Category: Business

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From Ars Technica: Bad financial algorithm leads to severe stock market disarray

A stock-trading algorithm gone awry appears to have thrown American stock markets into chaos on Wednesday, following a surge of volatile trading after the opening bell. Many of the country’s biggest companies were affected, including Bank of America, Alcoa, General Electric, Berkshire Hathaway, Citigroup, and American Airlines.

Financial news sites have pinpointed the problem to Knight Capital Group. The brokerage firm’s algorithm appears to have triggered purchases and sales of millions of shares for 30 minutes.

Algorithmic trading, where stock transactions are mediated by high-speed data connections and software rather than humans, is something that’s been rapidly overtaking the industry in recent years. The infamous “flash crash” of 2010 led to a loss of 573 points on the Dow Jones Industrial Average in five minutes.

from Ars Technica

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From Engadget: Verizon to stop blocking tethering apps, settles with FCC for $1.25 million

Verizon to stop blocking tethering apps, settles with FCC for $1.25

In May of last year, our free ride came to an end. US carriers started blocking third party tethering apps in the Android Market. Not long after, the built in feature was turned off on most phones. Our fortune may be reversing, however. The FCC has ruled that Verizon violated the rules governing the C Block of LTE spectrum by preventing consumers from using any application of their choice. The end result: Big Red will have to open up its airwaves and allow customers to circumvent its $20 a month tethering plan using apps from the Play store — so long as you’re on a “usage-based pricing plan.” Though it’s not explicitly stated, we assume that means those of you lucky enough to be grandfathered in to the unlimited data plans are left out. In addition to unblocking apps such as PdaNet and Barnacle, Verizon must pay a $1.25 million settlement to put an end to the investigation. For a few more details of the plan put in place to ensure compliance with the ruling, check out the PR after the break.

 

from Engadget

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From Autoblog: Report: 10 cities where homes cost less than a car

Things are not getting better everywhere. That’s one of the themes in the 247WS.com story that points to 10 American cities where homes are cheaper than many new cars.

The list spans across the nation from Florida, to New Jersey to Ohio. But Michigan catches the brunt of the poorly priced real estate market, with Detroit taking the best of the worst honor by having the median listing price is $21,000 for a house, according to Trulia.com. That kind of change might get you a Chevy Cruze or Hyundai Elantra.

A new midsize sedan in the driveway should not cost more than the house it’s parked next to.

In reverse order, here’s the list and the city’s median price for a home. Sadly, it’s easy to pick a vehicle that costs more than any of these prices.

10. Port Richey, Florida: $59,900
9. Holiday, Florida: $59,900
8. Youngstown, Ohio: $57,550
7. Dearborn Heights, Michigan: $55,000
6. Whiting, New Jersey: $52,450
5. Warren, Michigan: $49,900
4. Redford, Michigan: $40,000
3. Gary, Indiana: $39,900
2. Flint, Michigan: $31,950
1. Detroit, Michigan: $21,000

from Autoblog