The latest in a string of celebrities to put their stamp on a prepaid card, Orman will likely avoid the criticism about high fees lobbed at earlier offerings, such as those of hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and reality show stars the Kardashians. Orman's card costs $3 to obtain, and then just $3 a month, rivaling the hugely popular Walmart MoneyCard.

Although some will question how Orman will recoup the more than $1 million she has invested in the card when charging that little, the real twist isn't the low fee structure. Orman is working with credit reporting agency TransUnion to create a new kind of credit score for users of "The Approved" prepaid MasterCard, one that's based on their spending habits.

Right now, using debit cards both the prepaid kind and those tied to bank accounts does not influence an individual's credit score, which is calculated with data related to borrowing. If Orman's experiment is successful, this new type of score could be a game-changer for the estimated 60 million Americans who do most or all of their personal business in cash or with cash alternatives like prepaid cards.

The TV adviser said she approached several companies, urging them to agree to develop such a score, and TransUnion ultimately agreed to gather spending data for 18 to 24 months. It will use that data to try to come up with a formula that works as a way to predict whether the user is a good risk for lenders.

"This is truthfully a work in progress," said Orman.

Banks and other lenders are interested in creating ways to measure how prepaid cards are used, because of the huge market they represent. Consumers loaded an estimated $70.7 billion onto prepaid cards in 2011, up from $2.7 billion in 2005, according to consultancy Mercator Advisory Group.

Mercator projects the market will top $120 billion this year if adoption continues at the same pace.

In general, users can be divided into three groups. The first subset is those caught up in the economy people who had good credit until it was damaged by events like unemployment or foreclosure. Second are those who have not yet built credit histories, mainly the young and recent immigrants. The third group avoids banks, often because of negative experiences, such as racking up high overdraft fees.

"Wouldn't it be fabulous if, for the first time in history, people are literally rewarded for spending cash, versus penalized, in my opinion, for doing so?" Orman said.

The problem with traditional credit scores from FICO Inc. and its competitors is that they measure how well individuals keep up with their payments, but don't pay any attention to their overall financial health, she said. "Scoring doesn't question where the money is coming from to make payments."

Prepaid cards have already filled some of the void for those who don't use banks, especially because they can be used to receive paychecks via direct deposit. But because they don't contribute to credit scores, the cards can't help users get a mortgage, a car loan or a credit card.

Not having a credit score, or having a low one, also drives up the cost of living in other ways. Lower scores can mean higher car insurance rates, higher rent, difficulty getting a job and paying higher interest rates for any credit available. People with little credit history known as a "thin file" in the industry are also the most likely to use alternative services like payday lenders, check cashing stores and bill pay services. These are expensive options when compared with credit cards and banks.

FICO Inc. and other companies use data tied to borrowing to determine a score meant to measure the likelihood an individual will pay back future loans. FICO's 300-to-850 scale is based on an individual's history making payments on loans, the percentage of available credit that is being used and how long the individual has used credit, among other data.

Those with thin credit files have a better chance of having their creditworthiness reflected by FICO's "expansion score," which factors in data like utility bill payments and rent payments. FICO CEO Mark Greene said the expansion scores have shown that the population without traditional scores mirrors to the larger population in terms of credit risk. Other credit score providers are beginning to provide measures based on utility payments and other nontraditional data.

One big difference for developing a prepaid score, however, is that these alternatives still measure how well individuals meet obligations, not how they spend the rest of their income.

"Spending is not actually a great indicator of the thing that we're trying to measure, which is the likelihood you're going to pay your bill," Greene said. "We need to be careful about how we approach that issue."

Another issue a prepaid-linked score must address is the fact that the typical reloadable card is used for just three to four months, said Brian Riley, who analyzes the card market for the consultant The Tower Group.

That timeframe is likely to expand, however, because more users are beginning to have their paychecks deposited to reload prepaid cards. Adding rewards and services, and cutting fees, may also increase customer loyalty.

Orman is adamant that her card will carry only a $3-per-month fee for users who load at least $20 per month onto it. Fees will rise only if the user uses ATMs outside the network it is linked to when withdrawing cash. Consumers who use The Approved Card will also get daily text messages updating their balance, along with one after each purchase, and other free services like ID theft monitoring, credit monitoring and free credit reports from TransUnion.

The media star, whose new show on the Oprah Winfrey Network premieres Monday, said she knows creating the score will be an uphill battle, but believes that if successful, it will help both lenders and borrowers. "You've got to start it somewhere, and this is the beginning of that process."

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles challenged President Nicolas Maduro's narrow election victory before the Supreme Court on Thursday, prolonging what appears to be a futile effort to overturn last month's vote.

Capriles refused to accept the results of the April 14 vote for a successor to late socialist leader Hugo Chavez, and called on supporters to take the streets. That led to unruly demonstrations in which the government says nine people died.

Few expect Capriles to win a favorable ruling from the court, which the opposition says is controlled by the ruling Socialist Party. He may also go to international tribunals, though most countries have recognized Maduro's win.

"This appeal seeks to annul the elections and request new presidential elections in Venezuela," said Gerardo Fernandez, a lawyer representing the opposition, who are intent on at least discrediting Maduro even if they cannot overrule the result.

"We've come to defend the citizens who voted in April 14."

Fernandez said the appeal includes complaints relating to incidents prior to the election. The opposition accuses Maduro of using state resources and government media for his campaign.

Capriles also alleges there were thousands of irregularities on voting day, ranging from intimidation of poll station volunteers to illegal campaigning by government supporters.

"This is not over. No one here can get tired or throw in the towel," Capriles told a news conference, adding that his team had found names of 200,000 dead people on the electoral register.

As on previous occasions, Capriles' news conference was interrupted on television after a few minutes by a government "cadena" broadcast that all local channels are obliged to show live.

Opposition supporters responded by banging pots-and-pans in some neighborhoods in a traditional form of protest in Venezuela and some other Latin American countries.

FRAGILE POST-CHAVEZ ERA

Maduro pillories Capriles daily as a sore loser and "bourgeois cry-baby." He accuses Capriles of fomenting post-vote violence, including killings of government supporters and attacks on government-run clinics.

Residents of one Caracas community affected by post-election violence told Reuters that two people were shot and killed by opposition sympathizers following a protest.

The government also attributed a third fatality in the La Limonera community to opposition violence, but locals said that man was a victim of common crime.

The election was triggered by the March 5 death of Chavez, whose charismatic leadership and oil-financed social largesse made him a hero to the poor but a pariah to critics who called him a dictator.

Though he was anointed as Chavez's successor, Maduro beat Capriles by only 1.5 percentage points in contrast to Chavez's 11 point victory over the same rival last year.

With a weaker vote mandate and without Chavez's innate charisma, Maduro seems to have less control over the disparate socialist coalition that his predecessor ruled with an iron hand.

The vote dispute led to a punch-up in Congress on Tuesday that put several opposition deputies in hospital. Video footage showed government allies repeatedly punching one deputy in the face, leaving him bloodied and bruised.

The deputies had raised a banner saying "Coup in Parliament" after the pro-government leadership of the legislature prevented them from speaking during the session unless they explicitly recognized Maduro as president.

The government responded with a broadcast, set to eerie, suspense-thriller music, showing opposition deputies waving arms and one throwing a chair.

Julio Borges, the opposition deputy who bore the most notable wounds from the fracas, called Maduro a "big liar" in a Twitter post. "I challenge you to show the Assembly's closed circuit video footage without editing anything," he said.

Maduro allies have in most cases said they regretted the violence, but blame the incident on provocation by opposition deputies interrupting the session with whistles and air horns.

The pugnacious Prisons Minister Iris Varela was less cautious. "They really deserved the beating that they got," she said, according to local media.

(Additional reporting by Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and David Brunnstrom)

The official Pizza Hut app for Xbox Live. Theis partnering with Microsoft's Xbox team to develop a first-of-its kind app that lets you customize a pizza onscreen using the 360's controller, Kinect motions, or voice commands. Your cheesy design gets delivered to your doorstep soon thereafter.

The app, which spokespeople from Pizza Hut and Xbox say has been a long-time coming, was born out of a "mutual conversation," . Demographic: Nailed. Here's Xbox's :

"We're always looking at ways to give our audience more of what they're interested in," he said. "If you look at our audience, they love pizza. I mean, who doesn't? It has international appeal, and Pizza Hut is a recognized brand that matches up well with the Xbox brand." []

The future is here, folks. And it's glorious.

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Facebook has introduced software called Home that makes the social network the hub of any smartphone running Google's Android operating system. The idea behind the software is to bring Facebook content right to the home screen, rather than requiring users to check apps. "Home" comes amid rapid growth in the number of people who access Facebook from phones and tablet computers.

Available for download starting April 12, the service is part of Facebook's move to shift its users' focus from "apps and tasks" to people, said CEO Mark Zuckerberg during Home's unveiling at the company's Menlo Park, Calif., headquarters on Thursday.

The new product, which can reside on the home screen of Android phones, is a family of apps designed around people's Facebook connections. Rather than see a set of apps for email, maps and other services on the screen, users will be greeted with photos and updates from their Facebook feeds.

"We think this is the best version of Facebook there is," Zuckerberg said.

Zuckerberg says users can have an experience on Android phones that they can't have on other platforms. That's because Google makes the software available on an open-source basis, allowing others to adapt it to their needs.

The move that coincides with rapid growth among the number of users who access the social network from smartphones and tablet computers and Facebook's aim to evolve from its Web-based roots into a "mobile-first" company.

"What Facebook wants is to put itself at the front of the Android user experience for as many Facebook users as possible and make Facebook more elemental to their customers' experience," said Forrester analyst Charles Golvin.

In addition to Home, a new HTC phone that integrates the service will also be available starting April 12, with AT&T Inc. as the carrier.

The move could help to attract more mobile advertisers. Though mobile ads were a big concern for Facebook's investors even before the company's initial public offering last May, some of the worry has subsided as the company muscles its way into the market.

Last year, Facebook began showing ads to its mobile audience by shoehorning corporate-sponsored content into users' news feeds, which also include updates from friends and brands they follow. Facebook now faces the challenge of showing people mobile ads without annoying or alienating them.

The mobile advertising market is growing quickly, thanks in large part to Facebook and Twitter, which also entered the space in 2012. Research firm eMarketer expects U.S. mobile ad spending to grow 77 percent this year to $7.29 billion, from $4.11 billion last year.

EMarketer said Wednesday that it expects Facebook Inc. to reap $965 million in U.S. mobile ad revenue in 2013. That's about 2.5 times the $391 million in 2012, the first year that Facebook started showing mobile ads. Clark Fredricksen, vice president at eMarketer, says "there are some clear reasons why a deeper integration with mobile operating systems and handsets make sense for Facebook. At the end of the day, the more deeply Facebook can engage consumers, no matter what device or operating system or handset," the better.

The first lady is asking children ages 8 to 12 and their parents to create nutritious lunch recipes that represent each of the food groups for "The Healthy Lunchtime Challenge."

Winners will travel to Washington to sample some of the original dishes at the second White House kids' "state dinner" luncheon this summer.

The deadline to submit recipes is May 12. Last year's challenge received more than 1,200 entries.

The contest, created by Epicurious.com, is a partnership among the food website, Mrs. Obama and the departments of Education and Agriculture.

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Online:

http://www.recipechallenge.epicurious.com

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Penguins 3, Bruins 2

Jussi Jokinen collected a goal and two assists as visiting Pittsburgh clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference in a game that was rescheduled from Friday after authorities conducted a manhunt for one of the suspects involved in the Boston Marathon bombings.

Jarome Iginla and defenseman Kris Letang scored power-play goals in the third period and Tomas Vokoun turned aside 38 shots for the Penguins, who have won six in a row overall and six straight against Boston.

Pittsburgh moved within four points of Chicago in the race for the Presidents' Trophy.

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Devils 6, Panthers 2

Patrik Elias recorded his 51st career two-goal game - and first of the season - as host New Jersey netted six unanswered tallies to keep its slim postseason aspirations alive.

Fourth-liner Ryan Carter scored for the second straight game and David Clarkson, Stephen Gionta and Dainius Zubrus also scored.

Martin Brodeur (11 saves) denied Quinton Howden on a penalty shot early in the third period for the Devils, who have won two straight following a 10-game winless skid (0-6-4) and moved within six points of the eighth-place New York Rangers.

New Jersey has four games remaining on its schedule - including a pair at New York.

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Islanders 5, Jets 4 (shootout)

John Tavares and Brad Boyes scored in the shootout as visiting New York snapped Winnipeg's five-game winning streak. Josh Bailey and Frans Nielsen each had a goal and an assist and Michael Grabner and Matt Martin also scored for the Islanders, who improved to 8-0-2 in April and pulled even in points with fifth-place Toronto.

Captain Andrew Ladd tallied in the shootout and finished with two assists for the Jets, who fell to 5-0-1 on their six-game homestand and moved within a point of both Southeast Division-leading Washington and the eighth-place New York Rangers. (Editing by Gene Cherry)

If her victory celebration on the stadium court seemed well-rehearsed, it was. She earned a record sixth Key Biscayne women's title Saturday by beating familiar foil Maria Sharapova 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 at the Sony Open.

Sharapova set a new standard for futility in finals. She completed a career Grand Slam by winning the French Open last year, and won Indian Wells two weeks ago, but she's now 0-5 in Key Biscayne finals.

Sharapova playing nearly flawless tennis for an hour, before her serve and groundstrokes began to lose steam. Williams swept the last 10 games and faltered only during the trophy ceremony.

"I felt good today," she told the crowd with the smile. "It's so good to be No. 6 now I mean, the six-time oh, gosh. Thank you."

At 31, the No. 1-ranked Williams became the oldest female champion at Key Biscayne. She won the tournament for the first time since 2008 and surpassed Steffi Graf, a five-time champion.

"Serena played a great match," Sharapova said. "I'm sure we'll be playing a few more times this year."

Sharapova didn't sound thrilled by the prospect, with good reason. She has lost 11 consecutive matches against Williams and hasn't beaten her since 2004.

The men's finalists are familiar foes, too. On Sunday, 2009 champion Andy Murray will play frequent practice partner David Ferrer, who is trying to become the first Spaniard to win the men's title.

The women's final began at high noon in sunny, mild weather, and the quality of shotmaking matched the conditions in the early going. The aggressive style of both players made for slam-bang points, and the occasional long rallies had a near-capacity crowd gasping at their ferocity.

As they battled from the baseline, Sharapova built a lead by keeping Williams on the defensive, and kissed the line with a winner on consecutive points to break for a 3-2 advantage in the second set.

"I just was like, 'Serena, are you really going to get to the final and not play up to your potential?'" Williams said. "I don't think I was as energized as I could be."

Then came the turnaround. Williams ratcheted up the power, began feasting on Sharapova's tentative second serve and broke back at love, then took advantage of two double-faults by Sharapova to break again.

Williams lives 2 hours up I-95 in Palm Beach Gardens, and she made herself right at home in the final set, losing only 10 points.

"That's why she's No. 1 in the world," Sharapova said. "She's really capable of doing that. I was controlling a lot of the points in the first set and the beginning of the second. Then toward the end, I wasn't there."

Williams' late surge won cheers from the crowd, which included her sister, three-time champion Venus.

Sharapova made 80 percent of her first serves early on but finished at 63. Williams converted all seven break-point chances and had a 35-13 advantage in winners.

But Williams' standards are high, and in her postmatch news conference, she sounded as though she had lost.

"Today wasn't my day, I don't think," she said. "Maria played really the best I have seen her play, and I think she was moving unbelievable, and she was hitting winners from everywhere."

It wasn't Williams' first test this week. She trailed Dominika Cibulkova 6-2, 4-1 before rallying in the fourth round, and was annoyed to hit six double-faults in the quarterfinals.

"I'm happy to be holding the championship," she said. "It's definitely not my best tournament. I think everyone here can agree. But those are the moments that count when you can still come out on top."

She'll remain No. 1 and Sharapova No. 2 next week. Williams is the first No. 1-seeded woman to win the title since she was champion in 2004.

Williams' other titles at Key Biscayne came in 2002, '03, '07 and '08. Sharapova was runner-up in 2005, '06, '11 and '12.

"It's tough to lose in the final stage, because you work so hard to get there," Sharapova said. "But the more I give myself this opportunity, the better chance I have of winning."

“iShare is a new spin on the business principle that the customer is always right,” says Esbert Cardenas, CEO of Image Outfitters and founder of iShare. “I help my customers choose from over a million different products to represent their brands, but when it comes to choosing worthy charities, I let my customers take the lead.”

Every Image Outfitters customer is eligible to donate 10% of the sales from their order to any nonprofit organization through iShare. Quietly launched in April 2012 to Image Outfitters’ customers, recent donations have pushed cumulative giving through iShare past the $11,000 mark.

“iShare is a great way for CEOs to give to charity without changing their budgets, but also for nonprofits to rally their supporters to bring in new donations,” adds Cardenas. “I am very pleased to see how many people have embraced the iShare program.”

For more information on iShare visit

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Image Outfitters specializes in promotional products for businesses and organizations of all sizes with offices in Stowe and Miami. With over 14 years of experience serving a diverse client base, Image Outfitters is prepared to provide exemplary customer service and order customization for every client, regardless of size.

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About iShare: iShare is a charitable donations program that was founded in early 2012 by Image Outfitters. Ten percent of sales from orders of promotional products from Image Outfitters may be directed to the 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization of the client’s choosing.

Visit , follow on Twitter @iShareWorks and ‘Like’ on Facebook atfor updates and additional information

Michael JosephPMG PR(802) 863-3929 105

MUMBAI (Reuters) - In a street next to Mumbai's biggest mall, in a suburb teeming with people even at midnight, is a building that at first glance looks like an abandoned warehouse.

The decrepit exterior hides the set of what may be one of India's most ambitious TV shows yet - the domestic version of the U.S. television hit action series "24", which its makers hope will revolutionize Indian TV.

The Indian "24" is a novel concept in an industry where daily soaps reign. It will be the first seasonal fiction show on TV, one of the most expensive TV shows ever produced and the first to have a Bollywood star in the lead.

Anil Kapoor, 53 and best known for his turn as the talk show host in Danny Boyle's Oscar-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire", will be the Indian counterpart of Jack Bauer, the suave police officer who is part of an elite anti-terrorism unit. Kiefer Sutherland starred in the original.

It is with this mix of Bollywood stardom and the terrorism theme that the show's makers are hoping to woo Indian audiences.

"We are giving them their star that they love and we are giving them subject matter which is close to them, which is India, patriotism, terrorism, crime, thriller and family emotions," said director Abhinay Deo. "Where can this go wrong?"

Kapoor, who is also the show's producer, played a Middle Eastern leader in the eighth season of the American series in 2010 and was convinced he had to bring the "discipline and professionalism" of U.S. television into India.

Aware that they are venturing into untested waters, the show's makers are paying great attention to detail. The main set or the CTU (counter-terrorism unit) is a replica of the one in the U.S. series, complete with newspaper clippings, Venn diagrams on softboards and huge monitoring screens.

On a recent day, director Deo and his assistants were debating how one of the characters should grip a syringe, attempting several different shots until they were satisfied.

This is unusual for an Indian television show, where the pressure of producing daily episodes often means little thought is given to characters or storylines.

"An international format is only a starting point, the key is how it is adapted to India," said Shailesh Kapoor, CEO of media insights firm Ormax Media.

If it does work, Indian television may be tempted to follow the West's lead, sticking to seasonal formats and focusing on smart writing and better production values, they said.

"When 24' becomes a hit, be assured that every CEO of every broadcasting company will be on a flight to L.A. to pick up formats," said Raj Nayak, CEO of the Colors channel which will air the series later this year, perhaps as early as August.

But it is not going to be easy. Nine of the top 10 fiction shows on Indian television are daily soaps with a crime thriller sneaking in at only number ten, according to a recent report by consultancy KPMG.

"My audience is the masses - the Hindi heartland," says Nayak. "They haven't seen this, for them it'll be a novelty and something new."

Still, it's a gamble, and the show's makers know they have to get it right the first time. Bollywood star Kapoor, who has starred in more than 100 films in three decades, may not get another chance to prove himself on TV, and chances of a second season are slim if the first doesn't make the cut.

"You stick your neck out and I have stuck my neck out," says Kapoor. "I am not playing it safe, I am playing the lead. And I'm a movie star."

(Editing by Tony Tharakan and Elaine Lies)