20070125   

Michael considered fate at 13:40   |   Permalink   |   Post a Comment

Credit Cards; the cost of doing business:

1. Credit card companies earned $90.1B in interest in 2006, up from $89.4B the year before (according to R.K. Hammer).
2. Credit card companies earned $55.2B in fees in 2006, up from $54.8B the year before (according to R.K. Hammer).

Those numbers, which add up to $145.3 Billion, are f'ing huge. For comparison:

1. The US video game industry had $12.5 Billion in sales in 2006.
2. The pornography industry has been reported to make $10 to $14 billion in annual sales. Though that number may be inflated, it is more than major league baseball, the national football league, and the national hockey league.
3. Ford's revenue in 2005 was a whopping $177.4 Billion.. but then cars are not money, they actually had to build them and pay their employees. Their net income in 2005 was in the red: $-5.8 Billion.