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Quest Means Business
Ford's Profits Up; Beware Roaming Fees
Aired April 26, 2011 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RICHARD QUEST, HOST, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: They've been revving up their engines and now Ford's profits are up.
If you are traveling with a smart phone or tablet, beware; those roaming fees around the world.
And Kate Middleton's wedding dress may be the best-kept secret. That doesn't stop us from gossiping about it!
I'm Richard Quest, an hour with you, as we both mean business.
Good evening.
Our last night, tonight, of the Q25. And we have a raft of important U.S. companies to decide whether they get greens or reds. For instance, Ford, the motor company, the best first quarter for 13 years. The U.S. company says things haven't been this good since the first three months of 1998. More Americans are choosing its cars over GM's. Ford made $2.5 billion in the quarter. A 22 percent gain on last year. Global sales up as well. Ford seems to be meeting a demand for fuel efficient cars at a time when gasoline prices are squeezing motorists all over the world. That is the story from Ford. And we'll deal with how it gets a green or a red. Or I suspect you can guess the answer to that before we have gone any further.
But other quarterly numbers out look to be positive. UBS, the wealthy clients poured more than $12.5 billion into the banks wealth management unit. Marks the return to healthy fund inflows. We also have slowly bleeding out of the bank, UBS made more than $2 billion in the quarter. Shares ended the day up 4 percent. Coca-cola shares are down at the moment. The drinks company managed to miss market expectations because of what's happening in Japan.
Emerging markets are driving profits at 3M. The name behind Post-It Notes and many other products saw double-digit sales growth in China, India and Brazil. Business suffered because, again, of Japan. 3M made over $1 billion in the quarter. Overall sales were up 15 percent. It raised its full-year forecast for the full year.
Now let's plug in these numbers into our Q25. Todd Benjamin is with me here.
TODD BENJAMIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Good to see you, Richard.
QUEST: Very good to see you.
As you can see over here, we have the numbers. I'm going to head over there in a moment. But we should really start-let's start with Ford. Under the criteria that we allow for this. Ford gets five out of five, so it is an automatic green.
BENJAMIN: I would agree with that. I mean, you know, terrific quarter. As you said, the best in 13 years. But I think more importantly it is where Ford has come from. You know the CEO there, you know, he lost $30 billion between 2006, 2008. Now it has had this terrific quarter. And I think you have to give Allan Mullaly a lot of credit because what he has done is, he has designed new cars. He is making cars that people want. And even though they have raised prices, worldwide they have raised prices by $900 million in the quarter, they are still selling cars.
QUEST: Is this Mullaly, or is it Ford, or is it the company? Because he has-I mean, the man doesn't walk on water. Or does he?
BENJAMIN: No, he doesn't walk on water and he'd be the first to admit that. But the point is he is building cars that people want to buy. You know, they weren't bailed out, like GM as, for instance.
QUEST: Ah! That is what is really getting to you, isn't it?
BENJAMIN: No, no, no.
QUEST: They weren't bailed out.
BENJAMIN: Not at all. People don't buy cars on whether or not they were bailed out, but the point is, that this is a company that is very efficient, very lean. And the American public likes what they are designing.
QUEST: The get a green, quite clearly.
BENJAMIN: Absolutely.
QUEST: Let's got to Coca-Cola. It is four out of five. It is an automatic green, but there are problems with Coca-Cola?
BENJAMIN: Yes, I'm not sure I would give it a green.
QUEST: We have to under the rules-they way we-
BENJAMIN: All right. All right. That's OK, you have your rules.
QUEST: It is what we call a grudging green.
BENJAMIN: OK, fine, a grudging green. One of the things I found interesting in Coca-cola results and it shows, really, how a companies have been affected by the tsunami, the tragic tsunami what we had in Japan. You know, more than a tenth of their operating profit comes from Japan. That clearly hurt them in this quarter.
QUEST: Right. We give it a grudging green. The yields, the way the company performed, it is clearly not.
3M is five out of five. It is another automatic green. Fascinating, 3M, when 3M performs well, it is a harbinger for the general economy overall.
BENJAMIN: What is really interesting about 3M, as you said, most people know it because of those yellow Post-It Notes. But really what really stood out in this quarter, is that they make film that you put over solar panels and computer tablets. And that was very important to them. Again, Japan came into play in their earnings because actually their earnings in the quarter were 10 to 13 cents higher per share if it weren't for the tsunami in Japan. Now, fortunately they were able to offset a lot of that, because of currency transaction exchange. But nevertheless, you can see how Japan, the world's third largest economy, is impacting some of these companies.
QUEST: UPS only got two out of five; and yet, when I looked at UPS, I liked what I saw. Yields were up.
BENJAMIN: Volumes were up.
QUEST: Volumes-only just-volumes were.
(CROSS TALK)
QUEST: You could see bad weather. You could see why they had problems.
BENJAMIN: But on the other hand they are a good barometer of what is going on in the global economy. And I think the market, you know, is relieved.
QUEST: Do we agree on a green?
BENJAMIN: Give them a green.
QUEST: Give them a green.
And Delta Airlines?
BENJAMIN: Delta Airlines, now this is your pack. You love the airlines. It was a smaller loss than expected; $311 million, but it is still a loss. And you know in the airline business, it is a terrible business. You love it, but it is a terrible business to be in. Because right now, of course, with rising fuel prices, jet fuel has increased 41 percent in the quarter.
QUEST: Right.
BENJAMIN: They raised ticket prices six times and they still loose money.
QUEST: It is a red.
BENJAMIN: It's a red, yeah.
QUEST: Dog in manger. Sorry, Delta.
Finally, UBS?
BENJAMIN: UBS.
QUEST: I'm betwixt and between on UBS.
BENJAMIN: I would give them a green. I'll tell you why. Because one thing they have done is their wealth management did far better than analysts expected.
QUEST: Right.
BENJAMIN: $19 billion, that was more than double what analysts had expected in terms of the amount of money coming back into the wealth management, as well as their retail business. Obviously, the public is feeling a lot more bullish about equities, because it is the only game in town. And they capitalize on that after having a disastrous few years because of the financial crisis where they got caught wrong-footed, because of the sub-prime crisis.
QUEST: I think we need to add things up. We seem to have 26, instead of the Q25. We'll have to work out why.
Todd, let's pull some strands together.
BENJAMIN: Yes.
QUEST: As we look at all of this. Because what we see here is frankly, a seriously, better performance, by corporate America, but not an overwhelming barn-burner of a quarter.
BENJAMIN: No, but what is interesting is, you know, if you look at most of the company results reported so far? 79 percent of those have had beaten analysts expectations. So to me, the question isn't so much about the companies. It is really about the analysts. Why do they so constantly get it wrong?
QUEST: All right. Let's talk about the Fed, briefly.
BENJAMIN: Yes.
QUEST: Before we finish.
BENJAMIN: Right. Big meeting this week.
QUEST: The Fed meets-but Bernanke also-
BENJAMIN: First time.
QUEST: He has a press conference?
BENJAMIN: Yes, first time he is ever going to have a press conference. They want to become, obviously, more transparent. You know he's going to have a lot of questions about inflation.
QUEST: All right. I asked Alison Kosik yesterday, I'm going to ask you the same question. You have one question to Bernanke, assuming you are in the audience, what would your one question be?
BENJAMIN: I think my one question to Ben Bernanke would be, why are you still not raising rates?
QUEST: Ah!
QUEST: You have some friends on the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee.
BENJAMIN: There you go.
QUEST: Todd.
BENJAMIN: Great to see you, as always.
QUEST: Enjoy the royal wedding.
BENJAMIN: Yes, exactly.
QUEST: It seems we all have shiny smart phones in our pockets, even if they are tracking our every move. Next the privacy and the digital age; how much are you willing to sacrifice?
(DESK BELL CHIMES)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Sony is joining the party. It has unveiled its first tablet computers. The S1 and the S2, catchy names, perhaps, like most iPad rivals both went on Google's Android operating system. The S2 has the novel feature of folding half like a book, with a display on each side. Both are due out this autumn. Sony has already a year behind Apple, which started selling the original iPad in March 2010.
RIM, from Blackberry is also after a slice. We know it has its Playbook that went on sale last week to less than stellar reviews. Android and Apple gadgets have been under fire for tracking the every move. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said that privacy is no longer a social norm. And says, "People have gotten comfortable, not only sharing more information, but different kinds of information, but more openly and with more people."
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt predicts that all young people-all young people-I guess that is not me, I'm heading towards 50-will be entitled to change their names to distance themselves from their online past. He told "The Wall Street Journal" he doesn't "believe society understands what happens when everything is available, knowable, and recorded by everyone, all the time."
There is no question that as we embrace more and more technology our privacy levels are suffering. And the question is how far would you go before you did something about it. What would you abandon if privacy was the issue?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is nothing. I mean, because it is a necessity. It is a necessity in our lives now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) them getting into my bank account and stuff like that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want an iPhone so bad. So, I don't care about that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I heard there was a general health risk from mobile phone, but I think that is yet to be determined.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That is why I use a Unix (ph) phone, so they don't follow me around.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Jason Kincaid is a writer for the technology site, TechCrunch.com. Jason is with me now, live, from San Francisco.
Good evening. Good afternoon to you. Good evening in London.
JASON KINCAID, WRITER, TECHCRUNCH.COM: Good evening.
QUEST: Jason, this privacy question. You know, we are missing the point. It is not that we have location services involved in our iPads, iPhones, it is that the information is now being transmitted to a third party.
KINCAID: Right. There are actually a couple of things going on here. It is sort of two different issues. You have got one where recently it was discovered that IOS devices, mainly the iPhone and the iPad, are recording your location information to a file on your device. That data, most of it isn't going back to Apple. And that is where it is sort of unclear how much they're getting. Likewise, with Google, they are getting some of the information, but everyone is saying-or these companies are saying it is (UNINTELLIGIBLE) or they are not doing anything sinister with it.
QUEST: But, the answer is always given by the companies, you can always switch off location services, which seems to me a bit like saying, by the dog, but bark yourself. Surely, what they are not offering you is an option to use location services, just don't send the data.
KINCAID: Right. They are definitely not doing that-at least not yet. I mean, we may see over-I mean, there is now going to be a congressional hearing on privacy. And I think the fact that this conversation is going on now is really important, because are now starting to understand just how powerful these devices can be. I don't think that Google or Apple are up to anything too sinister. And I think that they have-we are so early in this race that it would be unwise for them to, really, do anything too risky. And I think they are just kind of testing the waters with what they can gather. And for starters I'd be surprised if they are really gathering too much sensitive information.
QUEST: Look, OK, all right, I'll concede your point that Google and Apple are not malevolent, they are not evil, they are not doing it out of some wish to know what is going on in your bedroom. But, Jason, what I will say is, the principles of privacy that we have lived our lives by, in a democracy. Surely they have to be respected in the digital age.
KINCAID: Absolutely. I think you are 100 percent right. And I think this is why it is so important that people become aware, that these devices can track this information if they are not careful. I think it is really going to be up to the user to control what data they are sending. And it is really awareness at this point.
QUEST: Finally, I have got to ask you, Sony has an I-I was gong to say iPad-Sony has a tablet, Dell has got a tablet, RIM's got a tablet. They really only got to all be tablets that are in some cases better than the market leader. And so far the jury is out.
KINCAID: I don't think the jury is out. I think the iPad is far and above, better than all of the tablets you just named. And I think it is because Apple has really built up a really strong eco-system and a really polished operating system. I think in Android's case and in the case of the numerous Android tablets that are coming out, that it will get closer to what the iPad is. I think RIM still has a ways to go there.
QUEST: We will talk more about it. Many thanks, indeed, Jason, for your insight on the question of privacy.
KINCAID: Thank you very much.
QUEST: Great to have you with us live from San Francisco.
Your hotel is booked, your flight is paid for, you might think you have all your bases covered. If you are thinking of taking one of these with you, you could be in for a nasty surprise. And I don't mean because your location services may be found. The U.K. consumer watchdog, "Which?" is warning that roaming charges with your tablet could cost you more than 1,000 times more than they would at home; all of the U.K.'s networks will charge you at least $989 for just one little gigabyte of data in the U.S. If your contract is with Orange, that number can become astronomical, $13,505.
This can't be right, surely. Tom McLennan is with me. The head of "Which?" mobile.
TOM MCLENNAN, HEAD, WHICH? MOBILE: Good evening.
QUEST: Good evening. I mean, I've only got this phone, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) you could have an iPhone, you could the Blackberry, whatever.
MCLENNAN: It could be anything.
QUEST: And this is the modern-day daylight robbery.
MCLENNAN: Yes, particularly, if you are roaming overseas. You have got to be very careful, when you are heading off to your destination that, first of all, you have checked what it is actually going to cost you when you are traveling. And I think from our point of view, which we are making, we want to make customers absolutely aware that this is a perennial problem for people who are traveling, particularly on their holidays, or are coming into the U.K. when they are doing their-well, coming to the royal wedding, for instance. They have to be very, very careful about how much they are actually being charged to use these devices.
QUEST: I understand Which? is obviously from the consumer's point of view, and but the companies involved. And I did an article on this once and one of the companies told me we do it because that is what the market will bear. When will this change?
MCLENNAN: Well, I think as consumers become-use these devices more and more and they become more prevalent, there is going to be more and more pressure for these prices to come down. Particularly, when consumers, themselves, are paying for it, not the organizations that are sending them on these trips.
QUEST: You see that is the problem. That is the point, isn't it?
MCLENNAN: Yes.
QUEST: When CNN sends me on assignment, I will open the apps a million times a day. When I am sending, on my own holiday, I'll be lucky if I open it in two weeks.
MCLENNAN: Absolutely. And in the EU they have a regulation, tight regulation for this, up to 40 pounds per usage, per month.
QUEST: Yes, but that regulation is ridiculous, isn't it? Because unlike the phone-the mobile roaming data for phones, where they capped-
MCLENNAN: The charges.
QUEST: -the charges. Here they merely said, oh, no, no, no, you get a warning and you may get cut off; instead, of telling the companies, cut the prices.
MCLENNAN: Yes, I agree with you. Yes, they have done this. And I think it is just a matter of time, I think. But I think from my point of view it is till we get to that point, that optimum point, they need to be aware of what they are doing, ensure that they turn off their wi-fi, turn off anything that is going to interact with their device, if they are unsure about what it is going to cost them.
QUEST: Ultimately, when this-this is going to obviously going to get cheaper, how-from your experience, how annoyed, how angry, are consumers about this? I mean, I'm hot under the collar.
MCLENNAN: It is hysterical. I mean, they come back from holidays, now the EU is recently well regulated, but if you are heading off to the U.S., or if you are going to the Middle East, from the U.K., or perhaps you are coming into it. It is open season. It is open season.
QUEST: What is the worst country? The worst offending country?
MCLENNAN: I couldn't give you a worst-offending country. There are a few. I think I've had some examples of people who have been in Canada, who have been in Kenya, who have been very heavily hit with these rates. They have asked their operator, when they have been there, and they get a-
QUEST: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
MCLENNAN: The other thing is also, people have got to be aware when they go into these countries that they can roam from different network to different network. And that can also hurt them. If they roam off a different network-they may have signed a deal with Vodafone to go over to Kenya, but they end up on another network, and that deal is gone.
QUEST: Many thanks indeed. Enjoy the royal wedding.
MCLENNAN: I will.
QUEST: And don't do too much roaming.
MCLENNAN: No, well, if you do, turn off your-
QUEST: In other words, make it into a big paperweight.
MCLENNAN: Yes, to a T. Thank you very much.
(LAUGHTER)
QUEST: Thank you very much.
After the break, an interview with "The Boss". I sit down with Sarah Curran. And we discuss what it is like running her company. The sacrifices that she has had to make to get to the top, (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
(DESK BELL CHIMES)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: It has already been quite a year for Sarah Curran. Redesigns, re-launches, and re-evaluations of how she manages her company. Each week we have watched her run the show at My-Wardrobe.com. And tonight, we are going to ask her, face to face, how she does it. Sarah Curran, one on one, "The Boss."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Over the last six months Sara Curran has redesigned and re-launched My-Wardrobe.com. The transformation has seen the online retailer double in size in a single year. Richard Quest sits down with Sara Curran, the founder and CEO of My-Wardrobe, for a visit with "The Boss".
QUEST: Are you satisfied with where My-Wardrobe.com is at the moment?
SARAH CURRAN, FOUNDER & CEO, MY-WARDROBE.COM: Now is probably the first time I have looked at the site and I feel really, really proud. Because I am super, super critical.
QUEST: Every CEO always talks to me about the team, and it is the people, and that their biggest task is choosing the team.
CURRAN: I've got such a passionate team and actually the team, the executive team has stayed the same. I haven't lost anyone. I think that is a true testament to everyone's passion.
I'm very passionate about My-Wardrobe. And I want it to be phenomenally successful. And so I have a team-I need a team that is as passionate as me. And I have that.
QUEST: As passionate as you?
CURRAN: I mean, I am obsessive, that is my problem. So, I'm going to be-I'm probably the most passionate, but I need my team to have-because we've got big targets that we want to achieve. So that is what is going to drive the business.
QUEST: Are you one of those people to work for that everyone says, Oh, my God, she is in a mood again today. Oh my God, just stay clear from her.
CURRAN: Oh, you want to have spoken to some of the team members this morning.
(LAUGHTER)
QUEST: What sends you through the roof?
CURRAN: Lack of urgency, drives me mad.
QUEST: You are having difficulty sitting still?
CURRAN: I've got a lot pent up energy.
(LAUGHTER)
QUEST: I mean, the leg is going, the hands going.
CURRAN: Oh, I know. I know. Because there is always something-
QUEST: What is going on?
CURRAN: There is always I need to do. There is always something I'm thinking about. But that's a good thing.
You know, I've sacrificed a lot over the last five years. You know, we've made a lot of financial sacrifices, made a lot of sacrifices in my relationships and within family. You know, it has not always been easy.
QUEST: One thing that is fascinating, over the last six months, we have hardly heard anything about your personal life.
CURRAN: Yes.
QUEST: And that is partly deliberate on our part, but also, it is very deliberate on your part.
CURRAN: I've got two priorities in my life, my son, Jake, and My- Wardrobe.
QUEST: And how do you find balance in those two priorities?
CURRAN: Quite difficult originally. And I think it is fair to say, the balance was more weighted towards work, and the business, than it was to Jake. You know, he's very important to me, obviously, he's my son.
QUEST: Yes, but you have another child, don't you?
CURRAN: My-Wardrobe.
QUEST: Absolutely. And you don't want to choose between your children?
CURRAN: No, no.
QUEST: At what point do you have to let go, because you are no longer an entrepreneur, are you?
CURRAN: I mean, I now have a board that I have to answer to. I have responsibilities. It is no longer-it is a very different structure than it was three years ago. And as a founder, you need to know when to draw the line, in terms of-is it your-you need to release ownership to a lot of your team.
QUEST: We've heard you talk about delegating.
CURRAN: Yes.
QUEST: You are a terrible delegator.
CURRAN: Why do you say that? I thought I was great.
I left the team with the sort of enviable task of doing the tasting for the canapes and cocktails and drinks, etc cetera, for the event. And I am a bit of a control freak. But I left quite clear instructions-even down to the size of the canape.
(LAUGHTER)
QUEST: You micromanage the canapes!
CURRAN: Anything emotion touch, feel, to the brand, I'm all over it. I know, you know, I feel that I know what is best. I know, I'm a control freak.
QUEST: When you wake up in the morning and you go to bed at night, and you think of the salaries that depend on it.
CURRAN: Yes.
QUEST: And the work that depends on it, and the jobs that you have created. Basically, you have created, you must be very proud of it.
CURRAN: You are going to think I am, again, lying, but it is a team effort. It is always been a team effort. So, I'm very proud of what the team has achieved.
QUEST: Why can't you take credit for what you have achieved.
CURRAN: Oh, I do take-well, I don't know?
QUEST: Have you treated yourself to any little luxury that is a talisman for you, or your own success.
CURRAN: No. No.
QUEST: You haven't got the Porsche? You haven't got the diamond bling?
CURRAN: Oh, I have got a Porsche!
(LAUGHTER)
CURRAN: This is the modern way of shopping and dressing for the real woman.
QUEST: Will you know when it is time, or if it is time to leave this job?
CURRAN: Yes, absolutely.
QUEST: Or will you have to be shoved out the door?
CURRAN: The moment that-and I've always had this philosophy with work, the moment I wake up and I just dread going into the office, dread going to work, don't feel passionate about it. That has always been my cue to leave. And I think the same will happen with Wardrobe.
QUEST: It's been an honor and a pleasure. Thank you very much.
CURRAN: Thank you, so much.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Next week, on "The Boss".
MICHAEL WU, CEO, MAXIM GROUP: A lot of people said to me, Michael, don't do hospital catering. Because all you get is complaints.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Michael Wu proves you can combine public service with profitability.
And in New York, big plans become reality for Steve Hindy, but can he keep the customers thirsting for more?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: So, we have three bosses that we are following, and you can follow the entire series, episodes one through 20 are all at Facebook.com/Quest. That is where you can click to be a friend and a follower, and join our viewing party there. And we hope you will make the effort and join us. I'll be back after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Hello. I'm Richard Quest, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
This is CNN. And on this network, the news always comes first.
I need to tell you a human rights group says more than 400 people have been killed in Syria since the unrest began last month. Many of the deaths happened in Daraa, the city that's become the heart of the uprising. And today, smoke could be seen there and gunshots heard. The U.N. Security Council is expected to work on a statement today condemning the violence.
The port of Misrata is taking its heaviest pounding so far from Libya's pro-regime forces. Witnesses said at least three people were killed when rockets fired by Gadhafi loyalists hit refugees. Skirmishes are also being reported between rebels and Gadhafi's fighters on the outskirts of Misrata.
Staying in the region and Egyptian authorities are withdrawing their orders to move Hosni Mubarak to a military hospital in Cairo. The former president's medical team says the move could put his life at risk. Former President Mubarak has been in detention at a hospital in Sharm El-Sheikh. He's accused of corruption and involvement in the deaths of activities earlier this year.
The fate of the Galleon hedge fund founder, Raj Rajaratnam, is being decided in New York. A jury is in its second day of deliberations on the biggest insider trading case ever in the United States.
Felicia Taylor is outside the court -- it is always a difficult moment, Felicia, for any journalist, because we can't speculate -- well, that's all we can do, really. We can't sort of forecast. It's improper to talk about what might be happening. We can just speculate to our heart's content.
So let's do just that.
Is the is there a surprise that the jury is still out one way or the other?
FELICIA TAYLOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, there are two camps in this. And, you know, what we do know is that the jurors came back this morning for about an hour-and-a-half. And then they asked the judge one more time for another eight counts of evidence. But this time, the evidence revolved around the wiretaps -- very specific conversations that they requested between already cooperating witness, some of whom -- who have pled guilty. So they're looking to specify and clarify conversations that took place between Raj Rajaratnam and other possible witnesses in this case, like I said, some of whom have already pled guilty.
So it's interesting, we can't speculate whether or not there is dissension amongst the jurors, if there is confusion in terms of terminology. Again, the most basic of termin -- of terminology is centered around the words "material" and "non-public information" and whether or not Raj Rajaratnam, you know, makes part of his trading platform this mosaic of information, where he gathers information from all different aspects.
But, clearly, they are looking for specifics as to what these conversations meant between Raj Rajaratnam and -- and other people and whether or not this is insider trading.
So, you're right, we can't speculate as to where the jury stands right now. It could be hours, it could be days.
But here's an overview of what we've all -- what we know so far.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TAYLOR (voice-over): It was a classic courtroom battle that some believe could change the way Wall Street insiders do business. After seven weeks of testimony and more than a dozen witnesses, it all came down to how jurors interpreted government recorded phone conversations between former hedge fund giant, Raj Rajaratnam and his network of associates -- a true tale of the tapes for this modern age.
During closing arguments, prosecutors alleged that Raj Rajaratnam used insider stock tips to game the system and walk away with more than $60 million in illegal profits.
According to Prosecutor Reed Brodsky, Rajaratnam's goal was to, quote, "conquer the stock market at the expense of the law."
"It meant the defendant knew tomorrow's news today," Brodsky argued during closing arguments. "And it meant big money for the defendant's fund and for himself."
One tape played during the trial, a conversation between Rajaratnam and hedge fund analyst, Danielle Chiesi. In July 2008, she allegedly tells Rajaratnam of an upcoming profit warning from tech firm, Akamai.
DANIELLE CHIESI: Please don't (EXPLETIVE LANGUAGE) on this, but I'm not short anything. I'm not trading it anymore, but I'm trading it tomorrow.
RAJ RAJARATNAM: Yes.
CHIESI: They're going to guide me down. I just got a call from my guy. I played him like a fine-tooth piano and then he just called me now. I was talking about the family and everything and then he said people think it's going to go to $25. They print on Wednesday.
TAYLOR: During its closing arguments, the defense did not deny that Rajaratnam received corporate information from insiders. But Attorney John Dowd said the information was not secret and not central to Rajaratnam's investment decisions.
According to Dowd, Rajaratnam sought out viewpoints from many sources before making trades.
"The government's case rests on the fictional idea that company information cannot become public until a company issues a press release," Dowd said. He also told the jury, quote: "In the real world, information can become public in all kinds of ways." And, in an allusion to a line in the famous O.J. Simpson trial, he said, quote: "If it's public, you must acquit."
During this trial, experts agreed that the prosecution's tape recordings were damaging to the defense.
The big question remains -- whether the government proved to the jury beyond a reasonable doubt that this information was non-public insider information.
Felicia Taylor, CNN.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
TAYLOR: So -- so the jury is on their lunch break at the moment, for another 30 minutes or so. And then they'll go back into deliberations. And we've already been told that they are going to suspend deliberations for the day at 5:00. So that's about a two hour period where they can go over some of the evidence that they've already gathered so far. And whether or not they've actually started to approach the verdict form.
Again, there's 14 counts, five on conspiracy and another nine on securities fraud.
So, you know, all I can tell you, Richard, is that whenever you try to anticipate a jury, you're usually wrong. Some say it could be a very quick decision. Others expect this to go on for days.
I will tell you, I shared a lift with the defense team and Raj Rajaratnam. They seemed quite friendly and fairly relaxed -- Richard.
QUEST: Felicia Taylor joining us from outside the courtroom in New York.
In search of the next "King's Speech," the head of one of the world's oldest film studios tells us his plan is to make British cinema great again.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: London's films Ealing Studios has signed a deal with the moneymen behind "The King's Speech" in the search for Britain's next movie masterpiece. As one of the world's oldest film studios, which made some of the classic comedies of our time. Ealing is merging with the Financier Prescience.
CNN's Jim Boulden asked the studio boss how this deal exactly helps revitalize the British film industry.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARNABY THOMPSON, CEO, EALING STUDIOS: Well, you know, in the old days, you know, Ealing Studios was a home for talent and produced a lot of very good films every year. And in a sense, we're trying to replicate that.
JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What does this say about the British film industry, because it does seem to be like other industries, where it, all -- all the talk is about the British film industry. Then you get worries about the strong dollar or the weak dollar or the strong pound. And then there's worries about film financing and then tax breaks from the government that may come. And then sometimes they're taken away.
Where are we now in the -- the realm of the British film industry?
THOMPSON: Film financing in the British film industry is a very delicate ecology. So it means that small changes make big differences to the ability to get films made. There's always been a good base of talent here, but, you know, the dollar does make a difference...
BOULDEN: Yes.
THOMPSON: -- because it affects -- the dollar is the international currency of the film business. So if the pound goes up against the dollar, certainly it makes British films more expensive in the international marketplace.
The -- we do need a level of help in terms of either tax credits or an incentive to invest in films because they are -- you know, they're high risk ventures.
BOULDEN: Was there a lot of skeptics at the time that you purchased this who said actually, there isn't room for an Ealing Studios anymore?
THOMPSON: You know, when we bought this in 2000, the tumbleweed was more or less being blown across the car park. No one had spent any money on it in a long time and, you know, the film business was in out of its dips.
I think people were grateful that the studio wasn't being turned into a supermarket.
But at the same time, I don't think there was enormous confidence there, you know, we could make something of it. We've probably invested 20 or 30 million pounds in the site. You'll see the buildings redone, the dressing rooms redone, the stages. And I think, you know, hopefully, we've put the name Ealing Studios back on the map.
BOULDEN: So when you think about Ealing Studios to people around the world, do they remember the name of the great old Ealing comedies and those films?
Or is it -- is the name a bit of a weight?
THOMPSON: The old Ealing comedies, which were made sort of in the '40s and '50s here, are still, I think, very well loved and well known all around the world, particularly, obviously, in the U.K., and also in America and Canada, which has a particular fondness for Ealing.
(VIDEO CLIP)
THOMPSON: The great thing about the success of a film like "The King's Speech" is that it reminds everyone -- and by everyone, I mean the financiers and distributors, but also the audience -- that British films can deliver great joy and, therefore, great box office, which means that -- you know, that film is going to end up doing over $400 million worldwide, which is an enormous sum of money.
And it means that everyone has to then look at British films that much more seriously, in a way, because they -- they're reminded of what the up side can be.
BOULDEN: I see the name Colin Firth around on posters and things so I guess the fact that he's very well known in "The King's Speech" is certainly something that's going to help Ealing.
THOMPSON: Yes. We -- we've been working with Colin for a long time, before -- even before he was famous. So whether he'll still talk to us now, of course, remains to be seen.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO TAPE)
QUEST: That was Ealing. And those comedies and classics loved on a Sunday afternoon with a cup of tea and a digestive biscuit.
Guillermo is at the World Weather Center.
There will be no sitting down with a cup of -- well, maybe with a cup of tea and a digestive biscuit, maybe for some, but not for us, as we cover the royal wedding.
And we've spent far too long talking about the weather on Friday. It will be whatever it will be.
GUILLERMO ARDUINO, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it will. But, you know, we're trying really hard.
And I'm going to tell you there's a name that may complicate things a little bit. You'll understand in a second.
So here we see that we have some white clouds all over the Midlands and into the south. But it does -- it seems that it's not going to happen like it usually happens. But we have to look at this trough, or this low in Germany. Actually, we're getting reports right now from Tegel here in Berlin, with rain, as we speak. And also here in Milano, we see rain at this very moment.
This low may advance gradually into the Netherlands -- will advance gradually into the Netherlands. When we get rain in the Netherlands, it is in anticipation of the rain that we may get on Friday in London. And it has a name. Once they baptize this low, it will be Manfred Stube (ph). So we have at least a name, probably coming from Germany, to blame all these problems on.
But the forecast continues to be with showers for Friday, Richard. The temperature at 18. Definitely a cool down, because we're going to notice that, especially all those camping out are going to notice a gradual change.
But it's not going to be abundant rain. We think that we're going to see the chance of rain showers, especially in the evening hours or maybe while it rains in the Netherlands on Friday morning, we are getting the clouds in London and then by the evening hours, we get the occasional rain shower.
So you see sunshine for Wednesday, clouds on the increase and then rain showers likely.
So that's the official forecast. We have this -- the high here moving away. And that high is allowing the system that is forming here, a lower trough, to move gradually into Britain.
So it's not going to come from the Atlantic Ocean. It's going to come from here. And, at the same time, we will have that Netherlands breeze that is going to continue to cool things down a little bit.
That is definitely a change. And that is definitely something the people attending or visiting London, the royal wedding, should bear in mind, because that's the -- they need to carry either a sweater or a jumper or something to protect from the cool air.
Rain showers or intense rain in Calgary, in Southern Italy as we speak; also, Athens reporting some thunderstorms and some rain as we speak, as well. We may see problems at the airports. And you see again -- let me emphasize from the area of cool weather now governing the situation for the Midlands and also for England, you see.
So the rain is going to move from Germany all the way into the west -- Mr. Quest, back to you.
QUEST: All right, Guillermo.
In other words, I can -- I can sum it up in two sentences. Bring a brolly and a -- and a warm sweater.
Many thanks, Guillermo at the World...
ARDUINO: I would do that.
QUEST: Many thanks.
Guillermo is at the World Weather Center.
Now, it is the best kept secret at the heart of the royal romance. The stuff of fairy tales -- a gown fit for a princess. We reveal how Catherine is managing to keep the dress under wraps.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Friday is all about Catherine and William and one other person. Aside from the bride, few people know who it is. We could be talking Alexander McQueen or we could be talking Alice Temperly or maybe it will be Issa.
I'd never heard of half these people until the royal wedding. But you probably know, they're all designers who are tipped to be the creators of the dress. We won't know until 11:00 on Friday morning, London time.
As Isha Sesay reports, these days, to be able to keep such a secret for so many months, well, frankly, it's an extraordinary feat.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ISHA SESAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They are the best-guarded secrets in preparing for her big close-up.
Who will design Kate Middleton's wedding dress?
Will it compare to Princess Diana's?
To get the scoop, I teamed up with this man. Bowles' clout as an industry insider opened a world to us usually reserved only for top designers and celebrities.
(on camera): And this area that we're in is off limits to the public, is that -- is that correct?
HAMISH BOWLES, "VOGUE'S" EUROPEAN EDITOR-AT-LARGE: Yes. Yes. This is absolutely the inner sanctum.
SESAY: That's incredible.
(voice-over): We followed him through the prestigious halls of the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum in New York. Inside the executive meeting room and behind the doors of the acclaimed Fashion Closet at "Vogue" headquarters in Manhattan.
Our mission -- to get answers about Katie's wedding dress.
(on camera): And the dress is being made at both parties, is my understanding?
BOWLES: Yes. And the buzz seems to be that the garment is actually being created there to really keep it far away from prying eyes.
SESAY: She's been able to keep the designer of her dress secret.
BOWLES: I actually think it's kind of wonderful in this age, where nothing is private, you know?
All it takes is a cell phone picture and something goes viral.
SESAY: Do you think the dress, the moment we see it, that women of the world lay their eyes on it, people will be in factories reproducing it?
BOWLES: Yes, yes. Absolutely. Diana's dress almost -- she stepped out of the carriage and I mean there were -- they were literally starting to sketch the moment the carriage appeared from Buckingham Palace.
SESAY (voice-over): Diana's dress designers were so careful about secrecy that they created a code name for Diana, calling her "Debra." Every night, they'd lock the dress in a metal safe and had two security guards to guard it.
But will Kate's wedding dress look anything like Princess Diana's?
BOWLES: It had presence and romance and that 25-foot long cathedral train.
SESAY: While Diana's designers paid attention to several royal wedding gowns, they particularly noted this one worn by Queen Victoria, while Kate's designers looked to 1947, the start of the most successful long marriage in royal history, the queen and Prince Philip, or further back in royal history to the American Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor.
(on camera): And this is the duchess of Windsor's wedding dress.
BOWLES: Yes, it is, indeed. It's a -- it's a dress and a jacket. And it was created for her by Namboshe (ph) Bjorn Manboker (ph) of Chicago. And, of course, he dressed all the chicest American, and, indeed, international ladies of the 1930s. She, of course, was a double divorcee. So she wasn't really going to wear a fairy tale wedding dress.
SESAY: And wasn't it blue originally?
BOWLES: The dye has actually proved fugitive. It's incredibly unusual. So we're looking at a sort of gray dress. But actually, you have to imagine that it would have been the color blue of the shoes.
SESAY: Is there anything in it that you feel gives us some clue to Catherine Middleton?
BOWLES: She is also drawn to very simple tailored lines and solid color and clothes that discreetly reveal her wonderful body.
Wallis was probably the bride -- the bride who -- who's choice most closely reflected her general wardrobe sense and taste. The duchess of Windsor was high fashion. Diana was fairy tale romance.
I think from Catherine Middleton, we could probably expect something very streamlined modernity, something unfussy and modern.
SESAY (voice-over): Isha Sesay, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
QUEST: We're moving to some very thin ice here, two middle-aged men are now going to start discussing the realms of what she may or may not wear.
Well, we're going to do it from a business point of view, because James Fallon is the editor of "Women's Wear Daily".
And James is a regular on this program.
I'm delighted to have you sitting in the studio.
JAMES FALLON, EDITOR, "WOMEN'S WEAR DAILY": Thank you.
QUEST: Now, why does it matter other than for those in the fashion industry to say ooh, ah, ooh, ooh, ah?
FALLON: Well, those in the fashion industry always go ooh, ah, oh, ooh, ah over everything. But bridal itself is a $2 billion a year industry in the United States alone. So you're talking about a huge industry that's going to have an immediate -- she's going to have an immediate impact on, because there will be knock-offs of that dress within hours of the second she steps out of that car at 11:00 a.m. on Friday.
QUEST: What -- this knock-off idea or this copying, not -- even if it's not a direct knock-off, but this style that you go to, why would -- why do people want to do this, just because -- I mean we saw it clearly with Diana in 1981.
FALLON: Very much so.
QUEST: The puffed sleeves and big over the top dresses and wedding cakes became everywhere.
FALLON: Exactly. Because they like to -- they like to an icon.
And every woman wants to be seen as to being a princess on her wedding dress, so why not copy a real princess?
And I think if you then look at the influence it's going to have beyond just the bridal industry and what she'll do as a fashion person just generally, you are talking about the fashion world that is $90 billion.
QUEST: That dress of Diana's -- we're looking at it now -- it was iconic, wasn't it?
And the jury is still out on whether it was a mistake because of the way it creases?
FALLON: Exactly.
QUEST: What do you think?
FALLON: It's -- it was of its time.
QUEST: Ah.
(LAUGHTER)
FALLON: So 30 years ago, it was a confection of a dress that people gasped about.
But if you look about it now, it's like oh my god, what she was -- what was she wearing?
So I don't...
QUEST: What was she thinking is more likely.
FALLON: Yes, what was she thinking?
QUEST: OK. So what do you think we're going to get this time around?
I mean it's not going to be (INAUDIBLE).
FALLON: It can't be, because she's going to be getting out of a car and not a carriage. So the chances are that it's going to be something simpler. She likes to look back to recycle, to do all that kind of thing. So it could be anything from a very simple dress that's based upon something going back even as far as Queen Mary to maybe even a vintage dress that she gets and reworks.
QUEST: Are you surprised at how they've managed to keep it secret, who's doing it?
Do you know?
FALLON: We don't know. We would love to know. But I...
QUEST: OK, a quick question before we got on to that.
FALLON: Yes, (INAUDIBLE)?
QUEST: If you knew, would you spoil it and say?
Would you scoop it?
FALLON: Yes. It's our job, I'm sorry.
QUEST: That's all right.
FALLON: We would. But I think that -- I'm not surprised at how secret. If you think they kept Diana's dress, even 30 years ago, completely secret. Michelle Obama kept secret what she was going to wear in the Internet era. So if you want to keep a secret, you lock it up.
QUEST: OK, and -- and in terms of the Middleton style, as we move into the Catherine years...
FALLON: Yes?
QUEST: -- what we've seen already -- and I'm on thin ice here because...
FALLON: Yes.
QUEST: -- what I know about women's fashion can be written on the proverbial postage stamp.
FALLON: All right.
QUEST: But simple, play -- not plain, elegant, how would you describe it with a professional voice?
FALLON: I mean simple, plain in a good way, very of what she is, which is a sort of middle class, young, modern, Sloane Ranger. If you look at even the modern version of what Diana wore, she...
QUEST: Is she going to set a style, though?
Or is she just going to be somebody who wears good clothes?
Diana set a style.
FALLON: Well, Diana set a style. But if you look at the early years of Diana, they were disastrous.
And remember the famous marjorette -- majorette outfit she wore a few times?
So it's going to take Catherine a few years to set her style. But she'll set a style, because people will want her to set a style. That's the difference. It's the chicken and the egg.
QUEST: All right, James, finally, are you -- on thin ice again.
FALLON: Oh, yes. Right there.
QUEST: Are you excited, in a sense, that there is this new woman on the block who is potentially going to set a style that will shift the industry that you cover one direction or another?
FALLON: Absolutely. People are -- I mean people are going to be desperate to dress her, get her to their parties, get her to the front row of fashion shows. She is going to become, whether she wants to or not, an icon. She will become an icon in a good and a bad way.
QUEST: And you and I are sitting here with...
FALLON: Exactly right. With ties.
QUEST: With ties.
What does that say?
And now -- would you take advice from us?
Lovely to see you.
FALLON: Nice to see you.
QUEST: Nice to see you, too.
FALLON: Take care.
QUEST: Nice to meet you.
FALLON: All right.
QUEST: Many thanks, indeed.
When we come back in just a moment, a Profitable Moment. And I'm hot under the collar and it's all about roaming charges.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's Profitable Moment.
Forget roaming charges. All this talk of bridal dresses and party planning has been giving us wedding fever.
Now, I asked you to send your photos from your big day, which we're calling For Richer, For Poorer. We are a business show, after all.
Victoria in Lithuania, you sent us these shots of her wedding down by the water, down in 2009. These pictures were sent to us by Pascalina Chanda.
Ah, now they're interesting, aren't they?
She celebrated her one year anniversary with husband Nathan this month. Congratulations. And a ring of the bell to them. They were married in Zambia in 2010.
And finally, many people's favorite bit of the wedding, when Mario and Sally Nunez cut the cake after getting married 30 years ago.
For Richer, For Poorer. It's wedding week. If you've got a wedding picture you want to send, please send it to me, quest@CNN.com. It's the e- mail address is quest@CNN.com and the Facebook page, as always, where you can find us.
We will have more wedding pictures tomorrow, as we celebrate the final few days coming up to the wedding.
Of course, that is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight.
I'm Richard Quest in London.
Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I do hope it's profitable.
"PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT" is after your news headlines.
END
