Google killed Twitter today. With the launch of Google Buzz they ruthlessly attacked Twitter’s weaknesses and quietly set the scene for subsequent creeping infiltration into Microsoft’s stronghold in the enterprise market. Buzz is a big deal.
Mobile
2010: The Year Ahead
Let’s face it. 2009 is a year that many of us are pleased to put behind us. We want to look to the future. 2010 beckons. New mobile phones and tablet computers are appearing every week. We are seeing crazy-fast take-up of social media like Twitter, YouTube and Facebook. Add those developments to a rebounding economy and it all indicates an infl ection point: one of those moments in history when everything comes together to enable massive change and opportunity.
Leagues of Their Own
Since the days of the gladiators, sports fans have had an irrational bond with their favorite athletes and teams. Feats of athleticism evoke eruptions of euphoria or a tidal wave of tears as a game's final play unfolds.These strong emotions create an indelible brand loyalty that remains long after the season ends.
The Changing Digital Landscape
2008 has shaped up to be a crazy year for online advertising - the writers' strike drove people online and the presidential election and the Olympics are causing advertisers to boost spending in a down market. The timing of these factors has altered media behavior - making the business of online media anything but typical for the year.
Ad-Supported Nation
There's no doubt that popular websites such as video clip destination Metacafe continue to be strong players because visitors know that when they come back again and again, they can be treated to fresh content to inform them and tickle their funny bone. They can play the short clips over and over again and send the links to friends without having to pay for visiting the site. Every page of Metacafe has a small, unobtrusive ad that helps support the site financially.
They Can Hear Us Now: Q & A with Laura Marriott
The president of the Mobile Marketing Association says that ads on mobile devices will only get better, more widespread and easier to create and measure.
.mobi for All
Neil Michel bought .mobi top-level domains as soon as they were available without consulting his bosses. As eMedia Director of Prosper magazine in Sacramento, Calif., he saw it as his duty to claim ownership of the mobile domain names before anyone else could capitalize on the company's brand name. He managed to snag ProsperMag.mobi and ProsperMagazine.mobi but not Prosper.mobi.
Ringing IN and Hanging UP
In the old days, a telephone came in two designs and had one ring. With the rise in cell phones, the styles are endless and so are the types of rings you can make the phone chime. There are master tones, ringback tones, polytones, monotones and they all have a price. Users can download them over the Internet and program a ring to sound only when mom or that special someone calls. Users can also send a ring out to someone to let them know who is calling. But they aren't cheap - as much as three times the cost of one hit single from iTunes.
The Web, Take Two
Like new confections spilling out of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, the brain trusts at Web companies big and small over the last three years or so have spun out a brand new Web. Like candy, this version of the Web is flashier, full of speed, comes in a cool wrapper, has good stuff inside and is highly addictive.
Online Is Sweet
Food has recently been called everything from the new theater to the new porn. Regardless of how you think about food, you certainly can't avoid it.

