I had an experience recently that brought back memories of conglomerates, mergers, the Gordon Geckos of the time.
Being as old as I am, I have been reorganizing my kitchen for my shrinking height, putting heaver dishes and pots lower and lighter dishes and pots higher. In the process I came across my marinator - an accessory for my Food Saver that allowed for the infusing of marinade in meats in a half-hour rather than overnight.
The marinator was missing the piece that connected it to the Food Saver, so I headed to my computer and the Food Saver site. I looked all over the site for the part I needed, but couldn't find it. I sent a message to customer service and received an answer that - sorry, we don't carry small parts like that.
I wrote back, sarcastically, "Well, that's a real incentive to buy a marinator." The agent wrote back and said - sorry we weren;t able to help you. Then came the email asking me to rate my customer service experience.
Usually I ignore those, but that day I was feeling particularly peeved. Most of the questions were irrelevant to my issue, but the final question of the degree to which my issue was resolved -they got a ZERO. The 0 triggered a box for an explanation. Oh boy!
I wrote:
Remember that amazing company, Sears Roebuck, that twice a year put out huge catalogs of everything they sold with the full specifications of all the equipment and appliances (large and small) that they sold? And do you remember you could get parts no matter how small for both the useful life of the product and even beyond? And then they fell victim to the business of the times - the buyout and breaking up of the business for cash.
I ended my comment with: I guess you don't have to worry about that..
Matt, this is one of my favorite Substacks, by far. But I always come away feeling very enlightened and, depending on the topic, slightly to very depressed. You really do excellent work.
"It's not even simply corporate -- private equity firms were gobbling up private practices even before COVID. The pace increased after the epidemic began. It's bad for the physician, but it's also pretty bad for the patient.
Could you look into this? Medical practitioners are getting more and more frustrated, angry and discouraged by what is happening in their profession when the "business model" takes over - with corporations involved and now with those even a step further removed (PE) from the actual purpose of the Med profession, our healthcare system is further fraying - in this day and age of "computer medicine" - people, real people, providing "hands on" care are still the irreplaceable backbone of any decent healthcare system - and when they are treated as widgets, we all suffer ...
Physician owned, let alone private, practices are disappearing - gobbled up by corp.s for whom "the business model" in which "efficiency and productivity" are the cardinal virtues, all in the name of profit ... the "business model" no doubt has its place, but not everyplace and i think we, as a society, need to define in which areas of our lives it belongs.
Matt's blog is great for examining where "efficiencies and productivity" are enhanced or stifled in the areas where the business model is useful - but it seems to me we need to establish another metric for those areas in which the whole damn model gets in the way ...
Will, thought and note so many people just cant or just dont know what is going on.
How many people think or believe Federal Reserve is Federal.
I tell people, add I found to explain to people (people dont like be told or shown how they dont know things, or have facts right. So, I try to lead people to fine out for themselves- figure out. See on that line, to me that how Q aon worked, lead them down rabbit holes. By, show a trail first then let them fine it, there a lie. Here we need to lead to FACTS which seem is or force out there to keep mis-info out there.
Sorry for that off track,
But, it will take a lot and big areas and multi areas here. Is there a way that we can hit the reset button on this area by. Placing back laws-regulation where it was say in the 1952. i say that year for that when Truman pass or act. To where We lost transparency on showing many areas were mostly spending. Closing up Achieves.
Yeah, and need to place nets for Wall Street, banks will hit back.
Patterns and trends, We need to study and predict counter moves before they happen or with No new laws or regulation or not going back. See and study where it all going before we get there.
I thank You Matt for covering all this, like fighting a Octopus isnt it.
True, OK, Patterns and trends, and the ability to be able to read reports, written from those that are skewing them, one sided. As like where Matt was able to note on the packing meat business. Short not telling the whole story.
Study on and I believe one cant fix something IF you don't know how we got here.
With that said, We got 330 million people in this Nation, I feel No Matter what laws or fixes one come up with, someone is going to fine away around it.
As to markets, there is always a trigger, before major moves. One can be small, but one can fine those triggers, start by, you have to think how they think or going for. If and or once one studies and or finds that. You then can step in, once one fine those triggers.
Here, I hope to fix it. not just profit off a F-up market place.
Trigger, I noted on K.L. M&As links as to where it picked up. Remembering I was reading news as to The Federal reserve had and DID jump in to save the T-note market, over night loans or over counter loans. "If' NOT, will Wall street was screaming if Feds didnt act. we was going to have a stock market crash. at the start of Covid in spring months of 2020.
NOTE, where M&As was on or did that 35-45 % jumps.
Time fram,,,
I ask, Did Wall Street, jack the 2 year T-notes JUST to get Feds to pump in easy money to them? thus, to just use it some where else, cheap easy money then use to buy up other companies? I just came up with phase, "Turn, Burn and flip loans"
Well, i have thought about your line there SH. " Physician owned, let alone private, Practices are disappearing".
OK, not saying this is totally the reason but feel it was part of the Private own offices gone or going out. One reason was law suits, Take a Doctor try to help someone, even free, say in public someone gets hurt, and asking is someone a Doctor to help! Say in airport?
Times, in fact, that person that screaming "I am hurt in a business place" is just looking for a law suit claim.
State of Nevada, is loaded with these type people.
True story, I worked as a meat cutter at Smith Grocery, in Carson city NV. in 1991.
OK, Store was then, a over a million a week in sells.
The store, gave every employee pictures of four people, NOTE: to report they was in the story and get management if seen, and if You walked by a grape or wet spot on floor, AND NOT pick up or clean right there then. You would be fired, and had to sign a agreement to that last.
OK, first it was a sweat shop, the meat dept. Up against the wall day in day out to get product out. working with knifes and saws, it was a danger zone
I felt, WHAT, I didnt hire on to be security- policing. to sign that agreement.
ok, after that 2-3 weeks went by, I was going on break and walking down to front of store. check stand in front of me. looking at lady in that check stand. Pick up a bic pen off the rack at the stand, to drop on flood, then laid down and started screaming she could not get up. Back hurt, it was B.S. see the whole thing.
OK, I reported it, two- three more weeks went by, and the The Company lawyers gave her $15,000.00 out ofcourt settlement. Add, management told me she had or this was her 74th law suit. I was like what? why? OK, as to law you cannt use pass cases in court, one. and it would cost over 25K to fight the case. it was bean counter issue. cheaper to just pay her up front. It was fraud and she got paid for it.
So to that, remember hearing in news how Doctors about 15 years ago and Obama care came in. Private Doctor was having to up prices across the board, for lawyers and law suits, to me big Corp. was pushing this. over law suits, so was that over kill? add, corp- companies that produce tools and equipment for hospitals and private doctors was going up when ( time frame) Obama care before it came out or pushing it. 3 years there, went 15% first yr. then 10% next then 20% third. a 45% increase in 3 years. or about but was 45% over 3 years.
See how on just two areas where a single doctor got out of private business.
I agree with you ... single doc or group practice cannot afford to get sued - price of malpractice insurance necessary to cover what can be a LARGE settlement is too high, and in this litigious society, too many are able to make money out of suing ... theoretically the idea is to convince companies they will be sued if they don't make safe products or provide "safe spaces" but somehow it doesn't seem to have worked out that way, especially when the cost of insurance and whatever payouts they need to make when sued can be considered a "tax deduction" under the "cost of doing business" - take the BP oil spill in the Gulf for example ...
Tech sector roll ups are always fun. A company called (I kid you not) Progress bought out Chef, which makes DevOps automation, and it seems they have other offerings that clearly are random and have no synergies at all.
I remember when HomeAway bought up all the vacation rental sites back in the late 2000s and began to raise prices while integrating all manner of related services, such as billing and card payments, all for a fee.
Or Vista Equity Partners bought out Acquia, which offered Drupal-based SaaS for basically marketing stuff in 2021. From what I heard, they immediately whacked a ton of employees and outsourced.
This is all quite insidious.
On the flip side, apparently Spectrum (Charter) offers cellular service now. The story I was told is they actually co-own infrastructure with Verizon, and Verizon never thought they'd actually go into the mobile business, so the contract didn't forbid it. So if you have Spectrum Internet, you're eligible for use of Verizon's network without having to pay Verizon fees. I went to pay per GB and it is only $14/mo versus what I was paying Verizon before, about $58.
Matt is this the same" Bork"- Judge that was up for the Supreme Court? I think was in the 70`s. Where Biden sat on that committee with Ted Kennedy. Where they block his nomination. On where a question was asked by Kennedy. Why do you want to be on the Supreme Court? Bork replied, that it would be a interesting "experiment". I took that as the reason to block that nomination.
Then McConnell came out with a video- on camera after, "pissed". Stating, and made a val that his future mission in the Senate. Would be to turn the Supreme Court all conservative -Republican`s.
Former Solicitor General of the United States. Google , define the word Bork. his name made it in the dictionary, from that. how split people would call that good or bad? 50-50 or 48-52?
Find it a bit weird that judges are political appointees..politicians are in turn funded by corporates..so do corporates decide who to appoint as judge?!
Indirectly I would say Yes - the labyrinthine trail of crumbs from here to there can often be identified in the nodes along the way - e.g. The Federalist Society ...
OK, Matt, who's the McLaren of today? Is there one, or one who has the potential to be one? And how do we sure (s)he gets appointed and adequately funded ...
Not offering any answers, but have found the following interesting reading. Some of the actors involved are mentioned along with their statements. Also interesting are underlying assumptions, particular verbiage employed, etc.:
Evans is an IT market analyst, his narrative is always orthodox with respect to current market logic so it's interesting to read what he writes about (support your arguments)
came get away from here. Sunday and i got go to work- the old, just to be able to bills.
Old phase, "Think out of Box" redefine it, in order to,, One, first, one has to know what in the their "Tool Box". Then as to these subjects. Fine whats in "Their Tool Box". Then, can one start by pull those tools out?
Maybe to late to post, First glad you here Matt and those that is helping on these areas.
Any help as to looking to Wall street and their funding area. By Gov., Federal Reserve, the different Bond markets. just as Federal Reserve bump up interest rates, to do it or hitting this area as to M&As , "IF" or RULES on how those funds well be used. With not touching NEW business set aside, IF set rules can go into place. Short stop loans to buy-out already Up and running companies. or to buy back own stocks and options.
Private equity ghouls rationalize their actions based on "efficiency." Efficiency for whom? Really, they are just cost-shifting and rent-stealing from consumers, workers, and society as a whole. Yet, the sanctity of such predatory behavior is a linchpin of D.C.'s bipartisanship. How do you change this when most judges appointed since the 1970s are corporate sycophants?
So, just hold these guys/gals "accountable" using the only language they understand - losing an election - but who to replace them with - not, IMO, members of the duopoly who made the mess - but with non-corp 3rd parties - it could be done, you know - folks with integrity are out there, we just need to support and VOTE for them in large numbers ...
Question,, as to and noting on K.L. post listed site on M&A.. when major jump on that, I note to when at that time frame. Federal Reserve had to free up money on the over the counter loans for having a reverted T-Notes market.
Short, wasnt that where the major jump came from, easy money for making of more buy-outs. And used that money for speculation, consolidating and or drive up their own stocks. VS building something or new business.
I have not dive in to any reports for a long time, why leads me to other fires,lol. I like to but, I still have to make a living, the time it takes.
AS to regulators, Maybe they need to focus on the Federal Reserve and putting rules on over night loans for wall street. As to how they use those loans. Back when Greenspan was head of F.R. I do believe we had congress Finance committee over him. DIDNT know or understand, or if so, closed blind eye. what was really going on.
Wont forget Greenspan one day state, We got very Smart people looking over this, it is to complexed for others to figure out or get involved. So dont. I loved him when he came on after Volker rule, rules which how he came out with over 20% prime rate. but later on, thumps down, noting to the housing bust they jacked us. In my book was the biggest to date stealing and hit the lower income the most.
Enlightening, as usual. Thanks, Matt.
agree
I had an experience recently that brought back memories of conglomerates, mergers, the Gordon Geckos of the time.
Being as old as I am, I have been reorganizing my kitchen for my shrinking height, putting heaver dishes and pots lower and lighter dishes and pots higher. In the process I came across my marinator - an accessory for my Food Saver that allowed for the infusing of marinade in meats in a half-hour rather than overnight.
The marinator was missing the piece that connected it to the Food Saver, so I headed to my computer and the Food Saver site. I looked all over the site for the part I needed, but couldn't find it. I sent a message to customer service and received an answer that - sorry, we don't carry small parts like that.
I wrote back, sarcastically, "Well, that's a real incentive to buy a marinator." The agent wrote back and said - sorry we weren;t able to help you. Then came the email asking me to rate my customer service experience.
Usually I ignore those, but that day I was feeling particularly peeved. Most of the questions were irrelevant to my issue, but the final question of the degree to which my issue was resolved -they got a ZERO. The 0 triggered a box for an explanation. Oh boy!
I wrote:
Remember that amazing company, Sears Roebuck, that twice a year put out huge catalogs of everything they sold with the full specifications of all the equipment and appliances (large and small) that they sold? And do you remember you could get parts no matter how small for both the useful life of the product and even beyond? And then they fell victim to the business of the times - the buyout and breaking up of the business for cash.
I ended my comment with: I guess you don't have to worry about that..
The Sears story is particularly ridiculous because Eddie Lampert straight up scammed the company with his self dealing.
It's yet another story of private equity destroying a business for personal gain.
Matt, this is one of my favorite Substacks, by far. But I always come away feeling very enlightened and, depending on the topic, slightly to very depressed. You really do excellent work.
Just saw this comment on the MedPage Today site:
"It's not even simply corporate -- private equity firms were gobbling up private practices even before COVID. The pace increased after the epidemic began. It's bad for the physician, but it's also pretty bad for the patient.
Could you look into this? Medical practitioners are getting more and more frustrated, angry and discouraged by what is happening in their profession when the "business model" takes over - with corporations involved and now with those even a step further removed (PE) from the actual purpose of the Med profession, our healthcare system is further fraying - in this day and age of "computer medicine" - people, real people, providing "hands on" care are still the irreplaceable backbone of any decent healthcare system - and when they are treated as widgets, we all suffer ...
I feel you SH, two years ago, seeing pain management, The M.D. and note my then main physician for long time wasn't a M.D.
Anyway, That M.D. told me my insurance is going to pay $400.00 for that ten minute visit BUT, she will only get $20.00 for it.
Add, that many of this company's Dont have physicians on top corp. boards positions. They didnt know what to do when covid hit.
Fires are everywhere now
Physician owned, let alone private, practices are disappearing - gobbled up by corp.s for whom "the business model" in which "efficiency and productivity" are the cardinal virtues, all in the name of profit ... the "business model" no doubt has its place, but not everyplace and i think we, as a society, need to define in which areas of our lives it belongs.
Matt's blog is great for examining where "efficiencies and productivity" are enhanced or stifled in the areas where the business model is useful - but it seems to me we need to establish another metric for those areas in which the whole damn model gets in the way ...
Will, thought and note so many people just cant or just dont know what is going on.
How many people think or believe Federal Reserve is Federal.
I tell people, add I found to explain to people (people dont like be told or shown how they dont know things, or have facts right. So, I try to lead people to fine out for themselves- figure out. See on that line, to me that how Q aon worked, lead them down rabbit holes. By, show a trail first then let them fine it, there a lie. Here we need to lead to FACTS which seem is or force out there to keep mis-info out there.
Sorry for that off track,
But, it will take a lot and big areas and multi areas here. Is there a way that we can hit the reset button on this area by. Placing back laws-regulation where it was say in the 1952. i say that year for that when Truman pass or act. To where We lost transparency on showing many areas were mostly spending. Closing up Achieves.
Yeah, and need to place nets for Wall Street, banks will hit back.
Patterns and trends, We need to study and predict counter moves before they happen or with No new laws or regulation or not going back. See and study where it all going before we get there.
I thank You Matt for covering all this, like fighting a Octopus isnt it.
" We need to study and predict counter moves before they happen ..."
Yup! but our story seems to have always been trying to close the barn door after the horse was out ...
True, OK, Patterns and trends, and the ability to be able to read reports, written from those that are skewing them, one sided. As like where Matt was able to note on the packing meat business. Short not telling the whole story.
Study on and I believe one cant fix something IF you don't know how we got here.
With that said, We got 330 million people in this Nation, I feel No Matter what laws or fixes one come up with, someone is going to fine away around it.
As to markets, there is always a trigger, before major moves. One can be small, but one can fine those triggers, start by, you have to think how they think or going for. If and or once one studies and or finds that. You then can step in, once one fine those triggers.
Here, I hope to fix it. not just profit off a F-up market place.
Trigger, I noted on K.L. M&As links as to where it picked up. Remembering I was reading news as to The Federal reserve had and DID jump in to save the T-note market, over night loans or over counter loans. "If' NOT, will Wall street was screaming if Feds didnt act. we was going to have a stock market crash. at the start of Covid in spring months of 2020.
NOTE, where M&As was on or did that 35-45 % jumps.
Time fram,,,
I ask, Did Wall Street, jack the 2 year T-notes JUST to get Feds to pump in easy money to them? thus, to just use it some where else, cheap easy money then use to buy up other companies? I just came up with phase, "Turn, Burn and flip loans"
Well, i have thought about your line there SH. " Physician owned, let alone private, Practices are disappearing".
OK, not saying this is totally the reason but feel it was part of the Private own offices gone or going out. One reason was law suits, Take a Doctor try to help someone, even free, say in public someone gets hurt, and asking is someone a Doctor to help! Say in airport?
Times, in fact, that person that screaming "I am hurt in a business place" is just looking for a law suit claim.
State of Nevada, is loaded with these type people.
True story, I worked as a meat cutter at Smith Grocery, in Carson city NV. in 1991.
OK, Store was then, a over a million a week in sells.
The store, gave every employee pictures of four people, NOTE: to report they was in the story and get management if seen, and if You walked by a grape or wet spot on floor, AND NOT pick up or clean right there then. You would be fired, and had to sign a agreement to that last.
OK, first it was a sweat shop, the meat dept. Up against the wall day in day out to get product out. working with knifes and saws, it was a danger zone
I felt, WHAT, I didnt hire on to be security- policing. to sign that agreement.
ok, after that 2-3 weeks went by, I was going on break and walking down to front of store. check stand in front of me. looking at lady in that check stand. Pick up a bic pen off the rack at the stand, to drop on flood, then laid down and started screaming she could not get up. Back hurt, it was B.S. see the whole thing.
OK, I reported it, two- three more weeks went by, and the The Company lawyers gave her $15,000.00 out ofcourt settlement. Add, management told me she had or this was her 74th law suit. I was like what? why? OK, as to law you cannt use pass cases in court, one. and it would cost over 25K to fight the case. it was bean counter issue. cheaper to just pay her up front. It was fraud and she got paid for it.
So to that, remember hearing in news how Doctors about 15 years ago and Obama care came in. Private Doctor was having to up prices across the board, for lawyers and law suits, to me big Corp. was pushing this. over law suits, so was that over kill? add, corp- companies that produce tools and equipment for hospitals and private doctors was going up when ( time frame) Obama care before it came out or pushing it. 3 years there, went 15% first yr. then 10% next then 20% third. a 45% increase in 3 years. or about but was 45% over 3 years.
See how on just two areas where a single doctor got out of private business.
I agree with you ... single doc or group practice cannot afford to get sued - price of malpractice insurance necessary to cover what can be a LARGE settlement is too high, and in this litigious society, too many are able to make money out of suing ... theoretically the idea is to convince companies they will be sued if they don't make safe products or provide "safe spaces" but somehow it doesn't seem to have worked out that way, especially when the cost of insurance and whatever payouts they need to make when sued can be considered a "tax deduction" under the "cost of doing business" - take the BP oil spill in the Gulf for example ...
man, this is some of the best reading I've done in a LONG time.
I like how you mention BOTH Carter and Reagan. I've been saying for years the beginning of the de-regulation happened under Carter.
Wage and price controls happened under Nixon, De-regulation under Carter.
My conservative friends mind blows when I tell them this.
Good topic
Tech sector roll ups are always fun. A company called (I kid you not) Progress bought out Chef, which makes DevOps automation, and it seems they have other offerings that clearly are random and have no synergies at all.
I remember when HomeAway bought up all the vacation rental sites back in the late 2000s and began to raise prices while integrating all manner of related services, such as billing and card payments, all for a fee.
Or Vista Equity Partners bought out Acquia, which offered Drupal-based SaaS for basically marketing stuff in 2021. From what I heard, they immediately whacked a ton of employees and outsourced.
This is all quite insidious.
On the flip side, apparently Spectrum (Charter) offers cellular service now. The story I was told is they actually co-own infrastructure with Verizon, and Verizon never thought they'd actually go into the mobile business, so the contract didn't forbid it. So if you have Spectrum Internet, you're eligible for use of Verizon's network without having to pay Verizon fees. I went to pay per GB and it is only $14/mo versus what I was paying Verizon before, about $58.
Matt is this the same" Bork"- Judge that was up for the Supreme Court? I think was in the 70`s. Where Biden sat on that committee with Ted Kennedy. Where they block his nomination. On where a question was asked by Kennedy. Why do you want to be on the Supreme Court? Bork replied, that it would be a interesting "experiment". I took that as the reason to block that nomination.
Then McConnell came out with a video- on camera after, "pissed". Stating, and made a val that his future mission in the Senate. Would be to turn the Supreme Court all conservative -Republican`s.
That Bork? which would had been picked by Nixon.
Yes
Robert Bork
Former Solicitor General of the United States. Google , define the word Bork. his name made it in the dictionary, from that. how split people would call that good or bad? 50-50 or 48-52?
Find it a bit weird that judges are political appointees..politicians are in turn funded by corporates..so do corporates decide who to appoint as judge?!
Indirectly I would say Yes - the labyrinthine trail of crumbs from here to there can often be identified in the nodes along the way - e.g. The Federalist Society ...
OK, Matt, who's the McLaren of today? Is there one, or one who has the potential to be one? And how do we sure (s)he gets appointed and adequately funded ...
Not offering any answers, but have found the following interesting reading. Some of the actors involved are mentioned along with their statements. Also interesting are underlying assumptions, particular verbiage employed, etc.:
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/2022-m-a-report-5479130/
and:
https://www.wilmerhale.com/insights/client-alerts/20220413-aba-antitrust-section-spring-meeting-sessions-key-points-from-antitrust-enforcers
Thank You for post website K.L.
Evans is an IT market analyst, his narrative is always orthodox with respect to current market logic so it's interesting to read what he writes about (support your arguments)
https://www.architecting.it/blog/broadcom-vmware
do you have your own Youtube channel Matt?
I don't.
came get away from here. Sunday and i got go to work- the old, just to be able to bills.
Old phase, "Think out of Box" redefine it, in order to,, One, first, one has to know what in the their "Tool Box". Then as to these subjects. Fine whats in "Their Tool Box". Then, can one start by pull those tools out?
Maybe to late to post, First glad you here Matt and those that is helping on these areas.
Any help as to looking to Wall street and their funding area. By Gov., Federal Reserve, the different Bond markets. just as Federal Reserve bump up interest rates, to do it or hitting this area as to M&As , "IF" or RULES on how those funds well be used. With not touching NEW business set aside, IF set rules can go into place. Short stop loans to buy-out already Up and running companies. or to buy back own stocks and options.
Private equity ghouls rationalize their actions based on "efficiency." Efficiency for whom? Really, they are just cost-shifting and rent-stealing from consumers, workers, and society as a whole. Yet, the sanctity of such predatory behavior is a linchpin of D.C.'s bipartisanship. How do you change this when most judges appointed since the 1970s are corporate sycophants?
So, just hold these guys/gals "accountable" using the only language they understand - losing an election - but who to replace them with - not, IMO, members of the duopoly who made the mess - but with non-corp 3rd parties - it could be done, you know - folks with integrity are out there, we just need to support and VOTE for them in large numbers ...
Question,, as to and noting on K.L. post listed site on M&A.. when major jump on that, I note to when at that time frame. Federal Reserve had to free up money on the over the counter loans for having a reverted T-Notes market.
Short, wasnt that where the major jump came from, easy money for making of more buy-outs. And used that money for speculation, consolidating and or drive up their own stocks. VS building something or new business.
I have not dive in to any reports for a long time, why leads me to other fires,lol. I like to but, I still have to make a living, the time it takes.
AS to regulators, Maybe they need to focus on the Federal Reserve and putting rules on over night loans for wall street. As to how they use those loans. Back when Greenspan was head of F.R. I do believe we had congress Finance committee over him. DIDNT know or understand, or if so, closed blind eye. what was really going on.
Wont forget Greenspan one day state, We got very Smart people looking over this, it is to complexed for others to figure out or get involved. So dont. I loved him when he came on after Volker rule, rules which how he came out with over 20% prime rate. but later on, thumps down, noting to the housing bust they jacked us. In my book was the biggest to date stealing and hit the lower income the most.