Companies Circling The Drain: What about Chapter Elevenses?

The Something Awful Forums > Main > Post Your Favorite: Carefully Curated > Companies Circling The Drain: What about Chapter Elevenses?

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Josef bugman posted:

The Hudsons Bay Company is still around? Like the original former fur trapping business?

There's a whole bunch of old colonial companies left around, the Anglo-French company that used to operate the Suez canal is still around, it ended up being a water utility company.

There are even a few banks left from the sodding Holy Roman Empire left.

# ¿ Oct 15, 2017 10:34

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# ¿ Apr 28, 2024 07:53

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Bonzo posted:

iHeartMedia seems to have some issues repaying their debt

https://www.forbes.com/sites/spleve...d/#19409e8a7bc6

Another one for Bain Capital, those guys really know what they're doing*.

*Sarcasm, leveraged buyouts are bullshit.

# ¿ Mar 15, 2018 12:01

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

ToxicSlurpee posted:

Oh, Bain knows exactly what they're doing, whey they're doing it, and how to be extremely good at it.

What they're doing should be loving illegal.

Huge debt and then grab most of the money? So the company can't survive? Yup, they are really good at it.

# ¿ Mar 16, 2018 18:41

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Ghost Leviathan posted:

Adelaide buses are only ever on time when you are exactly 20 seconds late.

The latest Danish thing is Light Railroad EVERYWHERE! The four big cities all have Light Railroad either partially completed or under construction. Will it help? Yeah, almost certainly, you build mass transit through a densely populated city and people will start using them.

Of course, expensive cars and Socialism has kept Danish cities much more manageable.

# ¿ Jul 26, 2018 17:28

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Control Volume posted:

The kicker is that driving is also faster than trains

Ahh, but if your infrastructure isn't poo poo, Trains are MUCH faster than trains. Even the standard trains on the Danish main lines reach 160+ km/h. And even if the highway speed limit is technically 130 km/h, that's not everywhere, large chunks of the network is limited to 110 km/h.

And that's not counting the usually issues roads have.

# ¿ Jul 27, 2018 10:47

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

I don't think I've ever paid with cash at Automated checkouts, but I live in E-cash Scandinavian Paradise #2, so haha!

I was in the local Danish Toys'R'Us a few days ago, and it was doing just fine.

# ¿ Nov 15, 2018 20:30

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

And the Scandinavian licensee of Toys R'us just went bankrupt, alongside some 200 stores running under a local brand.

The reasons? Pretty much the same as the American one, inability to adapt to a change in demand, a capital fund being idiots and the stores being kinda poo poo.

Now what? Well, the banks have taken over and will either liquidate or reorganize, depending on profitability.

# ¿ Dec 29, 2018 13:50

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

poopinmymouth posted:

Yep. RIP the only Toys R Us in Iceland.

Gotta an old friend who works, well not anymore, for the local Toys R'us, gotta get in touch with him again, see if his store's gonna survive.

# ¿ Dec 29, 2018 21:42

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Ghost Leviathan posted:

Games Workshop is its own story where they actually managed to pull themselves out of a tailspin after they changed their management from being what amounted to an insular corporate cult that literally didn't do market research at all.

Their liberal licensing policy when it comes to video games was a massive help too.

Whole bunch of Warhammer games, several of them actually good, was a giant help for them.

# ¿ Jun 14, 2019 13:50

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

value-brand cereal posted:

Stealing thus from the yospos who probably stole it from somewhere else.

The WeWork thing smells more of a rental scam than anything else.

# ¿ Sep 28, 2019 22:02

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8QNDRbjong

# ¿ Oct 4, 2019 07:37

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Wait, so the American Supermarket area doesn't have multiple players or something?

I'm Danish and I can name three full fledged chains and one independent association of supermarkets.

Hell, I used to live near S�nders�, roughly three thousand people and FOUR Supermarkets, Otterup with five also have four, these a small regional cities, sure, there's probably another couple of thousand people in the surrounding countryside, but still.

Than again, the issue seems to poverty more than anything else.

# ¿ Oct 9, 2019 07:39

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

bob dobbs is dead posted:

you - can't - have - public - transport - without - density

it's like having novel art or music or other culture or research without density

make with the 50 story soulless concrete apartments

Yeah, sorry to burst your bubble, regional buses actually work pretty well, most of Denmark can be reached by regional buses, basically going between the larger cities while stopping at a whole bunch of smaller cities.

You can have public transportation without density, if the political will is present, which it isn't in the US, because you have political parties that don't like loving roads.

# ¿ Oct 9, 2019 13:20

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Ofecks posted:

Thanks for the insight on paper checks and stuff. I assumed DDs were cheaper to implement, as previous jobs I've had seemed to want me to use that method, so I have been since 2001. Guess that's not the case for all employers, which I understand.

I didn't get into online banking until later, but everything for me is electronic now, I don't even carry cash on me but maybe once a year. Sometimes I'll get a refund check for healthcare overpayment or something, but that's rare as well. As of a few years ago, I also now have everything on auto-pay except my shrink and my one credit card (so I'll have a reason to log into that account once a month to make sure it hasn't been used fraudulently). Both of those are paid electronically too, the former using my checking account's BillPay thing. I haven't written a check in a long, long time.

I also hadn't considered not being able to have a checking account for one reason or another. In my experience, you walk into a bank branch, say you'd like to open an account, give them some cash to start it and you're good to go. There was never a credit check or anything, as far as I know. I did have to fire BB&T a few years back because at some point they changed my account from "literally free just don't overdraw" to "only free with DD otherwise keep a balance or get fined up the rear end" and I missed the notification, so I had some trouble when I was broke and between DDs. Found a new "literally free just don't overdraw" branch in my town and switched. I'm fortunate that was easy for me to do.

You may also be interested to know that Social Security/SSD/SSDI is DD-only now for new cases. If you were getting a check in the mail before, you can still. But if you've recently started collecting, better have a checking account to put it in. I forget if there was a prepaid card option. I had to help navigate that mess for a disabled relative.

Having a bank account is now mandatory in Denmark, it does mean that the Banks can't chuck you out easily though. Checks are totally dead, you can buy them for foreign use thanks to you Americans, but gently caress me sideways, 30 US$ if you order it online, twice that if you do it in an actual bank.

# ¿ Oct 10, 2019 10:21

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Doggles posted:

Remember when only some of the staff at Deadspin quit?

https://twitter.com/NPR/status/1190406985851817987

https://twitter.com/jonbernhardt/status/1190386114768625664

I wonder if anyone realize that reading news about "Just Sports" or "Just Games" or "Just Objective" means one of the two:

1: Reading Reuters newsblurbs.

2: Corporate bulletin nonsense.

So yeah, "Just Sports" means being yet another news site in an endless ocean of news sites.

# ¿ Nov 4, 2019 09:20

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

ryonguy posted:

lmfao tell me why we need insurance brokers in an actually functional system and not the clusterfuck we have now you dork

Having looked around a bit, the concept of an insurance broker doesn't exist in Denmark, at all, as far as I can tell.

The insurance companies just sell their insurance directly to the customers or indirectly through workplaces, trade unions and so on.

There are insurance advice companies that'll find you the best/cheapest insurance available, but they are mostly for B2B stuff, which makes some sense really.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2019 13:36

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Ariong posted:

It is. How would voice activation work if it didn�t listen until activated?

It came up like a few weeks ago, that Google's stupid box actually listen to you.

All the time.

# ¿ Nov 17, 2019 23:36

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

ryonguy posted:

Quick non-joke question: what happens to an insurance system structure when universal healthcare enters the mix? When you no longer have massive medical bills to worry about covering, does everything shift focus to purely being about property damage?

For a private person? Essentially yes.

Medical insurance does exists, but it's virtually only something companies offer as an added bonus to your pay check, providing their employee a way to bypass the public healthcare system and get through the faster private sector.

Basically, theoretically, making your sick employees get back on their feet faster.

Most private persons really don't use medical insurance directly, it something you get from your employer.

Most other insurance is about property, liability and cars (Car insurance is 100% mandatory).

Edit: This is all Denmark.

# ¿ Nov 18, 2019 06:40

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Volmarias posted:

Empty shelves vs no shelves at all

That's actually really cool.

Should mention, just for perspective, the single best performing retirement plan in Denmark, is the mandatory "for fucks sake just save for retirement" plan.

It's basically run by grey bureaucrats that get paid government standard wages and everything, and has better returns that ALL of the private retirement option, every single one.

So yeah, that's funny.

# ¿ Feb 5, 2020 11:02

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Balliver Shagnasty posted:

So I hear Google Fiber is cutting out its TV service. That's interesting, right?

Not really, I'm surprised they even had one.

# ¿ Feb 6, 2020 01:09

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

I will always enjoy that one time all my friends pre-ordered Original World of Warcraft at EB Games, I didn't, went in and asked if they had a copy, they didn't.

Walked across the street to a local Danish Electronics store, they had around ten copies left, turns out that pre-orders doesn't work in countries were the local shops don't give a poo poo.

It did mean getting the Horde box, which I obviously threw out years ago.

The Gamestop stores in Denmark now, are just full of used console games and random gaming related crap.

# ¿ Feb 20, 2020 22:13

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

there wolf posted:

It doesn't even have to be extremely well managed, just basic competence. The small hobby shop sector has a constant rotation of people who confuse knowing their product really well with knowing their business. The number of times I've walked into a comic book store, or a craft store, or a gaming store and it's clearly just a hangout space for the owners friends is staggering.

To be fair, you know the small model stores run by really old people are absolutely solid places to go.

Nothing like an old man moaning about the poor colouring instructions on a model of a US Coast Guard cutter.

# ¿ Feb 21, 2020 02:51

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

AceOfFlames posted:

I never felt the need to decorate my walls with anything since I was like 16. I just don't see the point. Is it that unusual?

Yes, seek professional help, decorating your walls is perfectly normal.

Even if you don't do it for the aesthetic aspect, without any sort of sound absorption on your walls, your house/room/hovel will be made out of echo.

# ¿ Aug 6, 2020 15:51

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Krispy Wafer posted:

Dish is branching out into cellular service and they were one of the first with a cord cutting option (Sling). Not a good sign if Sling is losing customers though.

Also they're not owned by AT&T, so that's a giant point in their favor.

MicroCenter seems to adapt pretty well compared to other electronics stores. The one near here has gone full bore into 3D printing and the maker scene, which means it's the only local option for buying that kind of stuff. It's still somehow the cheapest place anywhere (including online) for Raspberry Pi's.

Probably helps that MicroCenter isn't owned by some loving Wall Street monstrosity, but just by some dude who started the place.

More than a few of the failure we've seen lately, have been due to massive debt payments more than anything else.

# ¿ Aug 31, 2020 10:55

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

So, to get this mess back on track.

A Danish wine trader went bankrupt, guess why?

https://www.food-supply.dk/article/view/739766/dansk_vinhandler_konkurs_efter_tocifret_milliontab

Wrong: It sold to companies, when all your meetings are on Zoom, you don't have to buy and endless supply of meaningless wine as gifts.

# ¿ Sep 17, 2020 11:04

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

FlamingLiberal posted:

https://twitter.com/benmullin/status/1308087136072003585?s=21

Who would buy that poo poo

Tencent? Oh wait.

Edit: gently caress, should gone with SoftBank.

# ¿ Sep 21, 2020 18:53

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Ghost Leviathan posted:

What's the most embarrassing restaurant to get stabbed in?

That weird Garfield themed one?

# ¿ Oct 31, 2020 18:15

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

FilthyImp posted:

Really looking forward to some joyless Germans telling Musk to shove his gigafactory up his rear end because he refuses to label emergency exits or whatever dumb poo poo he's got going on.

And before someone goes "They wouldn't do that to a giant company", go look up German WallMart, look how it went for them.

The Germans don't give a poo poo about who and what you are, you will follow the rules!

# ¿ Dec 12, 2020 12:38

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

MisterOblivious posted:

It also used a $100 argon refill instead of a generic CO2 cartridge. At least you don't have to ship it back like I think one company requires.

WTF? Argon? They use a loving noble gas? Why?

Are they honestly arguing that Argon absorbs impact better?

# ¿ May 7, 2021 11:59

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Krispy Wafer posted:

Objective reality and the stock market often separate. Which is why it�s good that the stock market isn�t the economy.

Tesla is overpriced, but it�ll probably be fine even if it�s stock is worth half as much. That is, unless they pulled an Enron and used stock as collateral for loans.

"The Stock Market isn't the economy".

What country are you living in? Last I checked the US is very much the Stock Market.

# ¿ Jan 4, 2022 12:42

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Platystemon posted:

Outstanding move.

Well yeah, it makes more money and that's all that matters.

# ¿ Mar 23, 2022 10:08

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

christmas boots posted:

HBO has had a lot of good stuff the past few years but I imagine Discovery probably takes in more profit overall

Well, Discovery farted out about 2� billion dollars back in 2021 operating, WarnerMedia reported 7+ billion operating in the same year, even with some WarnerMedia having been sold off to other players, the CW and TMZ are both off to others, Discovery sure wasn't making as much as WarnerMedia was.

And I don't even want to know how much debt this new monstrosity has.

# ¿ Aug 20, 2022 21:01

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

ultrafilter posted:

https://twitter.com/rafaelshimunov/status/1591133819918114816

There's so much comedy and failure here.

Musk's idiotic subscription program with zero due diligence, all to attempt to cover the massive debt he's saddled Twitter with.
The Parody accounts themselves.
Whatever due diligence the investment companies apparently DON'T have at all.

Anything else?

# ¿ Nov 11, 2022 22:34

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Zugzwang posted:

Are there any NFTs/kinds of NFTs that are still worth anything at this point or has the whole thing gone up in smoke?

None of them were ever worth anything, but the answer is a resounding no.

# ¿ Jun 18, 2023 00:48

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# ¿ Apr 28, 2024 07:53

RagnarokZ: May 14, 2004; Emperor of the Internet

Volmarias posted:

I totally conflated zero punctuation with escapist, lol at whatever media ghoul decided to kill it outright

It's some completely useless corpo monstrosity that's going to poo poo out endless steams of algorithmically generated garbage for years to come: https://futurism.com/the-byte/gaming-sites-writers-ai-editor

Completely without realize that all that algo-junk is painfully dull and absurdly easy to spot.

# ¿ Nov 8, 2023 23:23

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