Filed under: MISC
This is so amazing to me that I had to give it top priority. Google maps now gives you the ability to add in several mapping functions overlayed on a single map. In the case below, the user was looking for an apartment and wanted to see how many subways and schools were nearby. Check it out.
Google Maps will begin embedding interactive ad applications called “Mapplets” enabling local advertisers to add image and text messages to their locales that pop up when a mouse waves over them. Like in AdSense, Google and the publisher share in revenue generated each time a user clicks on the application.
Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE
BROADCAST/CABLE
Time Warner could see a separation of its majority owned cable services company in five years, but it had not made a decision yet. The company will consider AOL’s options at the end of the year, says chief Dick Parsons. AOL is turning into an online advertising sales “machine,” he says. (http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSN0716805220070607 6/7)
Time Warner has no plans to sell off its publishing division, but will continue to prune its portfolio, says chief Dick Parsons. “We’re not looking to move our publishing company out. It can be in a 8, 9, 10% growth business for a long time, if we successfully make this transition to digital.” (http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSWEN864720070607 6/7)
CBS purchased Chicago-based online ticket marketplace TicketReserve that allows sports fans to buy tickets to major events well in advance of the date they are held. The price fluctuates depending on the likelihood of your team making it to the big game or series. For instance, Lions tickets to Superbowl XLII are going for $24 each while Pats tickets are going for $725 a piece.
Sumner Redstone, chief of both Viacom and CBS, says he has no plans to take the companies private, dispelling Wall Street speculation. “It’s not on the horizon.” He adds that his daughter, Sherry, vice chairwoman of CBS and Viacom, is a “credible candidate” to succeed him. (http://www.reuters.com/article/industryNews/idUSWEN861920070606 6/6)
With the July deadline for set-top boxes with separable security CableCards just around the corner, cable customers will have the option of renting or owning their set-top boxes. But some consumer-electronics manufacturers, such as LG Electronics or Panasonic, currently don’t have any plans to offer their boxes through retail outlets. (The Wall Street Journal 6/7)
Lifetime’s original drama “Army Wives” became the most-watched series debut in Lifetime’s 23-year history when the show aired Sunday. The series, starring Kim Delaney and Catherine Bell, racked up a 2.9 household rating, which was Lifetime’s highest rating in the Sunday 10 p.m. time slot since December of last year. (World Screen News 6/6)
Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
NBC Universal announced Wednesday that it would allow personal Web sites to link to some NBC video programming. Web users can use software widgets, which are supported by Clearspring Technologies, to link to text and video clips from shows such as “Dateline.” (The Washington Post/Reuters 6/6)
Comcast’s user-generated site Ziddio.com and Henry Rollins are soliciting online “rants” to find an on-air host for the upcoming Rollins Show marathon on IFC. Henry will choose the winning 30-second entry on one of 11 chosen topics.
Ghost House Pictures will produce two original internet series for online/on demand service FEARnet. Ghost House is the new media joint venture founded by Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert, Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane. Devils Trade premiered this week, following the travails of three teens cursed after purchasing an item off of “DevilsTrade.com.”
Pretty creepy stuff below. The Sam Raimi involvement intrigued me. That said, I think online video like this really doesn’t have the proper promotion online. Until someone solves the video search problem, I think this will remain the case.
Court TV relaunched its R.E.D. broadband site featuring weekly clips from the real-life crime series Most Shocking and the new 14-episode Speeders series, capturing motorists on camera as they run afoul of the law.
MLB may not want to play ball with the SlingPlayer, but the NHL is game. Sling Media made its first pro sports licensing deal, signing the NHL to participate in the Clip+Sling feature now in private beta that allows users to post and share clips with other users. Users will be able to clip and upload live or recorded segments of league action to a destination site accessible to anyone with internet access. Sign up here to participate in the testing. (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070607/ap_on_hi_te/hkn_sling_media 6/6)
Fourth-ranked search engine Ask.com is launching a new “Ask3D” service that responds to queries with a three-part screen including links, lists of related searches and search results from blogs, video, photo, news and shopping sites. The IAC/InteractiveCorp company will spend roughly $100 million to market the next-generation service. Ask.com also signed a deal with video search specialist blinkx to enhance its video search engine.
Netflix shares were bid up on rumors of a possible buyout by Amazon.com. The thinking is that Amazon could combine its Unbox download-to-own video service with Netflix’s Watch Now online rental service. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=ax9OXXfb8fVA 6/6)
Another day, another acquisition rumor. The talk emanating from Yahoo is that the company is looking to buy Facebook — again. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has been holding out for $2 billion. A Yahoo spokesman says the company “doesn’t comment on rumor and speculation.” (http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/organgrinder/2007/06/yahoo_to_buy_facebook.html 6/6)
Exalead introduced new video search application to allow users to access millions of video clips indexed from popular online video portals, including YouTube, Dailymotion, Metacafe, Vodeo, Kewego and IFILM. Users can search by categories including sports, music, film and entertainment. Videos are indexed by author, title, date, description, duration, tags and category. Users can sort results by relevance, ratings or number and frequency of views.
I wonder exactly how this search engine works. Here’s an example of a video search in which I input “Sarah Silverman”. All of the videos that populated to the top were from YouTube. I’m not sure which factors determine the top couple of videos but all the same, here you have it.
Internet ad spending totaled $2.7 billion for the first quarter, an increase of 16.7% over 1q 2006, says TNS Media Intelligence, even as total media spending declined slightly. IAC/Interactive Corp. was by far the biggest internet display spender with an outlay of $78.2 million during the quarter. Online ad spending by the top 50 overall advertisers increased by an average of 20%.
Forty-four percent of 1,422 U.S. online video users surveyed by the Online Publishers Association reported that they watch online clips at least weekly while 73% do so at least once a month. News/current events sites proved the most popular genre, followed by weather then humor sites. Eighty percent said they had seen video ads, and 52% of that group said they took some action, such as visiting a company web site (31%), going to a store to learn more about a product (15%) or making a purchase (12%). Surprisingly 30-second ads were found more relevant and effective than shorter pre or post rolls.
Twelve major universities will digitize select collections in each of their libraries — up to 10 million volumes — as part of Google’s book-scanning project. The goal: a shared digital repository that faculty, students and the public can access quickly. (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070606/ap_on_hi_te/techbit_google_big_ten 6/6)
YouTube star Esmee Denters is becoming the first artist signed to Tennman Records, the label launched by Justin Timberlake. Denters rapidly gained a following through a series of low-tech videos that were posted on YouTube. Her videos received 21 million views in the last nine months. (http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3ia332a501f2bcda635a346ce8204f7219 6/5)
She is a pretty incredible singer and moreover, it’s amazing that she has been signed simply by uploading videos to YouTube. We are definitely in a new age. Maybe some day record companies will stop being so afraid of online distribution.
Filed under: WIRELESS
WIRELESS
GSN is partnering with U.K.-based Two Way TV to enable viewers to play along with televised game shows in real time using their mobile phones. Two Way’s Simcast technology will be integrated with GSN’s Monday night line up of casino programming this summer including High Stakes Poker and World Series of Black Jack initially, with more game show and reality show integrations planned in the future.
Nielsen announced a new service to measure video and internet usage on mobile phones. Nielsen Wireless will use information culled from the People Meter TV sample to report on media behavior and audience demographics segmented by carrier, helping carriers devise more effective campaigns and identify how subscribers consume media in the home.
Apple has announced that it has received a patent for software called an “accessory detector,” which can help prevent cell phones from dropping calls. The company says the software keeps the different radios on a cell phone from interfering with one another and does the same for any devices attached to phones. Analysts speculate that Apple could license the software to makers of remote controllers, GPS devices and wireless handheld gaming devices. (cellular-news (U.K.)/Dow Jones Newswires 6/6)
Coca-Cola is hoping its new cellphone-centric Web site for social networking, Sprite Yard, will become the MySpace of the mobile phone world. Sprite Yard was introduced in China last week, and Coca-Cola plans to extend it globally and perhaps to other soft-drink brands. (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/07/technology/07sprite.html?_r=1&oref=slogin 6/7)
Filed under: GAMING
GAMING
The worldwide online game market is forecasted to grow from $3.4 billion in 2005 to over $13 billion in 2011, according to a new report from DFC Intelligence. This growth will be driven by the increase in broadband households, higher PC penetration and more connected console video game systems, leading to a growing number of consumer subscription services, the emergence of online digital distribution and increasing acceptance of games as an advertising mechanism.
Sony’s U.S. video-game unit is cutting jobs to become more competitive, as the PlayStation 3 struggles against rival offerings from Microsoft and Nintendo. The job cuts in the United States follow those in Europe in April. “The goal is to reform the organization,” says a spokeswoman. (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070607/ap_on_hi_te/japan_sony 6/7)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY
TECHNOLOGY
Shifts in marketing are attracting a whole new group of the population toward consumer electronics — women. Advances in technology are also credited for the rise in women’s purchasing gadgets, as most computers, cameras and audiovisual equipment no longer requires hours of manual reading to set up and operate. (The New York Times 6/7)
Sony’s new DAV-IS10 home-audio system touts five minuscule surround speakers that are roughly the size of a golf ball. The 50-watt speakers are complemented with a larger subwoofer, DVD/CD player and a radio receiver. (The New York Times 6/7)
