LOCAL BUSINESS
Electric bill decrease
Ohio Edison customers will see a portion of their monthly bills decrease thanks to a plan involving a new financing measure.
The plan, approved Wednesday by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, will initially result in a typical residential customer — one using 1,000 kilowatt hours per month — paying $3.20 per month for costs previously approved by PUCO.
The typical customer currently is paying $3.48 per month for what are called “deferred costs.”
Customers will see the decrease shortly after Ohio Edison parent FirstEnergy Corp. of Akron issues low-interest, long-term bonds, securitizing the costs.
FirstEnergy said Ohio Edison customers will save an estimated $44.5 million over the life of the financing plan, which is not to exceed 23 years. Ohio Edison has 1.1 million customers in Northeast Ohio.
Heating prices going up
The monthly natural gas price for customers who have chosen Dominion’s Standard Choice Offer (SCO) or those who don’t choose their own supplier is increasing for October.
Effective Wednesday, the identical SCO and Standard Service Offer (SSO) prices will be $3.62 per thousand cubic feet (mcf). The new rates are 39 cents (or 12 percent) higher than the September SCO/SSO price of $3.23/mcf. It is also lower by $1.14, or about 23.9 percent, than a year ago.
The average SCO/SSO residential customer’s bill for the month of October was projected to be $47.24, down $5.32, or 10.1 percent, from $52.56 in October 2011, said Dominion East Ohio.
Residential customers pay the same usage-based charges (to deliver gas to a residence) and monthly service fee, regardless of whether customers choose their own supplier or stay with Dominion. That flat fee, approved by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, is $20.95.
Nonprofits get help
WhiteSpace Creative, a marketing communications agency in downtown Akron, has given three area nonprofits what WhiteSpace is calling an “extreme brand makeover,” each valued at $30,000. The makeovers were the focus of WhiteSpace’s 11th CreateAthon event, in which staffers work around the clock — for 24 hours — providing marketing services on a pro bono basis.
WhiteSpace is among agencies across the country that participate in CreateAthon, started by RIGGS, a South Carolina-based agency, in 1998.
The area nonprofits receiving the pro bono work were: Autism Society of Ohio, Greater Akron; Boys & Girls Clubs of the Western Reserve, and Wishes Can Happen, which grants wishes to children with life-threatening illnesses.
The nonprofits each received a “makeover package,” including a one-hour brainstorming session, a brand positioning statement, and an ID package (logo, letterhead, envelope, business card). The packages also include brand standard guidelines, print or digital materials, such as a brochure or website, and a consultation involving public relations and social media strategies.
For more information about CreateAthon, contact WhiteSpace CreateAthon coordinator Andi Jones at 330-762-9320, ext. 109, or by email at andi@whitespace-creative.com.
Former AOL exec to speak
Steve Case, co-founder of AOL, will be among the keynote speakers at the National Association of Seed and Venture Funds’ 19th conference Monday to Wednesday in Cleveland. The conference, at the Cleveland Marriott Downtown at Key Center, is hosted by Ohio Third Frontier, a state effort by a variety of economic development programs. Case is chairman and CEO of venture firm Revolution LLC in Washington, D.C. Other keynote speakers are Katie Rae, managing director of TechStars in Boston, a tech-focused business incubator program; Chuck Templeton, founder of Open Table, an online restaurant reservation service headquartered in San Francisco; and Sean Greene, associate administrator for investment and special advisor for innovation at the U.S. Small Business Administration. The Cleveland Marriott Downtown is at 127 Public Square. The conference sessions include Seed Accelerators: Coming to a Community Near You, Government Acting As a Venture Capitalist and The Ohio Story: Creating an Innovation Capital Ecosystem. Fees are $695 for members of the association and $795 for nonmembers. For more information, go online to: www.nasvf.org.
TECHNOLOGY
iPhone quality is issue
Apple Inc.’s iPhone 5 supply shortfall is being affected by a quality-control crackdown at manufacturer Foxconn Technology Group that’s designed to cut the number of devices shipped with nicks and scratches. The scrapes, which sparked complaints with the phone’s debut last month, are due to Apple’s use of a type of aluminum that helps make the smart phone thinner and lighter.
Compiled from staff and wire reports