To round off the year, we bring you the top 150 stories that shaped the digital landscape. It was an amazing year, with the continued speed of change towards a more digitally centric society: the rise and rise of social, the migration to mobile, the rising value of online businesses and the growing regulation to manage the digital economy. The stories show big rewards for getting the strategy right – and brutal realities of failing to innovate.
As a Christmas treat we’ve also have the year’s top virals for you – ones that either grabbed our attention or simply had us quietly giggling at our keyboards.
Warmest holiday wishes from the Netimperative team.
JANUARY
Amazon buys LoveFilm ‘for £200m’
Amazon has bought Lovefilm, in a deal that reportedly values the UK-based DVD rental and online video company at £200m. The move is largely seen as a defensive ploy on Amazon’s part against a planned international expansion by US video-streaming giant Netflix. The deal saw Amazon buy 58% of the business that it did not already own for an undisclosed sum. The firm already bought a 42% stake in Lovefilm in 2008. The world’s largest online retailer has been gearing up to bid for a full stake in Lovefilm for some time, and this deal is thought to value the business at about £200m.
Facebook beats Google as most visited site in US
Facebook surpassed Google for the first time as the most visited website in the United States for most of 2010, according to new data. The social network site edged out Google with 8.9 percent of all U.S. visits between January and November 2010, while Google ranked second with about 7.2 percent of all visits, according to online measurement service Experian Hitwise.
MySpace to lay off half of workforce
MySpace is reportedly about to lay off more than half of its employees as the former social networking market leader scales back its ambitions. According to Dow Jones Newswires, the layoffs are tipped to involve around 500 people (of the site’s current staff of 1000). The business hopes to continue its major strategic overhaul in a last-ditch attempt to stave off its dismal financial position.
Piracy websites ‘attract 53 billion visits a year’
A sampling of only 22 brands revealed that websites offering pirated digital content and counterfeit goods generate more than 53 billion visits per year, according to a new study. The research, conducted by the brand protection company, sheds light on the scale and complexity of online piracy and counterfeiting problem. Sites offering pirated digital content draw the lion’s share of the 53 billion annual visits while sites selling counterfeit goods, including prescription drugs and luxury goods, generate more than 92 million visits per year.
BBC to cut 360 online jobs as web budget slashed by 25%
The BBC is to cut about 200 websites in a cost-cutting drive, resulting in the loss of up to 360 jobs at the broadcaster over the next two years. The changes will see BBC Online’s budget cut by £34m. Among the sites to close include teen site Switch and community sites h2g2 and 606. The plans are part of the BBC’s cost-cutting measures to make 20% savings as a result of the Licence Fee settlement. The changes are intended to make the BBC website more distinctive and reduce competition with commercial websites. Skills website RAW, creative teen service Blast and documentary website Video Nation will also be closed under the reorganisation.
Cadbury’s case study: Digital campaign generates over £3 for every pound spent
Cadbury’s recently ran a cross-media campaign for its Dairy Milk brand covering TV, online ads and YouTube promoted videos. Despite only investing 7% of its budget in online, the brand saw the sector generate 20% of the sales.
Facebook shelves phone and address data sharing plan after privacy outcry
Facebook has put its plans to share users’ mobile and home address data with developers on ‘temporary hold’, after a privacy outcry.The social media giant revealed its plans over the weekend, which would mean that users on third-party applications, such as Farmville and Mafia Wars, will see a pop-up window asking for access to “contact information” including address and mobile phone number. However, critics have pointed out that such a system would be ripe for exploitation from rogue app developers.
Google takes on Groupon with ‘Offers’ voucher scheme
Google is testing an online voucher scheme called that would give users discounts for limited time deals, in a move that would place it in direct competition with Groupon, the firm it tried to buy late last year. Like Groupon, ‘Google Offers’ will sell time-limited deals from local vendors, such as restaurants. Ten dollars, for example, might buy $20 worth of food at a local cafe.
Facebook turns ‘likes’ into ads with ‘Sponsored Stories’
Facebook has introduced a new advertising program called Sponsored Stories, which turns user’s actions on the social network, such as ‘likes’ and ‘check-ins’ into ads. Designed to build brand buzz, the ads draw on Facebook’s “like” and “check-in” features, which site members can use to comment on restaurants, sites, events, products and other items they interact with throughout their day. Facebook plans to pull content from those dispatches to display in ‘sponsored story’ segments that will show up in the site’s right rail, where it often displays ads.
98% of music singles tracks now bought online
Almost all single music tracks are now purchased digitally instead of in physical formats in the UK, with the total of singles sold increasing since 2007, according to new research from the Office of National Statistics. Digital sales increased by 92 per cent between 2007 and 2009 and now stand at 98 per cent of all singles sold.
Orange takes on YouTube? Telco buys 49% stake in DailymotionFrench telecommunications provider Orange is in talks with video hosting site Dailymotion to buy a 49% interest for EU58.8m (£50.8m). The deal, which is expected to close within a few months, also gives Orange the option of buying the remaining stake in 2013. Orange is keen to buy Dailymotion, a key rival to Google’s YouTube, in order to become a multiplatform content aggregator and distributor. In July, Orange bought a smaller stake in music streaming provider Deezer, and the two have released a co-branded music subscription service in August that now has half a million subscribers.
BSkyB buys Wi-Fi provider The Cloud
BSkyB has bought Wi-Fi hotspot operator The Cloud, giving the broadcaster access to more than 5,000 UK hotspots. BSkyB said that it reached an agreement to acquire The Cloud on 11 January, but completion of the transaction will be subject to regulatory clearance. BSkyB said The Cloud’s Wi-Fi hotspots would complement its existing domestic broadband services by providing customers with internet connectivity while on the move.
FEBRUARY
Nokia CEO issues ‘brutal’ memo and ditches first MeeGo smartphone
Nokia has reportedly stopped development of its first MeeGo smartphone, as CEO Stephen Elop issued an internal memo offering a brutally honest assessment of the firm’s prospects. The news comes as the phone making giant struggles to regain market share lost to Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android platform. The leaked memo has stoked ongoing speculation that the company is about to expand from Symbian and MeeGo to include Android or Windows Phone 7 handsets to boost sales.
Facebook gives Brits local offers as ‘Deals’ launches in UK
Facebook has launched its ‘deals’ service in the UK, giving users of its Places app local offers sent to their mobile phone, ready to redeem. Following the launch in the US in November 2010, Deals launched this week in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Part of Facebook Places, Facebook Deals helps users find offers in their local area from their mobile or discover money-saving tips from friends via their News Feed. When a Facebook Places user “Checks In” a list of Nearby Places will appear and a yellow ticket will show next to Places that are offering deals. When the user touches the Place they can view the Deal and check in to claim it. The customer then has to show the voucher on their phone to the shop assistant or waiter to redeem their Deal.
Google takes on Facebook Places and Foursquare with Latitude check-in tool
Google has updated its location service Latitude, letting mobile users check into spots on the go. The move sees the Internet giant encroach on the likes of Facebook’s Places service, alongside Foursquare and Gowalla. The check-in feature was added to a Latitude service that lets people with GPS-enabled Android smartphones share their whereabouts with selected friends. Unlike other smartphone check-in services, Latitude can use satellite postioning capabilities of handsets to automatically update where people are, according to LaPenna.
UK Internet population: Now more Silver Surfers than youngsters use web
More people over the age of 55 use the internet now than people under 25, according to the latest research report from the British Population Survey. Even Bill Gates, who conceived the equipment we use, and Tim Berners-Lee, who conceived the Internet itself, are both now 55 and ‘Silver Surfers’ themselves. The under 25’s, the ‘iLifer’ generation who have never experienced life without the internet, are driving some of the newer uses of the Internet such as online gaming, music & movie downloading, and social networking (which itself grew by over 250% in the last two years). But it is the older ages that dominate Search and Shopping, with 3 over 55’s shopping online for every 2 under 25s.
UK survey: Over 35s prefer email ads, while under 35s prefer web ads
The under 35 age groups find internet advertising more acceptable than Email marketing but the opposite is true for the over 35s, according to the The British Population Survey. The report titled ‘The Internet – Engagement and Use in Britain – December 2010’ uses over 250,000 individual face to face interviews to assess both who has internet access and who does not and how this has changed over the past 3 years. The report also covers how people access the internet, what they use it for, who shops online and how people react to internet advertising and email marketing.
Anti-spam email provider Goodmail to shut down
E-mail services provider Goodmail Systems is to cease operations this month, following the collapse of take over talks with an unnamed buyer. The firm was launched in 2003 as a ‘premium class’ of commercial email that assures recipients of a message’s authenticity and a sender’s legitimacy. CertifiedEmail was presented to email users with a blue-ribbon envelope icon indicating trusted status. Advertisers had to pay a fee to use the service, which Googmail said works out as ‘a fraction of a penny’ for each CertifiedEmail sent, while individual recipients never had to pay for CertifiedEmail.
Nokia teams up with Microsoft for Windows 7 smartphones
Nokia has struck a partnership with Microsoft to make Windows Phone 7 its primary smartphone operating system, as the phone maker aims to regain lost market share from Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android platform. The deal will see Nokia adopt Windows Phone as its “principle smartphone strategy” while contributing its expertise on hardware design and language support so that it can bring the software platform to “a larger range of price points, market segments and geographies.” Nokia added it will innovate “on top of the platform” in areas like imaging.
AOL snaps up Huffington Post for $315m
AOL has bought political news site The Huffington Post, for $315m (£222m), as the Internet firm continues its drive to boost its content services. It is estimated that the newly combined AOL Huffington Post venture will have 270 million users, with 117 million in the US alone, which could give it an edge in the battle for advertising dollars. The deal comes just over four months after AOL acquired Techcrunch from Michael Arrington, and is in keeping with AOL CEO Tim Armstrong’s avowed goal of transforming the original dial-up giant into a major content player.
YouView web TV platform postponed until 2012
The launch of web TV service IPTV service YouView has been delayed until early 2012 due to the ‘growing scale and complexity of the project’. YouView (formely known as Project Canvas) will let viewers with broadband enabled sets access to video-on-demand content from BBC ITV and C4, in partnership with technology firms Arqiva, BT and TalkTalk. The service was originally scheduled in to go live in the first half of 2011 but the joint venture will have a product in trial by the end of 2011, with a full consumer launch to follow by early 2012.
Facebook brand ‘Pages’ get profile-style revamp
Facebook Pages are getting an upgrade that will make them look and work more like user profiles. These new features will “help you manage communication, express yourself, and increase engagement,” Facebook said in a blog post. Pages are designed for organisations, public figures, businesses, and brands to connect with people in an official, public manner.
First look: Nokia reveals Windows 7 phone designs
Nokia has unveiled the first concept designs of its Windows 7 Mobile phones, following its tie-up with Microsoft. The mobile giant used the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona to showcase two Windows Phone 7 concept devices that look slim and sleek, but the company did not say when they would be available. The concept unveiling comes days after Nokia’s announcement Friday that it will partner with Microsoft to create new top-range devices. Nokia’s first Windows Phone will arrive by the end of 2011, following the announcement of their tie-up with Microsoft last week, according to reports.
Google includes personalised social links in users’ search results
Google has updated its search results, including more information related to a users’ social connections, including Twitter and Facebook, in its search results. The new changes will apply to anyone who searches when logged into their Google account, and will begin to roll out across all Enlish language Google sites this week.
Online vs. store rentals: Blockbuster goes up for sale, closes 609 US stores
Blockbuster has signed a $290m deal to be brought out of bankruptcy by a group of investors, as the movie rental store struggles to compete with online rivals such as Netflix and LoveFilm. The offer from Cobalt Video Holdco LLC is a so-called “stalking horse” bid, which Blockbuster hopes will attract other bidders who will offer more. As part of the purchase agreement with Cobalt, Blockbuster must begin closing down 609 stores, according to a court filing.
MARCH
Google revamps search to filter out ‘content farms’
Google has altered its search algorithms to penalise sites offering “low-quality” content, saying 11.8% of searches will now show changes in the “top few” results on the first page. The search giant said the adjustment of its famously secretive algorithms will push so-called “content farms” further down the lists of results that users see.
Tablets taking over from PCs?
The big change is happening. Latest Gartner data revises downwards the shipment volumes for PCs. Plugging the gap, the explosive growth of tablets. But have they got it right? Research firm Gartner has lowered its PC unit forecast for 2011 and 2012, as consumers turn to tablet computers, and limitations in mobile PCs remain.
First product placement appears on UK TV
ITV show ‘This Morning’ was the first UK TV programme to feature product placement under new advertising rules last week. A Nescafe coffee machine appeared on ITV programme This Morning after the company paid a £100,000 fee. The three-month deal is the first instance of product placement on a British show since television regulations were relaxed. Viewers watching shows featuring product placement will now see a P logo appear before the show to alert them.
Qype takes on Groupon, buys German coupon provider
Recommendation community Qype has bought Munich-based Cooledeals.de to launch a new coupon site QypeDeals.com, initially rolling out to Germany. Cooledeals.de is Germany’s third largest coupon and voucher business after Groupon and DailyDeals. Qype plans to rapidly roll-out vouchers and coupons in its other European territories through 2011.
Search wars: Bing overtakes Yahoo! globally for first time
The Bing search engine overtook Yahoo! for the first time worldwide in January and increased its lead in February according to web analytics company, StatCounter. Its research arm StatCounter Global Stats finds that globally Bing reached 4.37% in February ahead of Yahoo! at 3.93%. Both trail far behind Google’s 89.94% of the global search engine market.
Google buys UK comparison site BeatThatQuote
Google has bought UK price comparison site BeatThatQuote.com for £37.7m ($61m), as the search giant looks to boost its presence in the so-called ‘vertical search’ sector to cover specific areas of interest in more depth. BeatThatQuote provides comparisons between financial products such as mortgages, insurance and credit cards. It also syndicates the comparison content to third party sites which rebrand the data in order to provide their own price comparison service. It’s likely this aspect which was of most interest to Google.
The Times claims paywall creates better audience for advertisers
Advertisers using News International’s Times website have seen significant lifts in user engagement and brand recall, according to the results of a three-month qualitative and quantitative study by the publisher. The findings are based upon a three month study conducted by research firm Promise. The study compared user behaviour on the paid for Times, an unidentified free to access quality news site and an online portal. The study found that both brand and message recall were 21% and 18% higher respectively on the Times site as opposed to free sites.
YouTube buys Next New Networks, expands into video production
YouTube has acquired online video content firm Next New Networks for an undisclosed sum, marking the Google-owned firm’s first foray into content production. YouTube also announced ‘YouTube Next’, a YouTube division aimed at accelerating partner growth, which will spearhead a series of YouTube Next-branded programs and services.
Social networks ‘now most popular online destination in the UK’
For the first time ever, social media has become the single biggest activity online in the UK, overtaking the Entertainment category during January according to new research. The new report from Hitwise, entitled “Carpe diem – Seizing the moment in Social Media”, indicates that during January 2011 social networks accounted for 12.4% of all UK Internet visits.
Google People Finder: Digital services that drive use, benefit and brand love
As events continue to unfold in Japan, one software firm is making a material difference on the ground. Developed out of the political meltdown surrounding the astonishing tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, Google’s Person Finder tool is looking like it will become embedded in disaster relief processes worldwide. It’s a perfect example of how the digital industry can make a massive difference. Here’s why…
Apple sues Amazon over ‘App Store’ name
Amazon has launched an app store for Android devices, but has invoked the wrath of Apple over the use of its ‘Appstore’ name. The ‘Amazon Appstore’, which was unveiled Tuesday, includes free and paid apps from Android software developers. But Apple stole some of the limelight away by filing a lawsuit against Amazon over its use of the “App Store” name. Apple says it filed a trademark following the release of the iPhone 3G.
UK filesharing act delayed by BT and Talk Talk legal claims
BT and TalkTalk have launched a legal challenge against new legislation designed to tackle illegal internet filesharing and protect intellectual property rights online. If the court finds in their favour, the act would no longer be enforceable. Here’s why…
APRIL
Hackers bring down Playstation Network: 70 million gamers affected
Sony has confirmed that hackers are to blame for its PlayStation Network being taken offline over the Easter weekend, an attack that could have put the details of 73 million gamers worldwide at risk. The outage of Sony Corp.’s PlayStation Network has now run into its sixth day as the company said it has no timeframe for restoring the Internet-based system that links users in live game play worldwide. In a blog post Monday, Sony spokesman Patrick Seybold said he couldn’t predict when rebuilding work would be completed, but that it’s a “time intensive process.”
Google takes on Facebook ‘likes’ with ‘+1’ social tag
With Facebook evolving into a major rival, Google is meeting the challenge by building its own social network centered on its lucrative search business. Google’s newly launched “+1” (plus one) service is Google’s version of the Facebook “like” button or Twitter’s “retweet” feature. It lets people who connect to friends using their Google Profile to share their recommendations for websites and online advertisers on search results.
Microsoft expands into ad exchange arena
Microsoft has finally taken a major step into the burgeoning ad exchange space—a space where rival Google has a head start. The software giant has opened Microsoft Advertising Exchange for business in the US market, and that remnant inventory from its properties MSN and Windows Live will be traded via the new platform in the coming weeks.
Smartphones, apps and dating site fees added to UK’s inflation basket
Shopping in the UK has officially gone digital, with smartphones and their apps being added to the typical basket of goods used to calculate inflation. Dating agency fees have also been included for the first time to reflect the rising use of these websites, the Office for National Statistics said. The ONS updates its 650-strong basket of goods and services annually, to better reflect public spending habits.
1 in 4 ads are now on the Internet- IAB
A quarter of all advertising spent is now on the Internet, growing 12.8% in 2010 to reach a new milestone of £4,097m, according to the bi-annual advertising spend study from the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PwC. With total UK advertising spend in 2010 valued at £16.6 billion, this takes the internet’s market share to a record high of 25% (23% in 2009), meaning that £1 in every £4 invested by advertisers is spent online.
Ebay buys GSI Commerce for $2.4bn
EBay plans to buy e-commerce service provider GSI Commerce for $2.4bn (£1.2bn) to build up its online marketplaces as it ramps up its battle with Amazon.com. The move sees the online marketplace attempt to win more business from large store chains, an area of business in which rival Amazon excels.
Amazon takes on Apple with cloud-based music storage
Amazon.com has unveiled an online service that would enable its customers to securely store and access music through their smartphones and computers. Amazon Cloud Service enables customers to securely store music on the company’s web servers instead of local hard drives. Amazon said the new service would allow customers to play music on any Android, Windows and Apple devices.
Salesforce boosts social media monitoring with Radian6 buy
Salesforce.com is to buy social media analytics firm Radian6 for $326m, as the Online CRM firm looks to boost social media features for its clients. Radian6, which counts Dell , Kodak , PepsiCo , and UPS among its customers, makes products that monitor conversations on social media sites, allowing companies to gain real-time insights on customer trends.
Blackberry and M&S first to sign to AOL’s ‘Project Devil’ display ad format
AOL UK has launched its new Project Devil display advertising format, with RIM promoting their new BlackBerry TorchM and M&S, advertising their summer fashion range on a three paneled creative canvas. The new format is live on AOL’s celebrity channel Eleven. The Project Devil unit is displayed as a large creative canvas, divided into three panels, which allow advertisers to customise the content and functionality within one interface.
Bankrupt Blockbuster sells for just $320m to Dish Network
Blockbuster has been sold at auction to satellite TV chain Dish Network for just $320m, after the once dominant video chain was pushed into bankruptcy by online competition from the likes of Netflix and LoveFilm. Dish Network, a provider of subscription-based satellite-TV services, said that it expected to pay only $228m for the company, after “certain adjustments” on cash and inventory are made.
Google’s new search rankings: Winners and losers revealed
Well-known news sites such as The Guardian and The Telegraph, have benefited most from Google’s latest UK search update, known as ‘Panda’, according to new research. Early data from search marketing specialist and technology firm Greenlight, reveals big winners and losers, visibility-wise, from Google’s Panda algorithm update – designed to improve Google’s ability to detect and devalue “low quality content”, which it has now rolled out across all English language websites.
BT dodges bullet over secret Phorm trials
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has dropped its investigation into whether BT’s Phorm technology unlawfully intercepted internet browsing data, due to ‘insufficient evidence’. BT started conducting secret trials of Phorm four years ago, sparking outrage from privacy campaigners. The technology examined Internet users’ browsing history to bring them personalised web content, as well as targeted advertising based on their interests.
Android ad market share ‘overtakes iPhone globally for first time’
Google’s Android global ad impression share has surpassed iPhone OS for the first time, according to new data from mobile ad network InMObi. Although iPhone OS and Android both continue to capture share on a global basis, over the last few months Android growth has been increasing and has now surpassed that of iPhone OS.
UK court backs internet piracy act: BT and TalkTalk lose case
The Digital Economy Act, a controversial new law to tackle online piracy in the UK, has been backed by the High Court, despite complaints from ISPs. Telecoms providers BT and TalkTalk have lost an attempt to block aspects of the Digital Economy Act, which they see as placing undue responsibility on them for tackling illegal filesharing. But ruling judge Mr Justice Parker dismissed all the claims, except for one relating to the costs order, when he removed the ISPs’ obligation to pay 25% of watchdog Ofcom’s costs and the costs of establishing an appeals body.
Cookies, online ad regulation and the ‘you’ve been targeted button’
Latest news on the cookie saga comes from UK Communications Minister Ed Vaizey who is pushing for a two-tier approach to the new EU regulations on the use of cookies in online marketing. They’re looking at working with browser manufacturers to get one-click approval for cookie downloads, while pushing the ad industry to group together to serve behavioural advertising cookies with more structure. Would a ‘behavioural targeting’ icon in the ad work for either the publisher or advertiser? Great that DCMS is being more pragmatic and sympathetic to the UK marketing industry and talking of “flexibility is essential for innovation and new business models.” But will this really give the result advertisers need, or will it boost opt-outs?
Royal Wedding ‘generating one mention every ten seconds online’
During last week, online media – including news sites, blogs, forums, Twitter and Facebook, saw an accelerated flurry of ‘noise’ around the Royal Wedding, with the majority of mentions being positive, according to new data. Data compiled by leading independent search marketing specialist and technology firm Greenlight, reveals it has risen a staggering 700% on March levels.
MAY
Microsoft’s $8.5bn gamble on Skype: Can they make the leap into VoIP integration?
It’s a massive sum for a company that doesn’t turn a profit, but could internet phone company Skype finally get the step-change it needs? Microsoft’s dominance in Office could see Skype integrated into the operating systems of hundreds of millions of PCs, as well as the growing Windows Mobile platforms. This could be game changing, but given Microsoft’s history of its previous phone services, the precidents are not great.
First US social network to go public: LinkedIn to be valued at $3bn in IPO
Business-based social network LinkedIn plans to sell stock at $32 to $35 per share in an initial public offering that would value the professional social-networking firm at more than $3bn, the company said in a government document. As the first US social-networking firm to go public, LinkedIn is capturing the attention of investors who want to cash in on a hot technology sector now dominated by the much larger Facebook.
YouTube buys social bookmarking firm Delicious from Yahoo
YouTube has bought the online social-bookmarking service Delicious from Yahoo for an undisclosed sum. The announcement was made by YouTube foundes Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, who have recently founded a new Internet firm called Avos.
Could super-injuctions take down Twitter?
A Twitter account naming super-injunction celebrities attracted over 34,000 followers in less than a day, sparking fears that the micro-blogging site could face pressure from the UK legal establishment. The tweets, which were all posted early afternoon on Sunday, list the alleged subjects of some of the super-injunctions awarded in recent months. The Twitter user claimed to ‘out’ a number of celebrities but some appeared to contain errors.
Bin Laden death sparks record Twitter surge
The death of Osama bin Laden broke Twitter records, with “the highest sustained rate of tweets ever”, according to the micro-blogging service. For more than an hour there were over 3,000 tweets per second about bin Laden, peaking at 5,106 tweets per second as President Obama addressed Americans. On the night of his death, from 10:45 – 2:20am ET, there was an average of 3,000 Tweets per second.
Top 100 global brands: Apple overtakes Google
Apple has overtaken Google as the ‘world’s most valuable brand’, bringing an end to four years of dominance by the search giant, according to new research. The annual ‘BrandZ’ report from WPP-owned research agency Millward Brown, calculated brand power using a combination of quantitative customer research and financial analysis. According to the report, the value of Apple’s brand grew to $153.5bnn while Google’s brand slipped 2% to $111.4bn.
Google cuts out Microsoft with cloud-based laptop ‘Chromebook’
Google has launched its Chromebook laptop, built “for the web only”, as the internet giant looks to take on Microsoft and Apple in the operating system market. Through the new machines, Google is hoping to convince people to switch to storing data online instead of on hard drives, which they claim makes their new machines run significantly faster than traditional computers. Google claims the machines will take around eight seconds to power up and and can run for a whole day on one full battery charge.
Playstation Network back online… 26 days after hack
The SonyPlayStation Network is up and running once again, 26 data after it a hacker attack that resulted in the personal details of over 100 million customers being stolen.
Did Facebook accidentally leak user data to advertisers?
Facebook may have accidentally exposed personal user data to advertisers and other third parties for several years, according to new research. Two security researchers at Symantec Corp posted in a blog on Tuesday that a Facebook programming error (since fixed) could have allowed advertisers to access member profiles, photographs and chat messages and to post messages and mine personal data from them. The researchrs said that the leaks stemmed from a faulty API used by developers of Facebook applications. However, in an emailed repsose to the accusations, Facebook argued that Symantec’s report has a “few inaccuracies.”
Google online music store launch: cloud storage for 20,000 songs
The countdown is underway to the launch of a major global play for music by the world’s largest online media property. At the I/O developer conference there was intensive talk of the long awaited Google music platform.
Twitpic faces backlash for selling rights to users’ photos
Photo-sharing tool Twitpic now has the right to sell images posted by their users, prompting outrage from some of its members. The US-based website, which is used by millions, was forced to apologise and clarify its position after moving to claim the right to sell users’ photos without getting their permission. Twitpic signed a deal with news agency WENN for rights to distribute any posted images. With some people even calling for a boycott, Twitpic founder Noah Everett posted a message saying sorry and again rewriting the terms and conditions relating to posted pictures.
Bing ramps up Facebook ‘Like’ data in search rankings
Microsoft has deepened its ties with Facebook to make Bing’s search engine more social, as the two firms look to challenge Google’s dominance of the search sector. The deal, an expansion of a previous search tie-up sealed last year, will see Microsoft add further Facebook information into Bing’s search results, giving users a deeper look into their “friends” likes and dislikes. Before, Bing let users know if their Facebook friends had “liked” any of the search results they were seeing. Now Microsoft is giving a greater preference to “liked” search results in Bing’s results ranking.
Hargreaves report: 10 steps to shake up UK copyright laws for digital world
As part of a new Government-backed report, Professor Ian Hargreaves has made 10 major recommendations to free-up restrictive intellectual property and copyright laws that “obstruct innovation and economic growth in the UK”. The 123-page report found that businesses aiming to take advantage of opportunities in areas such as the internet are being held back by often archaic laws.
Time to buy shares in social media? LinkedIn valued at $4.25bn in stock exchange debut
LinkedIn has begun trading on the New York Stock Exchange, representing the first US-based social media firm to go public. In a successful IPO, LinkedIn – the social networking site aimed at professionals and the business community – raised $352.8m after raising the expected price range by 30 per cent from $32-35 to $42-45 a share and selling 7.84m shares. This gives the company a high market valuation of $4.25bn, over 200 times its earnings for the last year.
Twitter sued in super-injunction row
An unnamed footballer is suing Twitter after details of a super-injunction he obtained were published on the micro-blogging site. The player, referred to as CTB in the court documents, is alleged to have had an affair with Imogen Thomas, a former Big Brother contestant. In what will be a landmark case for UK media laws, the player issued legal proceedings against US-based Twitter and “persons unknown” on Wednesday.
Twitter buys Tweetdeck after bidding war- report
Twitter has reportedly purchased UK-based social media app Tweetdeck for $40m, as the micro-blogging site looks to clamp down on thrid party apps. CNN cites unnamed sources that the deal was signed on Monday. Twitter and TweetDeck are yet to confirm the acquisition, which was first reported by TechCrunch this month, with Twitter’s global PR account saying “we continue to not comment on rumors.”
UK websites given extra year to comply with Cookie privacy law
Website operators have an extra year’s ‘grace period’ to change the way they use cookies to comply with new laws, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has said. From today, UK laws based on the EU’s Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive will force websites to obtain users’ consent in order to store cookies.
JUNE
Facebook’s ‘stealth’ facial recognition roll-out sparks privacy outcry
Facebook has started rolling out a facial recognition feature worldwide, with a tool called ‘Tag Suggestions’, sparking controversy for not informing users of the change. Late last year, Facebook started rolling a facial recognition feature across the US. Now, the company has pushed the Tag Suggestions feature to countries outside of the US, but has switched it on by default without telling its users first.
Apple takes on Amazon and Google with ‘iCloud’ storage service
Apple has launched iCloud, its new cloud-based platform designed to provide a selection of instantly pushed services across all manner of Apple products. The move once again puts Apple in competition with Amazon and Google, who have each launched their own cloud-based media storage tools, with the Amazon Cloud Player and Google Music Beta.
Apple takes on Google One Pass with ‘digital newsstand’
Apple has launched its Newsstand service, allowing users to set up online subscriptions to magazines and newspapers. Set to launch later this year, the app was unveiled this week at Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference. Under its current subscription model products are only available as individual apps within the iTunes store, and this is the first time they have been brought together into a single service where users can browse publications on a virtual newsstand.
Searches to influence interest rates? Bank of England monitors Google for consumer trends
Google Search can be used to predict changes in economic sentiment in the UK, according to a new report from The Bank of England. Nick McLaren, part of the Bank’s Conjunctural Assessment and Projections Division, cowrote the piece with Rachana Shanbhogue of the Structural Economics Analysis Division.
Government axes COI ad agency- 400 advertising jobs at risk
The Government has shut down its iconic Central Office of Information (COI) ad agency arm, putting an estimated 400 advertising jobs at risk. Set up in 1946, the COI commissions public information films and government advertising and publicity campaigns, and was the agency behind the memroable fire safety TV ad “Charley says”.
ICANN gives greenlight for ‘.brand’ domain names
ICANN’s board of directors has voted Monday to allow virtually unlimited new domain names based on themes as varied as company brands, entertainment and political causes, in the system’s biggest shake-up since it started 26 years ago.
UK: Facebook overtakes Microsoft as second most-visited website
Facebook has usurped Microsoft as the second most visted web property behind Google, according to online measurement body UKOM/Nielsen. Facebook had a record 26.8 million visitors in Britain in May, representing a 7 percent jump from the previous year. By comparison, Microsoft’s MSN, WindowsLive and Bing sites combined had 26.2 million visitors, and Google had 33.9 million.
JULY
Google tackles social media ‘oversharing’ with Google+
Google has launched a new online sharing tool ‘Google+’ , as the search giant once again attempts to gain ground on Facebook in the social media arena. The service gives users the ability to separate online friends and family into different “Circles,” or networks, and to share information only with members of a particular circle.
News of the World closure: Has Murdoch bought TheSunOnSunday.co.uk domain?
Shock news that the News of the World is to close on Sunday after the phone hacking scandal has sparked rumours of a swift online and print replacement, as a mystery buyer snaps up the domain name for ‘TheSunOnSunday.co.uk’. The registration of the online domain name TheSunOnSunday.co.uk occurred on Tuesday, two days before News of the World’s collapse was announced. However, the buyer of the domain remains unknown. UPDATE: Nominet’s Whois records were updated on 8 July to show that the domains are in fact now owned by News International.
MySpace sold for $35m to Specific Media (and Justin Timberlake)
US ad firm Specific Media and singer-turned-actor Justin Timberlake have teamed up to buy News Corp’s Myspace for a reported $35 (£22m). The sale figure, reported by the Wall Street Journal, is much less than the $100m Rupert Murdoch’s was seeking for the once market-leading social network.
New Media Age shuts print edition- goes online only
Centaur Media is shutting down the print edition of New Media Age – the market leading weekly magazine for the UK digital marketing industry. Launched as a newsletter in 1995, NMA went on to become a weekly magazine in 1998, and its annual NMA Awards are now a highlight of the UK digital marketing calendar. The move comes as part of a wider cost-cutting drive at Centaur, which will also see Design Week go online only.
Facebook debuts ‘comment’ ad format
Facebook has launched its eighth ad format, dubbed the ‘comment’ ad unit, letting brands provoke debate from potential customers on the social network. Designed by ad agency Leo Burnett, the ad encourages conversations around whatever content or questions a brand decisions to pose. Brands can use the format to let users post photos, videos, links and status updates in response to their advert.
Facebook ties with Skype for video chat
Facebook has integrated Skype video calls into its system, as the social network looks to expand its reach across new platforms. The new service gives users a new option to message a friend on Facebook Chat with Skype video, provided their Facebook Chat status is set to ‘online’. The tool requires an app installation, which is available for free.
Google halts Realtime search as Twitter deal ends
Google has suspended its ‘Realtime’ search tools after its two-year deal with Twitter ended this weekend. Google said that it will now aim to replace Twitter-supplied news with that from its new Google+ social network, as well as, “…realtime data from a variety of sources.”
Microsoft partners Baidu for English-language searchMicrosoft has struck a deal with Chinese search giant Baiduto offer its English-language search functions to Chinese users. Baidu has struggled to match Google’s English search capabilities and is expected to introduce Microsoft Bing by the end of the year.
News of the World scandal: New media to benefit as consumers switch to digital?
Emerging new media brands look set to benefit from a growing consumer backlash against ‘traditional’ media outlets in the wake of the NOTW hacking scandal and subsequent closure of the publication, according to research released today by online publisher, Populis. Populis interviewed 2,025 UK consumers via pollsters Opinium and found that 44% said their trust in traditional media in general had been ‘significantly undermined’ by the continuing scandal 35% said they were more likely to explore newer publishers as a result of the scandal.
Spotify goes live in the US
Spotify has launched in the US, marking the online music streaming service its first expansion outside of Europe. The US version will be an invite-only free ad-supported service, alongside a premium option charged at $4.99 (£3.09) per month edition which is free of ads.
Mobile ad wars: Apple to slash iAd prices by 70%?
Apple has reportedly cut the price of the iAd rate card by 70% since its launch, as the company makes a second mark-down of its mobile ad format this year to attract advertisers. According to a report from Bloomberg, unnamed sources told the news agency that this price drop indicates that Apple is “struggling to parlay its technology leadership into success in the ad industry.”
Google closes down Labs to focus on existing products
Google is closing down its iconic Google Labs site- the place for many of the internet giant’s experimental products, and the birthplace of popular services such as Gmail and Google Calendar. The move forms part of Google’s increasing its focus on developing products that have obvious benefits to the company’s bottom line. Google announced the news on its official blog, stating, “We’re prioritizing our product efforts.”
EA takes on Zynga, buys PopCap Games for $1.3bn
Video game publisher Electronic Arts has bought PopCap Games as the video games publisher looks to expand into the growing casual games market. The deal, worth up to $1.3bn (£817m) comes as casual games giant Zynga looks set to float on the stock exchange.
Google+ attracts nearly 20m users in just 3 weeks
Google’s new social network, Google+ already has nearly 20 million users, just three weeks after its launch. Paul Allen, a statistician behind Ancestry.com revealed on his Google+ profile that the social network would hit the milestone of 18 million people some time yesterday.
Web ad watchdog IASH to expand role in UK
The Internet Advertising Sales House (IASH) is to extend its role of policing online ad networks to cover more of the industry, including ad exchanges. The move will see IASH agree a new structure with defined roles for UK trade bodies IAB and ABC
AUGUST
Google becomes phone maker- buys Motorola Mobility for $12.5bn
Google has bought Motorola Mobility, the devices arm of communications giant Motorola, for $12.5bn (£7.7bn), giving a significant technology boost to the Android platform in the increasingly competitive smartphone and tablets market. Google stands to gain a large number of patents with the purchase, which will aid it in the on-going litigation that Android faces. Despite Google’s promises of keeping Android an open platform, the move could cause conflicts with Google’s partners, such as HTC and Samsung.
Google debuts ‘AdWords Express’ for local businesses
Google has launched ‘AdWords Express’ in the US, an updated version of its paid search designed to get local businesses in the US up and running with online advertising in under five minutes. Google claims the new tool is more streamlined than its standard AdWords setup process. Advertisers only need to put in basic business information to create their ad, then set which page they want it to point to. The AdWords Express algorithm will handle keywords, automatically figuring out which search queries to place ads.
Yahoo switches to Bing search results in Europe
Yahoo! has migrated organic search results to Bing across Europe, as the two firms cement the landmark search alliance deal stuck two years ago. The move means searches on Yahoo! UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, will generate results powered by Microsoft’s search engine, Bing. Paid search adverts, however, will remain as they currently are.
Google+ adds social gaming, undercuts Facebook’s commission by 25%
Google has made 16 games avaialble for its new soial network Google+, including Angry Birds and Bejewelled. In a promotional move aimed squarely at Facebook’s own gaming services, for a limited time Google is only taking a 5% commission from each developer’s ad revenue, compared to Facebook’s 30%. Google has yet to decide what the final commission will be.
UK riots: Blackberry hit by hackers after helping police
Blackberry phone maker Research in Motion is cooperating with UK police following the riots in UK, and is facing threats from a hacking group as a result. The move has seen the Canadian firm’s Inside BlackBerry blog hacked by a group called Team Poison, which claimed responsibility for posting its logo and a statement condemning RIM’s cooperation with police.
Hewlett-Packard buys Autonomy, ditches mobiles and PCs to become software maker
In a dramatic move, Hewlett-Packard plans to discontinue its tablet computer and smartphone products, and to sell or spin-off its PC arm, as the US firm buys software giant Autonomy for £7.1bn. HP said the move would be a “full or partial separation”, and CEO Leo Apotheker said the company intends to focus on software. HP later confirmed it would discontinue support for webOS devices, including the TouchPad tablet.
Budweiser to sponsor Facebook’s first-ever live football match
Budweiser is to broadcast the FA Cup first round match between Ascot United and Wembley FC on its Facebook fan page, marking the first live broadcast of any sport on the social network. The move will put the non-league sides in front of a potential audience of 700 million this Friday night.
Facebook ditches ‘Deals’ scheme after four months
Facebook has ended its Deals program just four months after launch, but is keeping its ‘check-in’ deals scheme, the company has announced. nFacebook Deals was launched in April and offered online bargains based on group buying over a short time period, in a similar manner to Groupon and LivingSocial.
Steve Jobs steps down as Apple CEO
Steve Jobs, the creative force behind Apple, has steped down as CEO at the company he co-founded 34 years ago. “I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know,” Jobs said in his resignation letter.”Unfortunately, that day has come,” he added. No reason was given for Job’s resignation, but his health problems has fuelled speculation he would have to give up the everyday running of the company he co-founded in 1976. Jobs has battled with lingering health issues in the aftermath of a 2003 battle with pancreatic cancer.
Facebook drops ‘Places’ for universal location tagging
Facebook is phasing out its Facebook Places feature in its iPhone and Android apps, as the social network expands it location tool to photos, wall posts and more. The move will see Facebook Places removed as a standalone feature in the company’s iPhone and Android apps. When it launched last year, the feature was presented as a potential Foursquare-killer, bringing the idea of mobile check-ins to Facebook’s several hundred million users.
Google takes on Facebook ‘Likes’: Links +1 button to Google+
Google has linked its +1 button on third-party websites to Google+, letting users share content through the social network launched by the company in late June. Before, the +1 button was simply a way of telling Google that content was good enough to be considered a good search result.
Boost for cloud music services as EMI loses copyright case
In a landmark ruling, a US federal judge has backed the music storage-locker business model, ruling that companies may develop services that store their customers’ songs in the cloud. In a lawsuit between EMI along with 14 other record companies and cloud music locker service, MP3tunes, a federal judge ruled that for the most part, cloud music lockers do not violate copyrights.
SEPTEMBER
Yahoo fires CEO Bartz over the phone
Yahoo has fired CEO Carol Bartz over the phone, after just 18 months at the helm. The move has fuelled speculation that the embattled internet media firm may go up for sale, after struggling against younger rivals Google and Facebook for years. The company said in a statement it is carrying out a “comprehensive strategic review” to “position the company for future growth”. But an insider speaking to the Wall Street Journal said the company is “open to selling itself to the right bidder”.
Sony unifies online services, launches tablets
Sony has unified its online services for music, video and games under the umbrella brand of the Sony Entertainment Network. “We’re leveraging the biggest asset, the Sony brand, to establish a comprehensive, global platform called Sony Entertainment Network,” said Kaz Hirai, president of Sony’s consumer products and services group, at a news conference at the IFA trade show in Berlin. Sony plans to incorporate Sony Entertainment Network services across its product range. Hirai added that the move will “accelerate the integration of hardware, content, and network”.
Google axes 10 products to refocus on Google+
Google is to discontinue ten of its services as the internet giant looks to ter focus on existing money-makers and new products such as Google+. The products listed for closure include Aardvark, Desktop, Fast Flip, Google Maps API for Flash, Google Pack, Google Web Security, Image Labeler, Notebook, Sidewiki and Subscribed Links. Some products will be merged with others, whilst others will simply be shut down, in a ‘fall spring clean’ according to the official announcement.
.XXX domains go on sale
From yesterday, the ICM registry started selling .xxx domains, which have been created to alert users that the site is part of the adult entertainment industry. Intellectual Property lawyers are warning brands to block their trademarks from being registered for the new .XXX internet domains or risk the consequences.
Twitter debuts analytics tools, expands Promoted Tweets
Twitter has launched a new web analytics tool, helping site owners keep track of Twitter-driven traffic, as the micro-blooging site looks to appeal to the enterprise segment. Separately, the company also announced plans to expand its Promoted Tweets platform. Using the analytics tool, companies can examine how their website content is being shared across the Twitter network and view the amount of traffic Twitter sends to their site. They can also measure the effectiveness of the Tweet Button integration on their websites.
Google buys Groupon rival DailyDeal
Google has bought German online voucher site DailyDeal.de for an undisclosed sum, as the internet giant looks to take on Groupon in the lucrative flash sales market. The site offers Groupon-style daily deals in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, with plans to expand into more European countries. Currently, Google’s own daily deals service, Google Offers, is only available in North America, and the acquisition suggests Google has its sights set on the European daily deals market.
PayPal payments now accepted offline
EBay has updated PayPal, making the online payments system available to more than a hundred big retailers for in-store transactions. PayPal users will be given a physical PayPal card that they can use to purchase products in stores. The card can be swiped on existing card machines, meaning merchants will not have to install new hardware or payment systems in their stores.
Facebook lets users follow strangers’ status updates with Twitter-style ‘Subscribe’ button
Facebook is launching a ‘Subscribe’ button, letting users follow the public updates of others, regardless of whether they are Facebook friends. The tool is similar to Twitter, in that users can follow content others are posting without having to reciprocate. Users will begin seeing a Subscribe button alongside the “Message” and “Poke” button on Facebook profiles.
Facebook denies tracking users after they log out
Facebook has denied allegations that it can track what users are doing online even if they log out of the social network, arguing that it only does so to protect the user’s safety. The denials follow a study released over the weekend, revealing that when a user logs out of Facebook, rather than deleting its tracking cookies, the site merely modifies them, maintaining account information and other unique tokens that can be used to identify the user.
OCTOBER
Apple co-founder Steve Jobs dies at 56
Steve Jobs, co-founder and former chief executive of US technology giant Apple, has died at the age of 56, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. Jobs will be remembered as a true digital pioneer, who had a knack for taking niche technologies- such as the mouse and the graphical window-based interface – and making them popular with the masses. He launched Apple with school friend Steve Wozniak in 1976, bringing out the first Apple computer the same year. He left Apple amid disputes in 1985 but returned in 1996 and became CEO in 1997. During his time at Apple, Jobs can be credited for introducing the colourful iMac computer, the iPod, iPhone and iPad to the world. He also bought bought the Pixar animation company in 1986 for $10m.
Google opens East London office in ‘Silicon Roundabout’
In a boost for the UK’s digital media industry, Google has opened a second London Office in the city’s nascent technology quarter. The Web giant has rented a seven storey building at 4-5 Bonhill Street just south of Old Street tube station, known as ‘Silicon Roundabout; for its booming technolgy scene. The area is said to be the UK’s answer to Google’s spiritual home in Silicon Valley, California. The lease on the 26,000 square foot building will run until at least 2022 and was advertised most recently at a rent of £400,000 per year.
Spotify ties future to Facebook- new sign ups ‘need Facebook accounts’
Details of last week’s partnership between Facebook and Spotify have come to light, with new sign-ups to the music service required to be Facebook members. Spotify argues that the move is all part of the ‘deep integration’ between the two services and users will be able to sharing in their music listening habits in a ‘seamless’ way. In a boost to ad revenues, Spotify advertisers like Coca-Cola, Motorola, Reebok, and Chevrolet will be getting more distribution through the digital music service thanks to it being one of several Facebook Music launch partners.
Google offers real-time and paid analytics
Google has revamped its analytics tools, with free real-time data and a new system for enterprise customers called GA Premium, charging $150,000 a year. Until now, Google’s free analytics tool had a lag of at least an hour or so before most data would show, and a 24-hour lag on full data reporting. The new Google Analytics Real-Time tool offers an instant look at a site’s active-visit count. Google has also rolled out the first part of a complete user-interface overhaul and introduced Google Analytics Premium, its first paid offering for larger websites.
Amazon unveils £199 Kindle Fire tablet: Is it an iPad killer?
Amazon has unveiled the Kindle Fire tablet, which at less than half the price, could be the biggest challenger to Apple’s dominant iPad yet.The Kindle Fire will have a 7-inch display and sell for $199 (£130), compared with $499 for Apple’s cheapest iPad. The device, will expand the Kindle’s functions from a traditional e-book reader to a multifunctional digital media tool, will run on Google ’s Android software.
YouTube launches Google AdWords for Video
YouTube is set to launch Google AdWords for video in beta on Wednesday, an auction-based platform for online video ad campaigns. The platform, built on top of AdWords technology, uses the same pipeline to serve ads, only presenting video first. Advertisers will have an option to create one campaign from a selection of video assets and pay only for video views, rather than impressions, using a series of four ‘TrueView’ video ads.
Facebook debuts new ad format, updates analytics tools
Facebook has upgraded its Pages Insights analytics tool and added a new unit to evaluate the effectiveness of a page called ‘Premium Ad Product’. The ‘Premium Ad Product’ unit is designed to promote page posts. If a brand posts a message or a video to its Facebook page and decides to promote that particular post in the form of this already posted ad, the ad unit automatically expands to show that the user’s friend has fanned/liked that brand. Meanwhile, analytics tool ‘Page Insights’ will track statistic that users will see on pages below the total number of ‘Likes.’ This option will allow brands to keep an eye on each other with the engagement metric and motivate them to make their pages more interesting for users.
Napster to shut down: Rhapsody buys ailing online music firm from Best Buy
Best Buy has sold its struggling Napster online music service to competitor Rhapsody in exchange for a minority stake in the combined company. Napster will now be shut down, with its subscribers being migrated to Rhapsody. The deal comes three years after Best Buy paid $121m to buy Napster, a formerly popular source of Internet piracy that morphed into a legitimate paid music service. The deal will give Rhapsody a boost to its technology and scale to compete against digital music upstarts such as Spotify, MOG and Rdio.
Google buys Twitter analytics firm SocialGrapple
Google has bought social analytics startup SocialGrapple for an undisclosed sum, as the internet giant looks to increase its focus on social media after the launch of Google+. Launched a year ago by Andrey Petrov, SocialGrapple is a Twitter analytics tool that tracks changes in a user’s social graph and sends users interactive charts and email reports reflecting the data. The small US-based firms lets users track a detailed list of anyone who mentions their brand in the Twitter ecosystem. Alongside archiving every tweet matching your keyword and visualizing your growth of volume, SocialGrapple also tracks every unique user who mentions the keyword.
Findaproperty and Zoopla merge to take on Rightmove
Daily Mail and General Trust is to planning to merge the online property firms FindaProperty.com and Primelocation.com with property startup Zoopla. The move will provide a powerful competitor to Rightmove, which leads the Uk online property market. Under the proposed merger, A&N Media (the consumer arm of DMGT) will retain a 55% interest in the newly merged entity.
Hulu not for sale- video site focuses on ads and subscriptions
US-based online video site Hulu has ended take-over talks with Google, Yahoo and Dish Network after its owners decided to focus on building the site’s ad and subscription revenues instead. The three owners of Hulu, News Corp., the Walt Disney Co. and Providence Equity Partners has been hoping to to fetch $2bn out of a potential sale of the company. However, last Thursday, the three firms issued a statement saying they saw more value in retaining the popular 3-year-old service than in selling it off.
Netflix axes DVD spin off ‘Qwikster’ after customer outrage
Netflix has ditched plans to spin off its DVD rental business from its online streaming operations, following a flood of complaints from customers. Less than a month ago, the Netflix said it would split the DVD rental business off on a new website, to be called Qwikster. The company said that customers who want streaming movies and DVDs will have to pay for them separately.
Google axes Buzz network to focus on Google+
Google is to ditch its controversial Buzz social networking tool in favor of its more successful Google+ online community. Google launched Buzz in February 2010, automatically turning Gmail contacts into public friends on the network- causing a flood of privacy complaints and trouble with the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Under a settlement announced by the FTC, Google was required to implement a comprehensive privacy program and undergo independent privacy audits every two years for 20 years.
Google encrypts search: Will tracking be affected?
Google account holders will now have all their searches encrypted by default for extra security. Websites visited from organic search listings will still know that the user came from Google, but will not get information about each individual query, Google said. The websites can also receive an aggregated list of the top 1,000 search queries that drove traffic to their site for each of the past 30 days through Google Webmaster Tools, Google said.
Nokia debuts first Windows 7 smartphone ‘Lumia’
Nokia has launched the Lumia, its first Windows 7 smartphone since its partnership with Microsoft earlier this year, as the worlds largest phone manufacturer looks to topple Apple and Google in the smartphone market. The Lumia 800 will go on sale in the UK within weeks, and Nokia began accepting preorders this week. Stephen Elop, Nokia chief executive said the new handset is the “first real Windows phone”. It has a 3.7-inch screen, eight megapixel camera and runs Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 software.
Facebook denies building ‘shadow profiles’ of non-users
Facebook has denied accusations that it is gradually building “shadow profiles” of non-users of the social networking site. Irish privacy watchdog, the Data Protection Commissioner (IDPC) claims that users are encouraged to give out non-user’s personal details, like names, phone numbers and email addresses, which Facebook uses to create “shadow profiles” of those people.
Netflix to take on LoveFilm with 2012 UK launch
The world’s biggest internet TV and film streaming service, Netflix is to launch in the UK early next year. The news comes days after Google announced a movie rental service for UK Android users, and Sony announced the launch of its Entertainment Network, offering streaming and downloading services.
SeeSaw video-on-demand site shuts down after 2 years
UK TV-on-demand website SeeSaw, has been closed down afer failing to renew content licenses.The website had been online less than two years, offering content from BBC Worldwide, Channel 4, Channel Five and several production companies. A group of investors led by Criterion Capital Partners took a majority stake in the business in July. CCP also owns the social network Bebo.
NOVEMBER
Groupon raises $700m in biggest tech IPO since Google
Daily deals site Groupon has raised $700m after increasing the size of its initial public offering, becoming the largest IPO by an internet company since Google in 2004. The float follows other high-profile technology firms offering shares to the public this year, including LinkedIn, Russian search engine Yandex and Japenese social network RenRen, which all floated on the Nasdaq exchange. The IPO’s price gives based Groupon a market value of $12.7 billion. That makes Groupon’s IPO the second largest by an Internet company behind only that of Google Inc. in 2004.
Google search ‘tweak’ affects 35% of searches
Google has tweaked its search algorithms to focus on newer content, after the search giant admitted that many of the results it retuned were ‘stale’. From now on, Google searches will now be timelier and the change will affect around 35% of its searches. Google has said it wants to work out if a user is searching for recent material such as the latest news in the Presidential race, or the latest developments in the Occupy Wall Street movement demonstrations.
YouTube launches 100 original web TV channels
YouTube is adding some 100 channels of original programming to its video sharing site, including TV, film, music, sport and celebrity content. The new content includes deals with celebrity partners such as pop music star Madonna and actor Ashton Kutcher. Google, oners of YouTube, reportedly laid out more than $100 million to establish the partnerships, which come as the California technology titan tries to become a preferred source of content for Internet-linked televisions.
Microsoft, AOL and Yahoo confirm online ad alliance
Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo! have confirmed they are to team up, selling online display ads on each other’s networks, in a bid to take on Google and Facebook in the online ad sector. The deal will see the three firms maintain separate sales teams and compete against each other in other areas. The partnership is non-exclusive and therefore outdie the scope of regulatory action.According to the terms of the agreement, ad sales teams from Microsoft, AOL, and Yahoo! can offer each other’s “premium non-reserved online display inventory” to their respective customers.
Google+ debuts brand pages
Google has updated its social network Google+ with a new tool letting businesses and brands create their own profile pages to interact with customers. The move is similar to services offered by rivals Facebook and Twitter, and also puts Google+ in competition with leading business social network LinkedIn. The free tool, called Google + Pages, has attracted a number of high profile brands at launch, including Burberry, Pepsi, Barcelona football club, Angry Birds, O2, Save the Children, Mumsnet and the Muppets.
Bad week for UK electrical retailers: Comet sold for just £2 as Best Buy closes UK stores
UK electrical retailer Comet has been sold for just £2 to a private equity firm, in the same week that US firm Best Buy announced it is to close all of its UK stores to focus on smaller shops. UK electricals retailers have come under increasing pressure as consumers cut back on discretionary spending, while also struggling with increasing competition from supermarket chains and Internet retailers.
Google gets serious about mobile payments: Merges Checkout into Google wallet
Google is to merge its Checkout retail payment platform with Google Wallet ahead of the Christmas shopping season. The internet giant will integrate the systems under the Google Wallet banner, and will push the payment system through its other retail operations. Ben Lee, Google Wallet product manager, reassured merchants using the Checkout platform that they will not need to take any action at their end as the services are integrated.
Google Music goes live in US with Android store
Google Music has gone live in the US, featuring a free music storage cloud service, app, Web player, free social music sharing on Google+ and store on the Android marketplace. Google Music users can upload up to 20,000 songs to the cloud and stream for free, and purchased content doesn’t count against that 20,000 limit. Google is also integrating its new service with its Google+ social network. Users will be able to share songs with their Circles contacts who can listen to the full length of the tracks one time without making a purchase.
$40 Akash tablet gets commercial launch in India
Akash, the low cost Indian tablet is set for a commercial launch, following its Government-subsidised launch in October. Though the base version was made for students, a commercial variant will also be made available by end of November. The Aakash will have a shelf name UbiSlate 7.
Google axes 7 more products to focus on Google+
Google is ditching seven more products, including Google Wave, Knol and Google Gears, in an effort to simplify its range of services. The move marks the third time this year that Google has culled several of its products at the same time after they had failed to take off. Google had previously announced its plans to kill off some of the projects on the list, such as Wave. But the new announcement has revealed details about when the switch-offs will occur. For example Wave will be retired in April, and Knol content will be taken offline in October.
Six degrees of separation? Facebook makes it 4.74
Social media is officially making the world a smaller place, according to new research from Facebook. The social networking site has re-written the famous “six degrees of separation rule”, reducing it to just 4.74 degrees to being connected to any given stranger. Scientists at Facebook and the University of Milan reported this week that the average number of acquaintances separating any two people in the world was not six but 4.74.
DECEMBER
Online gaming giant Zynga valuation: $7bn (but is it worth it?)
Social games maker Zynga has raised $1bn in its initial public offering, pricing the shares at the top of the marketed range. The developer of games such as “CityVille,” “FarmVille” and “Mafia Wars” sold 100 million shares for $10 each, Zynga said in a statement. This would value the company at $7bn. The firm intends to use the money generated for game development and marketing.
Facebook’s ‘$100bn April float’: Insanity or visionary?
Facebook is reportedly planning an initial public offering next year that will value the social network at more than $100bn. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Facebook’s chief financial officer David Ebersman has discussed the float with Silicon Valley bankers, with April 2012 slated as a possible date to go public. Sources told the WSJ that CEO Mark Zuckerberg has not confirmed the terms of the deal yet.
Google launches YouTube analytics tool
Google has replaced YouTube Insight with YouTube Analytics, giving online video producers a more detailed statistics on how their content is watched. The new analytical tool includes a summary report to give top-level performance metrics on the user’s YouTube content. It also gives easy access to more detailed statistics. YouTube Analytics generates the same data given from YouTube Insight and more. It gives the demographics of who is watching the producer’s video content and tells the user where the traffic is being drawn from.
Salesforce mixes social media with CRM after Radian6 buy
Salesforce has unveiled a new social insights platform that integrates Radian6 into its core Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software. In May, cloud-based enterprise company Salesforce.com acquired Radian6, the social media monitoring startup, for $326m. Salesforce, which is best known for CRM or customer relationship management products, said at the time that the “hundreds of millions of conversations [Radian6 captures] every day across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, blogs and online communities” will help provide its businesses with “actionable insights in real-time.”
Toyota’s new concept car: A ‘smartphone on wheels’
Toyota has unveiled its latest concept car, designed to be as interconnected and customisable as smartphones. Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda unveiled the car this week, dubbed the ‘Fun-Vii’. The car is a striking black, wedge-shaped obelisk whose entire outer skin is a video display screen.
Adobe buys digital ad buying platform Efficient Frontier
Adobe is has bought Efficient Frontier for an undisclosed sum, as the firm looks to boost advertising services. Founded in 2002, Efficient Frontier manages more than $1 billion in marketing spending on behalf of its clients, which include Travelodge, Match.com and Discover Financial Services
WordPress takes on Google AdSense with WordAds
WordPress has launched a contextual ad scheme, as the popular publishing platform looks to take on Google’s AdSense. The firm has teamed up with Federated Media Publishing to create WordAds, which lets bloggers earn money through advertising on their blogs. “We’ve resisted advertising so far because most of it we had seen wasn’t terribly tasteful, and it seemed like Google’s AdSense was the state-of-the-art, which was sad,” Jon Burke wrote on the WordPress.com blog. “You pour a lot of time and effort into your blog and you deserve better than AdSense.”
Facebook buys Foursqaure rival Gowalla to boost location tools
Facebook has reportedly bought Gowalla, an online location-sharing service, for an undisclosed sum. The report, from CNNMoney attributed the development to “a source close to Gowalla” and mentioned that most of Gowalla’s employees will move to Facebook’s offices in Palo Alto. The team will work on Facebook’s Timeline feature. The deal will see the Texas-based firm relocate the majority of its staff to social network’s Silicon Valley HQ.
Facebook’s most radical redesign yet: Social network rolls out ‘Timeline’ layout
Facebook has begun rolling out its much anticipated new timeline layout worldwide, offering a new, deeper profile which allows users to ‘fill in’ more of their life pre-Facebook. Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg described timeline as lettting you ‘tell the whole story of your life on a single page’. The new look is much more ‘picture-heavy’; friends become big pictures, and the site also posts much larger versions of pictures users have taken, shared or been tagged in. Timeline will also be open to app developers, so that the information can be used to supercharge apps such as music-sharing application Spotify.
Yahoo strategy doubts grow at Goldman Sachs
It’s tough being a portal these days, and particularly if you’re under the thumb of analysts who have lost faith in the business model of portals. The latest battering for the Yahoo strategy comes from Goldman Sachs, but their verdict has implications far beyond Yahoo. Here’s what they said and why it matters…
Paypal takes on Groupon with daily deal coupons
Online payment service Paypal is to enter to increasingly lucrative discount coupon market, taking on the likes of Groupon and Living Social in the process. The eBay-owned business is aiming to launch the service in the US before April 2012. Speaking to news agency Bloomberg, Paypal’s president, Scott Thompson, said the firm would use its knowledge of its 103 million members’ past purchases to tailor offers.
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