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Browsing All Posts filed under »business & economy«
Copenhagen: Trouble at Danmark’s Radio
by sabine behrman
There is a common denominator for most public projects: more often than not they turn out to be much more costly than planned.
When it was announced that Danmarks Radio, the older of the two Danish public service companies, would move to new premises in the Copenhagen suburb of Ørestad, this seemed to be yet another attempt to bring life into an area, which the general population does not seem to want to embrace with particular ardour.
Reykjavik: Tax – free Lottó!
August 31, 2006
by jared bibler
I have known for some time that Iceland has a lottery. But what I didn't know is that it's run by the hundreds of sporting associations in the Land and directly benefits them. And, unlike in Massachusetts, when you win, you win the entire chunk of money. None of this 50-cents-a-year-for-20-years business.
Here they just transfer the lump sum right into your bank account. Boom! And not only that, but winning the Icelandic lottery is the only thing in Iceland that happens absolutely tax-free. You don't owe a dime of income tax on your Lottó winnings. Sweet! Sign me up! I'm always up for some regressive taxation without representation.
Madrid: The Meaning of Hard Rock Hotel
August 30, 2006
by almendro “It’s going to be a 24-7, three-dimensional experience,” said Trevor Horwell, chief hotels officer for Hard Rock International. “You’re going to have moods happening within the rooms, vibes going on within the restaurant and another vibe in the bar.” Vibes within vibes. Just the thing for a hotel that used to house bullfighters […]
Stockholm: Ten Things You Should Know About Working in Sweden
August 9, 2006
by schlockholm - the stockholm blog
If you’re new to Sweden, about to start a job in Stockholm, or thinking of heading this way, here are:
Ten Things to You Should Know About Working in Sweden:
1. Be prepared to drink coffee and eat cake between 9-10.
2. Eat lunch between 12-13.
3. Work like crazy between 10-12.
Copenhagen: Double Summer Standards
July 25, 2006
by sabine behrmann
Since July is the month where most of Denmark is on holiday a closer look at Danish summer cottages may be in order.
They have been an important part of the Danish lifestyle for many years. First as a safe heaven for a very small group of affluent Copenhageners who wanted to escape the smelly summer air in the Danish capital. Later for people who felt that a primitive abode in a wood close to the sea was better than staying at home.
Reykjavik: Fruit Truck
June 2, 2006
by jared bibler
Icelandic companies take pretty good care of their people, at least compared to some of the sweatshops I labored in in the good ole USA. In lieu of health insurance, which gets picked up by the Republic, companies provide a whole range of cool stuff here á klakanum:
24 days of vacation: the minimum by law, for full-time work. That's a day shy of 5 weeks, boys. And if the employer won't pay you for the time, they have to at least let you take it without pay. Things pretty well shut down in Iceland in July while the whole nation takes a bunch of contiguous weeks off.
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Photo credit: Hlynur
Stockholm: Swedes Want Cheaper Booze
May 17, 2006
by schlockholm the stockholm blog
The majority of Swedes want the tax on beer and wine reduced, says the Swedish Brewers' Association. They're not that bothered, though, by the tax on spirits.
Just over 50 percent of those questioned by Temo, who carried out the survey on behalf of the Brewers' Association, said beer and wine taxes should be cut whilst only 40 percent said they would like to see the tax on spirits fall.
Stockholm: 3G flies off the Shelves
May 10, 2006
Nokia HQ by the stockholm blog For the first time ever two 3G handsets are in Telia’s top ten list of best-selling phones in Telia retail stores. The 3G phones are the Nokia 6280, which directly entered the list in fifth place, and the Samsung Z140. For the phone geeksters among you, the April top […]
London: Gearing up for We Media
April 27, 2006
Next week London will host the We Media Global Forum, a gathering of media movers & shakers who flock to the event to network, talk and debate the impact of citizen media and collaborative technologies on news providers and gatherers. The central question is likely to be what gives? How can mainstream / mass media preserve its revenues and purpose in what many think is a paradigmatic change in news & information production and consumption?
Athens: Deb(t)acle
April 27, 2006
It's no secret that Greece is up to its neck in debt and Finance Minister, has been trying for the past two years to scrape enough money together from tax revenues, privatization of public companies, slashing (or so I thought) public expenditures and attempting some creative accounting to get the debt under control and under the EUs 3% Growth & Stability Pact limit.
So why then, is Greece planning to spend € 22 billion on new weapons? Are we planning a war and no one told me? How can this kind of expenditure be justified considering Greece's dire fiscal straits? Elefterotipia daily in Greece wrote that the Greek government plans to purchase a new weapons system worth €22 billion as part of its 10 year armament program.
October 10, 2006
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