Social Networking

The Only Way Google can be Successful in Consumer Electronics

February 10, 2012

Yesterday I detailed how Google IS the tech news of the day and folks, this search leader is ambitious – more so than Microsoft ever was. In addition to a Dropbox killer and massive Google+ growth I outlined in this recent post, the company is also getting into the home entertainment business through its Motorola Mobility acquisition. Specifically Google will release a self-branded line of consumer electronics allowing you to stream music throughout your home.

Google already has a cloud-based music service so obviously there is synergy there but the only way I see this strategy working is by Google doing things differently.

My loyal readers know I am a fan of Sonos – they sell an in-home audio streaming service which integrates with Slacker, Pandora, Sirius/XM, Spotify and even integrates with iOS devices and iTunes libraries stored on computers. In-short, you have access to all your music and favorite radio from any room.

Posted in 4G, Amazon, Android, Apple, Blackberry, Broadband, Consumer Electronics, FCC, Facebook, Gadget, Google, HD Voice, Microsoft, Social Networking, Speech Technologies, Technology, Twitter, Wireless

Google+ Growth, Dropbox Killer: Google IS the Tech News

February 9, 2012

Google has entrenched itself is so many areas of tech they have become the technology news of the day. First off, Google+ growth has been nothing short of fantastic, in part because the company has altered search results to put more emphasis on this social network. Every SEO/SEM professional has had no choice in the past few months to get up to speed on the latest social network from the search giant. And this in part is the reason why it has half the unique visitors of Twitter according to web traffic tracking site Compete.

In other unrelated news in the mobile market – hey wait, it isn’t unrelated at all – once again it features Google whose Motorola Mobility acquisition is about to get OKed – perhaps as early as next week.

The bad news now for those companies selling products with technology covered by Motorola/Google patents – you’re on the hook for 2.25% of every sale.

Posted in 4G, Android, Apple, Broadband, Cloud Computing, E-Commerce, Facebook, Financial, Gadget, Google, Microsoft, Open Source, Patent, Search, Security, Social Networking, Technology, Wireless

Rewards Network, the Social Restaurant Hub

February 7, 2012

In the last few decades it has become apparent that all companies are for the most part limited by their imaginations. Apple was thought to be a computer company but is now a leader in music, movies and phones. Amazon went from selling books to everything – even its servers are for rent via its cloud-computing solutions. Google went from search to purchasing Motorola Mobility and is well known for being involved in many projects from solar to self-driving cars and the television space.

But an airline? Certainly they aren’t adapting to the new competitive landscape – after all, many of the airplanes we fly on in the US were built in the 1960s when the cloud was defined as an IBM System/360 mainframe.

American Airlines has been a pioneer in loyalty marketing since the AAdvantage frequent flyer program was launched in 1981 and as a result their successful marketing concept spread to many other industries from toys to greeting cards.

The airline took a page from its own book and runs an AAdvantage Dining program which allows members to earn points good for travel and other services.

Posted in Amazon, Android, Apple, E-Commerce, Facebook, Financial, Google, Marketing, Microsoft, Social Networking, Technology, Twitter

Google: Can it be Everything to Everyone?

January 27, 2012

Google is the new Microsoft but boy are they faster than Redmond ever was. Part of the reason has to do with the search engine leader’s access to the eyeballs of almost every human on earth via its home page but another reason for the blistering speed of the company has to do with the speed of innovation – which I recently described as (Moore’s Law*Metcalfe’s Law)/Patent Lawsuit Activity.

What we saw happen to Microsoft is telling. As they expanded into market after market like IPTV products like Internet Explorer and their mobile strategy seemed ever changing as did the name of their mobile operating systems. As a result, Apple and Google were able to virtually decimate the company’s mobile efforts while Google has made massive inroads in the browser market with Chrome.

Posted in Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Social Networking, Technology, Twitter

Alternion: Manage 220+ Social Connections From one Dashboard

January 26, 2012

Let’s face it – social networking is time consuming. I believe part of the reason for the meteoric rise in social networking these past few years has to do with a miserable job market coupled with the fact that social is free and people are cutting the cable cord. But even with unlimited tim,e managing video sites like YouTube and Vimeo as well as Flickr, a blog, Twitter, Facebook, email and other networks is a herculean task requiring you to take your mental vitamins.

And if you use social for work the situation gets more challenging as your employer likely wants you to manage social while you do everything else like manage CPC and CPM ad budgets as well as perhaps PR, road shows, events, white papers and webinars.

So any tool which makes life easier is welcomed by virtually everyone and Alternion is such a service as it allows connectivity to 220+ social networks at once. I have been using it today and have found it a great way to interact with a number of the contacts I have on various networks.

What is best about the program is its simple timeline view.

Yes you can use Zite or FlipBoard on a mobile device such as an iPad but if you are sifting through hundreds or thousands of messages at a time – it is really not efficient to use these programs as they sacrifice speed for snazzy graphics.

Posted in Facebook, Social Networking, Twitter

Innovation Speed = (Moore's Law*Metcalfe's Law)/Patent Lawsuit Activity

January 25, 2012

Yesterday I was engaged in a conversation with TMC senior editor Peter Bernstein and we were discussing the pace of innovation and whether there is some formula which can explain how much more quickly things are happening today. Interestingly I also had a conversation today with TMC webmaster and author Robert Hashemian where we were going over Apple’s earnings and how fast mobile leadership has changed – from Motorola to Nokia to Motorola to Microsoft to RIM to Apple to Google. And all these massive marketshare swings took place more or less in the last decade.

Back to the discussion with Peter – my takeaway from the conversation (I feel he has a slightly different opinion which hopefully he will expound upon in the future) is that Moore’s Law and Metcalfe’s Law working together are accelerating innovation and lubricating new business models. Obviously email is just one tool which has benefitted from these laws – think about how you can now create and respond to virtually all your email from a smartphone now.

Posted in Android, Apple, Cisco, E-Commerce, Facebook, Google, IP Communications, ITEXPO, Microsoft, Patent, Social Networking, Technology, Wireless

ITEXPO East 2012 Miami Out of Office Message

January 24, 2012

While I digest the super-strong, mind-numbing Apple growth numbers which propelled the stock to a high of $460 per share after hours I have just set my out of office message for next week when I will be at ITEXPO. The message is below in case you want to use something similar. And for your convenience here is the first show daily from the event – which covers news from Sprint, AT&T, Whitespace Alliance, Panasonic, Accedian Networks, Cycle30, FaxSIPit, Phone.com and Polar Media.

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Thank you for your message. Starting Jan 30th I will be at ITEXPO (www.itexpo.com) in Miami.

This is the global tech and communications conference - covering cloud, MSP, super WiFi, 4G, M2M, Patents, SIP, VoIP, HTML5 and featuring keynotes from Google, Sprint, Samsung, The FCC and Sir Terry Matthews.

On Friday, Feb 3rd @ 1:45 pm I give away a new Mustang - You must be present to win so I hope to see you there.

Posted in 4G, AT&T, Amazon, Apple, Avaya, Blackberry, Broadband, Cisco, Cloud Computing, Communications Developer, Conference, E-Commerce, FCC, Fax, HTML5, IP Communications, ITEXPO, Networking, Nortel, SIP, Social Networking, Super WiFi, Technology, Unified Communications, Verizon, Video, VoIP, Wireless

Bain Capital, Romney, Vulture Investing and 15% Tax Rates

January 23, 2012

A shout out to investors everywhere

I haven’t seen this level of funding in the tech space in years – I would go so far as to say the amount of funding is the greatest I’ve seen since 2000. I don’t believe we are exceeding 2000 levels but it is encouraging to see that investors believe that tech makes a solid investment.

Before I begin with which markets have gotten money, let me make a shout out to the investors in the world. You see, me, everyone at TMC and in fact most of the tech world owes its existence to investors who risk their capital against all odds to make a profit. It isn’t unusual for these investors to hit it big in one out of ten deals – meaning 90% of their investment is washed down the drain.

And because of their decision to be investors we get companies like Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, Pandora and Google which have made the world a better place.

We are in an unusual time in American history – one in which a potential presidential candidate is under attack for being a successful investor.

Posted in Amazon, Broadband, Facebook, Financial, Google, HTML5, SaaS, Social Networking, Technology, Twitter

How Megaupload Takedown Hurts Cloud Computing

January 22, 2012

How self-destructive US policies are hurting hiring and industry
One of the biggest concerns regarding the passage of SOPA is that entire domain names could be blocked by federal authorities due to a single offending blog or web page. In this past week, major websites such as Wikipedia and Google engaged in an education campaign in order to have consumers put pressure on politicians who eventually reversed course on their support of the bill.

On a side note – as a conservative – the fact that a Republican, Representative Lamar Smith was the biggest proponent of this bill is horrifying. He should be thrown out of office by his constituents at the first possible chance.

Moreover, any politician who ever supported the bill should suffer the same fate.

But what is even scarier than theoretical web takedowns is actual ones and this week we saw Megaupload removed from the web because it allegedly engaged in activities which promoted pirating copyrighted material. Now if you aren’t a user of the site – and I never have been to my knowledge, you may be led to believe the US government was in its rights to take down a site designed solely to break the law.

But the challenge here is there are many users who used Megaupload for legitimate uses like sharing and storing files.

Posted in AT&T, Amazon, Apple, Broadband, Cloud Computing, Google, Microsoft, SaaS, Social Networking, Technology, Twitter, Verizon, Wireless, Yahoo

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