New ideas and tips for PDF financial reports
OVER the past decade or so, companies seem to have been in a perpetual struggle trying to decide how best to publish their financial reports online. Practices and formats seem to change from one year to the next, with each year seeming to bring some new “innovation” designed to make it “easier” for companies to [...]
The SEC’s requirements for online annual reports and proxy statements
SINCE a few people have asked recently about the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) requirements for online annual reports and proxy statements, I thought I’d put them in this post for future reference. Although many aspects of the so-called e-Proxy rules are not being done well, I think the most overlooked aspect is the [...]
TOTAL’s new CSR report published — almost
ACCORDING to this news release issued by the company yesterday, oil giant TOTAL S.A. (NYSE: TOT) has produced a 92-page report that complies with the IPIECA Oil and Gas Industry Guidance on Voluntary Sustainability Reporting and is in line with the Global Reporting Initiative. I’m sure many people worked really hard putting the report together [...]
What to do about slumping IR traffic
LET’S just assume that the Alexa trends I reported earlier this week are reasonably accurate and investors are deserting cookie-cutter IR websites in droves. That might not be such a stretch given that no one has stepped forward to dispute Alexa’s numbers with their own figures. If it is true, and I personally can’t imagine [...]
Pros like it plain, too
A COMMON misconception among those who compile and write company disclosures is that clear and simple language only matters if your company has a lot of retail investors. But that’s not true. Professionals appreciate plain language just as much as lay people. In fact, they probably appreciate it more because they have to do a [...]
No plain language please, we're Canadian
THE provincial securities regulators in Canada have decided to copy their U.S. counterparts by beefing up their disclosure requirements for executive pay. The notice and request for comments on the proposed rules, posted here (PDF 185 KB, 34 pages), outline what is almost an exact replica of the new U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules [...]
Starbucks misses opportunity to truly engage
IN LIGHT of the e-proxy process that will be available to companies next proxy season, it’s interesting to watch how U.S. companies are handling their annual meetings on their websites this year. Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) is holding its annual meeting tomorrow. It’s going to be a well-attended event. But on the Web, something is missing. [...]
IR Magazine spotlights Web in March issue
CLICK click, bling bling. That’s the cover theme for the March issue of IR Magazine as previewed on Cross Border’s website. It’s good to see the industry bible giving lots of attention to technology and the Web in recent editions — and putting together their own blogging program. The promo for the March cover story [...]
Philips does good with 2006 annual report
By Dominic Jones TWO years ago, I slammed Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (NYSE: PHG) for ignoring an academic study showing that users of its online annual report preferred HTML over PDF. That piece was ever so subtly headlined: Ignorance, arrogance and Philips Electronics Yeah, I know, I need to work on being more blunt in [...]
Canada to test XBRL filings
CANADA’s securities regulators are launching a voluntary eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) pilot program to gain real-world experience with interactive financial data.
NASDAQ pushes firms to flout SEC web privacy rules
NASDAQ is pushing its listed companies to flout recently approved rules that bar them from tracking investors’ personal activity on websites hosting annual meeting materials under the e-proxy provisions. In a controversial proposal awaiting regulatory approval, the NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. wants to bundle a number of shareholder communication services into the annual listing fees [...]
PDF flaw fears grow, Adobe seeks fix
AS ADOBE Corp. worked to produce a patch for flawed versions of its ubiquitous PDF reader, new details emerged about the severity of the flaw and how it can be used to compromise visitors to trusted websites. CNET News.com reported Thursday that the PDF security risk was greater than originally thought. The online news site [...]
PDF flaw has security experts agog
SOME web security experts are advising companies to remove all PDF files from their websites immediately or take other precautions to prevent their website users becoming victims of hackers.
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