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PC and chip companies have been trying to get TV viewers to use internet functions on their home entertainment systems for years. The problem may be that people who watch television are old. Consumers who use PCs are young. That has not stopped repeated attempts to marry the two.

Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) and Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) are making another run at putting the two technologies together and it will probably fail. According to The Wall Street Journal, "The pair outlined software tools, based on Yahoo technology, to help companies deliver Web content alongside TV programming. The software complements a new chip from Intel designed to enable interactive features on TVs."

Under this new plan, web content will sit in a bar at the bottom of the screen.

TV viewers already see information at the bottom of their TV monitors. Most business news channels like CNBC use the space to run stock quotes. Sports programming often scrolls scores in that section of the screen. Those bits of information may be useful, but TV is still a passive experience.

People who sit in front of a television set want information and entertainment. They do not want to have to make any effort to get those things. The PC has hundreds of applications that involve a great deal of effort. The keyboard is an "active" feature. People sitting in lounge chairs to watch the tube want to fall asleep.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

First Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) tried to cut off customers using peer-to-peer file sharing services. They ate up too much bandwidth and slowed down the cable company's network. At least that is what Comcast said.

The FCC did not like the Comcast approach and asked it to fix the matter. Comcast still says it has congestion problems and wants to handle them using a new method. According to Bloomberg, the cable guys "plans to slow service to its heaviest Internet users during periods of congestion after regulators ordered the company to devise a new method for managing its Web traffic."

If the traffic load in one area of the network becomes too great, big users could see their service dialed back to slower speeds for as long as 20 minutes.

Consumers will get bent out of shape because they reason that everyone should have unlimited access to the Internet, especially if they are paying $30 a month for broadband. But, that avoids an acknowledgment of the practical parts of the system. Internet "pipes" are only so big. If they become clogged, none of the users win.

The Comcast plan is fair and reasonable. If people want super-fast speeds all the time, they should pay for it. That is the only way for the cable company to undertake the work of upgrading its network without hurting its shareholders.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Despite the onset of the latest high energy price era, it goes without saying that the car will remain the main mode of transportation in the United States as the 21st century progresses.

First mass-produced on a national scale by Henry Ford, subsidized by the construction and expansion of the public interstate highway system after World War II, and immortalized by such films as George Lucas's American Graffiti (1973), the car and car culture is intrinsic to modern American life.

The car fuel alternatives

Cheap oil is not intrinsic, however, and that's a major reason why the nation is exploring car / vehicle fuel alternatives. Many options exist, each with strengths / weaknesses, and currently there's no clear winner.

Hence, in a very real sense, your say in the matter will play an important role in determining what fuel most Americans will use for car transportation in the decades ahead.

As the housing market continues to struggle, there is further evidence today that things have yet to turn around as mortgage applications last week fell to lows not seen in nearly eight years.

Today's data came from the Mortgage Bankers Association, which showed that its application index dropped down to 419.3 last week, its lowest level since all the way back to December 2000. Just since this past February the index is down by 61%.

For those of us who are anxiously awaiting any positive signs for the housing market, this week has proven to be anything but hopeful. Today's news comes on the heels of data yesterday that showed new home construction during July was at its lowest levels in over the past 17 years.

Recent reports reveal a surprising amount of criminal activity in the mortgage business. This is particularly true in states whose names end in the letter A, such as Florida and Nevada. Two particular forms of illegal behavior are the licensing of mortgage brokers with criminal records and homebuilders' use of bribes -- or 'incentives' -- to encourage people to buy over-priced houses without disclosing them to lenders as required by law. Think I'm kidding?

DSNews reports that last week, Florida's mortgage commissioner resigned after it was revealed that he granted mortgage brokerage licenses to people with criminal records. Specifically, DSNews wrote that Don Saxon, who had been Chairman of the Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) had "allowed more than 10,000 people with criminal histories – including bank robbers, racketeers, defrauders, embezzlers, identity thieves, and tax evaders, among others – to work in Florida's mortgage lending industry between 2000 and 2007. These convicted felons had expropriated more than $85 million from lenders and homeowners during that time."

Meanwhile, things were not much more legal in Nevada. That's where the Wall Street Journal reports that the Las Vegas, NV branch of home builder Centex (NYSE: CTX) paid off the credit cards and mortgages of potential borrowers to entice people to buy homes priced from $350,000 to $550,000. The FBI is investigating allegations that Centex did not always disclose these 'incentives' to lenders as required by law.

When should the FDA pull a drug off the market? When one person dies from side-effects? How about two or three?

Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) and Amylin Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: AMLN) produce a highly successful diabetes drug called Byetta. According to The Wall Street Journal, "The Food and Drug Administration on Monday said it has received six new reports of patients developing a dangerous form of pancreatitis while taking Byetta."

Two of the patients died.

The drug makers said that the poor results were very rare. The people who got sick probably view it a little differently.

There have been questions for some time about whether the FDA does an effective job of regulating drug companies. The problems with Byetta say that the answer is "no." A drug, which causes even one death, yet stays on the market speaks volumes about how the consumer's interests are cast aside.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

One of the few hopes the U.S. car companies have had is that they have been perceived as closing the quality gap with Japanese models. Recent JP Power data shows Detroit running in a dead heat with imports in the consumer satisfaction race.

That bubble has been at least partially burst due to new information from the University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index. According to the AP, "U.S. car buyers are growing less satisfied with their purchases from domestic automakers while their Asian and European competitors continue to improve."

In the new survey, BMW and Lexus tied for the top spot followed by Honda (NYSE: HMC) and Toyota (NYSE: TM). Several brands from GM (NYSE: GM) and Ford (NYSE: F) dropped down the rankings.

At the risk of stating the obvious, Detroit is in such deep trouble that a perceived drop in the quality of its cars can only make its recovery more difficult. There are several ways around that, but none of them are very palatable.

GM yesterday introduced buyer incentives across most of its brands. That means its margins on those vehicles will be lower. It may pick up some market share, but any victory there will be costly. The U.S. car companies are cutting their marketing budgets, so they cannot "advertise" their way out of the problem.

Effectively giving cars away can certainly help hurdle the quality barrier, but losing a lot more money could sink a large U.S. auto company.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) reports that producer prices launched upward at a 1.2% monthly rate in July. The rise in the PPI -- which was 0.7 percentage points faster than the 0.5% rate economists expected -- was the result of rising wholesale prices for energy spreading to "automobiles, prescription drugs and capital equipment."

Since the price of oil has dropped 24% from $147 to $112, should we all be relieved that July's number is a temporary blip? Let's hope so, because if not, rising wholesale prices make it even harder for businesses to make a profit when consumer demand is weak.

These higher wholesale prices mean that businesses have two options to maintain profits: keep prices the same but cut costs in other areas by finding productivity improvements, cutting back on payrolls and salaries and the likes, or raise prices to offset those rising costs.

It's been over a year since I last posted on liar loans -- these are mortgages which the borrower obtains despite offering no documentation on their income, employment or assets. These liar loans were also known as Ninja loans -- which is short for no income, no job, and no assets. The Associated Press reports that such liar loans will add $100 billion to the losses our economy is already suffering thanks to $400 billion worth of losses from subprime mortgages.

The problem we face as an economy is that it's hard to see where the liar loans end and the collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) and other asset-backed securities begin. In a sense, they are all liar loans. In the case of the mortgages, borrowers created paperwork that was inconsistent with their actual financial condition so they could get the money. In the case of CDOs, the issuing investment bank bought a AAA rating from a rating agency which created the illusion that the security was safe. Conceptually, there is little difference -- both depended on essentially forged paperwork to make the loan go through.

Why did banks issue liar loans? They were afraid to lose market share. But that doesn't make it right. As my mother used to say to me, if the other kids jumped off the Empire State Building, would you do it too? AP brings this to life in an interview with David Zugheri, co-founder of Texas-based lender First Houston Mortgage who said, "Everybody drank the Kool-Aid. They knew if they didn't give the borrower the loan they wanted, the borrower could go down the street and get that loan somewhere else.''

During my various commutes over the past week I have been hearing a new radio commercial about Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG). The City of Hope Hospital in Los Angeles is advertising their Di Vinci robotic surgical procedures to attract patients.

They use the catch phrase "The science of saving lives" while promoting less invasive surgical procedures, shorter hospital stays, and faster recovery. These are well-known themes among the medical profession and investors but it is the first time I have heard the story promoted for a competitive advantage among hospitals. I am sure it won't be the last.

Certainly this will raise the bar among other hospitals competing for similar business and simply to keep their Di Vinci operating rooms productive, cost effective, and profitable. It also means that any hospital without the equipment will soon be deemed second rate, if they are not already.

Perhaps we will soon be hearing competing hospitals bragging about having multiple Di Vinci's or more trained doctors or the highest number of procedures or new procedures. Where will it end? When it is common place and every hospital is using the system.

Have you heard any radio advertising from hospitals in your city? Fans of Elvis Costello can check out Radio, Radio" at Last fm. here.

ISRG closed last Friday at $299.17 and is trading down slightly this morning. It has been hovering around $300 for the past two weeks.

Sheldon Liber is the CEO of a small private investment company and the principal for design and research at an architecture & planning firm. He writes the columns Chasing Value and Serious Money. DISCLOSURE: I currently own shares of ISRG and have no relationship whatsoever with "Last fm" ,but I was reminded of the song and it is way cool.

Anyone looking for a reason to buy Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) shares now has three: The Jonas Brothers.

Kevin, Joe and Nick Jonas are in the words of Portfolio.com "poised to become a nine figure franchise" for the media company.

The biggest band few over the age of 15 care about recently released "A Little Bit Longer", their second for Disney's Hollywood Records. It immediately went platinum and then quickly became the most-downloaded album on iTunes, according to the magazine. Then there is the sold out tour, the book commemorating the sold-out tour and the 3D movie of said tour.

If that's not milking the franchise, I don't know what is.

The Jonas boys, who took in $12 million last year, also are wholesome enough to allay the concerns of parents worried about the recent R-rated behavior of Disney teen queen Miley Cyrus. She apparently is dating one of the Jonas boys, each of whom wears purity rings symbolizing their commitment to sexual abstinence. I know the Portfolio article specifies the identity of the brother but I have decided I have more important things to do than remember it.

Anyone like me who scoffs at the Jonas' bland of sweet inoffensive pop should remember that they are not the target audience. My niece Danielle, 12, is that audience. She thinks the Jonas' are the best thing since sliced bread -- make that bread itself. She has pictures of the Jonas' in her room including one she drew herself. Danielle is even trying to learn the guitar.

The Jonas Brothers. who play their own instruments, show no signs of slowing. For some handy Jonas figures check this out. Disney will continue to profit from their success as it tries to duplicate it many times over.

There's an upside and a downside regarding major auto companies and the quest to develop vehicles with increased fuel-efficiency.

The upside: Auto makers are positioning themselves to carve out niches in fuel-efficient technology and design, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday (subscription required).

The downside: Auto makers appear to be exhibiting a 'herd mentality' on the current propulsion technology -- hybrid engine cars with both a modest electric power source and a mainstay internal combustion engine.

An electric hybrid focus

Following up on its successful electric-gasoline Prius hybrid, Toyota (NYSE: TM) announced it will make hybrid engine systems available on all models by 2020, The Journal reported. Meanwhile, Honda said it would import new hybrid technology to the U.S. to compete with Toyota and Ford (NYSE: F) plans to double its hybrid lineup next year, and Chevrolet's (NYSE: GM) Volt hybrid that will go on sale in 2010.

Economist David H. Wang said investors and consumers should not be overly optimistic or pessimistic regarding the sector's concentration on electric-fuel hybrids.

The New York Times reports that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is hiring back experienced people as the number of failed banks rises. Its report gives a good idea of what the FDIC does to rescue a failed bank. In a nutshell, when a bank fails the FDIC tries to find a stronger partner who can take over the foundering operations. Starting on Friday evening, the FDIC does triage so that it knows which assets and deposits the partner will get and which will go on the FDIC's books.

Here are six key steps:

• Find a merger partner. For example, the Times reports that on Friday May 9, the FDIC seized Arkansas National Bank (ANB) -- a $2.1 billion construction lender -- and arranged for it to be acquired by Pulaski Bank and Trust Company. As it usually does, the FDIC planned to use the weekend to minimize the disruption to depositors of ANB.
• Enter town quietly. FDIC personnel try not to alert the locals to their presence. The Times reports that they "used personal credit cards, rather than cards provided by the FDIC, to avoid detection." And they were told to give a false reason for their presence in town. The Times quotes Gary Holloway, a hired back retiree, who said: "If anybody asked why they were in town, they were told to say that they were with the Toy Shop on business."

The recession diet claimed another victim today. That's when the Wall Street Journal reports Mrs. Fields Famous Brands LLC -- which sells those formerly wonderful chocolate chip cookies and TCBY yogurt from 1,200 U.S. franchises -- bit the dust.

Mrs. Fields is cooking up a messy financial stew. Its pre-packaged bankruptcy will give bondholders the majority of its new common stock. In particular, the Journal reports that deal lets "note holders exchange their $195.7 million in notes for $90 million in cash, $50 million in new senior secured notes and 87.5% of the company's new common stock. The note holders are expected to recover 86.5% on their claims."

Mrs. Fields has been losing money and it posted a $10.7 million loss in the quarter ending June 2008-- almost eight times more than the $1.4 million it lost in the same quarter of 2007. When you're trying to pay for gasoline and keep your family fed, chocolate chip cookies and frozen yogurt are luxuries that many people can do without. The recent credit problems of Pizzeria Uno and the bankruptcy of Bennigan's and Steak & Ale suggest that many more retailers will bite the dust before this economic crunch is out.

That's the way the cookie crumbles.

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in the securities mentioned.

I have been concerned about the strength of the banks insured by the FDIC. One commenter asked whether there were any good banks. To that end, I have identified four that might be among the more solid. I did this by screening for regional banks with profit margins over 30%, a stock market capitalizations above $500 million, and a recent improvement in operating performance accompanied by a rise in stock price.

Here are four to consider. The list below includes their name, location, and (net profit margin):

• City Holdings (NASDAQ: CHCO) Charleston, WV (33.7%)
• First Midwest Bankcorp (NASDAQ: FMBI) Itasca, IL (32.6%)
• Valley National (NYSE: VLY) Wayne, NJ (34.4%)
• Prosperity Bancshares (NASDAQ: PRSP) Houston, TX (35.0%)

If you're nervous about where your money is currently deposited, these four might be worth considering. But before you move your money, it would be worth reading their most recent annual reports and quarterly financial statements. Red flags to watch out for include negative cash flow; rising charge-offs and loan loss reserves, and lawsuits.

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in the securities mentioned.