“Short of a neon sign flashing ‘Saddam bribes hidden here’ it is hard to imagine what more Mr Downer and DFAT would have needed to comprehensively investigate AWB, long before the Volcker inquiry belled the cat. The most innocent explanation of Mr Downer’s behaviour is that he has been at DFAT too long, and, like his senior public servants, did not want to rock AWB’s boat. A worse one is that Mr Downer did not want to know what was going on and hoped that nobody would notice how renegade Australians were trading with the enemy, right up until the shooting started in 2003.”
- Editorial, The Australian, 29.3.06

Over the last couple of days I’ve highlighted some of the right-wing rhetoric emanating from The Australian’s op-ed pages (and, let’s face it, The Australian is a Murdoch outlet), but in fairness they have pursued the AWB scandal with a great deal of diligence. To the extent that yesterday’s editorial page called for the Global Village Idiot’s resignation.

Downer, of course, is not the only minister who should walk the plank over this astonishing episode. Mark Vaile and Warren Truss should both be there right behind him. John Anderson’s forgetfulness in not disclosing his ownership of AWB shares, which he disposed of last year, deserves a lot more scrutiny.

And then there’s the man with whom the buck, in any self-respecting democratic government, would stop. If John Winston Howard is to escape from this with his hands clean, then history is obliged to remember him as the Prime Minister who was unable to control, or effectively communicate with, his public service, and only ever made decisions based on incorrect advice.

Note for future reference: Terrence Cole, head of the inquiry investigating the AWB imbroglio, was a member of the Class of ‘61 at Sydney University’s law school. So too was John Winston Howard. This item in yesterday’s Australian does a fair bit of straw clutching, but keep it in mind just in case…

A grain of truth
Marian Wilkinson’s excellent, but necessarily long, summary of this week’s astonishing revelations at the Cole Inquiry into bribes allegedly paid by Australian companies as part of the UN oil-for-food scandal.

It’s fair to say that the loneliest man in Australia at the moment must be AWB managing director Andrew Lindberg, who spent most of the week telling Justice Cole that he couldn’t recall anything about the quite extraordinary scams that his staff were pulling to maintain wheat contracts with Iraq while sanctions on most non-humanitarian transactions were in place.

It seems, indeed, that the Pakistan government (before Musharraf’s time if I understand the chronology correctly) may be implicated in some of these bribes.

One small point to recap: while Australia was preparing to take part in the Coalition of the Willing, our monopoly wheat exporter was Iraq’s biggest kickback client.

More damage to Australia’s reputation, just as our Immigration Minister begins handling the claims of 43 West Papuan asylum seekers by shipping them to a processing centre at Christmas Island.

A big, big story is unfolding this week at a Royal Commission being conducted in Sydney by Justice Terence Cole into “Certain Australian Companies in Relation to the UN Oil-For-Food Programme”. Australia’s biggest agribusiness company appears to be up to its neck in it, and so too the Howard Government.

In short, AWB (formerly the Australian Wheat Board), Australia’s monopoly wheat exporter, was named in the UN report as one of the companies alleged to have been giving kickbacks to the Iraqi government whilst sanctions were in place. Testimony before the Cole Royal Commission is supporting those allegations, with some extraordinarily bad attempts at arse-covering by AWB executives this week.

The most interesting revelations surround the evidence that AWB’s kickback activity began before July 1999. That was the date when the AWB was privatised - before that it was a Government-owned business enterprise.

I’m not going to attempt to analyse the nitty-gritty of this latest scandal to stain the Howard Government’s CV, rather give some links by which you can follow the development of this extraordinary story:

• The website of the Independent Inquiry Committee into the UN Oil-for-Food Programme, which handed down its findings on 27 October 2005 (press release in PDF)
• The UN news website’s coverage and official reaction to the Oil-for-Food Inquiry
• AWB’s reaction to being named in the report (press release in PDF)
• BBC Online’s coverage of the Oil-for-food Scandal
• The Australian Attorney-General’s Department’s website for the Cole Royal Commission.
• I have also set up a playlist of nine MP3 files from the ABC website covering news reports of the Royal Commission so far this week (about 36 minutes of listening all up). Here’s a link to today’s latest story on the ABC website.
• Here’s an op-ed by The Australian’s Mike Steketee in today’s edition, which also featured an extraordinary letter to the editor by Global Village Idiot Alexander Downer (he’s on holidays you see and therefore can’t issue an official press release).

In addition to AWB there were two other Australian companies named in the Volcker report commissioned by the UN: Alkaloids of Australia Pty Ltd and Rhine Ruhr Pty Ltd.

Significantly, the terms of reference for the Royal Commission only refer to investigating the role of “certain Australian companies” in the Oil-for-food program, not the role of the Australian government. The circumstantial evidence forthcoming from this hearing will, nonetheless, be dynamite. Federal Parliament resumes sitting on February 7.

Planning a distraction yet, JH?

I’ve done a three-part obit on Kerry Packer on my cricket blog. Go here, here and here.

And you thought World Domination was limited to Google these days:

LONDON, Sep 12, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) — eBay Inc. (EBAY)(www.ebay.com) has agreed to acquire Luxembourg-based Skype Technologies SA, the global Internet communications company, for approximately $2.6 billion in up-front cash and eBay stock, plus potential performance-based consideration. The acquisition will strengthen eBay’s global marketplace and payments platform, while opening several new lines of business and creating significant new monetization opportunities for the company. The deal also represents a major opportunity for Skype to advance its leadership in Internet voice communications and offer people worldwide new ways to communicate in a global online era. Skype, eBay and PayPal will create an unparalleled ecommerce and communications engine for buyers and sellers around the world.

“Communications is at the heart of ecommerce and community,” said Meg Whitman, President and Chief Executive Officer of eBay. “By combining the two leading ecommerce franchises, eBay and PayPal, with the leader in Internet voice communications, we will create an extraordinarily powerful environment for business on the Net.”

Founded in 2002 by Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis, Skype offers high-quality voice communications to anyone with an Internet connection anywhere in the world. The Skype software is easy to download and install, and enables free calls between Skype users online. Skype’s premium services provide low-cost connectivity to traditional fixed and mobile telephones. Skype’s software also offers a robust set of features, including voicemail, instant messaging, call forwarding and conference calling. Upcoming product innovations include Skype video, expressive content such as avatars, and customized toolbars for Outlook and Internet Explorer.

One of the fastest growing companies on the Internet, Skype already has 54 million members in 225 countries and territories. Skype is currently adding approximately 150,000 users a day and has created a thriving ecosystem of products, services, developers, and affiliates. Skype is considered the market leader in virtually all countries in which it does business. In North America alone, Skype has more users and serves more voice minutes than any other Internet voice communications provider.

“Our vision for Skype has always been to build the world’s largest communications business and revolutionize the ease with which people can communicate through the Internet,” said Niklas Zennstrom, Skype CEO and co-founder. “We can’t think of any better platform to fulfill this vision to become the voice of the Internet than with eBay and PayPal.”

“We’re great admirers of how eBay and PayPal have simplified global ecommerce and payments,” said Janus Friis, Skype co-founder and senior vice president, strategy. “Together we feel we can really change the way that people communicate, shop and do business online.”

Zennstrom and Friis will remain in their current positions. Zennstrom will report to eBay CEO Whitman and join eBay’s senior executive team.

A Powerful Ecommerce and Communications Engine

Online shopping depends on a number of factors to function well. Communications, like payments and shipping, is a critical part of this process. Skype will streamline and improve communications between buyers and sellers as it is integrated into the eBay marketplace. Buyers will gain an easy way to talk to sellers quickly and get the information they need to buy, and sellers can more easily build relationships with customers and close sales. As a result, Skype can increase the velocity of trade on eBay, especially in categories that require more involved communications such as used cars, business and industrial equipment, and high-end collectibles.

The acquisition also enables eBay and Skype to pursue entirely new lines of business. For example, in addition to eBay’s current transaction-based fees, ecommerce communications could be monetized on a pay-per-call basis through Skype. Pay-per-call communications opens up new categories of ecommerce, especially for those sectors that depend on a lead-generation model such as personal and business services, travel, new cars, and real estate. eBay’s other shopping websites — Shopping.com, Rent.com, Marktplaats.nl and Kijiji - can also benefit from the integration of Skype.

PayPal and Skype also make a powerful combination. For example, a PayPal wallet associated with each Skype account could make it much easier for users to pay for Skype fee-based services, adding to the number of PayPal accounts and increasing payment volume.

In addition, Skype can help expand the eBay and PayPal global footprint by providing buyers and sellers in emerging ecommerce markets, such as China, India, and Russia, with a more personal way to communicate online. And consumers in markets where eBay currently has a limited presence, such as Japan and Scandinavia, can learn about eBay and PayPal through Skype. Skype can also help streamline cross-border trading and communications.

With its rapidly expanding network of users, the Skype business complements the eBay and PayPal platforms. Each business is self-reinforcing, organically bringing greater returns with each new user or transaction. The three services can also reinforce and accelerate the growth of one another, thereby increasing the value of the combined businesses. Working together, they can create an unparalleled engine for ecommerce and communications around the world.

Transaction and Financial Information

eBay will acquire all of the outstanding shares of privately-held Skype for a total up-front consideration of approximately EUR 2.1 billion, or approximately $2.6 billion, which is comprised of $1.3 billion in cash and the value of 32.4 million shares of eBay stock, which are subject to certain restrictions on resale.

The maximum amount potentially payable under the performance-based earn-out is approximately EUR 1.2 billion, or approximately $1.5 billion, and would be payable in cash or eBay stock, at eBay’s discretion, with an expected payment date in 2008 or 2009. Skype shareholders were offered the choice between several consideration options for their shares. Shareholders representing approximately 40% of the Skype shares chose to receive a single payment in cash and eBay stock at the close of the transaction. Shareholders representing the remaining 60% of the Skype shares chose to receive a reduced up-front payment in cash and eBay stock at the close plus potential future earn-out payments which are based on performance-based goals for active users, gross profit and revenue.

The above-mentioned dollar and eBay share amounts are approximate, based on the Euro-Dollar exchange rate and eBay’s stock price as of September 9, 2005. The final value of the stock component of the consideration may vary significantly from this estimate based on the value of eBay stock at closing.

Skype generated approximately $7 million in revenues in 2004, and the company anticipates that it will generate an estimated $60 million in revenues in 2005 and more than $200 million in 2006. For Q4-05, eBay expects the acquisition to be dilutive to pro forma and GAAP earnings per share by $0.01 and $0.04 respectively. For the full year 2006, eBay expects the transaction to be dilutive to pro forma and GAAP earnings per share by $0.04 and $0.12 respectively, with breakeven on a pro forma basis expected in the fourth quarter of 2006. On a long-term basis, eBay expects Skype operating margins could be in the range of 20% to 25%.

The acquisition is subject to various closing conditions and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2005.

About eBay Inc.

Founded in 1995, eBay pioneers communities built on commerce, sustained by trust, and inspired by opportunity. eBay enables ecommerce on a local, national and international basis with an array of websites — including the eBay Marketplace, PayPal, Kijiji, Rent.com and Shopping.com — that bring together millions of buyers and sellers every day.

About Skype Technologies SA

Skype, the Global Internet Communications Company(TM), allows people everywhere to make free, unlimited, superior quality voice calls via its award-winning innovative peer-to-peer software for Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, and Pocket PC platforms. Skype is available in 27 languages and is the fastest growing voice communications offering worldwide. Since its launch in August 2003, Skype has been downloaded more than 163 million times in 225 countries and territories. Fifty-four million people are registered to use Skype’s free services, with over 3 million simultaneous users on the network at any one time. Skype Technologies SA is headquartered in Luxembourg and is growing its offices in London and Estonia. www.skype.com

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements regarding Skype and the expected impact of the acquisition of Skype on eBay’s financial results. Those statements involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the timing of the closing of the transaction, the possibility that the transaction may not close, the reaction of the users of Skype’s services, the future growth of Skype’s user base and public acceptance of Internet voice communication services, rapid technological changes in the Internet voice communications sector, the reaction of competitors to the transaction, global developments in the regulation of Internet voice communication services including those provided by Skype, the possibility that integration of Skype’s offerings following the transaction may be more difficult than expected, and the possibility that entry by Skype and eBay into potential new lines of business will not be successful. More information about potential factors which could affect eBay’s business and financial results is included in eBay’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004, the company’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and current reports on Form 8-K. All forward-looking statements are based on information available to eBay on the date hereof, and eBay assumes no obligation to update such statements.

I’m a big user of Google products, slowly gravitating towards using my gmail account as my primary email address, and still trying to get my teeth around Google Talk. Nonetheless, I find the speed of their growth these days somewhat disquieting. Here’s the latest press release from Google. You have to believe if that once Vint Cerf comes on board, Al Gore himself can’t be far behind…

CERF’S UP AT GOOGLE

Vint Cerf, a Founding Father of the Internet, Joins Google as Chief Internet Evangelist

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. - September 8, 2005 - Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) today announced that it hired Vinton (Vint) Cerf, the longtime technologist who is widely known as a “founding father” of the Internet, as Chief Internet Evangelist.

“Vint Cerf is clearly one of the great technology leaders of our time,” said Google CEO Eric Schmidt of Cerf, who co-designed the TCP/IP protocols that were used to develop the Internet’s underlying architecture. “His vision for technology helped create entire industries that have transformed many parts of our lives. We are honored to welcome him to Google.”

Cerf will continue his leadership in the Internet community, and help Google build network infrastructure, architectures, systems, and standards for the next generation of Internet applications.

“Google has already made tremendous strides in making access to information on the web a reality for users across the globe, but we’re still in the Internet’s early innings,” he said. “This
medium will enjoy wider-spread use than television, radio or phones, and will ultimately expand beyond planet Earth. Google has always believed in doing things differently, and I believe that places us in a unique position to help bring even the wildest Internet visions into reality.”

Cerf joins Google from MCI, where he led technology advancements since 1982, with a break to return to research at the Corporation for National Research Initiatives from 1986 to 1994. On his return to MCI in 1994, he helped to put MCI on the Internet map. With Robert Kahn, he
recently received the ACM’s A.M. Turing Award, considered “the Nobel Prize for computing,” for his achievements in computer networking. Cerf is also working on the Interplanetary Network, a project of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab, which aims to extend the Internet into outer space for planet-to-planet communications. He will also continue in his role as the Chairman of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).

Please visit http://www.google.com/press/images.html for video sound bites from Vint Cerf about this announcement.

About Google Inc.
Google’s innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google’s targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe, and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.

http://www.google.com/press/pressrel/exec_chefs.html which begins:

Google Hungry for Executive Chefs

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – August 4, 2005 – Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) today announced a worldwide search for two executive chefs with the experience to creatively manage the preparation of thousands of quality breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals each day at the company’s Mountain View, Calif. headquarters. The executive chefs will oversee the development and continual refinement of an eclectic menu capable of suiting every Googler palate, from vegan entrees to pad thai, grilled burgers, and wood-fired pizza – all while using organic ingredients whenever possible.

“These two chefs will play an important role in managing the company’s growing appetites,” said Sergey Brin, president, Technology, Google Inc. “We welcome all culinary engineers to try out for our exceptional team.”

The Cookoff
Qualified chefs are invited to submit their resumes to Google at jobs@google.com. When a critical mass of submissions has been received, the top candidates will be invited to Google headquarters to prepare a meal for the “tasting committee.” Four finalists will compete in a Google Chef Cookoff, whose two winners will be offered the roles of Executive Chef at Google.

I’m still waiting for the formation of the Google Cricket Club…

The contribution of Coca-Cola to the Olympic Movement has always been the model of a true partnership.

- Jacques Rogge, 1.8.05

This just in from the media desk of the International Olympic Committee:

The International Olympic Committee and The Coca-Cola Company today announced a renewal of their partnership for an unprecedented 12 years, thereby taking what was already the longest sponsorship of the Olympic Games to a record 92 uninterrupted years. The partnership, which began in 1928, was extended during a signing ceremony on the Great Wall of China. The new agreement, which begins in 2009, will see Coca-Cola supporting the Olympic Movement over a period which covers the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, the London 2012 Olympic Games, plus the Olympic Games of 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2020.

Welcoming the renewal of the partnership, IOC President Jacques Rogge said, “The contribution of Coca-Cola to the Olympic Movement has always been the model of a true partnership. The Olympic Games would not be where they are today, and so many athletes over the years could not have competed in the Games, without the extensive corporate support pioneered by Coca-Cola as our longest continuous sponsor. Because the Olympic Family and Coca-Cola share the values of Olympism at their deepest level, this is a natural partnership that we hold most dearly.”

The Coca-Cola Chairman, Mr E. Neville Isdell, echoed the President’s comments, emphasising the new atmosphere of Olympic spirit at the world’s leading beverage company. “The privilege of being associated with the Olympic Movement for nearly a century is reflected in this landmark agreement,” Mr Isdell said. “Our investment in the future of the Olympic Games underscores our faith in the Games and how they continue to make our world a little bit better. This long-term commitment comes at a time when those of us throughout the Coca-Cola system are rededicating ourselves to the Olympic spirit. We have recently challenged ourselves not to wait every two or four years to celebrate the Olympic ideal, but to bring to life those values in our everyday lives - to think Olympic, act Olympic, and, indeed, truly live Olympic.” he added.

Also attending the announcement, which was made in China as the country marks three years to go until the Olympic Games of Beijing 2008, was Jean-Claude Killy, three times Olympic Games gold medallist and IOC member, young Chinese diver Wu Min Xia, who won a gold medal and a silver medal at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, together with a host of guests including leadership from both the Beijing Organising Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad and the upcoming Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games.

Coca-Cola will start trading on Wall Street today at $43.77.

This has to be the most bizarre act of convergence I’ve ever come across. Bob Dylan and Norah Jones are performing in a concert in Seattle on July 16 to mark the tenth birthday of Amazon.com, which will stream the event live on its homepage. Billboard has a report, while the Pantheon of New Consumerism will have progress reports. (What, no black artists, you say? And how can you have a Show of Thanks in Seattle without any Seattle musicians? Where is Kurt Cobain when you need him?)

And this, while I am still coming to terms with the fact that the audiobook of Mr Zimmerman’s autobiography is read by Sean Penn, currently being serialised on ABC Radio National’s excellent morning talk program Life Matters.

I’m going to try and make this my final word on Barnacle Bob Geldof and the Good Ol’ Boys concerts, brought to you by AOL, Clear Channel, and Corporate Boxholders Unlike You.

Not to mention the following corporation. This press release overnight from the India Resource Centre:

Coca-Cola Must Not Sponsor Live 8
Coca-Cola’s Egregious Record in India and Colombia Antithetical to Live 8 Goals

June 15, 2005 (London): The India Resource Centre and its allies are expressing serious concerns over news that Live 8 is in negotiations with the Coca-Cola company to seek sponsorship for the Live 8 concert.

Coca-Cola’s sponsorship of Live 8 is completely antithetical to the goals of Live 8 and the India Resource Centre and its allies are demanding that Live 8 organizers immediately discontinue negotiations with the Coca-Cola company.

The Coca-Cola company is the target of intense campaigns by community groups in India and internationally.

Thousands of rural Indians are facing severe water shortages and polluted groundwater and land - directly as a result of Coca-Cola’s operations. The company has also distributed its toxic waste to farmers around its plants under the guise of fertilizer, and Coca-Cola sells products in the Indian marketplace with high levels of pesticides that could never be sold in the US or EU because they do not meet US and EU standards.

Coca-Cola’s crimes in India are no small matter. In a country where over 70% of the population still makes a living related to agriculture, taking away the water and poisoning the remaining water and land is a sure recipe for disaster. Thousands in India have lost their livelihoods, and in a country where over 40% of the population lives below the poverty line, the difference between life and death is a fine line.

Coca-Cola’s main Latin American bottler, Panamco, is on trial in the US for hiring right wing paramilitaries to kill and intimidate union leaders in Colombia. Since 1989, eight trade union leaders from Coca-Cola bottling plants have been murdered by paramilitary forces, and the lawsuit, filed by the United Steel Workers of America, charges that the paramilitary worked with the blessing of, or in collaboration with, company management.

A formidable international campaign has emerged to hold the Coca-Cola company accountable for the serious crimes it is committing against humanity.

It is simply not acceptable to the India Resource Centre and its allies that Live 8 seek the sponsorship of a company that is perpetuating poverty in India and promoting a reign of terror in Colombia.

The Live 8 organization will become the target of the India Resource Centre and its allies if it chooses to proceed with an invitation to the Coca-Cola company as a sponsor.

“Coca-Cola is responsible for creating severe water shortages and pollution in India, and thousands have lost their livelihoods as a result. It is absurd to think that a poverty creating company can sponsor a poverty alleviating endeavor such as Live 8,” said Amit Srivastava, director of the India Resource Centre which campaigns with Indian communities to hold Coca-Cola accountable.

The India Resource Centre is a bi-national (India-US) campaigning organization working to support local struggles against corporate abuses.

For more information, visit www.IndiaResource.org

Finally, this thread from the Guardian’s newsblog.