Roblox Roblox VP of Developer Relations Grace Francisco Though it's been around for over a decade, there's a healthy chance that you've never heard of "Roblox" - an online video game, immensely popular among pre-teens, available for smartphones, PCs, and game consoles. And yet, Roblox is a huge economy unto itself. Every in-game level, every item, and every character is designed and marketed by Roblox's own players, in a "free market" that nets its most popular developers a solid $50,000 per month, after the company takes its cut of each sale. Hit player-made Roblox games like "I Work In A Pizza Place" or "Roblox High School" are mini-phenomenons in their own right. Back in 2015, Business Insider spoke to a 17 year old who had made $100,000 in two years from Roblox. Even younger kids are getting in on it, with a 13-year-old player recently using his Roblox creations to fund a family trip … to the annual Roblox convention, naturally. There are currently 1.7 million developers … [Read more...] about This game turned players into $50,000-a-month entrepreneurs – now it has a plan to help them make $1.68 million a year – Business Insider
Workers demand wage of Rp 2.1 million per month
Hundreds of workers from Central Java staged a rally on Wednesday, in front of the governor's office in Semarang, demanding monthly wages of Rp 2.1 million (US$187) in 2014. The rally was held in response to the figure of Rp 1.92 million per month proposed by the Semarang Municipal Wage Council. Rally coordinator M. Buhron said the council's proposal that wages be set at less than Rp 2 million per month violated the mandate that the workers had given the council. 'The proposed wage would not offer adequate living standards. We ask Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo to side with the workers and reject the proposed minimum wage,' Buhron said on the sidelines of the rally on Wednesday. Earlier on Tuesday, Ganjar had hosted a coordination meeting to discuss the minimum wage for 2014. After the meeting, a member of Semarang's wage council, Slamet Kaswanto, said that councilors had proposed a minimum wage of Rp 1.92 million per month. He explained the figure was reached after … [Read more...] about Workers demand wage of Rp 2.1 million per month
Federal health market surpasses 1 million signups
A December surge propelled health care sign-ups through the U.S. government's rehabilitated website past the 1 million mark, the Obama administration said Sunday, reflecting new vigor for the problem-plagued federal insurance exchange. Combined with numbers for state-run markets due in January, that should put total enrollment in the new private insurance plans under President Barack Obama's health law at about 2 million people through the end of the year, independent experts said. That would be about two-thirds of the administration's original goal of signing up 3.3 million by Dec. 31, a significant improvement given the technical problems that crippled the federal market during October and much of November. The overall goal remains to enroll 7 million people by March 31 when open enrollment for 2014 ends. Obama needs millions of mostly younger, healthy Americans to sign up to keep costs low for everyone. "It looks like current enrollment is around 2 million despite all the issues," … [Read more...] about Federal health market surpasses 1 million signups
Rp 500 million per month is too much: Chief justice
Supreme Court Chief Justice Hatta Ali has voiced support for a salary hike for justices, but considers a proposal for hundreds of millions of rupiah a month too high. 'A raise for justices is indeed needed; however, Rp 500 million [US$ 44,291 a month] would be too high,' said Hatta on Wednesday as quoted by Antara news agency. 'Let it be an appropriate [amount].' Hatta was responding to a proposal by Judicial Commission leaders Suparman Marzuki and Taufiqurrohman Syahuri, who said that ideally a justice should be paid Rp 200 million to Rp 500 million per month to avoid the temptation of bribery. The proposed raise reflects many times the current rate. A high court judge receives about Rp 40 million, while a Supreme Court justice receives Rp 33 million per month. The higher salary of high court judges was due to a raise in 2012, which the government said was part of its efforts to eradicate corruption in the judiciary. Currently, the commission is screening 64 judges to fill … [Read more...] about Rp 500 million per month is too much: Chief justice
Peru state a violent mini-dictatorship
One by one, the senior officials from the capital took the microphone and apologized to an auditorium packed with angry people who had long been living in fear. The officials admitted they had failed to prevent a political murder foretold by its victim. Their integrity was in doubt. Peru's chief prosecutor, comptroller and the head of Congress' investigations committee, which was now holding a public hearing, had all ignored evidence that Ezequiel Nolasco, now murdered, had thrust in their faces for months. After surviving a 2010 assassination attempt after he denounced government corruption, Nolasco had repeatedly warned that his home state, Ancash, was run by a criminal syndicate that plundered the treasury, killed people it couldn't buy or intimidate, wiretapped foes and used police as spies and journalists as character assassins. A lone gunman finished the job on March 14, pumping five bullets into the former construction union leader when he stopped for a beer heading from Lima to … [Read more...] about Peru state a violent mini-dictatorship
This marijuana entrepreneur brings in over $1 million a year running a ‘bud and breakfast’ hotel
Happy hour at the Bud+Breakfast inn smells funkier than most. At 4:20, guests pile into the living area for hors d’oeuvres and good company as they light up marijuana pipes and joints. “What happens at this bed and breakfast doesn’t happen anywhere else,” Joel Shneider, owner of Colorado’s Bud+Breakfast hotel, tells Business Insider. In 2016, Shneider brought in over $1 million managing the nation’s first unabashedly pot-friendly hotel (and two locations no longer in operation). Guests ages 21 to 80 have traveled across the country, coming from mostly prohibition states, in order to toke legally and among like-minded enthusiasts. After his children graduated college in 2014, Schneider, a former attorney, came to Colorado with the intention of opening a marijuana business that didn’t involve growing or selling the plant. He visited radio stations, a glass-blowing factory, and tourism groups for inspiration. At night, Schneider would stand in his … [Read more...] about This marijuana entrepreneur brings in over $1 million a year running a ‘bud and breakfast’ hotel
A guide to Johnny Depp’s ‘extravagant and extreme’ $2 million a month lifestyle
Getty / Adam Bettcher Johnny Depp’s ex-business managers claim the actor has over 70 collectible guitars. Johnny Depp’s former business managers have alleged that the actor is living an extravagant $2 million (£1.5 million) a month lifestyle, complete with 14 houses, 70 guitars, and an enormous appetite for wine. It comes after Depp launched a $25 million lawsuit last month against his business managers, The Mandel Company (TMG), claiming “gross mismanagement” of his affairs. He said the company failed to properly pay his taxes on his behalf, made unauthorised loans, and overpaid for “security and other services,” costing him “tens of millions of dollars” and leading to financial trouble, of which he claims to have only become aware of in March of last year. The cross-complaint, filed this week, stated that TMG “did everything within its power over the last 17 years to protect Depp from himself and to keep Depp financially … [Read more...] about A guide to Johnny Depp’s ‘extravagant and extreme’ $2 million a month lifestyle
When Jerry Jones bought the Dallas Cowboys they were losing $1 million per month and now it is the most valuable team in the world
The Dallas Cowboys are now the world’s most valuable sports franchise, according to the most recent valuations by Forbes, but things weren’t always so great for “America’s Team.” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was recently a guest on Adam Schefter’s podcast and he told a story about just how bad things were when he first purchased the team in 1989. When Jones was asked how he made the Cowboys look successful early on, he explained that he had to get creative because the team was bleeding money, to the tune of $1 million per month. “Very early on, the club was losing [money],” Jones told Schefter. “The Cowboys, that I bought — this is not going to make many people respect me as a businessperson — but I bought the Cowboys and they were losing $1 million cash a month, $1 million a month.” That’s about $2 million per month in 2016 dollars, and that was just the beginning of the financial problems for Jones and the … [Read more...] about When Jerry Jones bought the Dallas Cowboys they were losing $1 million per month and now it is the most valuable team in the world
Foreign tourist arrivals remain flat at 1 million in September
Foreign tourist arrivals numbered about 1 million in September, almost the same as the previous two months' figures, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) said on Tuesday. BPS head Suhariyanto said foreign tourist arrivals from January to September reached 7.78 million, a 10.53 percent increase from the same period last year. The double-digit increase in foreign tourist arrivals during the nine-month period was partly due to the government’s aggressive tourism campaign overseas, he said. The government boosted the Tourism Ministry’s budget from Rp 300 billion (US$22.9 million) in 2015 to Rp 6.1 trillion in 2016, partly to finance tourism campaigns abroad. Around 80 percent of the budget is allocated for tourism promotion. "We might see lower figures in October, November due to seasonal factors. Hopefully it will not be less than 1 million, and in December tourist numbers will increase again following the holiday season," he said at a press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday. … [Read more...] about Foreign tourist arrivals remain flat at 1 million in September
Foreign tourist numbers exceed 1 million in October
Indonesia welcomed over 1 million foreign tourists in October, hitting the figure for the fourth month this year, sparking optimism about the fulfillment of the country’s annual target despite mounting calls to diversify tourist nationalities. The world’s biggest archipelago attracted 1.04 million tourists in October, up 18.5 percent from last year, although the figure rose only slightly by 3.38 percent from September, according to data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) released on Thursday. Cumulatively from January to October, Indonesia welcomed 9.4 million tourists, inching toward the official 12 million target for this year. Continuing the trend seen in previous months, arrivals were dominated by Chinese tourists, with 121,880 visitors from the country in October. At 12.43 percent of the overall figure, China replaced traditional top countries of origin such as Malaysia and Australia. The Tourism Ministry’s assistant for overseas promotion I Gde Pitana … [Read more...] about Foreign tourist numbers exceed 1 million in October
