Instapaper
Instapaper Founder Marco Arment’s Journey From Bagel Jockey to Publishing Pioneer | Fast Company – I learned the value of giving people little delights [while working at the bagel shop]. Those small details and experiences are the reason why people like luxury cars. That uncertain reward is why people play the slots or Candy Crush. Instapaper is a social bookmarking service founded in 2008, that allows web content to be saved so it can be “read later” on a different device, such as an e-reader, smartphone, or tablet.
Economics
The Koch Brothers: Rage Against the Billionaires – WSJ – interesting move in the US
China Manufacturing: “We’re Bringing It Back Home.” : China Law Blog – interesting article on near-sourcing implies that manufacturing isn’t as fluid as the likes of McKinsey thinks it is for a lot of products
The Ease (Or Unease) Of Doing Business In China. A Stagnant China. : China Law Blog : China Law for Business – Vietnam making some radical moves to become more entrepreneur-friendly
Ideas
The Rise of the New Global Elite – The Atlantic – interesting piece. My concern is does that ambivalence pave the way for a backlash?
25 Years of Digital Vandalism – NYTimes.com – great piece by William Gibson
Luxury
Chinese, British Focus On High End In “Brand Desire” Survey « Jing Daily : The Business of Luxury and Culture in China – shows how green brands don’t resonate in the UK
Wealthy in Hong Kong, South Korea Most Likely to Buy Flashy Car | WSJ – no surprise to anyone who has seen the Rolls Royce models driving around Central
Prada’s Hong Kong IPO: the consumer implications – FT.com – interesting idea about the luxury market taste maturation cycle in China. It oversimplifies the demographics and tribes behind luxury purchases
Rupert Hoogewerf: “Although China’s New Rich May Be Wealthy Or Powerful, They May Not Have Taste” « Jing Daily : The Business of Luxury and Culture in China – this isn’t a Chinese issue the same could be said of the new rich elsewhere
Media
Lionel Barber: The FT’s Five-Point Plan For Exploiting The Brand | paidContent – interesting stuff
The Explosion of Free Porn Online – New York Magazine – adult entertainment industry being disrupted as business models change
Technology
How Steve Jobs ‘out-Japanned’ Japan – the zen principle of Ma or what Sun Tzu called the void.