The G20 represents the world's most important industrialised and developing economies and is the premier forum for international economic growth and development across the globe. Next month's meeting in Mexico brings an opportunity for the G20 to recognise the critical role that women play in global economic growth and stability in roles as producers, consumers, employees, and entrepreneurs. It is the G20's duty to call for women's inclusion to ensure they receive access to finance, markets, ownership of land, and the education and training that will allow them to operate in today's economy.
In these challenging financial times the world cannot afford to ignore the collective potential of women to contribute to economic development whilst improving the wellbeing of their families. Their business acumen is very often underpinned by a drive not only to improve their own future but also to provide for their families.
The meeting of the G20 leaders is an important event when changes can be made and challenges discussed. This year advancing financial inclusion for economic growth has been established as top priorities for the summit.
Women all over the world are constantly faced with the inability to provide for themselves and their family, blocked by discrimination and cultural norms forcing them to face an unnecessarily bleak future. Although women are often the main provider for the family, they are disadvantaged by access to finance or no access at all. If this was rectified they would be able to pay for their children to go to school and enable the next generation to have a better future, as well as be more stable providers for the family.
Agriculture plays a critical role in millions of women's survival. By giving a women access to finance in a rural village, she can purchase a solar panel and start a small business through her neighbours paying to charge their electrical goods, or she can purchase livestock to feed her family and produce goods to sell. Equal access to finance will open many doors for these women who currently have nowhere to turn and are discriminated against because of their gender.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation and Farming First have produced an interactive graphic showing how women play a leading role in agriculture around the world and the challenges they are up against due to inequality. Investing in rural women has been proven to dramatically increase productivity and positively impact their lives. This doesn't just help women but also the family they are providing for and the communities they are members of.
On average in developing countries, 43% of the agricultural labour force are women and account for an estimated two-thirds of the world's 600 million poor livestock keepers. These women are discriminated against by societies, laws, tradition and access, that prevent them from owning and inheriting land.
By removing these gender discriminations it would dramatically improve food and nutrition security globally, and enable millions of women to provide for their families.
There are signs of progress with the G20 Finance Ministers recognising the need to increase women's access to financial services. This has been helped by the organisation La Pietra Coalition who has been asking the G20 to take action to advance women's financial inclusion, by endorsing the recommendations of the IFC and GPFI, and to insist that progress towards those commitments for women be measured and reported publicly.
I urge banks to work to ensure women have access and support to be able to obtain finance. I call on the G20 leaders to create the environment where women receive the support they deserve and require in order to continue to build on their contribution to the global economy. If the G20 collaborates with banks we can really start to tackle the disparities that exist in the global market and work towards creating a better environment for women.
Follow Baroness Mary Goudie on Twitter: www.twitter.com/BaronessGoudie
Dutch goal to tackle football finance issues - BBC News
Dutch club football has been through rocky times recently, as its teams have struggled to make a dent in European football competitions.
And two years ago it also saw its football teams hit by financial woes, that resulted in the country's oldest club, Haarlem, go out of business.
At the same time the country's professional clubs booked a combined loss of 90m euros (£73m; $115m), and another club, Veendam, escaped bankruptcy by the skin of its teeth.
Those financial troubles came to light during the tri-annual monetary checks carried out as part of the Dutch FA's (KNVB) club licensing system.
And it is that same system - which also allows for KNVB supervision of failing clubs' budgets - that has ultimately steadied the boat, and now means teams should be fair-placed for Uefa's incoming Financial Fair Play regulations.
Under the rules clubs must be able to financially break even from 2013/14 if they want to compete in the Champions League or Europa League.
'Transfer fees'"Financially, most Dutch clubs have gone through difficult times, but have adapted to financial and economic circumstances, and hopefully have left the low points behind them," says Ivo Trijbits, Ajax's head of legal affairs.
Unlike England, Italy, Germany, France and Spain, Dutch clubs are not in the European big leagues.
That means clubs in the Netherlands get considerably less TV money than their counterparts.
However, for the size of the nation - 16 million people - their teams do proportionately well when it comes to sponsorship deals.
"What other income sources are there for Dutch clubs?" says Mr Trijbits, in the UK to attend the annual C5 Sports Law and Business conference in London.
"There is gate money, Champions League participation for some, and transfer fees, where hopefully money will then cascade down to the smaller clubs."
He cites the transfer of Luis Saurez to Liverpool from Ajax, who then bought a replacement from fellow Dutch club AZ Alkmaar, who then brought in a new striker from the US.
Licensing systemHowever, the days when there was a production line of global superstar players such as Johan Cruyff, Marco van Basten, Dennis Bergkamp, and Ruud Gullit, have gone, although the country still produces top class footballers.
But in the current global climate purchasers are more cautious.
"Because of economic troubles this source of [transfer] income has fallen away from many clubs," says Mr Trijbits.
One of the key aims of club licensing in Dutch football is to ensure teams do not go bust mid-season.
Regulations were revised in 2004 to include greater scrutiny of clubs' finances and corporate structures to avoid bankruptcy.
This system has been described by Max Van Den Berg, the Dutch politician and former MEP, as "intended to be transparent, sound and geared to clubs' long-term solvency".
Action planClubs have to submit financial information in November, March and June, including full-year results for the previous year, half-year results, financial projections, and budgets for the forthcoming year.
“Start Quote
End Quote Ivo Trijbits Ajax AmsterdamThe Uefa goal is that a club will not spend more than its own turnover, and not rely on third party financial injections”
The licensing committee judges clubs as being either economically inadequate, adequate, or having excellent finances.
Of the 36 professional clubs in the country's two professional leagues just six currently fall into the first category, 20 the second, and some nine are deemed to be in prime financial health. Club MVV has still to be appraised.
That is an improvement on 2010 and 2011 when 13 were deemed to be financially inadequate, and found themselves having to draw up a three-year action plan by the KNVB.
Other aspects of the Dutch licensing system include examining the legal structure of clubs to ensure no one individual can exercise an undue influence and that the administrative side of things is healthy.
If clubs are not up to scratch there are three potential sanctions; the most widely used being adherence to an economic action plan under KNVB direction.
However, there is also the possibility of being able to deduct points or impose fines, with the ultimate sanction being the withdrawal of a club's licence.
This is what happened with Haarlem in January 2010, when they were declared bankrupt.
Despite being the oldest club in Holland, formed in 1889, they were excluded from professional football with immediate effect. A merged club now plays in amateur football.
If it, or any Dutch club, wants to move up the pyramid from amateur and semi-professional to the professional leagues, a solid business plan has to be approved by the authorities.
The KNVB licensing team ensures clubs must pay what is owed to employees, to other clubs, and into player pension funds.
It is also integrating the Uefa financial fair play demands into its issue of licences, to ensure that big clubs like Ajax can play in the Champions League without fear of Uefa sanctions.
'Creative' financial solutions"The Uefa goal is that a club will not spend more than its own turnover, and not rely on third party financial injections," says Mr Trijbits.
While he believes that the Uefa system "will contribute" to more sensible budgeting by clubs, "it cannot guarantee that financial fair play will be achieved".
"Clubs will look for 'creative' financial solutions and options," he adds.
And, although the final shape of Uefa's sanctions against transgressing clubs has not taken final shape, the Ajax man believes that fines would only add to the burden of clubs in debt.
"I prefer the Dutch way of a strict action plan," he says.
He adds that Ajax, which has just won its second Eredivisie under coach Frank de Boer, cannot pay £50m for a Fernando Torres, as Chelsea did.
Despite that, in the new financial landscape Dutch clubs are fortunate to have their legacy of youth player development.
"The philosophy of Ajax is not about buying big money signings," says Mr Trijbits.
"Our philosophy is more about developing young talent, and after they have had a period in the first team then maybe a transfer can take place."
Money to preserve Mitchelville community on Hilton Head tied up in SC budget debate - Island Packet Online
The S.C. Senate debated amendments to the 2012-13 budget Tuesday and Wednesday. Among them is a measure from Sen. Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, stripping $4 million worth of projects earmarked for private nonprofits and local governments, including $200,000 for the Mitchelville Preservation Project.
Some senators, however, are considering whether the money could be routed through state agencies, which would decide how best to disburse the dollars.
Sen. Tom Davis, R-Beaufort, who supports Mitchelville's restoration, says he will vote in favor of Massey's amendment.
"I think preserving Mitchelville is a worthy project, but it ought not be funded via a political earmark in the budget," Davis said. "All politicians think their projects are worthy. That's why it's important for the projects to go through a competitive selection process before the appropriate executive agency, which in the case of Mitchelville would be the Department of Archives and History."
Davis believes he can persuade the state agency to fund its preservation, and says he's eager to help, comparing the effort to preserving Civil War battlefields of Gettysburg, Pa., and Manassas, Va.
"It's an extraordinary story, a compelling reminder of a defining moment in our nation's history right here in our own backyard," he said. "I am a strong proponent of limited government, but preserving something of great historical significance is a proper state function, and I am prepared to advocate its funding to the appropriate state agency in an open and competitive process."
THE PAST
Mitchelville was established in 1862, nine months before the Emancipation Proclamation and a year after Union ships drove Confederate troops from Hilton Head Island.
Barracks were initially set up for "contraband" slaves left behind Union lines and those who fled to freedom from plantations on nearby islands. Living conditions, however, soon became intolerable.
Union Gen. Ormsby Mitchel, for whom Mitchelville is named, issued military orders freeing the slaves and setting land aside to create the village. Each family was given a quarter-acre plot to build a home and grow crops. The village of 1,500 or so was built along what is now Beach City Road at the island's north end.
The freedmen elected their own officials and passed their own laws, including the first compulsory education law in the South, before Constitutional amendments granted such rights for African Americans.
THE PRESENT
The nonprofit group seeking to preserve the site hopes to use the state money to help buy plots adjoining 35-acres of town- and county-donated land along Beach City Road.
The land abuts Fish Haul Creek Park, which the Town of Hilton Head has tentatively agreed to lease to the group so parts of the village can be recreated. The 10.5 acres would help the group preserve more of Mitchelville, which over time has been split, built up, sold, resold and eyed for development.
"We want to acquire as much of the original Mitchelville land as we can to preserve the spot where these freed slaves saw the dawn of freedom," newly named project chairman Randy Dolyniuk said.
The group is particularly interested in buying Jerre Weckhorst's house, a replica home and headquarters for Gen. Mitchel, which includes a trove of artifacts from the mid-19th century and earlier.
The house is not on the market, but Weckhorst said he will consider selling to the Mitchelville group.
The nonprofit group hopes it can purchase the five parcels for about $2.9 million.
"Two-hundred thousand dollars is a drop in the bucket, but is a very important drop in the bucket," Dolyniuk said. "That may be the seed money that will help us leverage more donations."
There is no timetable for completion of the project, which is in its early stages. Plans include ongoing archeological digs and research; replicas of cottages, a school, and a prayer house; commemorative statues and a welcome center.
"It's a shame more people, even those in Beaufort County, don't know about Mitchelville," Davis said. "We rightly recognize Penn Center and the historic district of downtown Beaufort, but don't give Mitchelville its due, and I will do whatever I can to raise public awareness and ensure it is preserved."
The Associated Press contributed to this story
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FINANCE VIDEO: McEwen Mining (TSE:MUX) Senior Vice President Ian Ball Interviewed at Hard Assets Conference in New York, 2012. - ABN Newswire Chinese
TSE:MUX) Senior Vice President Ian Ball Interviewed at Hard Assets Conference in New York, 2012.ABN Newswire interviews Ian Ball, Senior Vice President of McEwen Mining (TSE:MUX) at the Hard Assets conference in New York, 2012. The following transcript is associated with the full video interview.
Tim Mckinnon
I am with Ian Ball, Senior Vice President of McEwen Mining. Welcome Ian.
Ian Ball
Thank you very much. Thank you for having us today.
Tim Mckinnon
We are at Hard Assets New York. Now listen, just tell me a little bit about McEwen Mining, What does the company do, and how are you involved in it?
Ian Ball
McEwen Mining is a gold/silver producer. We have an operation in Southern Argentina. We are developing our second mine in Mexico and have a third project that is going through the permitting phases in Nevada. In addition we have one of the world's largest copper discoveries in North Western Argentina.
Tim Mckinnon
Fantastic, so what is the immediate project that you have got your focus on right now?
Ian Ball
Right now we are constructing in Mexico, so a lot of our attention is going there to ensure we get it done on time and on budget, as so many in the industry are falling over themselves with that, so that is where most of the immediate attention is going.
Tim Mckinnon
Are there any problems with infrastructure in Mexico because you are operating in a number of different provinces or regions?
Ian Ball
The infrastructure in Mexico is fairly good, we are about 10 kilometers away from electric power, we have paved roads within 2 kilometers of the project and we have good access to water, labor, so with the mine right now, the first phase is 70% built and we expect to have our first gold pour by the end of July.
Tim Mckinnon
End of July? That is very quick. So for investors wanting to get involved now, it is probably a good time?
Ian Ball
Right now a lot of investors are getting cautious because of Argentina with the recent nationalization of the state owned oil company and the new regulations that you see. People are saying "is this the beginning of something more for mining companies", so our share price has been under a lot of pressure because what has been happening in Argentina.
Tim Mckinnon
And across the industry the share prices are down.
Ian Ball
Across the industry certainly, yes.
Tim Mckinnon
But in terms of a company producing gold in the next, what, two months..
Ian Ball
Well we are producing gold right now, we are doing 100,000 ounces of gold a year, and then Mexico will increase that to 130,000 and we are projecting to up go to just under 300,000 ounces.
Tim Mckinnon
So in terms of projections where do you see the organisation in say two to three years?
Ian Ball
We are thinking that in three years we will have Mexico fully ramped up, we will have our Nevada property through the permitting phase and we see ourselves doing around 285,000 ounces of gold equivalent a year.
Tim Mckinnon
That is fantastic, and that would be on a market cap now of...
Ian Ball
Right now our market cap is 650 Million, so we have come off much of the industry.
Tim Mckinnon
So you are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange?
Ian Ball
Toronto Stock Exchange as well as the New York Stock Exchange.
Tim Mckinnon
And if somebody wanted to find out more about these projects or possibly get involved as an investor, they can go to your website?
Ian Ball
Yes, we have www.mcewenmining.com. You can go there for information or you can give us a phone call at our office, and we will be happy to speak to anyone.
Tim Mckinnon
Terrific thank you very much.
Ian Ball
Thank you very much having us. Thank you.
View the Video Interview at:
http://www.abnnewswire.net/press/en/72703/Mcewen
Spain injects €9bn into ailing lender Bankia - Daily Telegraph
The Spanish government had already been forced to part-nationalise the lender earlier this month and reports last week that customers had pulled €1bn out of the bank triggered a 30pc fall in shares.
Mr de Guindos said a total restructuring of the bank would occur after a thorough assessment and that the government would seek to sell Bankia once it has been cleaned up, as part of a strategy to restore investor confidence in the country’s banking sector.
The minister sought to ease concerns as fears about the health of the Spanish banking system have mounted in recent weeks because of their exposure to the collapsed property market. Spanish banks have an estimated €184bn of what the Bank of Spain describes “problematic” real estate-linked assets.
A week ago Moody’s slashed the ratings of 16 Spanish banks, citing the reduced ability of the Spanish government to provide support to the sector, as well as the “adverse operating conditions” created by a renewed recession.
The ratings agency also downgraded Santander UK, although it noted it has “no direct exposure to the Spanish government (or regional governments)”.
Spain has appointed consultancies Oliver Wyman and Roland Berger to carry out a stress test on the nation’s lenders, the results of which are to be published in the second half of June.
“The question is now about the long-term solvency of parts of Spain’s banking system, especially what is going to happen with mortgage loan default. This concern is not being addressed,” said Martin van Vliet, senior economist at ING.
Sound Check: Eddie Money never tires of DTE's energy - The Oakland Press
Eddie Money performs at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 25 at the DTE Energy Music Theatre, Sashabaw Road east of I-75, Independence Township. Tickets are $34.50 pavilion, $10 lawn. Call 248-377-0100 or visit www.palacenet.com. Money also performs June 30 at the Stars & Stripes Festival in Mount Clemens. Visit www.starsandstripesfest.com.
Eddie Money is happy to be the opening act at the DTE Energy Music Theatre on any given year.
But he plans to have the place shakin’ again when he kicks off the amphitheater’s 40th season this weekend.
“Man, I tell ya, I love it,” says Money, 63. He first played at Pine Knob (the name was changed to DTE in 2001) as the season closer in 1983 and has opened nine of the amphitheater’s last 19 summers and played the first weekend of all of those years. “I’ve been playing there a really long time, have had so many great shows there. I remember one time I came out as the band started playing, dressed in a janitor’s uniform, sweeping the stage. Another time I came out with a chef’s hat on and an apron.
“You can do goofy, silly stuff like that at DTE. I like to have fun, and people in that city love to have ... fun, too. This is my big show, y’know? I’m proud of the fact I can do something special like that every year.”
Money (who was born Eddie Mahoney in Brooklyn) is even one of the few veteran artists that doesn’t complain about the name change.
“I like the words Energy Center,” he explains. “Pine Knob was good. I have great memories playing Pine Knob. But Pine Knob could be, like, Sleepy Hollow. I like to have Energy in that name. It means something, I think. But I just like the venue, whatever they call it.”
Money is celebrating an anniversary himself — 35 years since the release of his self-titled debut album, which featured the hits “Baby Hold On” and “Two Tickets to Paradise.” Money recalls being “broke” at the time, and that “Two Tickets” in particular “took me about six months to write.” But mostly Money says the long look back is rewarding.
“It’s been a long run, a lot of fun,” says the father of five whose daughter, onetime MTV “Rock the Cradle” contestant Jesse, frequently performs with him. “You get these kids now who are 5, 7 years old that know Eddie Money songs. When I was growing up my father was into Benny Goodman, Rosemary Clooney. He hated rock ’n’ roll.
“But these kids now grow up with Cheap Trick and REO Speedwagon and Eddie Money and Styx, the Beatles, so it’s really a lot different.”
Eddie Money, Bear Lake and Impossible Tuesday perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 25, at the DTE Energy Music Theatre, Sashabaw Road east of I-75, Independence Township. Tickets are $34.50 pavilion, $10 lawn. Call 248-377-0100 or visit www.palacenet.com. Money also performs June 30 at the Stars & Stripes Festival in Mount Clemens. Visit www.starsandstripesfest.com.
Triumph Expands Commercial Finance Platform With Addition of Industry Veterans Karas and Copple - Marketwatch
DALLAS, May 23, 2012 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) -- via PRWEB - Triumph Commercial Finance, a wholly owned subsidiary of Triumph Savings Bank, SSB, today announced the naming of two senior executives to lead its asset based lending and equipment finance operations. Dan Karas has been named EVP, Asset Based Lending and Dirk Copple will serve as EVP, Equipment Finance.
"The expansion into asset based lending and commercial finance is a logical next step for Triumph," said Aaron P. Graft, CEO of Triumph Savings Bank, SSB. "Earlier this year, we acquired Advance Business Capital, a best in class factoring company. Our plan was to leverage the strength of Advance Business Capital's leadership team and platform to build a mutli-faceted commercial finance organization. With the addition of Dan Karas and Dirk Copple, we've assembled a top notch team to lead us forward."
"Both of these guys are terrific relationship lenders," said Steven Hausman, who besides leading Advance Business Capital will now serve as President and CEO of Triumph Commercial Finance. "Dan Karas and Dirk Copple have each built organizations that really got to know their customers." George Thorson, Advance Business Capital's Chief Operating Officer, will also serve as the Chief Credit Officer for the Triumph Commercial Finance.
Dan Karas to Lead Asset Based Lending
Dan Karas brings nearly thirty years' of experience in all aspects of commercial finance to Triumph Commercial Finance. For the last five years Karas has been Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Marquette Business Credit, where he led Marquette's general factoring business as well as marketing for its asset based lending platform. Prior to that, he spent seven years at GE Commercial Finance/Heller Financial as Managing Director of the Corporate Lending Group, then the Enterprise Client Group and finally Energy Financial Services. He received his BS in Finance and Management from Temple University and his MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University.
Said Karas, "I'm thrilled to be joining a team with the capacity, vision and drive to build an organization that delivers superior value to our clients and stakeholders. Triumph Commercial Finance is a client-centric business designed to meet the growth needs of the small and middle market businesses that play such a critical role in our economy."
Dirk Copple to Lead Equipment Financing
Dirk Copple is a twenty-two year veteran of commercial equipment finance, beginning his career the Associates Commercial Corporation and, subsequently, CitiCapital Commercial Corp. He joined Financial Federal Corporation in 2002, building a significant transportation portfolio for the Southwest region. After Financial Federal was acquired by People's United Bank in 2010, Copple's responsibilities were expanded to include construction equipment and other asset financing. He has a BS in Business Administration from the University of Arkansas.
Said Copple, "There's an energy level to this Triumph team that is truly irresistible. Core values are visible and communicated openly, and there's a commitment to doing business the right way. I'm very honored to be part of the Triumph Commercial Finance team."
Triumph Savings Bank, SSB
Triumph Commercial Finance is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triumph Savings Bank. Triumph Savings Bank was founded in November 2010 when a group of investors led by Dallas entrepreneur Aaron P. Graft, acquired and recapitalized the financially troubled Equity Bank, SSB. Triumph is now pursuing its goal of expanding into non-traditional banking sectors. The bank's commercial finance subsidiary, Triumph Commercial Finance, acquired Advance Business Capital, one of the nation's leading transportation factoring companies, in January of 2012.
Said Graft, "When we evaluate any new business opportunity, we primarily focus on the quality of the people who will lead the team. Our secondary consideration is the market fundamentals for the particular segment. Whenever we find outstanding people with experience in structurally underserved market segments, we move quickly. That's what led to the decision to bring Dan Karas and Dirk Copple to Triumph Commercial Finance to lead us into these new markets, and we are very excited about the future."
This article was originally distributed on PRWeb. For the original version including any supplementary images or video, visit http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/5/prweb9534609.htm
This news release was distributed by GlobeNewswire, www.globenewswire.com
SOURCE: Triumph Savings Bank
CONTACT: Triumph Commercial Finance Steven Hausman SHausman@abcllc.com 214-513-9610
(C) Copyright 2010 GlobeNewswire, Inc. All rights reserved.
I've no idea how much money we make from advertising alongside porn says Google chief - Daily Mail
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Power: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is in a position to filter out adult content for all searches
A google executive claimed yesterday to have ‘no idea’ how much money the search giant makes from advertising alongside online pornography which can be viewed by children.
Sarah Hunter, head of UK public policy for the company, pleaded ignorance during a debate hosted by Google on whether to block porn on the internet to protect youngsters.
A spokesman for the firm later said: ‘We do not break out our revenues for any area.’
But it is clear that Google makes thousands of pounds per day from paid-for advertising alongside search results after a user keys in a word such as ‘porn’ on the British site.
Google’s own AdWords programme, designed to help advertisers work out how much it will cost to buy the top advert next to a key word such as porn, indicates it will cost as much as 8,000 a day.
Adverts further down the list cost less, but Google’s British profits would clearly run to thousands from ads placed next to every word associated with pornography. Worldwide profits would be far more.
Mrs Hunter told the Google Big Tent media event yesterday in Hertfordshire that the responsibility for protecting children from pornography on the internet lies solely with parents.
Her comments fly in the face of a Daily Mail campaign to protect children by blocking internet porn from computers unless an adult user specifically opts in and elects to see the content.
Google has nearly total domination of the search engine market and is in a position to filter out adult content for all searches, but it refuses to do so as it insists it is a parental responsibility.
Campaigners suggested one reason for Google’s insistence that children’s internet use is the responsibility of their parents is the amount of money the search giant makes from porn advertising.
Daily Mail columnist Amanda Platell argued that the internet was ‘full of the most debasing sado-masochistic pornography that no child should ever see’ and said an opt-in policy was the best option.
But Mrs Hunter, a former adviser to Tony Blair on media issues, warned that legislation to filter pornography on the internet was a ‘mistake, absolutely’.
Fortune-maker: The boards at the Nasdaq change one by one as Facebook begins trading at the Nasdaq in Times Square in New York City
BIG BROTHER THREAT
CONCERNS over Google’s creeping intrusion into private life were heightened yesterday when its executive chairman said it would like to know even more about its customers.
Eric Schmidt told the Big Tent event that knowing who users’ friends were and what they cared about would improve its services.
‘Don’t you think that Google search – with your permission, I need to say very precisely – will do a better job if we have more information that singles you out – who you are, what you care about – in terms of search results?’ he asked.
His words will strike a sinister note for civil liberties campaigners who already believe that Google harvests too much information about its users. Nick Pickles, director of Big Brother Watch, said: ‘Sadly it is impossible for the average person to figure out what data Google is collecting and how it is being used, a problem exacerbated by the company’s pursuit of combining data from across its services.
‘As far as companies like Google are concerned, you and I are not their customers, we are their product.’
Asked about the amount of money pornography brings in for Google, which makes almost all of its profits through advertising, Mrs Hunter said: ‘I have no idea. We don’t go out of our way to make money from pornography.
‘Like all search engines, we do allow advertisers to place adverts alongside searches that show adult content.
‘But it’s legal. Let’s just be clear. I don’t see the problem with that as long as we put in place sufficient safeguards, as much as we can, for children.’
The event, at the five-star Grove Hotel, was hosted by Channel 4 figures and free copies of the Guardian were handed out.
The Google spokesman added: ‘Like other search engines, our policies allow ads to appear next to search results that contain links to legal pornography.
'We also place ads on other people’s web pages but not on pornographic sites.
‘We understand that some people don’t want to see this material, or have their kids stumble upon it.
‘Google’s Safe Search screens for adult websites and advertising and removes them from search results.’
'CONCERNS over Googles creeping intrusion into private life',. thats ironic given the DM's stance!!
- dave, wolves, 24/5/2012 06:22
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