Technology and the recession are threatening the cultural hegemony—and job security—of the TV weathercaster
The economy and the Internet are conspiring to diminish the position. The National Weather Assn., an organization of professional meteorologists, has seen a downturn in membership renewals over the past few years, from approximately 3,000 in 2006 to about 2,700 in 2010, according to NWA Executive Director Stephen W. Harned. Says Harned: "Anywhere from a third to half of people who graduate with degrees in meteorology this year won't be able to find a job."
The average annual salary of a weatherman, according to the Radio Television Digital News Assn., is $62,300. And they don't come to work with their own interactive maps. "We grew revenue by 56 percent last year," says Paul Douglas, co-founded WeatherNation, which he describes as an "outsourcing weather company" expects to turn a profit in 2011 and expand his staff of eight full-time anchors. Douglas is positioning his business to cash in on what he sees as the future of the industry: personalized weather. Soon, he claims, people will want weather information "tailored for our GPS locations, lifestyles, calendars, anticipating our needs in advance"—all without ever turning on the TV.
Read more at Business Week
Wednesday, February 23
Who You Calling a Data Hog?
Wireless data is a finite resource. Data moves from a tower to a cell phone over electromagnetic spectrum, which carriers buy at auction from the federal government. Each carrier has a limited amount of spectrum, yet that limited amount renews itself, moment after moment. Think of electricity: The power plant runs all the time, but on hot days everyone turns on an air conditioner, straining the plant's capacity. Utilities are experimenting with smart meters that encourage customers to move their power use off-peak.
Wireless carriers, responding to a similar challenge, have chosen not to treat data like a commodity. Rather, they've carved off 5 percent of their heaviest users and stigmatized them. This is a business choice, not a natural economic consequence. Imagine that a power company, to prevent blackouts, has informed its customers that its heaviest users will be penalized with unpredictable brownouts two months running. Why do wireless customers tolerate this from carriers?
Some people do use a lot of data. This month, Cisco Systems (CSCO) reported that the top 1 percent of wireless data customers account for 20 percent of traffic.
Read more at Business Week
Wireless carriers, responding to a similar challenge, have chosen not to treat data like a commodity. Rather, they've carved off 5 percent of their heaviest users and stigmatized them. This is a business choice, not a natural economic consequence. Imagine that a power company, to prevent blackouts, has informed its customers that its heaviest users will be penalized with unpredictable brownouts two months running. Why do wireless customers tolerate this from carriers?
Some people do use a lot of data. This month, Cisco Systems (CSCO) reported that the top 1 percent of wireless data customers account for 20 percent of traffic.
Read more at Business Week
Google Donates $2.7 Million
Google has awarded $2.7 million to the International Press Institute to foster innovation in journalism. The Institute will use the grant for its IPI News Innovation Contest, which will fund both non-profit and for-profit projects related to the development of digital news platforms, new business models for journalism and training in digital reporting throughout Africa, Europe and the Middle East.
At the time, Google awarded $2 million to the Knight Foundation in the U.S. and pledged to spend the remaining $3 million in international news efforts.
Read more at Mashable
At the time, Google awarded $2 million to the Knight Foundation in the U.S. and pledged to spend the remaining $3 million in international news efforts.
Read more at Mashable
Russia On Warpath Against Google
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's deputy blamed Google Inc in an interview published on Tuesday for stirring up trouble in the revolution that ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak. Google executive, Wael Ghonim, became an unlikely hero of the uprising in Egypt which led to Mubarak's deposition.
In contrast to state television, Russia's Internet is remarkably free and the home to often scathing criticism of Putin, President Dmitry Medvedev and the entire Russian elite. Analysts say there are a group of hardliners close to Putin who would like to impose controls similar to China's.
Read more at Reuters
In contrast to state television, Russia's Internet is remarkably free and the home to often scathing criticism of Putin, President Dmitry Medvedev and the entire Russian elite. Analysts say there are a group of hardliners close to Putin who would like to impose controls similar to China's.
Read more at Reuters
Tuesday, February 22
Interactive Game Doubles as an Educational Tool
Vanished, an online science-fiction interactive mystery event that starts April 4. Kids can sign up for the event, conducted by the Smithsonian and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, at vanished.mit.edu. The mystery, which is unveiled during the course of the eight-week event, involves a fictitious environmental disaster. Each week, participants will get clues online that will allow them to come up with hypotheses about the cause that can be tested, debated and refined. Scientists will have videoconferences online, and participants can send them questions that will be answered in real time.
Read more at USA Today
Read more at USA Today
Monday, February 21
TV Industry Taps Social Media
It’s as if people are gathered around the online water cooler — and the television executives are nervously hovering nearby, hoping viewers keep talking and, by extension, watching their shows. Debra Lee, the chief executive of BET, said “we can now tell when something’s a hit almost immediately — by seeing how many of the trending topics on Twitter belong to us.” It is clear that many people feel they have to watch some shows as they premiere in order to keep up with conversations online.
“We know people are multitasking while they’re watching TV,” said Albert Cheng, the executive vice president for digital media for the Disney/ABC Television Group, which oversees ABC. “The question is, how do we tap into that and create a whole different consumer experience?”
“The key discovery is that we’re not just driving digital growth, we’re driving analog growth,” said Lisa Hsia the executive vice president of Bravo’s digital media arm.
A recent study by Deloitte of 2,000 American consumers ages 14 to 75 found that 42 percent sometimes surfed the Web while watching TV, and 26 percent sometimes sent instant messages or texts.
Read more at the New York Times
“We know people are multitasking while they’re watching TV,” said Albert Cheng, the executive vice president for digital media for the Disney/ABC Television Group, which oversees ABC. “The question is, how do we tap into that and create a whole different consumer experience?”
“The key discovery is that we’re not just driving digital growth, we’re driving analog growth,” said Lisa Hsia the executive vice president of Bravo’s digital media arm.
A recent study by Deloitte of 2,000 American consumers ages 14 to 75 found that 42 percent sometimes surfed the Web while watching TV, and 26 percent sometimes sent instant messages or texts.
Read more at the New York Times
Sunday, February 20
A New Spot Market Makes Cloud Computing a Commodity
February 14th saw the launch of SpotCloud, the world’s first spot market for cloud computing. It works much like other spot markets. Firms with excess computing capacity, such as data centres, put it up for sale. Others, which have a short-term need for some number-crunching, can bid for it. Enomaly, the software firm behind SpotCloud, takes a cut of between 10% and 30%, depending on the size of the deal.
The service works with Google App Engine, another cloud-computing provider, which gives Enomaly access to a decentralised global system.
Read more at The Economist
The service works with Google App Engine, another cloud-computing provider, which gives Enomaly access to a decentralised global system.
Read more at The Economist
Films Need Foreign Viewers
The true worth of a film is... decided by youngsters in countries such as Russia, China and Brazil. Hollywood has always been an international business, but it is becoming dramatically more so. In the past decade total box-office spending has risen by about one-third in North America while more than doubling elsewhere.
Three things are particularly important: a cinema boom in the emerging world, a concerted effort by the major studios to make films that might play well outside America and a global marketing push to make sure they do.
Growing fears of piracy have led studios to release films almost simultaneously in many countries; increasingly, the premiere takes place outside America. Big noisy spectacle travels best. As the market swings away from America, funny films are less likely to find financing or broad distribution anywhere.
Read more at the Economist.
Three things are particularly important: a cinema boom in the emerging world, a concerted effort by the major studios to make films that might play well outside America and a global marketing push to make sure they do.
Growing fears of piracy have led studios to release films almost simultaneously in many countries; increasingly, the premiere takes place outside America. Big noisy spectacle travels best. As the market swings away from America, funny films are less likely to find financing or broad distribution anywhere.
Read more at the Economist.
Protest Tweets
Here is Google Maps/Twitter mashup that allows you to scan Middle East "protest tweets" from the Middle East, as they go live.
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