Because Hungarian government agencies are always just a few weeks away from announcing some type of goofy public relations contest, the national tax office APEH announced that it was planning to organize a children's story and comic-writing competition where inspectors, collectors and even the office's leaders can enter, fn.hu reports. The creations will later be used in a tax awareness campaign aimed at kindergartners and elementary school kids, apparently to get to them before they realize that no one in Hungary properly pays their taxes. But then things hit a bump in the road, or this being Hungary, a pothole.

Longtimers here in Hungary may recall an era when every other new business on the streets of places like Budapest seemed to be gaming halls. Well, that era now seems to be over. According to piacesprofit.hu, revenues for members of the Hungarian Gambling Association (MSZSZ) - that is, companies operating gaming machines - fell by almost 15% in 2009, while the number of such nyerőgépek has been in continuous decline for the last half-decade, from 33,000 in 2005 to only 25,000 last year.

Several websites have recently popped up trying to make a profit from IKEA's widespread popularity in Hungary, but have discovered that trying to ride to success on the coattails of the Swedish furniture giant is legally perilous. According to penzcentrum.hu, a Hungarian entrepreneur created a website resembling IKEA's site where consumers could sell and buy used IKEA furniture. But after the article was published (Olcsobbikea.hu ("Cheaper IKEA") was taken down by its creator, with the homepage (left) replaced by a notice saying it would return after its "legal situation is clarified."

Here's a small but still interesting/weird story for anyone involved in the Hungarian media market: According to kreativ.hu, ad sales for the website of Hungary's most widely read political daily - nol.hu - will now be handled by the Adaptive Media Sales House, instead of majority owner Ringier, while news portal hirszerzo.hu will be represented by Ringier Online, having switched over from Adaptive.