The Indicator from Planet Money - Forever games: the economics of the live service model

People used to pay one standard price for their favorite games in a one-off transaction. But now, many game companies are offering their games for free, supported by in-game purchases. This is called the live service model.

Today, the first episode of a week-long series about the video game industry. We investigate the promise and pains of the live service model and explain how it turned the industry upside down.

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Ticketmaster’s dominance, Caitlin Clark’s paycheck, and other indicators

It's highs and lows in this edition of Indicators of the Week! The surprisingly high amount of electricity needed for artificial intelligence, basketball star Caitlin Clark's surprisingly low base salary, plus a potential crackdown on the ticketing company everyone loves to hate (possibly because of those high fees).

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Inside the epic fight over new banking regulations

After the financial crisis of 2008, regulators around the world agreed banks should have more of a cushion to weather hard times. Now, U.S. regulators are once again looking to update minimum capital requirements through a set of proposals called Basel III Endgame. Today, on the show, a blow-by-blow account of this battle between bankers and regulators.

Related episodes:
Time to make banks more stressed? (Apple / Spotify)
SVB, now First Republic: How it all started (Apple / Spotify)

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Profiting off greater risk: the reinsurance game

When an insurance company can't cover all of its claims, it actually has its own insurance. This is called "reinsurance." How does that work and why do reinsurers look at their risk pool differently than say home or auto insurers?

Related episodes:
Why is insurance so expensive right now? And more listener questions (Apple / Spotify)
When insurers can't get insurance (Apple / Spotify)

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The Indicator from Planet Money - What is a ‘freedom economy’?

Anti-vaccine activists, far-right groups and some religious conservatives convened in Las Vegas this spring to discuss the creation of a parallel economy. These are groups who believe their speech is threatened by big banks and big tech. On today's show, what is a "freedom economy," and how would it work?

Related episodes:
A Supreme Court case that could reshape social media (Apple / Spotify)

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Why is insurance so expensive right now? And more listener questions

We are back to answer your listener questions. On today's show, we explain reverse mortgages and their risks, why insurance has gotten so expensive, and whether there's a catch to charitable donations at the store.

If you have a question you'd like us to answer, email us at indicator@npr.org.

Related episodes:
When insurers can't get insurance (Apple / Spotify)

Are we counting jobs right? We answer your listener questions (Apple / Spotify)

When mortgage rates are too low to give up (Apple / Spotify)

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The Indicator from Planet Money - What Subway’s foot-long cookie says about inflation

In this edition of Indicators of the Week: the new incentive for speed in cash prizes for Olympic track and field, growing iPhone assembly in India and the curious inflation puzzle of the foot-long cookies at Subway.

Related episodes:
Can India become the next high-tech hub? (Apple / Spotify)

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Life Raft - Introducing: Sea Change

Right now in the US, there is a GAS BOOM. A liquified natural gas boom — or LNG. The US produces the most LNG in the world. And the epicenter of this massive expansion? It’s here on the Gulf Coast.

For the last year, we’ve traversed Louisiana trying to uncover what this growing LNG industry means for the state. But, after talking with everyone – from shrimpers to energy insiders – we realized that the stakes were far bigger. If we really wanted to tell the whole story, we had to travel even farther. In this 3-part series, we follow the journey of American gas around the world to find out if LNG is the miracle fuel it’s claimed to be. If it really can prevent a climate apocalypse. Or is it a carbon bomb waiting to go off?

In part one, we start in Louisiana — ground zero. We see how the rise of these massive export terminals has transformed one community. Is this big bet on LNG worth it?

“All Gassed Up” is a special 3-part series from Sea Change. This special series is part of the Pulitzer Center’s nationwide Connected Coastlines reporting initiative. For more information, go to pulitzercenter.org/connected-coastlines.

This episode was hosted, reported, and produced by Carlyle Calhoun and Halle Parker. It was edited by Morgan Springer, Rosemary Westwood, and Eve Abrams. Additional help was provided by Ryan Vasquez and Eva Tesfaye. The episode was fact-checked by Garrett Hazelwood. Our sound designer is Emily Jankowski. Our theme music is by Jon Batiste.

ABOUT SEA CHANGE:

Living on the coast means living on the front lines of a rapidly changing planet. And as climate change transforms our coasts, that will transform our world.

Every two weeks, we bring you stories that illuminate, inspire, and sometimes enrage, as we dive deep into the environmental issues facing coastal communities on the Gulf Coast and beyond. We have a lot to save, and we have a lot of solutions. It’s time to talk about a Sea Change.


Sea Change is a WWNO and WRKF production. We are part of the NPR Podcast Network and distributed by PRX. Our managing producer is Carlyle Calhoun. Hosted by Carlyle Calhoun and Halle Parker. Our theme song is by Jon Batiste To see more of our reporting on LNG and find other episodes, visit WWNO.org/podcast/sea-change. And to help others find our podcast, hit subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and don’t forget to rate and review!

The Indicator from Planet Money - The IRS wants to do your taxes for free. Will it last?

With tax season upon us, many people are paying someone or a software to get their tax returns done. A small group of people, however, are filing online directly with ... the IRS. For free. Today on the show: how the IRS's tax filing experiment came to be, how it's been working so far, and who doesn't like it.

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