Obama Appoints Head of New Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
President Obama appointed Richard Cordray as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a new consumer protection agency, which was created under the Dodd-Frank Act. Cordray became famous for aggressive investigations of mortgage foreclosure practices during his tenure as Ohio attorney general. During confirmation hearings Cordray said that if he was appointed he would streamline regulations and use the new agency’s tools to police consumer financial laws. Under the Dodd-Frank bill, the agency cannot write new rules or supervise financial companies without a permanent director. Obama’s appointment of Cordray is controversial as the appointment came during a Senate recess. Obama nominated Cordray over six months ago and because of a Senate filibuster, the potential appointment was yet to be put to an up or down vote.
Internet Lottery
You might not have to go to your local mini-mart to get lottery tickets anymore. The U.S. Justice Department ruled that states may sell lottery tickets online to local residents. The Department of Justice had previously taken the position that the Wire Act of 1961 precluded such sales, but recent action by the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel concluded that the Wire Act only applies to sports betting. Lotteries already account for $56 billion in annual sales.
Santorum’s Google Problem
What is presidential candidate Rick Santorum’s Google problem? Google “Santorum” and you’ll find out. The first result is “spreadingsantorum.com”, a website created in reaction to a series of comments made by Santorum in 2003 which were criticized as anti-gay. As you probably surmised, spreadingsantorum.com is not a site that flatters the presidential candidate. In this era where many are online 24/7 we all need to be conscientious and protective of our online presence. Mashable posted a guide for Santorum on how to fix his online reputation.
Online and Mobile Advertising Revenues Up in 2011
Online advertisements totaled almost $31 billion in 2011, an increase of 20% over 2010. Online advertisements account for nearly 16% of all ad revenues. 2011 was also an especially great year for mobile advertising in the U.S. as it reached the $1 billion mark in revenues for the first time.
Yahoo! Hires Former PayPal President as New CEO
Just this morning Yahoo! announced that it had hired Scott Thompson as its new CEO. Thompson is a former president of PayPal and comes from a technology background. In a conference call with investors and analysts he vowed to get Yahoo! “back to innovation” and “back to disruptive concepts.” Yahoo!’s investors didn’t react positively to the new appointment as Yahoo! shares dropped 3% today.
Rumor: Apple to Release New More Affordable iPads This Month
A report released late last week claims that Apple will release two new versions of the iPad later this month. Various sources are speculating that the new version will be offered at a lower price point to compete with Amazon’s Kindle Fire.
