Week of July 13th, 2015

The revolving door has deposited co-founder Huffman in the corner office.

Airing on Friday, July 17, 2015: Housing starts jumped in June, led by a 29 percent increase in apartment and condo construction. That creates fewer jobs than the single-family house market, but these monthly numbers are also highly volatile. Next: Word is that Hulu will go to a two-tiered structure of free with ads — or no ads for a fee. It’s just the latest service to offer what will likely be to the luxury crowd a way to bypass advertisers. If this really picks up steam, what will advertisers do when big spenders are out of reach? Marketplace explores. 

Eleven states ban happy hours. Illinois just ended its own.

The Wall Street Journal reports the streaming service is considering a new tier.

Get to your destination four-tenths of a second faster.

Why genealogy is a financial service.

John Carney and Leigh Gallagher join us to recap the week in business and finance.

Numbers suggest recovery is gaining steam; banks may hold key to the next level.

Where do snake people hole up? Often with their parents.

It's a relatively new problem, says Project: Time Off director.

Risk your life for $199 per jump.

We're looking at the places where we seek shelter in our cities, lives and in our wallets.

On this episode of Marketplace Weekend, we explore adventures in the economy: using tech to go on a virtual scavenger hunt, the business behind skydiving and a quick trip to Greece. Plus hip-hop duo Run the Jewels talk money and race.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau document summarizes trends in complaints.

The vote on No Child Left Behind, and the battle for college sponsorship.

Because of its exclusion from Chapter 9 provisions, handling debt is complicated.

Do American companies want to enter the Iranian airplane market?

Airing on Friday, July 17, 2015: The Senate passed an overhaul of the No Child Left Behind act Thursday. Annual testing will still be required in most grades, but the federal government will have less of a role in how those tests are used to hold schools accountable. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan joins us to talk about it. Plus, General Electric has asked the U.S. government for permission to do business in Iran. We look at the company’s strategy for operating there ahead of GE’s earnings report out Friday. Puerto Rico missed a second bond payment as its finances worsened. Can it file for bankruptcy? If so, would that be a solution to its debt problem?

Airing on Friday, July 17, 2015: First up, we’ll talk to Pai-Ling Yin, from the Stanford Center for Economic Policy Research, about Google earnings. Next, singer-songwriter Neko Case talks about her favorite piece of gear, a Fender Jazzmaster guitar, as part of Marketplace Tech’s “Noise Makers” series. And how well have you kept up with the week in tech news? It’s time for Silicon Tally! This week, host Ben Johnson takes on Alex Fitzpatrick, Deputy Tech Editor at Time.  

Negotiators must now reconcile the bill with the version passed in the House.

…and how it helps her be a better singer.

How well have you kept up with the week in tech news?

Nike will pay the University of Michigan $169 million to be its athletic brand.

Here are the numbers we're reading and watching for Friday.

There’s a serious challenge to the all-powerful family that controls Samsung.

Declines in exports are the cause. The rest of the economy is holding up.

Airing on Thursday, July 16, 2015: Canada weathered the financial crisis better than most countries, but it also went all in on oil production. So now that oil prices have fallen by half, the economy is also falling, and Canada is in recession. Plus: There’s a serious challenge to the all-powerful family that controls Samsung. An American hedge fund is fighting for a merger it calls a bad deal for shareholders. Samsung is pulling out all the stops to win the vote, which happens Thursday night. 

The tests are legal, but their effectiveness is questionable.

Why aren’t the players cracking down? Some see value in freeloaders.

A new app option simulates wait time if NYC mayor's plan to cap cars goes through.

'Early to bed, early to rise' really does have a wealth effect, researchers find.

Molly Wood talks to Olga Smirnova of the BBC.

Greece is one step closer to its third bailout

Re-opening banks in Greece, Google earnings, and lawyers in rural areas.

Airing on Thursday, July 16, 2015: The Greek parliament adopted new austerity measures Wednesday night, paving the way for a new rescue package. We check the reaction in Europe. Plus, Goldman Sachs had issued a report saying that cheap oil, so far, has had a much more obvious negative impact on the economy than any positive impact on consumer spending. More on that. Plus, Irvine, California, repealed a living wage ordinance on city contracts, becoming one of the first cities in the U.S. to buck the trend of minimum and living wage increases. We examine what’s behind the change.

Companies are spending less on production and laying off thousands of workers.

Airing on Thursday, July 16, 2015: First up, we’ll hear about if Google’s reigning in its costs after indications this week that the company may be hiring fewer people. We’ll also speak with Michael Liimatta, President of Connecting for Good, about connecting low-income communities to broadband services. And we’ll talk with Matt Novak of Gizmodo’s Paleofuture Blog about Holofilms for our Back to the Future Part II series.  

As cities across the country raise the minimum wage, Irvine repeals 2007 ordinance.

Wall Street is wondering whether the company can spend less.

The booming population of young men is helping fuel the need for attorneys.

Here are the numbers we're reading and watching for Thursday.

Plus, the first high definition pictures of Pluto.

Elena Karanatis says the country's ire has shifted from the IMF.

Airing on Friday, July 15, 2015: The International Monetary Fund says it won’t support a Greek deal that doesn’t include debt relief. We explain how debt relief works, and why it is a) so central to this issue, and b) so contentious, both economically and politically. Next: the Department of Labor has waded into the ongoing fight over what types of workers should be considered employees in the sharing economy. Though the guidance is not a formal change in policy, a 15-page memo says the definition of employee isn’t quite as narrow as some firms might prefer.

Failed missions to the ISS leave NASA and researchers with the bill.

Molly Wood talks to HUD Secretary Julián Castro.

Options include rate reduction, more time for payments and wiping out some debt.

The Department of Labor has issued guidance on classifying workers.

Consumers with pricey health plans will have to pay a new tax starting in 2018.

The online store celebrated 'Prime Day,' but in 20 years, it's become much more.

The modern Chinese stock market is 25 years old, and it's having growing pains.

Janet Yellen appears before Congress, Netflix looks to China, and the bird flu causes a problem for bakers.

Are the television awards still relevant?

The streaming service is already in 50 countries and wants to expand rapidly.

Airing on Wednesday, July 15, 2015: Greece’s parliament will vote today on the rescue package agreed to earlier in the week. But yesterday, the IMF released a paper warning the bailout plan may not work without more debt relief for Greece from the eurozone. More on that. Plus, with the lifting of sanctions in Iran potentially on the way, we look at how long it could take for Iran to increase its oil production enough to affect global prices and show up in gas prices in the U.S. And with Emmy nominations set to come out Thursday, we ask the question: Does anyone still care about the Emmys?

Airing on Wednesday, July 15, 2015: First up, Netflix releases its earnings this week and it’s counting on foreign markets, particularly China. We’ll hear about how its overseas expansion is faring. Then, we’ll talk with Marketplace’s Kai Ryssdal from Greece about how cash restrictions are pushing people to adopt web banking tools. We’ll also hear from Karen North, Professor of Digital Social Media and director of USC’s Annenberg Digital Social Media program, about whether or not reddit’s powerful community drives away funders and advertisers.    

The price of liquid eggs, bought by the bucket, has skyrocketed.

Amid Greek bust, a boom in web banking.

Once sanctions are lifted, Tehran will rush to exploit its oil and gas reserves.

Here are the numbers we're reading and watching for Wednesday.

A troupe of actresses from Germany face an Athens audience.

More of our interviews on the ground in Greece.

Airing on Tuesday, July 14, 2015: From Athens, Marketplace’s Kai Ryssdal talks to Nick Voglis, a sandwich-shop owner, about the changes to his business and life wrought by the Greek debt crisis. Plus, on the day a deal is announced with Iran, we look at one aspect of the untapped potential it presents: its people. Demographics are on Iran’s side right now. Iran has a young, educated, mostly middle-class population — what opportunities does this offer the country? What does it offer U.S. and other international companies wanting to do business there? We explore. 

Tonia Korka has to juggle multiple jobs to support her family.

Business for Nick Voglis has fallen by 40 to 50 percent since 2007.

The Greek debt crisis has caused ripple effects, affecting business owners in the U.S.

The Greek crisis hasn't stopped tourism.

Sanctions relief comes at an important moment for the Iranian population

Bakery shop owner Olga Karastathi hasn't seen profit from her business, but she's still optimistic.

Some Greek are worried about job opportunities amid the crisis.

"Don't forget, [Greece is] more than 4,000 years old."

The global oil market, manufacturing clothes in Africa, and New Horizons' date with Pluto.

And just how significant is a visit to the dwarf planet?

Airing on Tuesday, July 14, 2015: First up, we’ll talk with Lindsey Turrentine, Editor-in-Chief at CNET.com, about Comcast’s new option for cordcutters – a service called Stream. We’ll also hear about the medical uses for the Oculus Rift. The virtual reality technology will be available to gamers in early 2016, but it may end up benefiting older, visually impaired non-gamers too.

Airing on Tuesday, July 14, 2015: After years of negotiations, Iran and six major world powers have reached a deal over the country’s nuclear program. The agreement aims to curb Iran’s production of nuclear weapons in exchange for the lifting of certain sanctions. This could mean a huge bump in Iran’s oil exports. More on that. Next: Big banks report earnings this week. JP Morgan Chase is Tuesday. Later in the week, Goldman Sach and Wells Fargo release their earnings. Marketplace’s Mitchell Hartman explains what banks are facing that could influence their earnings outlook. What is on their balance sheets? We explore. We’ll also speak with UT Austin’s James Galbraith, a former colleague of Yanis Varoufakis, about the Greek crisis.

And what the lifting of sanctions could mean for the global oil market.

While earnings potential may be low, growth for banks has been safer and steady.

Comcast's streaming service will debut in Boston in August.

Here are the numbers we're reading and watching for Tuesday.

The apparel industry is looking to Africa as its next manufacturing base.

The suffering is the same, in or out of the eurozone, Athenians say.

Airing on Monday, July 13, 2015: Marketplace is reporting to you live from Greece, where we explore the details of the Greek bailout and talk to citizens about their struggles coping with the country’s debt crisis. Plus: A look at Greece’s currency woes. When it was introduced, the euro was a uniting force in Europe — a currency shared across borders. But it has morphed into a weapon, perhaps one just as powerful as any used in centuries’ worth of European battles. Not only has the shared currency kept Greece from offsetting fiscal austerity with easy money policies, but the euro has also backed Greece into a corner; it needs to meet European demands or it will run out of currency. 

It's not quite as contentious as "gif."

European unity requires more than a common currency.

Party member is unhappy with the deal but stands by Prime Minister Tsipras.

The influx of customers at the Athens store is looking for real assets like gold.

He's given up on his situation, but wants his son to have a better life.

A woman waits for cash at a second machine; the first ran out of money.

'A little bit confused and very disappointed.'

We revisit a telecom engineer and a psychologist to get their latest opinions.

Avoiding a "Grexit," Amazon's birthday, and studying sewage in the name of marijuana.

Think of it like an anonymous, communitywide drug test.

As it turns 20, the online retailer promotes its fee-based Prime membership.

In 2013, traffic jams in the U.S. cost consumers an estimated $124 billion.

Airing on Monday, July 13, 2015: A deal has been reached to keep Greece in the eurozone. For more, we’ll check in with Kai Ryssdal, who joins us from Athens. Also on the show, a conversation with Sarah Shapiro, co-creator of the TV show “Unreal,” about reality TV and spoofing it.

Airing on Monday, July 13, 2015: First up, we’ll say an early happy birthday to the e-commerce site Amazon, which turns 20 on Wednesday. Hear about how the site is using its big day to  to grow business. We’ll also talk with Alan Stern, a planetary scientist and Principal Investigator for New Horizons mission, about the spacecraft’s Pluto fly-by. And we’ll talk with Dmitri Williams, associate professor at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism,  about in-game photos in God of War III.