Mark Cuban

Top 3. Jul 12, 2005 8:20 AM

» Kirk - Podcasts not a money maker

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This guy has good instincts

Mark Cuban: Been there, heard that
By Frank Barnako, MarketWatch
Last Update: 11:11 AM ET July 11, 2005
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story.as...

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - The man who became a billionaire capitalizing on the Internet's ability to deliver radio programs has some advice for the thousands of people producing podcasts: Trying to make a business out of it is a mistake.

In comments on his Web log, Mark Cuban, the founder of Audionet - which he sold for $6 billion - says all the enthusiasm about podcasting is déjà vu from 1996. "Podcasting is hot. Podcasting is cheap and easy. Podcasting can be fun," he writes. But unless you are repurposing content from another medium, "it will be rare to find anyone making money from originating podcasts," he writes on BlogMaverick.com.

The problem is the Internet's huge reach and appeal. "It's the ultimate long tail environment," he writes, referring to the concept that the Web can cater to niche and hyper-niche interests. "There are no hits. There aren't any breakthrough shows. (Instead) there are tens of thousands or more blips on the radar." And it's tough to stand out in the crowd.

Need evidence? Cuban cites Pseudo.com and EYada.com, two companies that ambitiously produced original content and failed. "There is a good chance that their history is your future," Cuban warns podcasters.

-- posted by Kirk

Top 4. Aug 5, 2005 6:55 AM

» Kirk - Download Problems wiht HDNet Beta Feed

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Sent to the help people today. I'll post their reply if I get one. I heard from a friend with a fast desktop PC that his system was also slow.

Help
My system is now running VERY slow downloading the shuttle launch.
http://www.onefeed.net/hd/other_main.html
I have no idea if it is even downloading properly since there is no status message or even an icon anywhere.
I have a Dell Inspiron laptop with a 1920x1200 monitor so it should look great when it arrives...
but my processor is a Pentium M 1.5 Ghz so is that my problem?
I can't see any signs that it is downloading on Task Manager nor do I have any icons anywhere saying it is downloading or what is its progress.
Comments? email: viewer@hd.net Questions/Problems? email: support@box.net
What can I do?
BTW, I can offer a discussion forum on Suite101 for people to discuss their problems and solutions.
I posted a copy this note to my "Mark Cuban" forum to see if anyone has had similar problems.
Thanks
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best regards
Kirk Lindstrom
Editor: "Investing & Personal Finance" @ Suite101.com
http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/inve...
Free issue of Kirk's Investment Newsletter (16.0% compound annual return 1/1/99-6/30/05)
http://home.netcom.com/~kirklindstrom/Ne...

I'd not recommend downloading the application untile we report it is working. My system is way too slow now and I have no idea if it is even downloading the 1.3G movie. My plan is to "restore" my PC to 8/3/05 configuration if I don't get this resolved in 24 hours.

-- posted by Kirk

Top 5. Aug 5, 2005 7:08 AM

» Kirk - How To Uninstall

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I haven't tried this yet, but the red/swoosh help page says:

The Red Swoosh software is not 'spyware' and does not maintain any personally identifiable information about the end users. The software is also not a trojan, a virus or a worm, and even though it does operate transparently, it is completely removable and is only installed after the end user's explicit agreement to a software use license.
Red Swoosh does not provide end-user support for the EDN Client software. Please contact the web site where you originally installed this software for more information on the uses of this technology.
If you are wondering about uninstalling the Red Swoosh software, you should be able to find its entry in the Add/Remove Programs control panel, listed as "Red Swoosh EDN Client (remove only)". However, please be aware that by uninstalling this software you might be affecting your ability to download files from the web sites that use our technology.

That is good to know if you don’t have the “Restore” feature of WindowsXP.

-- posted by Kirk

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http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_2919071

Top 6. Aug 6, 2005 1:35 PM

» Kirk - Cuban wants Hatch out of the Senate

Article Last Updated: 08/06/2005 09:46:18 AM

NBA's fiery Cuban wants Hatch out of the Senate
Billionaire: The owner of the Dallas Mavericks says the Utah senator is "the digital Joe McCarthy"
By Thomas Burr
The Salt Lake Tribune

WASHINGTON - Dallas Mavericks owner and billionaire Mark Cuban is no fan of Sen. Orrin Hatch. And he is going to do what he can to see the Utah Republican defeated in next year's election.

Cuban, who also founded Broadcast.com, told Salt Lake City-based radio station KCPW that Hatch's positions on technology are hurting America's competitive ability and he needs to be replaced. Cuban, a self-described “technology geek,” recalled Hatch's previous comment that computers harboring illegally downloaded music should be destroyed.

“The policies and actions of Sen. Hatch are very concerning to me from what I read and from my personal interactions with him,” Cuban told the radio station in an interview aired Friday. “The best way I can define him: he's the digital Joe McCarthy,” he said, referring to the notorious 1950s red-baiter.

Cuban told The Salt Lake Tribune his efforts are “anti-Hatch more than pro-anyone,” but that he plans to donate to the federal limit to the two candidates who have already announced they are running against Hatch, who is seeking his sixth term.

Cuban can donate up to $4,200 total to each of the candidates in the race, which currently includes Hatch, Republican challenger and state lawmaker Steve Urquhart and Democrat Pete Ashdown, founder of the Internet service provider X-Mission.

Hatch's campaign manager, Dave Hansen, said voters will find Cuban's remarks “inappropriate” and “atrocious” and will reject them.

“Obviously, Mark Cuban believes in the politics of personal destruction,” Hansen said, adding that Hatch “has a very good record in the high-tech industry.”

Hatch was the sponsor of the Induce Act, which essentially would have allowed a company to be sued if it induced an individual to download copyright-protected music. A ruling by the Supreme Court in June essentially affirmed Hatch's goal, and the senator has put his legislation on hold.

Urquhart and Ashdown said Friday they welcome Cuban's support.

tburr@sltrib.com

-- posted by Kirk

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financial...

Top 7. Aug 11, 2005 9:47 AM

» Kirk - Mark Cuban to oppose Register.com sale

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Mark Cuban to oppose Register.com sale

AUG. 10 12:09 P.M. ET Register.com Inc. shareholder Mark Cuban said Wednesday that he plans to vote against the sale of the Internet registrar to private equity firm Vector Capital Corp.

Cuban, a billionaire Internet entrepreneur and owner of the Dallas Mavericks, said he holds about 3.3 million shares of Register.com, or 13.2 percent of the company. On Tuesday, the company said it agreed to be acquired for roughly $200 million in a cash deal that would take the company private.

In a statement, Cuban said he did not believe the proposal was in the best interests of the shareholders.

"The $200 million offering price does not come close to fairly valuing the business of this company," he said. "In fact, I believe the transaction would be disastrous to the interests of the stockholders."

A Register.com spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

On Tuesday, Register.com also reported a second-quarter profit, reversing a year-ago loss, on higher revenue and lower operating expenses.

Shares of Register.com rose 12 cents to $7.92 in midday trading on the Nasdaq.

-- posted by Kirk

Top 8. Aug 22, 2005 6:37 AM

» Kirk - Mark Cuban Is Mad (Again). But Why?

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August 21, 2005
Mark Cuban Is Mad (Again). But Why?
By ANDREW ROSS SORKIN
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/21/busine...

MARK CUBAN, the entrepreneur and owner of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team, has a reputation for screaming like a deranged fan from the sidelines during games. He has been fined more than $1 million by the National Basketball Association for his antics since he bought the team five years ago.

Now, Mr. Cuban, who became a billionaire by selling Broadcasting.com to Yahoo in 1999, has focused his infamous bark on a corporate boardroom. The target of his anger is the board of a small Internet company called Register.com, which sells domain names (for example, yourcompany.com) to people and small businesses. He may deserve the Wall Street equivalent of a technical foul for his latest outburst.

Mr. Cuban became upset last week when a private equity firm, Vector Capital, bought Register.com for $202 million. He is the second-largest shareholder of Register.com, with 13.2 percent, and he apparently expected it to sell for much more.

Calling the sale "disastrous to the interests of the stockholders," he said the "price does not come close to fairly valuing the business of this company" and added that he planned to vote his shares against the deal.

A bevy of hedge fund managers who followed Mr. Cuban's lead into Register.com - licking their lips as they bought shares in it - have been running around Wall Street howling about the sale, too, as if they were channeling Mr. Cuban. Like him, they are incensed that the company did not sell for more. Some have not-so-subtly suggested that the auction was rigged.

Mr. Cuban was even blunter: "I do not see how this transaction could benefit anyone other than the current management, who must be expecting to feather their own nests."

An equally vocal critic of Register management is one of its directors, James A. Mitarotonda, the chairman and chief executive of the Barington Capital Group. He is also complaining that Register.com didn't fetch a high enough price, even though Vector's offer exceeds what Barington offered when it put Register.com in play by making an unsolicited bid for it in June.

Mr. Mitarotonda has also said that he planned to vote against the deal with Vector. He has also mounted a proxy contest to oust his fellow board members and replace them with a slate that would include Mr. Cuban.

To be fair to Register.com's critics, the company does have a lot of problems. But perhaps the biggest problem is that it hasn't been able to fix any of them. Indeed, the company has had three chief executives in the last three years.

In the end, what neither Mr. Cuban nor Mr. Mitarotonda wants to really let on is that virtually nobody - including them - wanted to pay what they want for this little company.

Yahoo and Google passed on the auction entirely. Mr. Cuban was invited to participate, but declined. Barington, which has consistently called Register.com undervalued, bid in the auction but came up short. (Its final offer was worth $7.70 a share, people involved in the auction said. When it was offered a chance to top Vector's bid of $7.81 a share, Barington balked.)

At least one offer beat Vector's by a few pennies a share, but the bidder had not yet lined up financing and sought the right to cut its bid without penalty. Register's board passed.

So if Mr. Cuban thinks the company is undervalued, why didn't he buy it himself? In an e-mail message, he said: "I'm not in a position to run the company. My goal was to work with the new board that would have been voted in during the next shareholder meeting in a couple of weeks to help the company."

Did Mr. Cuban want to help the company or help himself? After Register.com was put up for sale in June, he essentially doubled down his bet on the company, buying more than a million shares at $7.70 and hoping for a big takeover premium.

Now that it appears the premium will not materialize, his outrage - and that of his indignant followers - makes them all seem more like sore losers than corporate reformers.

DealBook also covers the news of deals daily by e-mail. A free subscription is available at nytimes.com/dealbook.

-- posted by Kirk

Top 9. Aug 26, 2005 1:16 PM

» Kirk - Cuban Now Owns Stakes in Both Tucows and Register.com

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Mark Cuban Now Owns Stakes in Both Tucows and Register.com
News

Chicago, Illinois - (via THE HOSTING NEWS) - August 26, 2005 - It has been reported by the editors of the FindProfit newsletter, that billionaire Mark Cuban has disclosed a stake in Tucows (AMEX:TCX). This is in addition to his ownership of more than 13% in Register.com.

Over the weekend Cuban told a New York Times reporter that his TCX holding was ''complimentary'' to his stake in Register.com. Cuban has voiced his opposition to a $202 million takeover offer for Register.com from private equity firm Vector.

After Mark Cuban disclosed his stake in Tucows, shares of the domain registrar and Internet services firm went up nearly 20%. Cuban disclosed that he now holds an almost 9% stake in Tucows.

In a 13D filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Cuban revealed that he now owns more than 6.11 million shares of TCX, or an 8.9% stake in the company. Cuban began buying in June, securing 3.3 million shares in a range of $0.94 to $1.04 per share between June 21st and July 15th. Cuban then added to this stake beginning on August 11th, when he bought 2.5 million shares at $0.90 per share via TCX's secondary offering, in which existing shareholders sold 21.82 million shares and the company sold 410K new shares. Cuban has bought another 311,700 shares in a range of $0.87 to $0.92 since then, with the most recent buy coming on August 19th. Cuban's cost basis on his TCX holding is 96 cents per share.

These developments have spawned speculation that a merger between Register.com and Tucows may be in the offing.

Posted on Friday, August 26 @ 08:48:11 EDT by editor
http://www.thehostingnews.com/article156...

-- posted by Kirk

Top 10. Jan 24, 2006 6:55 PM

» SteveT - Will Soderbergh's 'Bubble' Burst on Hollywood?

Will this confound the video pirates?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story...

by Terry Gross

Fresh Air from WHYY, January 24, 2006 · Steven Soderbergh's new film, Bubble, is the source of much hand-wringing in Hollywood. But what has entertainment executives agitated isn't the film's story -- about a murderous love triangle at a doll factory -- but the way it's being released. Terry Gross speaks with Jonathan Bing, who writes the "Hard Sell" column for Variety magazine.

The method of simultaneous release is known as a "day-and-date" strategy. It clashes with the prevailing method of timed releases, in which more than four months usually separate a film's theatrical debut and its DVD sale. It is only after sales have ebbed in those two critical markets that most movies are broadcast on television.

The day-and-date approach for Bubble will be duplicated for five other films by Soderbergh, who has entered into a partnership with Broadcast.com founder Mark Cuban. Cuban, the outspoken Internet billionaire who also owns the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, is using his network of art-house theaters and digital television to

In collapsing the months-long release window into a matter of days, Cuban says consumers will have more choice in how content is delivered, which may result in higher overall sales. In answering critics who have decried the day-and-date approach as the death knell of the theater experience, Cuban has compared the approach to the NBA, in which sold-out games are also aired live on television.

A 'Bubble' of Synergy

Director Steven Soderbergh's new movie is being shown at Cuban's Landmark chain of theaters, even as it is broadcast on the HDNet cable service. Many of the country's largest theater chains have refused to screen the film. A look at the companies involved in the film -- and its experimental release:

In Theaters

* Produced by 2929 Entertainment (owned by Mark Cuban and longtime ally Todd Wagner)
* Distributed by Magnolia Pictures (founded in 2001 by film and radio veterans Bill Banowsky and Eamonn Bowles; owned by 2929 Entertainment)
* Opens Jan. 27 in Landmark Theaters (began in 1974; bought by 2929 Entertainment in 2003)

On Cable TV

* Jan. 27 - Airs on HDNet (founded in 2001 by Cuban and TV executive Philip Garvin)
* HDNet is available from cable companies including Adelphia, Charter Communications, Time Warner Cable, DIRECTV and the DISH Network.

DVDs for Sale

* Jan. 31 - Available at major retail outlets
* Also sold in Landmark Theaters

-- posted by SteveT

http://www.blogmaverick.com/entry/123400...

Top 11. Feb 22, 2006 10:13 PM

» Singlengle - Cuban Blogs on Naked shorting

-- posted by Singlengle