General Motors Co and eBay Inc are launching a test program in California that will allow consumers to negotiate with dealers and buy
new vehicles online, the companies said on Monday.
The car shopping website, gm.ebay.com, marks a departure from the way new vehicles have traditionally been sold in the United States and is aimed at helping GM recapture lost market share a month after it emerged from bankruptcy.
The online marketplace provides the No 1 US automaker with a new venue to sell new vehicles as it cuts the number of US dealerships by more than 40 percent to 3,600 by the end of 2010 as part of its efforts to return to profitability.
It also expands an existing partnership covering GM's certified used vehicles sold through eBay. Most of the vehicles sold on eBay Motors, a site that sells various types of vehicles and auto parts, have been used.
More than 225 GM dealers in California are participating in the program, which will run from Aug. 11 through Sept 8. GM said it intends to expand the program nationwide if the pilot helps it reach new customers and gain market share.
The website allows consumers to compare pricing across models and participating dealerships, negotiate prices, and arrange financing and payment. Consumers can agree to pay the advertised price or indicate the price they are willing to pay and can negotiate online with the dealer for the vehicle.
More than 20,000 new Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Pontiac vehicles will be listed initially on the site.
California, which has been dominated by import brands over the past several years, is the most populous US state and the single largest market for new vehicles. Car sales have been hit harder in California than in other states over the past quarter because of the severity of the housing market slump there.
"It's a critical market for us and critical time for the company. Anything we can do to provide exposure to the products where we are underserved is clearly good news," GM US sales chief Mark LaNeve said on a conference call. "It's been incredibly hit by the recession. We think it really needs a shot in the arm," he said.
GM's market share in California is hovering in the 13 percent to 13.5 percent range, trailing its national average of 19.5 percent. GM, which lost $82 billion over the past four years, is trying to revamp its image and win back consumer trust after completing a bankruptcy restructuring steered by the Obama administration.
GM has lost market share for years to import brands led by Toyota Motor Corp, now No 2 in the US market with a 17 percent share. A recent J.D. Power & Associates study said more than 75 percent of new vehicle buyers in 2008 used the Internet during their shopping and research process, compared with 70 percent in 2007.
The decline in US auto sales to their lowest level in nearly three decades this year has hurt automakers, parts suppliers, dealers and virtually every company in the automotive sector, including eBay.
The online auction company's gross merchandise volume, a data point closely watched by analysts that measures the total value of goods sold on eBay, has been hit in recent years as the downturn in auto sales continued.
Agencies
Showing posts with label california. Show all posts
Showing posts with label california. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Oracle may layoff 10,000 jobs after Sun deal
Global IT giant Oracle's $7.4 billion acquisition of Sun Microsystems could terminate 10000 jobs, predicted a financial analyst, as per a report in IDG News Service.
Excluding charges related to the restructuring, Oracle expects the Sun deal to contribute $1.5 billion toward its earnings next year and $2 billion in the second year of the acquisition, making it more profitable in per-share contribution in the first year than the company had planned for the acquisitions of BEA, PeopleSoft and Siebel combined, according to Oracle President Safra Catz. Meanwhile, Tony Sacconaghi, a well-respected technology analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein & Co said, "That profitability will come via layoffs." Sacconaghi had been forecasting $800 million in operating profit for Sun's fiscal 2010, rather than the $1.5 billion predicted by Oracle.
"In order to deliver $1.5 billion in profit, Oracle would need to boost profits by $700 million assuming no material revenue erosion, which suggests incremental headcount reductions of 5,500 to 10,000 depending on timing," Sacconaghi wrote in a research note. But, Oracle declined to comment on any possible layoffs.
The acquisition was announced Monday, just two weeks after Sun's previous suitor, IBM, had walked away from the table after being unable to come to acquisition terms.
Analyst firm Technology Business Research (TBR) agreed that layoffs are coming, predicting that sales and marketing staff will be hit hardest. "Oracle will rapidly rationalize Sun's cost-base," the company said in a report on the deal. "This means general layoffs and a reshaping of cost centers such as services and support."
Sun is already in the process of slashing between 15 to 18 percent of its workforce, or as many as 6,000 employees.
Agencies
Excluding charges related to the restructuring, Oracle expects the Sun deal to contribute $1.5 billion toward its earnings next year and $2 billion in the second year of the acquisition, making it more profitable in per-share contribution in the first year than the company had planned for the acquisitions of BEA, PeopleSoft and Siebel combined, according to Oracle President Safra Catz. Meanwhile, Tony Sacconaghi, a well-respected technology analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein & Co said, "That profitability will come via layoffs." Sacconaghi had been forecasting $800 million in operating profit for Sun's fiscal 2010, rather than the $1.5 billion predicted by Oracle.
"In order to deliver $1.5 billion in profit, Oracle would need to boost profits by $700 million assuming no material revenue erosion, which suggests incremental headcount reductions of 5,500 to 10,000 depending on timing," Sacconaghi wrote in a research note. But, Oracle declined to comment on any possible layoffs.
The acquisition was announced Monday, just two weeks after Sun's previous suitor, IBM, had walked away from the table after being unable to come to acquisition terms.
Analyst firm Technology Business Research (TBR) agreed that layoffs are coming, predicting that sales and marketing staff will be hit hardest. "Oracle will rapidly rationalize Sun's cost-base," the company said in a report on the deal. "This means general layoffs and a reshaping of cost centers such as services and support."
Sun is already in the process of slashing between 15 to 18 percent of its workforce, or as many as 6,000 employees.
Agencies
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Is California to layoff 20,000 state jobs?
California, which is on the brink of running out of cash, will notify 20,000 state workers on Tuesday their jobs may be eliminated, a spokesman for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said on Monday.
The announcement came a day after California lawmakers narrowly failed to pass a $40 billion budget that would have plugged the state's deficit with a mix of tax hikes and spending cuts.
"In the absence of a budget, the governor has a responsibility to realize state savings any way he can," said Aaron McLear, a spokesman for the Republican governor. "This is unfortunately a necessary decision."
The layoff notices will affect about 20 percent of state workers, McLear said, adding the cuts would extend to every part of state government.
The positions would be eliminated in June in preparation for California's next fiscal year, which starts in July.
California, America's most populous state and the world's eighth biggest economy, has experienced a dramatic fall in revenues because of the housing downturn, rising unemployment and a sharp pullback in consumer spending.
To conserve cash, the state has stopped public works projects, furloughed state employees for two days a month and postponed sending out tax refunds.
Agencies
The announcement came a day after California lawmakers narrowly failed to pass a $40 billion budget that would have plugged the state's deficit with a mix of tax hikes and spending cuts.
"In the absence of a budget, the governor has a responsibility to realize state savings any way he can," said Aaron McLear, a spokesman for the Republican governor. "This is unfortunately a necessary decision."
The layoff notices will affect about 20 percent of state workers, McLear said, adding the cuts would extend to every part of state government.
The positions would be eliminated in June in preparation for California's next fiscal year, which starts in July.
California, America's most populous state and the world's eighth biggest economy, has experienced a dramatic fall in revenues because of the housing downturn, rising unemployment and a sharp pullback in consumer spending.
To conserve cash, the state has stopped public works projects, furloughed state employees for two days a month and postponed sending out tax refunds.
Agencies
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Oracle cuts 500 jobs, says report
Oracle Corp. has trimmed its workforce, but not as much as some people had speculated, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
Citing people familiar with the matter, the newspaper said the software giant cut around 500 positions in its North American sales and consulting businesses on Friday.
The Redwood Shores, California-based company had 33,526 employees in the Americas at the end of November and 86,657 globally, the report said.
An Oracle spokeswoman declined to comment to the newspaper and could not immediately be reached.
The Journal said the Internet has been buzzing with rumors of cuts of up to 10 percent of the company's workforce, a move that would affect thousands of people. Some analysts have put the number in the hundreds.
Agencies
Citing people familiar with the matter, the newspaper said the software giant cut around 500 positions in its North American sales and consulting businesses on Friday.
The Redwood Shores, California-based company had 33,526 employees in the Americas at the end of November and 86,657 globally, the report said.
An Oracle spokeswoman declined to comment to the newspaper and could not immediately be reached.
The Journal said the Internet has been buzzing with rumors of cuts of up to 10 percent of the company's workforce, a move that would affect thousands of people. Some analysts have put the number in the hundreds.
Agencies
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Yahoo to sack 1,500 workforce in high-cost markets; while hire in India
Yahoo Inc will tell 1,500 employees on Wednesday they are losing their jobs, after announcing in October that layoffs would occur by year's end, a person familiar with the situation said on Tuesday.
The expected date of the announcement and some details were reported this week by All Things Digital, a blog covering Silicon Valley. The layoffs will hit hardest in the labor-intensive areas of human resources and finance.
The blog had speculated the layoffs would affect more than 1,500 people, or about 10 percent of Yahoo's workforce, and the source said the number has not changed.
Chief Financial Officer Blake Jorgensen said in October Yahoo would be prepared to cut jobs and other expenses further in 2009 if the economy continued to deteriorate.
Yahoo will cut its workforce in high-cost markets and hire aggressively in lower-cost locales such as Eastern Europe, India and Southeast Asia, the company has said.
The highest-profile personnel change has not yet occurred. Chief Executive Jerry Yang said in November he would leave the company, after facing strong criticism for his leadership. That change will take effect when a replacement is named.
Source; Agencies
The expected date of the announcement and some details were reported this week by All Things Digital, a blog covering Silicon Valley. The layoffs will hit hardest in the labor-intensive areas of human resources and finance.
The blog had speculated the layoffs would affect more than 1,500 people, or about 10 percent of Yahoo's workforce, and the source said the number has not changed.
Chief Financial Officer Blake Jorgensen said in October Yahoo would be prepared to cut jobs and other expenses further in 2009 if the economy continued to deteriorate.
Yahoo will cut its workforce in high-cost markets and hire aggressively in lower-cost locales such as Eastern Europe, India and Southeast Asia, the company has said.
The highest-profile personnel change has not yet occurred. Chief Executive Jerry Yang said in November he would leave the company, after facing strong criticism for his leadership. That change will take effect when a replacement is named.
Source; Agencies
Has recession hits jobs in Silicon Valley?
Young professionals and recent graduates have struggled to find work in a sliding economy, but one area — Silicon Valley — has been relatively immune. Until now. Silicon Valley companies that initially resisted the swooning of the economy are looking to cut costs and shed entry-level positions, and people in their 20’s are finding a college degree is no longer their golden ticket to a dream job in high tech.
“I feel like I put in all the work (in school) to not have a job,’’ said Jillian Crawford, 25, who’s been looking for a marketing job with a tech company since she graduated with honors from San Jose State University in June. Crawford has applied to about 25 marketing jobs without receiving much of a response from employers. She remains committed to finding a job in Silicon Valley and would be dismayed if she had to look elsewhere.
That may not be easy
Silicon Valley has been hit hard by the global economic crisis as tech companies, including Hewlett Packard, Yahoo, Sun Microsystems and Applied Materials have shed 140,000 jobs in the last few months, according to Challenger, Gray and Christmas, a consulting group.
Instead, employers are putting an increased value on experience and tenure, something recent graduates lack. And many companies are moving seasoned employees around to fill open positions rather than add another person to the payroll, according to Kerry Kiley, Bay Area regional manager for employment firm Adecco.
“Things out there are very, very tough right now and seem to be getting tougher before they’re getting better — even for the educated,’’ she said. Only engineers buck the trend. It has been tough for Crawford. She moved back home with her parents a little over a month ago to save money while searching for a job.“I was thinking (it would take) maybe a couple weeks, maybe three weeks, before finding a job I was really interested in,’’ said Crawford. “I am completely still shocked at how long it’s taken.’’
Source; Agencies
“I feel like I put in all the work (in school) to not have a job,’’ said Jillian Crawford, 25, who’s been looking for a marketing job with a tech company since she graduated with honors from San Jose State University in June. Crawford has applied to about 25 marketing jobs without receiving much of a response from employers. She remains committed to finding a job in Silicon Valley and would be dismayed if she had to look elsewhere.
That may not be easy
Silicon Valley has been hit hard by the global economic crisis as tech companies, including Hewlett Packard, Yahoo, Sun Microsystems and Applied Materials have shed 140,000 jobs in the last few months, according to Challenger, Gray and Christmas, a consulting group.
Instead, employers are putting an increased value on experience and tenure, something recent graduates lack. And many companies are moving seasoned employees around to fill open positions rather than add another person to the payroll, according to Kerry Kiley, Bay Area regional manager for employment firm Adecco.
“Things out there are very, very tough right now and seem to be getting tougher before they’re getting better — even for the educated,’’ she said. Only engineers buck the trend. It has been tough for Crawford. She moved back home with her parents a little over a month ago to save money while searching for a job.“I was thinking (it would take) maybe a couple weeks, maybe three weeks, before finding a job I was really interested in,’’ said Crawford. “I am completely still shocked at how long it’s taken.’’
Source; Agencies
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)