Alibaba stock soars in jubilant trading debut

NEW YORK — Alibaba debuted as a publicly traded company Friday and swiftly climbed nearly 40 percent in a mammoth IPO that offered eager investors seemingly unlimited growth potential and a way to tap into the burgeoning Chinese middle class.

The sharp demand for shares sent the market value of the e-commerce giant soaring well beyond that of Amazon, eBay and even Facebook. The initial public offering was on track to be the world's largest, with the possibility of raising as much as $25 billion.

Jubilant CEO Jack Ma stood on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange as eight Alibaba customers, including an American cherry farmer and a Chinese Olympian, rang the opening bell.

"We want to be bigger than Wal-Mart," Ma told CNBC. "We hope in 15 years, people say this is a company like Microsoft, IBM, Wal-Mart. They changed, shaped the world."

The company's online ecosystem stands apart from most e-commerce rivals because it does not sell anything directly, preferring to connect individuals and small businesses. It enjoyed a surge in U.S. popularity over the past two weeks as executives made sales pitches based on Alibaba's strong revenue and big ambitions.

"There are very few companies that are this big, grow this fast and are this profitable," Wedbush analyst Gil Luria said.

Trading under the ticker "BABA," shares opened at $92.70 and hit nearly $100 within hours. By the end of the day, the stock rose $25.89, or 38 percent, to close at $93.89.

Some Institutional investors, such as banks or hedge funds, were able to buy the stock at $68 per share, the amount set Thursday evening. Most other investors had to wait until shares started trading publicly, which meant paying a much higher price after adjustments for demand.

Alibaba's Taobao, TMall and other platforms account for some 80 percent of Chinese online commerce. Most of the company's 279 million active buyers visit the sites at least once a month on smartphones and other mobile devices, adding to the stock's attractiveness as online shopping shifts away from laptop and desktop machines.

Online spending by Chinese shoppers is forecast to triple from its 2011 size by 2015. Beyond that, Alibaba has said it plans to expand into emerging markets and, eventually, into Europe and the U.S.

The company does not compete with its merchants or hold inventory, serving instead as a conduit that links buyers and sellers of all kinds.

"The business model is really interesting. It's not just an eBay. It's not an Amazon. It's not a Paypal. It's all of that and much more," said Reena Aggarwal, a professor at Georgetown.

Yet the track record for Chinese stocks in general does not inspire confidence. Over the last two decades, they have earned a reputation for burning investors in both the U.S. and China. Many of those that do post gains fail to keep pace with inflation. Returns have been depressed by a range of factors, including fraud allegations, questionable accounting and cumbersome regulations.

Analysts say the $90-plus price range is a fair valuation for the shares, but one fund manager suggested Friday that the price might not stay that high.

That price "might be at least for the moment the higher end of the trading range as investors get comfortable with the company," said Kathleen Smith, IPO exchange-traded fund manager at IPO research firm Renaissance Capital.

Alibaba's revenue from the quarter ending in June surged 46 percent from last year to $2.54 billion. Its earnings climbed 60 percent to nearly $1.2 billion, after subtracting a one-time gain and certain other items.

In its last fiscal year ending March 31, Alibaba earned $3.7 billion, making it more profitable than eBay Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. combined.

Based in Ma's hometown of Hangzhou in eastern China, Alibaba began in 1999 when Ma and 17 friends developed a fledgling e-commerce business on the cusp of the Internet boom. Today, its main platforms are its original business-to-business service, Alibaba.com, consumer-to-consumer site Taobao and TMall, a place for brands to sell to consumers.

Friday's closing price gave the company a value of $231.44 billion, compared with $150 billion for Amazon and $67 billion for eBay.

Alibaba offered 320.1 million shares for a total offering size of $21.77 billion. Underwriters have a 30-day option to buy up to 48 million more shares.

The IPO easily eclipsed the $16 billion Facebook raised in 2012, the most for a technology IPO. If all of its underwriters' options are exercised, it would also top the all-time IPO fundraising record of $22.1 billion set by the Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. in 2010.

Gartner analyst Andrew Frank said Alibaba's success shows that Chinese Internet companies are beginning to challenge Silicon Valley.

"It's not the first Chinese company we've seen in the Internet space, but it's certainly the biggest one that seems to be resonating," he said. "It's a symbol that the Internet dreams of wealth and power are not just limited to a few small cities in the West Coast in the U.S."

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BRA backs housing on Mission Hill

City officials this week endorsed a proposed 
$138 million project that stands to transform the lower end of Mission Hill with the redevelopment of two long-vacant lots into 305,750 square feet of apartments and commercial space.

Mission Hill Neighborhood Housing Services' project calls for 88 apartments, 196,000 square feet of office space, 10,000 square feet of retail and parking on Parcel 25, located across from the MBTA's Roxbury Crossing Station.

The Boston Redevelopment Authority on Thursday approved the project, which is expected to be completed in three phases.

"This project will do for the down-slope of Mission Hill what One Brigham Circle has done for the top of Mission Hill," former Boston City Councilor Michael Ross testified at the BRA meeting. One Brigham Circle is a 190,000-square-foot office and retail building, with Stop & Shop as an anchor tenant, that's adjacent to the Longwood Medical Area.

The new project site encompasses nearly two acres bordered by Tremont, Gurney and Station streets. The largest of the two lots, Parcel 25, is former MBTA property that has sat vacant since the 1960s, when it was cleared for an extension of Interstate 95 that was never built.

"This will really activate the area and be a nice new gateway for that neighborhood," BRA spokesman Nick Martin said.

The BRA also gave the go-ahead for Boston University's $140 million, nine-story Center for Integrated Life Sciences and Engineering, which will be constructed on a parking lot at 610 Commonwealth Ave., just outside Kenmore Square.

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iPhone 6 buyers pack Back Bay Apple store

Apple devotees are trying out their new supersized cellphones after they lined up outside the Apple store on Boylston Street early yesterday to be the first to get their hands on the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

Many of them woke up at the crack of dawn, and some even camped out overnight, in a scene that was repeated across the country yesterday. The iPhone 6 has a 4.7-inch screen and the iPhone 6 Plus features a 5.5-inch screen.

More than 4 million pre-orders for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were placed the day they became available online last week. And if supplies don't run out, analysts predict that Apple will sell more than 10 million iPhones this weekend.

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Chamber eyes innovator

Expect big changes, including strengthening the connection with innovation businesses, once the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce finds a new leader, said the head of the search committee looking for a replacement for retiring President Paul Guzzi.

"We're not going to be able to find another Paul Guzzi," said Chamber Chairman John Fish, the CEO of Suffolk Construction. "What we need is to find someone different from Paul that represents where the puck is going in our community, not where it is today."

Fish said the innovation economy is one of the Chamber's priorities for the years ahead, though he stopped short of promising the organization's next president — who would instantly become a major player among the city's power brokers — will come from that sector.

"I wouldn't specifically say that that's a prerequisite, but what I would say is it's a direction the Chamber's going and needs to go to be responsive to the constituency we represent and probably more importantly want to represent," said Fish.

Fish said he expects the search committee — which he and Hill Holliday CEO Karen Kaplan will co-chair — will pick a replacement by its annual meeting in May.

Guzzi, who is expected to stay on until then, told the Herald that infrastructure, innovation and talent retention are the key items the Chamber should push toward in the years ahead.

"I am optimistic about the future, the future of Greater Boston, the future of the Chamber, playing an even more prominent role going forward," Guzzi said yesterday.

The Chamber will back defeat of Question 1, which would repeal the Legislature-passed indexing of the gas tax to inflation, said Guzzi.

It should also work harder to retain young talent and create more college internships, as well as connect more innovation businesses to the Chamber and to other companies, said Guzzi.

He doesn't have anyone in mind to replace him, but added: "I think having some business experience would be very helpful, having knowledge in and about government I think is helpful and having a sense of this region and the state."

Guzzi, 72, is a former Newton state representative and served a single term as secretary of state in 1974.

He ran for U.S. Senate in 1978, but finished second in the five-way Democratic primary to eventual winner, then-Lowell Congressman Paul Tsongas.

He's been Chamber president since 1996.

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Astronauts getting 3-D printer at space station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The 3-D printing boom is about to invade space.

NASA is sending a 3-D printer to the International Space Station in hopes that astronauts will be able to one day fix their spacecraft by cranking out spare parts on the spot.

The printer, made by a Northern California company called Made in Space, is among more than 5,000 pounds of space station cargo that's stuffed into a SpaceX Dragon capsule that was supposed to lift off before dawn Saturday. Rainy weather forced SpaceX to delay the launch until Sunday.

Besides real-time replacement parts at the station, NASA envisions astronauts, in the decades ahead, making entire habitats at faraway destinations like Mars.

"If we're really going to set up shop on Mars," we have to do this, Jeff Sheehy, NASA's senior technologist, said Friday. "We really can't afford to bring everything we need for an indefinite amount of time. We'll need to get to the point where we can make things that we need as we go."

At Kennedy Space Center, the company showed off a number of objects made by its 3-D printers. On display was a scaled-down model of an air filter that the Apollo 13 astronauts devised to survive their aborted moon mission in 1970. It took five hours to print the model in a lab.

SpaceX is making the supply run for NASA, the same California company that just won a huge contract to deliver U.S. astronauts to the space station. Its Falcon 9 rocket with an unmanned Dragon is scheduled to blast off at 1:52 a.m. Sunday; slightly better weather is expected.

Other Dragon payloads high on the cool or curious factor: a mouse X-ray machine and 20 mice; 30 fruit flies expected to have a population explosion in orbit, metal plating samples for a private research effort to build stronger golf clubs, and a $30 million instrument to measure the surface wind over Earth's oceans and improve hurricane forecasting.

The small 3-D printer on board is a demo unit meant to churn out sample items made from the same type of plastic used for Lego bricks.

It was designed to operate safely in weightlessness inside a sealed chamber. The printing process is the same as on Earth, creating an object with layer upon layer of plastic.

Once returned to Earth, the little 3-D creations will be "pulled and twisted and peeled and subjected to a lot of tests to determine the quality of the parts," said Sheehy.

Combined with efforts on the ground to make 3-D rocket parts out of metal — even entire engines — the space demonstrations "will give us confidence that the stuff we make by this method, even though it's new and innovative" does, indeed, have the durability of traditional parts, he said.

The space 3-D printer is barely a foot tall, 9½ inches wide and 14½ inches deep, counting the knobs on the front. A commercial 3-D printer — twice the size and dubbed "big brother" — will fly up next year, followed by a grinding machine for recycling discarded 3-D pieces.

"This is a huge, huge time for us," said Brad Kohlenberg, business development engineer for Made in Space.

The Mountain View, California, company has a staff of fewer than 25; most of them traveled to Cape Canaveral for the launch attempt.

This will be the fifth space station shipment for SpaceX, counting the 2012 test flight. The space agency also is paying Orbital Sciences Corp. of Virginia to make periodic deliveries.

SpaceX, along with Boeing, won huge contracts Tuesday for delivering U.S. astronauts to the space station beginning in 2017. That will enable NASA to stop relying so heavily on Russia, currently the only space station partner able to send crews up and down.

The Hawthorne, California, company founded by billionaire Elon Musk is shooting for its first crewed launch in 2016. The flight test crew will be a mix of NASA and SpaceX employees, confirmed Hans Koenigsmann, vice president of mission assurance for SpaceX. He said the company is still working out the details on whom to send up.

___

Online:

Made in Space: http://www.madeinspace.us/

SpaceX: http://www.spacex.com/

NASA: htttp://www.nasa.gov

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Review: Larger iPhones eliminate reason to switch

NEW YORK — It's easy to dismiss Apple's new iPhones as merely catching up to Android.

After all, phones running Google's Android system long have had larger screens. In addition, many Android phones already have the wireless chips that iPhones are getting for making credit card payments without pulling out a card at retail stores.

But the new iPhones are a big deal for one simple reason: Only Apple has the advantage of building both the hardware and the software, so iPhones are easier to use and more dependable.

There are many flavors of Android out there, and some phones won't run the latest apps or work with accessories such as smartwatches. In addition, many leading apps come to the iPhone first or have features exclusive to iPhones.

There are still reasons to go with Android. Samsung's flagship phones are still slightly larger than the new iPhones, for instance. Their cameras have higher megapixel counts — though that's just one factor in what makes a good photo.

What the new iPhones do is eliminate screen size as a reason to avoid iPhones.

The question, then, becomes: Which one?

___

— Size considerations.

The iPhone 5, 5s and 5c have screens measuring 4 inches diagonally. The iPhone 6 boosts that to 4.7 inches, while the iPhone 6 Plus is at 5.5 inches. Yet the new phones are thinner than the smaller models.

Apple gets rid of glass in the back in favor of an all-aluminum body with curved edges. The new iPhones don't feel as boxy as previous models.

And the new phones make good use of the larger screens. Those with poorer eyesight can choose a "zoom" option so that everything gets blown up to fill the extra space, just like larger Android phones. Otherwise, you can fit in more content, including an extra row of icons on the home screen.

The iPhone 6 Plus also allows apps to rearrange their layout in horizontal mode. Content appears in two columns, so you're not switching back and forth as much. The drawback: The Plus is huge for those who don't regularly carry a backpack or purse.

I personally find past iPhones easier to carry and fit in the pocket, especially when I go out running. Apple will still make last year's 5s and 5c available, at reduced prices. The 5c is essentially 2-year-old technology, so the 5s is the better option.

___

— New features.

The 5s doesn't have the new iPhones' faster processors, but speed should be adequate for the next year or two. But here's what you'll miss, besides the bigger screen:

Only the new phones have the mobile payments technology, so you can start using Apple Pay next month. A new barometer sensor measures elevation, so fitness apps can credit you for climbing stairs and hills.

Where the new phones shine is in the camera. Although the rear cameras stay at 8 megapixels, compared with 16 megapixels in the flagship Samsung phones, performance has improved.

Both phones have new technology for faster and more accurate focus. The Plus model also has a physical image stabilizer to help reduce shake, especially in low-light settings. The iPhone 5s and 6 use software tricks to do that.

I took the iPhone 5s, 6 and 6 Plus, the Samsung Galaxy S5 and Microsoft's Lumia Icon to Central Park to take about 250 photos and 30 videos.

In my limited tests, photos on the new iPhones weren't noticeably better, but that's because the 5s already takes good photos. The Icon takes better shots at night, but its response time is slow and night images sometimes look grainy and distorted. I have found the camera on the 5s to be consistently good, and the new iPhones won't disappoint.

Where improvement is obvious is in some new features:

— There's now a second slow-motion mode — for video at one-fourth the normal speed, rather than just half the speed in the 5s.

— A time-lapse feature lets you combine multiple still shots from the same location over a period of time. Think of those fast-moving videos showing an entire building being constructed in just a minute. I had fun making joggers in Central Park appear to be superhero fast.

— The front camera can now take 10 shots a second in a burst mode, matching what the rear camera can do. You can choose the best shot for selfies. The front camera also lets in more light than before.

The time-lapse and front burst features are part of the new iOS 8 software, so the iPhone 5s gets the improvements with a free download. All iOS 8 phones also have an easier way to adjust exposure, in case the sensors don't get it right.

___

— Storage and pricing.

It's tempting to get the cheapest models with 16 gigabytes of storage — in the case of the iPhone 6, for $200 with a two-year service contract. But phones fill up quickly with photos, music and apps, and iPhones don't let you add storage.

Fortunately, Apple is doubling the storage for its top two models. So $300 at the contract price gets you 64 gigabytes instead of 32 GB, while $400 gets you 128 GB rather than 64 GB. I recommend getting at least 64 GB.

For the Plus models, add $100 to the price. If you don't want a contract with your carrier, add another $450 for an unlocked version.

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Yahoo rakes in another jackpot from Alibaba's IPO

SAN FRANCISCO — Yahoo is making amends for years of blundering with one smart move: an early investment in China's Alibaba Group that has turned into a multibillion-dollar boon.

The latest windfall will be delivered with Alibaba's record-setting IPO completed late Thursday, which is expected raise up to $25 billion for the e-commerce company and its early backers. Alibaba's shares will begin trading for the first time on Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Yahoo is in line to make anywhere from $8.3 billion to $9.5 billion from the initial public offering, depending on whether investment bankers exercise their right to buy additional stock in the deal. The payoff supplements the $7.6 billion jackpot that Yahoo collected two years ago after selling another chunk of its Alibaba holdings and reworked a licensing agreement with the Chinese company.

Even if Yahoo ends up selling its maximum allotment of 140 million shares in the IPO, the Sunnyvale, California, company will still retain a roughly 16 percent stake in Alibaba Group Ltd. worth another $26 billion to $27 billion.

Not a bad return, considering Yahoo acquired its Alibaba stake for $1 billion in 2005 in a deal engineered by company co-founder Jerry Yang and former CEO Terry Semel.

The Alibaba investment has helped ease the pain of Yahoo's struggles in Internet advertising, the heart of its business. Yahoo's annual revenue has slipped from a peak of $7.2 billion to projected $4.5 billion this year, a decline of nearly 40 percent.

The downturn has occurred even as advertisers steadily shift more of their budgets to the Internet and mobile devices, but most of that money is flowing to Yahoo rivals such as Google Inc. and Facebook Inc. —companies that have built more compelling digital services.

Yahoo has gone through seven different CEOs since 2006, including current leader Marissa Mayer, trying to figure out how to rejuvenate its growth.

Wall Street's exasperation with Yahoo's financial malaise caused the company's stock to sink below $9 in late 2008. The company's stock is now hovering around $43, a level that hasn't been touched since 2006. Most of the comeback occurred during the last two years as investors latched on to Yahoo's stock to profit from Alibaba's success leading up to the IPO.

Yahoo now must decide what to do with the money that will pour in from Alibaba's IPO. Mayer has promised that at least half the amount, after taxes, will be returned to shareholders through dividends or, more likely, buying back stock. That leaves open the possibility that Yahoo might use the rest of the money from the Alibaba IPO to help finance an acquisition of another Internet company such as AOL Inc. or a hot startup such as social media company Pinterest in its latest attempt to revive its business.

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Prostate cancer death rate in Boston puzzles researchers

Despite its status as a health care mecca, the Boston area has some of the highest numbers of prostate cancer-related deaths in the state, according to a local nonprofit health group.

"If you look at prostate cancer mortality rates, you will see that statewide data would be probably lowest nationally. But if you start looking at Suffolk County, Boston specifically, that's where the data are the worst," said Dr. Faina Shtern, president of AdMeTech Foundation, a nonprofit supporting early detection and treatment of diseases.

According to Shtern, Franklin County in western Massachusetts has the highest mortality rate at 28.8 percent, with Suffolk County a close second at 26.9 percent.

The numbers are based on data from the American Cancer Society, the state Department of Public Health and the National Cancer Institute.

Shtern, who formerly served as director of radiology research at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said the reason behind these high numbers is unclear.

She said it was initially suspected that the high incidence of prostate cancer among African-American men — who are 60 percent more likely to develop it and 240 percent more likely to die of it than white men — played a role, but that would not explain the high rates in Franklin County.

According to 2010 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 24.5 percent of Suffolk County identified as black or African-American, but only 1.4 percent of Franklin County identified as the same.

"There is absolutely no scientific evidence of any kind that would indicate why this is happening," Shtern said.

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Hot Property: Competition for condos in Boston hits fever pitch

Shawn Tobin and his girlfriend spent six months looking for a condo in South Boston, trudging out to hundreds of places.

"You'd see the same faces at open houses every Saturday and Sunday, like a comical death march," said Tobin, a 28-year-old who works for a tech media company. "And you'd often have to make an offer within a few hours of seeing a place."

Tobin made an offer on one condo that was $30,000 above the asking price, and found out that 12 other bidders had come in above his offer.

"Then you have buyers come in with all cash and you have no chance if you can only put 10 percent down," said Tobin. "It's frustrating."

That's how it goes looking for property in Boston these days as inventory problems continue to plague the Hub condo market. There were 586 listings in Boston as of Sept. 17 compared to 672 on the same date last year. The median asking price for available units last year was $519,000 — now it's up to $550,000.

John O'Connor of Keller Williams says the shortage of Boston condos explains high presales at luxury condo projects that won't be ready for at least another year, such as Sepia in the South End with 67 percent of 83 units sold, and 22 Liberty Wharf in the Seaport District, which has sold three-quarters of its 118 units.

"This doesn't really help the buyers much who will be entering the market in 12 to 18 months," O'Connor said. "But it tells you how low inventory is driving the market."

Also telling is the high number of sales above asking price. Last month, in nine key markets in Boston, Brookline, Cambridge and Somerville, 56 percent of the properties sold for above asking price with 11 going for more than $100,000 over list price, said David Bates, a William Raveis agent and real estate blogger.

"But there is better inventory now in many places than there was in the spring, and that provides better opportunity for buyers this fall," Bates said.

While Boston listings are down, he said available properties are up in other communities. Cambridge has 64 condos on the market compared with 39 at the same time last year.

Single-family inventory is way up this month in some communities, with 167 listings in Newton, a 25 percent increase over last year, and 98 listings in Needham, up 50 percent over last year, Bates said.

And inner-suburb cities such as Malden are seeing more inventory this fall even as the median price for single-family homes shot up to $334,000 compared to $311,000 last year.

"A lot of young professionals who can't afford Cambridge and Somerville are looking to buy in Malden, where there's two T stations that keep them close to the action," said Carla Dongo, manager of Coldwell Banker First Quality Realty in Malden.

"There's also a lot of international buyers coming in, and investors are buying multifamilies," added Joe Duggan, broker/owner of Malden's ReMax Trinity.

But Tobin was set on finding a place in South Boston, where he's rented for the past four years. He just bought an 850-square-foot condo on the same street where he rents for $410,000, but the unit has no parking or open space and he is investing $20,000 to alter the layout and do some sprucing up.

"A first-time buyer who wants to get into Southie these days has to be willing to make some compromises," he said.

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Tia Carrere lists mountain top estate in Topanga

A little birdie landed in our digital mailbox this morning to let us know that two-time Grammy winning actress/singer Tia Carrere put her multi-acre estate in Topanga, CA, up for grabs at $2,595,000.

Property records show the season 5 "Celebrity Apprentice" contestant and second season "Dancing With the Stars" alum -- she was fired after the fifth task in the former and eliminated in the fifth round in the latter -- purchased the 2.99-acre mountain top spread in September 2005 for $1,625,000.

• SELLER: Tia Carrere
• LOCATION: Topanga, CA
• PRICE: $2,595,000
• SIZE: 3,587 square feet, 4 bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms

The house, set privately down a long gated driveway, was originally built in 1980 according to listing details but has clearly been completely renovated as a crisp and angular contemporary with vaulted ceilings and gallery white walls. The living area is sky-light and voluminous with a cattywompus fireplace surmounted by a large, flat screen television. An adjoining, window-lined bay is designated as the dining area and leads into the sleek and slightly industrial, tile-floored kitchen fitted with shiny, white, and hardware free cabinetry, seal grey solid surface counter tops and a full suite of medium-grade stainless steel appliances including a pair of side-by-side fridge/freezers.

Listing details show the 3,587 square foot abode has four en suite bedrooms (plus a powder pooper) including an unconventionally shaped master bedroom on the main floor with sitting area and a second, also unusually-shaped master on the upper floor with direct access to a huge terrace with panoramic views over and down the mountains to the Pacific Ocean.

The Hawaii-born knock out, maybe best known for her role as Cassandra Wong in the "Wayne's World" movies, installed a battery of body-modifying fitness equipment in the garage and the rear of the residence opens to a flat, grassy yard. A lounge terrace with cushioned, built in bench seating around a fire pit that overlooks a lap lane swimming pool and a gated children's playground was placed under trees for shade. Set below the house there's a lighted and newly resurfaced north-south aligned tennis court.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Eddie Andelman 
honored as Media Legacy

Herald Radio sports talker Eddie Andelman said it was "thrilling" and "overwhelming" to receive the Media Legacy Award commemorating his more than 42 years on the radio at last night's The Tradition celebration of Boston sports at the TD Garden.

"The fact that I can be up here getting the same kind of honor as Ted Williams did, I can't begin to tell you how thrilling that is for me," Andelman said. "Growing up, Ted Williams was my man."

Andelman was honored for being a pioneer in sports radio and for his extraordinary philanthropic activity, which includes launching the annual Hot Dog Safari, a benefit for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Longtime ESPN fixture Chris Berman, a man Andelman­ called "the No. 1 sportscaster in America and a friend for many, many years," presented the award to Andelman.

"It's nice, my whole family is here, including my two grandsons," Andelman said. "It's good for them see something I did because I can hardly remember my own grandparents."

You can listen to Eddie Andelman at noon every Friday on Herald Radio.

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Fed keeps rates low, but brace for the inevitable

WASHINGTON — Record-low interest rates will be around for at least a few more months, the Federal Reserve made clear Wednesday.

Enjoy the easy money while it lasts.

By mid-2015, economists expect the Fed to abandon a nearly 6-year-old policy of keeping short-term rates at record lows. Those rates have helped support the economy, cheered the stock market and shrunk mortgage rates. A Fed rate increase could potentially reverse those trends.

Mortgages could cost more. So could car loans. Investors could get squeezed.

"Borrowers should see the writing on the wall," said Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate.com. "Interest rates are eventually going to go up. They should pay down variable-rate debt and keep an eye on that adjustable-rate mortgage. They don't want to be caught flat-footed."

Investors, in particular, might recall that mere speculation about the end of the Fed's stimulus shook global financial markets in May 2013. In coming months, as the prospect of higher rates nears, traders might once again dump stocks and bonds and send prices tumbling.

Higher yields on bank accounts and CDs could provide some modest relief for savers and retirees who have struggled for years to get by on meager interest income. But any gains they receive could be diminished by the likelihood that inflation will be higher once the economy is strong enough for the Fed to end its ultra-low rate policy.

Still, on Wednesday, Fed policymakers once again decided: Not yet.

The central bank said it intends to keep its benchmark rate near zero as long as inflation remains under control, until it sees consistent gains in wage growth, long-term unemployment and other gauges of the job market.

The Fed retained language signaling its plans to keep short-term rates low "for a considerable time" after it ends its monthly bond purchases after its next meeting in October.

The decision sent the Dow Jones industrial to a record high. The Dow closed up about 25 points to its 16th record high this year.

"What we heard from the Fed today is really what investors like to hear," McBride said. "The stimulus isn't going to go away overnight."

In its statement, the Fed said it will make another $10 billion cut in the pace of its Treasury and mortgage bond purchases, which have been intended to keep long-term borrowing rates low.

"In the Fed's mind, the economy still has work to do, but it's improving," said Mike Arone, an investment strategist with State Street Global Advisors.

The Fed also clarified the process by which it will eventually unwind its low-rate policies. The Fed said it would first raise its key short-term rate before it stops reinvesting its bond holdings, which have driven the Fed's balance sheet to a record of nearly $4.5 trillion.

The central bank also issued updated forecasts for growth, inflation and interest rates. The median short-term rate supported by Fed policymakers at the end of 2015 is now 1.38 percent, up from 1.13 percent at its June meeting. This suggested pressure from some Fed officials for a faster rate increase than the Fed's statement implied.

The Fed also expects slower growth this year and next than in its last projections issued in June. It predicts that the economy will grow about 2.1 percent this year, down from its June forecast of roughly 2.2 percent. That reduction likely reflects the sharp contraction in the first quarter of this year. The economy has rebounded solidly since then.

On the eve of the Fed's meeting this week, the financial world had been on high alert for whether the Fed would reiterate that it expects to keep its key short-term rate near zero for a "considerable time" after the bond buying ends.

With job growth solid, manufacturing and construction growing and unemployment at a near-normal 6.1 percent, many analysts had suggested that the Fed was edging closer to a rate increase to prevent a rising economy from igniting inflation.

The number of U.S. job openings is near its highest level in 13 years. Layoffs have dwindled. And consumer confidence has reached its highest point in nearly seven years.

Despite the signs of a stronger economy, most economists think the first increase in the Fed's short-term rate won't occur until mid-2015.

The Fed's new statement retained language stating that a range of labor market indicators "suggests there remains significant underutilization of labor resources."

Meeting with reporters after the Fed meeting, Chair Janet Yellen said she still thought the job market has yet to fully recover.

"There are still too many people who want jobs but cannot find them, too many who are working part time but would prefer full-time work and too many who are not searching for a job but would be if the labor market were stronger," Yellen said.

The Fed made only minor changes to its previous statement in its assessment of the economy. The statement was approved on an 8-2 vote.

The dissents came from Charles Plosser, president of the Fed's Philadelphia regional bank, who had dissented at the last meeting, and Richard Fisher, president of the Dallas regional Fed bank. Both are viewed as "hawks" — Fed officials who are most concerned about the threat of inflation and believe the Fed should be moving more quickly to raise rates.

Asked at her news conference whether she had concerns about the dissents, Yellen noted that the committee had approved the policy statement by "an overwhelming majority, and I don't consider the level of dissent to be surprising or very abnormal."

In response to another question, Yellen said it could take until the end of the decade to shrink the Fed's investment holdings to more normal levels.

Before its policy announcement Wednesday afternoon, the Fed had received good news on inflation with a report that consumer prices fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.2 percent in August, the first monthly drop in prices in 16 months.

In August, U.S. employers added just 142,000 jobs, well below the 212,000 average of the previous 12 months. The slowdown was seen as likely temporary.

But some analysts said it underscored that the economic outlook might remain too hazy for the Fed to signal an earlier-than-expected rate hike.

___

AP Economics Writers Christopher S. Rugaber and Josh Boak contributed to this report.

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The Ticker

Dow closes at record as Fed keeps rates intact

The Dow Jones industrial average closed at a record high yesterday after the Federal Reserve maintained its stance on record-low interest rates.

The Dow rose 24 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 17,156, surpassing its previous high from July by 18 points.

The blue-chip average rose as much as 89 points after the Fed kept the phrase "considerable time," in referring to how long it would wait before raising interest rates.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index edged up two points, or 0.1 percent, to finish at 2,001. The Nasdaq­ rose nine points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,562.

The Fed has held the short-term rates it controls close to zero for more than five years, which has helped stimulate the economy and fueled a bull market for stocks.

Boston tells the FCC it supports net neutrality

The city of Boston submitted a 12-page public comment to the Federal Communications Commission on Monday in support of net neutrality, citing the importance of the Internet to businesses and government as well as residents' lack of options when choosing an internet provider.

"Net neutrality matters for Boston because we have so many businesses and academic institutions that thrive because of an open Internet," said Chief Information Officer Jascha Franklin-Hodge.

The FCC received more than 4 million public comments on proposed new rules by its Monday deadline.

TODAY

 Commerce Department releases housing starts for August.

 Europe's financial stability watchdog, the European Systemic Risk Board, holds a meeting.

 Massachusetts releases August job numbers.

TOMORROW

 Conference Board releases leading indicators for August.

THE SHUFFLE

Mount Auburn Hospital announced the appointment of Yvonne Cheung, MD, MPH as chairman of the Department of Quality and Safety. Dr. Cheung graduated from Harvard University cum laude with a baccalaureate degree in both history of science­ and biology.

 Primary Design Inc., a 
firm specializing in adver­tising, brand communications and interactive design services, announced it has promoted its longtime director of account services, John Schroeder, to executive vice president.

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FutureM speaker predicts world of smart products

The not-too-distant future will be full of Internet­connected devices, from watches to cars to suit­cases, according to Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor David Rose, and they will transform our every­day lives.

"It will shock all of us, the amount of ... con­nected things in the next 10 years," Rose said yesterday at MITX's FutureM conference.

A professor at the MIT Media Lab and CEO of Ditto Labs, Rose has out­fitted his house with custom­made smart devices, including an umbrella that lights up when the forecast calls for rain and a "doorbell" that chimes when someone is 10 miles, 1 mile and 100 feet from home. He is also working on a coffee table that uses LED lights to track who is dominating a conversation — something he designed for his energetic 6-year-old and shy 11-year-old. Rose said such devices soon will be standard.

"The norm will be connected," he said.

Known as the "Internet of Things," connected appliances, lightbulbs and wearables — including watches such as the Apple Watch — have exploded in recent years.

Charles Teague, CEO of Boston-based weight loss app Lose It!, said data about users gathered by connected devices such as smart watches offers an opportunity to tailor health and fitness apps.

"We think the more ways there are to understand what's happening with the user, the better," he said.

The three-day FutureM conference, which brings together industry and technology professionals to examine the future of marketing, concludes today at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

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Review: Devices, apps act like one under iOS 8

NEW YORK — The scores of new features in Apple's software update for mobile devices can be boiled down to one word: unity.

Many iPhone owners also have iPads and Mac computers, and family members are likely to have Apple devices, too. With the new iOS 8 software for iPhones and iPads, those devices start to act like one. Apps on those devices start to unite, too.

Google's Android software can't compete with iOS' evolving unity because so many different companies manufacture Android devices, and each adds its own variables. Apple knows what goes into the few products it makes and can break down the walls between them.

The free update is available to owners of iPhone and iPad models going back to 2011, though older devices won't get all the new features. The new software will also come with the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, which come out Friday.

Here's a look at those "unity" features — and why iOS 8 is worth installing:

___

— You can start tasks on one device and finish on another.

Let's say you're typing an email reply on your iPhone when you realize the message will be quite lengthy. You can pick up your iPad and finish there. With the upcoming Yosemite update for Mac computers, liking coming next month, you'll be able to use the Mac's physical keyboard, too.

Picking up a task on a second device is easy. Just slide up the small app icon on that device's lock screen, be it an iPhone or an iPad. On Macs with Yosemite, click the icon on the bottom left.

For now, this capability is limited to a handful of apps, including Apple's Maps, Calendar, Mail, Messages and the Safari Web browser. And when you try to open a Web page on a second device, you still have to scroll down to where you were. With Maps, on the other hand, it takes me to the location I was viewing on the other device.

This feature, known as Handoff, will be more useful once outside developers take advantage of it. LG and Samsung have offered similar integration of their phones and tablets, but neither does it as extensively.

___

— You'll be able to use your iPad or Mac to send texts or make phone calls.

Currently, you can send text-like messages from iPads and Macs with the Messages app, but the recipient also needs Messages. That excludes Android users. With iOS 8, those iPad and Mac messages will get relayed through the iPhone, so you can reach any other phone. The texting capabilities won't be coming until next month, though.

What you can do now is use the iPad and the Mac to make and receive calls. The devices have to be on the same Wi-Fi network, so this won't help if you left your phone at work. But it's useful if the phone is charging in another room. Call quality was about what I'd expect from a speakerphone.

___

— You'll be able to do more without switching from app to app.

If a text message comes in as you're browsing the Web, you can pull down the notification and reply right there. You don't need to leave the Web browser and launch Messages first. You can also delete an email or accept a calendar invite that way.

There are some limitations, though: You get only one reply for text messages. You then have to wait for another message to come in or open the full app. With email, you can mark a message as read or delete it, but you can't reply. Like Handoff, this will be more useful once more apps take advantage of it and let you do more.

Meanwhile, if you're chatting with a bunch of friends, you can see their locations (as long as they've shared it) without having to leave Messages to open a separate Find My Friends app.

___

— Members of the same households can share calendars and music more easily.

You pick up to five family members to join your network, for a total of six. These need to be people you trust, as they'll be using your credit card to make purchases. You can require approval for purchases, such as for kids' accounts.

Family members will be able to share each other's books, music, video and apps, so Mom, Dad and Junior won't need to buy separate copies of the "Frozen" movie. A family calendar and a shared photo album also get set up. The individual still gets to decide which photos and videos show up there for other family members to see.

___

— And there's more ...

The walls between Apple apps and third-party apps are breaking down. For example, outside developers will be able to use Apple's fingerprint authentication system with iOS 8. Before, it was limited to a few Apple services.

Beyond these "unity" features, owners of the new iPhones will be able to pay for goods simply by holding their device near a credit card terminal at retail stores. All iOS 8 users get quicker ways to type messages and reach favorite and recent contacts.

Although you don't need to rush out to upgrade your devices right away, it'll eventually be worthwhile to do so, especially if you have a recent device or multiple Apple devices. While last year's iOS 7 offered cosmetic changes and new gesture controls, this year's update comes with plenty of new functionality.

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FedEx tops Street 1Q forecasts

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — FedEx says it plans to hire more than 50,000 extra workers to handle another record year for holiday-season package deliveries.

That's up from last year, when FedEx announced it would hire 20,000 seasonal workers.

FedEx announced its hiring plans Wednesday on a conference call with investors.

Rival UPS says it will hire up to 95,000 seasonal workers. Both companies are benefiting from growth in online shopping.

FedEx Corp. says its net income in the fiscal first quarter is up 24 percent from a year ago, thanks partly to a strong performance by its ground division.

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CBS permanently drops Rihanna tune from 'Thursday Night Football' opening

CBS said it would permanently drop use of Rihanna's "Run This Town" from the opening of its "Thursday Night Football" after the singer expressed dissatisfaction on Twiter with the network's deletion of the song from last week's broadcast.

Apparently, the singer revoked CBS' license to use the tune and the network is now working on new ideas. "Beginning this Thursday, we will be moving in a different direction with some elements of our Thursday Night Football open," the network said in a statement." We will be using our newly created Thursday Night Football theme music to open our game broadcast."

CBS had originally intended to use "Run This Town" and other elements it removed last week in the wake of the public's focus on a raging controversy involving Ray Rice, the Baltimore Ravens player who was caught on film hitting his then-fiancee and now wife. CBS opted to open with a more serious consideration of current events rather than comedic and fun musical elements.

An appearance by actor Don Cheadle that had been planned for last week will be included this Thursday, and the network is considering other ideas that will hinge on current events.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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US consumer prices fall 0.2 percent in August

WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer prices edged down in August, the first monthly drop since the spring of 2013, as gasoline, airline tickets and clothing prices all fell. It was the latest evidence that inflation remains under control.

Consumer prices edged down 0.2 percent last month following a tiny 0.1 percent gain in July, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. It was the first decline since a similar 0.2 percent drop in April 2013. Core prices, which exclude energy and food, were unchanged in August, the first time there hasn't been an increase since October 2010.

Over the past 12 months, overall prices and core prices are both up a modest 1.7 percent. These gains are well within the 2 percent annual increase for inflation that the Federal Reserve considers optimal.

Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said that the drop in prices would give a "powerful boost" to "doves" on the Fed, officials who argue that at the moment unemployment and weak economic growth are bigger problems than the threat of future inflation.

Analysts believe that inflation will remain moderate in coming months, helped by falling energy prices. AAA reports that the nationwide average for a gallon of gasoline is down to $3.38, down eight cents from a month ago and 14 cents lower than a year ago.

The recent decline in gasoline prices is one reason that economists are optimistic that consumer spending will show solid gains in the coming months. A drop in gasoline prices means consumers will have more to spend on other items.

For August, energy prices fell 2.6 percent, the second straight monthly decline. Gasoline costs were down 4.1 percent in August after a smaller 0.3 percent July drop.

Food costs edged up 0.2 percent in August following a 0.4 percent July. Over the past 12 months, food costs have risen 2.7 percent reflecting drought in California that has cut into crop yields.

The cost of new vehicles and alcoholic beverages were up in August but the price of airline fares, recreation, home furnishings, clothing and used cars were all down.

The report on consumer prices was released as the Federal Reserve wrapped up two days of discussions Wednesday on what to do with interest rates.

The Fed seeks to promote maximum employment and stable prices, which the Fed defines as inflation rising at a moderate 2 percent annual rate. Price increases measured by the Fed's favorite inflation gauge have been running below 2 percent for the past two years.

That has given the central bank the leeway to keep interest rates ultra-low in an effort to combat an anemic economic recovery. However, some critics say the Fed needs to start raising rates in coming months to make sure its prolonged period of easy credit policies does not set the stage for future inflation problems.

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Cuts to food stamps will only hit 4 states

WASHINGTON — Cuts to the nation's food stamp program enacted this year are only affecting four states, far from the sweeping overhaul that Republicans had pushed, an Associated Press review has found.

As a result, it's unclear whether the law will realize the estimated $8.6 billion in savings over 10 years that the GOP had advertised.

A farm bill signed by President Barack Obama in February attempted to save money by scaling back what lawmakers called a loophole in the food stamp program that entitles low-income families to more food aid if they participate in a federal heating assistance program. States were giving some people as little as $1 a year in heating assistance so they could get more food aid. It's called "heat and eat."

Among the 16 states that allow the practice or some form of it, 12 governors have taken steps to avoid the food stamp cuts.

"Government's role is to help people help themselves, and these steps are necessary to help our most vulnerable residents and families meet their most basic needs," Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick said when he announced his state's move earlier this year.

The farm bill was held up for more than two years as conservatives insisted on cutting the nation's food stamp program, which now serves 1 in 7 Americans at a cost of around $80 billion a year. The roughly 1 percent cut was a compromise between Republicans who had hoped for far larger cuts and Democrats who didn't want to see any cuts at all.

The states' workaround — mostly by Democratic governors — has infuriated Republicans who pushed the cuts. In March, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, called the states' moves "fraud." House Agriculture Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla., and House Energy and Commerce Chairman Frank Upton, R-Mich., have asked the Obama administration to "hold states accountable" for dodging the cuts.

The governors say they are following the law while preserving crucial benefits for their neediest citizens.

The new law says that people can't get the higher food benefits unless they receive more than $20 a year in heating assistance, which lawmakers hoped would be too expensive for states to pay. But the governors in 12 states and the mayor of the District of Columbia have said they will find a way. Most will use federal heating assistance dollars. At least one state, California, will use its own money.

As of now, the cuts will only affect Michigan, Wisconsin, New Jersey and New Hampshire. All but New Hampshire have Republican governors.

There are about 1.8 million households that receive food stamps in those four states, out of almost 23 million households nationwide.

It's unclear exactly how many people will be affected. Officials in Wisconsin, New Jersey and New Hampshire said they don't track that number. Michigan officials say around 20 percent of the state's recipients, or around 170,000 households, participated in the "heat and eat" program and will see cuts.

Bob Wheaton, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Human Services, says the state didn't want to "create a new loophole even beyond the loophole that previously existed" and draw down federal heating benefits for others in the cold-weather state. He said the average decrease will be around $76 a month for a family of four, starting in November. That amount varies by state.

Terry Smith, director of New Hampshire's family assistance programs, said his state's decision "was not to deplete an already tenuous LIHEAP allocation in our state and take needed heat from people."

LIHEAP is the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, and it is paid to states as federal grants each year. New Hampshire did not give recipients $1 payments but did allow a LIHEAP application to qualify them for higher food benefits. The farm bill's change in policy will discontinue that practice.

The states that are using that federal heating assistance money to avoid the food stamp cuts say they believe they can do it without significantly reducing heating aid to others who need it, even without more money from the federal government. Peter Merrill, the deputy director of MaineHousing, says he estimates that maintaining the food stamp benefits will only reduce federal heating assistance payments to Maine residents by about $4 a year on average.

In Washington state, residents will see food stamp benefits reduced briefly, in November and December, due to a backlog in getting their computer systems running. A spokeswoman for the governor said the state will reinstate the higher heating assistance payments in January, once the backlog clears, and 200,000 residents will see their benefits go back up.

On Capitol Hill, Republicans say the states' decisions don't mean the farm bill cuts are obliterated. A GOP memo from the House Agriculture Committee staff notes that some states may reverse their decisions to avoid the cuts, especially as current recipients move off the rolls. And the Congressional Budget Office, which figures out how much bills cost, accounted for some states bowing out when coming up with its $8.6 billion estimate over 10 years. But the CBO hasn't said whether it accounted for high-population states like California, New York and Pennsylvania maintaining the higher food stamp benefits.

Other states that have dodged the cuts are Connecticut, Delaware, Montana, Oregon, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Pat Baker of the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, an advocacy group that focuses on poverty issues, says the "heat and eat" recipients are often elderly or disabled, sometimes living in apartments where utilities are included but the rent is higher. "This would be a significant loss in nutrition benefits to the lowest-income and neediest residents," she says.

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Find Mary Clare Jalonick on Twitter: http://twitter.com/mcjalonick

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US current account deficit dips to $98.5 billion

WASHINGTON — The U.S. current account trade deficit narrowed slightly in the April-June quarter, reflecting gains in exports of oil and civilian aircraft and a bigger surplus in Americans' overseas investment earnings.

The deficit in the current account shrank to $98.5 billion in the second quarter, down 3.5 percent from the revised $102.1 billion deficit in the January-March period, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.

It was the smallest current account deficit since an imbalance of $87.3 billion in the final three months of last year. The lower deficit reflected a variety of factors including gains in U.S. exports and a larger surplus in earnings by Americans in their overseas investments.

The current account is the broadest measure of trade, covering not only the flow of goods and services but also investment flows.

Economists carefully track the current account deficit because it is a measure of how much foreign financing the country needs. The second quarter deficit represented 2.3 percent of total economic output, as measured by the gross domestic product, down from 2.4 percent in the first quarter. The highest deficit as a percentage of GDP was 6.3 percent set in the fourth quarter of 2005.

The quarterly deficits regularly topped $150 billion in the four years before the Great Recession of 2007-2009. The downturn cut into domestic demand and pushed the deficits lower.

The U.S. has benefited from a boom in oil and gas production, mostly because new drilling technologies have made it feasible to drill for oil and gas in states such as North Dakota, New York and Pennsylvania.

That has pushed down the trade deficit by boosting petroleum exports and also reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil.

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Dish adds Food Network, HGTV and other Scripps networks to Internet TV lineup

Dish Network is another step closer to launching a cheaper over-the-top TV service, obtaining rights to deliver live and on-demand content from Scripps Networks Interactive's suite of cablers including Food Network, HGTV and DIY Network.

The No. 2 satcaster has cut similar pacts with Disney/ESPN and A+E Networks, and has said it plans to bow an OTT service by the end of 2014 that will include slimmed-down channel packages -- to deliver bundles that are less expensive than typical pay TV.

Dish negotiated the OTT rights under a multiyear contract renewal with Scripps Networks covering the programmer's HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel, Travel Channel and Great American Country channels. In addition to the over-the-top streaming rights, the pact expands Dish's distribution of authenticated live and VOD programming on Internet-connected devices and widens distribution of DIY and Cooking Channel to Dish's America's Top 200 satellite TV package.

"Dish is delighted to add Scripps Networks' award-winning lifestyle content to our growing library of sports, family, educational and entertainment options that will create a redefined video experience for a new type of consumer," Dish president and CEO Joe Clayton said.

© 2014 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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US producer prices unchanged in August

WASHINGTON — A measure of prices that producers receive for their goods and services was unchanged in August, the latest sign that inflation is in check.

Wholesale gas prices fell 1.4 percent last month and food costs dropped 0.5 percent, the Labor Department said Tuesday. Those declines offset higher prices for transportation and shipping services.

The producer price index rose just 1.8 percent last month from a year earlier. The index measures price changes before they reach the consumer.

Economists had expected that the producer price index had risen 0.1 percent in August from the previous month, according to a survey by FactSet.

Higher food and gas costs had pushed up producer prices earlier this year, briefly raising concerns that inflation might accelerate. But gas and food prices have since moderated, slowing wholesale inflation.

The drop in wholesale gas prices has led to lower costs for consumers at the pump, leaving them more money to spend on other goods. The average price for a gallon of gas fell to $3.39 Monday, eight cents cheaper than a month ago.

Food prices, meanwhile, fell in May and June before rising just 0.4 percent in July. That's much lower than the big gains recorded earlier this year, when food prices soared 2.3 percent in April and 1.3 percent in March. They were driven higher by a drought in California and brutal winter storms and freezing temperatures in the Midwest.

The Fed targets inflation at about 2 percent as a guard against deflation, which could drag down wages and spark another recession. At the same time, the Fed wants to avert excessive inflation and protect consumers and the purchasing power of the dollar.

Americans' paychecks, meanwhile, are barely increasing, which has limited consumers' willingness and ability to spend. That has made it harder for businesses to raise prices.

Low inflation has enabled the Fed to pursue extraordinary measures to boost the economy. It has begun to unwind some of those measures, cutting a monthly bond-buying program to $25 billion, from $85 billion last year.

Those bond purchases had ensured low interest rates that encouraged investors to pour money into the economy

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Kent State scolds Urban Outfitters’ red-splattered sweatshirt

Kent State University and many on the Internet criticized Urban Outfitters Inc. on Monday for selling a sweatshirt with its college logo and what appears to be splattered blood, saying it evoked memories of the 1970 shooting where four students died.

"This item is beyond poor taste and trivializes a loss of life that still hurts the Kent State community today," the Ohio-based university said in a statement on its website. "We take great offense to a company using our pain for their publicity and profit."

Urban Outfitters, which apologized on Twitter, sold the item for $129 on its website as part of an assortment of vintage clothing. It has since sold out. But it is being offered on eBay for a "Buy It Now" price of $2,500.

"It was never our intention to allude to the tragic events that took place at Kent State in 1970 and we are extremely saddened that this item was perceived as such. The one-of-a-kind item was purchased as part of our sun-faded vintage collection," the company said on Twitter.

Urban Outfitters said the red markings were the result of distressing and "wear and fray." Kent State invited anyone interested in buying the sweatshirt to tour its recently opened May 4 Visitor Center, noting the date when Ohio National Guard troops opened fire, killing four and wounding nine other students during a campus protest of the Vietnam War.

The company said a visit would help them "to gain perspective on what happened 44 years ago and apply its meaning to the future."

———

©2014 Chicago Tribune

Visit the Chicago Tribune at www.chicagotribune.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services

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Another Atlantic City bust: Trump Plaza closes

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino closed its doors early Tuesday, the fourth Atlantic City casino to go belly-up so far this year.

When it opened on May 14, 1984, Donald Trump called it the finest building in Atlantic City, and possibly the nation.

But since then, The Donald has left town and cut ties to its casinos. And the Plaza, like many Atlantic City casinos, has seen better days.

A downward spiral that saw it ranked last among the city's casinos ended Tuesday morning as about a half-dozen gamblers who stayed to the end got up from the lone blackjack table in operation or from a few slot machines and walked out beneath the dozens of glittery chandeliers for the last time.

Dealer Ruth Hardrick worked at Trump Plaza for 26 of its 30 years, but is now without a job. She's in a large group: About 8,000 Atlantic City casino workers have lost their jobs this year, and another 3,000 could join them if Trump Plaza's parent company makes good on its threat to shutter the Trump Taj Mahal Casino resort in November.

"What's the next step? Where do we go from here?" she asked. "It's happening all over. A lot of us are in the same boat. You think something will come along (to save the casino). And it didn't."

Atlantic City began the year with 12 casinos. It now has eight.

Unlike Revel, which opened just over two years ago and was considered new and luxurious before closing, or the still-profitable Showboat, shuttered by its owner in the name of reducing competition for the remaining casinos in town, the demise of Trump Plaza could be seen a long way off.

Despite its prime location at the heart of the Boardwalk and the end of the Atlantic City Expressway (its motto had been "The Center Of It All"), gamblers have been abandoning Trump Plaza for newer, ritzier casinos for years. Its owners, Trump Entertainment Resorts, let it deteriorate in recent years, particularly after a sale for the bargain-basement price of $20 million to a California firm fell through last year.

Jim Redmond is a 60-year-old from Montreal who loves Atlantic City and regularly stayed at Trump Plaza. He says its decline was obvious over the last seven years.

"It did slip every year," he said. "This year they had no bedspreads and they totally gave up on the ice machines. This year the Plaza bar was closed and the 24 hour cafe closed at 2 p.m. The higher-end restaurants were closed. It was so sad to see it get a little worse every year. They really seemed to give up about five years ago."

One only had to walk from the parking garage through a glass-enclosed walkway over Pacific Avenue to the casino and be enveloped in searing heat that approached 100 degrees from the sun beating down on the glass to experience the property's frantic cost-cutting moves; air conditioning the area was one of the expenses that was deemed non-essential.

Illuminated letters advertising the casino's name on its front and back facades burned out and were never replaced. Visitors to the Miss America pageant last week at Boardwalk Hall next door saw a neon sign proclaiming "Trump Plaz Hotel & Cas." On the Boardwalk side, the sign read, "U Laza."

Many restaurants on the first and third floors have been shut down for months. Along an escalator leading to them, fake plastic plants were either missing or stolen from row after row of trays. A self-serve kiosk to redeem player's club points near the parking garage was disconnected and covered in dust.

So far this year, Trump Plaza has won just $36.8 million from gamblers. That's down 31.5 percent from the same period last year, and about the same amount as the Borgata wins during an average two-week period.

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Wayne Parry can be reached at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC

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US to assign 3,000 from US military to fight Ebola

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is ramping up its response to West Africa's Ebola crisis, preparing to assign 3,000 U.S. military personnel to the afflicted region to supply medical and logistical support to overwhelmed local health care systems and to boost the number of beds needed to isolate and treat victims of the epidemic.

President Barack Obama planned to announce the stepped-up effort Tuesday during a visit to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta amid alarm that the outbreak could spread and that the deadly virus could mutate into a more easily transmitted disease.

The new U.S. muscle comes after appeals from the region and from aid organizations for a heightened U.S. role in combatting the outbreak blamed for more than 2,200 deaths.

Administration officials said Monday that the new initiatives aim to:

— Train as many as 500 health care workers a week.

— Erect 17 heath care facilities in the region of 100 beds each.

— Set up a joint command headquartered in Monrovia, Liberia, to coordinate between U.S. and international relief efforts.

— Provide home health care kits to hundreds of thousands of households, including 50,000 that the U.S. Agency for International Development will deliver to Liberia this week.

— Carry out a home- and community-based campaign to train local populations on how to handle exposed patients.

Meanwhile, a Senate panel scheduled a Tuesday afternoon hearing on the Ebola crisis. Expected to testify were Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Dr. Kent Brantly, an American physician who contracted Ebola while working in Liberia but recovered after treatment with an experimental drug.

The Obama administration officials said the cost of the stepped-up effort to combat the disease would come from $500 million in overseas contingency operations, such as the war in Afghanistan, that the Pentagon already has asked Congress to redirect to carry out humanitarian efforts in Iraq and in West Africa. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the plans on the record ahead of Obama's announcement

The officials said it would take about two weeks to get U.S. forces on the ground.

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations African affairs subcommittee, applauded the new U.S. commitment. Coons earlier had called for the Obama administration to step up its role in West Africa.

"This humanitarian intervention should serve as a firewall against a global security crisis that has the potential to reach American soil," he said.

Hardest hit by the outbreak are Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. The virus also has reached Nigeria and Senegal. Ebola is spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of sick patients, making doctors and nurses especially vulnerable to contracting the virus, which has no vaccine or approved treatment.

The U.S. effort will include medics and corpsmen for treatment and training, engineers to help erect the treatment facilities and specialists in logistics to assist in patient transportation.

Obama's trip to the CDC comes a day after the United States also demanded a stepped-up international response to the outbreak. The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, called Monday for an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Thursday, warning that the potential risk of the virus could "set the countries of West Africa back a generation."

Power said the meeting Thursday would mark a rare occasion when the Security Council, which is responsible for threats to international peace and security, addresses a public health crisis.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was expected to brief the council along with World Health Organization chief Dr. Margaret Chan and Dr. David Nabarro, the recently named U.N. coordinator to tackle the disease, as well as representatives from the affected countries.

White House press secretary Josh Earnest, responding to criticism that the U.S. needed a more forceful response to the outbreak, said Monday that Obama has identified the outbreak "as a top national security priority," worried that it could contribute to political instability in the region and that, left unchecked, the virus could transform and become more contagious.

He said the administration responded "pretty aggressively" when the outbreak was first reported in March.

"Since that time our assistance has steadily been ramping up," he said.

The Senate was also weighing in Tuesday with a hearing to examine the U.S. response. An American missionary doctor who survived the disease was among those scheduled to testify.

Four Americans have been or are being treated for Ebola in the U.S. after evacuation from Africa.

The U.S. has spent more than $100 million responding to the outbreak and has offered to operate treatment centers for patients.

While at the CDC, Obama also will be briefed about cases of respiratory illness being reported in the Midwest, the White House said. Public health officials are monitoring a high number of reported illnesses associated with human enterovirus 68 in Iowa, Kansas, Ohio and elsewhere.

After leaving Atlanta, Obama planned to travel to Florida to visit the headquarters of U.S. Central Command in Tampa. He will meet with military officials about the U.S. counterterrorism campaign against the Islamic State group. Central Command overseas U.S. military efforts in the Middle East.

___

Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.

___

Reach Jim Kuhnhenn on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jkuhnhenn

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US wealth gap putting the squeeze on state revenue

WASHINGTON — Income inequality is taking a toll on state governments.

The widening gap between the wealthiest Americans and everyone else has been matched by a slowdown in state tax revenue, according to a report being released Monday by Standard & Poor's.

Even as income for the affluent has accelerated, it's barely kept pace with inflation for most other people. That trend can mean a double-whammy for states: The wealthy often manage to shield much of their income from taxes. And they tend to spend less of it than others do, thereby limiting sales tax revenue.

As the growth of tax revenue has slowed, states have faced tensions over whether to raise taxes or cut spending to balance their budgets as required by law.

"Rising income inequality is not just a social issue," said Gabriel Petek, the S&P credit analyst who wrote the report. "It presents a very significant set of challenges for the policymakers."

Stagnant pay for most people has compounded the pressure on states to preserve funding for education, highways and social programs such as Medicaid. Their investments in education and infrastructure have also fueled economic growth. Yet they're at risk without a strong flow of tax revenue.

The prospect of having to raise taxes to balance a state budget is a politically delicate one. The allure of low taxes has been used by states to spur job creation, by attracting factories, businesses and corporate headquarters.

"If you've got political pressure to spend more money and pressure against raising taxes, then you're in a pickle," said David Brunori, a public policy professor at George Washington University."

Income inequality isn't the only factor slowing state tax revenue. Online retailers account for a rising chunk of consumer spending. Yet they often manage to avoid sales taxes. Consumers are spending more on untaxed services, too.

S&P's analysis builds on a previous report this year in which it said the widening gap between the wealthiest Americans and everyone else has slowed the U.S. economy's recovery from the Great Recession. Because consumer spending fuels about 70 percent of the economy, weak pay growth typically slows economic growth.

Some states are scrambling for new revenue sources. Pennsylvania has raised fees for vanity license plates and other auto expenses. Colorado and Washington legalized recreational marijuana, in part on the promise that the proceeds would be taxed.

Adjusted for inflation, government data show that median household income rose by a few thousand dollars since 1979 to $51,017 in 2012 and remains below its level before the recession began in late 2007. By contrast, the top 1 percent has thrived. Their incomes averaged $1.26 million in 2012, up from $466,302 in 1979, according IRS data.

The combination of an increasingly global economy, greater productivity from technology and outsize investment returns has shifted a rising share of money to the wealthy. Of all the dollars earned in 2012, more than 22 percent went to the top 1 percent. That share has more than doubled since 1979.

Before income inequality began to rise consistently, state tax revenue grew an average of 9.97 percent a year from 1950 to 1979. That average steadily fell with each subsequent decade, dipping to 3.62 percent between 2000 and 2009.

State tax revenue growth has risen slightly since then as the economy has recovered and some states — California, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York, for example — have adopted higher top marginal income tax rates, according to S&P. In 2012, California voters backed a ballot measure to raise taxes.

That measure boosted California's sales tax to 7.5 percent for four years and income taxes rates to between 10.3 and 12.3 percent for seven years on income over $250,000. Plus, there's an additional 1 percent tax on millionaires.

More than half the income tax the state collected in 2012 came from the top 1 percent, compared with 33 percent in 1993. And in 2013, state tax revenue in California surged 15.6 percent.

Seven other states have also raised top marginal rates since 2009. This marks a reversal of the trend from 1985 to 2009, when average top marginal tax rates across all states fell slightly.

The most affluent Americans typically receive most of their income from profits in stocks and other investments, rather than wages. This means that swings in financial markets can cause state revenue to gyrate from year to year.

Some states — including Arizona, Florida, Nevada, Texas and Washington — rely primarily on sales taxes for funding. They're more dependent on consumer spending and don't benefit much from the gains that have flowed mainly to the wealthiest Americans.

Across all states, sales taxes account for 30.1 percent of all state revenue, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Personal income taxes make up 36.6 percent. The rest comes from other sources, such as taxes on fuel, alcohol and cigarettes.

As consumers have spent more online and on untaxed services, many states have tried to tax items like Netflix subscriptions and iTunes downloads. Washington state now taxes services at dating centers, tanning salons and Turkish baths.

Kim Rueben, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute, said the rise of untaxed purchases might have squeezed state revenue even if income inequality hadn't widened.

"Sales taxes are being eroded by the fact that we're moving to a services economy, and people are buying far more on the Internet," she said.

Research by Lucy Dadayan, a senior policy analyst at the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government, notes that income tax collections have become more volatile from year to year, making it harder for states to plan budgets, provide services and launch programs. She endorses an overhaul of state tax codes to produce a more balanced revenue flow.

But S&P says its findings suggest that the wealth gap derives from many factors and that state tax-code revisions don't fully address the consequences.

"Changes to state fiscal policy alone won't likely fix what's wrong," S&P concludes.

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New study on 'income inequality' looks at Mass.

BOSTON — Advocates for changing Massachusetts' personal income tax may have new fuel for their campaign, as a new national study suggests a more progressive income tax that requires wealthier individuals to pay higher tax rates could help states deal with revenue problems.

Standard & Poor's, in a study released Monday, found that the improving fortunes of the nation's top earners corresponds with a decades-long slowdown in tax revenue growth among states. The rating agency says states adopting more progressive, or graduated, income tax rates could be more insulated from the problem, though it stops short of endorsing outright such policy changes.

"In the setting of rising income inequality, the move toward more progressive tax rates may help states generate faster tax revenue growth than would flatter tax regimes," the report concludes.

State Rep. Jay Kaufman, a Lexington Democrat that chairs the legislature's Revenue Committee, says he's not surprised by the findings. He hopes the report helps bolster efforts to address Bay State taxes.

"It's a conversation whose time has come," he said. "The problems that we've got — both with wealth inequality and our regressive tax system — are worth addressing. Our failure to address them would continue the unfairness of the system and the challenges that we have with revenue."

The Tax Fairness Commission, a legislative panel Kaufman co-chaired earlier this year, found that Massachusetts' overall tax system, including state income and sales taxes and local property taxes, places a greater burden on middle and low-income taxpayers than those with higher income. Among that bipartisan commission's recommendations: discarding Massachusetts' flat income tax rate in favor of a graduated tax rate.

Of the 43 states that have a personal income tax, Massachusetts is one of just seven that still imposes a flat rate, which is currently 5.2 percent. Changing the tax's structure, which would require voter approval of a constitutional amendment, has faced stiff opposition over the years.

Michael Widmer, a member of the Tax Fairness Commission who opposed the recommendation, says such an overhaul would only compound income inequality by discouraging business investment.

The president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, a business-backed research group, he suggested more "modest" changes to the tax code, such as raising the value of certain tax exemptions for individuals and married couples. "That goes directly to the spending power of that person on the lower end that's living in a high cost state and trying to make ends meet," Widmer said.

But Noah Berger, president of the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, a left-leaning budget research group, argues that the state has enacted a series of tax changes over the last 15 years or so that have primarily benefited the wealthy, including reductions in the overall income tax rate and the tax rate on investment income.

The result, he says, is that the lowest income households — those on living less than $21,000 a year — are paying 9.5 percent of their income toward state and local taxes while those in the top 1 percent — those earning about $700,000 or more — are paying just 6 percent.

"Our state tax system has become more conducive to supporting inequality," Berger said. "It taxes higher income people at lower rates than lower income people. That exacerbates the problem."

S&P's report cautioned that a greater dependence on top earners for income tax revenue makes it harder for state policymakers to predict what they'll find in their coffers, since much of their income comes from investments in the sometimes volatile stock market. The agency report closes with this caveat: "tax revenue growth slows as income inequality rises, regardless of a states' tax structure ... changes to state fiscal policy alone won't likely fix what's wrong."

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Building a better lightbulb

Philips Hue Lux Lightbulb ($29.95 and up each or $100 for a two-bulb starter kit with the Philips Bridge, various retailers)

The rumors are true: Lightbulbs are now smart. And the Philips Hue Lux line of smart home lighting aims to be the smartest of them all, with an app that helps you control the brightness of your home from the comfort of your mobile device. Would Thomas Edison be proud? Let's see.

The good: These app-enabled LED bulbs connect with the Hue Bridge, a central hub that plugs into your wireless network. You can dim or brighten the lights or schedule them to automatically turn on or off at a certain time via an easy-to-use app for iOS and Android. Each Hue bulb uses 80 percent less power than a traditional bulb.

The bad: They could be brighter, and they don't emit any colors; only white light.

The bottom line: For the price and the convenience, the Philips Hue Lux line is certainly worth your consideration.

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Booting Up: GM rolling out Wi-Fi across product line

The nightmare of a long drive jammed in a car with all your nearest and dearest could soon be over. In just a few years, family road trips may seem vastly different: Passengers will be able to have their own devices to play a game, stream a movie, or get work done on a computer.

That's because General Motors is working to turn cars into roving Wi-Fi hotspots for up to seven devices, introducing high-speed connectivity into more than 30 of its 2015 models. I had a chance to drive a 2015 Buick Regal with 4G LTE from Boston to New York last week, and it was superconvenient to use my favorite navigation app, Waze, while hooked up to the in-car Wi-Fi. The in-car mobile plans also come with enhanced OnStar, a service that offers emergency response, connectivity to real people, diagnostics and turn-by-turn navigation.

Pretty soon, every car buyer is going to demand this feature, and every manufacturer is going to supply it.

And that means wireless carriers are going to have yet another way to profit from our increased connectivity. Expect more carriers to get into the game, and hopefully pricing to go down as a result — because this could get expensive fast.

GM's plan offers customers either three months or 3 gigabytes of data in a free trial with the option to continue with plans that range between $5 and $50 per month. AT&T customers can add a car plan to their mobile share plan for as little as $10 per month for 200 MB of data.

That's enough to stream more than 6.5 hours of music, surf the Web for 13 hours, or send more than 10,000 emails, according to GM. But think about that for a second: If you have a car full of seven people plugging away on smartphones and tablets, that data gets eaten up pretty fast.

Securing this deal with GM was a major coup for AT&T as competition among potential in-car entertainment providers heats up. Apple and Google are already in the mix, with software that allows an increasing number of apps on your iPhone or Android to be accessed via your car computer. But with the merger of DirecTV and AT&T purportedly close to being finalized, it seems like that's the company with the clear mechanism and pipeline of multimedia content for vehicles.

Then again, there is another way to get Wi-Fi in your car: It's called a portable mobile hotspot, and the beauty of this is that you can take it in your car for family trips. The 4G LTE Verizon Jetpack is available for $129.98 with a two-year agreement on top of a monthly fee. You won't get the enhanced OnStar service, but you will be able to grab it from the car and bring it to your hotel to avoid those awful Wi-Fi fees everyone seems to be charging these days.

So the traditional American hell of forced family interaction, ad nauseam, in close quarters en route to a summer vacation destination is about to be replaced by the serenity of detachment, with each passenger happily distracted. Whether that's a good thing or not is for each family to decide.

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Safety agency investigates Ford Fiesta latches

DETROIT — U.S. safety regulators are investigating complaints that the doors won't latch properly on some Ford Fiesta subcompact cars.

The probe announced Monday covers about 205,000 Fiestas from the 2011 through 2013 model years.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it has received 61 complaints about the doors. Some said the latches wouldn't catch. A dozen said a door opened while the cars were being driven.

In one case, a driver complained that his 83-year-old mother was hurt when she closed the door and it bounced back and hit her on the left hip. The woman was in pain for about two weeks. The driver told NHTSA that the door latch was made of plastic and either bent or broke.

The NHTSA database does not identify the people making the complaint.

Investigators will analyze the complaints and see how often the problem happens and determine if a recall is needed.

A Ford spokeswoman says anyone with a door latch problem should contact their dealership.

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Sun-exposure tracking device to help users see the light

A MassChallenge finalist says it's developed the first solar-powered, wearable sun-exposure tracker to improve energy, mood and focus, regulate sleep cycle, and monitor ultraviolet light exposure.

Founded by two Harvard Medical School psychiatry professors, GoodLux Technology developed SunSprite, a thumb-sized device with 10 LEDs that light up, based on a person's percentage of light exposure.

On a sunny day, most people need about 30 minutes of bright light within two hours of waking up to improve energy, mood and focus, said CEO Edward Likovich.

On an overcast day, people may need 45 minutes to an hour. And at night, they should avoid the kind of bright light that comes from a computer to fall asleep because it interferes with their circadian rhythms, Likovich said.

"It's exactly the right time for this as the days are getting shorter," he said. "It really makes an impact on people's lives."

Research dating back to 1984 found that bright light could be helpful in treating people with seasonal affective disorder. But it wasn't until 2005 that the American Psychiatric Association recommended that bright light be used before medication to treat the disorder.

"We had written about social isolation and were interested in how you could gratify someone's natural needs before you started tweaking their brain chemistry," said Jacqueline Olds, who founded GoodLux in 2012 with her husband, Richard Schwartz. "Research also shows that bright light in the morning boosts cognitive functioning in older people."

The two teamed up with Harvard engineers Tom Hayes and Kasey Russell, who developed the first prototype for SunSprite in 2012 and the second early this year.

In March, they raised money for the project on the crowdfunding website Indiegogo, where 700 people signed up to buy the device for $99. After tomorrow, the price will be $149.

The device also syncs with your iPhone, allowing you to track your progress in real time and get personalized goals and tips. GoodLux plans to have an Android app available in the coming months.

"My husband and I sit at a computer during the day, so this is a good reminder to get outside," said Jana Eggers, 45, a customer who lived in Boston for 17 years before moving to Charleston, S.C. "They made the device very simple. You can just wear it and see whether you've gotten enough light for the day. And it's solar-powered, so I don't have to worry about batteries."

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MassChallenge’s global scale

MassChallenge, already the world's largest startup accelerator and competition — with programs in Boston, Israel and, in the coming months, the U.K. — continues to push the envelope of international expansion, exploring the possibility of similar programs in Russia, Germany, Switzerland, France, Mexico and Colombia.

"Part of the vision is that we can demonstrate Boston is the global leader in innovation and entrepreneurship," John Harthorne, MassChallenge's founder and CEO, told the Herald from Berlin, one of his stops on a three-week business trip to Russia and Europe. "In most places around the world, resources like mentors, lawyers and investors for startups are missing or poorly coordinated. We have a good system in the U.S. I think we can help create huge growth, as well as open up new avenues for investment and trade between Massachusetts and these countries."

MassChallenge announced earlier this year that it had secured initial funding to launch its first London program. Harthorne said he hopes to announce new partnerships and sponsorships Wednesday for the program, which could begin accepting applications next spring or early summer. Within 18 months to two years, MassChallenge also may open an office in Russia, where Harthorne and MassChallenge mentors were on hand to offer training to 12 IT startups that recently won a competition in Skolkovo, home to Russia's largest accelerator. That training will continue for five weeks via Skype before the entrepreneurs pitch their ideas in late October in Boston, he said.

In Berlin, Harthorne met with partners who are trying to market the program, with a tentative launch in 2016. He also has planned stops in Switzerland and France.

"Right now, we're focused mostly on Europe, but there's also interest in Mexico and Colombia, both of which have been paying us for mentorship and training," Harthorne said. "When we started MassChallenge, we did plan for expansion. But we didn't expect this much excitement and interest. The challenge is keeping up with the demand."

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Bottle bill foes pour cash into campaign

Well-funded opponents of a ballot question to expand Massachusetts' bottle bill to include 5-cent deposits on bottled water, juice and sports drinks will begin a TV advertising campaign tomorrow to push their cause before the November election.

But Janet Domenitz, executive director of MassPIRG — part of a coalition of environmental groups supporting the bottle bill expansion — hopes that after an unsuccessful 10-year legislative push, voters will see through the "misleading TV ads" and pass the binding measure.

"You can certainly buy a lot of television with that kind of money, but this is a law that's been widely and broadly supported for years, so we're hoping the corrupting influence of big special interest money doesn't change the support for this bill," Domenitz said. "If the vote was taken before a bunch of misleading TV ads, we would win hands-down."

The American Beverage Association, a Washington, D.C.-based trade group for the non-alcoholic beverage industry, already has contributed $5 million to the "No on Question 2: Stop Forced Deposits" campaign, which has raised $5.4 million in total, according to the most recent campaign finance reports. Supermarkets including Stop & Shop, Big Y and Donelan's also have made large contributions.

The proposed law, which would take effect in April, also would require the state to adjust the deposit every five years to reflect consumer price index changes. And it would increase minimum handling fees paid by beverage distributors and bottlers.

"Question 2 costs a lot and doesn't do much of anything for recycling," said Nicole Giambusso, spokeswoman for the No on Question 2 group.

Passage would increase costs to grocers required to redeem the containers in their stores, according to Giambusso. "Those costs will trickle down to consumers and add nearly $60 million in grocery costs," she said. "And ... we'd only be getting an eighth of a percent of a recycling increase. The other alternative would be to expand curbside recycling, which a lot of communities have. (It) is three times cheaper."

Supporters of the bottle bill expansion have raised just $292,988, according to campaign finance reports. But Domenitz said the grass-roots coalition — which includes the League of Women Voters, Sierra Club, Massachusetts Audubon Society and Emerald Necklace Conservancy — is setting up a "town captain" structure where volunteers will work locally to get out the message in their own communities.

There's one data point that voters need to understand, she said: Carbonated beverage containers with the 5-cent deposit get recycled 80 percent of the time, while only 23 percent of non-deposit beverages are recycled.

"Curbside (recycling) is great, but it's not capturing these beverages," she said.

And anybody who leaves the house "doesn't need a study to back that up," according to Domenitz. "If your kid plays ball at a park or you walk your dog, or you go to the beach, or you live in the city, or you hike a trail, you've had the experience of seeing littered bottle water containers, sports drinks — the things that don't have a deposit."

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Samsung accuses LG execs of damaging its products

SEOUL, South Korea — Samsung Electronics Co. has accused senior executives of domestic rival LG Electronics Inc. of intentionally vandalizing its washing machines at retail stores in Germany and has asked for an official investigation.

In a statement Sunday, Samsung said it had asked the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office to investigate executives from a Korean company who were seen as damaging its washing machines displayed at shopping malls in Berlin. A Samsung spokesman confirmed that the Korean company referred to was LG.

"The people in question have been implicated in deliberately destroying Samsung washing machines displayed at retail stores in Berlin, Germany, where, at the time, the annual IFA electronics trade show was underway," Samsung's statement said. "It is very unfortunate that Samsung had to request that a high-ranking executive be investigated by the nation's legal authorities, but this was inevitable ... the truth must be revealed for the sake of fostering fair competition."

LG Electronics denied Samsung's claim. It said in a statement that while it is true that some of its executives and staff, including a president, had visited a Berlin store and looked at various products, it is common for its employees to examine rival company's products abroad.

"If our company had an intention to destroy products of a certain company to tarnish the image of the product, it would be commonsensical to not have our executives to directly carry out such acts," LG's statement said. "We hope that this incident is not an effort to tarnish our company, which is the global No. 1 maker of washing machines."

LG said the model in question had weak hinges, but it did not say whether its executives had damaged the products.

Samsung said LG tarnished both its brand image and the reputation of its employees with claims that its washing machines were defective.

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