Beijing, Mar 01: The number of privately owned automobiles in China reached 29.25 million at the end of 2006, an increase of 23.7 per cent year-on-year.

Privately owned sedans alone soared to 11.49 million, an increased of 33.5 per cent compared to 2005, according to latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

According to figures from the China Automobile Industry Association, China sold more than seven million automobiles in 2006 which included 3.8 million sedans. China is the second largest auto market in the world after the United States.

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Paris Hilton’s violation of the terms of her probation could have nasty consequences: a hefty fine or some time in jail.

The swift hotel heiress was pulled over by Los Angeles police late Tuesday night as she was speeding down Sunset Blvd without headlights on. As Paris was driving with a suspended license, police impounded her car.

The 26-year-old couldn’t have been too happy to see her Bentley Continental GT impounded by police, but some things are just like that in life, unpleasant. Paris must be often surprised by what happens in her life, as she has expressed disbelief at the attention the media pays to her.

"Everything I do is blown out of proportion. It really hurts my feelings," the socialite has said. She must have felt very hurt when her alcohol-related reckless driving in September 2006 received the ample press coverage it did.

Last month Paris was sentenced to three years probation after pleading no contest to last fall’s driving incident, on condition that she would obey all laws.

Violating the terms of her probation could get "The Simple Life" star into quite a bit of trouble: a $1,000 fine and up to 90 days in jail, if worst comes to worst.

Her publicist Elliot Mintz said that Paris had failed to notice that her headlights weren't on because the parking was brightly lit. Surprisingly enough, Mintz is also saying that he and his client were unaware of the license being suspended.

Back in September, when the whole hubbub started, Paris explained that she had been to a charity event where she had drunk one margarita and then decided she was hungry.

"I had one margarita, starving 'cause I had not ate all day, on my way to In-n-Out which is probably three blocks away, and I'm in my (Mercedes) SLR, which is a little fast, so maybe I was speeding a little bit" – she giggled – "and I got pulled over," she said adding that the police "were so nice."

At the time, the reality TV’s star spokesman has said that her blood alcohol level registered "the absolute minimum amount of alcohol in your system that would justify an arrest."

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Amitabh Bachchan is one superstar, who is always ready to stand up for a cause, no matter how busy his schedule is.

And he once again proved this by participating in the special episode of Antakshari for the visually challenged. The actor who cheered the participants by reciting them a Khalid Hashmi poem Main prakash hoon, ajar amar andhakar ek nirav gunjan.

The children present at the event were quite excited to see Mr. Bachchan, with two visually challenged girls from Smt. Kamla Mehta Dadar School for the Blind, presented Mr. Bachchan with a letter that had a special message for his ailing mother Teji Bachchan.

Television programme Antakshari is doing a six- part mini series which will feature people from the socially deprived class of the society including old age homes, visually challenged and street children.

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China's Focus Media will acquire Allyes Information Technology, a China-based internet advertising company, in a cash and stock deal.

Allyes is an internet advertising agency and a provider of internet advertising technology in China, operating since 2000. It owns a proprietary software application suite, 'AdForward', which covers online ad publishing, creative production, tracking, targeting and performance analysis. It has also accumulated a database of internet viewers, segmented based on individual behavior. Allyes has raised private equity funding from IDG Technology Venture Investment and Oak Investment Partners. It is also speculated that Jiang has an investment in Allyes.

As of December 31, 2006, Focus Media had approximately 124,000 display units (85,300 in commercial locations and 38,700 in stores), 99,700 advertising poster frames installed throughout China and 200 outdoor LED displays in Shanghai with over 3,000 advertisers using this network.

Focus Media is growing very quickly, spurred along by the boom in consumer spending in China. For the year ended December 31, 2006 it booked total revenues of $213.3 million, up 212.6% (compared to $68.2 million in 2005), on which it earned an operating income of $79.0 million.

Analysts comment that Focus Media commands a far lower advertising rate in China's tier-two cities compared to the metros, with the bulk of revenues still derived from China's main cities. This reinforces the potential for Focus Media to grow on the back of higher penetration in smaller cities, which are becoming key to advertisers.

Focus Media was on an acquisition spree in 2006, concluding four deals including Target Media. Target Media was in a similar business to Focus Media and the takeover cemented Focus Media's standing as number one in the industry.

The company has also been a regular in the capital markets with venture capital investors taking the opportunity to cash out of a lucrative investment. Most recently, in January, Focus Media sold a combination of old and new shares in a $529 million deal. The $115 million raised from new shares issued was intended to be deployed in acquisitions. Allyes is the first acquisition announced by Focus Media in calendar 2007 but is unlikely to be the only one.

Focus Media Holding, a China-based display advertising company, will spend up to $300 million in cash and stock to acquire Allyes Information Technology, an internet advertising service company in China.

Focus Media is making the acquisition to enter China's growing internet advertising market and further diversify the advertising medium through which is reaches consumers. It will acquire 100% of Allyes equity for $70 million cash and $155 million of Focus Media shares, based on a price of $77.62 per ADS (with each ADS representing 10 Focus Media shares). Focus Media will pay an additional $75 million in shares, valued at the same price, if Allyes meets pre-defined earnings targets for the 12-month period from April 1, 2007 to March 31, 2008. Focus Media will issue new shares to Allyes shareholders.

Jason Jiang, founder, chairman and CEO of Focus Media, says: "We believe that by combining Allyes' behavior-based advertising solution for internet audience segmentation with our existing advertising service offerings, Focus Media will deliver more comprehensive media solutions to our advertisers."

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Excessive Use Of Numbing Cream Can Be Fatal
A wake up call for Dermatologists, Users and Marketers
Pores, the invisible valves on human skin involuntarily provide for the inlet and outlet of matter inside and over human body.  It is through the pores that perspiration takes place, and the effects of massage and external applications are carried deep inside the body. The skin beautifying obsession together with the deafening clamor of advertisers kept the fact escaped from the over-users of cosmetics that the creams which are nothing but toxic substances, permeate into the body through these pores and mix up into the blood stream. This harbinger, which results from the latest research, must be taken as a wake up call for its excessive users.
 

A variety of numbing creams today contain the numbing drugs such as Lidocaine, Tetracaine, Benzocaine and Prilocaine. On the whole the creams carry anesthetic and stupefying effect on human body. These creams are frequently used on occasions as:
 
a) Hurts in playgrounds
b) Limb itching in pregnancy
c) Child itching and rashes
d) Parlor beautification
e) Laser skin treatment, and
f) Hair therapy. 
Referred by the FDA for the inconsiderate use of numbing cream were the cases of two women aged 22 & 25 years, who had died from the toxic effect of the numbing cream. The two women, who had applied the numbing cream after the laser hair removal on their legs, had wrapped them, as instructed, with plastic, to increase the numbing effect. Both women had seizures, fell into comas, and

subsequently died. Numbing creams and lotions, available both by prescription and over the counter (OTC), are meant to soothe the burning or itching effect on the skin as well as for pain before, during and after various procedures.
Therefore people considering skin-related cosmetics are advised to rationalize their exhibitionist frenzy and be not led by slogans of reverting old looks back to youth. Stay as close as possible to natural treatment. Manufacturers well may give up their miraculous claims on facial and figurative attractiveness. Finally, the pharmaceutical companies and marketers are also cautioned to keep the established ethics of societal marketing by redefining their business; carefully selecting their target segment; deciding upon their customer function; specifying the technology and material to be used and finally deciding upon the degree of their vertical integration.
 

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Keep Your Winter Driving Safe & Comfortable: the sun goes down; the temperature drops suddenly after dusk and there is a dark cold bleakness around as you drive along a lonely stretch of back road, your car will neither skid off the road nor get stuck into ditch or Black Ice.

 Just follow the below tips to keep your winter driving safe.
1. If the weather is predicted bad and the road conditions are poor, it is wise to postpone your trip, until conditions improve. You can always call the Highway Patrol to enquire road conditions ahead.
2. Get a set of winter tires and rims mounted on your car. The tread design on the tires help the rubber meet the road with a stronger grip.
3. Listen to your tires sound.. If they are quiet; that’s the black ice, because on a wet road the tires always make a sizzling sound. Also a sudden drop in the temperature, windshield fogging and the lack of tire noise are the signs that black ice is coming. So drive safer.
4. Adhesion with road comes better with four-wheel drive vehicle. Take a four-wheel drive car as Mercedes-Benz out on snowy or wet roads.
5. Go as smooth as possible on the throttle and brakes in bad weather conditions.
6. Don’t make quick turns or movements that may cause you to break traction and lose the grip.
7. Normally people tend to over steer and let off the gas as the car starts to slide out of control. But that’s not a good thing to do. Keep your foot on the gas. Stay on the gas when you start to slide, it will eventually pull you out of the slide. Also don’t look anywhere else if your car is skidding. Look where you want to go, not where you fear your car might hit.

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Soliloquy:

Two truths are told as happy prologue to the swelling act of imperial theme. I thank you gentlemen. This supernatural solicitings cannot be ill; cannot be good. If ill why hath it given me earnest of success commencing in a truth. I am thane of Cawdor. If good, why do I yield to that suggestion whose horrid image doth unfix my hair, and make my seated heart knock at the ribs against the use of nature. Present fears are less than horrible imaginings. My thought whose murder, yet is but fantastical, shakes so my single state of man that function is smothered in surmise; letting I dare not wait upon I would! 

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