NFL Sunday Ticket coming to smartphones

Score one for mobile devices.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

DirecTV is offering NFL fans the chance to stream every out-of-market game of the upcoming regular season on a computer, smartphone or tablet, even if they don't have a satellite TV account.

That's a first for mobile users. Verizon (VZ, Tech30) customers have been able to stream NFL games on mobile devices for the past few years, though that deal relates only local-market feeds and the playoffs.

DirecTV's streaming packages start at $200 for the year, and will only be available to people in selected cities -- you can check the website to see if you're eligible.

DirecTV (DTV) already has exclusive rights to carry non-local pro football games on TV through its "NFL Sunday Ticket" package, though that deal expires at the end of this upcoming season.

Related: What AT&T-DirecTV deal means for consumers

"Sunday Ticket" is critically important for the company, so much so that AT&T worked language into the companies' pending merger agreement that would allow it to walk away from the deal if DirecTV loses its NFL rights.

Both companies have said they expect to finalize a deal with the NFL before the end of the year -- and before the merger takes place.

Should the AT&T-DirecTV deal be approved by regulators, the combined company could include NFL streaming access as part of a package with wireless, cable, landline telephone and Internet service.

First Published: July 16, 2014: 5:35 PM ET

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How the working class networks

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

In the social media--hungry world, it's never long after someone identifies a gap in the market that an entrepreneur comes up with a whiz-bang way to fill it. Consider social networking, for example. One group in particular has historically been left out in the digital cold: blue-collar workers. There's a gap worth filling, and the answer is taking shape in the form of WorkHands, a kind of LinkedIn for skilled-trade workers.

When co-founder James Dunbar launched WorkHands this past September, he received plenty of weird questions. "There was a lot of education that had to happen," the 29-year-old Long Island native says diplomatically. People asked, "Do these guys know how to use the Internet?" "Do they have smartphones?" Given that smartphones are used by 56 percent of American adults — and by 80 percent of men in the U.S. between ages 18 and 29 — they needn't worry. And that's so far proved to be true among the company's (albeit small) initial several-thousand-person user base.

WorkHands appeals mostly to 18- to 30-year-olds who work in the building, manufacturing, automotive and other skilled industrial trades. That demographic indeed has smartphones — and could easily use them to network and move beyond relying so heavily on word-of-mouth job references. Especially for those who are just starting out, making connections is tough — when you don't know a guy who knows a guy who's looking for someone just like you.

More from Ozy: Nonprofit companies are breeding future entrepreneurs

Some have been quick to compare Dunbar's company to TaskRabbit and Shiftgig (which connect handypersons, plumbers and service-industry workers to potential jobs). But WorkHands is about linking up skilled-trade workers who possess heavy-duty industrial skills. Not the person who can retile a bathroom; rather, someone who can help Shell build its next rig.

Helping people make connections is lovely and all, but how will the new venture make money? On their way to matching LinkedIn's $25 billion valuation, the plan is to charge for job postings (they're free for now). And Dunbar sees a huge upside when they're able to connect city contract workers, unions and the big companies who get the contracts.

Like LinkedIn, WorkHands will need to think big, especially to expand their user base and think creatively about what to do with it. Job listings alone may not be the silver bullet — fewer than a quarter of LinkedIn users actually use the site for job finding, and the company's value (which some have questioned) rests on an active user base of 259 million. So far, WorkHands' main attraction — like any good social networking site — has been giving its users a place to show off their clean lines and well-soldered pieces (and to see what their peers are up to). And companies that are looking to hire can focus more on the quality of a prospective employee's work — which is a lot more telling than an awkward suit-and-tie close-up.

First Published: July 16, 2014: 5:37 PM ET

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The classic VW Beetle goes electric

San Marcos, Calif. (CNNMoney)

A man in Southern California is working to turn old Beetles into clean-running all-electric plug-in cars. David Bernardo, who has given himself the official title of RetroFuturist and Director of Research and Development at Zelectric Motors, takes classic Volkswagen Beetles and makes them electric.

He starts with Volkswagen (VLKAF) Bugs from between 1958 and 1966 and pulls the noisy air-cooled gasoline engines from the back replacing them with electric motors. Under the hood he bolts a battery pack. Another set of batteries also goes behind the back seats. The conversion adds 350 pounds, but maintains the original car's balance.

Also retained is the original four-speed manual transmission. Most electric cars have only a single-speed transmission because, unlike gasoline engines, electric motors offer full pulling power at any speed.

Related: History of the Volkswagen Beetle

You don't actually need to shift gears in the Zelectric Bug, but you can if you want. When I test drove Bernardo's electric Beetle on hilly California roads, I kept it in second gear when starting and driving at speeds up to about 40 miles per hour then shifted up to third only to quiet down the motor sound.

The electric conversion makes the lightweight Beetle a surprisingly fun, quick little car to drive. Even the steering and brakes weren't bad, considering the age of the car. The extra weight makes it feel more stable on the road, while the electric motor is both much quieter (of course) and stronger than the original engine. Because the car is heavier, Bernado beefs up the suspension and replaces the front drum brakes with stronger disc brakes.

The goal was to keep the cars as close to the original as possible, Bernado said.

One of the biggest benefits of the electric conversion, he said, is that it makes the car easier to own. Besides being quiet and odorless, electric motors require almost no maintenance compared to a gasoline engine.

The car has a 90 to 110 mile driving range on a charge, Bernado claims, and a top speed of over 90 miles an hour. Zelectric's next-door neighbors, a company called EV West that specializes in high-performance converted electric cars for racing, helped with the Zelectric Bug's engineering.

Of course, there is the issue of crash safety. There isn't any. Cars didn't have airbags in the 1960s and, particularly in small economy cars, there wasn't much in the way of structural crash protection, either.

Also, Zelectric Motors is very much a start-up company. Bernardo hasn't yet completed a car for a paying customer. So far, the company's two prototypes, one red and one black, are the only two finished Zelectric Bugs in existence. A completed car will cost about $45,000, Bernado said.

First Published: July 17, 2014: 12:54 AM ET

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IBM to start selling Apple iPhones and iPads

IBM's CEO, Ginni Rometty, talks to Apple CEO Tim Cook.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Get ready for iPhones and iPads preloaded with specialized business IBM software.

Apple (AAPL, Tech30) and IBM (IBM, Tech30) on Tuesday announced a partnership to leverage each company's strengths. Starting this fall, Apple is delivering devices exclusively to IBM, which "Big Blue" will then prep with industry-specific apps for business customers.

The idea is to provide specialized Apple devices to companies in banking, health care, insurance, retail, travel and transportation.

Related story: Yahoo earnings - still weak

IBM said it will listen to the distinct needs of business clients, then craft software that addresses those issues.

"For the first time ever we're putting IBM's renowned big data analytics at iOS users' fingertips, which opens up a large market opportunity for Apple," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement, calling the partnership "a radical step."

IBM CEO Ginni Rometty promised a "transformation to the way people work, industries operate and companies perform."

Starting this fall, the devices will only be available through IBM representatives to their business clients. They will include a private app catalog, data security services and more.

An IBM spokeswoman said it was too early to give examples of what kinds of apps would be available. The companies also said Apple devices would use IBM's vast and powerful cloud services -- which offer data storage and work-sharing capabilities.

First Published: July 15, 2014: 5:38 PM ET

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Warren Buffett buys a new Caddy

Warren Buffett traded in a 2006 Cadillac to purchase his new 2014 Cadillac XTS.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

GM published the letter and the saleswoman's account of the transaction on the automaker's Fastlane Blog on Tuesday.

Instead of shopping for the car himself, Buffett had his daughter, Susie Buffett, go to Huber Cadillac in Omaha, Neb. to look at cars. Susie told saleswoman Madison Willers that she was shopping for her father but didn't say who he was. Instead, she "merely described the personality and habits of her anonymous father," according to Buffett's letter.

Initially, Susie asked about a Cadillac CTS which Buffett's "car guy friend" had recommended. (That "car guy" was GM (GM) CEO Mary Barra, but Susie didn't reveal that piece of information either.)

But, based on Susie's description of her father, Willers recommended the roomier, softer-riding Cadillac XTS, instead.

"Madison could not have been more helpful," Buffett wrote in his letter to Barra.

Initially, Willers thought that Susie Buffett was just a "mystery shopper" GM had sent to the dealership to test her product knowledge. It was only a few days later when Susie Buffett returned to actually purchase the car that Willers learned that it was really being bought by Warren Buffett.

Willers and Buffett had actually met years before when Willers had been a waitress at an area restaurant, Willers wrote in a different Fastlane blog post about the experience.

Related: 21 most iconic American cars

"Mr. Buffett requested that I personally deliver his XTS so that he could say hello after all the time that had passed," Willers wrote.

She drove the car to Buffett's office at Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA) and also brought him a Cadillac hat to go with the new car.

"He seemed just as excited about the hat as he was about the car," she wrote.

This wasn't Buffett's first Cadillac. To buy the new XTS, he traded in a 2006 Cadillac DTS. A spokeswoman for Warren Buffett confirmed the information in the story and the letter posted on GM's blog.

First Published: July 15, 2014: 6:15 PM ET

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China growth accelerates despite property worries

China's economy grew by 7.5% in the second quarter, slightly faster than expected.

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

Gross domestic product in the world's second-largest economy expanded by 7.5% in the second quarter, compared to the same period last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Economists surveyed by CNNMoney had forecast 7.4% growth.

This is the first time the economy has accelerated in three quarters, and puts China on somewhat better footing to reach its official growth target of 7.5% for the full year.

Economists expect a more moderate expansion at 7.3% for the year, according to a CNNMoney survey conducted earlier this month.

"Today's data clearly demonstrate that policymakers have plenty of tools to shore up growth if necessary and we expect that further targeted measures may be rolled out to offset continued weakness in the property sector," wrote Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics in a research note.

Related: Economists are really worried about China's massive property sector

China's GDP growth remains the most comprehensive gauge of the country's economic health -- an important number to watch as the government works to reform the economy and shift to consumption driven growth after years of exponential expansion.

China averaged growth of around 10% a year in the last three decades, pushing it up the list of biggest economies and boosting household wealth. By comparison, the pace of economic expansion is now languishing -- China recorded GDP growth of 7.7% in the last two years, versus 9.3% in 2011 and 10.5% in 2010.

One of the major challenges facing the economy is the property market -- eight out of 10 economists surveyed by CNNMoney say it's the greatest hazard to continued growth. After years of breakneck development, the sector now suffers from excess supply, slack investment and falling prices.

Stocks in Hong Kong and Shanghai had a muted reaction to the data release.

First Published: July 15, 2014: 11:18 PM ET

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Cleveland Browns owner fined $92 million in truck stop probe

Pilot Flying J -- run by Browns owner Jimmy Haslam -- has been hit with a $92 million fine.

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

Knoxville-based Pilot Flying J had been accused of skimming millions of dollars worth of diesel fuel rebates that were owed to customers.

Pilot -- one of the largest private firms in the country -- is owned by the Haslams, one of the most influential families in Tennessee. Jimmy Haslam owns the Browns NFL franchise; his brother Bill is the governor of Tennessee.

The penalty stems from a joint investigation by the IRS and the FBI into Pilot's actions. Ten company employees have already entered guilty pleas to mail and wire fraud charges.

As part of the agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Pilot accepted legal responsibility for the criminal conduct of its employees.

Related story: LeBron's road to becoming a billionaire

The agreement does not absolve Pilot employees for their role in the scheme, and charges could be brought in the future. The company must continue to abide by the terms of the agreement and cooperate with prosecutors.

"We, as a company, look forward to putting this whole unfortunate episode behind us, continuing our efforts to rectify the damage done, regaining our customers' trust, and getting on with our business," Haslam said in a statement.

Related: Michael Sam jersey is a best seller

According to the agreement, Pilot has already made $56 million in restitution payments to customers. The company's annual revenue is around $30 billion.

The Browns finished last season with four wins and 12 losses. Fans are hopeful that quarterback and first round draft pick Johnny Manziel will provide a spark in 2014.

First Published: July 15, 2014: 12:48 AM ET

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Asia grads searching for Google jobs

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

Google (GOOG) is the most attractive employer among both business and engineering students in Asia, according to Universum. Business students rank Deloitte as their second choice, while Apple (AAPL, Tech30) is the runner-up among engineering students.

Universum, a research and consulting firm, conducts annual surveys to determine which employers are most appealing to university students.

Senior vice president Rachele Focardi said that the current crop of graduates are placing less emphasis on salary and prestige when looking for prospective employers.

Instead, she said, they're interested in companies that reflect their values -- including work-life balance and an emphasis on innovation.

"Google really represents this new generation of Millenials," Focardi said. "They are like the Beatles in the sense that they represent a cultural revolution."

Because the survey covers students from countries across Asia, including Malaysia, Australia, India, Japan and Vietnam, large multinationals dominate the rankings.

Related: It pays to work for the White House

The top five choices of business students are all Western companies with operations across Asia. Samsung, based in South Korea, is the first Asian company -- ranked fourth among engineering students.

But Focardi said that multinationals can't rest on their laurels. A growing numbers of grads appear ready to accept smaller paychecks in exchange for a better work-life balance, something local firms might find it easier to offer.

"Multinationals like Goldman Sachs (GS) and Morgan Stanley (MS) were built to sell to the prior generation," Focardi said. "You get Goldman Sachs on your business card. You work really hard."

"All of these things are no longer attractive to this generation," she said.

First Published: July 15, 2014: 12:23 AM ET

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Economists are really worried about China's massive property sector

China's property market slump is threatening the country's overall economic growth.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Eight out of 10 economists say the property market poses the biggest threat to the economy, according to a new survey conducted by CNNMoney.

That's a shift from the previous three quarters, when most economists identified credit growth as the primary hazard.

"The major concern is oversupply -- property construction has been growing at an unsustainable rate, with the pace of urbanization having peaked," said Qinwei Wang of Capital Economics. "With developers' inventories of unsold property still increasing, real estate looks set to remain a drag on the economy."

It's easy to see why economists are concerned. JPMorgan estimates the sector and related services make up about 20% of GDP, and property investment alone accounted for more than 15% of economic growth last year.

Related: China's growth stagnates as property threat grows

Already, ailing developers in the country's smaller cities are offering big discounts to unload property. Even major cities have seen falling prices and waning real estate investment demand.

Economists worry that a housing shock could ripple out to the broader economy, especially the banking sector -- which provides financing to many developers. In addition, real estate is closely tied to the manufacturing and services sectors.

A sluggish property market could also hurt Beijing's ability to hit its official GDP growth target of 7.5% for 2014.

Some analysts argue the point of no return has passed.

Nomura economists, long among the most bearish of bank analysts, said in May that China's property bubble has already burst, and the country's economy could slow dramatically unless Beijing steps in with new stimulus measures.

"It is no longer a question of 'if' but rather 'how severe' the property market correction will be," the bank's analysts said in a report.

Related: China real estate firm at risk of bankruptcy

To combat a sluggish property sector, economists surveyed by CNNMoney expect the central government to continue to prod local jurisdictions to relax restrictions on multiple home purchases. Those rules were previously put in place in an attempt to arrest rising property prices.

Analysts say China will also have to rely heavily on other areas, such as exports, to support growth if the property market continues to flounder.

First Published: July 14, 2014: 9:55 PM ET

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Female Yahoo exec sued for sexual harassment

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The software engineer, Nan Shi, filed a complaint Friday, alleging sexual harassment, emotional distress and wrongful termination.

The executive is Maria Zhang, a senior director of engineering. Her previous company, Propeld, was acquired by Yahoo in 2013. She also held positions at Microsoft and Zillow in the past.

The complaint says that Shi had worked at Yahoo since February 2013, and that Zhang was her direct supervisor.

According to lawyers representing Shi, the two women had worked together at Propeld.

The complaint says that Zhang "coerced" Shi to have "oral and digital sex" with her on multiple occasions against her will.

The incidents took place at Shi's temporary Yahoo housing unit in Sunnyvale, Calif., the complaint says.

Zhang promised a "bright future" at Yahoo, the complaint says, and also threatened that she could "take everything away from her."

Shi's lawyers told CNNMoney that the women never had an intimate relationship prior to the harassment.

The complaint says that once Shi rejected Zhang's advances, she received poor performance reviews and less important assignments.

The complaint also says that she reported the harassment to Yahoo's (YHOO, Tech30) human resources, and that the company did not perform a proper investigation and ultimately fired her.

In a statement to CNNMoney, a Yahoo spokesperson said "there is absolutely no basis or truth" to the allegations against the executive. "Maria is an exemplary Yahoo executive and we intend to fight vigorously to clear her name," the spokesperson said.

The suit is the latest string of sexual harassment cases in Silicon Valley, including one most recently against the co-founder of Tinder.

"You'll see more sexual harassment cases in Silicon Valley because of the male dominated culture," said Mathew Da Vega, a lawyer representing Shi. He acknowledged this particular case is different because it involves two women.

Da Vega said these cases will keep popping up where there's money and power. But according to the attorney, Silicon Valley companies are "hyper sensitive," operating in a system of money and perception.

"Instead of dealing with the issue like they should have," he said, "their immediate response is to deny, deny."

Related: Silicon Valley is overwhelmingly white and male

Related: iPhone app promotes cleavage staring

Related: Startups have a sexism problem

First Published: July 12, 2014: 8:48 PM ET

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