http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rss-blog/%2A/rss.xml en http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bc%27s-antiquated-liquor-laws-bad-business <p> The Rio Theatre epitomizes how narrow liquor laws are strangling small businesses.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bc%27s-antiquated-liquor-laws-bad-business" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> The darkened Rio Theatre epitomizes how the province&rsquo;s narrow liquor laws are strangling small businesses.</h2> At this point, many Vancouverites have heard rumblings of the Rio Theatre&rsquo;s embattled liquor licence.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The Rio, which <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Government+gives+Vancouver+Theatre+hope/6051806/story.html">served up until recently</a> as both a movie theatre and a live events venue, waited almost a year for the province to process a liquor licence. Last month, the province finally granted owner Corrine Lea a licence, but said she could no longer show movies.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> According the B.C.&rsquo;s current laws, venues cannot show movies if it possesses a liquor licence. Lea adamantly says she would only serve alcohol during concerts and live events, not during movies.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The truth is it&rsquo;s no longer financially viable for most small theatres to only show movies. Diversifying a theatre&rsquo;s uses by opening it up to live events is almost a necessity. And as <a href="http://thetyee.ca/ArtsAndCulture/2012/01/27/Rio-Theatre/">more small theatres darken</a> (Oakridge Cinema is another theatre that closed its doors just a few weeks ago), it would seem all Vancouver will have soon is giant megaplexes.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/Vancouver+city+council+petition+government+over+archaic+theatre+rules/6084745/story.html">The City of Vancouver</a> and many community members are rallying around the theatre, organizing fundraisers to help the Commercial Drive landmark stay open (the owner says she&rsquo;s losing around $2,000 a day without movie ticket sales).<br /> &nbsp;<br /> But the fate of the little theatre that could is in the hands of the province. Will they follow Ontario, Manitoba and Alberta and change narrow liquor laws to allow alcohol to be served in theatres Perhaps.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Considering small businesses are B.C.&rsquo;s lifeblood, the province should seriously consider updating laws that don&rsquo;t reflect modern mores and are obviously killing small businesses. Without a change, the Rio won&rsquo;t be the last landmark to shut its doors. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bc%27s-antiquated-liquor-laws-bad-business#comments Media, Arts and Entertainment The Exchange City of Vancouver Corrine Lea lindsey peacock Rio Theatre Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:01:23 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100970 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/harpers-public-pension-ploy <p> Could Harper's threat to hike the public pension age be a ploy?</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/harpers-public-pension-ploy" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> We sincerely hope Stephen Harper isn't the fanged monster many think he is for proposing to raise the age for the Old Age Supplement. Instead, he may simply have made the first moves in a campaign to realign the retirement support system.</h2> Like many Baby Boomers, I can now see on the horizon the time when I&rsquo;m going to need a retirement support system. So, of course I am very interested in Stephen Harper&rsquo;s recent musing about cuts to the old age system.<br /> <br /> Harper has been roasted since he announced at the annual banker bash in Devos, Switzerland, that he was thinking of cutting the Old Age Supplement (OAS) to keep it sustainable.<br /> <br /> Well, not cutting it actually, but raising the age when a person is eligible from 65 to 67, which is kind of the same thing if you&rsquo;re poor or aged and will probably be unemployable at 65.<br /> <br /> From a money manager point of view, it was a good idea. As the age wave starts to wash on the shores of seniority, there exists a massive buildup of age entitlements that will strain the public purse for about 20 years or so until the wave subsides.<br /> <br /> But it &nbsp;was also a stupid one, in that it was a simple across-the-board cut of the type sometimes employed by extremely uncreative CEOs who slash workforces willy-nilly and damage, sometimes irreparably, their own company&rsquo;s prospects at the same time. There&rsquo;s cutting the fat, and there&rsquo;s cutting the bone. One is helpful, the other is just mean-spirited and dumb.<br /> <br /> Like any intelligent CEO, Harper might have thought about some targeted cuts, i.e. where the fat is. And that&rsquo;s among well-off seniors &ndash; many of whom earn more in retirement through various pensions, investments and judicious tax planning than most people earn in their working lives.<br /> <br /> In other words, they&rsquo;re rich, and so don&rsquo;t particularly need the OAS, which was meant to relieve the rampant poverty among seniors who weren&rsquo;t able to earn big money while working.<br /> <br /> <strong>Announcement A Feint</strong><br /> <br /> By positing a general cut, it&rsquo;s obvious Harper is either extremely stupid and didn&rsquo;t think about this, which I doubt, or he&rsquo;s some kind of fanged monster whose teeth are dripping with the blood of poor seniors, which &hellip; well &hellip; I don&rsquo;t think is true either.<br /> <br /> It&rsquo;s my belief Harper knew exactly what he was doing when he threw out this bombshell in Davos at a world economic summit that drew leaders from around the world (many of whom are struggling with the same issues, by the way).<br /> <br /> By using that as a stage for an announcement that was really aimed at home consumption, Harper was cleverly softening up the Canadian populace for changes to come in our pension entitlements system.<br /> <br /> Old age security has always been sacred in Canada. But, let&rsquo;s face it, it&rsquo;s been abused regularly. Many government workers are entitled to pensions that are higher than the average person&rsquo;s working income; certainly parliamentarians are, plus they can head useless committees and perform other minimal tasks for healthy income supplements.<br /> <br /> But your average person on the street No such luck.<br /> <br /> I personally think the Conservative government is looking at something that no other government has had the bravery to try &ndash; realigning the old age security system to help those who need it and remove that help from those who don&rsquo;t.<br /> <br /> By backing off from his initial option &ndash; raising the age requirement for everybody &ndash; Harper can accomplish his goal and look reasonable at the same time.<br /> <br /> At least, I hope so. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/harpers-public-pension-ploy#comments Personal Finance The Insider Davos Old Age Supplement stephen harper Switzerland tony wanless Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:30:48 +0000 Tony Wanless 100969 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/super-bowl-ads-build-buzz-online-big-game <p> Advertisers are building buzz for their Super Bowl spots with viral online teasers.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/super-bowl-ads-build-buzz-online-big-game" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> As the anticipation compounds for the biggest football game of the year, pre-released Super Bowl ads have taken on a life of their own online.</h2> I might be one in the small minority, but I&rsquo;ve always watched the Super Bowl with hopes I&rsquo;ll see a good football game. I&rsquo;m guess I&rsquo;m just old fashioned that way.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> A growing number of viewers tune in to the Super Bowl now just for the clever advertisements between plays. In a world where PVRs can fast forward live television to skip commercials, the phenomenon of watching a three-hour sporting event just for the ads is a little odd.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> As Super Bowl weekend approaches, advertising firms and big companies are getting a jump on building buzz for their million-dollar ads with online teasers (trailers for commercials Really). So many major advertisers are releasing their eye candy early that sites such as <a href="http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/ads-super-bowl-xlvi-adweeks-preview-137813">Adweek</a> have featured rundowns of some of the best-to-come commercial bits. Some of my favourites include an Acura ad featuring comedian Jerry Seinfeld and two spots featuring the return of the Coca-Cola polar bears.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Advertisers are banking (rightly so, I might add) that these teasers will go viral and will draw in even more viewers for their expensive spots &ndash; using the Internet to get more bang for their advertising buck.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Despite the mounting ad anticipation, I&rsquo;ll still be using commercial breaks as just that &ndash; a break from the action. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/super-bowl-ads-build-buzz-online-big-game#comments Marketing and Communications The Exchange Adweek lindsey peacock Super Bowl Thu, 02 Feb 2012 20:31:21 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100967 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/jim-pattison-group-finalizes-deal-cond%C3%A9-nast-hearst <p> Jim Pattison Group's purchase of Comag proves peseverance pays off in the end.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/jim-pattison-group-finalizes-deal-cond%C3%A9-nast-hearst" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> Vancouver&rsquo;s Jim Pattison Group announced it will buy magazine distributor Comag, further expanding its already-wide market reach.</h2> Leave it to local billionaire Jimmy Pattison to buy a company that wasn&rsquo;t for sale.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> On Tuesday, Vancouver-based Jim Pattison Group finalized its purchase of Comag Marketing Group, LLC, from U.S. magazine powerhouses Cond&eacute; Nast and Hearst.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Princeton, N.J.-based Comag was Cond&eacute; Nast and Hearst&rsquo;s venture into magazine distribution. JPG&rsquo;s acquisition of the company&rsquo;s shares significantly expands their reach in the U.S. distribution market. Not that JPG needed any help in this area &ndash; with its News Group subsidiary, North America&rsquo;s largest magazine and book wholesaler, JPG has an estimated 50 per cent of the U.S. market already.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> According to <a href="http://www.foliomag.com/2012/exclusive-hearst-and-cond-nast-sell-comag-jim-pattison-group">Folio magazine</a>, Comag wasn&rsquo;t even for sale, but after a year of talks with JPG, Hearst and Cond&eacute; Nast relented on a deal for a yet-to-be-disclosed amount.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The deal also included a long-term distribution agreement between JPG and the two prominent magazine publishers. Comag will also maintain its headquarters in New Jersey.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> In an industry plagued by slumping ad revenues and less-than-stellar newsstand sales, JPG told Folio the acquisition will help smooth out the supply chain. Either way, the deal spells good things for Canada&rsquo;s third-largest private conglomerate. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/jim-pattison-group-finalizes-deal-cond%C3%A9-nast-hearst#comments Media, Arts and Entertainment The Exchange Comag Marketing Group conde nast Folio Hearst jim pattison lindsey peacock New Jersey Princeton Vancouver Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:14:33 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100966 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/what-happened-to-canadas-economic-strategy <p> Analyzing an abandoned economic policy.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/what-happened-to-canadas-economic-strategy" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> Lost in the noisy debate about the oil pipeline that's proposed to run through B.C. to Kitimat is an economic policy that we seem to have abandoned as the promise of billions of dollars is dangled in front of us.</h2> You haven't seen anything so far in this space about the Enbridge pipeline because, like many people, I&rsquo;ve been torn between the factions for and opposed to the pipeline.<br /> <br /> We&rsquo;ve all been subjected to the mountains of verbiage issued by the pro and con pipeline groups. The pro groups cite the billions of dollars in economic benefits to B.C.; the con groups cite the eminent dangers in piping raw bitumen from the Alberta tar sands through a B.C. earthquake zone and putting it in tankers, to be carried through rough ocean waters, thereby threatening the entire coast in the event of an oil spill.<br /> <br /> Each side is pulling out the heavy lumber to make their case &ndash; the pros by having the Prime Minister of Canada and his government essentially back the project and the cons by bringing up Hollywood stars, colourful native elders and anyone else they can find to oppose it.<br /> <br /> No argument here that there should be much debate on the subject. The project is probably one of the greatest economic decisions to be made in the history of B.C., one which will shape the province for decades.<br /> <br /> But I fear that in all the for-it, against-it simplicity something is being lost here.<br /> <br /> I&rsquo;m speaking of our &ndash; meaning not only B.C., but Canada as a whole &ndash; supposed strategy to no longer be simple primary resource workers, the &ldquo;hewers of wood and drawers of water.&rdquo; Wasn&rsquo;t that what we were under the British And wasn&rsquo;t it just a little while ago that we were bemoaning the fact that we were essentially America&rsquo;s source of raw materials, forever condemned to be drones while they reaped the benefits<br /> <br /> Further, isn&rsquo;t this pipeline project just another version of being such a drone &ndash; albeit for China instead of (or in addition to) the U.S.<br /> <br /> Seems to me we&rsquo;ve been capitulating along this road for some time, despite the oft-repeated wish to be masters of our own fate when it comes to economics.<br /> <br /> Already we&rsquo;re shipping half the trees we cut down offshore to be milled and used for construction in the U.S., China or wherever. Whatever happened to B.C.&rsquo;s lumber &ldquo;industry&rdquo;<br /> <br /> And already we&rsquo;re exporting acres of rocks from our mines to be processed somewhere else.<br /> <br /> Is it just me, or has the supposed plan to be reasonably self-sufficient in terms of industry and jobs been lost to the expediency of selling the rawest forms of our resources to someone else<br /> <br /> Yes, yes, I know all the problems with this strategy &ndash; that it&rsquo;s too expensive to create higher-end industry here and that Asian countries are the world&rsquo;s manufacturers these days. I&rsquo;m even familiar with the little said, but mostly known strategy of exporting the pollution problems that come with secondary industry to &ldquo;far away&rdquo; places like China and other parts of Asia.<br /> <br /> But what happens when our resources run out or start to diminish What are we left with after that Industrial policy doesn&rsquo;t just mean building industries; it also means climbing the industrial ladder (as China is doing) to knowledge-based, creative and &ldquo;clean&rdquo; industries. You have to start somewhere, and we&rsquo;re not even doing that.<br /> <br /> So in this debate, let&rsquo;s get off these pure for-or-against stands. Let&rsquo;s start framing it in terms of benefit to Canada as a whole, not just to one province or a few companies.<br /> <br /> Unless, of course, we don&rsquo;t mind remaining as hewers of wood and drawers of water. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/what-happened-to-canadas-economic-strategy#comments Economy The Insider Enbridge tony wanless Tue, 31 Jan 2012 23:18:08 +0000 Tony Wanless 100964 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/inevitable-rise-retirement-age <p> A hike in the retirement age is not only likely &ndash; it's inevitable.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/inevitable-rise-retirement-age" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> As Stephen Harper&rsquo;s administration reviews looming Old Age Security payments, we should expect an increase in the retirement age.</h2> Prime Minister Stephen Harper made the surprise announcement Monday that his office will be examining Old Age Security payments.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> As the wave of aging Baby Boomers begins retiring, the prime minister says the government worries about its ability to afford cutting retiree paycheques into the foreseeable future.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The announcement comes in spite of a recent <a href="http://www.fin.gc.ca/activty/pubs/pension/ref-bib/whitehouse-eng.asp">Ottawa-commissioned study</a> that reports Canada doesn&rsquo;t have much reason to fret over the sustainability of its public pension fund, especially when compared to other developed nations (see the U.S. and Europe).<br /> &nbsp;<br /> But would many protest raising the retirement age to 67 in the near future Frances Woolley points out today in <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/economy-lab/frances-woolley/raising-the-retirement-age-consider-it-a-done-deal/article2319568/">The Globe &amp; Mail</a> that few, if anyone, would utter a word of complaint at having to work two additional years.<br /> <br /> I'm not sure I agree, particularly when you examine the state of other public pension funds. When Canada's fund is in a sustainable state, it's tough to justify the cost-saving measure of forcing the elderly to work an additional 24 months to collect all their benefits. I can think of a few groups who would put up some semblance of a fight.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Our neighbours to the south are raising the <a href="http://ssa.gov/pubs/ageincrease.htm">full retirement age</a> and the United Kingdom is upping its state pension age as well. As our peers in the developed world make the jump, Canada won&rsquo;t be far behind. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/inevitable-rise-retirement-age#comments Personal Finance The Exchange lindsey peacock Old Age Security Ottawa stephen harper U.S. United Kingdom Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:12:53 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100965 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/benefits-facebook-going-public <p> A certain social network could make its public debut this week.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/benefits-facebook-going-public" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> After seven years of compounding successes, the touted social network is moving into the public domain. But a public Facebook could benefit more than its executives&rsquo; wallets.</h2> Facebook, that near-and-dear social network with its <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1285016/">own movie</a>, could file its papers to go public as early as Wednesday, according to <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204573704577187062821038498.htmlmod=WSJ_hp_mostpop_read">The Wall Street Journal</a>.<br /> <br /> The initial public offering is expected to raise as much as $10 billion, which would put Facebook well ahead of Google&rsquo;s 2004 IPO, which raised $1.67 billion. The anticipated amount makes Facebook&rsquo;s IPO the most notable U.S. company public offering of the decade.<br /> <br /> The company&rsquo;s expected valuation is around $100 billion, which is approximately half of Google&rsquo;s ($180 billion) but is still behind Apple&rsquo;s massive $415 billion valuation.<br /> <br /> However, the most significant aspect of the IPO is Facebook&rsquo;s ability to create more jobs. The topic even came up over the weekend during the <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/46181589">CNBC debate</a> at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.<br /> <br /> In the seven years since the site began in founder Mark Zuckerberg&rsquo;s Harvard dorm room, Facebook has accomplished more than just changing the way we communicate. The network has collected 800 million users, hired 3,000 employees and created some 450,000 spin-off jobs in the U.S. and Europe (even some here in Vancouver, as local developers get in on the Facebook app market).<br /> <br /> The hope is the company will repeat its pattern of success, which could benefit more than the tech sector in an anemic global economy. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/benefits-facebook-going-public#comments Digital The Exchange Apple CNBC Davos facebook google Harvard lindsey peacock mark zuckerberg Switzerland The Wall Street Journal Vancouver Mon, 30 Jan 2012 19:14:10 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100963 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/opportunity-information-exhaustion <p> Information curation, Tony predicts, will be the next big business opportunity.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/opportunity-information-exhaustion" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> There is so much information available to us today that it's impossible for us to assimilate it all. This will give rise to companies that gather information filtered specifically for our own personal interests.</h2> Since I spent so many years working in newsrooms (see &ldquo;<a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bcb/bc-blogs/insider/2011/05/10/older-workers-turning-age-sage">Journosaur</a>,&rdquo; previous), I have a fondness for old newspaper movies, some of which will be <a href="http://filmguide.viff.org/tixSYS/vifcguide/filmguide/stopthepresses" target="_blank">shown at the Vancouver Film Festival</a> beginning this weekend. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> Although they can be over-dramatized, these films did often capture the frenetic energy that used to inhabit newsrooms. I say &ldquo;used to&rdquo; on purpose. Those kinds of newsrooms don&rsquo;t exist any more.<br /> <h3> <br /> Newspapers were curators</h3> The newspaper's role, I believe, was to gather news of the day and deliver it to readers. Not all news, of course, but the news that was relevant to the particular general interests of the paper&rsquo;s readers.<br /> <br /> They didn&rsquo;t call it that, but in a way, newspapers &ldquo;curated&rdquo; information for readers. Every day, editors would choose articles they thought most important to their readers from the dozens, hundreds or thousands of stories available. That&rsquo;s why a local school story took precedence over some major event in a far off country; it had more relevance.<br /> <br /> Today, with Google, blogs, online news services, Facebook, Twitter and specialty online newsletters on just about every conceivable subject, that kind of packaged delivery of news doesn&rsquo;t happen.<br /> <h3> <br /> The information torrent</h3> Instead, we get a torrent of information &ndash; some good, most bad &ndash; that&rsquo;s so tremendous we can&rsquo;t handle it all. Certain subjects emerge from the river, largely because they&rsquo;re shared or viewed by large numbers of people &ndash; i.e. the word &ldquo;trending,&rdquo; to mean what&rsquo;s hot at this moment &ndash; but inevitably they disappear quickly to be replaced by another hot topic.&nbsp; &nbsp;<br /> <br /> That&rsquo;s why, I believe, one of the biggest trends in 2012 is going to be the aforementioned curation of information. Companies that supply this curation &ndash; a modern version of what the newspapers used to do &ndash; will be hot and probably become darlings of venture capitalists, especially if those companies can figure out how to make a buck from it.<br /> <br /> I think we saw the beginning of this trend recently when Summify, the local company nurtured in the now defunct Bootup Labs, was bought by Twitter. Word is the giant microblogging operation wanted the Summify talent, but I believe the concept of curating social media to relevant interests was also part of it.<br /> <h3> <br /> The shape of things to come</h3> To me, Summify was a forerunner, a harbinger of things to come. We are all going to need intelligent services that aggregate information to our particular tastes and deliver it to us on a platter, so to speak. Smart companies will deliver those services.<br /> <br /> Will the newspaper companies of old be the purveyors of those things to come Potentially, if they can change their business models. Or some broader version of Summify will arrive.<br /> <br /> I don&rsquo;t pretend to know which form will win out. But I do know that people only have so much capacity for information, and unfettered access to all of it is in many ways a bigger problem than no access was. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> To me, the next big business opportunity will come from information exhaustion. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/opportunity-information-exhaustion#comments Media, Arts and Entertainment The Insider Summify tony wanless Twitter Sat, 28 Jan 2012 06:38:44 +0000 Tony Wanless 100960 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/anti-sopa-groups-galvanized-victory <p> What will rival Internet companies and users conquer after successfully quashing SOPA?</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/anti-sopa-groups-galvanized-victory" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> The unlikely collection of Internet companies and web activists came together last week to kill anti-piracy legislation. With their newly minted clout, what will they conquer next</h2> If you put the folks behind Wikipedia, Reddit and Google together in a room, they may not agree on much. But last week, these sites and multitudes of Web users were spurred to collective action against two Congressional bills (SOPA and PIPA) many claimed would&rsquo;ve censored the Internet.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> What&rsquo;s even more surprising is the unlikely allies <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/21/technology/senate-postpones-piracy-vote.htmlref=copyrights" target="_blank">quashed the anti-piracy legislation</a> with a single day of online protests.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/27/technology/victory-on-antipiracy-issue-buoys-internet-lobby.html_r=1&amp;ref=global" target="_blank">The New York Times</a> poses an important question this morning: What will the assortment of rival companies, Internet users under 30 and digital rights activists do with this newfound power<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The overwhelming response against SOPA sent a strong message. The group&rsquo;s lobbying clout should have opponents quivering. But can any other issue unite them in the same way SOPA did<br /> &nbsp;<br /> This generation of Internet whizzes and new media companies may now be realizing they&rsquo;ve taken certain rights for granted (i.e. free and open exchange via the Internet), and they&rsquo;re waking up to their own political power. I would imagine that sort of new consciousness won&rsquo;t stay suppressed for long.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/anti-sopa-groups-galvanized-victory#comments Digital The Exchange google lindsey peacock PIPA reddit SOPA wikipedia Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:14:06 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100961 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bmo-boosts-business-loans-10-billion <p> Bank of Montreal upps its business lending portfolio by nine per cent.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bmo-boosts-business-loans-10-billion" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> In an effort to increase small- to mid-sized business lending, Bank of Montreal upped its portfolio almost 10 per cent.</h2> Although Canada&rsquo;s economy will <a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/imf-cuts-canadian-economic-predictions" target="_blank">see lower-than-predicted growth</a> over the next year, the country&rsquo;s fourth-largest bank is making significantly more credit available to businesses.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Over the next three years, <a href="http://www.theprovince.com/business/fp/hikes+business+lending/6055669/story.html" target="_blank">Bank of Montreal will hike</a> its amount for business lending by $10 billion. The move is meant to be a boon for small- and mid-sized businesses, which ensures enough credit will be available for the foreseeable future at record-low interest rates.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> This is also good news for workers looking to start their own businesses. CIBC recently released a report pointing to the significant increase in self-employment, especially in B.C.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> According to the <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/business/High+paying+jobs+decline+self+employment+increases/6052166/story.html" target="_blank">report</a>, self-employment increased two per cent in B.C. last year. This was double the increase in paid employment during the same period. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bmo-boosts-business-loans-10-billion#comments Finance The Exchange B.C. Bank of Montreal CIBC lindsey peacock Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:15:20 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100959 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/price-247-work-culture <p> What is our 24/7 work culture really costing us?</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/price-247-work-culture" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> BlackBerrys and other mobile devices make it easy to continue working outside a regular 9-5 day. But what's the 24/7 work culture really costing us</h2> While in Germany a few weeks ago, I came across an <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16314901" target="_blank">interesting story </a>in the news. A union representing some of Volkswagen&rsquo;s 191,000 employees negotiated a deal whereby management agreed to stop routing e-mails 30 minutes after the end of employees&rsquo; shifts, and not resume until 30 minutes before the beginning of their next shift.<br /> <br /> That a union, typically concerned with entitlement to overtime pay for its employees, was behind these new rules speaks to the importance Volkswagen&rsquo;s employees place on burn out and the separation of work and leisure time.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> In Canada, there are few examples of employers taking a leadership role in limiting e-mail delivery during what otherwise would be an employee&rsquo;s rest time. Dick McFadden, then Deputy Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, was a notable exception. In January 2008, he issued rules within his department restricting the use of BlackBerrys after 7 p.m. and on weekends. When interviewed a year later about the success of the new guidelines, McFadden reported while he faced a lot of criticism the rules didn&rsquo;t reflect the reality of conducting business in a global economy, employees appreciated the rules, and there was a major drop in after-hours e-mails. He noted, however, that those levels where creeping up again.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> Arguably, Provincial Employment Standards legislation, with its rules on maximum hours of work per day and overtime pay, is also out of sync with business&rsquo; needs and 21^st century technology. While each jurisdiction has its own exceptions for managerial employees, IT employees and professionals such as lawyers and accountants, most workplaces are required to pay overtime wages if employees work outside their prescribed hours of work. This is true, even if employees are not specifically asked to work overtime as Employment Standards tribunals put the onus on employers to disprove overtime claims. So, if an employer allows an employee to stay at work, or provides remote access after-hours and has no rules respecting the use of such devices, the employer will be deemed to have requested the employee work longer hours.<br /> <br /> To make matters worse, employers are also expected to maintain accurate records of hours worked by employees. Without good records, employees&rsquo; recollection of extra hours worked, together with some records of e-mails sent outside regular work hours, could be sufficient to support their overtime claims.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> Whether your employees are already using the technologies that permit work-related communication outside of regular work hours, or if you are considering acquiring such technology for your employees, it&rsquo;s worth considering the following to minimize liability for overtime costs, not to mention employee burn out:<br /> <ul> <li> Critically examine who in your organization really needs access to portable communication devices or remote log-in functions, and whether or not people also need to be able to use such tools on evenings and weekends.</li> <li> Ensure policies are in place which deal with expectations for off-hours communications and overtime, and that your leadership team supports and follows the policies themselves.</li> <li> Invest in time-recording software that can automatically record and report the amount of time employees spend accessing and responding to e-mails via remote systems such as BlackBerrys.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</li> </ul> <br /> Short of adopting Volkswagen&rsquo;s approach, it takes leadership from senior management to counteract 24/7 work expectations implied simply from sending and responding to e-mails during evenings and weekends.<br /> <br /> Whether you are motivated by a desire to avoid employee burn out or potential overtime pay claims, examining what your company is doing (or not doing) to protect the separation between work and &ldquo;rest&rdquo; time makes good business sense. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/price-247-work-culture#comments Human Resource Management The Legalist blackberry Deputy Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Dick McFadden Nicole Byres volkswagen Thu, 26 Jan 2012 00:10:48 +0000 Nicole Byres 100958 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/contests/escape-sooke-retreat Getaway to Sooke at the brand new Best Western Premier Prestige Oceanfront Resort, Vancouver Island&rsquo;s best kept secret! <p> &nbsp;</p> <p> Prize Includes:</p> <p> Two (2) nights accommodation in an Oceanfront Balcony guestroom.</p> <p> Welcome Gift Basket.</p> <p> $100 Dining credit at the Mix by Ric's.</p> <p> $100 Spa credit at the Ocean Palm Spa.</p> <p> 2 hour kayak rental (for two)</p> <p> &nbsp;</p> <p> Prize redemption based on availability and must be reserved ahead of time. Based on double occupancy.</p> http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/contests/escape-sooke-retreat#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:12:21 +0000 100954 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/lunar-new-year-brings-big-retail-boost <p> Lunar New Year ushers in a lucrative season for Vancouver retailers.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/lunar-new-year-brings-big-retail-boost" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> As Lunar New Year celebrations ramp up around Vancouver, many retailers are celebrating the accompanying ring of cash registers.</h2> Last week, I accompanied a friend on my first trip to <a href="http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/index.php" target="_blank">Aberdeen Centre</a>. Since I&rsquo;m still new to Vancouver, I was curious to see the Asian-themed mall.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The moment I walked in and saw every floor decked out with colourful Chinese lanterns and massive blow-up dragons, I realized many Vancouver retailers actually cash in twice a year: Christmas and Lunar New Year.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> As pointed out Wednesday in <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Metro+Vancouver+retail+landscape+evolves+with+Chinese+immigration/6045808/story.html" target="_blank">The Vancouver Sun</a>, the surge in Chinese immigrants in the Lower Mainland has altered the retail landscape. With the emergence of Asian-themed retailers and malls, such as International Village in Chinatown and Aberdeen Centre in Richmond, Lunar New Year now offers a Christmas-sized boost in retail sales.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Lunar New Year, a 15-day celebration that kicked off Monday, draws many members of the Asian community out to mark the new year of the dragon. That celebratory spirit provides an economic opportunity for stores, with customers treating family, friends and themselves to dragon-themed goodies, clothes, housewares and other gifts.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> What helps merchants helps our community and our local economy. Now that&rsquo;s something to celebrate. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/lunar-new-year-brings-big-retail-boost#comments Retail The Exchange Chinatown lindsey peacock Lunar New Year richmond Vancouver Wed, 25 Jan 2012 19:22:23 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100950 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rim-victim-communication-democracy RIM tumbled to its current humble position because it didn't continue to innovate.<p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rim-victim-communication-democracy" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> RIM tumbled to its current humble position because it didn't continue to innovate. Instead, it chose to maintain a closed, imperious system when communication was being democratized.</h2> Elsewhere on this site, you&rsquo;ll see a <a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rim-shakeup-too-little-too-late">blog post</a> by our own Lindsey Peacock that asks what everyone is thinking about Research In Motion&rsquo;s sudden changing of the guard at the top &ndash; is it too little, too late<br /> <br /> But I&rsquo;d like to take another tack on the RIM problem. It is a problem: an innovation problem.<br /> <br /> Too often, innovators come up with a fantastic idea, run with it, and through hard work, timing and some good fortune, turn it into a great business that spins out obscene amounts of money.<br /> <br /> And then they sit there. And eventually they fade out of existence.<br /> <br /> Now, obviously, RIM isn&rsquo;t dead just yet. But it is wounded and appears to be on the innovation slippery slope to irrelevance. Deep-sixing their leaders and installing a lieutenant who has faithfully been following them for years isn&rsquo;t going to stop the slide, unless he suddenly becomes a master innovator. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> Everybody likes to say that Steve Jobs and Apple wielded the knife that began the bleeding at RIM. I don&rsquo;t think so. Apple merely did what RIM did years earlier &ndash; created a game-changing but proprietary communications platform &ndash; but did it with better design and much more panache than the dull engineers at RIM ever dreamed of. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> What I think really knocked RIM from its pinnacle was the entire concept of open innovation, especially as it&rsquo;s embodied in Google and its free Android operating system. Google put it out there and a host of gadget makers turned it into something that&rsquo;s taking over the world and shoving RIM out of the way.<br /> <br /> RIM may have opened the door to this new world of communications, but its business model couldn&rsquo;t sustain itself as that world took better form. It was built for corporates, priced for corporates and maintained a system for corporates.<br /> <br /> But only a few need that kind of proprietary information control today. Now the battle for the hearts, minds and wallets of communications users is not in the corporate sphere, but among consumers.<br /> <br /> Instant communication has become democratized and controllers like RIM are an anachronism.<br /> <br /> What&rsquo;s that you say Isn&rsquo;t the Apple empire a controlled system<br /> <br /> Yes, it is. But at this point it&rsquo;s still an innovative one. As soon as it stops being one &ndash; and it will now that Steve Jobs&rsquo;s guiding hand is gone &ndash; it will fall.<br /> <br /> Just like RIM. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rim-victim-communication-democracy#comments Mobile and Wireless The Insider Apple innovation research in motion steve jobs the insider tony wanless Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:04:16 +0000 Tony Wanless 100943 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/imf-cuts-canadian-economic-predictions <p> Europe's struggling economies are weighing down Canada's predicted growth in 2012.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/imf-cuts-canadian-economic-predictions" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> As Europe&rsquo;s debt problems compound, the IMF announces Canada won&rsquo;t get off as easily in 2012 as we may have hoped.</h2> Former president Bill Clinton was the first to coin the phrase, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s the economy, stupid.&rdquo; Well, actually, it&rsquo;s all about Europe&rsquo;s economy, stupid.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Tuesday morning, the International Monetary Fund <a href="http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1120330--imf-slashes-growth-forecast-for-canadian-economy" target="_blank">slashed Canada&rsquo;s expected growth</a> for 2012 from two per cent down to 1.7 per cent. As eurozone economies spontaneously combust, they&rsquo;re dragging Canada and many other nations down with them.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> It&rsquo;s just one of the many great &ldquo;benefits&rdquo; of a global economy.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Canada will fare better than other industrial nations, although that isn&rsquo;t saying much. The IMF warns that Europe will experience a mild recession. Germany, Italy and Spain will see negative growth.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Expected global growth was downgraded as well, as the global financial monitor predicts expansion of only 3.3 per cent this year, compared to its September 2011 prediction of four per cent. And IMF head Christine Lagarde ominously cautioned if Europe didn&rsquo;t take decisive action, growth forecasts would see further cuts.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The eyes of the world will follow global leaders even more closely later this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Perhaps the mounting pressure and new IMF predictions will light a fire to finalize a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/24/business/global/lagarde-urges-europe-to-beef-up-bailout-funds.htmlref=business" target="_blank">permanent debt solution for Europe</a>. <p> &nbsp;</p> http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/imf-cuts-canadian-economic-predictions#comments Economy The Exchange Bill Clinton Christine lagarde IMF lindsey peacock Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:41:39 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100944 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/canadians-investing-southern-us-real-estate <p> Canadians are sending their loonies down south in hopes of big returns on real estate.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/canadians-investing-southern-us-real-estate" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> With a strong Canadian dollar and the U.S. housing market in a slump, the time is right to send our loonies down south.</h2> For the price of a down payment on an average Vancouver house, Canadians are buying up homes in the southern U.S.&rsquo;s distressed real estate market. A detached house in Vancouver might come with a bloated, $1-million-plus price tag, but in the U.S. Sun Belt the market is saturated with bargain properties.<br /> <br /> Investing in foreign real estate isn't a novel trend for us northerners &ndash; snowbirds have spent winters roosting down south for years &ndash; but more than just fair-weather Canadians are spending their loonies across the border.<br /> <br /> With the Canadian dollar hovering around parity and the collapse of the U.S. housing market, Canadians are seizing bulk real estate opportunities purely as investments, without the promise of balmy evenings in Floridian vacation homes. According to the National Association of Realtors&rsquo; report on home buying in 2011, the U.S. has seen an influx in foreign buyers, with the majority of those purchases coming from Canadians and focused in Arizona, California, Florida and Texas.<br /> <br /> Vancouver-based Terrizona Investments is one local firm looking to provide Canadians with an easy entry point into the U.S. real estate market. Real estate experts Cam Good and Anthony Miachika started Terrizona to capitalize on the discount prices in the distressed southern market while giving Canadians uncomplicated access to the investment market. With a minimum investment of&nbsp; $50,000, Canadians can buy shares in the American Homes Fund, a Canadian Limited Partnership managed by Terrizona that is bulk-buying homes in the Greater Phoenix area. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re buying a house that costs $75,000 today that sold in 2006 for $280,000. That same house will rent for about $970 a month, so it yields a positive cash flow from day one,&rdquo; says Terrizona co-founder Cam Good.<br /> <br /> According to a November 2011 report by Colliers International, the Greater Phoenix area is expecting an increase in renter demand, which bodes well for investors like Good, who rely on the rental market to occupy investment properties.<br /> <br /> Although Good admits investing on your own isn&rsquo;t impossible, it&rsquo;s difficult &ndash; especially for those without real estate expertise and the market knowledge to make a smart and successful investment. Securing a mortgage, identifying the right areas to buy and myriad tax considerations make it complicated for Canadian investors to easily swoop in.<br /> <br /> Good&rsquo;s partner at Terrizona, Miachika, has been living in Phoenix, analyzing the local market. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve created what we think is the easiest, simplest way for someone to take advantage of what is obviously a good opportunity,&rdquo; says Good. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> When the American housing market rebounds &ndash; what Good expects to be in one to three years &ndash; the investment properties will be sold, the money will flow back to Terrizona&rsquo;s investors and the American Homes Fund ends. For Canadians reticent to dive into the U.S. market, it&rsquo;s not a matter of evaluating the situation. Investors know the time is right; it&rsquo;s simply a matter of figuring out how best to approach the opportunity. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/canadians-investing-southern-us-real-estate#comments Homes and Real Estate Kristen Hilderman terrizona investments Mon, 23 Jan 2012 23:52:09 +0000 Kristen Hilderman 100890 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rim-shakeup-too-little-too-late Is new executive leadership really enough to help Research In Motion bounce back? <p> &nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rim-shakeup-too-little-too-late" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> Investors balked and shares slid Monday despite RIM&rsquo;s executive shuffle. Is new leadership really enough to help the company bounce back</h2> While it&rsquo;s no surprise to anyone closely following the flailing company, things aren&rsquo;t looking so great for Research In Motion.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Over the weekend, the Waterloo, Ont.-based company&rsquo;s co-CEOs Mike Lazaridis and Jim Baisillie stepped down after a terrible year when shares slid 75 per cent. On Sunday, the Blackberry maker appointed chief operating officer Thorsten Heins as the new CEO.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Heins made his first conference call as CEO Monday morning, seemingly optimistic about RIM&rsquo;s chances of bouncing back with an emphasis on a change in marketing strategy and boosting consumer engagement.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> However, investors didn&rsquo;t take such an optimistic view. Shares slid Monday despite the change in leadership and talk of the company&rsquo;s reinvigoration.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The lack of investor confidence forces us to ask the question &ndash; is it too little, too late<br /> &nbsp;<br /> RIM can revamp its marketing strategy and amp up its consumer engagement, but it doesn&rsquo;t address the lack of innovation, the significant loss of market share and botched product launches (see <a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/technology/mobile-and-wireless/innovation-killing-crackberry" target="_blank">shipment delays</a> of new phones using the QNX system).<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The company has worrisome issues at its core, requiring vision and out-of-the-box creativity to find viable solutions. Here&rsquo;s hoping Heins is the strong leader who can take RIM off life support.<br /> &nbsp; <p> &nbsp;</p> http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/rim-shakeup-too-little-too-late#comments Mobile and Wireless The Exchange jim baisillie lindsey peacock Mike Lazaridis research in motion Thorsten Heins Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:26:44 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100891 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/different-future-vancouver-housing <p> Vancouver's real estate market is not in a bubble crisis. In fact, things are about to change.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/different-future-vancouver-housing" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> Despite some beliefs that escalating home prices have created a housing bubble, the Vancouver area real estate market is relatively balanced, experts say. But housing may look considerably different in future.</h2> Okay, folks, relax. Vancouver is not in the middle of a housing market bubble.<br /> <br /> But it is damned expensive. And it&rsquo;s going to change to more condos, more rentals and more mixed-use nodes around transit stations.<br /> <br /> This from the folks at the Urban Development Institute (UDI), who held their annual market forecast luncheon yesterday. UDI president Don Forsgren told 1200 senior development industry executives what everyone already knew &ndash; that housing affordability is at the &ldquo;crisis&rdquo; level in Vancouver.<br /> <br /> Obviously, homes are unaffordable in Vancouver because there aren&rsquo;t enough of them to meet the demand. Part of that is due to the unique circumstances that govern housing in the region, such as the fact that development can only go two ways &ndash; up in the city proper and east in the suburban areas.<br /> <br /> Also land prices are high, and provincial taxes and municipal charges on new development hidden, so people don&rsquo;t know how much various governments are taking out of the cost of a home, Forsgren added. &ldquo;The era of shifting infrastructure costs on to new homebuyers must end,&rdquo; he said.<br /> <br /> Forsgren believes the only way to address the affordability problem is to put the housing demand/supply equation out of balance by tipping it toward the supply side. If more homes can be built than are needed, affordability will be improved, presumably because price escalation will slow down. To address this affordability problem, UDI is providing an online platform, <a href="http://www.morehomes4morepeople.org" target="_blank">More Homes for More People</a>, where the public can join the discussion.<br /> <br /> &ldquo;We want everyone talking about the solutions to housing un-affordability, including community groups and special interests that often oppose our members&rsquo; developments,&rdquo;&nbsp; Forsgren said.<br /> <br /> At the meeting, a panel of real estate industry leaders mostly agreed that the Vancouver region market will not see any great falls this year, but increases may slow down. Vancouver still looks good to them, but not as good as Toronto, which attracts more immigrants and has more room to expand. Any city tied to booming resource industries are also good bets, they said.<br /> <br /> In Vancouver, they added, most new commercial and home building will cluster around transit lines and stations, because it is the only place were land use can be maximized. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/different-future-vancouver-housing#comments Homes and Real Estate The Insider tony wanless urban development institute Sat, 21 Jan 2012 00:30:56 +0000 Tony Wanless 100887 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/canadian-inflation-rate-takes-dive <p> Canadians are enjoying cheaper groceries and gas as inflation rate declines.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/canadian-inflation-rate-takes-dive" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> The national inflation rate dipped to just 2.3 per cent in December &ndash; meaning cheaper groceries and gas for Canadians.</h2> British Columbians may have noticed steadily falling prices at the pump in the last few months. Now the national inflation rate has dipped as well.<br /> <br /> Santa seems to have brought us lower-than-expected food and gas prices in December, <a href="http://www.statcan.gc.ca/subjects-sujets/cpi-ipc/cpi-ipc-eng.htm">according to Statistics Canada</a>.<br /> <br /> Gas prices saw the deepest decline, dropping three per cent in a single month.<br /> <br /> Shoppers will also notice a slight price drop in grocery stores, as food prices fell from 4.8 per cent in November to just 4.4 per cent in December.<br /> <br /> Overall, the inflation rate saw a whopping 0.6 per cent decrease in December. Analysts only projected a 0.4 per cent drop.<br /> <br /> According to Statistics Canada, Vancouver currently has one of the lowest inflation rates among major cities in Canada. Our inflation rate kept pace with the nationwide 0.6-per-cent drop, falling from 2.1 per cent in November to just 1.5 per cent in December.<br /> <br /> StatsCan says the single-month decline is the largest drop since the summer of 2009.<br /> http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/canadian-inflation-rate-takes-dive#comments Economics The Exchange Canada lindsey peacock Statistics Canada Vancouver Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:54:26 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100889 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/billion-dollar-tech-babies <p> If technology generates quick and copious wealth, where are B.C.'s tech billionaires?</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/billion-dollar-tech-babies" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> The technology sector is known for generating quick and copious wealth. So, where are B.C.&rsquo;s tech billionaires</h2> No industry in the history of capitalism has generated great wealth faster than the technology industry. In 2004, Mark Zuckerberg was a pimply faced, slightly spoiled undergraduate student. &nbsp;Today he is a pimply faced, mostly spoiled billionaire ($13.5 billion, according to the latest Forbes list). Sergey Brin and Larry Page (Google co-founders) are still under 40 and worth $20 billion each. Fifteen years ago they were graduate students who were really, really good at math.<br /> <br /> The Silicon Valley is rife with billionaires other than the three already mentioned (Larry Ellison, the Steve Jobs estate, Eric Schmidt, Pierre Omidyar, Jerry Yang, Mark Cuban and Dustin Moskovitz, just to name a few). Seattle has Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, who have built up Microsoft since the late 1970s. The new guy, Jeff Bezos, built his $8-billion pile in less than 17 years. The technology business has been very good to many people in the Bay Area and Seattle for the better part of three decades.<br /> <br /> In Canada, we have two technology guys who might not be billionaires for very much longer: Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis, the founders, or should I say flounders, of Research In Motion.<br /> <br /> In B.C., we had a technology billionaire &hellip; for about 3.5 days. Glenn Ballman was CEO of Onvia.com, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onvia) which went public in March 2000. Like many paper dotcom billionaires in that time period, his wealth was fleeting.<br /> <br /> B.C. has generated a few captains of other industries who, over many years or over generations, have built personal worth of more than $1 billion. Most of these individuals are very familiar: Jim Pattison (diversified); Robert Friedland (mining); Chip Wilson (Retail); Brandt Louie (retail); Bob Gaglardi (real estate development); and Richard Li (diversified).<br /> <br /> As an aside, David Cheriton is a billionaire from B.C. who made his fortune in technology. But he did so mostly as an investor living in California, where he was a Stanford professor. Larry and Sergey were sitting on his porch when he and Andy Bechtolsheim made the first angel investment in Google. Nice one, David. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cheriton)<br /> <br /> If technology creates wealth quicker than even the strike-it-rich mining industry, then where are the B.C. technology billionaires Yes, it takes a lot of value creation in a business to leave a minority shareholder enough to still be a billionaire. If a B.C. founder ended up owning 20 per cent of their company when it went public, the company would have to be valued at $5 billion for there to be a local tech billionaire. Just for comparison, Westport Innovations is our largest homegrown technology company currently, and it has a market capitalization of $1.7 billion.<br /> <br /> While the current dogpile on RIM is perhaps deserved, I still envy Waterloo and the incredible talent magnet and wealth creator they have in their back yard. For B.C. to have some tech billionaires, we have to create a company global in scope and dominant in its market.<br /> <br /> Don&rsquo;t scoff, people. Chip Wilson did it with lululemon in retail and it&rsquo;s not like he had any predecessor companies to look up to locally. If technology creates billionaires faster than any other industry, then we shouldn&rsquo;t have too long to wait! http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/billion-dollar-tech-babies#comments Technology Technically Speaking Bill Gates Brent Holliday dustin moskovitz Eric Schmidt facebook google Jerry Yang Jim Balsillie larry page mark cuban mark zuckerberg Mike Lazaridis peirre omidyar rim Seattle Sergey Brin Silicon Valley Steve Ballmer steve jobs Fri, 20 Jan 2012 00:57:29 +0000 Brent Holliday 100888 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/apple-targets-textbooks-new-ibooks-service <p> Apple attacks education issues with digital textbook service.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/apple-targets-textbooks-new-ibooks-service" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> The innovative tech company has plans to tackle an insurmountable problem in the U.S. &ndash; public education.</h2> As someone who went through the public education system in the U.S., I can attest to the severity of its shortcomings.<br /> <br /> In addition to acute underfunding and crippling teacher shortages in certain regions, one of the seemingly insurmountable obstacles public education faces is the use of textbooks.<br /> <br /> Growing up, there were never enough textbooks to go around in our classrooms, and those we had were outdated and falling apart.<br /> <br /> Teachers were only allowed to order replacements every few years because the per-textbook cost was an outrageous expense to the school district.<br /> <br /> But Apple Inc. has set its sights set on revolutionizing how public schools use textbooks. And, to be honest, the change doesn't come a moment too soon.<br /> <br /> Thursday the company unveiled its digital textbook service, dubbed iBooks 2, which will offer digital versions of textbooks for $14.99 or less each. Apple has partnered with textbook publishers McGraw-Hill, Pearson PLC and Houghton Mifflin, which print 90 per cent of textbooks in the U.S.<br /> <br /> Students and educators can access the free iBooks app via their iPads. Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller estimates 1.5 million iPads are currently used for educational purposes, and the digital textbook partnership will encourage more iPad use in the classroom.<br /> <br /> Assuming Apple works the same innovative magic it has with its other products, I'm delighted at the news. There's no downside to cheaper and more interactive textbooks. Here's hoping Apple's big vision will help revitalize a failing system down south. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/apple-targets-textbooks-new-ibooks-service#comments Education The Exchange Apple ipad lindsey peacock Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:13:53 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100886 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/ziplining-super-bowl <p> B.C.'s innovative spirit penetrates the Super Bowl.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/ziplining-super-bowl" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> First it was Japadog opening an eatery in New York. Now B.C.-based Ziptrek Ecotours is poised to bring its ziplining experience to the Super Bowl. Another B.C. entrepreneurial idea takes off.</h2> Like probably half the men in the city, I just spent much of the weekend lumping out in front of the television watching the American football march to the Super Bowl.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> (And thank God that we no longer have to hear about Tim Tebow&rsquo;s miracles!)<br /> <br /> So, it&rsquo;s nice to see that a B.C. company is going to be prominent in the Super Bowl extravaganza in Indianapolis.<br /> <br /> Whistler-based Ziptrek Ecotours, which brought the weird idea of &ldquo;urban ziplining&rdquo; to the Vancouver Olympics, is going to install a zipline in Indiana as part of the fun of Super Bowl Week, January 27 &ndash; February 2.<br /> <br /> The zipline will run directly down Capital Ave., next to the Indiana Convention Center. The Super Bowl installation is Ziptrek&rsquo;s biggest onsite installation yet, with four lines running 800 feet or 244 meters.<br /> <br /> Presumably, the zipline will be as popular at the Super Bowl as it was at the Vancouver Olympics, where people often waited for several hours for their chance to zip.<br /> <br /> It will also bring the B.C.-created &ldquo;sport&rdquo; to thousands of people who had never heard of it, but will likely rave about the thrill of sliding down the zipline with the icy wind blowing by their faces.<br /> <br /> I don&rsquo;t know how the Ziptrek people got to be part of the Super Bowl festivities, but I do congratulate them for selling the organizers on the idea. It&rsquo;s a great example of the entrepeneurial spirit that runs through this province.<br /> <br /> Maybe it&rsquo;s because we have so few of the jobs that are so numerous back east, or maybe it&rsquo;s just because living on the West Coast gets the imagination ... uh &hellip; zipping along.<br /> <br /> We do seem to generate some weird business ideas here. And many are successful. Look at Japadog &ndash; again, a huge success at the Olympics &ndash; that recently opened a branch in New York City.<br /> <br /> I mean, who would have thought that sending someone rocketing down a cable through the frigid air would be a business http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/ziplining-super-bowl#comments Innovation The Insider 2010 Vancouver Olympics Japadog Super Bowl tony wanless ZipTrek Eco Tours Thu, 19 Jan 2012 00:16:51 +0000 Tony Wanless 100881 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/good-and-bad-news-property-valuations <p> It&rsquo;s that dreaded time of year again &ndash; time for taxes and assessed property valuations.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/good-and-bad-news-property-valuations" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> It&rsquo;s that dreaded time of year again &ndash; time for taxes and assessed property valuations.</h2> The double-edged sword known as property assessment values is here again. Every January, as reliable as broken New Year&rsquo;s resolutions, the BC Assessment Authority issues its &ldquo;<a href="http://www.bcassessment.bc.ca/Pages/2012AssessmentRollInformation.aspx" target="_blank">Assessment Roll</a>,&rdquo; which advises homeowners on their property valuations.<br /> <br /> The report is one of those good news/bad news situations, depending on where you are in your current property lifecycle. &nbsp;Sellers are hoping for the highest valuation possible while homeowners preparing for this year&rsquo;s tax bill are praying for the lowest.<br /> <br /> Assessed value is based on the value of your property in July 2011. While 2011 seems like a lifetime ago, the market was in a frenzy. Sales were hot and some properties saw multiple over-list-price offers. &nbsp;Rumours swirled about offshore investors with briefcases full of cash driving up house values. The buying frenzy in Vancouver, Richmond and West Vancouver drove others out to buy in Burnaby, Coquitlam and New Westminster, which drove values up in those areas. The assessment roll reflects those market changes.<br /> <br /> Richmond, West Vancouver and Burnaby were most notable for assessment increases. Notables include Vancouver and Richmond, which saw increases between five and 30 per cent in single-family detached homes. In the &lsquo;burbs, Queens Park, Kensington and Westwood Plateau saw the highest increases. The biggest decreases (-7 per cent) were in resort areas hit hard with slow sales -- Whistler and Sun Peaks.<br /> <br /> Appraisers also consider size, age, quality, view and location. That would account for why some physical homes decreased in value while the portion of land valuation inceased. So, while some lots may be the same size, the age of the home and even its orientation on the lot could affect the overall value.<br /> <br /> Your assessment is not necessarily an effective indicator of the value of your home in the current market. Remember, it&rsquo;s a valuation based on sales from more than six months ago. &nbsp;Sales slid, and when sales soften, there is a tendency for prices to soften as well. The assessment team has not been in your home and may not be aware of your amazing, state-of-the-art professional chef&rsquo;s kitchen or walk-out basement to the grotto pool. It&rsquo;s really a way to decide how to distribute the tax burden throughout B.C.<br /> <br /> If you disagree with your assessment, you have some opportunity to seek redress. The BC Assessment website provides some options, beginning with a phone call. The next step is to file a notice of complaint. But don&rsquo;t dally! The period for filing your notice of complaint is a meager window of appeal, expiring on Jan. 31, 2012. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/good-and-bad-news-property-valuations#comments Homes and Real Estate The Conference BC Assessment Authority leah bach Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:14:17 +0000 Leah Bach 100884 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/obama-kill-keystone-pipeline <p> U.S. President Obama is rejecting the Keystone pipeline.&nbsp;What's next for TransCanada?</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/obama-kill-keystone-pipeline" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> As reports confirm the White House will reject TransCanada's Keystone pipeline, the world awaits the company's next move.</h2> U.S. President Obama kept his word.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/obama-administration-to-reject-keystone-pipeline/2012/01/18/gIQAPuPF8P_story.html " target="_blank">The Washington Post</a> broke the news this morning that the White House will axe TransCanada's embattled Keystone pipeline plan as early as this afternoon.<br /> <br /> Last month, amid the Congressional shuffle around extending the payroll tax holiday for American workers, Congress inserted a provision in the bill forced President Obama to make a firm decision on the pipeline permit by Feb. 21.<br /> <br /> Late last year, the White House released a statement saying the president wanted to delay the decision until after the federal election in November, which would afford enough time to study the pipeline's route through sensitive environments in Nebaska. Today's announcement will most likely have that intended effect.<br /> <br /> While this is a heavy blow, all is not lost for TransCanada. The company can reapply for the necessary permit once it develops an alternate route around Nebraska's Sandhills.<br /> <br /> The Keystone XL pipeline is a proposed project that would transport crude oil from Alberta's oilsands across six states to refineries in Texas. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/obama-kill-keystone-pipeline#comments Politics The Exchange Barack Obama keystone pipeline lindsey peacock TransCanada Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:47:01 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100883 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/tech-industry-unites-against-sopa <p> More websites plan to go dark Wednesday to protest piracy legislation.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/tech-industry-unites-against-sopa" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> An online protest against SOPA and PIPA bills gain momentum as Wikipedia pledges to go dark Wednesday.</h2> On Wednesday, users of popular websites such as Wikipedia and Reddit may notice something different &ndash; no content.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/16/wikipedia-plans-to-go-dark-on-wednesday-to-protest-sopa/ref=business" target="_blank">The New York Times</a> reports today that several sites are blacking out their content for 24 hours as an online protest against two U.S. Congressional bills they say amount to censorship and will hurt online businesses.&nbsp;<br /> <br /> The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and Protect IP Act (PIPA) would require search engines and sites to block other sites that offer or publish links to copyrighted material.<br /> <br /> Jimmy Wales, co-founder of Wikipedia, offered the Pirate Bay as an example. If the bills pass, Wales says Wikipedia could compose an entry on the history of Pirate Bay, but could not provide a link to the file-sharing site. He says it's a &quot;First Amendment issue.&quot;<br /> <br /> Wikipedia estimates the blackout of its English site, beginning at midnight Eastern time Tuesday and ending at midnight on Wednesday, will affect up to 100 million people.&nbsp;Users visiting the site will see a banner providing more information on the bills and offering ways to contact their Congressional representative.<br /> <br /> Reddit will also blackout its site, and WordPress, the blogging platform site, has built widgets for users to post on their blogs expressing their anti-SOPA sentiments. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/tech-industry-unites-against-sopa#comments Digital The Exchange Jimmy Wales lindsey peacock PIPA reddit SOPA wikipedia Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:26:02 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100882 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/carnival-cruise-accident-could-shipwreck-industry <p> A cruise ship accident over the weekend could sink more than the boat.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/carnival-cruise-accident-could-shipwreck-industry" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> The cruise ship accident off Italy's coast could sink more than the boat as Carnival's shares fall almost 20 per cent.</h2> The fatal sinking of a luxury cruise ship off Italy's west coast dominated the news this weekend, <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Cruise+disaster+threat+industry/6002484/story.html" target="_blank">with reports</a> of at least five deaths and around 70 injuries thus far.<br /> <br /> Parent company Carnival Corp. saw stocks fall 18 per cent on Monday, and initial estimates of the incident's cost currently sit at US$95 million.<br /> <br /> <a href="http:// http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/carnival-stock-falls-18-in-wake-of-cruise-ship-disaster/article2303714/" target="_blank">An analyst at Morgan Stanley</a> also slashed Carnival's estimated earnings per share by 30 per cent.<br /> <br /> Friday's disaster already has potentially far-reaching effects on more than just Carnival. In addition to being a public relations nightmare for the company, the incident also comes at peak season for the cruise industry. Not exactly the best time to shake consumers' confidence in cruise line safety.<br /> <br /> Consumer spending on luxury vacations was already weak this season, mostly due to a shaky global economy. And reports on the mishandling of the ship's evacuation will prompt an investigation, which could result in tighter regulations for the industry as a whole.<br /> <br /> Sure, that's a lot of what-if scenarios. But the world's largest cruise company has a lot to lose in the wake of such a surreal disaster. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/carnival-cruise-accident-could-shipwreck-industry#comments Tourism and Hospitality The Exchange Carnival Corp. Italy lindsey peacock Mon, 16 Jan 2012 18:54:00 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100879 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/fresh-truffles-hawksworth-restaurant <p> Daily Photo: Hawksworth Restaurant unpacks a $10,000 shipment of black winter truffles.</p> <h3> The Daily Photo: 10:00 a.m. Hawksworth Restaurant chef David Hawksworth unpacks a fresh, 15-pound shipment of black winter truffles from P&eacute;rigord, France. The delicacy comes with a hefty $10,000 price tag.</h3> <p> &nbsp;</p> http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/fresh-truffles-hawksworth-restaurant#comments Vancouver Restaurants The Daily Photo David Hawksworth Kristen Hilderman Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:59:20 +0000 Kristen Hilderman 100878 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bcbusiness-brief-january-13 <p> News dispatches from Canada and the world for January 13, 2012.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bcbusiness-brief-january-13" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> Justice Minister Declares All Same-Sex Marriages Valid</h2> <blockquote> <p> All same sex marriages performed in Canada are legal and the law will be changed to ensure that divorce is readily available to non-residents who were married in the country, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson says.<br /> <br /> Speaking at a Toronto luncheon Friday, Mr. Nicholson blamed the Liberal government that preceded his for not filling a &ldquo;legislative gap&rdquo; that has left thousands of same-sex couples in an agonizing position of being unable to divorce should they feel a need to.</p> </blockquote> <p> <em>Source: <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/justice-minister-declares-all-same-sex-marriages-legal-and-valid/article2301691/" target="_blank">The Globe and Mail</a></em><br /> <br /> &nbsp;</p> <hr /> <br /> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> <br /> Canada's Election Laws Changing to Reflect Twitter Reality</h2> <blockquote> <p> The Harper government will repeal the ban on communicating election results while polls are still open, bringing the law into harmony with the realities of instantaneous communications in the 21st century.</p> <p> The ban on early communication of election results was adopted in 1938, to prevent western voters knowing the results of the election in the east when they cast their ballots.</p> </blockquote> <p> <em>Source: <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Canada+election+laws+changing+reflect+Twitter+reality/5991773/story.html" target="_blank">The Vancouver Sun</a></em><br /> <br /> &nbsp;</p> <hr /> <br /> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> <br /> Mortgage Rates Dropping Due to Cheap Bonds</h2> <blockquote> <p> A strong international demand for bonds from Canada's biggest banks is trickling through the system and pushing mortgage rates to record lows at the consumer level.</p> <p> The Bank of Montreal moved its benchmark five-year fixed mortgage rate to 2.99 per cent late Thursday &mdash; the lowest posted rate from a major bank in Canadian history.</p> </blockquote> <em>Source: <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/01/13/mortgage-rate-low.html" target="_blank">CBC</a></em><br /> <p> &nbsp;</p> <hr /> <br /> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> <br /> Apples Discovers Supplier Environmental Violations</h2> <blockquote> <p> Apple Inc released on Friday a comprehensive audit of its major suppliers, saying it discovered a number of environmental violations in plants in China.</p> </blockquote> <em>Source: <a href="http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-discovers-environmental-violations-supplier-165955996.html;_ylt=AtyfqRjXlaAPtD0BvSt4QQJyzJpG;_ylu=X3oDMTN2YmJlbDRwBG1pdANKdW1ib3Ryb24gTGl0ZSBIb21lRlAEcGtnA2FkM2M0YmY0LTdkMWItM2E0OC04Y2EwLTI0YTdlNjVmM2I1MwRwb3MDMwRzZWMDanVtYm90cm9uBHZlcgNlMDRmMDEwMC0zZTA4LTExZTEtYmJmMy1jNjIwYTJlMTZlYzM-;_ylg=X3oDMTFvc2hxMmJhBGludGwDY2EEbGFuZwNlbi1jYQRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANob21lBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25zBHRlc3QD;_ylv=3" target="_blank">Yahoo! Finance</a></em><br /> &nbsp; <hr /> <br /> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> <br /> Hostess Brands Inc. Preps to File for Chapter 11</h2> <blockquote> <p> Hostess Brands Inc. is preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as soon as this week, said people familiar with the matter, a move that would mark the second significant court restructuring for the Twinkies and Wonder Bread baker in the past several years.</p> <p> The privately held Irving, Texas, company, which employs roughly 19,000 people and carries more than $860 million in debt, has been facing a cash squeeze amid high labor costs and rising prices for sugar, flour and other ingredients, according to people familiar with the matter.</p> </blockquote> <em>Source: <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204124204577151211961572458.html" target="_blank">The Wall Street Journal</a></em><br /> http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/bcbusiness-brief-january-13#comments Media, Arts and Entertainment business brief Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:50:42 +0000 BCBusiness 100876 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/sp-poised-slash-euro-zone-ratings <p> Europe creeps toward a recession as S&amp;P cuts credit ratings.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/sp-poised-slash-euro-zone-ratings" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <p> &nbsp;</p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> Standard &amp; Poor plans to cut credit ratings for several European nations. Does this mean a recession is inevitable</h2> Friday the 13th brings us bad news for the euro zone. <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-news/sp-set-to-cut-some-euro-zone-ratings/article2301367/" target="_blank">The Globe &amp; Mail</a> is reporting that Standard and Poor&rsquo;s will downgrade credit ratings for several euro zone countries today, including France and Austria.</div> <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> The two nations will lose their AAA+ ratings and revert to AA+, and one euro zone official says Slovakia will also be affected in the downgrade announcement.&nbsp;</div> <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> The news is prompting doomsday-type headlines, such as &quot;<a href="http://www.economist.com/node/21542824" target="_blank">A false dawn: The recession has been mild ... but things are likely to get much worse</a>&quot; and polls such as &quot;Will the euro survive 2012 intact&quot;</div> <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> Is it really all that bad</div> <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> European stock markets soured and the euro's value dropped more than a cent as an immediate reaction to the news.</div> <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> Yes, Europe seems far away, and Vancouverites probably feel removed from all the credit-rating hullabaloo. But as Europe creeps closer to a recession, Canadians should stay wary.</div> <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> In the words of our own Tony Wanless, &quot;... as much as we might think we are, no one is separate anymore. If the euro goes down, it will be a financial shock that will reverberate around the world.&quot;</div> <div> &nbsp;</div> <div> Couldn't have said it better myself.</div> http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/sp-poised-slash-euro-zone-ratings#comments Economics The Exchange euro zone lindsey peacock Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:04:40 +0000 Lindsey Peacock 100877 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/another-bc-creative-industry-chinese-food <p> B.C.'s creative Chinese cuisine is influencing culinary culture in the east.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/another-bc-creative-industry-chinese-food" target="_blank">read more</a></p> <h2 class="bcb-article-deck"> Another creative industry has sprung up under our noses without any help from government, economists or the usual sources. Our Chinese restaurants lead the world with their creative cooking.</h2> A year ago at this time, while eating in a Hong Kong restaurant my wife and I struck up a conversation with a large family having a get-together over a big, noisy meal at the next table.<br /> <br /> &ldquo;Where are you from&rdquo; asked the wife, who was obviously head of the household, spoke relatively good English and had quickly discerned that we weren't locals. They were curious that we were tourists but seemed to know our way around Chinese food and could speak a few words. We had even brought our own chopsticks.<br /> <br /> When we replied, &quot;Vancouver,&quot; she said, &ldquo;Oh, that explains it.&rdquo;<br /> <br /> Curious, we asked why, and she said, &ldquo;Everybody knows that Vancouver has the best Chinese food. All the good chefs have left here and gone to Vancouver.&rdquo;<br /> <br /> We found that amusing, but apparently she was right &ndash; if the annual Chinese Restaurant Awards is any indication. At a recent CRA ceremony, the Vancouver-China connection was front and centre.<br /> <br /> According to Craig Stowe, president of the CRA, China is pretty impressed with Vancouver&rsquo;s culinary prowess, which tends to creatively combine traditional Chinese cooking with B.C.&rsquo;s food sources and constant willingness to try something new.<br /> <br /> China is so impressed, in fact, that the Mainland and Hong Kong chefs are picking up on the Vancouver method of Chinese cooking, and trying to emulate it.<br /> <br /> Stowe says there are over 500 Chinese restaurants in the Lower Mainland and a lot of culinary trends start here and move to Mainland China. (Since I live on the East Side of Vancouver, I&rsquo;m thinking he must mean way over 500. It seems like there are 500 just in my neighborhood, if you count all the grocery stores that also serve food.)<br /> <br /> Even better for B.C.&rsquo;s export economy, chefs in China are so eager to emulate B.C. Chinese food they&rsquo;re importing food and food trends from B.C. and Alberta.<br /> <br /> &ldquo;Cathay Pacific and China Eastern are flying out container loads&rdquo; every day, says Stowe.<br /> <br /> Well, good for them. Here&rsquo;s an economic trend that the boffins in B.C., with all their spreadsheeting and analyzing and prognosticating, had not predicted.<br /> <br /> Okay, maybe it&rsquo;s not up there (yet) with forestry, but who would have dreamed a few years ago that Chinese food would be one of our exports<br /> <br /> It&rsquo;s that kind of modern creativity that&rsquo;s going to take B.C. into the future. http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca/another-bc-creative-industry-chinese-food#comments Vancouver Restaurants Imports and Exports Tourism and Hospitality The Insider tony wanless Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:48:08 +0000 Tony Wanless 100875 at http://www.bcbusinessonline.ca