Top Ten Iphone Apps for Neophytes

One million and still counting. Apple’s new Iphone is flying off the shelf just as fast as it can count.

I gave up my Blackberry for the new phone and I’m thrilled with everything my Iphone can do. The first step for me was to weed through the thousands of Iphone Apps and pick the best ones to download.

Here’s a list of the first 10 to call my Iphone home and they’re all FREE!

1. Pandora. Internet radio at its finest! Create your own playlists. Search an artists’ name and Pandora find other artists with similar music.
2. Google Search. Voice activated search.
3. Reqall. It’s a To Do list that is synchronized on every computer you use
4. Twitteriffic. Mobile Twittering.
5. Instapaper. Saves web articles for later perusing
6. Flashlight. Use the light on the screen to illuminate locks at night.
7. i.TV. Mobile Movie, DVD and TV Guide. It will also manage your Netflix list.
8. Evernote. Jot notes that can be synced on your other computers.
9. Wordpress. For blogging on the go.
10. BeamMe. Send your Vcard to anyone’s email or web phone.

Of course you’ll add other apps. And if you’re like me you’ll be up to 7 pages of apps in no time flat. No worries.. Apple will help you get personal with your Iphone. And believe me.. whatever your pleasure, need, desire or slightest whim.. there’s an app for that.

No Social Media RSVP Required.. for now

Social networking has exploded. According to a recent report by Nielsen Online, the time that people in the U.S. spend on social network sites is up 83 percent from a year ago. If the law of supply and demand holds true – is limited access in social media’s future? I’m talking invite only – Not sites you pay for.. ie: subscription services like Classmates.com ~ I’m talking invite only.. pre-screening.. the whole kit and caboodle.

Right now.. it’s mostly No RSVP needed. Not only can you join MySpace, Facebook.. or even Twitter in the blink of an eye.. a good number of users have several accounts. There are no rigid screening procedures. Aside from that computer generated gaggle of letters and/or numbers ~ In just a few moments you’re up and running doing the social network thing.

Social media has opened up a whole new world for businesses and self promoters. But like anything on the Internet, there’s always someone trying to one up.. or put a different spin on something. Enter Members Only Social Networking sites.

A growing number of invite and profession only sites like are popping up on the web. Sites like LawLink for Legal experts, attorneys, and support staff, and Sermo for physicians. It's designed specifically for physicians and lets members discuss medical cases and compare opinions. Sermo doesn't charge the doctors, but it does charge journalists seeking medical answers and companies looking for physician endorsements.

Social Media expert Chris Brogan says it’s called Velvet Roping and predicts that we will see more of these sites in the future. Brogan says “on these sites there’s no chatting and you don’t have to worry about people trying to sell you ebooks.”

So - if you hate to see those folks whisk by you in line.. then prepare yourself for possibly being whisked by online.

Why traditional media will survive the Social Media Age

Traditional media is immersed in a war like none it’s ever known ~ as Social media networking sites expand and flaunt ridiculous user numbers. Sites enjoy a ready made audience at their beck and call,But – it’s not over for traditional media.. not yet.

TV

You won’t hear it from them, but the recession has hit local TV networks hard. Layoffs by the droves, forced unpaid vacations, pooling resources, wage and hiring freezes.. all moves to stay a float in as shaky an economy as an Executive can remember. TV stations know the power of the media.. So you won’t hear their woes and concerns broadcast on their early am or evening shows. No way. Stations will keep on chugging along finding ways to cut the proverbial dollar in half and still look like their spending a buck fifty.

But, despite the troubled economy, most advertisers are not drastically cutting their national TV ad budgets for next season. TV stations are cross promoting online in hopes of reaching out and touching audiences. They hope to get local viewers involved in their newscasts. At the same time driving them to their sites and promising in depth looks "tonight at 5!" TV.. will continue to make its money ~ as long as they can continue to be creative.

RADIO

The radio business has been struggling lately, to say the least. Traditional, terrestrial radio hasn't found a way to successfully box out competition from Sirius XM Satellite, internet streaming radio, iPods, and other sources. Plus fewer people are in their cars driving to work lately, so the ratings numbers are down. Not to mention the monotonous nature of much of today's music. It's no surprise, then, that the radio advertising business recently saw its worst quarter in history. The Radio Advertising Bureau says combined national and local ad spending dropped 26% to $2.8 billion during the last quarter. The one silver lining was digital platforms including online, streaming, and HD Radio, which collectively saw revenue jump 13%.
Traditional radio is all but dead. Too much competition. Recession will kill the radio star but online radio comes to the rescue.

NEWSPAPERS

The fishwraps.. hmmmm. These dudes have been waving the white flag like crazy. Recanting their “woe is me tales” to counterparts – who are all equally eager to share recession tales. Just like TV, Newspapers are pairing down staffing and forcing employees to multitask and taking on greater responsibilities for the same or less pay. The reason why Newspapers devote a good junk of media space to detailing its “fall from glory” is simple: they’re hoping for someone.. anyone to save them from an inevitable demise. Kindle won’t save the newspaper industry. Don’t get me wrong.. The big dogs are in it for the long haul. The little dogs however ~ may need to switch gears. It will simply be difficult to charge readers for something they used to get for free or extremely cheap. When newspapers made the leap online years ago, they neglected to put much effort into developing revenue sources from online content. Not that it’s too late now.. But it won’t be the same.. Especially when the advertising dollar is harder to come by. As I mentioned, the tried and true will find ways to partner with digital media without losing dignity. On a brighter note – a new study shows that print media drives online leads. So - if you're looking to sell advertising... pick up your local paper and get to cold calling!

MAGAZINES

What recession?? Despite drops in subscription rates, new magazines are being launched every other week. But.. the focus is different. As the economy lurches, glossy magazines scramble to downsize a luxury-living message for an anxious readership.. urging subscribers to save money and offering ways to handle the recession. Unlike newspapers – magazines have tried to hold on to its content by offering single articles or short stories online – merely to promote what’s in the mag. But face it… even in more prosperous times, for the vast majority of readers of fashion rags, pawing through pages of pictures of wait-listed handbags and "architectural shoes" has always been pure fantasy, not akin to shopping in a catalog. Look for more Editorial/Advertising pieces as magazines look for ways to sneak attach promote its sponsors.

Bottom line.. nearly anyone can promote a product or even themselves online via social media networking sites. Everyone’s a star. But the credibility comes from TV, Mags and Newspapers. That’s where you stand out. Promoting your business, product, book or yourself on TV or in Magazines is the goal of most entrepreneurs. Twitter is a prime example. With all the juice this site has – your first big advertising thought is to take your show on the road and land on a TV network?? Wow.

Another added plus for TV is that unlike social media IT ACTUALLY IS SOCIAL. Coming together for MNF.. Olympics.. Superbowls.. Boxing matches.. major news events. When's the last time you invited 5 people over to watch you tweet?

Sure there will always be some cross promotion and blurring of the lines, traditional media is here to stay ~ on one site or another.

Social Life meets the After Life

Forget thinking about staying connected in your Social Media Life or even your “Second Life” ~ what about your After Life??

Dozens of new companies are offering services such as virtual cemeteries where guests can visit and e-mail alerts set up by funeral homes to remind relatives of the anniversary of a loved one’s death.

Some companies even offer to e-mail your estranged relatives when your time draws near.. in hopes of a reconciliation before you make it to the Pearly Gates.

This all sounds pretty morbid to me ~ but the popularity of the services show a growing generation of funeral customers who refuse to let death have the last word.

Baby boomers along with the X, Y and Me generation are knee deep in social media.. so why shouldn’t they take their social life to the next life??

John McQueen, owner of the Anderson McQueen funeral home, says "People have a desire to perpetuate not only for themselves, but for their loved ones, the story of their lives, and technology has all these new great ways of doing that."
Technology now means a funeral merely begins a new virtual afterlife. And entrepreneurial companies are right there to make that happen.

Los Angeles-based EternalSpace.com launched its Web site in March, offering a variety of virtual scenic locations online for a person's final resting place: A "Zen Garden," a "Lake View," a "Tropical Valley" and other options.

Sold directly through funeral homes, the service allows a person or relatives to establish a pastoral grave site and add digital amenities such as the image of a park bench or mausoleum.

Once there, visitors can purchase items to leave behind, such as flowers, religious icons and other trinkets symbolically important to the deceased, such as golf clubs, a horse saddle, a piano or trees that can grow over time. Prices for each range from $5 to $35 apiece.

If these afterlife entrepreneurs have anything to do with it.. there's no reason to stop interacting online simply because you're six feet under.

Twitter expands to Network and Cable TV

Even more proof that Twitter has changed the face of social networking, cable execs have been aggressively exploring plans to harvest some Tweet power of their own.

Entertainment network, “E!” will offer up 140 character chunks from a number of celebrities in the news crawl at the bottom of the screen during its programming.

Most networks and local tv stations have been making official announcements via the service and encouraging Anchors and Reporters to tweet.

Celebrity Tweeters, however, have been the ones to give Twitter it’s biggest boost. Analysts say, after media maven Oprah Winfrey sent her first tweet during a live broadcast, Twitter saw its share of U.S. Internet visits increase by a remarkable 24 percent.

Oprah's decision to join the Twitterati follows on the heels of (and may have been inspired by) a well-publicized contest between actor Ashton Kutcher and CNN to see which could be the first to cross the million-follower mark. Much to the chagrin of the media outlet, Kutcher prevailed, but most observers expect Oprah to stay hot on his heels in followers.

E! will also feature a “Celebri-Tweet” widget on its homepage keeping users up to date on what the celebrity Twitterati are tweeting.

Twitter is also being used as a new revenue stream. Networks are creating widgets, on their websites and selling advertising against them, collecting easy cash from user generated content.

All proof positive of how powerful Twitter will become in the world of social networking.

McAfee is on the Cyber Criminal Case

Virus and Internet protector McAfee wants to take its cyberworld security a step further. The company premiered a new campaign designed to increase awareness about Identity theft. The effort includes an episodic Web documentary that chronicles just how pervasive the problem of cybercrime has become.

The film, developed jointly by Omnicom agencies DDB West and Tribal DDB San Francisco, is entitled "H*Commerce. The Business of Hacking You."
The term H*Commerce stands for Hacker Commerce, defined as the business of making money (and comprising personal and business data) through illegal use of technology.

The film follows the personal story of Janella Spears, who lost more than $440,000 in an elaborate email scam, and the effect the cybercrime had on her marriage and life. The film also includes input from experts, former hackers and cyber forensic experts to add context and perspective. (In one sequence in the first episode, cyber forensic expert Chris Roberts shows how he can hack into all sorts of Bluetooth-enabled devices while driving down the freeway.)

Shot by Seth Gordon (who directed the documentary "The King of Kong -- A Fistful of Quarters," the film is broken into six segments, which will be posted every two weeks over a 12-week period at www.StopHCommerce.com.

While the site includes information about McAfee and its suite of protection products, the main goal of the effort is to educate consumers about the issue.

George Gougion, Managing Director of Triball DDB says. "It got to the point where they could continue to put out ads, but they realized they needed to expand the conversation and drive the category," he says. "They're really focused on the big picture. People aren't aware of what could happen."

The site will be promoted through an extensive online and social media campaign that will include banner ads and trailers. The company is also hitting New York and San Francisco with a poster campaign that features artwork similar to the one-sheets created by Saul Bass for Alfred Hitchcock. The out-of-home campaign will contain a mobile code in which people can view trailers and receive updates on their mobile devices.

The online component, will appear on sites such as Hulu, ABC.com, NBC.com, CBS.com, NYTimes.com, Forbes.com and wired.com. Hulu.com will also feature the episodes in its documentary channel.

McAfee's global fight against cybercrime is already underway.. new episodes will appear bi-weekly.

Is that You or your Avatar Calling?

Your social media life may soon need it’s on phone line. Some social sites have come up with a new way to separate you from your money. In the coming months online games and virtual worlds, including Linden Lab's Second Life and Sony's Star Wars, plan to start charging players to call one another over the Web ~ even when they're not immersed in a game.

The idea is to forge tighter bonds between the ~~ and the people who inhabit them by helping players make real-world connections from their phones.

Second life has 650,000 active members. Linden Lab has announced plans to introduce features to connect users via land lines, cell phones, and PCs. One service, called "Dial an Avatar," lets players call other characters in the virtual world, or dial into a virtual meeting from their cell phone—even when they're not sitting in front of their browser. The company plans to roll out new features throughout the year and may charge subscriptions to make calls into Second Life.

Sony Online Entertainment plans to introduce new Internet calling services this summer for its online fantasy role-playing games, EverQuest and Star Wars Galaxies. "It's a community-forming feature," says Russ Shanks, chief operating officer of Sony Online Entertainment. One service would let users talk with friends, no matter what Sony game they're playing.

PC maker Lenoveo has plans to launch a new virtual world called the "Lenovo eLounge," designed to boost sales of its machines. The lounge features Web phone calling software from Nortel.

For recession challenged Web sites ~ this may be their ticket to reach out and touch a new revenue stream.

Texting while driving spells trouble

As dangerous as it is.. do you still text while driving?? Well, you’re not alone. Despite bans in 7 states a recent study suggests a quarter of American cell phone users still text, tweet, email or blog while driving.

Drivers in Tennessee were the biggest offenders. 42 percent admit to the habit. A ban on using a cell phone to text while driving goes into effect in Tennessee in July.

The survey was carried out on behalf of mobile voice technology company Vlingo. "Texting is such an integral component of our daily lives, and the cautionary tales about DWT danger have not stemmed the tide," said Dave Grannan, CEO of Vlingo.

Text messaging has been blamed for a number of recent high profile accidents, including a train crash in the Los Angeles area last September in which 25 people were killed, and a Boston trolley crash this month in which almost 50 people were injured.

DWT is a dangerous habit. Break it or it’ll break you.

The FTC's new enemy: PAID POSTS

Do you get paid to blog?? Well make sure your readers are well aware of it or come this summer you could be violating new BLOGOLA rules.

As marketing budgets tighten, advertisers are looking for cheaper ways to get their messages in front of shoppers. Many have turned to the blogosphere, offering cash and products to amateur journalists in exchange for glowing reviews about their products.

In a few months the Federal Trade Commission will issue guidelines designed to clarify how companies can court bloggers to write about their products. Bloggers will be required to disclose when they're writing about a sponsor's product and voicing opinions that aren't their own.

Not in nearly 30 years has the FTC felt the need to revise the guidelines for editorial and testimonials in ads. But regulators say it's needed in an era when consumers increasingly turn to blogs and other amateur Web sites for information about the goods and services they buy.

Critics of the plan say the FTC is try to infringe on the rights of marketers and amateur writers who are forming new kinds of partnerships that fall outside of traditional boundaries.

Analysts say Bloggers are cost efficient for companies, Although, Google penalizes paid blog entries by demoting them in its search results.

The FTC says they are merely trying to legislate ethics and get some control over the wild blogosphere. They say the rules are similar to what radio and TV personnel have to deal with.

Enforcing these new measures will be easier said than done. Regulating the web??!! Good luck.

How the Mayo Clinics uses Social Media

More than 3,300 physicians, scientists and researchers from Mayo Clinic share their expertise to empower you to manage your health. The Clinic is one of the most respected in the business and not above using Social Media tools to get its point across.

For any organization attempting to use social media to increase brand awareness, checkout this Slideshare presentation by the Mayo Clinic. It's located below in its entirety.

Lee Aase, the manager of syndication and social media of the Mayo Clinic, presented it at the Community 2.0 conference on May 12, 2009.

One of the slides boasts: “Total Cost for Mayo Clinic Facebook, YouTube and Twitter $0.00.” You can get a lot done with $0 and a $150 Flip Mino if you know what you’re doing.”

Ya gotta love cost free marketing!!

Energizing Word of Mouth through Social Media

View more presentations from Lee Aase.

Giving Your MD a Checkup

Doctors. Now its time to really starting minding your bedside manners. Welcome to the controversial and popular world of online doctor ratings.

Dozens of Web sites, with such names as RateMDs, FindADoc and SuggestADoctor, allow users to comment on and rate a doctor's knowledge, punctuality and even his or her staff.

Site operators say they’re merely helping patients make the most important decision of their life. They say it's just like the old practice of asking a neighbor, friend or co-worker about a doctor, but with far greater reach.

They point out that some sites allow users to comment anonymously, while others require registration before posting. But just like any blog – it’s still difficult to verify the information especially since its mainly personal.

A growing number of physicians have even asked patients to sign privacy agreements that essentially forbid them from posting comments and ratings about the doctors online.

The number of sites that specialize in this type of forum are growing daily.
And although some Doctors aren’t fans of the postings, both users and MD’s agree that the online ratings are here to stay.

What it boils down to is this: Just because of your particular profession, it doesn't mean that you should be immune to blogger posts bad.. or good.

So the next time you’re looking for a family Dr. or a specialist, go online and check out who may be checking you out.

42 million strong ~ Power of Women on the Web

If you market to women and you haven’t stepped up your social media game.. then you’re missing out BIG TIME. A recent study shows 42 million US women participate in social media at least weekly. Blog have been found to be most influential.

Plainly put – more time with social media means less with more traditional formals like newspapers, magazines and TV.
Of course, the flight from traditional media to social media has been reported before but this new study by Blogher, the women’s blog network – digs even deeper into the trend.

Reveal #1: Social Networks Like Facebook Get the Most Usage
More women use social networks like Facebook and MySpace than anything else, with blogs their second choice.

Reveal #2: Blogs Wield the Widest Influence
It’s not just about how much time is spent in an activity, it’s what women do in that activity. Blogs have been found to influence purchases by women.

Reveal #3: Women Look to Blogs for Business, Politics, Cars and Technology
Women are more likely to go to social networks for beauty, entertainment and dating advice. But for the majority of other categories they look to blogs.

Depending on the nature of your business, it might be worth it to focus on Facebook or MySpace. But for most things, such as if you are in a B2B business or selling technology, blogs could give you more influence.

Read the entire survey, which you can download here.

The French flex their Internet Muscle

The French are picking a fight and they're will to go "toe to toe' over this one: Internet Piracy. France is set to introduce the world’s toughest laws against Internet piracy violations.

Parliamentarians recently voted to give the government powers to cut off offenders’ Internet access.

The controversial draft law would create an agency to police illegal downloading of copyright material. Internet users who download films and music without paying for them would get three warnings before being cut off for up to a year. Until now action against illegal file sharing has been a matter for the French courts.

Consumer groups said the creation of a non-judicial body with the power to police the Internet would threaten civil liberties.

The bill is supported by Hollywood studios, music labels and some artists, who see illegal downloads as the biggest threat to their businesses.

The French crackdown on Internet piracy is the latest in a string of disputes with Brussels, over issues ranging from subsidised energy prices to a bailout package for the motor industry.

So for anyone who has ever thought the French to shy away from a battle ~ as for whether or not they're serious about this fight they say "Oui Oui!"

Unofficial Software has Apple Officially ticked off

If you’ve got an Iphone ~ for nearly anything you want to do or DON'T want to do ~ you better believe “there’s an app for that.” But some the 35,000 plus applications that Apple offers to users simply isn’t enough.

If you want to use your iPhone as a video camera, send a photo message or hook it up to your laptop to connect to the Internet, there’s no app for that. At least, no official app.

To use these programs , iPhone owners have to “jailbreak” their device — downloading a bit of software that bypasses Apple’s restrictions and allows the installation of unsanctioned third-party programs.

Jailbreaking is different from unlocking an IPhone, in which users modify the software so the phone can be used on unauthorized wireless carriers .

For Tmobile it’s a “don’t ask don’t tell” system. They will even offer technical support for the jailbroken device.

The growing popularity of jailbreaking has set up a legal battle between Apple, which says it has the right to regulate what can go on an iPhone, and the users and developers who want to customize their phones as they see fit.

Just go to Craigslist and search Iphone. Dozens of hackers offer their Jailbreak services for fees ranging from $10 - $40.

Apple says jailbreaking makes the phone unstable. The company also argues that its goal is to limit competition with its App Store.

For developers, bypassing Apple’s lengthy and opaque approval process allows them to get their software out quickly and on their own terms.

Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a request that the copyright office recognize an exemption to the digital copyright act that would permit jailbreaking of iPhones and other devices. Apple filed its brief in response to the EFF. The copyright office is expected to rule on the issue by October.

And although “Jailbreaking” sounds illegal as of now it’s not officially enough to get you thrown into jail.

Pirates hijacking Print Books

Unfortunately for Book authors, the now have something in common with the music and film industry ~ all are targets of Web piracy.

Thanks to the popularity of E-Readers, unauthorized electronic editions of books are popping up all over the web. Literary Authors are now having their copyrights violated like filmmakers and musicians. The latter have had varying degrees of success in fighting these ongoing battles.

For a while now, determined readers have been able to sniff out errant digital copies of titles as varied as the “Harry Potter” series and best sellers by Stephen King and others. But some publishers say the problem has ballooned in recent months as an expanding appetite for e-books has spawned a bumper crop of pirated editions on Web sites like Scribd and Wattpad, and on file-sharing services like RapidShare and MediaFire.

John Wiley & Sons, a textbook publisher that also issues the “Dummies” series, employs three full-time staff members to search for unauthorized copies.
File sharing sites say they immediately remove illegally posted books once notified of them. The companies have also installed filters to identify copyrighted work when it is uploaded.

Book sales are down significantly, and publishers say it is difficult to determine whether electronic piracy is denting sales. Companies say there are ways to combat the illegal downloads, question is how much time do they want to invest in finding the culprits. And.. time is money.

More 'Shakeable' Ads Coming To Your iPhone

Babies are off limits but ads aren’t.

Mobile ad companies have the digital world at their finger tips, as some they serve up small versions of the Web's standard text and display ads while others branch off in a more shakeable directions. NYC based Medialets is headed that way.

Medialets is looking to popularize premium rate fetching shakeable ads for your Iphone. Over the last year, the company has made its presence felt in the iPhone app market by offering its unique ads.

By using analytics software, Medialets has signed up more than 1,000 app publishers. The company has reached 14+ million unique users since last summer. That means Medialets ads have been seen by 40% of all iPhones and iPod touches that Apple has sold.

Medialets has raised $4 million in Series A financing to build out its platform. The company will , will focus on selling technology to power multimedia ads for iPhone apps, such as the shakeable Docker’s ad.

Other initial advertisers include Paramount, FedEx, MasterCard, and Tribune Media. These ads take advantage of the iPhone's (and other smartphones') advanced features like its large touchscreen, powerful processor, advanced Web browser, location functions, motion sensor, etc.

Medialets plans to sell its technology to mobile app publishers and ad networks, focusing on serving and measuring the ads versus setting up a sales force and brokering deals.

This first ad is interesting and fun.. but so are so many other apps out there. Medialets success will depend on just how creative they can get to compete with Smartphone users increasing desire for bigger, better and more entertaining.

Check out the first ever shakeable ad:

Failing Banks looking to Twitter for help?

Not just Twitter, Facebook too. Banks are signing on to social networking services, searching for new hip ways to to communicate to customers.

Wells Fargo and Bank of America have begun to "tweet" with customers about bank fees and product features. Discover Financial, American Express and Citigroup are on Facebook or MySpace. As of this morning, Citigroup has about 4,200 “friends.”
We're sure this is part of a grand strategy to increase consumer confidence in banks. Let's see how USA Today explains this sophisticated strategy.

Pamela Blase, a spokeswoman for UMB Financial of Kansas City says "Social media is a whole new world, and you cannot afford to not be a part of it." UMB Financial tweets about everything from the bank's financial stability to the industry's prospects.

Banks say they're establishing presences on social-networking sites to tap into a growing demographic and to control the conversation about their brands.
Analysts say the down economy , makes it even more important to reach out to customers in any way possible. Consumers need reassurance from the folks handling their quickly depleting financial reserves.

Will Tweeting and scooping up friends help the banking industry? No way.. random tweets and occasional spamming of customers will lead “friends” bailing on their banks.

One in five US households are cellphone only

Families are cutting the proverbial landline cord in favor of wireless phones.
Considering the state of the economy, cutting wired voice services makes a lot of economic sense.

A recent survey by the National Center for Health Statistics shows not only has the percentage of wireless-only households exceeded the percentage of landline-only households, but wireless-only households increased 17 percent from the first half of 2008.

That's the largest increase in wireless-only households since NCHS started collecting this data, according to the report. While nearly 60 percent of households use both wireless and landline phone service, one in seven households receive all or most calls via cellphone.

Early last year even AT&T noted that landline customers were decreasing significantly.

Analysts say the end game is consumers are paying two bills for the same service. Which are you going to choose.. I’ll stick with the one I can take to the car.

And once cell phone companies stop holding users hostage with contracts and buy out fees, expect this number to increase dramatically.

TV Commercials Between Web Pages Coming Soon

Think of it as a sign of the web media times. As advertisers look for more creative ways to get your attention, look forward to more commercial between websites.

Starting this Summer beta tests will begin on a new ad unit that allows publishers to insert UNINTERRUPTED 15- and 30-second video ads between pages on their sites. Reuters has already signed up. And according to Adweek MSNBC.com and The Weather Channel are close to joining in

The company behind the move is called ShortTail Media. D30 is the name of the process and it’s aim is to bring bigger, more interrupting ad units online.

The reasoning for this new feature is that publishers believe the standard web ad is too easy to ignore. Advertisers say the strategic placement doesn’t interrupt the flow of the content. An interruption they hope to achieve by inserting commercial between pages on the site.

Reuters, MSNBC.com and The Weather Channel aren't the only publishers buying the ideas like the ones Payne is selling. Other publishers and networ anre employing similar versions of the units.

If all this sounds like it will hamper the user experience, ShortTail Media CEO David Payne says then that’s just too bad.

So.. pardon the interruption website embedded commercials coming soon to a laptop near you.

Super Kindle to the Rescue

Hope springs eternal for the failing newspaper industry as the new Kindle DX reaps promise of new readers and hopefully a spike in income.

Amazon announced a pilot program that will integrate newspaper content from three big east coast papers.

According to reports, Kindle sales are now 35 percent of book sales when Kindle editions are available and these numbers will likely grow.



This helps illustrate that Kindle users are voracious readers and with the new version tailored to newspaper subscribers, it could help temper the drops in newspaper
circulation.

One of the Kindle's key strengths for newspapers is that it makes information almost instantly accessible and portable like print newspapers, but removes the print barriers for entry.

Other benefits include less paper to recycle ~ You can download from anywhere at anytime ~ and my favorite ~ No more searching nickels and dimes.

The Kindle has had a passionate fan base since it hit the market in 2007, selling out in 5 and a half hours.

So will Kindle ~ with its superhero cape flapping in the wind ~ save the newspaper Industry?? Probably not but it may be a tool to appease their interests and offer them high utility and drawing in new e-paper readers who want to take advantage of its cost, time and convenience savings that the print version can't offer.

What exactly is Spam??

In California, a state originally considered to have one of the toughest spam laws in the country, appears to be weakening it’s stance against unsolicited email.

Under its law, the state allows anyone -- including consumers -- to sue for spam violations, and also provides that recipients can recover $1,000 per message.

But recently, at least two judges have issued rulings against the California law.

The CAN-SPAM statute says it supersedes state laws, except for laws prohibiting "falsity or deception" in messages. Both judges interpreted that provision as applying only to "fraudulent" messages -- which involve more than just falsity.

Fraud also requires that people relied on the messages and lost money as a result
If other judges follow these rulings, it will be very difficult for people to bring lawsuits under California's spam law.

Internet law experts say the bottom line is "If you're smart enough to hit delete, it's not spam."

Rupert Murdoch is green ~ and not with money.

Bristling over a sharp decline in revenue, Murdoch turned the bitter cheek by lashing out at MySpace rival Facebook.

Murdoch’s News Corp. Media unit which consists mainly of MySpace suffered a an overall drop of 11% during the company’s fiscal third quarter .
In its earnings press release, the media giant attributed the decline to lower ad revenues combined with increasing costs related to MySpace Music, its joint venture with the major recording labels.

When asked about the advertising dip, Murdoch predicted growing traffic under new digital chief Jonathan Miller before training his fire on MySpace's nemesis:
He said ~ I quote "We are not going for the Facebook model of bringing hundreds and hundreds of millions of people who don't bring any advertising with them at all," he said.

Hmm.. since when is it a bad thing for any business to have audiences of hundreds of millions of people??!!

Digitally Publish Your Book on Amazon's Kindle E-Book Reader and Make Money

Have you published a book that went nowhere fast? Or do you want instill life into your book that’s been out of print for a while?? Consider publishing digitally on Amazon.com's new e-book reader the Kindle.

For writers the Amazon Kindle does offer that one unique advantage in making it easy to upload your published books and make money from them.

Here are the steps to upload your published novel to the Amazon Kindle.

First you'll have to open an author account with Amazon.com if you don't already have one. This will mean making sure you've got a book that is available on Amazon. This shouldn’t be a problem within the past ten to fifteen years.

Next go to your book's page through an Amazon search. You should find a little box directly beneath the image of your book's cover that will say: "Are you an author or publisher? Find out how to publish your own Kindle book."

Just click on that box and it will direct you to the form to set in motion the exciting chain of events that will soon increase your potential readership and income by introducing your book to the digital age through the wonder of the Amazon Kindle reader.

Web-To-TV In 24 Million U.S. Homes By 2013..

The rising demand for on-demand video services such as Hulu and a growing array of technologies that make it easier to stream Web content on television is breaking down the wall between the PC and the TV.

New reports say the long-awaited promise of Web-to-TV video will finally begin to materialize in the next few years.

Researchers say that by 2013 the number of U.S. broadband households watching Web-to-TV content will grow to 24 million, generating $2.9 billion in revenue from streaming services.

In the coming years, Web-enabled televisions and set-top boxes will supplant game consoles as the main technologies for people to access Internet video on their TVs.

Experts say Consumers will have either an Ethernet jack on the back of their TVs to interconnect to the Web or through a Web-enabled set-top box.

The report also expects that tv viewers will maintain their cable subscriptions for live sports events, talk shows, and other programming with a short shelf life.

The Senate moves a step closer to being a "public" frienemy

The Scoop blog can finally cross an item off its list of the 10 most wanted types of federal data.

The U.S. Senate has begun posting roll call voting data in XML format.

John Wonderlich, policy director for the foundation, wrote: "The new votes data should help fuel a renaissance of vote analysis and visualization. XML encourages advanced processing and analysis, making votes legible to both humans and computers, and giving us a new view on how senators vote."

This move reverses the Senate's longstanding policy of restricting public access to raw data about how senators vote. The House has been publishing roll call vote data in XML format since 2004.