An advertising company in USA put these up on billboards and buses. They really made me think twice this Easter.
1. Let's Meet At My House Sunday Before the Game - God
2. C'mon Over And Bring The Kids - God
3. What Part of "Thou Shalt Not..." Didn't You understand? - God
4. We Need To Talk - God
5. Keep Using My Name in Vain And I'll Make Rush Hour Longer - God
6. Loved The Wedding, Invite Me To The Marriage - God
7. That "Love Thy Neighbor" Thing, I Meant It. - God
8. I Love You ... I Love You ... I Love You ... - God
9. Will The Road You're On Get You To My Place? - God
10. Follow Me. - God
11. Big Bang Theory, You've Got To Be Kidding. - God
12. My Way Is The Highway. - God
13. Need Directions? - God
14. You Think It's Hot Here? - God
15. Tell The Kids I Love Them. - God
16. Need a Marriage Counselor? I'm Available. - God
17. Have You Read My #1 Best Seller? There Will Be A Test. - God
Lastly, I was thinking about how people read the Bible a whole lot more when they get older. Then it dawned on me they were cramming for their finals.
Sunday, 12 April 2009
Search only Namibian websites
Hi, how do I search only Namibian websites for some information?
Well for my research I kept getting too many other non-Namibian information. I created a Google Search Engine applications just for Namibian websites: http://www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=001210031332072355124:2xvxaxbcffq
Thought you might enjoy it. Let me know if it is of any use. {Feel free to become a contributor of websites too - its for all of us.)
Thought for the week:
"Whenever I found out anything remarkable, I have thought it my duty to put down my discovery on paper, so that all ingenious people might be informed thereof.”- Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
Kind regards
Milton
________________________________________________
P.S. You can alos see the searh engine on my website: www.nambiz.co.cc
Well for my research I kept getting too many other non-Namibian information. I created a Google Search Engine applications just for Namibian websites: http://www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=001210031332072355124:2xvxaxbcffq
Thought you might enjoy it. Let me know if it is of any use. {Feel free to become a contributor of websites too - its for all of us.)
Thought for the week:
"Whenever I found out anything remarkable, I have thought it my duty to put down my discovery on paper, so that all ingenious people might be informed thereof.”- Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
Kind regards
Milton
________________________________________________
P.S. You can alos see the searh engine on my website: www.nambiz.co.cc
Monopolies in Namibia
Monopolies - the good, the bad the …..
What are Monopolies?
Most people discuss monopolies and blame it for high allowing certain companies to get away with higher prices or unsatisfactory service levels. The argument here is that if competition is allowed, this would automatically mean lower prices or better service.
In the following text I look at the various types of monopolies, how they came to exist, and most importantly is competition always a good thing?
There are various types of monopoly. Let us look at the most common types in Namibia.
- Selling monopolies - a company is the only supplier of a product and the customers must accept the prices it fixes
- Producing monopolies - a company controls the manufacture or source of supply
- Trading monopolies - a company controls the marketing channel between the source and the customers
Furthermore, most monopolies are either national (countrywide) or local in geography.
There are three main ways in which a monopoly gets its power, either through the government (a political monopoly); through economic control by a company of a natural resource; or through commercial monopoly agreements between competitors.
A political monopoly comes about through a special government grant that forbids others to engage in this business activity. In countries ruled by monarchs this was often in the form of crown patents giving exclusive rights to carry out a certain business for example the collection of taxes. A second kind is the granted by a patent for an invention and copyright on books or music. In this form, the government encourages invention, research and writing by giving the full control of the "intellectual property" to the inventor or writer. It is recognized by all of us that such a monopoly is earned! Also the patent or copyright is limited in time, 14 years for patents and copyright for the lifetime of the writer. Another typical political monopoly is those for the supply of electricity, water or telecommunications. This last kind is often granted to state companies and encourages them to invest in areas that are helpful to the country and that normal capitalist (profit making) companies might not invest in. This is why it is important to have a Universal Service Fund when such monopoly rights are removed!
Economic monopolies come about when scarce natural resources come under the control of a company (or companies) who agree on the price. In most cases such economic monopolies could have been prevented had it been foreseen.
Trading monopolies come about when a company has ownership of subsidiaries that compete in the retail market in competition with companies that purchase its services wholesale. They are thus able to "share costs".
Government Policy on Monopolies
How does the man on the street react to monopolies or competition? Most of us agree that competition is a good thing in business as it brings about lower prices. Yet the same people would agree with me, the Zimbabweans are unfairly bringing down the wages or salaries we earn. This is where, dependent upon where we stand in relation to the practice or industry, our standpoints are developed.
The question is then, when is it acceptable to have a monopoly. The answer must be: When it can be regulated by Government.
Normally competition provides effective regulation. However, when a monopoly has too high prices, a competitor might build its own infrastructure, for example its own electricity or telephone lines next to the existing infrastructure. So we have to accept a policy of "monopoly-accepted" as a necessary feature for the public regulation of rates. We accept in Namibia that these industries are those that need expensive, permanent and use public areas (roads, electricity lines, telephone lines, etc.).
Conclusion
Thus it is in the interest of country to have monopolies in respect of the development and maintenance of the infrastructure. However, competition must be allowed in the provision of services that use it. Thus, to prevent the third type of monopoly, namely a trading monopoly, we cannot allow these state monopolies from selling directly to the public.
To use but one example, Telecom should become two separate companies. One, the owner of the physical infrastructure should continue to be the partner of government to ensure the roll-out of access to all Namibians (including receiving government funding where necessary). The second company must be a commercial company using the infrastructure at the same prices as its competitors and being able to sell directly to the commercial and individual customer.
For further reading see: "Modern Economic Problems" - Frank Albert Fetter, Professor of Economics, Princeton University, 1916
What are Monopolies?
Most people discuss monopolies and blame it for high allowing certain companies to get away with higher prices or unsatisfactory service levels. The argument here is that if competition is allowed, this would automatically mean lower prices or better service.
In the following text I look at the various types of monopolies, how they came to exist, and most importantly is competition always a good thing?
There are various types of monopoly. Let us look at the most common types in Namibia.
- Selling monopolies - a company is the only supplier of a product and the customers must accept the prices it fixes
- Producing monopolies - a company controls the manufacture or source of supply
- Trading monopolies - a company controls the marketing channel between the source and the customers
Furthermore, most monopolies are either national (countrywide) or local in geography.
There are three main ways in which a monopoly gets its power, either through the government (a political monopoly); through economic control by a company of a natural resource; or through commercial monopoly agreements between competitors.
A political monopoly comes about through a special government grant that forbids others to engage in this business activity. In countries ruled by monarchs this was often in the form of crown patents giving exclusive rights to carry out a certain business for example the collection of taxes. A second kind is the granted by a patent for an invention and copyright on books or music. In this form, the government encourages invention, research and writing by giving the full control of the "intellectual property" to the inventor or writer. It is recognized by all of us that such a monopoly is earned! Also the patent or copyright is limited in time, 14 years for patents and copyright for the lifetime of the writer. Another typical political monopoly is those for the supply of electricity, water or telecommunications. This last kind is often granted to state companies and encourages them to invest in areas that are helpful to the country and that normal capitalist (profit making) companies might not invest in. This is why it is important to have a Universal Service Fund when such monopoly rights are removed!
Economic monopolies come about when scarce natural resources come under the control of a company (or companies) who agree on the price. In most cases such economic monopolies could have been prevented had it been foreseen.
Trading monopolies come about when a company has ownership of subsidiaries that compete in the retail market in competition with companies that purchase its services wholesale. They are thus able to "share costs".
Government Policy on Monopolies
How does the man on the street react to monopolies or competition? Most of us agree that competition is a good thing in business as it brings about lower prices. Yet the same people would agree with me, the Zimbabweans are unfairly bringing down the wages or salaries we earn. This is where, dependent upon where we stand in relation to the practice or industry, our standpoints are developed.
The question is then, when is it acceptable to have a monopoly. The answer must be: When it can be regulated by Government.
Normally competition provides effective regulation. However, when a monopoly has too high prices, a competitor might build its own infrastructure, for example its own electricity or telephone lines next to the existing infrastructure. So we have to accept a policy of "monopoly-accepted" as a necessary feature for the public regulation of rates. We accept in Namibia that these industries are those that need expensive, permanent and use public areas (roads, electricity lines, telephone lines, etc.).
Conclusion
Thus it is in the interest of country to have monopolies in respect of the development and maintenance of the infrastructure. However, competition must be allowed in the provision of services that use it. Thus, to prevent the third type of monopoly, namely a trading monopoly, we cannot allow these state monopolies from selling directly to the public.
To use but one example, Telecom should become two separate companies. One, the owner of the physical infrastructure should continue to be the partner of government to ensure the roll-out of access to all Namibians (including receiving government funding where necessary). The second company must be a commercial company using the infrastructure at the same prices as its competitors and being able to sell directly to the commercial and individual customer.
For further reading see: "Modern Economic Problems" - Frank Albert Fetter, Professor of Economics, Princeton University, 1916
Keep you cell number - change your network
Number Portability
Most countries around the world have opened their telecommunications markets to competition, which has accelerated the deployment of telecommunications services more quickly and cost-effectively than past monopolies have achieved.
Some of these liberalisation efforts are being driven by regulations that call for number portability. For example, the European Union (EU) Universal Service and Users' Rights Directive (2002/22/EC), Article 30 - effective since July 2003 - imposes on all EU member states the following obligations:
Member states shall ensure that all subscribers of publicly available telephone services, including mobile services, who so request can retain their number(s) independently of the undertaking providing the service:
" o In the case of geographic numbers, at a specific location; and
" o In the case of non-geographic numbers, at any location.
As consumers we have must have the choice of which service provider we want to use. Most cellular and telephone subscribers however do not wish to lose their present number and therefore stay with the present provider. One of the toughest responsibilities facing the regulators in the Namibian telecom markets involves modernising our national numbering policies, numbering plans, and dialling plans.
We have to establish a numbering policy that provides a legal, legislative, and regulatory basis for competition. Then, our regulator must decide on numbering and dialling schemes, services, technologies, and billing and tariff methods that support its chosen numbering policy.
Lastly, it must also establish a fair, neutral office for numbering administration.
(I have heard the argument of the costs of implementing such a system – this however is always only the argument of the company with the biggest client base.)
The Namibia Consumer Protection Group welcomes number portability for ushering in greater freedom of choice, spurring competition and encouraging technological innovation. LNP removes barriers to switching and provides consumers with a greater choice of carriers and the convenience of keeping their existing numbers. It benefits the ratepayer, the consumer.Whether they have switched cell phone carriers or not, customers have already started reaping the benefits of lower prices and attractive packages offered by wireless carriers as inducements to keep customers from switching.
That’s the benefit of freedom of choice and competition.
Most countries around the world have opened their telecommunications markets to competition, which has accelerated the deployment of telecommunications services more quickly and cost-effectively than past monopolies have achieved.
Some of these liberalisation efforts are being driven by regulations that call for number portability. For example, the European Union (EU) Universal Service and Users' Rights Directive (2002/22/EC), Article 30 - effective since July 2003 - imposes on all EU member states the following obligations:
Member states shall ensure that all subscribers of publicly available telephone services, including mobile services, who so request can retain their number(s) independently of the undertaking providing the service:
" o In the case of geographic numbers, at a specific location; and
" o In the case of non-geographic numbers, at any location.
As consumers we have must have the choice of which service provider we want to use. Most cellular and telephone subscribers however do not wish to lose their present number and therefore stay with the present provider. One of the toughest responsibilities facing the regulators in the Namibian telecom markets involves modernising our national numbering policies, numbering plans, and dialling plans.
We have to establish a numbering policy that provides a legal, legislative, and regulatory basis for competition. Then, our regulator must decide on numbering and dialling schemes, services, technologies, and billing and tariff methods that support its chosen numbering policy.
Lastly, it must also establish a fair, neutral office for numbering administration.
(I have heard the argument of the costs of implementing such a system – this however is always only the argument of the company with the biggest client base.)
The Namibia Consumer Protection Group welcomes number portability for ushering in greater freedom of choice, spurring competition and encouraging technological innovation. LNP removes barriers to switching and provides consumers with a greater choice of carriers and the convenience of keeping their existing numbers. It benefits the ratepayer, the consumer.Whether they have switched cell phone carriers or not, customers have already started reaping the benefits of lower prices and attractive packages offered by wireless carriers as inducements to keep customers from switching.
That’s the benefit of freedom of choice and competition.
Thursday, 26 March 2009
News 26 March 2009
Hi, Milton here on Farm Okomitundu. I am still philosophising while writing my book - but had to ROFLOL when I read "Culling of Wildebeest applies to Beer".
This week:
1. Government-owned Monopolies - the good, the bad...
2. Number portability
My thought for the week:
"If you want to make enemies, try to change something." - Woodrow T.Wilson
Almost finished the first draft of the book. (The two articles above are part of it ;-0) Hopefully be at home by Easter.
Regards
Milton
* ROFLOL = Rolling On Floor, Laughing Out Loud
This week:
1. Government-owned Monopolies - the good, the bad...
2. Number portability
My thought for the week:
"If you want to make enemies, try to change something." - Woodrow T.Wilson
Almost finished the first draft of the book. (The two articles above are part of it ;-0) Hopefully be at home by Easter.
Regards
Milton
* ROFLOL = Rolling On Floor, Laughing Out Loud
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