Technicolor sees the end of the tunnel

After flirting with bankruptcy last year, the group Technicolor, resulting from the safeguard procedure in February, comes in green in the first half 2010, despite a further decline in sales.

The Group's net profit was 96 million euros in the first six months of the year, while last year it posted a loss of 325 million euros. A benefit to be attributed mainly to reduced losses in the activities of the group arrested or held for sale, valued at 117 million euros in the first half. The former television manufacturer has refocused indeed, during the backup process that will emerge from the ashes of Thomson on the services of content creators for film, television and advertising. In the first half, net income from continuing operations amounted to further 213 million euros.

New Stuff

The turnover of Technicolor however continued to decline from 18.5% a year, to 1468 billion euros. The decline was however lower in the second quarter, from 12.4% to 776 million euros, showing an improving trend. The CEO of Technicolor, Frederic Rose, has indeed found "patterns of improvement and signs of recovery in most activities, and reaffirmed a target of growth of sales in the second half of 2010 no fax cash loans. "Our financial restructuring is now completed, we started to win the trust of our customers," he said.

Frederic Rose has given evidence for the conclusion of two contracts announced Thursday.Verizon has indeed signed a letter of intent for the provision of broadband residential gateways, while DirecTV has signed a contract extension for the supply of decoders.

Surrender of Grass Valley

The second half should also be more positive, with the sale of assets deemed non-strategic. The group had announced in early July the first major sale of its loss-making with the sale of Grass Valley, into three pieces. The first part has already been the subject of a transfer agreement with the U.S. private equity group Francisco Partners. For other assets, "progress is expected before the end of the year," said Frederic Rose.

ALSO READ:

"Technicolor completes debt restructuring

"Technicolor ceded most of Grass Valley

"Technicolor loss divided by six

Some cheap term life insurance policies may look cheap, but what matters the most is that you must get it.Getting a cheap term policy is not an easy task.

Markets jaded by Google

The markets expected better from Google. The U.S. computer giant on Thursday posted a sharp rise in net profit and turnover for the second quarter. But net profit rose less than expected by analysts. "This is the result of a maturing society which is still growing and still has growth before it," said analyst Jon Ogg on 247Wallst.com. So much so that in electronic trading after-hours trade on Thursday, Google stock lost about 4% to 474.50 dollars.

The net profit up 24.3% over the year totaled $ 1.84 billion for the second quarter. But compared to the number of shares and excluding exceptional items, it is up to $ 6.45, while analysts were expecting 6.52."The trend over the results Google is disappointment," notes Jon Ogg, noting that it was the second time in three months that Google stock back to the publication of its quarterly results.

S & P welcomes financial profile "solid" by Google

But out of Google, we preferred to emphasize a "solid" second quarter. "We saw strength in key product categories, more and more traditional advertisers are putting advertising in the search engine, and major advertisers increasingly launching integrated campaigns among advertising research, picture ads and ads on mobile devices, "said Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, said in a statement. Performance also welcomed by the rating agency Standard & Poor's on Thursday gave Google a "AA-", the fourth highest grade with a stable outlook.S & P praised the "extremely strong financial profile and strong leadership in its sector" of Google.

The turnover of the group has indeed risen from 24% in one year, 6.82 billion dollars, exceeding expectations. For the first three months of the year, revenues showed an increase of 1%, while several analysts were expecting a decline. In fact, revenues have declined only in Great Britain. A decline offset by growth in other areas, In particular with Brazil, India, Russia and "even in France," the company said.

Google made to continue to invest "heavily"

In a teleconference with analysts on Thursday, Chief Financial Officer Patrick Pichette said Google's presence in all segments of Internet advertising. For him, YouTube has become "a must" for advertisers, and "a great event for us."His analysis has been shared by some of his audience. "We believe that the current markets and future of Google, in research on computer sets and telephones, picture ads and YouTube, have sufficient opportunities for growth and revenue to generate a positive return on investment", believes Mark Mahaney, an analyst at Citigroup.

A strategic partnership with Omnicom

The CFO of Google has also used the conference to announce a strategic partnership with the advertising group Omnicom in the field of comic inserts. Advertising group agrees to purchase advertising space for clients to hundreds of millions of dollars. In exchange, Google will build with Omnicom platform buying and selling advertising.The software giant plans to "continue to invest heavily" by the end of the year. ALSO READ:

"Google released the creation of mobile applications

"The best range of our history"

Tuesday, opens in Los Angeles at E3, the world exhibition of video games. After a difficult year 2009, particularly for console games, the market could see a modest growth in 2010, under strongman Activision Blizzard, the first publisher in the world, a subsidiary of Vivendi. From the top of 4.28 billion in sales last year, the group seems untouchable: it attracts 11.5 million subscribers in its network game World of Warcraft. However, the sector remains fragile: "The market fell by 20% in Great Britain," warns Yves Guillemot, CEO of Ubisoft. The "decline is about 10% in France for PC gaming," said Philippe Sauze, the head of the subsidiary of Electronic Arts, its chief Olympique Lyonnais. But its economic weight is high.The global market for game software grew over 50% in three years, reaching $ 46.5 billion in 2009, against 30.3 in 2006, says Strategy Analytics.

Le Figaro. – What are your predictions for the sector in 2010?

Bobby Kotick – Companies have disappointing results when they are faced with a lack of creativity and innovation. Last year was a fantastic exercise for Activision Blizzard. Our outlook remains positive for 2010, thanks to our range of products. Our position is different from that of our competitors because more than 50% of our profits come not from the consoles. Overall, I think the video game market should grow slightly this year. But we need that Sony and Microsoft will further reduce the price of their consoles, especially in Europe.It seems clear that the higher the price of consoles is low, more games are selling well and the market grows.

The video game lobby E3 is placed under the sign of new interfaces. Will this upset the way he play?

The new interfaces are important, especially in Natal Microsoft Project and Move System from Sony. These technologies help to renew the interest of players and attract new audiences. Similarly, Nintendo 3DS is innovative and it indicates that everyone seeks to differentiate its products from other consoles. But the key element is the price quick pay day loan.We still have much work to be done to further simplify the use of games and ensure that equipment is simple to use.

What do you expect the Big Three, Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony?

Nintendo will not herald major advances for the Wii. But 3DS, with its screen in relief, is a very attractive product. The Xbox 360 is expected to benefit from innovations in online services Live. Finally, Sony has done a very good job with the PS3 is a console game player and a Blu-ray. I think all three console manufacturers are in better shape than last year. In addition, new ways to play show through the iPhone, iPad and televisions. But as the installed base remains weak, we invest prudently.

Facebook has given birth to publishers of small games, such as Zynga.What are your ambitions in social networking?

Facebook represents enormous opportunities for the future, not immediate. Again, we do not want to be first, but the best. We have the flexibility to develop our own games for new platforms, as we did for the iPhone.

What is your assessment for "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2?

We have already sold over 20 million games. We have extensive plans for Call of Duty for five years. It has become a group activity. We have created four divisions, one for Call of Duty, one for network games like World of Warcraft (WoW), one third for musical games and a fourth for our licenses. The organization of the group is in line with the market.

What are your major projects?

Star Craft II: Wings of Liberty and Battle.net are very important.It's the same for Cataclysm, the upcoming expansion of WoW, and new versions of Guitar Hero, DJ Hero. Finally, we develop an online service for Call of Duty. I think we have the best range of games in our history.

ALSO READ:

"Microsoft wants to change the video game world

"Sony's assault on the wireless controller for the Wii

What the rating agencies think of the debt of France

Rating agencies have a great influence on economic policy Bercy. Baroin, the budget minister, has himself acknowledged Sunday. And what about Standard & Poor's, Moody's and Fitch of the situation in France? Will they be inclined to leave him in the coming months, the privilege of his "Triple A, the highest mark possible, attributed to a very small country?

It depends, just, future government decisions. France has suffered less from the crisis than other countries in the euro area, greet agencies. The state has dampened with crisis recovery plan and welfare. The price: a high public deficit (7.5%), which must now reduce the risk of blowing up the already high public debt.

"Such imbalances require a recovery result of public finances, especially on the expenditure side, argue analysts from Standard & Poor's said in its latest report on France from July 2009. They said the debt should represent 90% of gross domestic product in 2011, against 78% today.

The government has already announced a freeze on public finances in late May, while spending on social security should continue to increase, says essentially Moody's in his March report, "which should result in an increase of 1% per year expenditure total " make quick cash. An objective "not particularly ambitious," says the agency, but nevertheless "should be difficult to take, given the unsuccessful efforts to control spending in the past."

"High levels of taxation"

Rating agencies do not seem to bear the greatest confidence in France, this country has two weaknesses, "the high level of taxation, which makes it difficult for future increases in taxes [to reduce the deficit, Ed] and expenditure rigidity, "is always Moody's. A suspicion reinforced by the presidential election of 2012, which could cause "potential expenditure," said Standard & Poor's.

The Fitch welcomes, however, "the intensification of social dialogue on public finance as an important step towards reversing the broad deficit" in a commentary published on May 28 She also applauded "the change in attitude of the government that understood the importance and urgency of fiscal adjustment."

Time is running out there? In the short term, "triple A in France is not in danger," wrote Moody's, often the last of three agencies to scale down its rating. Still, the separation between the country of degradation of the note is reduced "relentlessly," she says. At the rate of excavation of the debt.

Goldman Sachs leaden Asian stock markets

Nikkei were down 1.72% at 10,910 points, Hang Seng down 1.58% at 21,519 points, Singapore Strait Times, 1.45%, to 2963 points, and & P / ASX austrialien, 1, 34% to 4918 points … The major stock market indices of the Asian region skid, while the SEC, the U.S. stock market authority, says the bank Goldman Sachs for fraud related to subprime. A procedure that opens others, spreading the shock wave wiped throughout the weekend by the news.Other banks, like UBS, Deutsche Bank and Merrill Lynch, could also be investigated by the SEC, the Wall Street Journal.

In addition, expectations of rising interest rates in several countries in the area, where inflation is threatening more and more, reduce appetite for risk that investors had recovered in recent weeks, analysts of HSBC.

Oil retreats always

Crude prices were down sharply Monday in electronic trading in Asia, continuing their decline last week, dealers said.

In morning trading, a barrel of light sweet crude for May delivery fell by 1.49 dollars to 81.75 dollars while Brent North Sea with identical maturity, yielded $ 1.11 to 84 $ 88.

On Friday, oil prices had fallen back sharply in New York, a barrel of benchmark dropping more than two dollars in closing an index of consumer confidence in the U.S. amid disappointing and marked increase in U.S. currency.

The China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) has signed an agreement with Caracas to support the extraction of oil for 25 years in the region of the Orinoco Belt, Venezuela. Cost of operation: 20 billion dollars.The oil production at the site would represent 2.9 billion barrels, according to the Chinese company.

Toyota will pay

Japanese carmaker Toyota (-2.16% to 3,615 yen) will pay a record fine of 16.375 million (12.2 million) dollars imposed by U.S. authorities for several months in hiding for his problems accelerator, officials said Sunday night from government sources.

"By paying the entire civil penalty, Toyota accepts responsibility for hiding the safety issue of road safety agency, in violation of the law," said a senior U.S. Department of Transportation.

The Japanese automaker has also recalled some 870,000 Sienna minivans type in North America last Friday.

A "niche" at 22 billion for businesses

Its cost justifies his epithet "superniche. Since 2007, companies no longer pay tax on gains on the sale of their subsidiaries, provided that they have held at least two years. However, this exemption – also known as "niche Cope" according to the budget minister at the time – has generated a shortfall for the state $ 3.4 billion in 2007, 12.5 billion in 2008 and 6.1 billion in 2009, according to figures from Bercy. And it is only the crisis that has lowered the rating last year, companies unwilling to yield to loss of equity.

"With this measure, the state subsidizes big businesses that do not need. 22 billion in three years, it's insane! "Protests Jerome Cahuzac, President of PS Financial Committee of the Assembly took up arms launched by his predecessor, Didier Migaud cons niche Cope.In fact, as revealed by the magazine Marianne, Danone has saved in 2008 500 million corporate tax (IS) on disposal of Danone Biscuit conducted in 2007 (IS being paid one-year lag) . For Suez, the time still married to GDF, the rebate was $ 800 million. Other big winners: LBO funds (leveraged management buy-out), companies that buy and resell a few years later.

Still, this reasoning boosted Philippe Marini, the UMP rapporteur of the Finance Committee of the Senate and growing end of 2004, the amendment creating the niche Cope: "The debate on the shortfall is nonsense. If capital gains were taxed in France, transfer operations would be from Belgium or the Netherlands, through holding companies located there.Or even sales would not do at all! The French State would recover nothing in taxes. "An argument given in Bercy where it does not reach this niche. In fact, in the OECD, 21 out of 29 countries practice the exemption of capital gains payday loan. "And it is very easy for a French company to create a holding company elsewhere in Europe," the entourage of Christine Lagarde, Minister of Economy.

That's exactly what happened in the early 2000s, when France was one of the few countries to tax the capital gains. "Many French companies have established overseas holding companies which carried the titles of their various subsidiaries. Thus, they could sell securities without paying taxes, "said Jean-Yves Mercier, partner at law firm CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre.And two reports, one from the Council tax burden (CPO, an offshoot of the Court of Accounts), had sounded the alarm. "A holding company relocated, the risk of losing ultimately a decision center," says Philippe Marini.

More holdings in France

The final report of the 2009 OAC welcomes the end of the French exception. And Bercy unsheathed his statistics: since the gains are exempt, believes the number of holdings in France (1 112 in 2007, 1 276 in 2009). On the side of the MEDEF, it was noted that while the economic fabric wins. "Today, companies must adapt, evolve their business heart, which can pass through acquisitions or disposals of subsidiaries.Fortunately, the French companies may, like their European counterparts, do not brake tax, "explained Marie-Christine Coisne Roquette, Chairman of the Committee on Taxation Medef and CEO of Sonepar.

Finally, the cost itself of the niche is overvalued. Because, by convention methodology, it is calculated by pretending that capital gains were taxed at 33.3% standard rate of tax. However, they were only 19%. The loss caused by the exemption rather turn around 12 billion over three years.

The tax benefits of retirees coveted

Pension reform and reduction of tax loopholes: these two subjects, the heart of the government program, may well overlap. To fund the pensions, Eric Woerth, Minister of Labour, said on Monday opened "a few additional contributions. This should involve some capital income – an area teeming with tax exemptions. But the review of tax and social niches, as Paris has pledged to implement vis-?-vis Brussels can hardly ignore the many measures that benefit retirees empire payday loans. If one puts aside the niches considered creating jobs (employees at home …) or too symbolic to be touched by the current government (VAT restoration), these devices "retirees" are indeed among the most expensive for public finances.

Click on image to enlarge.

Areva and EDF are involved in the development of nuclear Italian

The joint venture created by EDF and Enel of Italy, has signed a partnership agreement with Ansaldo, the nuclear branch of the Italian group Finmeccanica. This five-year partnership provides for cooperation between the alliance and Ansaldo "for the development and construction of 4 nuclear reactors that EDF and Enel EPR planning to build in Italy" says EDF.

For its part Areva said it had signed three agreements with companies in Italy on Friday. The first agreement, signed with Ansaldo will enable both companies to work together in Italy, under the planned construction of four reactors conducted by ENEL and EDF, but also in the rest of the world.This partnership will result in particular through cooperation in the engineering, supply of certain equipment and assembly work and testing of commissioning.

The second agreement, signed with Techint, a group specializing in engineering and construction of large industrial facilities, provides for cooperation of two companies in future nuclear projects turnkey projects in the world fast cash now.

Finally, a training agreement was signed with the university consortium for research and nuclear technology (CIRTEN). It provides the contribution of Areva to develop new nuclear industrial capabilities in Italy.

These agreements come as the annual summit between France and Italy takes place in Paris, where Nicolas Sarkozy and Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister, meet.The purpose of these agreements for EDF and Areva is to be in the running for the revival of nuclear energy in Italy from 2013.

Italy banned nuclear power in 1987 following the Chernobyl accident. But this year, a decree established a timetable for the construction of new reactors began in 2013. Silvio Berlusconi, had expressed a wish that 25% of the electricity produced in Italy comes from nuclear reactors.

ALSO READ:

"Nuclear cooperation between France and Italy

"Nuclear: Italy is an operational EPR 2020

"EDF and Enel will build four reactors in Italy

Renault and Daimler provide 4 billion euros of synergies

"It's not good at the right time, and for good reason." Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler, welcomed its strategic agreement with Renault-Nissan, during a press conference held Wednesday in Brussels, attended by Carlos Ghosn, CEO of the French group. "The benefits of this alliance are immediate and lasting. Renault and Nissan, synergies with Daimler net present value of at least 2 billion euros in terms of cost reduction and sales opportunities over the next five years, "said Carlos Ghosn. Synergies will be equal between Renault and Nissan.His German counterpart expects earnings "of the same magnitude as that listed for both Renault and Nissan," 2 billion euros.

The two leaders, who returned in detail on the industrial structure already known of this cooperation, reiterated the importance of this type of alliance in a competitive environment tense. "This partnership will enable us to expand our product portfolio, reduce costs and increase capacity," noted Dieter Zetsche. "We must take advantage of such cooperation to create added value for customers and a sustainable future. This is the key in the car market today, "said Carlos Ghosn.

No increase in participation

Both groups confirmed a mutual stake of up to 3.1%. Renault and Nissan will respectively 1.55% stake in Daimler. The latter take 3.1% in both groups.According to the leaders, this exchange of shares is purely "symbolic" and reflects "a fundamental reflection on cooperation. Alongside the conference, the Ministry of Economy renewed its "satisfaction" for this partnership by announcing its intention to take 0.55% stake in Renault Nissan, to maintain its participation at 15.01%, which gives the status of shareholder.

For now, any increase in participation between the two protagonists is excluded. "We needed a number that has a symbolic value, hence the 3%. We do not have much cash to inject into this type of structure. We therefore have no idea of extending the cross-shareholdings. Our goal is first to identify concrete results, "said Carlos Ghosn.No merger is also in the agenda.

Extend Cooperation

The two CEOs have confirmed that this partnership was a starting point. The two companies intend to "explore opportunities ahead" by expanding their strategic cooperation in the years to come. An exchange of modules and components between the Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz is expected, as well as an expansion of regional cooperation in the U.S. and in emerging countries, "which play an important role with great potential." China is particularly in the viewfinder of the two groups."It must be everywhere," said Carlos Ghosn.

In the long term, Daimler as Renault-Nissan expect a positive impact on employment, thanks to "better use of industrial capacity in France and Germany.

In this video, shot by Renault, Carlos Ghosn talks about the overall benefits of signing such a partnership:

ALSO READ:

"Daimler could make small car with Renault

"Renault's electric range

An influential American criticized the hospital Multaq

The last drug against heart rhythm disorders produced by Sanofi-Aventis, the Multaq, is far from unanimous. A report from the Institute of Cardiology at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles concluded Monday that he was ineffective. It would be even less effective than 50% compared to the generic name already used, amiodarone.

The report, based on a study of 30,000 patients treated with Multaq, indicating that the drug "should only be used as an agent of the second or third line ' cheap payday advance.

Basically, the Multaq was developed to reduce side effects of the credit, which ultimately is not the case, said the report's lead author Dr. Sabnjay Kaul. He also believes that amiodarone has an advantage in cost compared to Multaq.What stopping just over the reputation of the drug from Sanofi-Aventis, also criticized in France.

Read also:

"Sanofi-Aventis drug criticized on its future star

←Older