Saturday, December 28, 2019

German Television in North America

German Fernsehen in the U.S. - a Brief History NEW! The German Kino Plus movie channel is now a part of the DISH German Package! Before we look at the current German-language TV programming via Dish Network, lets review its somewhat turbulent history... The history of German television in the U.S. has been a bumpy road. In the good ol days you needed to be living east of the Mississippi and have a huge satellite TV dish in order to receive any German-language TV in the U.S. at all. But then came the digital satellite TV revolution, and I wrote about the debut of privately-owned ChannelD (D for Deutschland) in September 2001. Not long after that the German public television networks ARD, ZDF, and Deutsche Welle began beaming their GERMAN TV service to viewers in North and South America, also via satellite. Their slogan: Watch what Germany watches! (Sehen, was Deutschland sieht!) Each sat TV service charged a modest monthly subscription fee and required the purchase or rental of a dish and digital receiver. Although the two German television broadcasters used two different satellites and two different digital TV systems, it was an embarassment of riches for German-hungry TV viewers in America. But it wasnt long before dark shadows began to loom over the German TV landscape in the U.S. About a year after its debut Bremen-based ChannelD went bankrupt and closed down in late 2002. GERMAN TV was more successful, but it was also having trouble getting enough subscribers, and its efforts to get onto major cable TV systems across the U.S. were spotty at best. But GERMAN TVs programming was pretty good. Even if we really couldnt watch anything close to what Germany was really watching, we did get the genuine nightly news from ARD and ZDF, plus some popular German TV series, some movies, and other entertainment programming. Then, in early 2005, came an important breakthrough. GERMAN TV moved to the Dish Network. Now average people who didnt want a separate dish and receiver just for German could simply add GERMAN TV to their Dish subscription. True, you needed a larger SuperDish antenna, but compared to the pre-Dish situation, it was a major improvement. And it got even better when the German private TV broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 Welt was added to Dishs German package in February 2005. For about $20 a month you could get both German channels. (Recently, Dish added a third German channel: EuroNews. The current package fee is $16.99/month or $186.89 annually. Separately: $14.99 for ProSieben, $9.99 for DW-TV. Prices subject to change.) But all good things must come to an end. On December 31, 2005 came the Garaus (end) for GERMAN TV. The German government was no longer willing to subsidize the ARD/ZDF/DW service. At the start of 2006 GERMAN TV was replaced with the much more modest offerings of DW-TV. The Deutsche Welle TV service broadcasts mostly news and cultural programming on the old GERMAN TV channel, alternating each hour between German and English. (More below.) The current situation can be summed up this way: DW-TV provides mostly news, and is also good for people in your home who do not understand German. There is some soccer, but mostly highlights and summaries. The new ARD/ZDF talk shows (as of May 2007) are a great improvement. ProSiebenSat.1 Welt is primarily entertainment and sports. It offers movies in German, detective series, comedy, quiz shows, etc. The news (from N24) is limited. Soccer fans will also enjoy Pro7. The new EuroNews channel is what the name says: European news in several languages, including German. (But read about the EuroNews catch on the next page.) A SuperDish antenna (an oval dish larger than the standard round dish) is required for reception of the German and other foreign-language channels. On the next page youll find a more detailed overview of the three channels in the Dish Network German Package. NEXT Programming Comparisons Programming Comparisons DW-TVThe former GERMAN TV channel on Dish Network is now the DW-TV channel. Although Deutsche Welle broadcasts worldwide in many languages (radio and TV), the version in the USA is in German and English only. Unlike GERMAN TV, which had all its programming in German, DW-TV alternates between English and German. For one hour the news and other broadcasts are in German. In the next hour the programming is in English, and so on. DW-TV focuses primarily on news, weather, and cultural information. The news broadcast Journal provides the news sports, and weather from Berlin, alternately in German and English. The news (worldwide and from Germany/Europe) is primarily aimed at viewers outside of Germany, unlike the nightly news from ARD or ZDF. Non-news shows pop up occasionally, including euromaxx (fashion, art, cinema, music, other trends), Pop Export (music made in Germany), and a few others. Earlier DW-TV hinted at possibly providing some ARD or ZDF (German public TV networks) entertainm ent programs in the future, and in May 2007 they did indeed add several German talk shows from ARD and ZDF. WEB DW-TV - USA ProSiebenSat.1 Welt (Pro7)Pro7 began broadcasting its U.S. programming in February 2005. The German commercial television network ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG was part of the Kirch Media empire until Leo Kirch went bankrupt in 2002. The network was put up for sale, but as of early 2006, the final fate of Pro7 and all its divisions was still up in the air. For American viewers the ProSiebenSat.1 Welt channel is part of Dish Networks German package. Its programming is a mix of shows from Germanys Pro7, kabel eins, N24, and Sat.1 channels. Although it can be purchased separately, the Pro7 channel makes a good complement to news-oriented DW-TV by offering viewers more entertainment and sports. All-German Pro7 has a schedule that includes talk shows, detective series, comedy shows, movies, soap operas, and quiz shows. Pro7 also features some documentary/exposà © reporting and N24 news, but its emphasis is on entertainment programing that can range from inane low-brow to quality high-brow leve ls. Although it would be interesting for American viewers, the German versions of The Simpsons, Will Grace or Desperate Housewives seen in Germany are not available on the U.S. Pro7 channel. ProSieben has plans to also be available in Canada. WEB ProSiebenSat.1 Welt NEW! As of May 2007 the German Kino Plus movie channel is now a part of the DISH German Package! More... EuroNewsIn December 2006 Dish Network added the EuroNews network to its German channel line-up. EuroNews in German is now available as part of the German package (and some other language packages). However, there is a catch to getting this new channel. Although I have a SuperDish and currently receive the German-language package, a Dish representative told me that I would need a new satellite dish in order to receive the EuroNews channel, even though it is part of the package I already have! Because the EuroNews channels come from a different satellite, I would have to pay $99.00 to install a new dish in order to receive EuroNews in German. This is not at all clear from their Web site, and I think its ridiculous for Dish to supposedly add a channel to my package that I cant get without shelling out almost a hundred dollars. If youre lucky enough to live in the right spot with a dish pointed to the right satellite, you may be able to get EuroNews in German without major extra cost. WEB EuroNewsWEB Dish Network German Package

Thursday, December 19, 2019

Cure for Blindness - Ralph Ellisons Invisible Man Essay

Ralph Ellisons Invisible Man was a crucial literary tool in raising awareness of and forwarding the equal rights movement for African Americans when it reached readers of all races in the 1950s. The Cultural Contexts for Ralph Ellisons Invisible Man claims that the novel envisions nothing less than undoing African Americans cultural dispossession. Ellisons words are indeed an eloquent unraveling of social stereotypes and racisms. He employs allegorical conceptions of blindness and invisibility to dissect culturally ingrained prejudices and ignorance towards African Americans. Ellison also uses IMs settings and characters to reflect America and its stereotypes in order to achieve this goal. Throughout the novel there are†¦show more content†¦The white men attending the fight are also in a sense blinded by their perceptions of black people. The boys in the ring are reduced to bloodthirsty animals fighting for survival. This horrific, yet powerful depiction begs the reader to acknowledge such blinding prejudices that remain prevalent in American society. Later in the book, the narrator begins to remove this symbolic blindfold. As Ellison is calling for his audience to see clearly, the narrator addresses the dilemma at a Brotherhood rally: They think were blind--un-commonly blind. And I dont wonder. Think about it, theyve dispossessed us each of one eye from the day were born. So now we can only see in straight white lines. Were a nation of one-eyed mice-- Did you ever see such a sight in your life? Such an un-common sight! (Ellison, pp. 343) His speech attempts to enlighten those in attendance as well as the reader to the dispossession of black Americans. The complexity of this issue arises when the narrator finds himself blinded by the spotlight and ironically unable to clearly see his listeners. Without possessing sight of his own it would be impossible to lead others out of the darkness. Ellison seeks unity, however the truths of oppression must first be willingly seen and understood by all. The dispossession of one good eye is also further exemplified in the character of Brother Jack, who as a leader of the Brotherhood represents them

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Accounting Standard Conceptual Framework

Question: Discuss about the case study Accounting Standard for Conceptual Framework. Answer: Introduction Conceptual framework is used by Australian Accounting Standard Board to develop and evaluate accounting standard. Australian accounting standards are applicable to all the entities that are required to prepare financial reports under Corporations Act 2001. Many Australian accounting standard requirements are specific in nature that is they are applicable only to few specific Australian entities. Such requirement may require additional disclosure or may require reporting on regulatoryor other issues. Many entities in Australia are required to follow Australian accounting standard in preparing their financial statement as per Corporation Act 2001. Compliance with the conceptual framework and AASB standards in financial reporting AGL Energy Limited Conceptual framework deals with essential financial reporting issues like objective of financial statement, the users of the financial statement, the things that enhance the use of the financial statements. It also set out the rules and concept to recognize and measure these basics in the financial reporting. (AGL, 2015) It can be clearly seen in the annual report of AGL Energy that all the Australian Accounting Standards have been adhered to while preparing the financial statement and also the company has complied with the conceptual framework. It is the primary responsibility of the management of the company to comply with Australian accounting standard while preparing the financial statement of the company. This has been clearly complied with as it can be seen in the annual report, in the directors declaration. The directors are responsible for preparation of Concise Financial Reports in accordance with Accounting Standard AASB 1039 Concise Financial Reports and Corporation Act 2001 and for such internal control as may be deem fit for adherence to the standard. As per the declaration made by the director of the company , Jeremy Maycock, the companys financial statements and the notes thereto have been prepared in compliance with Accounting standard AASB 1039 Concise Financial Reports( see Figure 1 ). The annual report has also mentioned the same in its notes to concise Financial statement in its note 1 mentioning on that have prepared its consice financial statement on the basis of the accounting standard ( see Figure 2) Figure 1 Figure 2 As per AAS 8 Operating Segment, the companies are required to report all the information of its segment in a similar manner in which it uses it for internal purpose for reviewing its segment performance. As per the standard any change in the segment are required to be reported in the annual report. The company has complied with the standard. The company has reported the change in the form of segment restatement as AAS8 (See Figure 3) Figure 3 As per Australian Accounting Standard AASB 139 Financial instruments-Recognition and Measurement, derivatives are to be reported at fair value in the financial statements. Changes in the fair value of the derivative in between the reporting period are to be recognized as an adjustment to hedge reserve in the equity if they are effective hedges. Changes in the fair value of derivative in between two reporting period are to be adjusted to the profit and loss account if such changes are recognized as ineffective hedge. The standard further clarifies that the derivative will be regarded as an effective hedge if the change in the fair value of the item hedged and change in the fair value of the derivative considerably counterbalance each other. Other derivatives will be regarded as ineffective hedge. The company uses derivative largely to manage the risk involved in the price of electricity and risk involved in fluctuation of foreign exchange and interest rates. Thus the company consider the transactions as hedging in nature and speculative in nature. As per AGL Energy its most of the derivatives are ineffective hedges as per the definition provided by the standard AASB 139. Hence the company has recognised the profit of $237 million per tax and $166 million post tax inits profit and loss account.(AGL,2015)The company had similar profit of $40 million pre-tax and $28 million post tax in its profit and loss account in previous financial year. The company has also reconciled the financial position movement in derivative balance and shown it in the annual report thereby complying with the standard requirement. (See figure 4). Figure 4 The company has also further made statutory disclosure of showing AGLs annual performance of past five years have been shown in the report which is required by the standard. Also for adoption of revised AASB 119 Employee Benefit financial year 2013 figures have been restated. (Julia Irvine, 2015). The company has prepared its financial statement as per the laid down standards are also verified by the auditors of the company. The company auditor has acknowledged the same in its auditors report. However, as per AASB 1039 the company is required to mention and disclose everything in its concise financial report too. The company has failed to comply with that part of the standard which is reflected in its auditors report. ( see figure 5) Figure 5 Origin Energy Limited The company has too complied with all the Australian Accounting Standards while preparing the financial statements. The company has made all the necessary disclosure as are required by the Australian accounting standard to be made in its annual report. The company has specifically mentioned in its annual report the financial statement have been prepared as per Corporations Act 2001and other authoritative pronouncement by Australian accounting standard board and International Financial reporting standards. It has further also adopted all new and amended Accounting Standards and the interpretations as issued by AASB from time to time. Further the company has disclosed in its notes to financial statement that where the company is of the opinion that the new standard or the amended standard has no significant impact on the group then the same has not been followed( See figure 6). The company has also incorporated AASB 101 Presentation of financial Statements in its report stating that the financial statement of its consolidated entities also complies with the International Financial Reporting Standard. Origin Energy has made a point to mention the fact in its remuneration report that the remuneration and the related party disclosure have been prepared in accordance with Corporations Act 2001 and in compliance with AASB124 Related party disclosure. Moreover, the director has declared that financial statement has been prepared based on the conceptual framework and per the directions and regulations of Australian Accounting Standard Board in its annual report.(Julia Irvine, 2013) Figure 6 Thus Origin Limited has adhered to the Australian accounting standard while reporting its financial statement in its annual report and has also complied with the new or amended standards where such standard has significant impact on its financial statement. Comparison Between the disclosures in annual report by AGL energy and Origin Energy AGL Energy and Origin Energy, both the company has got unmodified opinion from its respective auditors. Though the company belong to same industry there annual report and their style of preparing the financial statement vary significantly. Origin limited has made sure to mention the compliance of Australian Accounting Standard in quite a few places where AGL Energy has failed to do so. (Australian Government, n.d.)However, there were few instances where the annual report of AGL Energy appeared to be more descriptive as compared to its competitors annual report. AGL Energy has complied with AASB 1039 Concise Financial Reports. It has also made notes to Concise Financial Statement in its financial report. The same is not present in the annual report of Origin energy. Neither any disclosure has been made for non-compliance of the same in its notes to financial statement. AGL energy does not mention compliance of AASB 124 Related party disclosure in its Remuneration report. It does not provide a note that the remuneration and all the related party transaction have been made in compliance with Australian accounting standard board 124. (Spiffy D, 2011)Whereas Origin Energy has made a point to mention the same in its notes to remuneration report. Origin Energy has mentioned in its annual report that it has also considered new standards and amended standards while preparing the financial statement of the company. It has further mentioned that where the new standard or the amended standard has no significant impact on the group profit, according to the directors, then the same have been ignored and mere disclosure of the such departure from the standards have been made in the annual reports. For example, AASB 9 Financial Instrument proposes to make a change in classification and measurement of financial instrument and AASB 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers have introduced this important principle where the entity recognise revenue to show the transfer of intended goods to be transferred in an amount that will reflect the consideration that the company is expects to be received in exchange of the goods or services. (AASB Framework, 2013)Apart from these two standards the company is assessing the other amended or new standards and assessing the impact of such standards. Having read that, one will absolutely find the absence of the same in the annual report of AGL Energy. AGL Energy has fa iled to disclose that it has complied with the new or amended Australian accounting standards. Origin Energy Limited has further specified about compliance with AASB 101 Presentation of Financial Statement. It has mentioned that the financial statements of its consolidated entities have been prepared in accordance with the international financial reporting standard. AGL Energy, despite of having many consolidated entities has failed to specify about the compliance of AASB 101in its financial statement. Origin Energy Limited has mentioned about compliance of international financial reporting standards in quite a few places. For instance, about its non-IFRS measures.(Julia Irvine, 2013)AGL Energy has not mentioned at all about its non-IFRS measures. Neither the company has mentioned in its financial statements that it has complied with international financial reporting standards while preparing its annual report. The AGL Energy Company has also not made full disclosure in its concise financial reporting. The Concise Financial Reporting calls for full disclosure of the facts but the company has not fully complied with the standard and hence the same has been mentioned in the auditors report suggesting that reading the concise financial report cannot be substituted with reading the full audited financial reports as the investors or the shareholders can miss out on important disclosures that the company has not otherwise made in its concise financial reports.(Graham Holt, 2016) Inclusion of Prudence in Conceptual Framework Prudence appears to be a very simple word with dictionary meanings like careful, wise, cautious, well-judged, circumspect etc. In financial reporting prudence is important as the users of the financial statement expect that the management is careful while arriving at the figures that are presented in the annual accounts. Also management is expected to apply its judgement wisely because many figures reflected in the financial statement are based on certain estimation. But if the same word is included in the definition of conceptual framework then it becomes equally complex to interpret in a correct manner. Prudence is nothing but to make caution judgement about losses in the event of uncertainty, as per IASB. In the absence of this word, wrong-doers are taking advantage of the opportunity. (AASB Framework, 2013) Where ever making judgement is required management see this as a chance to overstate the performance of the company to avoid the negative consequences or to understate the performance which will provide them with the reserve to run the company smoothly in future. Investors using such financial statement for investing their hard earned money often land up making wrong investment and end up miss-allocating their funds.(Spiffy D, 2011) The concept of prudence will help to align the interest of shareholders with that of the mangers. The concept of prudence can help to balance the optimistic bias of the companies. If the prudence is included in the definition of conceptual framework then it would help to achieve neutrality in application of accounts. (Sally Ngeno, n.d.) Conclusion The company should prepare its financial statement complying the conceptual framework and accounting standard laid by AASB keeping in mind the concept of prudence. It is reflected from the above analysis that the Company has complied with the all the requirements of the standard.The compliance of standard is providing fair presentation of the companies accounts and operation. The company should maintain the same level of compliance in future as well. The policies and standards of the company are also in compliance with AASB and IASB. Also the financial statements of the company have been prepared in compliance of corporation act, 2001. References Financial Times,n.d.,Definition of Conceptual Framework,[online], Available at https://lexicon.ft.com/Term?term=conceptual-framework, [accessed on 2-08-2016] AGL, 2015, Annual Report,[online], Available at https://www.agl.com.au/-/media/AGL/About-AGL/Documents/Investor-Centre/150826_AnnualReport_1466512.pdf?la=en, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Origin Energy, 2015,Annual Report,[online], Available at https://www.originenergy.com.au/content/dam/origin/about/investors-media/docs/annual-report-2015.pdf, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Graham Holt,2016,Bringing clarity to the conceptual framework,[online], Available at https://www.accaglobal.com/in/en/discover/cpd-articles/corporate-reporting/holt-jan16.html, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Rachel Knubley,2014,Staff Paper,[online], Available at https://www.ifrs.org/Meetings/MeetingDocs/IASB/2014/May/AP10I-Conceptual%20Framework.pdf, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Alfred Wagenhofer,2015,The never ending story of Prudence,[online], Available at https://www.ifac.org/global-knowledge-gateway/business-reporting/discussion/never-ending-story-prudence-and-ifrs, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Julia Irvine,2013,ISAB lacking is prudence,[online], Available at https://economia.icaew.com/news/july2013/iasb-lacking-in-prudence, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Julia Irvine,2015,ISAB reintroduces the concept of prudence,[online], Available at https://economia.icaew.com/news/may-2015/prudence-returns, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Spiffy D,2011,The Prudence concept in financial accounting,[online], Available at https://hubpages.com/business/The-prudence-concept-in-financial-accounting, [accessed on 2-08-2016] AASB Framework,2013,Amendment to Australian conceptual framework,[online], Available at https://www.aasb.gov.au/admin/file/content105/c9/AASB_CF_2013-1_12-13.pdf, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Australian Government,n.d.,Conceptual framework,[online], Available at https://www.aasb.gov.au/Pronouncements/Conceptual-framework.aspx, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Discussion Paper,2014,A review of the conceptual framework for financial reporting,[online], Available at https://www.ifrs.org/current-projects/iasb-projects/conceptual-framework/discussion-paper-july-2013/documents/discussion-paper-conceptual-framework-july-2013.pdf, [accessed on 2-08-2016] FRC,n.d.,Conceptual Framework,[online], Available at https://www.frc.org.uk/Our-Work/Corporate-Governance-Reporting/Accounting-and-Reporting-Policy/Research/IASB-Conceptual-Framework.aspx, [accessed on 2-08-2016] Sally Ngeno,n.d.,Evaluation of Conceptual Framework of Accounting, [online], Available at https://www.academia.edu/5992232/evaluation_of_conceptual_frameworks_of_accounting, [accessed on 2-08-2016]

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Robert Maxwell Essays - Robert Maxwell, United Kingdom, Maxwell

Robert Maxwell INTRODUCTION Robert Maxwell, the infamous tycoon who is remembered as much for his personality and ethics in his business dealings as he is for his accomplishments. BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION Soldier, publisher and patriot, a man who spoke 9 languages; in 1923 Robert Maxwell was born in Czechoslovakia. He was and is a mystery in many respects. Even his birth name is questionable.. Maxwell had many reasons to rebel against the norms of the world. One of these was the Holocaust. Although Maxwell personally escaped the horrors of the Holocaust, he lost his parents and four brothers and sisters to the Nazis. He fought with the British against the Nazis and was awarded a British Military Cross for his wartime accomplishments. After the war Maxwell had seven children with his French-born wife Elizabeth. He would soon begin work on his business empire as well. He was a very strong person who knew what he wanted. Robert Maxwell was used to keep a high image even during bad times, he depended on bankers and high society people to keep high credibility. This man was used to having whatever he wanted wherever he was overall he led an extremely luxurious lifestyle. BUSINESS DIVERSIONS Between his death in 1991 and the end of World War II Robert Maxwell was able to build one of the largest publishing and communications empires in the world. He accumulated approximately two billion dollars worth of family assets and was the fifth or sixth biggest media group in the world. His companies included the Mirror group of newspapers, Maxwell Communications, Nimbus Records, P.F. Collier, Official Airline Guide, Prentice Hall Information Services, Macmillan publishing, the Berlitz language schools, and Pergamon Press, a technical publishing company. The road to success was not straight up for Maxwell. He experienced numerous financial ups and downs over the forty years following Word War II. Pergamon Press, one of his first acquisitions had to be sold in the 1960s but Maxwell eventually bought it again and was forced to resell the company during the 1980s. Publishing was not Maxwells only pursuit. His companies also included numerous television industry interests fifty percent ownership of MTV in Europe, twenty percent of Central TV, twelve percent of the French TFI station and Maxwell Cable TV. Most of these holdings are through Maxwell Entertainment Company, which also was a major provider of European television programming. Maxwells business interests also included online pursuits such as the Official Airlines Guides, a front-runner in online flight information and reservations. Only two years before his death Maxwells finances were going down by 1990 he was running out of cash he was secretly buying his own shares so that they maintained high prices. Maxwell concealed his financial problems by secretly selling other peoples shares that were deposited with Maxwells recently established bank. He and his closest son Cavan used these shares to raise loans. These secretly sold shares in FIRST TOKIO TRUST investment fund were worth ?57 million. The funds directors discovered that shares were missing and investigations took place at this stage. He was desperate to repay his debts his next target were pension funds he offered in one of the companys. With this company he was using advertising, encouraging customers to stay and in return he was making promises. Among the pension funds; shares plumed by Robert Maxwell, certificates of 25 Million shares clearly owed by the mirror pension fund, bankers Goldman Sachs sold them on Maxwells instruction. But proceeds were not handed over to the pension funds instead it was paid from the banker straight to Maxwell. He was smart he always chose companies or individuals he thought he could manage. Hence, after a major disagreement with his personal assistant that left him, Maxwell was going through depression because he felt lost and knew that she had all sorts of important information. Pressure accumulated and he didnt know whom to speak too. His next attempt was when he went and bought the US Daily News, and was extremely popular in the US while ignoring the empire back home. Meanwhile, directors of FIRST TOKIO remained quiet about his business affairs because they knew they were in fault and reputation was concerned. Maxwell was still stealing millions from wherever he could