MBN: The Monte Bubbles Network: Your news source on the web: July 12,2006

Home Entertainment Giants Adopt New Approach to Retail

For a number of years,
suppliers and retailers have benefited from collaborative
partnerships embodied in vendor managed inventory (VMI) and
collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment (CPFR)
programs. This has helped them to achieve increased
inventory productivity and higher revenue, and to minimize
lost sales. Once considered radical innovations, such
programs are fast becoming standard operating procedure, a
basic requirement for maintaining "high value" status in the
retail channel.

Sweeping changes like radio frequency identification (RFID)
and shelf-level inventory management are posing new
challenges for these efforts. "The immense volume of
information required for continuous replenishment presents
some real problems," says Jay Ennesser, IBM's vice president
of Cross-Industry Alliances. "As these programs mature and
expand to support more customers, companies are also faced
with the challenge of continually innovating and increasing
the value they bring to the relationship. They must
continually improve their processes and performance, and
often that means finding new solutions that can create
significant value by optimizing profitability at the shelf."

An emerging leader in the effort to help suppliers turn
these challenges into competitive advantages is Los
Angeles-based WebConcepts. It is quickly becoming a driving
force in the industry's transformation of supply-chain
management standards. This is due largely to the company
founder, an innovative problem-solver bent on providing
optimal solutions.

"My goal is to enable both suppliers and retailers to make
the most of the space they have," says Ray Young, founder of
WebConcepts. "Traditionally, people focused on product
optimization. In today's world, retailers focus on how much
they can make per square-foot. We help them maximize their
revenue by focusing on shelf optimization."

When a consumer purchases a product, the retailer can
immediately track information about the sale, including the
location from which it was selected. Pinpointing sales and
inventory activity enables suppliers to optimize
replenishment and category-management efforts.

Utilizing WebConcepts' solutions, companies are finding it
easier to manage the increasingly complex task of
replenishing multiple retailers and improving inventory
performance. Young's eVMI solution allows for expert
distribution of products and tracking the like of which the
industry has never before seen. Responding hourly to
critical inventory details, suppliers can make sure their
products flow correctly, and stores can keep hot-ticket
items on the shelf.

"If someone walks into a store to buy a new DVD and the
shelf is empty, then the store and possibly the manufacturer
lose money," explains Young. "Efficient, detail-level
planning and replenishment makes these losses avoidable, but
every retail partner has different requirements, standards
and expectations. eVMI has been immensely successful in
helping suppliers and retailers improve customer service and
realize an impressive return on investment. One of eVMI's
best features is that it's highly configurable. Costly
customization just isn't required."

Young explains that the goal of never losing a sale while
pushing inventory efficiency to very high levels is now
realistically within reach, because their products are
designed to handle massive amounts of highly granular
information quickly and efficiently.

"Sony absolutely has to manage title replenishment at the
lowest level of detail, as accurately and as rapidly as
possible," says David Cortese, vice president of information
technology at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. "It's an
incredible challenge to do this for 60 retailers, but
WebConcepts' eVMI has proven itself more than capable of
doing the job for us."

WebConcepts is making an impressive mark on the
home-entertainment industry, landing such respected clients
as Paramount Pictures, MGM Studios, Sony Pictures, and
Disney. Knowing that their solutions will be of tremendous
value to other segments of the consumer-products industry,
as well, the company is expanding its horizons.

"Our applications provide solutions to both current and
emerging needs," adds Young. "We are bringing the
supply-chain management system into the twenty-first
century, ensuring it is better aligned with consumer
demands. From the feedback we've received, our customers
couldn't be happier."

Six New Governors Elected to AMPAS Board; Eight Incumbents Returned

Six new governors, three of them serving for the first time, have been elected to represent their branches on the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Eight incumbent governors were reelected.

Newcomers to the board are Rob Epstein, documentary branch; Mark Goldblatt, film editors; and James L. Brooks, writers. Returning to the board after a hiatus are Paul Mazursky, directors; Mark Johnson, producers; and Bill Taylor, visual effects.

Incumbent governors reelected to another term are Ed Begley Jr., actors branch; Jeannine Oppewall, art directors; Caleb Deschanel, cinematographers; Tom Sherak, executives, Bruce Broughton, music branch; Cheryl Boone Isaacs, public relations; Jon Bloom, short films and feature animation; and Kevin O’Connell, sound.

Each of the Academy’s 14 branches is represented by three governors who may serve up to three consecutive three-year terms. Terms are staggered so that each branch elects or reelects one governor each year.

Governors who were not up for reelection and who continue on the board are: Kathy Bates and Tom Hanks, actors branch; Rosemary Brandenburg and Albert Wolsky, art directors; Roger Deakins and Owen Roizman, cinematographers; Curtis Hanson and Alexander Payne, directors; Michael Apted and Freida Lee Mock, documentary; Jim Gianopulos and Robert Rehme, executives; Donn Cambern and Tom Rolf, film editors; Charles Bernstein and Arthur Hamilton, music; Kathleen Kennedy and Hawk Koch, producers; Sid Ganis and Marvin Levy, public relations; Carl Bell and John Lasseter, short films and feature animation; J. Paul Huntsman and Donald C. Rogers, sound; Craig Barron and Jonathan Erland, visual effects; and Fay Kanin and Phil Alden Robinson, writers.

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New and existing Hertz #1 Club and #1 Club Gold members are automatically entered into the drawing each time they rent a vehicle from any participating Hertz location using their membership number. The contest is open to Canadian residents who are at least 21 years old. Rentals must take place by October 15, 2006 to be eligible for entry.

Hertz #1 Club offers members expedited reservations and rentals at airport and off-airport locations nationwide, special savings on rentals, including "Members only" discounts for each reservation, promotional offers for weekly and weekend rentals, and the opportunity to earn free rentals. Membership in the Hertz #1 Club is free.

Hertz #1 Club Gold program offers all the features of #1 Club membership and more, including the ability to bypass the rental counter altogether or to stop at a special #1 Club Gold counter to pick up rental keys and a preprinted rental contract for an expedited rental process. Membership in #1 Club Gold costs $50 annually.

Hertz #1 Club and #1 Club Gold members may alternately enter the drawing by mailing their name, e-mail address, mailing address and #1 Club or #1 Club Gold membership number to: Hertz #1 Club Germany Draw, 5403 Eglinton Ave., West, Toronto, Ontario, M9C 5K6. Only one mail-in entry is allowed per envelope. Entries must be received by October 15, 2006.

The drawing will award one prize of a seven-day, six-night trip for two to Germany, which includes round-trip transportation on Air Canada, a six-night hotel stay and a seven-day Hertz car rental. Chances of winning depend on the total number of eligible entries received.

For more information on the Hertz #1 Club or #1 Club Gold, customers can call Hertz toll-free at 800-263-0600, 800-263-0678 in French, or visit www.hertz.ca.

Hertz operates from 7,600 locations in approximately 150 countries.

Ethics Resource Center Launches 'Donate Your Data' Program

Organizations asked to donate ethics and compliance data
from internal surveys in order to improve research on ethics

The research-based nonprofit
Ethics Resource Center (ERC) announces "Donate Your Data," a
new charitable contribution program that allows companies to
donate data accumulated from their internal ethics and
compliance surveys in order to further the ethics center's
research and benchmarking abilities.

Many organizations conduct regular employee surveys to learn
more about ethics, compliance, risk and misconduct in the
workplace. "While the data from these surveys are useful for
understanding the dynamics of an individual organization, it
also has tremendous potential to benefit the ethics industry
as a whole when merged with data from other organizations,"
said Dr. Patricia Harned, President of the Ethics Resource
Center.

ERC's "Donate Your Data" program allows organizations to
donate ethics- and compliance-related data, from current or
past surveys, for use in ongoing research on topics of key
concern to business leaders. Data from entire surveys or
from individual questions (including ethics questions in HR
surveys) are of interest. Donated data will enrich the
overall data set that ERC uses to formulate thoughtful
research pieces on topics that are important to business
leaders, such as ethical culture and the effectiveness of
training programs. Where the data has been collected in a
comparable manner, it will also enhance ERC's benchmarks for
ethics and compliance program effectiveness.

"We're proud that our data can be put to good use to further
research," commented Mike Campbell, Chairman, Employee
Ethics Committee, Science Applications International
Corporation (SAIC), a donor organization. "We're able to
advance learning without compromising the integrity of our
survey effort." In addition to expanding ERC archives and
improving the value of its research, the data may be used to
support the research endeavors of business school faculty
and graduate students who are periodically granted limited
access to ERC data.

Donations of datasets are considered in-kind,
tax-deductible, charitable contributions to ERC. In
addition, ERC will enter into a contractual agreement with
each donor organization to ensure the confidentiality of
donor companies and their survey respondents.

The Ethics Resource Center (ERC), a 501(c)(3) educational
organization, conducts research to help strengthen the
character of business, and provides resources to educate the
public about organizational ethics issues across all
sectors. Additionally, the ERC provides benchmarks for
gauging the effectiveness of organizational ethics and
compliance programs. For more information, visit
http://www.ethics.org.

Administrator Preston: Release the Names

American Small Business League Calls on New SBA
Administrator to Release the Names of Small Business
Contractors

Earlier this week, Steven
C. Preston was sworn in by President Bush as the new
Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
During his confirmation hearing last month, Preston promised
to improve oversight for small business contracting, which
has been plagued by fraud, abuse, and a lackadaisical
attitude by the SBA. American Small Business League
President, Lloyd Chapman, is calling on Mr. Preston to live
up to his pledge by, first of all, releasing the complete
list of firms that were coded as small businesses for the
purpose of federal contracting during fiscal year 2005.

On June 21, 2006, the SBA announced that a "record-breaking"
$79.6 billion in federal contracts were awarded to small
businesses last year. However, research conducted by the
ASBL has exposed the fact that giant defense contractors,
such as Boeing, General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, Northrop
Grumman, and L-3 Communications, have received billions in
small business contracts over the last several years.

A 2005 list of the top 100 contractors that ASBL obtained
from Eagle Eye Publishing, a Virginia-based research firm,
shows that this trend is continuing and may be growing
worse. Chapman would like to see the new Administrator come
forward with the details of what companies the SBA is
including in its total small business procurement
calculation.

"Steve Preston can prove what kind of Administrator he
intends to be by allowing the public access to the truth
about federal small business contracting-that large
businesses are walking away with the lion's share of small
business awards," stated Chapman. "It's my hope that Mr.
Preston will have enough integrity to admit the facts and
implement the necessary reforms to keep Fortune 500
companies off of the small business contractor list. We'll
soon know whether Preston will be part of the problem or
part of the solution."

About the ASBL

The American Small Business League was formed to promote and
advocate policies that provide the greatest opportunity for
small businesses - the 98% of U.S. companies with less than
100 employees. The ASBL is founded on the principle that
small businesses, the backbone of a vital American economy,
should receive the fair treatment promised by the Small
Business Act of 1953. Representing small businesses in all
fields and industries throughout the United States, the ASBL
monitors existing policies and proposed policy changes by
the Small Business Administration and other federal agencies
that affect its members.

As President Bush Heads to G8 Meeting, New Book Provides
Insight on How KGB Colonel Got to Chair Club of
World-Leading Democracies

The Group of Eight (G8)
meeting, an annual political summit of the heads of
governments, will meet July 15-17, 2006. For the first time,
this meeting of leaders, whose countries together represent
65 percent of the world's economy, will be held in Russia.
The chair for the meeting will be none other than Russian
President Vladimir Putin.

Most people aren't familiar with how Putin rose from KGB Lt.
Colonel to the Russian Presidency and ultimately sitting as
the chairperson for the G8, which includes Canada, France,
Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the
United States. Now a new book tells the story of the KGB
take-over of Russia, and how events unfolded that led to
this historic meeting.

Alex Konanykhin, a businessman whom the media called
"Russia's Bill Gates," has just released an autobiography,
"Defiance," which offers a detailed, first-person account of
his experiences, including the KGB take-over of Russia. His
daring and true story explains how it all began with the KGB
taking over his vast financial empire, culminating twelve
years later when they seized the business empire of his
partner, Michael Khodorkovsky.

In "Defiance," Konanykhin, who was named the "New York
Businessman of the Year" by the National Republican
Congressional Committee, illustrates the risks and rewards
of doing business in Russia. "Defiance" details how
Konanykhin and his wife, Elena, became pawns in a high-level
political game between the United States and Russia.

As a ransom for keeping the FBI office in Moscow
operational, the U.S. government tried to extradite the
Konanykhins back to Russia, acting on fake charges
fabricated by the Kremlin. "Konanykhin didn't only have KGB
after him," reported 60 Minutes. "He had the FBI, the
Justice Department and even the CIA after him."

Konanykhin's real-life story is, in the words of the judge
who presided over his political asylum case, "a tale worthy
of a spy novel." The judge ruled that the Russian government
"engineered the case against Konanykhin to punish him for
exposing corruption amongst Russian government and business
officials." The Washington Post called the hearing "a
spellbinding seminar on international intrigue."

A must-read for everyone who is interested in Russian
business or politics, "Defiance" can be ordered at
http://www.DefianceTheBook.com.

DEFIANCE, or How to Succeed in Business Despite Being
Hounded by the FBI, the KGB, the INS, the Department of
Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, Interpol and
Mafia Hit Men. ISBN 0-9727377-0-7, published by Renaissance
Publishing.

FINAL DRAFT™AV 2.5.2 UPDATE RELEASED
Provides Universal Support for Macs® with Intel Core Processors

– Final Draft, Inc., (www.finaldraft.com) today announced the immediate availability of the Final Draft AV 2.5.2 update to its dedicated multi-column script processor specifically designed for writing commercials, corporate videos, documentaries, presentations, DV shorts, etc. This release includes Universal Binary support for PowerPC and Intel-based Macs. Current Final Draft AV 2.5 users can download the 2.5.2 update for free. Registered users of previous versions of Final Draft AV may upgrade to the current version for $49.00 (USD). Final Draft AV 2.5 is available worldwide for $199.00 (USD). The software includes versions for both Macintosh and Windows.

About Final Draft, Inc.

Final Draft, Inc. was founded in 1991 to develop a scriptwriting program that allows the writer to concentrate on the creative process and not on Hollywood's stringent formatting rules. Since then, Final Draft has become the Hollywood professional's choice and the world's #1-selling scriptwriting program.

Final Draft is the software of choice of such industry giants as Alan Ball, Tom Hanks, Oliver Stone, J.J. Abrams and James Cameron.

Television shows such as “The Sopranos,” “Lost,” “Entourage” and “Desperate Housewives,” feature films such as “Cold Mountain,” ” Lost in Translation,” “The Incredibles,” “Sideways,” “Batman Begins” and any of the “Lord of the Rings,” “Harry Potter” and recent “James Bond” movies are all the results of scripts written with Final Draft.

Final Draft, Inc. is the recipient of the first Script P.I.M.P. Screenwriter’s Choice Award and the WriteMovies Award for Technical Achievement.

Final Draft AV received Videomaker Magazine’s 2005 award for Best Production Planning Software.

The company's headquarters is in Calabasas, California. More information about the company and its products is available at www.finaldraft.com.

###

Final Draft and Final Draft AV are registered trademarks of Final Draft, Inc.

An Insider's Commentary on Islam: Muslim Woman Provides
Firsthand Perspective on Her Religion and Its Impact

-- Hot topics in the media these
days include women's issues, the resilience of the human
spirit, self-healing and homosexuality. Author Ni'mat Marie
takes all these issues and more one step further in her new
book, Mother's Wit: A Muslim Woman's Perspective (now
available through AuthorHouse).

The book is a compilation of commentaries written by Marie
over a period of seven years. Her writings are intended to
provide a source of encouragement and to serve as a reminder
that through reconnecting their spirits with the source of
all power - the creator of the heavens and earth - people
can rediscover the roots of inner peace.

"Exposure to a Muslim woman's outlook should provide an
educational and enlightening experience by [helping others
to] learn what is in our holy book, the Holy Qu'ran," the
author explains.

In addition, her book is a resource for those who have a
propensity for understanding how a Muslim woman from America
thinks, she says.

"The objective that I attempt to achieve in writing this
book is for it to serve as an eye-opener for the American
public. Mainstream media have inundated the public with
negative exposure about the Muslim female and Muslims in
general. This negative one-sided portrayal has led to
deception and confusion by promoting an inaccurate
perception," she says.

Marie makes great strides in her attempt to rectify that
perception with this work. For example, she reminds readers
that the word "Islam" denotes peace. "The truth of the
matter is that fairness is held in high esteem in our holy
book ... a book for humanity," she says. "By engaging the
public with commentaries that I have written, I hope to
provide better insight for the public about the religion of
Al-Islam. In a reader-friendly style, I express through my
writings individual and social concerns and various life
scenarios that have affected the general population within
our society, using references from the Holy Qu'ran."

Marie, whose birth name is Cynthia Marie Bridges-McLaine, is
a native of Philadelphia. In her senior year of high school
she began searching for deeper meanings of life. She is now
a wife and mother of eight children. Along with her busy
schedule of taking care of her family, she manages to
squeeze time in for her talents. She attends college
part-time and continues to upgrade her education. More
information is available at http://www.motherswit.com.

AuthorHouse is the premier publishing house for emerging
authors and new voices in literature. For more information,
please visit http://www.authorhouse.com

83 Countries Invited to Submit Foreign Language Films for 2006 Oscar®

— The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today invited 83 countries to ubmit films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 79th Academy Awards®.

To qualify for the 2006 awards year, a film must be released in the submitting country between October 1, 2005 and September 30, 2006 and be publicly screened in 35mm or 70mm film for at least seven consecutive days in a commercial motion picture theater.

The dialogue track must be predominantly in a language or languages other than English. Accurate English subtitles are required.

Entry forms must be received at the Academy by Monday, October 2, 2006, and film prints must be received by Friday, October 13. Only one picture will be accepted from each country.

Since the category’s establishment in 1956, 102 different countries have submitted films to compete for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. The 1956 award went to Italy for “La Strada.”

Most recently, the South African film “Tsotsi” won the Oscar over a field of nominated films from France, Germany, Italy and the Palestinian Territories.

The republics of Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan will receive this year their first invitation to participate.

Countries that have not received letters of invitation and are interested in submitting a film for consideration should contact Awards Coordinator Torene Svitil at (310) 247-3000, ext. 116 or via e-mail at tsvitil@oscars.org.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements for 2006 will be presented on Sunday, February 25, 2007, at the Kodak Theatre at the Hollywood & Highland Center© and will be televised live by the ABC Television Network.

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GoStream creates and presents video and audio over the Internet with a simple, easy-to-use operator interface, and is designed both for streaming experts and beginners. It is portable and can quickly transfer from indoor environments to remote locations. GoStream is targeted to organizations looking for a low-cost solution to meet their streaming video needs.

"The availability and simplicity of GoStream encoders will enable a broader audience to leverage streaming technologies. ViewCast customers can now establish video communications from anywhere with the simple press of a button," said Dave Stoner, ViewCast president and chief operating officer.

GoStream features the EZStream® event buttons, allowing users to load pre-defined encoding profiles for a specific event and begin a streaming session. The encoder's EASE control menu can be used to Encode audio and video content, Access the system's health status, Setup the unit's
network connections and Export video content to video storage devices, including the Apple Video iPod® and Creative Zen Vision® portable media players.

GoStream includes ViewCast's Niagara SCX® software with a new Web-based interface. The software provides detailed settings and control over encoder profiles installed on GoStream and includes the ability to encode in Windows Media®, Real® and Flash formats. GoStream also supports digital rights management (DRM) for Windows Media.

The first GoStream was shipped to Cherokee County School District in South Carolina."We have used other ViewCast products in the past and have been happy with the results," said Trad Robinson, a member of the Cherokee Country School District's IMS department. "We purchased the GoStream because of its versatility and ease of use. We plan to use it to stream a wide variety
of school activities, such as distance learning, professional development, graduation, and potentially sporting events."

For more information on the Niagara GoStream product please go to:
http://www.viewcast.com/pages.asp?page=niagara-GoStream