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Marketplace: Wednesday, August 4, 2004
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A look at today's markets (closing numbers)
DOW 6.27 (0.06%) ;
NASDAQ 4.36 (0.23%) ;
S&P 500 1.06 (0.10%)
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Newscast
You know, we can go for years without mentioning Davenport, Iowa. But when Davenport does make the headlines, they don't do it halfway. DATELINE: DAVENPORT. August 4. "President Bush visited our fair city today saying the presidential contest won't be close in Iowa." DATELINE: DAVENPORT. August 4. "John Kerry campaigned in our fair city today, only a few blocks from a rally by President Bush." If that sounds like a close presidential contest, please note that the messages were miles apart.
Washington is about to release a new round of contracts to help rebuild Iraq. Only this time, those contracts will be open to companies from almost any country - not just those that joined the 'coalition of the willing', as the President has called it.
A day without a story about oil, would be like... a day without Marketplace, wouldn't it? We're sorry to have to do this to you, but remember yesterday we mentioned that OPEC's chief said 'look, we have no more oil to put into the system to cool off those record high oil prices'? It appears that overnight, someone at OPEC found 1.5 million barrels per day hiding somewhere. Word that the cartel could increase supply 'after all' sent oil prices down today...and the stock markets started recovering.
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It looks like as phone, it sounds like a phone ...
Voice over Internet Protocol - or VOIP as the kids call it - converts your phone calls into data that's connected through your high speed Internet connection. In practical terms it's not as 'gee whiz' as all that sounds. It's basically a phone call - using a regular telephone - though it's plugged into your internet connection, and it can be a whole lot less expensive than traditional phone service. But - if it sounds like a phone, and works like a phone, and is advertised to be just like a phone... shouldn't it be regulated like any other phone? In some respects at least, as of today, the answer is 'yes'.
Reporter: Hillary Wicai
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 Steal My Kisses - Ben Harper
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...So what good is a home phone anyway?
In announcing its ruling the FCC conceded that internet phone service would likely replace much of traditional phone service eventually. With Voice-Over Internet and the sheer ubiquity of cell phones - plus all those free long distance options - it's little wonder many Americans are ditching their landlines. After all, why pay two or three bills for what's essentially the same service?
Commentator: Bill Hammack
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Operator - Real McCoy
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"Workin' nine to five ..."
It's rare for members of Congress to call off their recess - especially in an election year - to return to Washington to take care of business. But that's exactly what's happening right now as lawmakers hold hearings on the recommendations of the 9/11 commission. Then it'll be back to the hustings, leaving a lot of money on the table and a lot of loose ends on the domestic agenda. Some might say this is not exactly a case of "your taxpayer dollars at work". But will this spirit of legislative procrastination have some big economic consequences?
Reporter: John Dimsdale
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South Congress Blues - Omar and the Howlers
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India and a world beyond outsourcing
If you're trying to figure out whether the economy has made a comeback, here's something else to stuff into your pipe. At least two new surveys - one from Ernst and Young and another from PriceWaterhouseCoopers - suggest venture capital spending is regaining strength. Not quite to the levels of the 1990's, but the picture is better than its been in about two years. Once upon a time, venture capital was virtually synonymous with betting large on Silicon Valley. Not only is Venture Capital more diversified these days, Silicon Valley isn't what it used to be, either. In fact, in the not too distant future, Silicon Valley - as most folks understand it - may not even be where it is now. It might be half a world away.
Reporter: Jessica Smith
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Subject - John Mayer and Joe Harriott
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Saturn ain't what it used to be
Word today that General Motors is raising prices on its 2005 models by about 1 percent. And reports say the General plans to bump prices up incrementally throughout the year. With sales off the mark, the company is trying to find ways to make money and save some, too. Nothing appears sacred...not even that 'different kind of car company': GM's Saturn Division, based in Spring Hill, Tennessee. Saturn's trademark plastic bodywork's being replaced by industry-standard steel in some models. And the annual company-sponsored homecoming is being cancelled.
Reporter: Hal Humphreys
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Saturn Blues - Beatundercontrol
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Coming up on Marketplace...
Like clockwork?
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