only current treatment is surgery and rehabilitation.

"By treating patients with a drug like Cethrin and aggressive rehab," McKerracher said, "we hope we can start to make a difference."

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Upper Crust bankruptcy trustee seeks Dec. auction

The trustee overseeing the bankruptcy case of the Upper Crust pizza chain has proposed a Dec. 19 auction date for the company's leases, licenses, equipment and inventory.

An emergency hearing to set the auction schedule has been requested by trustee Mark DeGiacomo, who closed the company's 10 locations earlier this month after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October.

It will be up the court to determine the schedule, according to DeGiacomo, who called the suggested Dec. 19 auction date, and a proposed due date for bids two days earlier, "pretty aggressive."

"The judge and creditors will have the opportunity to tell us whether those dates make sense or not," he said.

DeGiacomo also has recommended that the auction be held at a Boston hotel due to the large amount of interest from potential buyers. About 50 companies have expressed interest in buying parts or all of the business.

Upper Crust, which employed about 170 workers, has up to $4 million in debt, and auction proceeds would be used to pay its creditors.

The company defaulted on its TD Bank loans in September. Its troubled operations include a 2009 U.S. Department of Labor investigation that resulted in an order to pay $342,000 in back wages to 121 workers, who filed a class-action lawsuit in 2010 alleging they had been pressured to return those wages.

This past April, Brendan Higgins and Joshua Huggard sued fellow co-owner Jordan Tobins, alleging he improperly used corporate credit cards and divested corporate funds for his personal use. ZVI Construction Co. also has filed a complaint against Upper Crust, alleging its owed $700,000, according to court documents.

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Greater email privacy won't hinder law enforcement

WASHINGTON — A Senate bill to protect the privacy of electronic communications won't keep federal agents from combing through your inbox if they believe a crime has been committed, legal experts say. Federal and state authorities still will have a robust set of tools to track down lawbreakers even as these officials oppose changes supported by a broad coalition of technology companies and public interest groups.

The legislation, which the Senate Judiciary Committee was expected to consider Thursday, would update a 26-year-old law by requiring police to obtain a search warrant from a judge before accessing the content of all emails and other private information from Google, Yahoo and other Internet providers. Under the current law, the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act, a warrant is needed only for emails less than 6 months old.

Supporters of the bill, sponsored by Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., say the changes are necessary to overhaul a law that is outdated in an era of cloud computing, cheaper electronic storage, social networking and wireless phones. Such advances in technology have dramatically increased the amount of stored communications in ways no one anticipated a quarter of a century ago.

The Justice Department has resisted the changes. The associate deputy attorney general, James Baker, urged the committee last year to consider the adverse impact on criminal and national security investigations if a warrant were the only means for law enforcement officials to obtain emails and other digital files.

But setting the bar higher doesn't prevent law enforcement agencies from doing their jobs, according to current and former prosecutors, judges and attorneys who specialize in privacy issues. Federal law enforcement authorities in four Midwestern and Southern states have been working with the more demanding warrant requirement since 2010 after an appeals court ruled warrantless access to emails was unconstitutional. To get a warrant, a judge must have proof of probable cause that a crime is being committed.

"I don't see anything (in the Senate bill) that's going to seriously concern law enforcement in terms of our ability to request warrants and to get the contents of the material that we need," said Joseph Cassilly, the state's attorney in Harford County, Md., and a former president of the National District Attorneys Association. "Since you've already got to get warrants for the stuff that's less than 180 days, it's obviously not an insurmountable standard."

Nor does the legislation weaken other methods used by law enforcement for collecting electronic information. A subpoena signed by a federal prosecutor — not a judge — will continue to be sufficient for obtaining routing data from third-party Internet providers that can identify the sender of an email and the location where the message was sent.

Police also can use what is known as a "D order" to get the "to" and "from" addresses of an email, but not the contents. These orders must be issued by a judge, but the agency seeking one need only show there is reasonable suspicion of a crime — a lower legal standard than probable cause.

In a Nov. 21 letter to Leahy, 30 former federal and state prosecutors and judges said the bill would provide "a much needed judicial check on when the government can access our private digital information." Concerns that the bill would keep law enforcement from acting quickly during emergencies are unfounded, they added, because the Senate bill does not change a provision in the existing law that compels third-party providers to give the government information in situations where lives are at risk or children are being exploited or abused.

Digital Due Process, a wide-ranging coalition that includes Google, Microsoft and Twitter, as well as the American Civil Liberties Union and Grover Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform, has mounted a public relations campaign supporting the Senate bill. The coalition says updating the law will clear the "murky legal landscape" for companies and consumers alike and provide the proper safeguards for the vast amounts of information stored in server farms.

There's money at stake, too. The global market for cloud computing via the Internet is estimated to be $240 billion by 2020. But the Business Software Alliance, a coalition member that represents Apple, Intel and Microsoft, said U.S. cloud providers are at a disadvantage unless online privacy and security laws are changed. If consumers aren't sure their information is being properly protected on the remote, networked computer servers that make up the cloud, they'll take their business elsewhere.

Use of the law has been interpreted inconsistently by the courts, further fuel for those pushing for an overhaul. In a 2010 decision, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati ruled that an Ohio businessman's constitutional rights were violated when federal investigators obtained thousands of his emails without warrants. Now investigators in states covered by the 6th Circuit — Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky and Tennessee — must obtain warrants for all emails. But that's not the law in other federal circuits.

In the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers California, Washington, Oregon and six other Western states, judges ruled that a search warrant was required for both opened and unopened email, but only if left on a server for less than 180 days. The Justice Department has argued that a search warrant is required for unopened email left on a server for less than 180 days, but not for opened email less than 180 days old.

The decisions mean different rules apply depending where an investigation begins. How should emails be treated if a case starts in Pennsylvania and the messages are stored on a server in California, the hub for Google, Yahoo and other major Internet businesses?

"It's very confusing," said Hanni Fakhoury, a staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco. "Law enforcement will never admit this, but a uniform search warrant standard is easier for them."

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A chef's surprise lights up web

In an epic Facebook meltdown, the owner of one of the Hub's fanciest French dining destinations went schoolyard crazy on a woman who dissed his pumpkin pie, calling her "fat," "uneducated" and "unintelligent" in a series of expletive-laced and misspelled rants.

But no one, especially Pigalle Chef/Owner Marc Orfaly, came out smelling like a rose in this Facebook fable, a lesson in what-not-to-do for business owners and patrons alike.

The mess began on Thanksgiving when Sandy Tremblay of Nashua had a disappointing dining experience at Pigalle. But rather than complaining at the restaurant, she took to Pigalle's Facebook page, days later, to angrily claim her pumpkin pie tasted like "vomit." "Thanks for ruining my Thanksgiving!" she wrote.

What followed were a series of bombs from Orfaly: "hey sandy ,(sic) go (expletive) your self(sic)!" he said, as well as: "you must enjoy vomit you (expletive) if you know how much it tastes like."

The rants didn't end there. Hours later, Orfaly posted an open letter to patrons directing them to air any grievances while at his restaurant, slamming Tremblay as "uneducated, unintelligent" and "unpolished."

Orfaly later deleted his attacks, but they had already gone viral, sparking backlash from aghast patrons.

Tremblay was panned as well. Let's face it, she sat around angry about pumpkin pie for five days. Then she bashed Pigalle on a public Facebook page rather than trying one of the many constructive options at her disposal.

For his part, Orfaly issued a public apology — only after the news of his rants was broken by the Boston Eater blog.

But the way this story ends is even more bizarre. Orfaly called Tremblay yesterday afternoon to apologize. And now, in this incongruous social media world we live in, the two are Facebook friends — and Tremblay is sending business Orfaly's way.

"So all of you that have made comments good or bad I would strongly recommend checking out Pigalles (sic)," Tremblay wrote. "You might want to make reservations weeks in advance because as the saying goes, even bad publicity is good!"

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Obama aide: Immigration 'broken'

A top Obama administration official said the president remains committed to immigration reform and called the current practice of forcing immigrant entrepreneurs educated at top American universities to set up shop in other countries a "broken system."

"He's spoken of the fact that people all over the world come here to become educated, and then after we have educated them, they want to take that education and apply it here in the United States, and yet we make it difficult for them to remain here," Alejandro Mayorkas, Obama's director of citizenship and immigration services, told the Herald. "We ... often push them back to the countries of their origin to compete against us. And that is a broken system."

The timing of reform and exactly what it would look like, however, are up to Congress, he said, noting that for the second time in as many months, House Republicans are expected to try to win approval today of a bill to issue up to 55,000 science, technology, engineering and math visas to students who earn advanced degrees at U.S. universities.

At a panel discussion yesterday at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mayorkas, who came to the United States as a political refugee from Cuba, heard from dozens of students and alumni who were accepted into one of the world's most prestigious universities, only to encounter obstacles later when they tried to start a job-creating business of their own.

When Bill Aulet, managing director of the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship, asked the hundreds who attended how many of them were born outside the United States and have no clear path to stay, about half raised their hands.

"That's a shame," Aulet said. "That's the best and the brightest."

By contrast, Mayorkas said, the Chilean government has launched Startup Chile to attract world-class, early-stage entrepreneurs to start their businesses there.

Mayorkas said his office has taken steps to keep pace with the changing business landscape, including recruiting established entrepreneurs to help train a team of specialized immigration officers to handle entrepreneur and startup cases and launching an online resource center, Entrepreneur Pathways, to help those who want to start a business in the United States navigate the immigration process.

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Business - BostonHerald.com

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 28 November 2012 | 20.25

Business - BostonHerald.comBusiness - BostonHerald.com

http://www.bostonherald.com/business/?srvc=rss The Boston Herald online: The closest distance between you and the news en-us Copyright 2012, Herald Interactive, Inc. Wed, 28 Nov 2012 08:11:04 -0500 systems@heraldinteractive.com (Web Developers) 120 http://cache.heraldinteractive.com/images/siteImages/rss_logo.jpg http://www.bostonherald.com/business/?srvc=rss 100 48 The Boston Herald online: The closest distance between you and the news http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061177929&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061177929&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/automotive/view.bg?articleid=1061177929&srvc=rss DETROIT - The Fiat 500 is getting bigger and going electric. Two new versions of the Italian-styled mini-car... business Wed, 28 Nov 2012 06:51:31 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177803&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177803&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177803&srvc=rss MIT Media Lab director Joi Ito and famed filmmaker J.J. Abrams experienced what you might call a Vulcan mind... business Wed, 28 Nov 2012 05:49:46 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177890&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177890&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177890&srvc=rss NEW YORK -- Two football games that showed the widely divergent paths of New York's pro football teams boosted... business Wed, 28 Nov 2012 04:35:35 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177886&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177886&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177886&srvc=rss WASHINGTON - The Newseum in Washington will mark the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John F.... business Wed, 28 Nov 2012 04:08:09 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177885&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177885&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177885&srvc=rss CAMBRIDGE -- The Obama administration's top immigration official is visiting the Massachusetts Institute of Technology... business Wed, 28 Nov 2012 04:05:03 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177882&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177882&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177882&srvc=rss A popular program that allows some commuter rail customers to purchase and display tickets on their smartphones... business Wed, 28 Nov 2012 02:59:36 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177804&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177804&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177804&srvc=rss Shoppers visiting stores during what's become a four-day Black Friday "weekend" thanks to Thanksgiving openings... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 21:58:13 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177811&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177811&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177811&srvc=rss Mass. home sales soar over last year A total of 4,044 single-family homes sold in the Bay State last month,... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 21:46:55 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177787&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177787&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177787&srvc=rss Shoppers visiting stores during what's become a four-day Black Friday "weekend" thanks to Thanksgiving openings... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 19:40:32 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177769&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177769&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177769&srvc=rss A Woburn business owner has pleaded guilty in connection with failing to accurately report his total payroll or... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 19:09:30 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177772&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177772&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177772&srvc=rss WASHINGTON - A federal judge today ordered tobacco companies to publish corrective statements that say they lied... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 17:38:04 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177583&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177583&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177583&srvc=rss State officials and industry leaders today will hold the first meeting of the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 16:22:02 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177763&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177763&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177763&srvc=rss A racy Cyber Monday promo from urban streetwear web retailer Karmaloop featuring scantily-clad women posing as... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 15:55:32 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177752&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177752&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177752&srvc=rss The search is on for a new CEO at Hub-based online customizable jewelry retailer Gemvara. Founder Matt Lauzon... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 15:06:59 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177743&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177743&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177743&srvc=rss Bay State business leaders and state officials plan to hold a manufacturing summit next spring to promote an industry... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 14:14:02 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177741&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177741&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177741&srvc=rss Research teams at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and other institutions are developing a nanotube-based... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:47:59 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177739&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177739&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177739&srvc=rss The Pinehills in Plymouth will be home for the second Mirbeau Inn & Spa. Mirbeau, which operates a six-building,... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:41:38 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177730&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177730&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177730&srvc=rss BioAxone BioSciences, a privately held biotechnology company, will celebrate the opening of a new office in Cambridge... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:22:50 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177731&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177731&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/technology/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177731&srvc=rss BUFFALO, N.Y.- The latest in a string of lawyers who have represented a New York man in a multibillion lawsuit... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:20:14 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177711&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177711&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177711&srvc=rss Fans of the 137-year-old Locke-Ober can still get a memento of the venerable Boston restaurant. Restaurant and... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:15:48 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177724&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177724&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177724&srvc=rss The Chestnut Hill Shopping Center, which is under redevelopment and expansion, has been rebranded as The Street... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:12:51 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177721&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177721&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177721&srvc=rss WILBRAHAM - A general contractor that's done work for the federal government, the state, and Fenway Park, has... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 12:49:33 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177714&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177714&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177714&srvc=rss This holiday season you're likely to spot singer Jennifer Lopez in Kohl's. You could get a peek at pop music icon... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 11:58:22 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177712&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177712&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/media/view.bg?articleid=1061177712&srvc=rss NEW YORK - Radio talk show host Laura Ingraham is off the air - at least temporarily. She said Tuesday that... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 11:49:27 -0500 http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177709&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177709&format=comments#CommentsArea&srvc=rss http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1061177709&srvc=rss The Berklee College of Music has released an updated version of its comprehensive directory of salary ranges for... business Tue, 27 Nov 2012 11:43:27 -0500

Business - BostonHerald.comBusiness - BostonHerald.com

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Charitable giving gets its own day

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 27 November 2012 | 20.25

Thanksgiving weekend was about spend, spend, spend. Today it's about give, give, give.

"Giving Tuesday," a movement debuting hot on the heels of Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, encourages charities to step up their fundraising efforts and the public to think of others, largely through social media.

The initiative counts more than 2,100 organizations as partners, including about 100 in the Bay State, several of which said Giving Tuesday virtually eliminates the need for year-end appeals.

"This is perfect timing — 40 percent of our annual support comes in November and December," said Melanie Sheffield, director of advancement for the Animal Rescue League of Boston, which appointed former hopeFound executive director Mary Nee as its new president yesterday. "It would be amazing to see this become part of the vernacular."

The concept was spearheaded by officials at New York's 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation. A bevy of corporations and nonprofits also serve as founding partners, including J.C. Penney, Sony Electronics, United Way, Simon Malls and the Bridge-span Group.

Given the social media implications behind the initiative, organizers officially refer to Giving Tuesday by its Twitter hashtag, #GivingTuesday.

"I think it is a fresh, creative idea that is harnessing both the American spirit of generosity and the power of social media to build a movement," said Thomas Tierney, chairman and co-founder of the Bridgespan Group. "By drawing attention to 'giving' we both recognize and reinforce the public spiritedness that makes America so special — and provides so much value to our communities."

Giving Tuesday also helps the mission statements of smaller nonprofits be heard better, said Laura Winig, executive director of Wellesley-based Venturing Out, a Massachusetts partner.

"Particularly with us, given our size, we don't really float to the top for many people, so for us to get attention we actually thought it might be kind of nice to have that wrapped into a more formal and better-known undertaking than just ours," she said.

Jessica Orndorff, development officer for community programs at the Joslin Diabetes Center — which raised $1.5 million during National Diabetes Month — said she hoped the movement would gain momentum as fundraising is already on people's minds given the time of year.

"At the end of the calendar year, you're going to be making an extra effort or extra appeal to make a gift," she said. "This is a great way to put it on the calendar of the general public."

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Chef Batali baking up Seaport pizzeria plan

Fort Point's restaurant scene is getting hotter, this time with news that a certain flame-haired celebrity chef is in talks to open a Summer Street restaurant.

Mario Batali is in negotiations to open a pizzeria at 320 Summer St., a source involved in the deal said.

Batali tweeted on Saturday that he would be opening a Babbo pizzeria in Boston "very soon," but the source close to the negotiations said the restaurant would be a third location for his Otto Enoteca Pizzeria. No agreement has been signed, the source said.

"They wanted Boston, they wanted the Seaport," said the source, who wished to go unnamed because talks are supposed to be confidential. "It would be a great use for the building and great for the Seaport."

Batali is negotiating for 6,500 square feet at 320 Summer St., a former warehouse building to which Woburn software firm LogMeIn will relocate its headquarters next year.

A competing Portland, Maine, company already operates pizzerias in Brookline and Cambridge under the Otto brand, which could account for the name discrepancies for Batali's plans.

A spokeswoman for the chef said an official statement would be released in the next two weeks.

A cookbook author and co-host of ABC's "The Chew" daytime talk show, Batali has 20-plus restaurants with business partner Joe Bastianich, including the flagship Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca in New York and Otto Enoteca Pizzerias in New York and Las Vegas, which sell pizzas for $7 to $15.

Batali would be added to a roster of big-name Fort Point chefs who include Barbara Lynch (Drink, Sportello, Menton), Joanne Chang (Flour) and Ming Tsai, who's slated to open the 70-seat Blue Dragon at 324 A St., by year's end.

Former nightlife-king-turned-restaurateur Seth Greenberg plans to open a French bistro at 49 Melcher St. next year, but said it was too early to reveal the chef. Also, Berkeley Investments reportedly will bring in a celebrity chef for a restaurant at 381 Congress St.

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Help wanted in manufacturing

State officials and industry leaders today will hold the first meeting of the Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative to draw attention to a sector whose work force is aging and projected to have 100,000 job openings over the next decade.

While some analysts have predicted the decline of industry as a major economic player, manufacturing is Massachusetts' fifth-largest private sector, accounting for some 7,500 companies and 250,000 jobs, said Northeastern University Professor Barry Bluestone, who serves on the collaborative's board.

"A lot of people don't know that Massachusetts manufactures things," said Mitch Tyson, the collaborative's industry co-chairman and former CEO of PRI Automation. "The reality is so much of high-tech products in the state are made here. All manufacturing jobs have not moved to China."

But while productivity in the sector has increased by about 8.7 percent annually since 2007 in Massachusetts, the manufacturing work force is aging and expected to have 100,000 job openings by 2022, said Bluestone, who co-authored a report on the industry this year.

Of 700 Bay State manufacturing companies surveyed for that report, 70 percent said they expect to increase employment over the next five years alone, Bluestone said.

The collaborative, which met informally for more than two years before it was formally established in August as part of the jobs bill Gov. Deval Patrick signed, has been working with vocational school and community college leaders to better align their curriculum with companies' needs and to tout manufacturing careers through promotional campaigns like "AMP it up!"

"We need to find ways to attract employees and train them," Bluestone said.

Manufacturing companies in Massachusetts pay an average of $27,000 per year for unskilled, entry-level workers and $52,000 per year for skilled production workers, Bluestone said.

"There's lots of room for people to have secure, good-paying jobs in this industry," said Eric Nakajima, assistant secretary for innovation policy.

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Taliban say they tried to kill Pakistani TV anchor

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — The Pakistani Taliban have claimed responsibility for a failed assassination attempt against a prominent Pakistani TV anchor.

Taliban spokesman Ahsanullah Ahsan said Tuesday that the group targeted Geo TV's Hamid Mir because he was "promoting secular forces."

A bomb was found underneath Mir's car in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, on Monday and was defused by police.

The Taliban threatened Mir and other journalists last month because the group was unhappy with their coverage of a schoolgirl activist shot by the militants.

The Taliban shot 15-year-old Malala Yousufzai in the head for criticizing the militants and promoting girls' education. She is currently recovering in Britain.

Ahsan, the Taliban spokesman, said they will target Mir again and other journalists opposed by the militants.

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Home sales up more than 20 percent in Massachusetts

BOSTON -- Sales of single-family homes in Massachusetts jumped by more than 20 percent in October when compared to the same month last year, more evidence of a market recovery.

The Massachusetts Association of Realtors reports Tuesday that it was the 16th straight month that closed home sales were up compared to the same month the previous year.

The Realtors group also reported a 4.4 percent increase in the median selling price of single-family homes, the biggest monthly increase since June 2010, the last month of the federal home buyer tax credit.

The Warren Group, which uses slightly different numbers in its calculations, reported that median prices were essentially unchanged.

Chief Executive Timothy Warren said homes sales for the first 10 months of 2012 have already surpassed sales for all of 2011.

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White House: Tax hike threat could hurt retailers

Written By Unknown on Senin, 26 November 2012 | 20.25

WASHINGTON — White House economists warned Monday that the uncertainty of a potential hike in taxes next year for middle class taxpayers under the looming fiscal cliff could hurt consumer confidence during the crucial holiday shopping season.

In a new report that coincides with Congress' return after the Thanksgiving holiday, the White House says that if lawmakers don't halt the automatic increase in taxes for households earning less than $250,000, consumers might even curtail their shopping during the current holiday season.

"As we approach the holiday season, which accounts for close to one-fifth of industry sales, retailers can't afford the threat of tax increases on middle-class families," the report says.

The study by President Barack Obama's National Economic Council and his Council of Economic Advisers also says a sudden increase in taxes for middle-income taxpayers would reduce consumer spending in 2013 by nearly $200 billion, significantly slowing the economic recovery.

The figures echo estimates by private forecasters and by the Congressional Budget Office.

Congress and Obama have until the end of the year to avoid across the board tax increases that would do away with rates set during the administration of President George W. Bush and restore higher tax rates in place during President Bill Clinton's administration when the economy was robust and the federal government had a budget surplus.

Many middle income taxpayers also would be exposed to automatic tax increases under the Alternative Minimum Tax, which is designed to guarantee a certain level of tax payment by wealthier taxpayers.

According to the report, a married couple earning between $50,000 and $85,000 with two children would see a $2,200 increase in their taxes.

Obama wants the Bush-era tax rates to remain at their current level for households earning less than $250,000. He is calling on Congress to increase taxes for families earning more than that threshold.

Obama's plan is part of an overall deficit reduction package that would increase tax revenue by about $1.5 trillion and reduce spending by a similar amount over 10 years.

Congressional Republicans, led by House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, have said they are open to including tax revenue in any budget package but have balked at any plan that raises tax rates on wealthier taxpayers. They argue that higher rates would also hit some small businesses.

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For students, cab rides just an ID swipe away

Thousands of local college students can now pay for taxi rides using only their student IDs, the latest digital advance to the once-gritty world of cabs.

A local provider of in-cab payment terminals — those devices that broadcast maps and ads to passengers — arranged to accept payments via university ID cards from Emerson College and Suffolk University starting last month. Student IDs are increasingly used like pre-paid campus credit cards, with parents usually on the hook for refilling the balance.

Creative Mobile Technologies, which has terminals in 1,200 out of 1,825 Boston taxis, came up with the idea in collaboration with local hackney regulators, officials said.

"One of the concerns was providing safe rides home for students," said Jason Poliner, CEO of CMT. "They want to prevent students who are low on cash after exiting a bar from making bad decisions on how to get home."

John Silveria, assistant dean of students at Suffolk, said 150 students have already used their student ID, or Ram Card, to pay for cab fare.

"It's pretty evident that our students are using it and finding it to be a good service," he said.

Despite significant resistance on the part of hardscrabble, often-underpaid cab drivers, the days of having to whip out a wad of cash to settle up a taxi fare are over.

Uber, a San Francisco-based app company, is gaining popularity in the Hub. The service allows riders to locate a cab on their mobile phone and have the charges automatically show up on their credit card. More advances are likely, with CMT embracing the notion of digital wallets and having already outfitted its credit card point-of-sale systems with near-field-communication technology that allows its devices to communicate with other nearby devices such as smartphones.

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iPad: To buy or not to buy?

Androids, iPads and Kindles! Oh my! What tablet to purchase as a big-ticket gift for your beloved family member this holiday season? That's the question on so many anxious minds, and my hope is to shed some light on the answer — which, admittedly, is very often "buy the iPad."

Yet this year, for the first time, Apple has worthy competitors in the market it founded with its game-changing tablet in 2010.

Before I get into that, however, let's go over my one and only "no-no" where tablets are concerned: Do not buy the iPad 2. I repeat, stay away from this outdated, overpriced-at-$399 poor man's Apple tablet. The Nexus 10 is a better offering at the same price, and if you insist upon allegiance to iOS, but you can't spring for the new iPad, buy the iPad mini. It has Siri, more advanced cameras and increased portability.

Now that that's out of the way, here's my take on tablet gift-giving: The new iPad is the default way to go. It's easy and simple. You don't need an owner's manual to use it, making it the perfect intuitive interface for a tech newbie. The picture resolution is excellent, the front and rear cameras are above-par and an endless number of apps are available to occupy your time. So the iPad is the way to go for most, but there are several sub-sets of gift recipients that could benefit from another offering, not to mention that the iPad isn't in everyone's price range. Here's the skinny:

For the bookworm: At $119, Kindle Paperwhite is the right buy. It will last a whopping eight weeks without a battery charge, holds more than 1,000 books and is perfect for reading on the beach or in bed. Supplies are limited, so get to Amazon.com post-haste.

For tweens: The No. 1 question I get asked these days is whether parents should spring for an iPad for their child. Assuming that it's going to bounce around in a backpack and endure other abuses, I recommend Google's $199 Nexus 7, with its rubberized back and screen that's easily handled by smaller paws.

The XBox user & other teens: There are big benefits to fully buying into the Windows ecosystem if you already have a Microsoft gaming device. In fact, it's hard to justify buying anything besides the Microsoft Surface for a person in this category, because it's both a laptop and a tablet. Especially for those high school seniors who are leaving the nest in a few months, it's a huge win that the Surface comes with Microsoft Office. Pricing starts at $499.

The budget-conscious buyer: Amazon and Google have given the world a few worthy $199 tablets: the Kindle Fire HD and the Nexus 7. Both Android-based tablets have a nice selection of apps and I prefer the smaller size to the 10-inch iPad. So it is possible not to break the bank where tablets are concerned. Happy shopping.

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Survey: German consumer confidence slightly lower

BERLIN — A new survey shows that German consumer confidence is declining slightly as Europe's financial crisis grinds on.

The GfK research institute said Monday its consumer climate indicator stands at 5.9 points for December — down from 6.1 in Novemberm which was revised down from an initial forecast of 6.3.

The survey shows Germans' income expectations are less bullish — but they still "expect that their income will soon rise." Their willingness to buy also dropped slightly but remains high.

The report is based on a survey of 2,000 interviews conducted each month for the European Commission, the executive arm of the 27-country European Union.

The German economy, Europe's biggest, is showing signs of weakening after two years of robust expansion. It's expected to grow by about 1 percent next year.

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Canadian firm Onex buys US insurer USI for $2.3B

NEW YORK — Canadian private equity firm Onex is buying insurance broker USI for $2.3 billion from a Goldman Sachs private equity fund.

USI Insurance Services, based in Briarcliff Manor, N.Y., offers property and casualty insurance, employee benefits and retirement consulting. Founded in 1994, it has about 100 offices in the U.S.

The GS Capital Partners fund took the insurance broker private in 2007 for $1.4 billion, including debt.

USI employees invested in the 2007 deal, and will now own the business with Onex, the companies said Monday.

The deal is targeted to close by year's end.

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