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  • Catalin Marinescu este noul presedinte ANCOM

    Guvernul a decis prin ordonanta de urgenta sa desfiinteze Autoritatea Nationala pentru Comunicatii si sa infiinteze o noua institutie, Ancom, care functioneaza sub control parlamentar, cu o conducere propusa de Guvern si numita de seful statului.
     

    Noul presedinte al Ancom, Catalin Marinescu (45 de ani, PD-L), este fostul sef al Inspectoratului General pentru Comunicatii si Tehnologia Informatiei, a fost propus in luna martie a acestui an de catre Guvern la conducerea ANCOM, dupa desfiintarea Autoritatii Nationale pentru Comunicatii(ANC), care a fost condusa de catre Liviu Nistoran.
     

    ANCOM, institutia care stabileste regulile pentru piata de comunicatii din Romania si a carei valoare se ridica la sapte miliarde de euro si 8% din Produsul Intern Brut (PIB) a fost infiintata dupa ce Comisia Europeana a avertizat Romania pentru decizia fostului Guvern de a incheia mandatul lui Liviu Nistoran si de a restructura institutia.
     

  • Centrul Medical Unirea a investit 400.000 euro intr-o noua clinica

    Noua clinica are o suprafata de 110 metri patrati si dispune de cinci cabinete medicale, fiind dedicata in exclusivitate clientilor care dispun de contracte de medicina muncii. Oficialii CMU se asteapta sa efectueze intre 15.000 si 25.00 de controale periodice si controale de angajare anual. Clinica se adauga complexului CMU Iride care are 18 cabinetele medicale.

    CMU a deschis prima clinica in zona Iride acum patru ani, urmand ca intre 2007 si 2009 sa aiba loc extinderi ale clinicii, printr-o investitie cifrata la 1,2 milioane de euro. Compania mizeaza anul acesta pe o cifra de afaceri de 16,5 milioane de euro, in crestere cu 50% comparativ cu cele 11 milioane de euro inregistrate in 2008.

    Pe piata serviciilor medicale private, principalii competitori ai MedLife sunt Medicover, Centrul Medical Unirea, Medcenter, Romar si Gral Medical.

    Cititi aici mai multe detalii despre planurile CMU in 2009.
     

  • Alexandrion si Cava d’Oro contrafacute

    Sticlele false identificate de reprezentantii companiei sunt de 2 litri, iar timbrele si eticheta lor imita foarte bine originalul.

    La nivel national reprezentantii companiei au observat un volum mare de produse contrafacute. “Pentru siguranta consumatorilor si a comerciantilor, care pot intra sub incidenta legii daca nu sunt atenti, am inceput deja procesul de elaborare a noi elemente de siguranta pe ambalajul sticlelor noastre. Ne propunem ca noile ambalaje sa fie gata în maxim 45 de zile,” spune George Christoforidis, managing director Alexandrion Grup Romania.

    Alexandrion Grup, compania romaneasca cu distributie internationala este cel mai mare producator de bauturi alcoolice din Romania. Compania a înregistrat în 2008 vanzari brute de 83 de milioane euro. Printre produsele companiei se numara: Alexandrion, Brancoveanu, Cava d’Oro, Kreskova, Alexander, Red Bowler scotch whisky si alte 20 de marci de brandy si de spirtoase albe.
     

  • Best Distribution: Vom creste cu 38% in 2009

    In 2008, vanzarile de jocuri video si console ale companiei s-au ridicat la 5,8 milioane de euro fara TVA, cresterea fata de anul anterior fiind de 45 de procente. Din totalul vanzarilor inregistrate de Best Distribution anul trecut, 5% au reprezentat consolele Microsoft XBox. "Actuala situatie economica are si un efect pozitiv asupra pietei de home entertainment, implicit asupra jocurilor video", a spus Andreea Allardin, Director General Best Distribution."

    Odata cu scaderea bugetelor destinate vacantelor, iesirilor in oras cu prietenii sau altor activitati de socializare, oamenii vor ramane tot mai mult in casa, in fata televizoarelor cu telecomanda sau consola si tastatura in mana", a completat aceasta. Distributia de jocuri in retelele de retail cu acoperire nationala reprezinta aproximativ 90 de procente din vanzarile Best Distribution, iar restul de 10 procente merg catre magazinele online." Cresterea pe care ne-am programat-o pentru acest an este legata si de capacitatea retail-erilor din Romania de a trece cu bine peste criza", afirma Allardin, precizand ca cel mai mare partener de retail al companiei este Diverta, cu o cota de piata de 25%." In plus, din totalul jocurilor video aflate pe teritoriul Romaniei, estimam ca aproximativ 20 de procente au fost achizitionate legal, restul de 80 de procente provenind de pe piata neagra", a precizat Andreea Allardin.

    In ce priveste evolutia pietei de jocuri din Romania pentru acest an, Allardin afirma ca va creste cu 25%. Preturile jocurilor au inregistrat o crestere in luna ianuarie a acestui an, principalul motiv fiind schiombarile care au avut loc pe piata valutara. "Daca euro va ramane in jurul valorii de 4,3 lei nu vom creste preturile", a declarat directoarea Best Distribution. In curand compania va deschide un birou si la Sofia, piata bulgareasca reprezentand o piata de jocuri pentru PC-uri, la fel ca cea romaneasca, potrivit lui Allardin.
     

  • One billion dollars for a new Rompetrol

    Firstly, he is much more open to discussions – this started after the businessman sold 75% of Rompetrol to the Kazakhs at KazMunaiGaz. Secondly, he talks more about macroeconomics than about business, another change that has occurred over the last few years. Thirdly, the business that he is talking about is not just Rompetrol, it includes another four businesses in which he invested, but in which he was not involved at executive level. What has not changed, as far as Dinu Patriciu is concerned, is that he has remained as secretive as ever.

    Out of the four businesses, in which he has so far invested over one billion dollars, he talks openly only about Adevarul Holding (the media company which has now reached 1,000 employees and turnover estimated at 120 million dollars for this year) and about the real estate investments. His main real estate investment has been the acquisition of Fabian. Dinu Patriciu is reluctant to give too many details on the other two businesses, which operate in completely unrelated sectors (energy and technology), but admits they account for the bulk of the billion-dollar investment he has made so far.

    The IT business, whose name Dinu Patriciu declines to reveal, is a telecom equipment producer in Germany, which ”has already started production, boasts hundreds of employees and has a turnover in the range of hundreds of millions of euros.” Patriciu has a partner by his side in the IT business (”I have a partner, I am the financial and majority investor,”) and has applied the same strategy to the energy business, which focuses on the research area: ”In this business, we focus on alternative energy – it is an international research project whose aim is to identify the technological means to make use of sea resources.”

  • Crisis shoping list

    There is already a crisis-related psychosis in many circles, fuelled by the pessimistic news about the soaring unemployment and salary declines, says Mircea Kivu, sociologist and general manager of the Marketing and Polls Institute (IMAS). Under the circumstances, he says, ”the consumer behaviour cannot but change, even though the individuals are not affected in any way by the crisis on a personal level.”

    Though analysts and various institutions are pessimistic about the Romanian economy, the overall state of mind among the average consumers seems closer to cautiousness rather than anything else. Two thirds of the respondents of a survey conducted by market research company 360insights between January 15-February 15, 2009 on a sample of 800 people living in cities say they have no concrete information and do not know exactly what the crisis is, while more than half of them believe even now that everything might be just a momentary exaggeration of the media, because they are not feeling its effects directly.

    A key element that makes people more cautious about their spending is the concern for their job.

    Retailers confirm the decline of traffic in stores. Ilan Laufer, general manager and principal shareholder of Retail Group (the rental broker of Cocor Luxury Store), says that the retailers with which he has discussed lately have noticed a change in the overall consumer spending trends – especially on the electrical and IT, clothing, footwear or accessories segments. ”Sales are much lower in the first two months of this year than in the same time of 2008, with declines ranging from 20 to 50%.”

    The higher the price, the faster the sales decline, which explains the order in which retailers are affected.

    Real estate consultants say such changes occur especially outside the capital. Razvan Gheorghe, general manager of Cushman & Wakefield Romania said a little while ago that those who had opened stores outside Bucharest were the hardest hit, which is especially true for the fashion, restaurant and coffee shop businesses. ”Consumers are no longer going out as often as they used to; everything more expensive than the massmarket isn’t selling any more.”

    Durable goods, electronics and home appliances started to show signs of a slowdown in sales as early as the end of last year, says Ciprian Moga, managing director of iQuest Consulting, a retail advisory firm. Once among top sellers, home appliances are not doing any better on hypermarkets’ shelves, either. Tjieerd Jegen, chief executive of the Real Romania network says that when it comes to non-food products and especially home appliances and IT products, customers focus on promotional offers mostly.

    The fast moving consumer goods market is the least affected by the crisis psychosis and is not experiencing dramatic changes. 360insights’ research director Mihaela Alexandru says that the products consumers are unwilling to give up, for which they plan the lowest expense cuts, are food (11% of the respondents), utilities (24%) and personal care products (28%).

    Shachar Shaine, chief executive of United Romanian Breweries Bereprod, the bottler of Tuborg and Carlsberg brands, is one of the few happy managers, because he can boast a 3% increase so far this year compared with the same time last year. The growth, however, comes from the retail segment, because the on-premise segment is seeing stagnation, as people prefer to drink at home rather than go out to do it.

  • Programmers can no longer dictate employment terms

    „The balance of power between IT employers and employees is starting to change,’ says Alexandru Costin, the general manager of Adobe Systems Romania, who has grown accustomed, like many managers in the field, with a great negotiating power of employees in terms of employment conditions and salary package over the last few years. ”Now both the employer and the future employee have a say in the employment contract.

    The dictatorship of the demanding candidate seems set to end,” Costin continues. Adobe Romania’s boss wants to suggest that the market will normalise this year, given the difficult economic situation. Until now, many companies have had to accept inexperienced people and pay to train them or attract specialists by putting sizeable salary packages and a wide range of benefits on the table. On the other hand, the lack of sufficient human resources allowed IT specialists to become some kind of ”mercenaries” willing to frequently change their job in exchange for greater and greater rewards, as Radu Georgescu, Gecad chairman said not so long ago.

    ”Salaries in the IT industry have had the highest growth of recent years, and Romania is seeing one of the widest gaps between the average salary in the IT sector and the average salary in the economy,” says Liviu Dan Dragan, general manager of TotalSoft and chairman of the Association of Software Industry Business Owners (ANIS) – although compared with the salaries in most European countries, the income level in the IT industry is lower in Romania. A programmer with a three to five years of experience, who works for a software company in Bucharest earns an average of 1,100 euros per month, while programmers in the rest of the country earn around 850 euros, reveals a survey conducted by GhidulSalariilor.ro about salaries in the IT industry last year.

  • Discount hunters

    Buying the most expensive handbag or the most expensive TV set used to be a reason to be proud of oneself, but the market (or life) has changed, and shopping buffs are no longer keen to find the most expensive product, but a product whose price has been cut drastically – a luxury item at a discount. ”Welcome to the club! Ooh la la!” is the greeting that members of the RueLaLa club get when they are finally accepted into the online world of discounted luxury brands. RueLaLa is one of the online clubs where members have access to designer products at a discount.

    A customer used to exclusive products finds it hard to let go of such habits, but if their shopping budgets have somewhat diminished, and if peer pressure also comes into play for some people, who are too embarrassed to be seen leaving a store laden with carrier bags, the luxury show moves onto the Internet. Net-a-porter.com, a website which sells luxury products, is launching TheOutnet. com in April, the discounted product option. Standing by her principle, that ”quality fashion is never outdated”, the owner of Net-a-Porter, Natalie Massenet, a former fashion journalist, has thought up a virtual outlet, which features products from older collections of luxury brands.

    Massenet says the brand selection will be made according to the same criteria as in the case of the website, with Diane von Furstenberg dresses, Chloé jeans and Louboutin shoes to be available at a percentage of their original price. After nine years in business, Net-a- Porter has become one of the websites that have changed the way in which luxury fashion is sold, bringing catwalk collections directly into its virtual shop window, so that potential buyers will no longer have to wait six months before the products hit the stores. With two million users per month and an over 200-strong brand portfolio, Net-aporter. com ended 2008 with a 55.2 millionpound (almost 70 million-euro) turnover, 67% more than in 2007. TheOutnet.com will be one of the few luxury online stores with discounted products where access is free; up until now, such websites provided access only based on invitations.

  • Românii şi ruşii, cei mai înghesuiţi europeni în birouri

    Spaţiul disponibil pentru un român este cu 3,5 metri pătraţi mai mic decât al unui angajat din Praga şi cu 2,1 metri pătraţi sub cel din Budapesta. Unui angajat din Polonia îi revin 9,6 metri pătraţi de spaţiu de birou, unuia din Istanbul 10,3, iar unuia din Kiev îi revin 9,3%. Mai înghesuiţi decât bucureştenii sunt angajaţii companiilor din New Delhi, cu doar 7,6 metri pătraţi. Angajaţii din capitala Statelor Unite stau cel mai lejer, cu 25,5 metri pătraţi. În ceea ce priveşte costurile anuale de ocupare a birourilor, alcătuite din chirie şi alte cheltuieli, Bucureştiul a urcat cinci poziţii până pe locul 92, din 144, în clasamentul de anul acesta. Potrivit studiului, costul de ocupare pe fiecare loc de muncă în 2008 se situa la 3.540 de euro/an, în creştere cu 15,7% faţă de 2007, şi estimează pentru acest an scăderea acestuia, fără a preciza cu cât.
    Cititi mai multe pe www.gandul.info
     

  • Descinderi la şase locaţii aparţinând lui Gigi Becali

    Printre cei care urmează să mai fie audiaţi se numără şi Ilie Alexandru , zis, Sandu Geamănu. Acţiunea are legătură cu furtul maşinii omului de afaceri. Concret, autoturismul lui Becali a fost furat în ianuarie 2009, iar acesta a apelat la interlopul Sandu Geamanu pentru a i-o recupera, dându-i un termen de 12 ore. Sandu Geamanu, alături de alte persoane, au "ridicat" trei indivizi, care au fost sechestraţi timp de trei ore, într-unul din imobilele lui Gigi Becali. În dosar procurorii au declanşat urmărirea penală împotriva a şase persoane, printre care Gigi Becali şi Sandu Geamănu. Parchetul Capitalei a solicitat, miercuri, Judecătoriei sectorului 1 emiterea de mandate de percheziţie în acest dosar. Gigi Becali mai este implicat în scandalul "Valiza", dar el este şi cel care a depus reclamaţie împotriva omului de afaceri Puiu Popoviciu, în cazul terenului Universităţii Agronomice din Bucureşti.
    Cititi mai multe pe www.mediafax.ro
    Aflati aici de ce a fost retinut de DNA miliardarul Puiu Popoviciu