Vinny's View

Philly

2009-05-13T10:21:00.002-04:00

just arrived home from a CEO summit in Philly......fairly interesting: Mario Moussa, the author of the art of woo spoke, a gent from the toronto stock exchange, Murray Page - ex Comcast, HP, and Palm marketing exec..............also indulged in a philly cheese steak to help the diet.

The Cheater

2009-05-07T10:06:00.002-04:00

We are launching our consumer electronics site next week www.pricecheater.com ......awesome deals on gps, blue ray, and more.......

ADT

2009-05-06T16:14:00.003-04:00

Given the state of the economy, time to secure the house..........We just started selling ADT home services.........having some great success.......look for great new deals coming soon...........

Anticipated Movies

2009-05-01T11:41:00.003-04:00

There are some good flicks coming out this month....three that I hope to see without resorting to Netflix in 6 - 12 months are 1) Star Trek, 2) Wolverine, and 3) Night at the Museum (my kids loved the first one)........actually, they love ben stiller and quote Zoolander on a daily basis.......

Dell is Styling..................

2009-04-30T17:27:00.002-04:00

I like the way Dell is trying to style......new colors and pattern, new laptop, new family model...........other than the Mac, computers are so damn boring....you would think these manufacturers would catch on to iphone, ipod, mobile phones, and other cool electronics......

Small Business Savings

2009-04-30T14:56:00.002-04:00

Just did some calculations on what we have been able to save small business on phone, data, and other telecom services.......we are averaging 24% monthly savings.........large businesses save considerably more if you take into account our project management outsourcing.........easy savings for small and medium businesses, which is great for us...........also, for those sophisticated techies: 2009 is the year of ethernet........

Sports Sunday

2009-04-26T15:43:00.002-04:00

Great day for sports..........Celts and Bulls are tied and going to OT, Caps are beating Rangers (good for Ted), Trey just had 6th birthday party with sports theme...............now going to shoot some bow and arrows.........if only wine tasting counted as a sport.

Beyond

2009-02-18T08:41:00.002-05:00

Great website for job boards is Beyond.com.....strategy is compelling by going local with their network of websites i.e. phillyjobs.com.........they have a great success rate of matching employers with employees even in this awful economy.

DTV - Can You Blame Them

2009-02-16T10:52:00.002-05:00

Select providers and stations are moving forward with the transition from analog signals to digital......should be some fall out, but you would expect that no matter what the deadline is.........my urgent request: transition now!........

Stimulus Plan

2009-02-09T19:12:00.002-05:00

Looks like the Senate is pushing back on the Broadband deployment.....recommending $0 vs. $650m...........there may be hope that a logical stimulous plan would be approved.....

Shop, Save, Earn.....maybe have some fun.

2009-02-02T18:39:00.002-05:00

Here are a few tips:

Great cash back offers from Bridgevine.com
Check out Swaptree.com ...let's you trade books, cds, etc. for free
Check out Couponcabin.com ...........
Rent a great house for your next vacation www.homeaway.com
Or, exchange at www.homeexchange.com
Sell your cat (at least I am trying to convince my wife this will save money)

Puppy

2009-01-31T08:39:00.002-05:00

After three years of consecutive 4 - 1 votes to get a puppy, my wife reluctantly gave in and we are proud owners of a GoldenDoodle.........Day 1 has been a bit rough, but the dog is great.....now time to come up with a name.................

Stimulus Package - Build Out of Broadband

2009-01-30T08:29:00.003-05:00

Congress has earmarked the build out of high speed internet as part of the economic stimulus package to the tune of $6.5b.........sounds logical as we are lagging many countries with our broadband penetration........however, a few stats to consider: 70% of US households have access to broadband via dsl or cable; another 28% can obtain through satellite (Wildblue.com and hughesnet.com), leaving 2%. Assume only half want broadband or 2.1m homes. This equates to more than $3,000 per home (3 years of broadband), and per the broadband providers isn't close to enough money.............at worst, provide a subsidy to customers to buy Wildblue or Hughesnet.

DTV - Ludicrous

2009-01-29T08:19:00.002-05:00

Have you missed the commercials, the signs, the emails, the incredible amount of communication regarding the transition to DTV......don't worry the issue is so important the president is pressing to delay the transition that has been planned about Four-score and twenty years ago.........the Feb 17 date is still in tact - the senate voted for the delay, but the House could only muster a 258 - 168 (in favor) vote which was shy of two-thirds margin required for passage. There has to be some amount of personal accountability, doesn't there. My opinion, let's get on with it...........the only way to make the transition is jump in the deep end...........

Bridgevine

2009-01-28T11:31:00.001-05:00

Check us out on Facebook..............

Stimulus Package

2009-01-27T08:29:00.002-05:00

I love the prosepect of going Green, however, I just don't understand spending a significant amount of money on initiatives that aren't market driven or proven......why not spend some money on broadband expansion, digital learning, and other items that are proven.............

Wine Fest

2009-01-26T08:43:00.002-05:00

Great wine fest in Vero Beach, Florida with more than 200 vintners and an awesome auctions........the favorites were the Ladera Cab www.laderavineyards.com and Hirsh Pinot...........great event that raised tons of money...............

Best Buy Kiosks

2008-08-11T10:30:00.003-04:00

Best Buy will be offering product via there kiosks in airports...check out the article at the WSJ............perhaps time for a services kiosk for high margin services - wireless, music, internet, security, etc..........time for the first bridgevine kiosk.

Ad Sales Ugly

2008-07-30T14:26:00.002-04:00

Should be an interesting two quarters for corporate Ad sales in the US. First, the economy is not making a bold comeback anytime soon. Second, corporation are getting much smarter with display advertising and ROI - branding is great, but the market is looking for a return.......June was soft - see Viacom's results and Yellow book owner RH Donnelly results - for a quick preview. Less display ads will mean more SEM spend in my opinion, although the general economy and smarter tools may also impact Google and friends also.

Facebook Evolution

2008-07-26T17:53:00.003-04:00

The most common response I get from my 35 - 45 year old peer group when sending an invitation to Facebook is "are you 16?".....then they try it, and it works, and they are connecting to many old friends who also like it, although they to first ask they question is "are you 16?". It will be interesting to see how this reluctant receptivity becomes more viral to the midlife crowd, and what impact their revenue model will have if the age skus higher and how quickly a newer/hipper social network evolves for the teen/20s crowd...............

Moving

2008-07-22T17:39:00.003-04:00

The Bridgevine.com website is really evolving. It is becoming the most extensive, self contained website for home and small businesses.......the robust product offering is particularly appreciated by the 17 million annual movers (their are approx. 110M households, so many on the move......)......we have received a significant number of email praise for our advanced concierge service. Given the fact that we share our savings with customer, there is not a better one-stop local for ordering all moving services - triple play, credit card, DVD service, moving service, and much more.....the largest array of home services on the net with the best prices - great for everyone.

Vatican Secret Diplomacy

2008-07-19T09:09:00.003-04:00

My great high school friend has just released his latest book - Vatican Secret Diplomacy. My friend: Charles R. Gallagher, S.J. or Chaz to his old school friends has become an accomplished scholar. You can buy it an Amazon. I am half way through the book and is very interesting if you are a history buff or are interested in the role the catholic church played (or didn't play) during WWII and Nazism.

Vacation

2008-07-18T09:01:00.003-04:00

Heading out on vacation tomorrow. Have our airline tix and hotel; Real player with Rhapsody lined up; ATT/RIM mobile phone including international plan; the kids have ipods and itunes; Netflix DVD (Perfume); downloaded Audible.com (The Last Lecture) to listen on the plane; Wall Street Journal for me, People Magazine for my wife; Discover Credit Card.......and the beauty of all these items - ALL PURCHASED ON BRIDGEVINE.COM

My Two Sense

2008-07-17T16:35:00.002-04:00

Microsoft should give up on Yahoo and the hole Search Category........too little, too late......stick to the software monopoly and let Googgle handle the search monopoly........

New Outlet for Independant Documentaries

2008-07-17T14:03:00.003-04:00

Seems like limited outlets for independant films and documentaries, although ther are more film festivals popping up all over (Maybe we can have a Vero Beach Film Festival)........anyway, check out this new company making these films available to the public - http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080717/wr_nm/snagfilms_dc_2.