On This Day in Business History…

Today in business history! Yes, apparently we need to stoop so low as to present you with assorted trivia. However, these ones are genuinely interesting, we promise! Read on…

On November 23…

…of 1909, the Wright Brothers have formed a million-dollar corporation that would produce planes. Technically it was November 22, but who’s counting – it’s the pioneers of flight, after all!

…of 1921, in the US, President W. G. Harding signs the so-called anti-beer bill. It is the first act that banned doctors from prescribing beer to treat medical conditions (yes, before that this was a perfectly good medicine!).

…of 1954, the Dow Jones Industrial Average records its first increase since the Great Depression (and before the crash of 1929). Take a long, hard look at how long it took the US to bounce back. Globally, first real post-war business growth would start to materialize even later on the other side of the pond). Hopefully, it won’t take us that long post-pandemic for stocks to return to their previous levels.

…of 1982, the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) have decided that there should no longer be limits on length and content of TV ads. Previously commercials could run up to 8.5 minutes per hour and 1 product would feature in a single spot and these limits were agreed to by the industry itself. This is when DVR, TiVo, and later – VOD/Netflix model – have truly became the necessary solutions to the evil of ads.

…of 1992, The Business Week magazine feature claims computer industry is at the point of oversaturation. Mass IBM and Sun Microsystems layoffs are cited as examples. Oh, so it was not a growing industry back then? How peculiar. Meanwhile, don’t forget, that this same year saw the release of the very first smartphone, dubbed Simon, to lukewarm reception (and rather shoddy cellular one, too).

…of 2018 the Federal Climate report in the US highlights the impact global warming will have on business. Sobering statistics include 10% market shrinkage (permanent) by 2100, USD 118 bln cost related to the effects of sea levels rising and USD 141 bln in cost associated with people dying from heat.

VOCABULARY

apparently – najwyraźniej
to stoop so low as to do sth – zniżyć się do poziomu zrobienia czegoś
assorted – dobrany, wybrany
trivia – ciekawostki
genuinely – autentycznie
flight – lot
bill – projekt ustawy
act – ustawa
to ban sb from doing sth – zabronić komuś robienia czegoś
to prescribe sth – zapisywać coś (lek, receptę)
medical condition – schorzenie
Dow Jones Industrial Average – indeks akcji DJIA
the Great Depression – Wielki Kryzys
crash – krach
to bounce back – wrócić do normy/formy
post-war – powojenny
to materialize – urzeczywistniać się
the other side of the pond – druga strona Atlantyku
stocks – akcje, udziały
the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) – Federalna Komisja Komunikacji (Krajowa Rada Radiofonii i Telewizji USA)
content – zawartość
ad (advertisement) – reklama
commercial – reklama
to feature sth – przedstawiać, ukazywać coś
spot – spot reklamowy
VOD (video on demand) – filmy na żądanie
feature – artykuł
oversaturation – nadmierne wysycenie (np. rynku)
layoffs – (masowe) zwolnienia
to cite sth – przytaczać coś (jako przykład)
growing industry – zwyżkująca branża, rozwijający się przemysł
peculiar – dziwny
dubbed X – ochrzczony mianem X, nazwany X
lukewarm – letni, nijaki
reception – odbiór (nowego produktu przez rynek), zasięg (telefonii komórkowej)
shoddy – słaby, kiepski
to highlight sth – uwypuklić coś, naświetlić
sobering – trzeźwiący, dający do myślenia
shrinkage – skurczenie się, zmniejszenie
permanent – stały
associated with sth – powiązany z czymś