To help level the playing field a bit more, NYSE Technologies new Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) offering lets financial firms of any size place Virtual Machines directly on the same infrastructure as the exchange.

FORBES: Are Banks Using The Cloud?

The Gus Rankings have the virtue of relying on fairly objective results (on-the-field wins and losses) while correcting a little bit for randomness.

FORBES: Of Wins, Losses, and Rankings

Judging by the interest in the first round playoff games in the 16-team field NBA, where TNT and ABC-ESPN are seeing solid ratings, baseball would probably be well served by stretching the field a bit.

FORBES: Baseball Could Use Expanded Playoffs