This is the most bizarre thing I think I have ever seen. Think carefully about any branding moves you make before you commit!

Apple To End AT&T iPhone Exclusivity On Wednesday — Report

Henry Blodget | Jan. 24, 2010, 4:24 PM | 1,732 | 7

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Tags: Gadgets, Mobile, Apple, iPhone, AT&T, Verizon

AT&T captivity is the single biggest reason foks who don’t buy iPhones don’t buy them, so this would be big. 

It would also be unexpectedly early–most analysts aren’t expecting Apple to open up to other carriers until the middle of the year.

Shawn Oliver, HotHardware:

According to an inside source close to the going-ons involved in all of this, a new tablet of some sort may not be the only thing on deck for next Wednesday though. We have been led to believe by an inside source that AT&T will lose their iPhone exclusivity on the same day, though it’s not yet clear what other carrier (or carriers) will be stepping in to also carry the phone.

Still very up-in-the-air, but I would hold off on that iPhone commitment until Wednesday anyway

…we end up losing a lot of time. Also, when we switch back to a task, we have to recap what we’ve just been doing, and so ‘multitasking’ involves redundancy. Dave Crenshaw, business coach and author of The Myth of Multitasking, has explored the phenomenon extensively, and writes, ‘You actually take much longer to accomplish things, make more mistakes and increase your stress,’

According to recent research at Stanford University, people who routinely multitask are poor at filtering out irrelevant information and have poorer short-term memory – in other words, at the skills necessary to ‘multitask’ successfully!

I don’t know- I wonder what came first- the chicken or the egg. My guess is that the multitasking approach is a style adopted by those who have ADD-like tendencies anyway, and who find this method of interaction more stimulating. It is like saying, “People who learn visually are at an advantage. If you learn better by listening, you need to break that habit.”- can’t be done, or if it can- what is the cost? In other words, interactive modalities may determine HOW we connect with the world around us, not the other way around

I need to read the book instead of the recap, I guess. I can fit it in on Wednesday, while I am cleaning the car.

Announced FHA Policy Changes:

1. Mortgage insurance premium (MIP) will be increased to build up capital reserves and bring back private lending
   • The first step will be to raise the up-front MIP by 50 bps to 2.25% and request legislative authority to increase the maximum annual MIP that the FHA can charge.
   • If this authority is granted, then the second step will be to shift some of the premium increase from the up-front MIP to the annual MIP.
   • This shift will allow for the capital reserves to increase with less impact to the consumer, because the annual MIP is paid over the life of the loan instead of at the time of closing
   • The initial up-front increase is included in a Mortgagee Letter to be released tomorrow, January 21st, and will go into effect in the spring.

2. Update the combination of FICO scores and down payments for new borrowers.
   • New borrowers will now be required to have a minimum FICO score of 580 to qualify for FHA’s 3.5% down payment program. New borrowers with less than a 580 FICO score will be required to put down at least 10%.
   • This allows the FHA to better balance its risk and continue to provide access for those borrowers who have historically performed well.
   • This change will be posted in the Federal Register in February and, after a notice and comment period, would go into effect in the early summer.

3. Reduce allowable seller concessions from 6% to 3%
   • The current level exposes the FHA to excess risk by creating incentives to inflate appraised value. This change will bring FHA into conformity with industry standards on seller concessions.
   • This change will be posted in the Federal Register in February, and after a notice and comment period, would go into effect in the early summer.

4. Increase enforcement on FHA lenders
   • Publicly report lender performance rankings to complement currently available Neighborhood Watch data – Will be available on the HUD website on February 1.
     • This is an operational change to make information more user-friendly and hold lenders more accountable; it does not require new regulatory action as Neighborhood Watch data is currently publicly available.
   • Enhance monitoring of lender performance and compliance with FHA guidelines and standards.
     • Implement Credit Watch termination through lender underwriting ID in addition to originating ID.
     • This change is included in a Mortgagee Letter to be released tomorrow, January 21st, and is effective immediately.
   • Implement statutory authority through regulation of section 256 of the National Housing Act to enforce indemnification provisions for lenders using delegated insuring process
     • Specifications of this change will be posted in March, and after a notice and comment period, would go into effect in early summer.
   • HUD is pursuing legislative authority to increase enforcement on FHA lenders. Specific authority includes:
     • Amendment of section 256 of the National Housing Act to apply indemnification provisions to all Direct Endorsement lenders. This would require all approved mortgagees to assume liability for all of the loans that they originate and underwrite
     • Legislative authority permitting HUD maximum flexibility to establish separate “areas” for purposes of review and termination under the Credit Watch initiative. This would provide authority to withdraw originating and underwriting approval for a lender nationwide on the basis of the performance of its regional branches

Tighter lending policies

One Third Of U.S. 11-Year-Olds Have Cellphones

More kids are getting mobile phones: Last year, more than 35% of U.S. children ages 10-11 had cellphones, almost double the amount in 2005, according to Mediamark data, via eMarketer. And even more than 5% of 6-7-year-olds had cellphones last year.

Thanks to Matthew Fraser on Facebook for passing on this information.