Film Buffs United Leeds Endeavours Follow on Twitter

Are you a film fanatic? Here at United Leeds Endeavours we are. As we specialise in direct sales for the film and entertainment industries we’re serious about keeping up to date with all the news, gossip and reviews that are coming out of the film world. Here are our top 5 film critics to follow on Twitter if you want to stay ahead of the game.

1. Erik Davis @erikdavis

Who are they? Erik is the editor-in-chief at Cinematical.com

Why follow them? He’s a massive fan himself and these come across in his tweets. But don’t worry he knows his stuff too.

2. Eugene Hernandez @eug

Who are they? Editor-in-chief at indieWIRE

Why follow them? Eugene is absolutely the best person to follow for those of you who want to keep abreast of the indie film scene.

3. Karina Longworth @karinalongworth

Who are they? Karina is a film writer for LA Weekly

Why follow them? Her reviews are off the cuff and the personal anecdotes that she adds in are very very funny.

4. Nikki Finke @NikkiFinke

Who are they? Founder of Deadline Hollywood

Why follow them? She is nearly always the first with any industry scoop. Want up to the minute film news? Follow her now!

5. Peter Sciretta @slashfilm

Who are they? Editor-in-chief of SlashFilm

Why follow them? Peter is one of the best connected people in the film-making world. He always gets first access to new clips and posts them on his twitter. If you want to see the real deal first, he’s your man.

United Leeds Endeavours Reviews The Dark Knight Rises

After revealing the critics reviews last week United Leeds Endeavours gives their opinion on the biggest film of the year, The Dark Knight Rises.

At the headquarters of United Leeds Endeavours we read the reviews of The Dark Knight Rises with anticipation last week. As a direct sales and marketing company, which specialises in direct sales for the entertainment industry, we’ve been keeping our ears to the ground surrounding the hype for this film.Would it live up to our expectations?  Would the bad guy ever be as bad as Heath Ledger’s Joker?

The film didn’t disappoint and a group from United Leeds Endeavours put together their own thoughts and feelings over the weekend after their Friday night viewing. The reviews of the critics were largely spot on. Tom Hardy as Bane was formidable, though one could only wonder at how he managed to bulk up so spectacularly for the role. Christopher Nolan had said that Ann Hathaway’s performance of Catwoman was worthy of its own spin-off and we’d have to agree. She looked every inch the part and played the torn thief with class and elegance.

Though the film was admittedly long, we can forgive Christopher Nolan for being slightly self-indulgent in his last ever outing as director for the franchise. Despite the length it didn’t drag and twists and turns along the way kept an audience of all ages enthralled. The ending was both fitting and unpredictable. It left a strong enough conclusion for there to be no sequel but also enough open ends that one could easily be made. Such is the nature of huge movie franchises. At the viewing that a group from United Leeds Endeavours attended the audience broke out into spontaneous applause as the final credits rolled through.

The opening of the film was marred by the horrific tragedy that occurred at a midnight screening in Aurora, Colorado when 12 people were shot dead and countless others injured in a mass shooting by a crazed man. In the wake of the shootings Christopher Nolan spoke out in horror and shock at the events. Nolan summed it up fittingly describing the killings as a ‘senseless tragedy’ and that he couldn’t understand why someone would ‘violate that innocent and hopeful place in such an unbearably savage way.’ The whole team at United Leeds Endeavours would like to pass on their condolences to everyone affected by the tragedy.

United Leeds Endeavours Cheers on Leeds 10K From Office Window

The 2012 Run for All 10K raced past the headquarters of United Leeds Endeavours this Sunday raising huge amounts for charity.

United Leeds Endeavours wrote a couple of months back about the Run for All 10K race that would be taking place through Leeds City Centre. Well the day finally came and the rain thankfully held off long enough for the race to be completed. The event in aid of Jane Tomlinson’s foundation was a huge success with 7,500 runners taking part. This event has become a mainstay of the Leeds calendar after 6 years. Since it began it has raised over £4.5 million for charity.

United Leeds Endeavours understands that there has been some talk that the route will be changed next year to add a different challenge for those who have been taking part for many years. Though nothing has been confirmed yet it seems a sensible idea and should hopefully attract more entries as well.  Gary Verity Chief executive of Yorkshire’s tourist board, Welcome to Yorkshire, took part in the race this year and said that it was a fantastic way to promote Leeds and Yorkshire as a whole.

As a successful direct sales company United Leeds Endeavours is fully behind the work being done in the county to promote businesses in Leeds. So they were excited to learn that Yorkshire is putting in a bid to host a stage of the Tour de France and Mr. Verity believes that the Headrow would make a great starting point. “This stretch of street would look particularly good with about 250 cycles on it, and what a day like today proves is that we can do it.”

A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours showed that there was incredible pride in the city. “Events like this show what a fantastic city Leeds is and how it is putting itself on the map as a ideal location for business and sports events. We mustn’t however forget about the reason for this run. Jane Tomlinson was a true Leeds hero and the legacy that she has left behind has helped countless charities and individuals. Huge congratulations should be given to those who completed the race, not just from the running aspect but also for all the hard work they’ve done for their chosen charities.”

United Leeds Endeavours Learns Lovefilm.com to Add Fox to Service

United Leeds Endeavours understands that Lovefilm.com has added yet another major film studio, Twentieth Century Fox, to their catalogue.

After recently reporting that online DVD rental and streaming service, Lovefilm.com, had resolved their dispute with Universal Pictures it now seems that their service is to grow further. United Leeds Endeavours, a direct sales and marketing company which specialises in working with the entertainment industry, learnt at the end of last week that it would be adding another Hollywood studio to their ever expanding catalogue.

The exclusive deal with the Twentieth Century Fox TV unit will mean that subscribers to the service will be able to watch shows such as 24 and Sons of Anarchy. This is in addition to exclusive deals that they already hold with Sony and Warner Brothers. Lovefilm.com now have over 2 million subscribers in Britain, Germany and Sweden in a sector that is widely expected to completely destroy traditional DVD rental shops.

A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours said, “People now expect to be able to access films and TV shows immediately and want a huge catalogue at their finger-tips. Online streaming services such as Lovefilm.com and Netflix offer this solution. We’re certain that this is going to be the future of home entertainment.”

There has been a great deal of competition between Lovefilm and Netflix over recent months but Netflix have really struggled to get their foot in the door in the UK. Lovefilm.com which is owned by Amazon have been quick off the mark to expand their online streaming service to offer a wider variety that Netflix whilst still keeping the option for DVD postal rental.  The spokesperson from United Leeds Endeavours continued, “Although increasingly we feel there will be more and more demand for streaming-only services, some people don’t have the internet capability or just prefer to have the hard copy. The fact that Lovefilm.com offers both is a feather in their cap.”

United Leeds Endeavours is a marketing and sales company with offices around the UK. We provide a world class marketing service, driven by results for our clients and excellent service for our customers. www.unitedleedsendeavours.com

United Leeds Endeavours Reacts to the NatWest Meltdown

With many people around the UK affected by the NatWest banking meltdown United Leeds Endeavours looks at what caused the problems and who was affected.

The IT meltdown that occurred over the past week is believed to have started on Tuesday night when NatWest decided to update a key piece of software which controls the processing systems that deal with retail banking transactions. United Leeds Endeavours understands that this update deleted the schedule for customer’s transactions and so since then the bank have been attempting to play catch up with people’s transactions. This has meant that many people have experienced problems receiving payments and whilst attempting to pay others. United Leeds Endeavours were horrified to hear stories from individuals and particularly businesses who had been unable to pay employees and bills. Many people were also affected by the IT glitch, with some being unable to access their funds for the majority of the weekend. Those worst off were members of Ulster Bank who are still experiencing problems a week on.

Richard Price, a systems developer who has worked on banking systems like that of NatWest explained, "Banking systems are like a huge game of Jenga, most transactions are related and so everything needs to be processed in order.” This is what led to such big problems for so many customers as the order was disrupted.

It has also been reported that NatWest were unable to sort out the problems more quickly as since 2012 the majority of their IT jobs have been outsourced India.

A spokesperson from United Leeds Endeavours said that, “Although we’re pleased that NatWest extended their hours of opening to help clear the backlog of problems, there are still concerns about any after effects of the meltdown. We are glad however, that NatWest have put in place certain measures to help their customers.” These measures include the fact that interest on credit cards is to be waived for one month and customers are able to withdraw £100 over their limit while problems are still being corrected. Any overdraft activity experienced by customers will also not be recorded on customer’s credit files.

NatWest have also promised to implement strict quality assurance and user acceptance test before updating in the future. United Leeds Endeavours hopes that other banks will follow their example to prevent similar problems from occurring in future.

United Leeds Endeavours Impressed at UK Online Streaming

United Leeds Endeavours has recently learned that UK online streaming services are becoming the most advanced in the world with new technologies and services.

 Leeds-based direct sales and marketing company United Leeds Endeavours works with some of the biggest names in the UK entertainment and online streaming industry. The news that UK residents are receiving some of the most advanced viewing of anywhere in the world is a real coup for the industry.

Lovefilm.com, the UK’s most widely used DVD rental and online streaming service announced last week that two major improvements to their service would be reaching their customers in the coming weeks. Firstly they are to offer their online streaming service in HD where customers will be able to able to enjoy content in full 1080p high definition. The catalogue of HD films available to members is expected to expand significantly over the next few weeks and will include The Twilight Saga: Eclipse and BBC documentary Planet Earth.

United Leeds Endeavours is also pleased to share the news that Lovefilm.com has managed to resolve their long-running issue with Universal Pictures and have signed an exclusive streaming deal allowing its members early access to films before they come out on general release. This deal will continue keep Lovefilm well head of rivals Netflix.

Jim Buckle, managing director of Lovefilm said: “Lovefilm is proud to offer its members access to the highest quality content across multiple platforms from another of the world’s most respected studios.”

The managing director of United Leeds Endeavours said, “With the introduction of superfast broadband around the UK over the next few years we’re confident in our prediction that online streaming will become the most widely used method to watch films at home. Lovefilm.com are really charging ahead of their competitors with these two announcements.”

United Leeds Endeavours offers exception bottom-line results to their clients in a wide range of industries. For more information please visit http://www.unitedleedsendeavours.com

United Leeds Endeavours Prepares to Welcome the Olympic Torch to Leeds

With less than two weeks until the Olympic Torch arrives in West Yorkshire, United Leeds Endeavours helps you find the best vantage point.

The Olympic Torch is steadily making its way around the UK and with just over a week until it makes its first appearance in West Yorkshire it's time to get your viewing point planned. Leeds-based direct sales and marketing firm United Leeds Endeavours gives you a heads up of the route that the torch will take around the city and West Yorkshire in general so that you can get you and your family ahead of the crowds.

The Olympic Torch will be in the county on three occasions, on the 19^th, 24^th and 25^th of June. On the 19^th it will arrive in Boston Spa before moving on to Wetherby, Harewood and then onto Harrogate. It will return to West Yorkshire on the 24^th of June starting off in Huddersfield then going via Bradford, Keighley and Ilkley before arriving in Leeds City Centre in the evening. The evening celebrations will take place outside the town hall in Leeds City Centre and the torch will stay overnight in the city until its sets on off on the 25^th travelling through Batley, Wakefield and Castleford.

United Leeds Endeavours has previously reported that one of the torchbearers in Leeds with be 14-year-old Steven Tomlinson, the son of Jane Tomlinson who raised more than £1.85 million for charity before her death from cancer in 2007. A spokesperson for the direct sales company said, “There are a huge number of torchbearers who have done incredible things for their communities and deserve this fantastic recognition. Jane Tomlinson was someone who was well known around the country for her fundraising but who the people of Yorkshire were particularly proud of. Everyone in the county is delighted that her son gets will be keeping her memory alive at this wonderful occasion.”

To plan your exact spot, as well as finding out which roads are going to be closed as the traffic goes by, United Leeds Endeavours encourages you to visit the London 2012 website which has a full, live and interactive map of the torch route. http://www.london2012.com/torch-relay/route/

United Leeds Endeavours would encourage people to find out the exact timings that the torch will be traveling near to you and get down in plenty of time to soak up the atmosphere and get a great spot, particularly for the evening celebrations in Leeds on the 24^th. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and definitely not to be missed. We can’t wait!”

United Leeds Endeavours Reacts to the Monaco Grand Prix

United Leeds Endeavours were glued to their screens on Saturday as Mark Webber won the Monaco Grand Prix.

Australian Mark Webber won for Red Bull for the second time in three years, this year he won in 1:46:06.557. Webber shrugged off his image for poor starts by controlling from the beginning, his initial lead was of two seconds which is believed to be a career best. United Leeds Endeavours were surprised to hear that Webber was then able to retain his lead throughout. The top six stayed fairly close together in a particularly exciting race, which was consistently threatened by rainfall.

McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton was positioned in third place in the early laps but he lapsed on strategy and lost out to Ferrari’s Alonso and Sebastian Vettel for Red Bull. Another British driver, Jensen Button also had a difficult race with a poor start, he then eventually had to retire after a dangerous spin. The result of Monaco moves Alonso into the lead of the world championship, as he is three points ahead of both Vettel and Webber. Hamilton is in fourth place but with significantly less points than the leaders. He is thirteen points behind Alonso, meaning he’ll need to place highly in all the remaining races to move up.

United Leeds Endeavours was impressed to hear that Mark Webber’s victory makes this Formula One season the first in history to feature six different winners in the first six races. This shows the high quality of drivers and teams that are currently competing.

A spokesperson from United Leeds Endeavours commented that, “With the top three drivers being within 3 points from each other this season of Formula One is set to be more exciting than ever. We’re intrigued to see if Alonso can keep his top spot despite the tough competition he is facing from every team.” 

He continued, “We cannot wait to see what happens at the Canadian Grand Prix during the 8th to the 10th June!”

United Leeds Endeavours is a marketing and sales company with offices around the UK.

United Leeds Endeavours Quarterly Review

Direct marketing and sales company United Leeds Endeavours assesses the first quarter of 2012 and looks to the rest of the year.

Successful direct sales and marketing company United Leeds Endeavours has started 2012 as they mean to go on. The company looks back over the last 3 months at their successes.

Since January 2012 United Leeds Endeavours has started working with two new major clients in the entertainment industry. The clients had set United Leeds Endeavours a target of increasing their customer-base by 20 and 15 per cent respectively and this challenge was met with relish.

Head of PR Oliver Johnson said, “The reason that our clients outsource to us is because they want a cost effective solution with fantastic results. Keeping an in-house sales team can be incredibly expensive and they simply can’t get the volume of new customers that we can achieve. They set us some targets for 2012 and after our review this month we’ve smashed them!”

United Leeds Endeavours pride themselves on being an incredibly adaptable company and this first quarter has showed their willingness to take on new challenges. “The entertainment industry was a new field for us, we’ve worked on a number of campaigns for clients in the communications industry and in the charitable sector. However, because of the solid base, and the innovative approach that we take to all of our campaigns we were able to work closely with their campaign team to come up with something unique and appropriate for them.”

What is on the cards for United Leeds Endeavours? “Through the rest of this year we want to continue to build fantastic relationships with our clients, to continue to smash the sales targets that they set us and finally to take on another major new client. We have a couple of options on the table and we’re incredibly excited about the potential that all the clients have. It’s going to be a case of us working hard over the next few months, getting great results for our existing clients to impress new ones, and working closely to come up with a fantastic solution to their needs. 2012 is going to be a big year for us!”

United Leeds Endeavours Expresses Confidence in New Enterprise Zone

United Leeds Endeavours was pleased to learn that a new business enterprise zone has officially opened for business in Leeds.

The Aire Valley Leeds Enterprise Zone was launched at the beginning of the week by Leeds City Region LEP in partnership with Leeds City Council. Based along the route of the East Leeds Link Road, the 142 hectare site is designed to be an area where businesses can settle with huge incentives. United Leeds Endeavours, a direct marketing and sales company based in the city centre, understands that analysts predict that the zone will create an additional £550m of activity in the area by 2025 and create up to 7,000 jobs.

What is a Enterprise Zone? Leader of Leeds City Council, Keith Wakefield, explains. “The enterprise zone will provide a focus for businesses and a powerful incentive for them to invest in the region.” United Leeds Endeavours learnt that the huge area already has planning permission for a wide-range of activity, including large-scale manufacturing, grade A office space and distribution. The incentives include reduced business rates worth up to £275,000 over five years, a business support programme and fast track planning permission.

Development director David Wells said that the area is ideally placed with “excellent transport links and a close proximity to the M1 and Leeds City Centre…[it] will provide an ideal location for companies in healthcare, low carbon manufacturing, renewable energy, waste management, logistics and distribution.”

A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours said that the company believes that this is just the next step towards Leeds becoming the premier business region in the North of England. “We have a huge technology funding expo going on in the next couple of months and now the enterprise zone. Businesses have got every reason to pick Leeds as their home of choice with these fantastic incentives. We’re hopeful that this is the beginning of a new era of huge success for the region.”

United Leeds Endeavours Excited by Leeds Funding Expo

A new funding expo will make £2.bn in investment available to Yorkshire businesses. United Leeds Endeavours investigates the opportunity.

Held at the Royal Armouries in Leeds on 21st September 2012 the first ever investor pitch expo is an incredible opportunity for Leeds-based manufacturing, technology and engineering businesses to gain funds. United Leeds Endeavours understands that the event is targeted at businesses which already have an annual turnover of £5m or over.

This event is the first of its kind in the north of England and United Leeds Endeavours feels that it will be a huge success as 50 venture and development capital firms and 100 business angel investors are already committed to the event. They bring with them around £2bn of investment which the direct sales and marketing firm feels will make a huge difference in the region.

The expo works by having 50 distribution, engineering and technology firms exhibiting at the event and each will seek a minimum £500,000 investment. A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours said, "We're talking serious investment here, we've continually championed small businesses in this area but to really kick start the economy, the medium sized businesses need to have their opportunity. They're already established, working well and they have the potential to expand and help increase the manufacturing output that has really failed in the UK through the economic downturn."

Leeds-based entrepreneur Martin Penny, who founded hair care brand ghd is backing the event. He said, "I think this is a great opportunity for businesses who are finding it increasingly difficult to secure traditional bank funding to explore other avenues of investment." He continued, "There are many solid well performing businesses whose growth is being hampered by the UK banks' current intransigent attitude towards lending. Not only are the individual businesses suffering but this is having a knock on effect on the economy as a whole."

The spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours concluded, "It's a clever but simple idea, put a whole bunch of companies looking for investment into a room with a whole bunch of investors looking for a great opportunity. We're delighted that this kind of thing is finally happening outside of London. We're confident it's going to be a huge boost for Yorkshire."

United Leeds Endeavours is a direct marketing company specialising in outsourced sales for the entertainment and communications industries.

United Leeds Endeavours: Leeds and Wakefield Flooding Update

After record rain over the last week United Leeds Endeavours keeps you up-to-date with travel and road restrictions.

Commuters in Leeds and Wakefield have been left in chaos after record levels of rain have fallen over the last week. Direct marketing and sales company United Leeds Endeavours has kept up to date with the latest travel news to make sure that you avoid the difficult spots.

-Flooding in Outwood means that commuters should expect delays of up to 45 minutes between Leeds and Wakefield Westgate.

-Bus routes 163, 166 and 167 are severely affected by flooding and there are delays of approximately 30 minutes

United Leeds Endeavours understands that the Environment Agency has issued flood warnings for the River Calder. There is also a less severe flood alert for the River Aire between Stockbridge, Castleford and Keighley.

A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours warned that people travelling need to allow extra time and take extreme care. “This severe weather is something to be taken seriously, cars can aquaplane and flooded roads can become dangerous very quickly. “

Forecasters MeteoGroup have said that on Sunday alone between 10 and 15mm of rain could fall in Leeds. The average monthly rainfall for this time of year is between 55 and 60mm. The advice from the AA’s flood rescue team is “If you come across flood water, you should only attempt to drive through if you know it’s not too deep and maintain a steady slow speed to avoid creating a bow wave.” What should you do if you break down in heavy rain? “Don’t prop the bonnet open while you wait for the patrol to arrive – the engine will be more difficult to start again in the electrics are all rain-soaked.”

The final piece of advice from United Leeds Endeavours is to keep up to date with the weather and travel conditions. From everyone here, please travel safely!

Facebook Buys Instagram but United Leeds Endeavours asks: Is Everyone Happy?

Facebook this weekend bough Instagram, a photo sharing app, for $1bn. United Leeds Endeavours looks at the reasons behind the take-over.

Some facts about Instagram: It was added to the Apple App Store in October 2010. It has a staff of 13 and has more than one billion photos uploaded to it as well as 30 million registered users. However United Leeds Endeavours understands that it makes no revenue. So why exactly has the social media giant bought it?

Firstly United Leeds Endeavours looks at what Instagram does. The service allows users to take photos on their smartphones, then apply a range of visual effects and share them through either Instagram alone or other social networks including Twitter and Facebook.

Both the founders of Instagram and Mark Zuckerberg have promised that Instagram is not going to lose its unique feel. The former saying “The Instagram app will still be the same one you know and love.” Zuckerberg added on his website “We need to be mindful about keeping and building on Instagram’s strengths and features rather than just trying to integrate everything into Facebook.”

United Leeds Endeavours keeps its ear to the ground when it comes to social media and the rumour mill has been going into overdrive on this deal. Many people are not happy by the sale and are worried that Facebook is simply buying Instagram to destroy it so that the service doesn’t overtake its own photo sharing dominance. Many users have taken to Twitter threatening to delete their accounts.

Why is everyone so unhappy? A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours believes that it comes down to dominance. “Facebook is becoming all-powerful. If the rumours are true, that it is simply buying Instagram to shut it down, then it’s a sneaky business move.”

“At United Leeds Endeavours we use social networks like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to interact with our clients customers. Smaller social networks are popping up onto our radar all the time. Facebook will want to maintain control over the social networking world and they may have to take down smaller competitors if they deem it  necessary, business can be brutal.”

United Leeds Endeavours Discovers Online Film Streaming to be Worth £2.7 billion by 2017

The world online film market is expected to reach a value of £2.7 billion by 2017 as the prevalence of online streaming services becomes more and more popular. United Leeds Endeavours looks at why the technology has become so popular.

United Leeds Endeavours is a direct marketing and sales company that works with a number of clients in the entertainment industry. They are well aware of the increasing popularity of DVD rental and streaming services like Lovefilm.com and reported recently that the streaming services for Lovefilm.com has overtaken traditional DVDs for the first time. Consequently they weren’t surprised at the estimation released today. Alongside streaming, downloading movies from the internet has become much easier as prices have fallen and internet broadband has become faster and faster.

United Leeds Endeavours understands that there are a number of reasons why online films are becoming increasingly popular. They include the rising cinema ticket prices, the ability to play videos on devices such as PDAs, mobile phones and iPads as well as the ever increasing popularity of films. Though at the moment most of the revenue for online films comes from the download-to-own market, as the recession has hit there has been an increasing swing towards online film rentals and streaming. United Leeds Endeavours believes that with the introduction of superfast broadband across the UK on-demand streaming will become more and more popular.

A representative for United Leeds Endeavours said, “We watch these figures very closely as they are essential information to our clients, but we have seen first-hand the rise of online streaming services in the UK from the likes of Lovefilm.com and others. Consumers are becoming far more savvy and want to try a film first before they buy it. It they don’t enjoy something they’ve watched then they haven’t spent £9.99 buying it. If they love it they can go ahead onto iTunes and buy it. We think this market is going to explode as the technology and choice gets better and better.”

United Leeds Endeavours Learns Streaming Takes Over at Lovefilm.com

For the first time ever streaming services have overtaken Dvd-only packages for Lovefilm.com. United Leeds Endeavours looks at why streaming is becoming so popular.

Lovefilm.com announced this week that their streaming-only service has become their most sought-after service with their customers. Streaming services are relatively new to the Amazon-owned company but have become increasingly popular. Direct sales and marketing company United Leeds Endeavours works with major clients in the entertainment industry and they have watched with interest as streaming services are becoming more and more popular. Why do they think this is?

The streaming service is by far the most convenient service with 10s of thousands of films available at your fingertips.  A representative for United Leeds Endeavours said, “We believe that it is incredibly popular among young people who are internet savvy, perhaps students who might not have a television in their halls of residence or those who like to watch films as they travel on their laptops or iPads.”

The DVD service is clearly very popular as well, with no late fees and delivered straight to your door. It has seen traditional DVD rental shops such as Blockbusters really struggle. Lovefilm.com has seen new competition in the form of American company Netflix, who offer a streaming only service.

Do United Leeds Endeavours think that Netflix will become more popular. “We still feel that Lovefilm.com has the edge because for those who like to have the hard DVD they still have that option. The online catalogue for both companies still isn’t as extensive as what Lovefilm.com offer on DVD.” Lovefilm.com also has other attractive offers such as video game rental. According to Lovefilm.com this has been incredibly popular with parents of teenage children who must have the latest game but quickly get bored of it. They can keep it as long as they want, then send it back without spending £50.

Finally United Leeds Endeavours feels that the streaming phenomenon comes down to the rise of internet televisions. “More and more people are switching over to televisions where they can link up their services like Lovefilm.com as well as traditional on demand services like BBC iPlayer and 4od.” The internet televisions are still pretty expensive but United Leeds Endeavours fully expects them to become as normal as flat-screen television in the family home over the next 12 months.

Do United Leeds Endeavours think that Lovefilm.com will switch over entirely to streaming services? “As long as DVDs are still in use we’re pretty sure that the company will offer them as an option. They have the selection, the variety of films, and the variety of services. People want choice and we think that Lovefilm.com really offers that.”

United Leeds Endeavours takes on the Leeds Half-Marathon

On Sunday 13^th May 2012 many fitness fans in Leeds will be taking part in the Leeds Half-Marathon in support of Jane Tomlinson's For All Events. The charity run will be starting and finishing on Park Row situated right outside the offices of United Leeds Endeavours.

Established by the late Jane Tomlinson CBE to stand as her fundraising legacy, following her death from cancer in 2007, Run For All was launched as a not-for-profit organisation to act as a fundraising vehicle for charities across the country big and small.

Before her death, Jane raised £1.85 million for children’s and cancer charities through a series of physical challenges including the Ride Across America.

A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours has said  

"The mentality of any sporting individual whether it be a professional footballer, rugby player or just someone with a keen interest in keeping fit is always a great quality. 

We all know keeping up with a fitness regime can be difficult especially after a long day at the office, but the feeling of satisfaction you get after a good work out. Several members of the team at United Leeds Endeavours are taking part in the run and the rest will be cheering everyone on from the office windows. It's going to be a fantastic occasion for a really great cause." 

If anyone still wishes to take part in this fantastic event visit the For All Events website to register

http://www.forallevents.co.uk/run-for-all/events/half-marathon/

United Leeds Endeavours wishes everyone taking part the best of luck

United Leeds Endeavours on the Rise of On-Line Streaming

After 3 years of complicated negotiations BBC iPlayer has launched on the Xbox 360 games console. United Leeds Endeavours looks at the streaming service revolution.

United Leeds Endeavours is a direct sales and marketing firm that specialises in the entertainment industry so they know better than many that the growth of on-line streaming services has been exponential over recent years. They were therefore delighted to hear that Xbox 360 has finally been able to add BBC iPlayer to the list of streaming services that it offers directly through the console.

The process has been a protracted one because Microsoft, who creates the Xbox, wanted to charge for all the content that is offered through its Xbox Live platform. United Leeds Endeavours feels that the BBC was right to hold out for a free service.

How has online, on-demand streaming grown over the past few years? The number of major online streaming services is rising year on year, YouTube now offers their service through many devices along with the country’s leading film DVD rental and streaming service LoveFilm.com. 4od is also another major player in the field. BBC iPlayer is now available on 450 platforms including Virgin Media, BT Vision, Freesat, Nintendo Wii, Sony Playstation as well as the majority of tablets such as the iPad.

The general manager for the BBC’s Programmes and On-Demand section, Daniel Danker, said “Xbox is hugely successful in the UK. Given the BBC’s goal to reach its entire audience, I’m particularly excited that the BBC will be bringing iPlayer to all Xbox users at no extra cost as part of Xbox Live’s free membership.”

United Leeds Endeavours believes that the most exciting aspect of the arrival is that because the Xbox 360 has the Kinect motion-controller, for the first time users will be able to navigate the BBC iPlayer using hand gestures and voice commands. The company believes that this is a giant leap forwards in what on-line streaming has to offer.

A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours said, “With companies like LoveFilm.com now holding a majority share of the market, video rental stores are becoming a thing of the past. Increasingly we’re going to see the disappearance of stores like Blockbusters and I think we’re going to see a total switch-over to postal DVD services for those who still want the hard disk, or online streaming as internet-ready TV’s becoming increasingly popular. This is going to be one of the biggest changes for the entertainment industry in decades.”

United Leeds Endeavours Backs Boris Johnson as he Urges Whitehall to Spend to Recover.

The Mayor of London Boris Johnson has called on the Chancellor to put in place a series of measures to aid recovery. United Leeds Endeavours investigates the Mayor’s suggestions.

Mr. Johnson has been outspoken in his criticism that the government has not done enough to help the recovery of the country. Today he has once more urged to Chancellor to offer a national insurance holiday to create jobs, investment in infrastructure and a crack down on stamp duty avoidance in the budget.

United Leeds Endeavours has seen the difficulty faced by individuals and businesses in the financial crisis and are as keen as anyone to look for solutions to improve the situation. A representative of the company said, “Boris Johnson has been accused of being too cosy with the City but at United Leeds Endeavours we believe that he is actually pretty fair in his praise and criticism. Whilst there have obviously been errors made by the financial sector, that doesn’t mean that all bankers are criminals and Mr. Johnson has been outspoken in pointing this out.”

United Leeds Endeavours listened this morning as Mr. Johnson told the Andrew Marr show, “I would much rather we stop focusing so much on bashing people and start looking at what we can do to help people into work. That’s what I mean about national insurance, supporting infrastructure – those are the things that are going to drive jobs and growth over the next 10 years.”

Mr. Johnson is currently battling Labour rival Ken Livingston for re-election to the London Mayor role but United Leeds Endeavours is impressed that he doesn’t seem to be changing his stance to simply gain popularity. He has always been a vehement critic of tax avoidance and he cemented his stance on the problem this morning. He said that the scheme of selling properties through offshore companies to avoid stamp duty was “a scandal”.

He wrote in a piece for the Daily Telegraph today that the Government could raise £1 billion by outlawing a scheme where the wealthy are dodging the tax levy by treating their houses as a company. This means that instead of paying stamp duty at five per cent, they buy shares in the company, which results in them being taxed at only 0.5 per cent.

The representative of United Leeds Endeavours finished, “According to recent analysis, one property in twenty in London is now owned offshore. That is a shocking statistic and Mr. Johnson is correct, it’s a fairly easy way of raising a huge amount of money. At United Leeds Endeavours we’ve been impressed by Mr. Johnson’s no nonsense approach to the financial crisis, he makes sensible, realistic suggestions that the government would do well to take notice of.”

United Leeds Endeavours Reviews Top Apps of the Week

Are you app-crazy? The team at United Leeds Endeavours are! Here is a run-down of the top apps of the week and why they’re worth having.

United Leeds Endeavours always aim to be ahead of the game and when it comes to technology, and particularly iPads they’ve always got their eye on what is out there. This week they have selected four apps to make your life easier and help you to have some fun.

For the time-strapped businessmen the first app on United Leeds Endeavours list is ‘Clear’. This task-management app is beautiful, clean and simple to look at. You can add to it, reorder and maintain several lists entirely by pinching and swiping your iPhone screen. It isn’t advanced enough for project management but is perfect for keeping on top of your day-to-day tasks and schedule. Cost: £0.69

‘Clik’ is for anyone who uses YouTube a lot. It turns your iPhone or Android into a remote control for the site. There is no additional software or hardware to download and once you’ve linked up your phone you can select and pause videos with ease as well as add them to your favourites. Cost: Free

‘RAVN’ is an event finding app which makes a slideshow of all of the events going on in your area over the coming days and weeks. You can add events to your wish list and the app will start to learn your preferences and interests. The app is great for those who love the music, art and clubbing scene. Cost: Free.

‘WinZip’ for iPhone and Android. United Leeds Endeavours can understand your frustration if you’ve ever had someone sent you across a zip file and you’ve been unable to open it on your phone. With WinZip now you can! It launches directly from your inbox so you’ll be able to view anything anyone sends you on the go. Cost: Free.

Now your busy day is in order you thanks to WinZip and Clear, you can enjoy your free time with RAVN and Clik. United Leeds Endeavours wishes you a productive week.

United Leeds Endeavours Saddened by Death of Whitney Houston

The team at United Leeds Endeavours were saddened to wake on Sunday morning to learn that singing legend Whitney Houston had passed away.

A spokesperson for United Leeds Endeavours said “We are deeply shocked and saddened like the rest of the world at the death of Whitney Houston. She was an incredibly talented musician and a huge star in the UK as well as the rest of the world. We are sure that her music will be enjoyed for generations to come.”

Whitney Houston appears to be the latest in a long line of talented musicians who has passed away before their time in recent years. Leeds-based direct marketing and sales company, United Leeds Endeavours, looks back at the singer’s career and her troubled life.

Houston, who has died at the age of 48, came from a background seeped in music. She was the daughter of gospel singer Cissy Houston, the cousin of Dionne Warwick and had Aretha Franklin as her godmother. Whitney grew up in New Jersey and sang in church there before moving onto the New York club scene. She was offered a recording contract at 14 but her mother turned it down insisting that she must finish her schooling first.  A brief, but successful career in modeling was a hiatus on the path to her first record contract at 19.

As a global superstar Whitney was prolific. United Leeds Endeavours learnt that she enjoyed 7 successive number one hits in the US surpassing a record previously held by The Beatles. She also had a successful acting career including The Bodyguard with Kevin Costner, Waiting to Exhale and The Preacher’s Wife. All three produced soundtrack albums featuring her songs but it was in The Bodyguard that her greatest hit, I Will Always Love You, was debuted.

Houston quickly got a reputation for being a diva and being difficult to work with. Her tempestuous marriage to Bobby Brown was littered with accusations of domestic abuse and they divorced in 2007. She also had a very public battle with drugs and alcohol which saw her enter rehab on multiple occasions and severely affected her incredible voice. In an interview in 2002 she said, “The biggest devil is me. I’m either my best friend or my worst enemy.”

Tributes have poured from the industry and United Leeds Endeavours has chosen a few to share. Godmother Aretha Franklin said simply “I just can’t talk about it now…It’s so stunning and unbelievable.” Mariah Carey who frequently sited Houston as her inspiration said “Heartbroken and in tears over the shocking death of my friend, the incomparable Ms Whitney Houston. She will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth.” Simon Cowell summed her up perfectly for United Leeds Endeavours, “She was a legend. These people don’t come around often.”