Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – The Federal Communications Commission is preparing to vote Dec. 21 on a plan to limit the ability of Internet service providers and governments from restricting access to the Web.

FCC chairman Julius Genachowski, a Democrat, described his proposal that is set for the vote in announcement this week.

The two Republican FCC commissioners immediately criticized the plan as imposing too much regulation over the Internet, indicating that reaching net neutrality is unlikely to be completed soon, according to industry analysts.

Net neutrality refers to a policy for preventing censorship by Internet service providers and governments on content, sites, platforms, the kinds of equipment allowed and the means of communication over the Internet.

The policy also would require that any two Internet subscribers could communicate with each other without restriction under terms of their access.

The policy fell into doubt Thursday – a day after Genachowski’s announcement – when the Internet company Amazon shut down the tell-all Web site Wikileaks in response to government pressure.

In recent years, Internet service providers have been criticized for exerting too much control over access to the Internet.

Large Internet companies like Google and Yahoo have escaped most of the criticism.

However, niche companies like Facebook and Twitter have sometimes been accused of being restrictive.

Congress stepped into the debate by ordering the FCC to develop a plan to ensure unbiased access.

Genachowski’s plan calls on the Internet companies to upgrade analytic components of their services in return for being regulated under existing Internet regulations. The analytics can filter out some Internet content.

If the companies fail to upgrade their analytics, they would be regulated under more restrictive rules, similar to telephone companies.

“This framework, if adopted later this month, would advance a set of core goals,” Genachowski said. “It would ensure that the Internet remains a powerful platform for innovation and job creation; it would empower consumers and entrepreneurs; it would protect free expression; it would increase certainty in the marketplace and spur investment both at the edge and in the core of our broadband networks.”

However, his fellow commissioners disagreed.

Ranking Republican commissioner Robert McDowell issued a statement saying, “Pushing a small group of hand-picked industry players toward a ‘choice’ between a bad option (Title I Internet regulation) or a worse option (regulating the Internet like a monopoly phone company under Title II) smacks more of coercion than consensus or compromise.”

He accused Genachowski’s proposal of exceeding his authority.

“This ‘agreement’ has been extracted in defiance of not only the courts, but a large, bipartisan majority of Congress as well,” McDowell said. “Both have admonished the FCC not to reach beyond its statutory powers to regulate Internet access.”

Ironically, political pressure from a member of Congress prompted Amazon to stop allowing Wikileaks to use its servers on Thursday.

Wikileaks is a Web site that publishes government documents leaked to the news media.

Its release this week of more than 251,000 U.S. State Department communications with its embassy staff and heads of state created a huge international incident.

The outrage fell as much on the State Department for some criticisms of foreign governments mentioned in the documents as it did on Wikileaks.

Amazon dropped WikiLeaks following inquiries from the staff of Sen. Joseph Lieberman (Ind.-Conn.), chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Lieberman issued a statement saying, “I wish that Amazon had taken this action earlier based on Wikileaks’ previous publication of classified material. The company’s decision to cut off Wikileaks now is the right decision and should set the standard for other companies Wikileaks is using to distribute its illegally seized material. I call on any other company or organization that is hosting WikiLeaks to immediately terminate its relationship with them.”

Lieberman called the documents published by Wikileaks “stolen, classified information.”

Wikileaks protested the Amazon shut down with a Twitter message that said, “If Amazon are so uncomfortable with the first amendment they should get out of the business of selling books.”

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Las Vegas, NV, United States (AHN) – A Las Vegas tattoo company’s racy slogan is causing a buzz while doing what it was designed to do – drum up business. The slogan, advertised on the back of taxi cabs, reads “Sluts R People Too.” The “R” is written backwards.

Phillip Limon, manager of Precious Sluts Tattoo Parlor, said the ad was meant to be funny and attract a certain clientele. It is not meant to offend parents or family-oriented groups.

One cab driver reportedly said no one has complained about his cab carrying the ad, but said many customers think it is clever.

However, some potential passengers refuse to enter a taxi cab carrying the sign, saying it is degrading to women.

Limon said no matter the stance, the ad is working and is attracting customers to the parlor.

Las Vegas is known for its risqué advertisements for gentlemen’s clubs, shows and erotic stores. Taxi cab drivers in the city are no strangers to the controversy.

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Tehran, Iran (AHN) – In order to comply with the American sanctions, four energy companies have announced their withdrawal from Iran.

The United States said that Italy’s ENI, Royal Dutch Shell, French Total and Norwegian Statoil on Thursday decided to stop their business with Iranian companies to avoid penalties aimed at companies, which continue to do business with Iran despite the sanctions.

Swiss-based Naftiran Intertrade Co, which has not yet taken a decision on discontinuing the business, is likely to face new sanctions.

Deputy U.S. Secretary of State James Steinberg said that investors have started pulling out their activities from Iran after the U.S. tightened its sanctions on Iran in the wake of its controversial nuclear program, which Tehran claims is for purely peaceful purposes.

A recent legislation authorized the U.S. administration to punish foreign companies with fines for investing more that $12.7 million in Iranian energy sector.

Without elaborating, the state department said that they had launched an investigation on some other energy firms, which possible violated the sanctions. Steinberg said that National Iranian Oil Company’s subsidiary Naftiran is the main financier in the Iranian oil industry, adding that the American firms have already been instructed to stop all business activities with the Swiss company.

He added that the U.S. would impose additional sanctions to discourage non-U.S. companies from doing business with it. Steinberg’s comments came just a day after Washington froze assets of eight senior Iranian officials for violating human rights after their disputed Presidential Elections last year.

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London, England, United Kingdom (AHN) – Insurer Lloyd’s of London reported on Tuesday a 53 percent drop in its profit because of natural calamity claims against the firm. The company said it registered an interim profit of $942 million (628 million pounds) for the first half of 2010.

Lloyd’s Chairman Lord Levene pointed to the calamities such as the Chilean earthquake and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill as among the claims that caused the insurer’s profit to substantially go down.

Lloyd’s estimate is that the tremor in Chile cost its syndicate members $1.4 billion (885 million pounds), while the British Petroleum oil spill another $300 to 600 million (200 to 400 million pounds).

Levene said in a statement, “The first six months of 2010 were the costliest on record since we began interim reporting, testing not only Lloyd’s but insurers around the globe.”

However, the company still enjoyed a positive return of $895.5 million (597 million pounds) despite the natural calamity claims and at a time when there was continuing volatility in financial markets.

Analysts pointed out the worst is yet to come for Lloyd’s because the catastrophe season usually happens during the second half of the year, from end of August to middle of November, when hurricanes and tropical storms batter the Gulf of Mexico.

Lloyd’s started insuring ships 322 years ago in London. To date the company has 85 syndicates that underwrite insurance, covering all types of business in over 200 nations.

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Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – The United States on Tuesday announced twelve finalists for the Secretary of State’s prestigious 2010 Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE) and the 2010 ACE winners will be announced at the annual ceremony hosted by the Secretary of State later this fall.

According to the state department communique, these U.S. companies were chosen from a record number of 78 nominations submitted by American ambassadors around the world. “ACE finalists are international business leaders who recognize the vital role that U.S. businesses play abroad as good corporate citizens,” it noted.

Since 1999, the Secretary of State has awarded the ACE and the department “is committed to working with business to further these best practices worldwide and to recognize efforts to improve lives at home and abroad.”

Out of the this year’s 12 finalists two each are in India and China, while one each hail from Mexico, Israel, Swaziland, Guatemala, Fiji, Costa Rica, Ghana, Armenia.

The details of the companies and their activities are:

Alta Ventures in Mexico – for the venture capital company’s work to open Mexico’s venture capital market; foster greater investment, employment, entrepreneurship, and U.S. exports; and share best practices in areas such as education, innovation, remittances, crime mapping, clean technology, health care, and information technology

Cisco in Israel – for the computer networking company’s efforts to reconnect the Israeli and Palestinian economies and people; build a sustainable model of job creation and economic development; and engage in several partnerships and initiatives to enhance technical capacity, connectivity, education, and opportunities for women and youths in Israel and Palestine

Coca-Cola in Swaziland – for the beverage company’s work to improve local communities’ water, education, and health; promote entrepreneurship; foster local science and technology initiatives; and demonstrate exemplary employment practices

Denimatrix in Guatemala – for the textile and apparel company’s environmental stewardship in reducing the environmental impact stemming from its production process; contributing to the development of the local economy; and reaching out to the community to help disadvantaged youth and the homeless

Fiji Water in Fiji – for the bottled water company’s disaster relief efforts; volunteerism; partnerships that focus on local health, education, and provision of water; and “carbon negative” approach to product lifecycle and conservation efforts

GE in India – for the diversified technology, media and financial services company’s fostering of local partnerships and volunteerism, supporting health, education, innovation and disaster recovery projects across India; exemplary employment practices; and promotion of cleaner, more energy efficient products

Intel in Costa Rica – for the semiconductor company’s contributions to revolutionizing science and technology education in Costa Rica’s public schools through volunteer programs and community leadership; volunteerism; and practicing environmental stewardship that benefits local communities through means such as innovative recycling programs

Mars, Inc. in Ghana – for the confectionary manufacturer’s improvement of farming methods, sensitizing communities against child labor, and promoting the overall well-being and sustainability of cocoa growing communities; building partnerships to advance community empowerment; and contributing to the sustainable growth of rural economies

PepsiCo in India – for the beverage company’s fostering of environmental sustainability through water conservation efforts, which has benefited small and marginal farmers; supporting the health and well-being of local communities; and providing important employment opportunities through training with a focus on diversity and inclusion

Qualcomm in China – for the wireless company’s initiatives in education, healthcare and entrepreneurship; improving economic conditions; and enhancing the quality of life for Chinese citizens, particularly in underserved communities

Synopsys in Armenia – for the software and programming company’s promotion of U.S. and foreign investors by showcasing Armenia as a potential informational technology (IT) hub; collaboration with universities on IT training programs; and reduction of pollution levels by planting hundreds of trees to counter recent deforestation

Tang Energy in China – for the energy company’s efforts to promote development and U.S.-Sino cooperation in clean energy technologies; enhance industrial energy efficiency; and provide student health and education opportunities

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Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – The United States on Tuesday announced twelve finalists for the Secretary of State’s prestigious 2010 Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE) and the 2010 ACE winners will be announced at the annual ceremony hosted by the Secretary of State later this fall.

According to the state department communique, these U.S. companies were chosen from a record number of 78 nominations submitted by American ambassadors around the world. “ACE finalists are international business leaders who recognize the vital role that U.S. businesses play abroad as good corporate citizens,” it noted.

Since 1999, the Secretary of State has awarded the ACE and the department “is committed to working with business to further these best practices worldwide and to recognize efforts to improve lives at home and abroad.”

Out of the this year’s 12 finalists two each are in India and China, while one each hail from Mexico, Israel, Swaziland, Guatemala, Fiji, Costa Rica, Ghana, Armenia.

The details of the companies and their activities are:

Alta Ventures in Mexico – for the venture capital company’s work to open Mexico’s venture capital market; foster greater investment, employment, entrepreneurship, and U.S. exports; and share best practices in areas such as education, innovation, remittances, crime mapping, clean technology, health care, and information technology

Cisco in Israel – for the computer networking company’s efforts to reconnect the Israeli and Palestinian economies and people; build a sustainable model of job creation and economic development; and engage in several partnerships and initiatives to enhance technical capacity, connectivity, education, and opportunities for women and youths in Israel and Palestine

Coca-Cola in Swaziland – for the beverage company’s work to improve local communities’ water, education, and health; promote entrepreneurship; foster local science and technology initiatives; and demonstrate exemplary employment practices

Denimatrix in Guatemala – for the textile and apparel company’s environmental stewardship in reducing the environmental impact stemming from its production process; contributing to the development of the local economy; and reaching out to the community to help disadvantaged youth and the homeless

Fiji Water in Fiji – for the bottled water company’s disaster relief efforts; volunteerism; partnerships that focus on local health, education, and provision of water; and “carbon negative” approach to product lifecycle and conservation efforts

GE in India – for the diversified technology, media and financial services company’s fostering of local partnerships and volunteerism, supporting health, education, innovation and disaster recovery projects across India; exemplary employment practices; and promotion of cleaner, more energy efficient products

Intel in Costa Rica – for the semiconductor company’s contributions to revolutionizing science and technology education in Costa Rica’s public schools through volunteer programs and community leadership; volunteerism; and practicing environmental stewardship that benefits local communities through means such as innovative recycling programs

Mars, Inc. in Ghana – for the confectionary manufacturer’s improvement of farming methods, sensitizing communities against child labor, and promoting the overall well-being and sustainability of cocoa growing communities; building partnerships to advance community empowerment; and contributing to the sustainable growth of rural economies

PepsiCo in India – for the beverage company’s fostering of environmental sustainability through water conservation efforts, which has benefited small and marginal farmers; supporting the health and well-being of local communities; and providing important employment opportunities through training with a focus on diversity and inclusion

Qualcomm in China – for the wireless company’s initiatives in education, healthcare and entrepreneurship; improving economic conditions; and enhancing the quality of life for Chinese citizens, particularly in underserved communities

Synopsys in Armenia – for the software and programming company’s promotion of U.S. and foreign investors by showcasing Armenia as a potential informational technology (IT) hub; collaboration with universities on IT training programs; and reduction of pollution levels by planting hundreds of trees to counter recent deforestation

Tang Energy in China – for the energy company’s efforts to promote development and U.S.-Sino cooperation in clean energy technologies; enhance industrial energy efficiency; and provide student health and education opportunities

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Investors want to make sure management is doing the best job it can to keep these costs in control as well as maintaining their bottom line. Operating expenses are available on the financial statements that every publicly traded company files with the SEC.

Management also must do a good job turning a profit with its own operations. That means the costs associated with cost of goods sold (COGS), etc. must generate more than those costs. If not, well, the company must be in the wrong line of business. Companies should never be operating at a loss. If a company is operating at a loss exactly why needs to be interpreted by the prospective investor

Operating margins represent the direct relationship between sales revenue and operating income. The operating margin of a firm is the operating income divided by net sales. It shows how much gross profit a company generates before taxes.

Well-managed companies should increase these margins from year to year. The higher these margins are the more profits are available to return to shareholders investing in the company. Operating margins can be a useful tool when comparing two prospective stocks that compete within the same market.

Higher operating margins represent a company in a better position to generate income. For example, a company with a lower operating margin than a competitor in its market will have less flexibility in determining prices. It’s competitor with higher profit margins will know this about it’s competitor and can “go for the jugular” by slashing prices and stealing market share.

It is not a good idea to be conservative with financial projections at the beginning of the business. Business investors invest money with the sole aim of gaining a suitable return on the investment. The length of time for which the investment is made also influences the amount of money gained. They don’t want to lose money or get a low return on their investments. By being conservative in your business plans, you are display uncertainty about how to obtain certain level of sales over a particular time period.

Develop A Sound Business plan
To make a sound business plan consider the market share, which the competitors own and assess how an entry into the market will have an impact on the prevailing trends. Evaluate the overall producing capacity and the number of products, which the company can sell. Avoid calculating the costs of the products as a straight percentage of the revenue, because the company must foresee the competitive advantage of cost reduction before evaluating the revenue as part of the business plan. Be clear about how to price the product or service.

Pricing a product
Never determine the price of the product on the basis of striking margins. It is better to find out what most the customers are willing to pay for the product. The cost of the product should be based on cost of manufacturing, distribution, and what customers are willing to pay. The cost of the product and the profit added to it should not exceed the value of the product, which the consumer perceives it to have.

Keep Fixed Costs Low
Keep the fixed costs of the business low in the business plan financial projections, so that when the sales growth is slower-than-expected the company can recover the costs easily. Perform the cash flow analysis, which indicates the amount of capital required to run the business. By preparing the income and balance sheet projections, assess the performance and growth of the company.

Identify Uncertain Elements
Identify all the uncertain elements of the business plan financial projection. Estimate how the wavering elements will have an affect on the cash flow and determine how much backing is available in times of crisis. Stay focused on the details that make up the business plan. Find the critical elements, which may affect the working of the business. Study all the risks and plan ways to resolve them, if they occur.

Risk factors cannot be ignored in business. A sound business plan provides an in-depth analysis of the risk factors involved and contingency plans to resolve them if they occur.