MetaFilter posts tagged with CDS

The Fate of Derivatives Regulation

HP LaserJet P10006 — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 13:48:25 -0800

Last week the House Committee on Financial Services approved legislation to regulate derivatives. Some critics contend that the legislation does not go far enough, and there is fear that there are too many exemptions to the rules: reforming the $42 trillion market for credit swaps is crucial if taxpayers are to be protected from future rescues of institutions deemed not only too big but also too interconnected to fail. Derivatives have been called the crystal meth of our financial sector, and the "financial weapons of mass destruction" that were the single greatest cause of the economic meltdown. Calls for their regulation have been growing since the financial crisis began last year. Recently, amid the continued outcry and criticism about the handling of the financial crisis, a team of computer scientists has concluded that: ...derivatives may be computationally intractable to price even when buyers know almost all of the relevant information, and furthermore this is true even in very simple models of asset yields... [.pdf link to their findings.]

mp3s' rotten fidelity - the proof

Paul Slade — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 12:03:33 -0800

Researcher John Meyer has devised an objective index demonstrating that mp3s offer far lower fidelity than either vinyl LPs or standard CDs. And yet this eight-year study at Stanford University shows that prolonged exposure to mp3s leads young listeners to prefer the format. No wonder record producers are despairing.

Just Don't Breath IN!

amyms — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 01:00:26 -0800

Here's something interesting you can do with those clear plastic buffer discs that come in stacks of blank CDs: Blow a looooong bubble that looks like a condom. Here's another example. Here's a doubter trying it for himself. Apparently you can do it with actual CDs too, at least according to this post at English Russia. There are lots more videos of CD bubbles on YouTube, showing varying levels of success.

A New Way Forward

geos — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 09:17:14 -0800

Nationalize. Reorganize. Decentralize. anewwayforward.org wants you to organize a protest on April 11^th to express your frustration and disapproval with how our elected officials have handled the economic crisis.

They paid what to who?

jourman2 — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 19:14:42 -0800

On the heels of news about $165 million to be paid as bonuses to AIG employees, the company has released a list of "the counterparties involved in credit default swaps and other transactions in which bailout funds were used to meet A.I.G. obligations." In other words, where your bailout money went. More background here.

Rumors of the death of physical media

box — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 11:57:12 -0800

Hard Format celebrates the art of record and CD packaging.

Synthetic CDO's: tsunami event when major bankruptcies reaches 9 (currently 6)

stbalbach — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 19:54:52 -0800

Synthetic CDO's are complex little known financial instruments (insurance contracts) that are on the brink of triggering "the most colossal rights issue in the history of the world, all at once .. mandatory." If, out of a list of several hundred major companies, any nine go bankrupt, the CDO's are in default, which would mean a mass transfer of cash (real money) from unsuspecting investors around the world goes into the banking system. How much? Nobody knows, but it’s many trillions. Banks will be flush with cash, perhaps ending the credit crisis, while many investors (individuals, charities, municipalities) will be wiped out. Alternatively, the triggering of default on the trillions of synthetic CDOs could be a disaster that tips the world from recession into depression. Nobody knows, but it won’t be a small event. Thus far the count is six: three Icelandic banks, Countrywide, Lehman and Bear Stearns.

Another potentially huge settlement day for CDS contracts ...

Mutant — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 02:32:15 -0800

Credit Default Swaps (CDS) are derivative instruments providing the purchaser with protection against default on an underlying financial asset. When Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac technically defaulted on September 7th there was much speculation that the CDS market would collapse as a result of protection being invoked on $1.4 trillion dollars worth of debt. On October 6th these derivative contracts settled, and the CDS market didn't collapse with recovery rates of 92% being observed. Today CDS contracts protecting against the default of Lehman Brothers settle. The problem? Because industry lacks a central clearinghouse for these derivatives, nobody is really sure how many CDS contracts were written either by Lehman or by other banks providing protection against a Lehman default. Next on the list are CDS' covering Washington Mutual, which are due to settle October 23rd.

Meanwhile efforts to create a clearing house continue, as some folks speculate that the settlement of Credit Default Swaps is a major reason why banks are hoarding cash.

Ponzi Scheme, Credit Default Swaps in 2004 vs. 2008

Rafaelloello — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 03:46:05 -0800

"As no rational agent would be willing to take part in the last round in a finite economy, it is difficult to design Ponzi schemes that are certain to explode. This paper argues that if agents correctly believe in the possibility of a partial bailout when a gigantic Ponzi scheme collapses, and they recognize that a bailout is tantamount to a redistribution of wealth from non-participants to participants, it may be rational for agents to participate, even if they know that it is the last round. We model a political economy where an unscrupulous profit-maximizing promoter can design gigantic Ponzi schemes to cynically exploit this "too big to fail" doctrine." Sounds like something written this month in New York? Nope. The correct answer would be Bloomington, Indianna in 2003 Utpal Bhattacharya wrote On the Possibility of Ponzi Schemes in Transition Economies in 2001, but the above quote is from The Optimal Design of Ponzi Schemes in Finite Economies in 2003. Bhattacharya's proof works only where more than half the population takes part (hmm... How many people own homes?) Despite the Enron collapse and the published works of scholars like Bhattacharya, The $3.5 Trillion CDS market was still viewed this way in 2004. The current (collapsing) $64 Trillion CDS market is viewed a little differently in 2008. BTW, as of Yesterday, New York is going to try to regulate the CDS market. Good Luck NY.

CDSs and you.

clevershark — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 10:55:57 -0800

How AIG fell apart is a good article giving an overview of Credit Default Swaps (CDSs) and the role they played in AIG's struggle. CDS issues are a crisis that quite a few saw coming just a few months ago and one that was discussed here then, although AIG was thought be a special "safe" case among CDS issuers. Indeed it now seems that AIG's particular problem was that it had failed to hedge the CDSs they issued with CDSs acquired from other institutions, presumably on the premise that they were insuring assets too safe to fail.

Now your Billy Joel and Shania Twain CDs can be cool, even if you can't be!

orange swan — Sat, 18 Nov 2006 18:57:13 -0800

Your real name and all ten of your aliases are on the AOL mailing list. Or you’re an extreme computer geek and your mother is getting quite irate about the hundreds of used CDs cluttering up her basement. (And your non-payment of rent. And the smell…) Or your alternative-punk-Celtic-rap band’s release was tragically unappreciated by the public. Whatever, you have piles of CDs sitting around. You’ve followed this advice on how to minimize CD use and know that recycling CDs is not as easy as it should be, and maybe isn’t even possible in your country. What options do you have? Well, these people are collecting a million AOL CDs and intend to dump them off at AOL’s corporate headquarters. These people make clocks from them, and you could too. Or you could use them to make an ambient floor or table lamp, a throne, a photo frame, a really huge mobile, a disco ball, shingles for your tree house, or quite a few other things, ranging from postcards to bowls to spinning tops. Or you could play a quick game of disk hockey with a friend (that is, if you have time before your mum gets home).

How to Sell Your Book, CD, or DVD on Amazon

iffley — Mon, 28 Feb 2005 06:59:22 -0800

How to Sell Your Book, CD, or DVD on Amazon [From Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools: he has a knack for asking the best questions]

Music for the impatient.

holloway — Wed, 07 Jul 2004 14:28:00 -0800

Could you fit 100 songs onto a single CD?

Class action CD lawsuitchecks mailed.

travis — Tue, 24 Feb 2004 20:40:56 -0800

As Attorney General for the State of North Dakota, I am pleased to enclose payment for your claim in the settlement of the Compact Disc Minimum Advertised Price Antitrust Litigation.
Checks have gone out to people who "purchased prerecorded Music Products, consisting of compact discs, cassettes and vinyl albums, from one or more retailers during the period January 1, 1995, through December 22, 2000." Mine was for $13.86. I think I'll go buy an indie CD.

The people:1, The Man:0

mathowie — Tue, 07 Oct 2003 12:49:31 -0800

If you've bought one of BMG's new copy-protected CDs, remember to hold down the shift key while loading it into your PC. That one keystorke will let you be free to rip, mix, and burn it.

You are your record collection.

eyebeam — Fri, 11 Jul 2003 06:37:37 -0800

You are your record collection. If you really want to get to know someone, try rummaging through their CD collection. "I don't think anyone who's really passionate about music just 'listens' to it. This research is positive confirmation of the fact that songs are emblematic of people's characters. I've always believed that people's musical taste says a lot about them. If you like Avril Lavigne, for example, you probably need to have your ears syringed."

WeenAmp

boost ventilator — Thu, 19 Jun 2003 07:30:35 -0800

WeenAmp...peer-to-peer software? After signing with Sanctuary (now label-mates with Morrissey), releasing a pair of on-line only live CDs, cheesing off a pizza chain, and getting its back catalog from Elektra; Ween is developing software with InQuest Technologies that will tie together the band's official web site, the 24/7 Ween Radio broadcast, a message board, chat rooms and the ability to trade live concert mp3s without being confused with The Gourds (just try searching for "Gin & Juice" on your favourite peer-to-peer program). The band hopes to have the program bundled with it's new release quebec (yes, with a small q) on August 5th.

Clutter:

aladfar — Tue, 22 Apr 2003 12:52:46 -0800

Clutter: A wondrous little application, Clutter grabs album info from a currently playing MP3 track, sends it off to Amazon, and comes back with an image of the CD cover. Once done, these images can be moved about the desktop at will; a double click plays the record in its entirety. And it's free. God bless the independent developer! [OS X and iTunes compatible only, unfortunately.]

Smithsonian Folkways uses CD-Rs to fulfill orders for obscure recordings

pmurray63 — Sun, 16 Feb 2003 22:05:33 -0800

Smithsonian Folkways shows the way? (NYT link, blah blah) "The major music companies may fret over falling revenue, but one label saw its business jump 33 percent last year — thanks in part to the recordable compact discs that the industry says are hurting its sales." Smithsonian Folkways has been burning CD-Rs for customers ordering some of its obscure titles. Would this work on a larger scale? Why should any recording ever go out of print again?

Spindizzy?

asok — Tue, 10 Dec 2002 03:59:27 -0800

'At 52x CD-ROM speeds (27,500rpm) disks shatter in a "rain of plastic particles". Is technology spinning out of control? "I haven't experienced an exploding CD but did have my copy of Neverwinter Nights somehow levitate out of the CD holder and bury itself in the nether parts of my machine with a nasty metallic thunk" Are these violent video games a danger to society?

entrustNoOne — Thu, 31 Oct 2002 07:43:21 -0800

eBay Prevents Musician from Selling Own CD-Rs

lucien — Fri, 25 Oct 2002 13:21:08 -0800

The Compact Disc turns 20.

Fofer — Sun, 16 Jun 2002 10:30:48 -0800

DiscT@2: This revolutionary Laser Labeling System allows graphics and text to be burnt onto CD-R disc, eliminating the need for labels. Customers can put graphics, such as signatures, logos, memorandums, and photo images onto CD-R's unused area after data writing.

magullo — Wed, 12 Jun 2002 11:14:52 -0800

Music industry makes first mature move in years!
Universal and Sony will respond to piracy by selling CDs at $9.99 - and singles at .99. How easy was that? (Link requires free registration but well worth it, IMO)

mathowie — Fri, 24 May 2002 10:19:31 -0800

When stupid laws attack: this article points out that the widely syndicated article about thwarting the copy protection of sony's CDs is a direct violation of the DMCA. Will news directors at Reuters, Yahoo, and CNN be seeing fines and jail time soon? How many times does it have to be pointed out that the DMCA restricts free speech as it attempts to thwart piracy at any cost? (via k5)