Looking for a good job? Try these cities

New Brookings report lists top cities for 'advanced industries.' Fancy degree not needed.

A new report from the Brookings Institution ranks America's cities according to the percent of the workforce employed in what it calls "advanced industries." This means the industry spends a lot on R&D and has a high number of workers in science, technology, engineering and math-oriented roles.

Some of these cities are intuitive. San Jose, with nearly twice the advanced industry jobs per capita as second-ranked Seattle, is the heart of Silicon Valley. Seattle has Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) and Boeing (BA).

But third-place Wichita? That city hosts major manufacturing facilities for makers of smaller aircraft, including Bombardier and Cessna.

Palm Bay, Fla., with its proximity to Cape Canaveral, is home to several aerospace companies as well as makers of audio and visual equipment -- an outgrowth of the navigational and communications equipment used in space travel.

Detroit gets high marks for its diversity. In addition to autos, the city has robust advanced battery and software industries, among others.

"The best-positioned cities have specializations in multiple areas," said Mark Muro, a senior fellow at Brookings' Metropolitan Policy Program.

Brookings identified 50 advanced industries nationwide. In addition to the ones above, they include pharmaceuticals, oil drilling, architecture and chemicals.

The pay is good -- $90,000 a year on average -- and the growth rates high. These advanced industries have been adding jobs at nearly twice the rate of the overall economy since 2010.

Best of all, not everyone needs to be Einstein. Less than half the workers in this sector have a bachelor's degree.

"You need someone to operate the machines, to run the systems," said Muro. "The opportunities are here, if you have the technical training."

To help match workers to job openings, the report recommends greater collaboration between private employers and educational institutions to make sure that what people are learning in school are actually the skills that regional employers need.

Related: Tennessee does free community college

It also called for greater cooperation between the public and private sector in R&D, as well as investments in things like educational institutions, testing facilities and business incubators in the metro regions where these advanced industries are located.

"It's all a way to knit together actors who have not been communicating as well as they could," said Muro.

Related: The most innovative cities in America

CNNMoney (New York) February 3, 2015: 12:56 AM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

FCC will seek heavier regulation of the Internet

FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler plans to introduce a proposal that would reclassify high-speed Internet service as a public utility, according to a person who has consulted with the FCC on the forthcoming proposal.

The person insisted on anonymity because Wheeler had not yet spoken publicly about his plans. Wheeler will hold a press briefing about his proposal on Tuesday. Wheeler promised the FCC would vote on the rules at its Feb. 26 meeting, so following FCC procedure, he must present them to colleagues by this Thursday.

By making broadband a public utility, the FCC would gain far more power to regulate the kinds of network-access arrangements that Internet providers make with content providers, such as Netflix (NFLX, Tech30) and Google (GOOGL, Tech30).

Currently, Internet providers can charge content companies to provide direct access to their networks, which speeds up streaming and download speeds for broadband customers.

Under the proposed new rules, the FCC would ensure that broadband companies don't unfairly discriminate against content providers by creating "slow lanes" on the public Internet, according to CNNMoney's anonymous source. But there might still be "fast lanes."

If, for instance, a video streaming service like Netflix feels it is being unjustly charged for the distribution of its content, it will be able to bring a case before the FCC, according to the current draft of the proposal.

"There's a cop on the beat, but we're not going to tell you what's illegal yet," the person said.

Wheeler's approach falls in line with President Obama's firm stand in November that the Internet should be more heavily regulated to ensure it stays open and independent.

The FCC has tried -- and failed -- to regulate this kind of behavior before. Federal courts have blocked the agency, saying that it overstepped its authority. Wheeler's approach is a workaround: Reclassifying Internet providers scoops them up under the FCC's purview.

Even if the the proposal is acceptted, major hurdles remain.

The legal one: Title II rules were written in the 1930s for the Bell phone monopoly, so there are a bunch of rules that don't fit with modern technology. CNNMoney's inside source said the FCC will waive some Title II rules that don't apply to 21st century communications.

When Internet providers fight the FCC in court (and they likely will), they'll point out that the FCC is implementing a rule that's only relevant 1% of the time, said Robert M. McDowell, a former FCC commissioner turned telecom lawyer in Washington, D.C.

Then there's public opinion: Internet providers say it'll lead to more paperwork and higher costs.

"The FCC's planting a big seed of regulation that'll probably only grow," McDowell said. And that might one day mean extra rules for Google and Netflix, which have data centers and could be considered network owners too.

Others say more regulation could mean more freedom, lower prices and better treatment for customers.

"These [telecom companies] are consolidating, monopolizing and controlling wider swathes of broadband... you have to protect public interest," said Michael Copps, a former FCC commissioner who now leads Common Cause, a populist citizen lobby group.

Given the uncertainty about what's actually in the proposal, Free Press, one of the foremost public interest groups that has been lobbying for strong net neutrality protections, was careful in its statement on Monday, saying "we can't judge what we have yet to see."

But "from all indications, Chairman Wheeler seems intent on choosing the correct path to protecting the open Internet," Free Press CEO Craig Aaron said.

"If the FCC does that -- and also keeps the final order free of loopholes and industry meddling -- the chairman should be cheered by the millions who have mobilized to save the Internet," Aaron said.

Related: Obama puts foot down and says no Internet fast lanes

Related: Under pressure, FCC revises fast lane plan

Related: Netflix blasts Internet providers: 'Consumers deserve better'

CNNMoney (New York) February 2, 2015: 8:09 PM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

Alibaba to U.S. firms: Buy now, pay later

Tech darling Alibaba (BABA, Tech30) has partnered with U.S.-based Lending Club to make it easier for American businesses to buy from Chinese suppliers.

The program will let small businesses in the U.S. "apply in under five minutes" for a loan of up to $300,000 towards purchases from suppliers on Alibaba's wholesale e-commerce platform. Interest rates can be as low as 0.5%.

Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma has long talked about his goal to help small businesses all over China, and this agreement with Lending Club looks like he's taking that mindset to the U.S. Alibaba.com launched back in 1999 when Ma founded his company; the firm now also operates popular shopping sites Taobao and Tmall.

Related: Who the heck is Jack Ma? Meet the man who built Alibaba

The Chinese company, which posted its record-shattering IPO last September, has come under fire lately, being accused by the Chinese government for failing to weed out merchants selling counterfeit goods.

Lending Club (LC), which also had its public debut last year, is a California-based company that facilitates peer-to-peer online lending, matching borrowers with investors. This, and other forms of alternative financing, have cropped up after the recession, driven by demand from consumers who have trouble securing loans from traditional banks.

Read next: Non-bank loans: Quick, easy...and addictive?

CNNMoney (Hong Kong) February 3, 2015: 2:07 AM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

These Super Bowl ads made this Dad cry

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

So I am not ashamed to admit that several of this year's Super Bowl ads had me reaching for the box of Kleenex.

Call it "dad"-vertising if you will. Or "pa"-rketing. It was refreshing to see Nissan (NSANF), Toyota (TM) and Unilever's (UN) Dove Men make commercials that had positive things to say about fathers.

Advertisers have often relied on lazy, easy joke stereotypes -- treating Dads like bad sitcom characters. Think Al Bundy.

Related: Check out a gallery of this year's Super Bowl ads

But this year's ads celebrated fatherhood and acknowledged that many children have fond memories of their dads.

It's about time. My kids come first. And I know I'm not alone.

It's amazing that it took this long for marketers to realize that ads that tug at the heartstrings of emotionally engaged fathers can be as effective (if not more so) than scantily clad women drinking beer or modeling lingerie.

The commercials for Toyota and Nissan were both very sentimental. I teared up a bit during the Toyota one, which featured a proud dad interacting with his daughter as she grew up.

The Nissan ad was touching but a little too long. I also couldn't get over the fact that a car company chose to focus on the dangerous sport of race car driving and use a song by a singer (Harry Chapin) who was killed in a car crash. But I'm nitpicking.

Still, the Dove ad was the best. It really struck a chord. I thought that it was the most poignant, showing several kids calling for their daddy. I lost it during that one.

It was tough for me to watch this year's Super Bowl without my Dad around. Sports were a big part of our bonding experience -- football in particular.

My Dad would have enjoyed this year's Super Bowl -- and the ads celebrating fathers.

My father took me to my first football game when I was seven. It was a frigid and windy mid-December day in 1980. The New York Jets played the New Orleans Saints at Shea Stadium.

The Saints were 0-14 at the time. Archie Manning -- father of Peyton and Eli -- was their quarterback. The Jets lost. By one point.

I still had a great time with my Dad at the game. But it didn't take long to figure out that I'd be happier as a Giants fan. (Four Super Bowl victories later, I can definitely say, "Thanks, Pop!")

Related: Super Bowl advertisers 'are on trial'

But I now feel conflicted watching football with my sons.

Given all that is wrong with the game -- domestic violence and the history of concussions are just the tip of the iceberg -- I do wonder if the NFL will be around by the time I have grandchildren.

Still, that's a topic for another time.

I'm just glad that on football's (and advertising's) biggest night, some marketers decided to stop showing fathers as idiots who can't change stinky diapers or pay attention to their kids because they are too busy working or watching TV.

Instead, they highlighted the important, hands-on role that many involved fathers play in their kids' lives.

Now will these dad-vertisements make me want to go out and buy a brand new Nissan Maxima or Toyota Camry? No.

But I might consider changing my face wash from Neutrogena to Dove.

First Published: February 1, 2015: 11:10 PM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

Sprint, T-Mobile CEOs brawl over Super Bowl ads

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

T-Mobile (TMUS) CEO John Legere took his first shot after Sprint's commercial aired, tweeting: "Half-assed commercial, half-assed data speeds. #typical @sprint. #SprintLikeHell."

Legere was referencing a Sprint ad that offered to cut the bills of Verizon and AT&T customers in half if they switched carriers.

"Dear Verizon (VZ, Tech30) and AT&T (T, Tech30), Sprint would like to apologize for calling you a ..." the ad said before cutting away to a bleating sheep. T-Mobile was not mentioned.

Meanwhile, Sprint (S) CEO Marcelo Claure was busily retweeting user comments that praised his company's ad, or bashed a T-Mobile spot featuring Kim Kardashian.

Related: NFL's domestic violence Super Bowl spot: 'It's up to us to listen'

The T-Mobile ad featured Kardashian in a spoof public service announcement: "Each month, millions of gigs of unused data are taken back by wireless companies -- tragic. Data you paid for that can be used to see my makeup, my backhand, my outfits, my vacations, and my outfits. Sadly, all lost. Please help save the data."

Claure used an image to respond to Legere's "half-assed" tweet. The message was: "Never sacrifice your class to get even with someone who has none. Take the high road."

Legere responded, "Oh look! You learned how to use the "respond" button. I thought you only knew how to use the retweet button."

The Twitter fight showed no signs of slowing. Even after the clock expired, Legere was still firing off messages.

Related: Kim Kardashian's selfies coming soon in hardcover

Read next: Top Twitter moments of 2014: Celebrities, social activism, sports

First Published: February 1, 2015: 11:54 PM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

China's anti-corruption campaign snags banking heavyweight

HONG KONG (CNNMoney)

China Minsheng Bank released a statement on Saturday saying its president, Mao Xiaofeng, had resigned for "personal reasons." While the statement sought to reassure shareholders that the firm was operating normally, Chinese business publication Caixin said that other bank executives had also been questioned and released.

According to Caixin, Mao was detained last week for questioning by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, which investigates corruption within the Communist Party.

Minsheng has a market cap of about $40 billion, making it roughly the same size as Deutsche Bank. Shares tumbled as much as 10.5% on Monday in Hong Kong trading before mounting a partial recovery.

The Chinese government has staged a wide-reaching anti-corruption crackdown since President Xi Jinping took the reins nearly two years ago. The probes have netted top party and government officials, as well as executives at state-run and private companies. One of the most high-profile officials to be detained thus far is Ling Jihua, a top aide to former president Hu Jintao.

Related: China targets executive pay at state-owned firms

Mao joined Minsheng in 2002, and served in a variety of roles at the bank over the years, according to previous stock exchange filings. Prior to that, he served as a director in the China Communist Youth League, a group directly under Communist Party control. He holds a master's degree from Harvard University, as well as graduate diplomas from Hunan University.

One of Minsheng's top stakeholders, Chinese insurance firm Anbang, made headlines last year after acquiring the iconic Waldorf Astoria luxury hotel for nearly $2 billion.

Read next: World's most corrupt industries

First Published: February 2, 2015: 2:28 AM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

In football they trust: Polynesians' pipeline to the American dream

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

"As Polynesian kids, we were much bigger than the other kids in high school so it was natural for us to excel and do well in football, said Tongan Tony Vainuku.

Vainuku is the director of the documentary, "In Football We Trust," which debuted at the Sundance Film festival this past week.

The film chronicles the lives of four young NFL hopefuls in the Salt Lake City area, which boasts one of the largest Polynesian communities outside of Samoa and Tonga.

"The Polynesian football phenomenon is a big thing but not many people including our own community in Salt Lake City and Utah know anything besides that," said co-director and producer Erika Cohn.

Related: NFL gets billions in subsidies from taxpayers

For many Polynesian families, playing football is the road to a good education and way to support the entire family.

But that journey to the top isn't all glitz and glamor.

Recruited and groomed for the NFL

Al Lolotai. Manu Tuiasospo. Haloti Ngata. Troy Polamalu.

Their names have filled college and NFL rosters in the last several decades. There have been more than 200 Polynesians who have played professionally in NFL and CFL.

Getting to play at a top college and eventually the NFL like their peers before them has inspired many Polynesian youth to start young and play football in high school.

"If I keep making the right choices and keep my head straight, things start falling in place you know, I'll get my degree. I'll go on and get a good paying job in the league. If I'm in the league you know, the first couple checks go to the family," said Harvey Langi, one of Utah's top high school running backs interviewed in the film.

The average salary range for a NFL player ranges from $750,000 to $22 million for top players, according to Spotrac.com.

Related: Who is the richest NFL team owner?

During his senior year in high school, Langi received football scholarships offers from almost every top Division I school. But a trespassing incident that involved suspected marijuana use limited those choices as schools withdrew their scholarship offers.

"It's just so much pressure on your shoulders. It's like I could hardly carry it sometimes," Langi said in the film.

"If you fail this Harvey, all of your scholarships will be gone. That's when it hit me. If it's in my system and I test positive, I'd get just a regular job and be a normal person and if it comes out negative, I tell myself I'm going to make it today in the field," he said.

Langi tested negative for marijuana and was suspended but allowed to stay on the football team at Bingham High School in South Jordan, Utah.

"The thing that's difficult for the kids that are growing up is that their parents expect them to play in the NFL at the cost of everything else. It's hard to get in there. It's even harder to stay. And if kids grow up thinking well that's what I'm going to do and nothing else, they're a long shot to success in life period," said former Green Bay Packer and Philadelphia Eagle player Vai Sikahema, the first Tongan to play in the NFL.

Langi ended up committing to the University of Utah but after a year he decided to go on a mission with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for two years.

"A lot of people think I'm just doing my mission because maybe I'm scared of football -- scared of not playing because I didn't do good my first year. I'm not scared. I can still play ball. I want to be a running back. I want to show that Polynesians can be a running back in the league. And I know I have the ability to do it," Langi said in the film.

After returning from his mission, Langi is now playing football at Brigham Young University.

A vehicle to stay out of trouble

For other families, football was a means to stay out of bad situations and finance an education.

"It does take a toll on your family. Sacrifice is something huge for us where we feel we're going to do whatever we need to do with whatever means we have," said Kauta Bloomfield, mother of Leva and Vita -- brothers who were profiled in the film as they struggled to disassociate their ties from gangs while playing football. Leva was sent to juvenile detention after he brought a gun to school.

Their father Fua was a former Brigham Young University running back who founded one of Utah's first Polynesian gangs.

"When I look back we did invest a lot in Leva and Vita because they were the oldest of the nine (children). We always figured that we invest all of this time and money into them it's all going to pay off -- which it did, they got full ride scholarships, however it did take a lot of time from our younger kids," Bloomfield told CNNMoney by phone Friday. "So when they did make bad choices it did make me question myself as far as parenting -- where was it worth all of that, because they still ended up making other choices."

Leva and Vita completed their high school coursework and Leva is now playing football at Snow College and Vita is a football coach at the University of Utah.

A means to something greater

For Fihi Kaufusi, football was never the end game.

"Football is not always going to be there for me. I may have a good body -- body type for speed and stuff but that's going to only last so long. I got to figure it out...school job and a career," Kaufusi said.

As the oldest in his family, Kaufusi's mother pushed him to set an example for his other brothers and sisters.

After returning from his mission with the LDS church, Kaufusi is now playing football at Weber State University.

"I used football as a means of transportation to get where I needed to go. I knew in my heart, football was going to be done soon for me and I wouldn't be able to continue on after college," Kaufusi said by phone Friday. "But I can use it to get me to college and to get my degree and that would do a lot for my family."

First Published: January 31, 2015: 10:34 AM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

2.1 million cars recalled for crash sensors

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

All the vehicles had previously been recalled for this issue but the manufacturers' repairs have not stopped the problem. The sensors, which are designed to sense a serious impact, were made by auto parts supplier TRW (TRW).

The earlier fix, which involved installing devices to protect the airbag sensor module from electrical surges, was very effective, reducing inadvertent airbag deployments by about 85%, according to NHTSA. But some unwarranted deployments were still occurring.

Manufacturers will now entirely replace the impact sensors with new units. It will take some time to have the new sensors ready. Meanwhile, NHTSA is instructing vehicle owners who have had not had the initial recall fix done to contact their dealers had have it done.

Related: Cars with the best resale value

"Even though it's a temporary solution until the new remedy is available, they and their families will be safer if they take the time to learn if their vehicle is covered and follow their manufacturers' instructions," NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind said in an announcement. "A hassle is much better than a family tragedy."

About half of the vehicles were also involved in recalls for faulty Takata airbags. Those airbags have faulty inflators that can explode, shooting out sharp metal fragments.

Related: Ford recalls police cars

That makes attention to this recall especially important, NHTSA said, since occupants in those cars can be badly injured by their airbags.

The vehicles involved are Acura MDX, Dodge Viper, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Liberty, Honda Odyssey, Pontiac Vibe, Toyota Corolla, Toyota Matrix and Toyota Avalon.

Related: Honda hit with $70 million in fines for failing to report accidents over 11 years

The vehicles involved are all from model years 2002 through 2004. The age of the vehicles can make it difficult to track down current owners since many of these cars and trucks will be with their second or third owners. For that reason, NHTSA as taking extraordinary steps to get out word of this recall.

For more information car owners should go to http://www.safercar.gov/.

First Published: January 31, 2015: 11:59 AM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

What Super Bowl? The Ad Bowl has already begun

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Some Super Bowl advertisers have been previewing their ads for days, trying to maximize their multimillion dollar investments. Others are keeping their ads under wraps until game time, believing that's the best way to stand out.

At an average cost of $4.5 million per 30-second ad, the stakes are obviously high.

NBC said ad time during the four quarters of the game officially sold out earlier this week. Almost as valuable is the commercial time during the network's six-hour pre-show -- and after the game, when NBC will show its popular drama "The Blacklist."

Watch: Super Bowl's strangest prop bets

More than ever, Super Bowl advertisers are supplementing their 15-, 30- and 60-second spots with viral online videos and what marketers call "social media war rooms."

But the spots are undoubtedly the most important part. On top of what's paid to NBC, companies pay advertising firms huge amounts of money to distill brand messages into funny, timely, celeb-filled, sex-soaked ads.

The game will feature 15 first-time Super Bowl advertisers.

"If you would have told me 10 years ago that Chevy wouldn't be in the Super Bowl, but that Wix.com or Dove products for men would be, I'd be very surprised," Richard Kirshenbaum, the CEO of ad agency NSG/SWAT, said on CNN's "New Day."

"But there's a new lineup. There's a new America," he added.

Wix, a website-building company, is one of the first-timers. Chief marketing officer Omer Shai told CNNMoney that it prepared almost a dozen "teaser" ads ahead of Sunday.

"We are updating and changing the campaign on a daily basis according to performance," Shai said. "This is the year that we're comfortable [taking] the brand to the next level."

Other newbies include the online insurance company Esurance, the glue brand Loctite, the toenail fungus treatment Jublia, and the mobile game maker UCool.

Related: Preview 17 Super Bowl ads

Household names like McDonald's (MCD), Coca-Cola (KO), Budweiser, and BMW will be present, too.

Coca Cola has a 60-second ad rebuking Internet "haters" that won't be seen until the game. But the company has already released clips with stars like Danica Patrick, Michael Sam and Robby Novak, better known as Kid President.

A Coke representative said the ad is "intended to disrupt the complacency that's set in around online negativity" -- something that anyone who's spent time on Facebook or Twitter knows about.

Perhaps the most thought-provoking ad of the game will be the one commissioned by the NFL for its "No More" initiative, intended to stop domestic violence and sexual assault.

"The spot, which features a woman calling 911 and pretending to order a pizza because her husband is in the room, is based on a real 911 call," said the ad blog Spot Bowl, which called it a "game-changer."

It said the NFL was giving over "some of the airtime it normally reserves for light-hearted self promos" for the PSA.

Marketers come to the Super Bowl with a wide variety of missions.

For Victoria's Secret, its ad is part of a weeks-long campaign leading up to Valentine's Day.

For TurboTax, the timing is right, too, because it's tax season.

Weight Watchers is using the stage to introduce a rebooted brand.

NBC will be promoting several of its forthcoming shows, like "Odyssey" and a variety show hosted by Neil Patrick Harris.

Most of the ads will, in one form or another, strive to make 110 million viewers laugh -- and, most importantly, remember the advertisers.

First Published: January 31, 2015: 3:58 PM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More

Seahawks' Paul Allen is the NFL's richest team owner

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The Seattle Seahawks owner Paul Allen is by far the richest in the league. The Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) co-founder is worth about $17 billion, according to various estimates.

The Seahawks head to the Super Bowl for the second year in a row. This year they face off against the New England Patriots which are owned by Robert Kraft, who has a net worth of $4 billion, making him the sixth richest owner in the NFL.

The two men made their money in very different ways.

Related: NFL gets billions in subsidies from taxpayers

Allen helped Bill Gates start Microsoft when both were students at Harvard, and left the company with a chunk of its then privately-held stock in 1983 which translated in to the bulk of his wealth. Allen also made about $2 billion from the appreciation in value of the Seahawks and the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers, both of which he bought decades ago.

Bob Kraft, left, and Paul Allen, right, owners of the two Super Bowl teams, made their fortunes in very different ways.

By contrast, Patriots owner Robert Kraft made most of his $4 billion fortune in football. He bought his team for a reported $172 million in 1994, and today it's worth an estimated $2.6 billion.

Related: Seahawks vs. Patriots - How do the fans measure up?

There's only one NFL team with owners that aren't worth billions. The Green Bay Packers is actually publicly owned by its fans, who hold a special issue of stock in the team that can not be sold or traded.

Related: NFL earns record profits despite ugly image

First Published: January 30, 2015: 4:05 PM ET

14.44 | 0 komentar | Read More