Tweeting for Dollars

Advertising is infiltrating the Twitter community, the New York Times reports. People who have  large followings on the site are increasingly considering sending out tweets endorsing certain products or services in exchange for payment. Various start-ups have cropped up around this very idea, and each is trying to figure out how best to make these ads unobtrusive and perhaps even relevant. The paper says, “It is perhaps the last frontier in advertising—getting regular people to send a sentence or two of text, on behalf of paying advertisers, to their friends and admirers. The idea, according to the entrepreneurs who are developing such services for Twitter and other Web networks, is that people trust recommendations from those they know and respect, while they increasingly ignore nearly ever other kind of ad message in print, on television and online.”

Big banks are finding new profits in “the mortgage mess,” the New York Times reports. The paper explains, “Investment funds are buying billions of dollars’ worth of home loans, discounted from the loans’ original value. Then, in what might seem an act of charity, the funds are helping homeowners by reducing the size of the loans. But as part of these deals, the mortgages are being refinanced through lenders that work with government agencies like the Federal Housing Administration. This enables the funds to pocket sizable profits by reselling new, government-insured loans to other federal agencies, which then bundle the mortgages into securities for sale to investors.” Here’s the catch: The situation is riskiest for the federal government and, at the end of the day, taxpayers.

So much for Black Friday. The Wall Street Journal has decided that this whole month should be called “Black November.” The paper explains, “The one-day Black Friday shopping event has given way to a month-long parade of promotions this year, as retailers are making a dash for early holiday cash.” At this point, consumers are used to getting good deals, so retailers have already been particularly generous with promotions. Still, this is not to say that you won’t get good prices the day after Thanksgiving. The day will be “as promotional as usual”—including doorbuster sales to lure the crowds.

The Washington Post reports that some employers who cancelled lavish holiday parties due to the recession last year have failed to reinstate them. Instead, they’re planning charitable events or fundraisers. The paper says, “At employers large and small, the holiday party has disappeared or become a shadow of its former self. In its place, bosses are planning help-the-hungry or cheer-the-children campaigns.” Not only do these events cost less money, but they can bolster a firm’s reputation as well. The paper reports that according an annual survey by an executive-search firm, “About 81 percent of companies surveyed said they plan a holiday celebration—the lowest level since the survey began 21 years ago. More than half said they'd canceled their party or reduced its scale.”

And finally, according to the AP via BusinessWeek, " ‘The Twilight Saga: New Moon’ took in $72.7 million in its first day to break the single day domestic box office record previously held by ‘The Dark Knight,’ which had a $67.2 million opening day last year.” The movie, which opened this weekend, is a follow-up to the tale of a young girl who falls in love with a vampire. The article continues, “If ‘New Moon’ maintains its pace, it might have a shot at the all-time best opening weekend record of $158.4 million, also held by "The Dark Knight.’ ”