"The Wizarding World of Harry Potter" at Universal Studios Hollywood Expected to Greatly Increase Park's Revenue

J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" franchise has made the author a millionaire and a worldwide sensation in the relatively short time since she first published "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," the first book in a seven-part series. While it took her quite a while to find a publisher that was willing to take a risk on the new author, when she finally did, the series took off and quickly became the best-selling sensation it is today. Between the seven books in the main series, three other books set in the same universe, 8 movies, and all of the different kinds of merchandise, "Harry Potter" has been a huge money-maker over the years. One of the largest sources of merchandise income has been Universal's "Harry Potter World" in Orlando, Florida. Hugo Martin, in his L.A. Times article, discusses the upcoming opening of a new theme park, this time in Los Angeles: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Everyone expects the new theme park to be a huge success, both for the franchise itself and for Universal Studios Hollywood, which has undergone millions of dollars in renovations over the past couple of years in an attempt to bring in more visitors. In 2014 they started with a Despicable Me-themed attraction called Minion Mayhem and continued into 2015 with the Simpsons Springfield land and a new Fast and Furious ride. The new Harry Potter attraction, however, while still smaller than its Florida counterpart (about one-third of its size) is expected to do more for Universal's bottom line than any of the other attractions.

Besides the fact that the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter will attract more visitors to the theme park as a whole, analysts believe that a large portion of the increased income will be due mainly from merchandising. In 2010, when Orlando first opened a Harry Potter World, park attendance went up by 20% and total revenue increased by 41% in the first year. Analysts believe that a similar trend will be noticeable at the Los Angeles analog. Between souvenirs like wands or robes and food options like butterbeer and chocolate frogs, the Harry Potter World is expected to make a killing among die-hard fans and regular folks alike. With a franchise like Harry Potter, there is very little that can go wrong, since the fans, known as "Potterheads," are so invested in the series that nay addition to the magical world is seen as a welcome surprise.

Members of Universal Studios' sales and design teams have come up with many clever ideas to make the theme park a huge money-maker. Replica wands ($39.95) can be purchased to match a favorite character's, and for a slightly higher price ($47.95), one can purchase an "interactive" wand. These interactive wands are specially designed to activate lights and motors specially incorporated into some of the wizarding world's attractions when waved in a certain manner. Not only do these wands bring in more revenue, they also add to the overall ambiance of the park and make visitors feel more immersed in the magical world that Universal is creating. Costumed employees add to the "realism" of the immersive world, and visitors will have the ability to purchase robes, wands, and the like to add to their personal collections.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter should be a huge success for Universal Studios Hollywood. As of now, it is smaller than the one in Orlando, but with enough traffic and high demand, the park will likely expand in future years. 2016 seems to be the year for all things Harry Potter related. Not only is California's wizarding world opening, but Rowling's sequel to the Harry Potter series, titled "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child," will be performed in English theaters in July and the script should come out in print soon after. Finally, "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," one of Rowling's other books set in the wizarding universe is currently in filming and is set to be released in movie theaters in November. One might expect that all of this new content will eventually be incorporated into new Universal attractions, which should make for even more income in the not-too-distant future.

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Alphabet to Surpass Apple as "World's Most Valuable Company"

For years, Google Inc. was always known for its internet/computer science businesses, including its online search database, maps, advertising platform, YouTube, Android, and more. In recent years, Google began investing more and more time, effort, and money in other kinds of technologies. From healthcare devices to drones to self-driving cars, Google has had its hand in many types of technological innovations. Unfortunately, that led to a somewhat unwieldy business model, in which every product/ technological focus was grouped under the single title of "Google." Paresh Dave and Andrea Chang discuss in their L.A. Times article how Google recently underwent a business shift and created a new corporation, Alphabet Inc., within which several subgroups focus on different realms of Google's technological goals.

Not only has the creation of Alphabet Inc. made the business more structured, it also has generated plenty of investor interest. In fact, according to Dave and Chang, Alphabet Inc. is well on its way toward claiming the position of "world's most valuable company" from competitor Apple Inc. In the fourth quarter, Alphabet showed that profit had grown by double-digits, and proved to investors and the world that projects like self-driving cars and virtual reality glasses were not wasting resources, but instead earning revenue. Where analysts expected Alphabet to earn $16.9 billion, the company surprised everyone by reporting $21.3 billion in revenue, an improvement of 18% over the course of two years.

Last summer, when Google first began changing to the Alphabet structure, the company aimed to separate online ventures from those involving physical technological innovations. Each of the individual units of Alphabet is designed to have flexibility over its own budget and operations, but in the end, Alphabet itself will keep watch over each sub-business and make the major business decisions. Certain ventures labeled as "Other Bets," which include YouTube and smart-thermostat maker Nest, had a loss of over $3 billion in 2015, which was to be expected, according to Alphabet's analysts. Loss is expected during the R&D stage of technological innovation, but executives believe that the loss is at an acceptable level based on predictions of future revenue.

Alphabet's momentum seems almost unstoppable. In the past year alone, Alphabet's stocks have risen more than 40% in total. On the other hand, Alphabet's major competitor, Apple, is having plenty of problems that have led their stock values to fall. As mentioned previously, much of Apple's recent troubles have been closely linked to the company's reliance on a single product: the iPhone. Since iPhone sales have gone down, Apple's stocks have taken a plunge. Alphabet's new business model will help to reduce the chances of a similar situation taking place, since the variety of sub-businesses means that even if one sub-business has trouble, it will have little effect on the company as a whole.

Overall, economic analysts believe that Alphabet will keep improving and that its stock prices will continue to increase. Executives have seen continuous increases in the number of users of Gmail and the Google Play Store. They also expect that advertisements on Google and YouTube will be very important for Alphabet's future revenue. Since Alphabet's creation, revenue rose nearly 14% and profit for the year rose by 16%. In the past year, Alphabet also added over 8,200 new employees. As you can see, Alphabet seems very confident about the company's future growth and is planning accordingly.

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Apple's 1984 Super Bowl Commercial - A Marketing Marvel

Each year, millions of Americans spend their weekends watching football games. Some go to stadiums, where they can experience it first-hand, while many others watch the games on television, from the comfort of their own homes. No matter how they're watching the game, the National Football League (NFL) is making plenty of money from their viewership. Last year alone, the NFL's 34 teams brought in a total of over $7 billion in revenue. Of that total, hundred of millions of dollars came from one game in particular: the Super Bowl. This revenue comes from a combination of ticket sales, merchandise sales, and, most of all, advertisements. Michael Hiltzik discusses, in his L.A. Times article, the Super Bowl and how its advertising goals have changed over time.

Several estimates claim that, depending on several factors, the Super Bowl's host city can gain up to $100 million in extra revenue during the week of the big game. Between money spent on hotels/motels/Airbnb rentals, money spent on tourist attractions, and increased spending at restaurants and other such establishments, the Super Bowl provides a huge amount of income for local businesses. Yet, the largest portion of Super Bowl income has to do with advertisements by big-name companies like Apple and Coca-Cola. At the 1984 Super Bowl, Apple Inc. aired a commercial that was so successful that it set an expectation for all future Super Bowl commercials.

Apple's commercial was a pull-out-the-stops production, directed by Ridley Scott (who had previously directed "Alien" and "Blade Runner") and starring Anya Major, a British actress and discus-thrower. The commercial, which was championed by Steve Jobs, made Apple's CEO, John Scully, doubtful, yet eventually was approved and made its way to the television screen. The commercial itself was greatly influenced by George Orwell's novel, 1984, which depicts a dystopian society. The commercial concludes with Major's disruption of Big Brother's Stalin-like speech and announces: "On January 24th, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you'll see why 1984 won't be like '1984.'" This appeal to nationalism and patriotism called to many Americans and the commercial came to be known as one of the most successful of all time. You can watch the full commercial here.

Given the millions of people that watch football each year, it makes sense that companies would want to take advantage of the large audience to advertise their products and services. Since the NFL knows how much each time block is worth, they charge a high price to those who want to advertise during the game. Everyone benefits from this relationship: advertising provides companies with a larger consumer base, which creates an opportunity for more sales and greater revenue, and the NFL makes money selling airtime to advertisers. The Super Bowl especially creates this opportunity, as over 100 million people watch the game, many of whom aren't even football fans.

The aforementioned 1984 Apple commercial is considered by many to have been the trigger that got many people interested in the Super Bowl for more than just football. When the game is half over, the Super Bowl has its famous half-time show, in which a popular musician or other artist puts on a performance while the players take a short break and regroup. Even more popular to viewers are the long-awaited Super Bowl commercials, which are expected every year to surpass Apple's amazing 1984 commercial, and yet never quite succeed. In fact, there are viewers that don't care about the game at all, but instead watch it in order to experience the game's half-time.

While no company has yet to produce a commercial with nearly as much fame and success as Apple's 1984 commercial, viewers still watch the Super Bowl every year, in hopes that the half-time commercials will amaze and inspire as they did before. Advertising during the Super Bowl has become a marketing standard, a sign of a successful business. Even though IBM's personal computers eventually took over a large portion of the home and office markets, Apple's success in business is nothing to be scoffed at either. Maybe this year's commercials will be able to emulate Apple's marketing success? There's only one way to find out.

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General Motors Prepares to Become More Involved in "Ride-Sharing" Economy

Companies like Airbnb, Uber, and Lyft work based on opportunities available in what is called the "sharing economy." This generally means that their businesses run on the principle of connecting individuals that are willing to share their home or vehicle, for the right price. This type of business model is also known as "crowdsourcing" or "crowdfunding," and mainly involves the business creating an app or website, and acting as an impartial mediator between owners and consumers. Samantha Masunaga and Charles Fleming discuss, in their L.A. Times article, a new type of crowdsourced company called Maven, which involves the short-term rental of vehicles.

Just as Airbnb involves the short-term rental of a home, condominium, or apartment, Maven allows for users to "rent" a car for a short time. While the service has recently started in Ann Arbor, catering toward students at the University of Michigan, the company has plans to expand to other cities as the year progresses. Through this car sharing service, launched by General Motors, provides a free app on smartphones, which can be used to reserve a vehicle and unlock it. GM expects that a relationship with ride-sharing Lyft and its experience with services like OnTrac will help to make Maven a success.

General Motors is not the only company trying to get its foot in the door of this potentially lucrative business opportunity. Ford started a similar service in June and GM started a version in Germany called Car-Unity, which allowed rental to Facebook friends or members of the app's network. BMW has even begun to include features on their newest cars to allow for app-based connectivity. Everyone benefits: people have the ability to borrow a vehicle when they need one, and the owners of the vehicles are able to somewhat subsidize the costs of purchasing the vehicle in the first place.

Analysts wonder whether GM's decision, while bold, has long-term potential for the future. GM recently bought a failing ride-hailing company called Sidecar Technologies, Inc. and invested $500 million in Lyft. It seems that GM is trying to be prepared for any possible entrance into the ride-sharing market, and plans to do so by partnering with the best in the business. One day, GM hopes to partner with Lyft on an Autonomous On-Demand Network, which would even allow users to reserve self-driving cars. Although the market for self-driving cars has yet to fully expand, GM is planning ahead, predicting that today's investments will ensure success down the line.

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New Research Involves Renewing Groundwater Supplies, Not Filling Reservoirs

In a test on a potential new way to reduce the effects of California's recurring drought conditions, researchers are looking not to expand reservoirs, but rather find a way to funnel the excess rainwater from the El Nino winter back into the groundwater, where it can be put to better use during the drier seasons. Currently, the majority of rain runs off into the ocean, simply because a large portion of the land is covered in concrete or asphalt, which doesn't allow rainwater to permeate. Through this ongoing experiment, depicted in Geoffrey Mohan's L.A. Times article, the water is instead redirected to the fields of involved farmers, where the water is able to seep into the soil.

While creating new reservoirs and expanding existing reservoirs could accomplish the same goal, the experiment aims to show that it can be accomplished more naturally and cheaply. Simply by harnessing the power of gravity, storm runoff could be forced into irrigation channels. From the irrigation channels, several fields in succession can be watered before the rest of the runoff can make it to nearby lakes and rivers. Once upon a time, farmers used only surface water and groundwater to tend to their crops. In this day and age, the groundwater levels are so depleted, especially during drought seasons, that there isn't enough water to make that system feasible.

That system could once again become helpful for farmers and common folks alike, once the groundwater levels have been put back to normal. Through a large-scale application of the concepts present throughout the experiment, everything from wells to reservoirs could be filled with the rainwater that would normally be wasted as runoff to the ocean. Unfortunately, not very many people have volunteered to be a part of the study. Some are, quite reasonably, simply unwilling to risk their trees in the event that the experiment ruins them. More often, state or federal agencies control the water in dams and canals and put up a lot of red tape due to their worries that the water may benefit people who aren't paying for it.

The research is risky, but well worth it in the long run. The water might spur fungal disease in the trees, but it also might kill off worms and mites. The test measures whether the concentration of contaminants like nitrogen-based fertilizers increases in the total groundwater and what effects that might have on the ecosystem. In general, the experiment is looking to make sure whether this would be an effective way to store water for use in drier times. From what has been measured so far, the irrigation hasn't ruined the test trees, but it will still be a while before significant results can be found.

According to researchers' approximations, there are about 3.6 million acres of agricultural land in California alone that have the proper characteristics to make them usable in groundwater-refilling projects. The only issue is that everyone would have to work together to make this concept a reality. For the first few years, crop yields will likely decrease due to the plan, which will make many farmers want to drop out. However, if they all stick it out to the end, the groundwater levels would eventually become properly equilibrated, which would extremely dampen the effects of future drought conditions in the area. It would just take a lot of cooperation between individual farmers and governmental agencies, as well as a unified belief that renewing the environment will have far more positive effects, both economically and otherwise, in the long  run than making a quick buck today.

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Health Insurance Providers Face Scrutiny Due to Upcoming Mergers

Competition is a major key for keeping product prices low. When that competition is removed, whether by government interference or as a natural effect of the free market, a single company or small group of companies can effectively gain a monopoly on the supplies of a specific type of good or service, which would give them the ability to charge as high a price as they want. It is that situation that many individuals fear may occur in the health care industry. Chad Terhune, of the Los Angeles Times, describes in his article the various mergers currently in the works between health care providers, and the effects that these mergers, if successful, could have on the average American.

For employers and employees alike, these mergers could have huge effects. If all of the pending mergers are approved, then three companies will have control of the majority of the healthcare market, which could lead to a forcing-out of smaller, competing businesses, which could grant them more control. Currently, the companies have the following goals: Anthem Blue Cross Inc. aims to buy out Cigna Corp. for $54.2 billion, Aetna Inc. wants to take over Humana for $37 billion, and the smaller company Centene is looking to acquire Health Net Inc. for $6.8 billion. In the end, Anthem, Aetna, and United Health Group could be at the top of the industry, in California at least.

Many opponents to these mergers fear that the benefits that these health care providers receive by expanding will not be passed on to consumers. In fact, they fear that the new power earned by the companies might lead them to increase rates, forcing customers to pay more or try to find an alternative provider, which would be quite difficult to accomplish in a short time period. They also want to make sure that these large companies have restrictions and extra rules making them focus on improving patient care. Partly in response to the issues raised by opponents, the Department of Justice is having anti-trust officials investigating each of these deals, but in general, state approval determines the end result.

States tend to put the most regulations on the health insurance market. So, in the end, it is usually up to your specific state to decide what conditions the merging companies will have to meet, including holds on premium increases and general network standards. There are, however, existing issues in the system, involving a patient's ability to get insurance at all, as well as the affordability of the patient's final choice. Often, health insurance providers will set a limit on the amount of coverage they will provide to specific patients, depending on the patients' health and medical history. In some instances, this can actually help the common customer. For example, Anthem at one point declared that it would provide a maximum of $30,000 in coverage for knee and hip replacements. Because of this limit, customers were forced to shop around to find a medical practice that would do the procedure for a lower price, which forced about 20% of hospitals to lower prices so as to not lose the business.

Proponents of the mergers hope that similar situations will occur in the future of the health insurance industry. They hope that, as the companies gain more control, they will be able to force medical providers to lower prices to keep the demand constant. They expect that consumers will see a lowering of overall costs, both to hospitals and to the insurance providers as well. For now, there is no real way to determine definitively whether the mergers will be positive or negative for the common American. In all likelihood, the mergers will be approved by the Department of Justice. So, these three companies will almost definitely become the leaders in the industry. The only question might be the level of restriction placed on these companies by each state.

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Apple Stocks Fall, Partly Due to Struggling Chinese Economy

While Apple is a large company with a variety of different products, many investors measure the company's success solely on the sales of a single product: the iPhone. Because of its popularity around the world, analysts tend to use the statistics of iPhone sales to monitor how the company as a whole is doing. Unfortunately, when iPhone sales are down, investors see this as a red flag and look to jump ship, thereby causing Apple stocks as a whole to go down. Paresh Dave and David Pierson write in their article about some of the possible factors contributing to lowered iPhone sales, as well as how this affects the company.

While just over a month ago, Apple stocks closed at $119, the same stocks have recently taken a plunge, going under $100 for the first time since October 2015. That's a decrease of over 15% in a single month, not a good sign for executives and potential investors. The iPhone 6S, this year's iteration of the popular cell phone, hasn't sold as well as predicted, in China as well as throughout the rest of the world. Several rumors have surfaced that assemblers and manufacturers of iPhones have recently been bracing for a slowdown in production, and financial analysts have determined that Apple has reduced supplies to Asian distributors.

While all of this may be coincidental, investors have taken these signs to be harbingers of future turmoil for the company and have decided to pull out for the time being. China's economy, which has doubled in the 7 years since Apple first opened stores and factories in the country, has a large impact on the company's success and failure, whether we like it or not. China's middle class is slowly expanding, opening up the market for iPhones to a much larger group of people, which will be good for sales when the economy gets back on track.

It seems that the first sign of a downturn for iPhone sales appeared in mid-December, when companies like Jabil Circuit and Dialog Semiconductor, which produce casings and internal parts for the iPhone reported lower-than-expected revenue predictions for the coming months. Decreased sales could be due to the fact that the newly released iPhone 6S is not very different from last year's iPhone 6, which would explain reduced demand, or it could be due to more economic factors. Either way, Apple seems confident that sales and stocks will go back up in the near future, especially with the new iPhone 7 in the works. While growth may be slow in 2016, executives believe that revenue will continue to grow at a rate of about 5%.

Where iPhone sales didn't boom as greatly as expected, products like the Apple Watch, iPad Pro, and Apple TV were popular gifts during the holiday season, thus boosting Apple's total revenue over the past couple of months. Apple executives are certain that China will remain a huge market for iPhone sales, but that it will just take a little bit of time for the economy to catch up again. In the long run, China is still one of the biggest markets for Apple products, even with current economic turmoil messing up sales. Eventually, Apple stocks should go back up, but the question is: How soon?

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