To lure broadcast TV stations into giving up spectrum so it can be made available for wireless devices, the FCC's chairman wants to pay them.
The Obama Administration has pledged to double the amount of airwaves available for data-hungry devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. The squeeze could come soon. Wireless data flows may increase 35-fold over the next five years.
One place to look for spectrum, he says: the airwaves controlled by broadcast TV stations, whose owners include CBS (CBS), News Corp. (NWSA), and Walt Disney's (DIS) ABC. TV stations switched from inefficient analog broadcasting to efficient digital signals two years ago, freeing up a portion of their allocated airwaves. Money would come from auctioning excess airwaves to mobile carriers such as AT&T (T), Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, and Sprint Nextel (S). The airwaves could fetch $48 billion.
Read more at Business Week
Thursday, January 27
Innovator: Evan Ratliff
Magazine writer Evan Ratliff has developed software that gives small publishers the chance to compete with moguls on tablets and smartphones. The Atavist is a boutique publishing venture that will sell original, long-form nonfiction stories exclusively on smartphones and tablets. Ratliff will commission and edit the stories, which will be longer than typical magazine features and shorter than most books. Readers will be able to download the Atavist app for free and purchase individual stories for $2.99 on iPhones and iPads, or pay $1.99 for a Kindle version. Writers will earn a flat fee for each story plus a percentage of every copy sold.
The Atavist has built a content management system, dubbed Periodic Technology, that allows editors to build multimedia narratives, design layouts, and then, with one step, publish across multiple platforms. It currently formats content for iPhones, iPads, and Kindles, and will soon serve Android devices as well.
Ratliff plans to license his technology and lower the barrier to entry for small publishers.
Read more at Business Week
The Atavist has built a content management system, dubbed Periodic Technology, that allows editors to build multimedia narratives, design layouts, and then, with one step, publish across multiple platforms. It currently formats content for iPhones, iPads, and Kindles, and will soon serve Android devices as well.
Ratliff plans to license his technology and lower the barrier to entry for small publishers.
Read more at Business Week
Amazon Launches Kindle Singles, Saves Long-Form Journalism
Amazon has launched Kindle Singles, one-off pieces of non-fiction and journalism which are typically much shorter than a novel, but longer than a magazine article. The Singles can be read on any of the many Kindle platforms, from the Kindle itself through smart-phones to Amazon’s desktop Kindle client, and they are priced accordingly, from $1 to $5.
Long-form journalism has seen a surprising revival in recent years, with services like Instapaper and Read it Later allowing you to push longer articles off to mobile devices – like the iPad – to read later. Disproving the typical thinking that web users want their information in small, easy chunks, sites like Longform.org – which curates more in-depth stories – are flourishing.
Kindle singles will typically run to between 5,000 and 30,000 words, the no-man’s land between a magazine article and a short book.
Read more at Wired
Long-form journalism has seen a surprising revival in recent years, with services like Instapaper and Read it Later allowing you to push longer articles off to mobile devices – like the iPad – to read later. Disproving the typical thinking that web users want their information in small, easy chunks, sites like Longform.org – which curates more in-depth stories – are flourishing.
Kindle singles will typically run to between 5,000 and 30,000 words, the no-man’s land between a magazine article and a short book.
Read more at Wired
App Sales To Top $15 Billion In 2011
App store downloads worldwide will more than double this year to 17.7 billion (according to technology research firm Gartner). App revenue in 2011 will hit $15.1 billion, up from $5.2 billion in 2010. By 2014, app downloads will jump to 185 billion.
Gartner predicts that 81% of app downloads will be free -- a percentage that has decreased since 2008 and will continue to drop in 2011. By the end of 2014, advertising will be generating just under a third of the revenue generated by application stores, up from 16% in 2010.
Gartner notes that app stores and developers typically split revenue on a 70/30 basis. However, that model is starting to come under pressure.
In a separate report this week, Forrester predicts the mobile apps market will see new business models based on subscriptions, micro-transactions and in-app billing expand from games to other content categories including news and music.
Read more here
Gartner predicts that 81% of app downloads will be free -- a percentage that has decreased since 2008 and will continue to drop in 2011. By the end of 2014, advertising will be generating just under a third of the revenue generated by application stores, up from 16% in 2010.
Gartner notes that app stores and developers typically split revenue on a 70/30 basis. However, that model is starting to come under pressure.
In a separate report this week, Forrester predicts the mobile apps market will see new business models based on subscriptions, micro-transactions and in-app billing expand from games to other content categories including news and music.
Read more here
Gamification
A new breed of consultants, working for the likes of NBC and Playboy, promises to boost business by adding game elements to humdrum sites. Video game designers have spent the last few decades perfecting the art of making their products addictive. Now traditional companies are building loyalty for their websites using so-called gamification techniques. Tactics such as leader boards, which encourage users to compete against one another for points, are becoming common across the Web.
The business of engendering online loyalty through gaming techniques is fast becoming as significant as the real-world loyalty industry, which builds rewards programs for airlines, hotels, and credit cards. The difference is that real rewards, like free hotel rooms and airfare, cost businesses real money.
It's a neat trick—if it lasts. "People move in herd mentality," says Tim Chang, partner at venture capital firm Norwest Ventures. "The backlash is going to come from people who try to slap [game features on a site] without any understanding of how to bake it into the full experience."
The techniques behind gamification are known in the business as "game mechanics," and they're everywhere. Countdown clocks on Gilt Groupe, a discount luxury goods site, impel shoppers to nab deals before time runs out. Colorful virtual badges, such as those on Foursquare. Moxsie, a website that sells clothing from independent fashion designers, uses game mechanics to encourage customer feedback. It awards virtual ranks—such as "senior buyer" or "guru"—to users who help the company's clothing buyers decide which items to stock.
The bottom line: "Gamification," a trendy technique for building addictive Web destinations, has raised the number of return visitors at some sites by 20 percent.
Read more at Business Week
The business of engendering online loyalty through gaming techniques is fast becoming as significant as the real-world loyalty industry, which builds rewards programs for airlines, hotels, and credit cards. The difference is that real rewards, like free hotel rooms and airfare, cost businesses real money.
It's a neat trick—if it lasts. "People move in herd mentality," says Tim Chang, partner at venture capital firm Norwest Ventures. "The backlash is going to come from people who try to slap [game features on a site] without any understanding of how to bake it into the full experience."
The techniques behind gamification are known in the business as "game mechanics," and they're everywhere. Countdown clocks on Gilt Groupe, a discount luxury goods site, impel shoppers to nab deals before time runs out. Colorful virtual badges, such as those on Foursquare. Moxsie, a website that sells clothing from independent fashion designers, uses game mechanics to encourage customer feedback. It awards virtual ranks—such as "senior buyer" or "guru"—to users who help the company's clothing buyers decide which items to stock.
The bottom line: "Gamification," a trendy technique for building addictive Web destinations, has raised the number of return visitors at some sites by 20 percent.
Read more at Business Week
Wednesday, January 26
Zuckerberg's Page Hacked
A hacker appears to have accessed the Facebook page of CEO Mark Zuckerberg, urging the company to adopt a "social business" model -- and 1,800 people liked it. The hacker's message on Zuckerberg's page also appeared to refer to Facebook's Hacker Cup competition. Ironically, Facebook added features for its "commitment to security."
"Let the hacking begin," the message read. "If Facebook needs money, instead of going to the banks, why doesn't Facebook let its users invest in Facebook in a social way?
The hacked Facebook page has been removed since it first appeared, although Zuckerberg has another personal page online. Facebook hasn't commented on the matter.
Some observers are noting that French President Nicholas Sarkozy's Facebook page was also hacked in the past week, with a message saying he would not run for re-election. Sarkozy replied on his page, in Latin: "No system is infallible."
Read more here
"Let the hacking begin," the message read. "If Facebook needs money, instead of going to the banks, why doesn't Facebook let its users invest in Facebook in a social way?
The hacked Facebook page has been removed since it first appeared, although Zuckerberg has another personal page online. Facebook hasn't commented on the matter.
Some observers are noting that French President Nicholas Sarkozy's Facebook page was also hacked in the past week, with a message saying he would not run for re-election. Sarkozy replied on his page, in Latin: "No system is infallible."
Read more here
Social Media Playing a Role in Arab World Protests
From the recent uprising in Tunisia to this week's street protests in Egypt, social media has been playing a role in helping protesters organize and draw international attention. But whether we are seeing the ripple effect of what some analysts are calling a Facebook or Twitter revolution rolling through the Arab world is a matter of debate.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke Wednesday, urging authorities in Egypt to allow for peaceful expression and to not block social media sites. Egypt has blocked Twitter and Facebook in the wake of the protests.
Read more here
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke Wednesday, urging authorities in Egypt to allow for peaceful expression and to not block social media sites. Egypt has blocked Twitter and Facebook in the wake of the protests.
Read more here
South Korean film director makes movie on iPhone
Acclaimed South Korean film director Park Chan-wook is wielding a new cinematic tool: the iPhone. His new fantasy-horror film "Paranmanjang" was shot entirely on Apple Inc.'s iconic smartphone. Paranmanjang, which means a "life full of ups and downs" in Korean, is about a man transcending his current and former lives. He catches a woman while fishing in a river in the middle of the night. They both end up entangled in the line and he thinks she is dead. Suddenly, though, she wakes up, strangles him and he passes out. When the woman awakens him, she is wearing his clothing and he hers. She cries and calls him "father."
The movie, made on a budget of 150 million won ($133,000), was shot using the iPhone 4 and is slated to open in South Korean theaters on Jan. 27. Park made the 30-minute film with his younger brother Park Chan-kyong, also a director.
Read more from Associated Press
The movie, made on a budget of 150 million won ($133,000), was shot using the iPhone 4 and is slated to open in South Korean theaters on Jan. 27. Park made the 30-minute film with his younger brother Park Chan-kyong, also a director.
Read more from Associated Press
News Service for Big Papers
A personalized news service funded by New York Times Co., Washington Post Co, and Gannett Co launched on Tuesday in an attempt to get readers to pay for online news. Ongo, which received $12 million in funding from the three newspaper publishers, delivers news from a variety of sources starting at $7 a month. The basic subscription plan includes articles from the Associated Press, the Washington Post, USA Today and select stories from the New York Times and Pearson PLC's Financial Times. Users can add titles, such as the Guardian and the Detroit Free Press, for 99 cents a month for each additional source.
The New York Times plans to launch a metered pay system, requiring readers to pay after accessing a certain number of articles, during the first quarter. A.H. Belo's Dallas Morning News is also gearing up to roll out a paid news site.
Read more at Reuters
The New York Times plans to launch a metered pay system, requiring readers to pay after accessing a certain number of articles, during the first quarter. A.H. Belo's Dallas Morning News is also gearing up to roll out a paid news site.
Read more at Reuters
"Sexier" News Anchors
A study finds... the "sexier" the female anchors, the more attention men pay, but the less they remember of what the news was about. The reverse was true for women, but the effect was far lower.
Read more here
Tuesday, January 25
Twitter Revenues Set to Triple in 2011
Twitter will see its revenues triple this year, according to a new report from research firm eMarketer. Twitter will earn $150 million in 2011, more than three times the $45 million it earned in 2010, according to the firm’s estimates. In 2012, Twitter’s revenue could reach $250 million, eMarketer said.
Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer principal analyst predicts that Twitter’s revenue growth will be driven by its Promoted Tweets and Promoted Trends products, which allow advertisers to pay for prominent placement on the service. She also said that Twitter would launch a self-service ad system like the one Facebook has deployed with much success.
In a sign of the diverging fortunes of Twitter and MySpace, the micro-blogging service will pass the troubled social networking pioneer in revenues by 2012, eMarketer predicts.
Read more at Wired
Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer principal analyst predicts that Twitter’s revenue growth will be driven by its Promoted Tweets and Promoted Trends products, which allow advertisers to pay for prominent placement on the service. She also said that Twitter would launch a self-service ad system like the one Facebook has deployed with much success.
In a sign of the diverging fortunes of Twitter and MySpace, the micro-blogging service will pass the troubled social networking pioneer in revenues by 2012, eMarketer predicts.
Read more at Wired
Foursquare Fun Facts
This just in: Last year’s top event on Foursquare was the Jon Stewart–Steven Colbert “Rally To Restore Sanity” in Washington and the last country to check in was North Korea, the company disclosed Monday.
Foursquare says it now has 6 million members, people who for some reason are happy to announce their locations to collect virtual badges and, with perseverance, earn the title “mayor” of a location.
In a year for which Foursquare claimed 3,400 percent growth... People start using Foursquare pretty heavily at 8 a.m., but at 4 a.m. activity is pretty thin. A grand total of 381,576,305 people checked in using Foursquare in 2010, and from every country — including, somehow, North Korea.
Read more at Wired
Foursquare says it now has 6 million members, people who for some reason are happy to announce their locations to collect virtual badges and, with perseverance, earn the title “mayor” of a location.
In a year for which Foursquare claimed 3,400 percent growth... People start using Foursquare pretty heavily at 8 a.m., but at 4 a.m. activity is pretty thin. A grand total of 381,576,305 people checked in using Foursquare in 2010, and from every country — including, somehow, North Korea.
Read more at Wired
Sunday, January 23
6 Predictions For the Music Industry in 2011
The music industry had a wild ride in 2010. Companies came and went, layoffs hit every sector. This year, 2011, should be no different.
1. A Major Label Shakeup
Despite all the talk about the major label system collapsing at any moment, it doesn't seem likely. However, 2011 may finally see a restructuring of assets and brands.
2. Indie Label Opportunity Grows
All music companies will be focused on streamlining their efforts in 2011.
3. Streaming Services Reach Critical Mass
In 2011, someone will become the Apple of streaming -- perhaps Apple itself.
4. Free Continues Moving Upwards
The majors and superstars have relaxed their policies on free (especially when paired with data capture) and that trend will continue. This will happen in parallel with efforts to find techniques to convert free to paying -- a critical element to make this model work.
5. The Essential Toolkit Solidifies
Digital marketers have an almost endless supply of new technology and techniques to try. In 2011 we will see this continue as it becomes more clear which technologies and techniques provide real value.
6. The Net Neutrality Debate Continues
The positions and arguments haven't changed much, but the Net neutrality discussion (particularly at the government level) has accelerated.
In many ways 2011 won't look much different than 2010. The music industry is still suffering from steep declines. The key words moving forward are innovation and experimentation; most people have accepted the fact that we cannot force consumers to behave as they did in the past.
Read more here.
1. A Major Label Shakeup
Despite all the talk about the major label system collapsing at any moment, it doesn't seem likely. However, 2011 may finally see a restructuring of assets and brands.
2. Indie Label Opportunity Grows
All music companies will be focused on streamlining their efforts in 2011.
3. Streaming Services Reach Critical Mass
In 2011, someone will become the Apple of streaming -- perhaps Apple itself.
4. Free Continues Moving Upwards
The majors and superstars have relaxed their policies on free (especially when paired with data capture) and that trend will continue. This will happen in parallel with efforts to find techniques to convert free to paying -- a critical element to make this model work.
5. The Essential Toolkit Solidifies
Digital marketers have an almost endless supply of new technology and techniques to try. In 2011 we will see this continue as it becomes more clear which technologies and techniques provide real value.
6. The Net Neutrality Debate Continues
The positions and arguments haven't changed much, but the Net neutrality discussion (particularly at the government level) has accelerated.
In many ways 2011 won't look much different than 2010. The music industry is still suffering from steep declines. The key words moving forward are innovation and experimentation; most people have accepted the fact that we cannot force consumers to behave as they did in the past.
Read more here.
Teens Turn to Social Coding to Protect Privacy on Social Nets
There's compelling evidence the up-and-coming cohort of young Americans has grown increasingly sophisticated in navigating the public-by-default scene of social networks. Researchers say they are evolving forms of social coding to signal to each other while at the same time keeping their thoughts, activities and personal communications masked from older generations.
Having been raised in the digital slipstream, they're highly sensitive to its shifting currents. That's both good news and bad news for marketers. On one hand, positive and public brand associations can generate significant value for brands. But, on the other hand, as the industry moves inexorably toward more sophisticated behavioral marketing, there are signals that teens are adopting practices to remain unknowable and inscrutable.
One of the ways that teenagers have adapted to the open social architecture of online networks is by increasingly coding their public messages in private language -- song lyrics, personal jokes -- that's decipherable only to those friends who are the intended recipients of the message. This "social coding" can effectively keep nosy parents, college admissions officers and future employers in the dark. This doesn't mean they're scrubbing every detail from their public personas.
Interestingly, Twitter is now emerging as a favored channel for private communication among the most popular and tech-sophisticated teens in high-income American communities. "Facebook is like shouting in a crowd, Twitter is like talking in a room," one teen said.
Read more here
Having been raised in the digital slipstream, they're highly sensitive to its shifting currents. That's both good news and bad news for marketers. On one hand, positive and public brand associations can generate significant value for brands. But, on the other hand, as the industry moves inexorably toward more sophisticated behavioral marketing, there are signals that teens are adopting practices to remain unknowable and inscrutable.
One of the ways that teenagers have adapted to the open social architecture of online networks is by increasingly coding their public messages in private language -- song lyrics, personal jokes -- that's decipherable only to those friends who are the intended recipients of the message. This "social coding" can effectively keep nosy parents, college admissions officers and future employers in the dark. This doesn't mean they're scrubbing every detail from their public personas.
Interestingly, Twitter is now emerging as a favored channel for private communication among the most popular and tech-sophisticated teens in high-income American communities. "Facebook is like shouting in a crowd, Twitter is like talking in a room," one teen said.
Read more here
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