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All posts tagged "pay"


Friday, May 21, 2010

The Cost of Our Shiny Gadgets

Posted by Jason Dunn in "Digital Home Talk" @ 01:00 PM

http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/21/...hts-on-foxconn/

"It's obvious, by now -- or it should be -- that something's going on at Foxconn -- the owners of massive factories in China which most famously assembles Apple products (though it's also responsible for many, many others). There have been several suicide attempts this year -- at least a few of them successful (though it's been pointed out that the number is pretty much on par with the rest of China) -- and over the past few days we've seen what can only be called a shocking expose by a worker who went undercover there."

Engadget's Laura June shares her thoughts on the real cost of the gadgets we know and love - because this Foxconn issue isn't just about Apple; they make products for HP and other big OEMs. I share June's thoughts that I'm not an economist; I know enough about wages to know that they need to be appropriate for the country the workers are in...you can't just take a North American minimum wage figure and use that. On the other hand, I support the concept of a "living wage" no matter what country we're talking about - if someone can't make a reasonable living working 40 hours a week, then they're not getting paid enough (and that applies to my own country as well).

I'd be a hypocrite if I said that the plight of the workers making my gadgets was at the forefront of my mind when I opened the package on a new device, but it's definitely something I've been thinking about more lately. Do I like cheap gadgets? Yes. But would I be willing to pay 10% more, knowing that money would make its way back to the workers in the form of better pay (which would be hard to do, but possible)? Yes, I absolutely would. Would you?


Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Zune Pays to Share? Yes.

Posted by Darius Wey in "Zune Talk" @ 12:00 PM

http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/portable-media/confirmed-microsoft-to-reward-zune-song-sharing-214800.php

"When we last left off, the consensus was that Microsoft was still planning on rewarding song sharing with the Zune. Now we've got pretty much confirmation - unofficial, that is - that Microsoft is planning this feature. At a conference in Seattle this past Saturday, both J Allard and Christina Calio, both from the Zune team, talked about implementing such a system. The Zune team plans to reward people with Microsoft Marketplace Points, the same points you use on both Zune Marketplace and Xbox 360 Marketplace."


Courtesy of Artghost.com

So after all of last month's suggestions, it looks like you may get paid to share after all - paid in Microsoft Points, that is - although, I don't think it'll be as simple as it sounds. For example, Microsoft will have to put in some safeguards to prevent unauthorized sharing (i.e., spamming one's own secondary device). And how will offline users benefit from Points? So many questions, so few answers.


Wednesday, November 1, 2006

Zune Pays to Share?

Posted by Darius Wey in "Zune Talk" @ 09:35 PM

http://www.mobilemag.com/content/100/337/C10271/

"Damn it. Quit yanking my chain. Now it turns out that Microsoft just may reward you for sharing tunes with the Zune media player after all, if a recently leaked whitepaper is to be believed. The document outlines "off-line economies for digital media", describing how you can "sell" content to another Zune owner while still sending the profits to the copyright holder. In exchange, maybe you get some brownie points or something. The paper goes on to talk about immediate purchases on-the-go, Bluetooth sharing, anti-piracy practices, and so forth."


Courtesy of Artghost.com

Well, that's the buzz going around, but I'm not convinced. The whitepaper (PDF) talks about an isolated, tamper-resistant economic ecosystem composed of media players, eager sellers and buyers, and a whole lot of care factor. It has merit, but seems difficult to execute with current-generation Zune devices. Maybe it'll have a place in a few years time, when Microsoft has its digital partners sorted, enhanced hardware, and a more widespread market base. After all, it's a Microsoft Research paper centred highly on theoretical material. Such material often takes a few years to come into effect, if at all. Although, now that I think about it, if it really did come into effect, would I really want every Zune user on the street bugging me to buy their tunes? Probably not. I'll go to a store for that.


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