Liberty Global Misses 1Q Earnings

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Liberty Global Inc. (LBTYA) declared mixed financial results for the first quarter of 2013. While net earnings fell below the Zacks Consensus Estimate, revenues beat the same. In the reported quarter, the company added 373,000 organic revenue generating units (:RGU), down 16.2% year over year. Liberty Global currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Quarterly GAAP net loss was $1 million or a break-even per share compared with a net loss of $25.7 million or 9 cents per share in the prior-year quarter. However, first-quarter 2013 adjusted earnings per share of 9 cents were way below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 28 cents. Quarterly total revenue of $2,767.7 million was up 9.1% year over year, easily surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,714 million.

Quarterly cost of operations was $1,027 million, up 14.4% year over year. Selling, General and Administrative expenses were $497.9 million, up 5.6% year over year. In the first quarter of 2013, operating income was $525.4 million, up 6.3% year over year.

During the first quarter of 2013, Liberty Global generated $557.7 million of cash from operations compared with $805.8 million in the year-ago period. Free cash flow in the reported quarter was $23.1 million compared with $241.9 million in the prior-year quarter.

At the end of the first quarter of 2013, Liberty Global had $2,906.8 million of cash and marketable securities and $29,600.1 million of outstanding debt on its balance sheet compared with $2,989 million of cash and marketable securities and $27,524.5 million of outstanding debt at the end of 2012.

Subscriber Statistics

As on Mar 31, 2013, Liberty Global had 19.7457 million customers in 13 countries. Out of the total, customer count at UPC Broadband, Telnet and VTR was 16.1984 million, 2.1062 million and 1.1679 million, respectively. Puerto Rico and Chile had 273,200 customers. The total Single-Play customer count was10.4666 million, down 6.8% year over year. The total Double-Play customer count was 3.092 million, up 5.9% year over year. The total Triple-Play customer count was 6.1871 million, up 13.8% year over year.

During the reported quarter, Liberty Global added 373,000 net RGUs including net gains of 233,000 and 231,000 subscribers, respectively, for broadband Internet and telephony services and a net loss of 92,000 subscribers for video services. In the first quarter, the company added 217,000 digital video subscribers. At present, the company has more than 200,000 Horizon TV subscribers (145,000 in the Netherlands and 55,000 in Switzerland). Recently, Liberty Global started offering Horizon TV in Ireland and will also deploy it in Germany later this year.

Segment wise Results

Total revenue from the total UPC Broadband division was $1,801.4 million, up 5.6% year over year. Within this segment, revenues from Western Europe were $1,481.6 million, up 6.1% year over year. Revenues from Central and Eastern Europe were $287.8 million, up 2.5% year over year. Revenues from Central and other operation were $32 million, up 13.5% year over year. In the reported quarter, Telenet revenues were $536.2 million, up 12.3% year over year. VTR revenues were $250.4 million, up 11.5% year over year. Corporate and other revenues were $199.3 million, up 31.6% year over year.

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Liberty Global Misses 1Q Earnings

Liberty Energy Corp. Announces Appointment Of Industry Veteran CEO and COO Team

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HOUSTON, May 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Liberty Energy Corp. (LBYE) ("Liberty" or "the Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of two industry veterans, Miles D Bender and William T Jones, to the executive leadership team. Mr. Bender will come on board as the new Chief Executive Officer, Director and Chairman of the Board of Directors, while WilliamT Jones will serve as the Chief Operating Officer.

Mr. Bender has been involved in the energy business for twenty-nine years. He was a founder, President and CEO of National Energy Group, Inc. ("NEG"), which he took public and which he helped grow from startup to over $300 million in proved reserve value, revenues of $54.7 million and cash flow of over $30 million. NEG owned working interests in more than 1,000 wells of which the Company operated over 90% with just under 100 employees. Market capitalization of NEG grew to nearly $350 million. He led NEG with respect to the identification, negotiation, completion, and integration of some 16 acquisitions for NEG, over 25 during his career. He led NEG in completing a $120 million acquisition and raising $175 million in 1996 and an additional $65 million in 1997. During his career he raised over $350 million for various enterprises. NEG was later sold in 2006 to publicly traded SandRidge Energy. He was President of the Georgia Oil and Gas Association and a Director and member of the Executive Committee of the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA).

Mr. Jones has been a licensed Petroleum Engineer for 40 years. In 2004, he formed Redmon Oil Company in Dallas, Texas. Prior to that, he was Chief Operating Officer and Principal of Lynx Production Company, Dallas, Texas, from 1999 to 2004. Mr. Jones joined National Energy Group, Inc. of Dallas, Texas, as Vice President, Production and Engineering in 1994 and was promoted to Senior Vice President, Operations in 1996. After receiving a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering from Mississippi State University in 1968, he began his career with Shell Oil Company in Houston, Texas. In 1973, Mr. Jones joined Tenneco Oil Company. After Tenneco Oil, Mr. Jones held various engineering and management positions with several independent oil companies in Dallas and Ft. Worth, Texas. From 1989 to 1991, he was Senior Petroleum Engineer for Snyder Oil Company in Fort Worth before moving to Abilene to become Chief Operating Officer of Ard Drilling Company from 1992 until 1994.

"We joined Liberty as a platform for our'under the radar' acquisition strategy, targeting acquisitions within the exploration & production and oilfield services sectors," stated CEO Miles Bender.

Please contact David Sexton directly at 1-832-708-3909 or email info@energy-liberty.com to request additional information and ongoing updates.

ABOUT LIBERTY: Liberty Energy Corp. (OTCBB:LBYE) is an Independent Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Company dedicated to the sourcing and production of oil and gas onshore in the United States. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, the company has signed agreements to acquire leases and royalties in Texas, covering several leases with extensive potential for future development. Currently the company is targeting mergers & acquisitions within the E & P or oilfield services of the upstream oil & gas segment.

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements are within the meaning of that term in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Liberty Energy Corp. bases these forward-looking statements on current expectations and projections about future events, based on information currently available. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release may also include statements relating to Liberty Energy Corp.'s anticipated financial performance, business prospects, new developments, strategies and similar matters. Liberty Energy Corp. disclaims any obligation to update any of its forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS,

Miles Bender, CEO & Chairman Liberty Energy Corp

Liberty Energy Corp. Two Allen Center Suite 1600 1200 Smith Street Houston, TX 77002 Tel: 1-713-353-4700 Fax: 1-713-353-4701 Email: info@energy-liberty.com Website: http://www.energy-liberty.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LibertyEnergyCorp

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Liberty Energy Corp. Announces Appointment Of Industry Veteran CEO and COO Team

Daniel Arsham illustrates the Easter Islands for the Louis Vuitton Travel Books 2013 – Video

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Daniel Arsham illustrates the Easter Islands for the Louis Vuitton Travel Books 2013
Artist Daniel Arsham travels to the Easter Islands for the new edition of the Louis Vuitton Travel Books, available at http://vuitton.lv/11F1PRN. Daniel Arsh...

By: LOUISVUITTON

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Daniel Arsham illustrates the Easter Islands for the Louis Vuitton Travel Books 2013 - Video

Outrage as Euro MPs argue Britain's sovereignty over Falkland Islands 'is not accepted'

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British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands as such, is not accepted by EU lawmakers

The Falklands issue was brought up at a recent meeting in Buenos Aires by Senator Daniel Filmus, who insisted the UK and Argentina must discuss the long-standing tension over the islands.

During talks, Senator Filmus suggested to his peers that an additional effort to help Argentina establish talks with the UK on the Malvinas issue would be beneficial.

To advance in the strengthening of the accords it would be beneficial if the EU would commit itself to help so that the UK sits at a table to dialogue bilaterally on the Malvinas question said Filmus.

He added that the diplomatic path is the only path we conceive and we stress this position in support of dialogue in all the international forums we participate.

British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands has been dismissed by Euro MPs

British sovereignty over the Islands as such, is not accepted

MEP Yaez Barnuevo

Senator Filmus even claimed that the UK is taking advantage of the Falkland Islands dispute to "militarize" the South Atlantic and to extract natural resources that belong to the region.

There is a growing consensus related to this issue and its that both sides must sit to discuss it.

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Outrage as Euro MPs argue Britain's sovereignty over Falkland Islands 'is not accepted'

Outrage as Euro MPs say British sovereignty over Falkland Islands 'is not accepted'

Posted on by

British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands as such, is not accepted by EU lawmakers

The Falklands issue was brought up at a recent meeting in Buenos Aires by Senator Daniel Filmus, who insisted the UK and Argentina must discuss the long-standing tension over the islands.

During talks, Senator Filmus suggested to his peers that an additional effort to help Argentina establish talks with the UK on the Malvinas issue would be beneficial.

To advance in the strengthening of the accords it would be beneficial if the EU would commit itself to help so that the UK sits at a table to dialogue bilaterally on the Malvinas question said Filmus.

He added that the diplomatic path is the only path we conceive and we stress this position in support of dialogue in all the international forums we participate.

British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands has been dismissed by Euro MPs

British sovereignty over the Islands as such, is not accepted

MEP Yaez Barnuevo

Senator Filmus even claimed that the UK is taking advantage of the Falkland Islands dispute to "militarize" the South Atlantic and to extract natural resources that belong to the region.

There is a growing consensus related to this issue and its that both sides must sit to discuss it.

Continue reading here:

Outrage as Euro MPs say British sovereignty over Falkland Islands 'is not accepted'

Resort islands edgy after tourist arrests

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Retired neurosurgeon and Sarasota resident Horace Norrell found himself arrested at jailed for three days at the end of a birthday trip to the Turks and Caicos last week after someone slipped a 9mm bullet into his luggage, he says.

Hoteliers and tourism officials in the Turks and Caicos Islands scrambled Monday to apply triage to a wound that threatened to erode the archipelago's significant visitor industry.

Forums on TripAdvisor.com and Facebook buzzed with talk of cancellations in the wake of a Herald-Tribune story a day earlier about a pair of U.S. tourists who were arrested at Providenciales International Airport for allegedly trying to smuggle a single bullet apiece out of the country.

We have a fragile economy here that is very heavily tourism-based, said Seamus Day, a Grand Turk investment consultant whose Sand Dollar Investment helps foreigners establish residency or invest in the island chain.

I worked constantly over the weekend and all day today, met with the minister of tourism, met with the Attorney General, trying to put pressure on them to drop this matter, Day said.

He wasn't alone in trying to minimize any damage.

Please tell me that something can be done to stop the PR nightmare that is rapidly going viral on the web re: the two completely unrelated tourists who were charged for possession of one round of live ammunition each, Basia Zaidan-Dallamano, a luxury property manager, wrote to islands governor Damian Roderic Ric Todd on Monday.

Zaidan-Dallaman's Tranquility Property Management & Vacation Rentals Ltd. oversees 10 luxury properties.

The need to do something comes amid high stakes for the islands.

Tourism accounts for about for 80 percent of the British protectorate's gross domestic product, said Stacy Cox, a board member of the 200-member Turks & Caicos Hotel & Tourism Association.

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Resort islands edgy after tourist arrests

UAE criticizes Iran lawmakers' visit to disputed islands

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DUBAI (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates criticized on Monday a visit by Iranian lawmakers to Gulf islands near the Strait of Hormuz at the center of a territorial dispute between the two countries, who are both trade partners and strategic rivals.

Tension between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims in a Middle East shaken by two years of political turmoil has sharpened the 42-year-old dispute, complicating an ambivalent relationship in which national pride has vied uneasily with economic pragmatism.

About 40 percent of the world's seaborne oil exports flow through Hormuz. Iran threatened last year to block the Strait as tensions rose with the West over Tehran's disputed nuclear program.

"The Foreign Ministry strongly condemns and categorically rejects a visit by an Iranian parliament delegation to the islands," the UAE state news agency WAM said.

"This visit flagrantly infringes on the sovereignty of the UAE and undermines all exerted efforts towards finding a peaceful resolution for this issue," it said.

The islands, Abu Musa and Greater and Lesser Tunb, are claimed by both countries but have been held by Iran since 1971, shortly before the seven Gulf emirates gained full independence from Britain and formed the UAE, now allied with Washington.

There was no immediate official comment from Iran.

But a report on an Iranian website calling itself the Young Journalists Club said that a delegation of Iranian parliamentarians made a one-day visit to the three islands of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb and Sirri on April 25.

Sirri is not claimed by the UAE. Iran says its sovereignty over the Gulf islands it holds is not negotiable but has called for talks with the UAE to clear up "misunderstandings". A senior UAE foreign ministry official met Iran's UAE ambassador to discussed "important issues of mutual concern", WAM said.

(Reporting by Mahmoud Habboush and Yeganeh Torbati, Editing by William Maclean and Mark Heinrich)

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UAE criticizes Iran lawmakers' visit to disputed islands

Improving health care in Nova Scotia and beyond

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Dalhousies nurse scientists connect theory and practice. By investigating issues related to the health needs of people and the factors that influence health, they produce strategies to improve patient care, the health system and nursing practice.

As we mark Nursing Week, here are more examples of exciting research from within the School of Nursing.

Jean Hughes, professor in Dalhousies School of Nursing, once studied at Dal herself as part of the first class to graduate from the four-year nursing baccalaureate program.

Nursing education initially was oriented more toward task, she says. But with the evolution of baccalaureate, masters and PhD education now focuses much more on the development of critical thinking.

Now, Dr. Hughes specializes in mental health in marginalized populations, particularly focusing on young families and youth. She is a past chair of the Dartmouth Family Centre, and currently a member of the board of directors for Laing House as well as an academic mentor for Horizon Healths Peer 126 program two community-based programs for youth with mental illness.

Dr. Hughes worked with the Dartmouth Family Centre to develop the Growing Together program that provides wrap-around health programs to families reluctant to use regular health-care service. This approach that responds to the needs of marginalized families increasingly has been adopted by health services province-wide.

Her latest study, SEAK, in partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association-NS Division, is testing a proven mental health promotion program in marginalized populations and examining the long-term effects on health service use and on cost benefits. The PATHS program (Promoting Alternative THinking Strategies), designed to build social and emotional skills in elementary school students, is being tested in multiple schools in five Canadian communities, two of which are in Nova Scotia. Trained teachers offer twice-weekly classes that show young children how to communicate their emotions and problem-solve confrontations with others.

Dr. Hughes shares stories of her visits to schools using the PATHS program and describes her delight at seeing children as young as five settle disagreements without tears or tantrums: They were using the teacher as a support system, not as an answer to all their problems.

Researchers will be tracking the success of PATHS students in junior and senior high school and beyond to see whether the program improves participants post-secondary education and career prospects. The study involves students from numerous universities and science and health programs, including research assistants from Dals School of Nursing.

Communication processes are just as important as physical care, says Dr. Hughes. [It is] critical to nurse performance, patient outcomes and the cost of health care.

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Improving health care in Nova Scotia and beyond

Health Care Trust of America Is Good Medicine for Your Portfolio

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NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Health care trends in the U.S. have created hot demand for medical-office space, and this bodes well for Healthcare Trust of America .

Because of shifting consumer preferences and limited hospital space, more and more health care procedures that traditionally have been performed in hospitals -- such as surgery -- are now being done at outpatient facilities.

What's more demand for medical-office space is only likely to accelerate in coming years.

In a recent report, Randall Sakamoto, director of research at Rosen Consulting Group, wrote:

Last June, I recommended the shares in the nontraded REIT conversion of Healthcare Trust of America in an article for TheStreet.

At the time, HTA was unlocking around 229.5 million shares in an effort to create liquidity for about 25% of HTA investors. By utilizing a "Dutch auction" tender offer, HTA was entering the public markets and releasing 25% of its shares every six months. Essentially that means that HTA is controlling the demand for the shares while also attempting to lower the volatility within the initial $2.5 billion portfolio.

Now HTA is in the second round of unlocking shares, and the third round of shares (B-2 shares) hits the market in June. HTA plans to unlock all of its shares (the remaining 25%) in December.

Today HTA is trading at an all-time high of $12.85 a share with a market capitalization of around $2.8 billion. The Scottsdale, Ariz.-based REIT has been moving up rapidly, especially when compared with the other health care REITs that own MOBs.

HTA is a dominant player in the MOB space with about 90% of its portfolio leased out as MOB-occupied space. The other MOB peers include Healthcare REIT , Senior Housing Properties Trust , Health Care REIT , Ventas , HCP .

Clearly HTA has built a its dominating health care platform on strategic MOB assets:

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Health Care Trust of America Is Good Medicine for Your Portfolio

Research and Markets: Gene Therapy – Technologies, Markets and Companies – Updated 2013 Report

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DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/lvclfm/gene_therapy) has announced the addition of Jain PharmaBiotech's new report "Gene Therapy - Technologies, Markets and Companies" to their offering.

Gene therapy can be broadly defined as the transfer of defined genetic material to specific target cells of a patient for the ultimate purpose of preventing or altering a particular disease state. Genes and DNA are now being introduced without the use of vectors and various techniques are being used to modify the function of genes in vivo without gene transfer. If one adds to this the cell therapy particularly with use of genetically modified cells, the scope of gene therapy becomes much broader. Gene therapy can now combined with antisense techniques such as RNA interference (RNAi), further increasing the therapeutic applications. This report takes broad overview of gene therapy and is the most up-to-date presentation from the author on this topic built-up from a series of gene therapy report written by him during the past decade including a textbook of gene therapy and a book on gene therapy companies. This report describes the setbacks of gene therapy and renewed interest in the topic

Gene therapy technologies are described in detail including viral vectors, nonviral vectors and cell therapy with genetically modified vectors. Gene therapy is an excellent method of drug delivery and various routes of administration as well as targeted gene therapy are described. There is an introduction to technologies for gene suppression as well as molecular diagnostics to detect and monitor gene expression.

Clinical applications of gene therapy are extensive and cover most systems and their disorders. Full chapters are devoted to genetic syndromes, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, neurological disorders and viral infections with emphasis on AIDS. Applications of gene therapy in veterinary medicine, particularly for treating cats and dogs, are included.

Research and development is in progress in both the academic and the industrial sectors. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) of the US is playing an important part. As of 2012, over 2030 clinical trials have been completed, are ongoing or have been approved worldwide.A breakdown of these trials is shown according to the areas of application.

The voluminous literature on gene therapy was reviewed and selected 750 references are appended in the bibliography.The references are constantly updated. The text is supplemented with 73 tables and 15 figures.

Profiles of 181 companies involved in developing gene therapy are presented along with 204 collaborations. There were only 44 companies involved in this area in 1995. In spite of some failures and mergers, the number of companies has increased more than 4-fold within a decade. These companies have been followed up since they were the topic of a book on gene therapy companies by the author of this report. John Wiley & Sons published the book in 2000 and from 2001 to 2003, updated versions of these companies (approximately 160 at mid-2003) were available on Wiley's web site. Since that free service was discontinued and the rights reverted to the author, this report remains the only authorized continuously updated version on gene therapy companies.

Benefits of this report

- Up-to-date on-stop information on gene therapy with 73 tables and 15 figures

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Research and Markets: Gene Therapy - Technologies, Markets and Companies - Updated 2013 Report

Wacana Sinar Harian Public Forum In Conjunction With World Press Freedom Day Bhg 3 – Video

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Wacana Sinar Harian Public Forum In Conjunction With World Press Freedom Day Bhg 3
Wacana Sinar Harian Public Forum In Conjunction With World Press Freedom Day "Safe To Speak: Securing Freedom Of Expression In All Media" Wartawan:Salmi/Jami...

By: Sinar Harian

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Wacana Sinar Harian Public Forum In Conjunction With World Press Freedom Day Bhg 3 - Video

Lighting of Freedom Hall at the George W. Bush Presidential Center – Full Program – Video

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Lighting of Freedom Hall at the George W. Bush Presidential Center - Full Program
April 25, 2013 - The U.S. Army Chorus performed before President and Mrs. Bush joined supporters, dignitaries, and the SMU community to celebrate the Dedicat...

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Lighting of Freedom Hall at the George W. Bush Presidential Center - Full Program - Video

UN’s Ladsous Refusal to Answer Press Questions Justified by His Spokesman, World Press Freedom Day – Video

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UN #39;s Ladsous Refusal to Answer Press Questions Justified by His Spokesman, World Press Freedom Day
By Matthew Russell Lee UNITED NATIONS, May 2 -- What is the relation between the UN #39;s World Press Freedom Day festivities and its Under Secretary General for...

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UN's Ladsous Refusal to Answer Press Questions Justified by His Spokesman, World Press Freedom Day - Video