(* Source: PSFK *)

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(* Source: Jennifer Van Grove *)

It has become standard practice for big brands and businesses to setup shop on Twitter and Facebook and use the social mediums to connect with customers.

That’s all yesterday’s news now. But the early adopter brands who paved the way for the rest to follow suit have become the success stories that the media, the public and the web companies in the limelight turn to first.

Zappos, Ford, Starbucks, Bravo, Tasti D-Lite and Best Buy are all names that come to mind. There’s no real secret to their success. Each did something innovative and identified a future trend just as the press cycle was heating up. Now they’re all riding the wave of rewards earned from their original risk.

In some ways, though, we’re still in the early days of understanding the relationship between businesses and social media. It’s now more crucial than ever to understand why it’s important to be an early adopter brand.

Good Press That Lasts

Early last year we profiled 40 of the best brands on Twitter and some of those brands have gone on to become media darlings continually featured in press coverage on the web/tech space. It was each company’s individual savvy or willingness to experiment that originally caught our eye, but it’s their ongoing tenacity that kept them front-and-center in the public’s mind.

Those brands with a genuine interest in customer engagement and a commitment to push beyond the expected have maintained a high profile social media presence that continually nets them advantages the rest don’t get.

One key advantage is that they’ve developed important media relationships. These relationships open doors for both parties. The press have immediate access to standby contacts anytime they need an extra quote or example for their upcoming piece. In return, the brands get an instant audience responsive to pitches on innovative social media use cases or quirky marketing campaigns. The cycle repeats itself until a particular story becomes saturated or eclipsed by a newer trend.

Right now there’s no brand mastering the press better than Starbucks. Their relationship with Twitter in the initial rollout of Promoted Tweets has ensured that Starbucks gets a major mention in every mainstream and new media article on Promoted Tweets. It is especially fortuitous for them that their sample Promoted Tweets screenshot served as the only visual representation of the official Twitter ad format when the news first broke. The company has managed to maintain this social media favor with the press for years now, also recently making a huge splash with their loyalty program partnership with Foursquare ().

Case Study Standbys

Ever sit through a conference session or keynote on social media where the presenter or panel did not use brand case studies to supplement their talk? Probably not.

The unwritten rule of public speaking is to always back up points with case studies as proof. For example, a few years ago Zappos’ approach to Twitter was so fresh that the company’s story became the case study on everybody lips. You may also recall that Ford’s social presence during the American car company’s financial struggles was also headliner material.

While Zappos and Ford are still no stranger to the social media limelight — their original successes will always guarantee consideration — the new names cropping up in case studies are the brands experimenting with trends happening right now. Take location-sharing services like Foursquare.

The fact of the matter is that Foursquare is still foreign to most, which means the Foursquare brand marketing from Starbucks, Lucky Magazine and the City of Chicago make for interesting material. Each case study can demonstrate the business potential of Foursquare’s experimental platform. It’s this cutting edge material that piques our curiosity and makes for a captive audience.

Now, should Travelocity find a way to translate their mascot’s Chatroulette activities into business sense, we could see a whole new crop of case-study worthy business uses emerge.

Favor From the Flavor of the Week

Brands open to social media innovation have found favor in the eyes of the most influential people on the web: The minds behind today’s hot startups.

Brand partnerships are crucial for these fledgling startups to maintain their edge over competitors, but it’s much safer for them to favor the friends they’ve made on their way up the ladder. Twitter (with Square by association), Facebook, Foursquare and even Chatroulette are all on fire right now. Each of them — with the exception of Chatroulette — have managed to find brand buddies they trust enough to include in their new feature testing phases. These brands get invited into a private fold that then translates into press coverage on launch and introductions to more people in the circle. Rinse, repeat.

Brands that are in Twitter’s good graces have been grandfathered in to Foursquare’s elite fold of trusted businesses. Just look at Starbucks, a Twitter-forward company now trying Foursquare, as a perfect an example. Another example is Bravo. The cable network has consistently taken an avant-garde approach to television and social media, but it wasn’t until their media deal with Foursquare that the network found its way into Twitter’s public graces. Now they’re a launch partner for Twitter’s long-anticipated ad platform.

This isn’t a coincidence or the result of one serendipitous moment. In fact, many of the top startups share the same investors, the same friends and the same brand relationships. Ultimately the inner circle at the top of the startup food chain has become a safe haven for sharing brands and ideas. Find yourself in this circle and you’ll find yourself amongst the elite of early adopter brands.

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(* Source: Jason Kincaid *)

Jason says...

What do you get when you combine music with frantic, all night hour coding sessions?  An event called Music Hack Day, where developers have 24 hours to hack together a new music-related app, which they then show off to their peers at event’s conclusion. Music Hack Day has previously been held in London, Berlin, Amsterdam, Boston, and Stockhold; this is the first time it’s coming to the Bay Area. The event runs May 15-16, and is being held at the Automattic offices at Pier 38 in San Francisco.

The main goal Music Hack Day, according to its homepage, is “to explore and build the next generation of music applications”. Aside from that, anything goes — it just has to do with music. Space is limited, so you’ll want to register here (it’s based on a first-come first-served basis, and the organizers will also be looking to ensure the people attending are planning to actually help make something).

Music Hack Day is run by an interesting group of guys with experience in both music and tech: Dave Haynes (of SoundCloud), Paul Lamere (of Echonest) and Daniel Raffel (Senior Product Manager at Yahoo!, used to run some record labels). Also attending the event will be representatives from music companies like SongKick, Pandora, SonicLiving, Songbird, and Last.fm.

The timing is also good for developers: Muisc Hack Day is taking place the weekend before Google I/O and the SF MusicTech summit, so developers from out of the town can hit up multiple events on the same trip. So rock on. And try not to think too hard about the pain some earlier music startups have suffered through — things are finally looking up for a few of them.

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(* Source: PSFK *)

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(* Source: InsideFacebook *)

Eric says...

Over the last few weeks, was all of a sudden getting popular on Facebook. Instead of just gaining a couple hundred users a day, he was gaining tens of thousands. But recently, .

Why? Well, first, we recognize that Slash is a great guitarist, and that people just want to be fans of him because they love him. Second, we recognize that he has a very active page — he’s constantly updating via text messages, even automatically sending his updates to Twitter via his page.

But we also recognize that he’s been active on Facebook for months, yet only recently saw a spike in new fans. So there is likely another cause, or two. We asked readers, and a few people responded to say they’d seen actual ads for Slash’s page on Facebook — apparently ads being run by Facebook itself. Slash may be benefiting from a larger effort by Facebook to promote celebrities.

“A few weeks ago, I noticed that Facebook replaced ads with fan page solicitations,” as commenter Jason F. told us. “I think Slash was one of them. I wonder if that helped seed the audience more diversely than organic growth ala Guns N’ Roses and Velvet Revolvers’ fan pages would have.”

What does Jason mean by “seeding?” Facebook fan page advertising is not itself necessarily the main explanation for the new growth. Jeff Widman, a Facebook marketing consultant who helps big clients grow pages, has more:

“The Highlight section of Facebook means if you can get a page rolling along at a good clip, you can keep picking up more fans. It’s a solid way for him to basically capture on Facebook all the people who already like him (and are friends with him). I’ve seen some major spikes with my clients when we try to push something hard all at once rather than dribble a little at a time. If they want to spend $1K on ads every month, I tell ‘em to blow it in one week every month.”

In other words, a little bit of growth can snowball into a lot of growth. So the answer to the riddle of Slash’s page growth could really be “all of the above.” First: He is already popular with the general public. Second: He has an active page. Third: He had ads running that apparently were seen by a lot of people. Fourth: Facebook’s viral loops — its highlights, as well as its activity stream — may have allowed the first three conditions to exponentially increase the results.

For page owners looking to grow, this is maybe another reason to buy those Facebook ads, and to think more strategically about ad spending patterns. Or, of course, to figure out who within Facebook decides to promote particular celebrities, as that person now appears to be the equivalent of whoever is in charge of the Suggested User List over at Twitter.

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(* Source: Arun *)

* Advertisers, Consumers Disagree on Ad Effectiveness (MarketingCharts)
* MySpace Music Showing Strong Growth (Hypebot)
* Teen Spending Shifts To Value; Electronics Hold Firm (MarketingCharts)
* 22% - Latino Children in America (Pewresearch)
* How the Old, the Young and Everyone in Between Uses Social Networks (eMarketer)
* Digital Music Market Singing that Old Ad Song (eMarketer)
* Facebook Brands with Fans: Starbucks Tops Coke (MarketingCharts)
* 79% - Talkin’ ’bout my Generation (Pewresearch)
* Insurance Marketers Ignore Gen X, Gen Y (MarketingCharts)
* Twitter is for Losers (eMarketer)
* Word-of-Mouth Spending to Reach $3 Billion by 2013 (MarketingCharts)
* Parents Not Hip to Teen SocNet Secrets (MarketingCharts)
* What Women Want from Social Sites (eMarketer)
* 9 Of 10 In U.S. Don’t Listen To Music On Cell (Hypebot)

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(* Source: Mark Hefflinger *)

The founders of gadget news blogs Gizmodo and Engadget have teamed to launch GDGT, a gadget-focused online social network.

The site was launched on Wednesday by Pete Rojas, the founder of Gizmodo and co-founder of Engadget, and Ryan Block, the editor of Engadget.

The site will not produce original news content or reviews, as do Gizmodo and Engadget, but instead aggregate news and reviews, and allow users to post their own gadget reviews.

Users can also create profiles and list their stable of gadgets, as well as wish lists.

Block told The New York Times that the gadget blogs focus on only 5% of a device's lifecycyle, the "lust phase," while GDGT will address "the 95 percent of the time you own the product there is nowhere to go. We are building the place where you can live with your gadgets online in perpetuity." 

See site here

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What The Trend? is a personal web experiment by Matt Mayer, a Shanghai-based British web developer for RIA agency ReignDesign.   Find out what's trending on Twitter and why. For each trend, Matt will give you a quick explanation of WHY it's trending (these blurbs are edited by you!) You can also see the latest tweets, Flickr photos and news stories.

Click here to see it in action.

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(* Source: Kumegirl *)

Kumegirl says...

Several years ago a lot of pundits were discussing generation C. Jake Pearce wrote in idealog in 2006;

“Trendwatching.com says it’s C for ‘content’, meaning Gen C are defined by their production of original material. The bloggers at Digital Hive say it’s all about ‘creativity’—that Gen C want to become co-creators of their world (“Don’t just sell me a car—involve me in designing it”). Tomi Ahonen, a Swedish telco consultant and author, has another definition: C is for ‘community’. He says young consumers walk around with “a gang in their pocket”, continually txting, phoning and pxting their friends and families. “No decision is now made as individual, everything is done in community. Tom Eslinger, Saatchi & Saatchi’s worldwide interactive creative director, says it’s all the above but is also C for ‘channel’. “You can have all the digital devices and creative skills you like, but opening a channel to reach millions of customers and fans marks out Generation C.”” Whatever people thought that C stood for ( the generation that had to deal with climate change, or generation cash) - there was an acknowledged shift.

How that shift has panned out has been best expressed by Nick Gadsby of the blog Dark London in a cluetrain related post

“It seems that rather than businesses becoming more like consumers, consumers were becoming more like businesses. Thanks to the communicative and distributive tools of the internet anybody could advertise themselves and lots of people did. This trend has only accelerated – players of online games form hierarchical top-down organisations, techies develop apps in their spare time, ebay and amazon encourage people to become virtual stores. Even the less commercially minded will cumulatively spend hours updating profiles and uploading photos. If the sprawling chaos of the Myspace profile was the infomercial, Twitter is the streamlined 30 second ad where detail is less important than impact. ”

This is the dynamic that now lies behind what is being referred to as The 4 C’s. Here the 4 c’s include converation, collaboration, crowdsourcing, co-creation, or here or here content, context, continuity and connectivity. Either way, c words are current in web 2.0 discussions.

The final comment from Dark London, “I think when businesses start aiming to be the experts again that then they will be ready to have a real conversation with consumers about what they are doing and what they should be doing because they’ll have an opinion and the confidence to debate its worth.”

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(* Source: Anjali Ramachandran *)

Anjali says on PSFK...

Record labels don’t always have a smooth relationship with music artists. If a band chooses to release their music using alternative means, one of the most common assumptions is a) that their music wasn’t good enough to get them signed by a label or b) that they were difficult for labels to get along with. For established 20-year music veterans De La Soul, neither was the case. Releasing on iTunes tomorrow, De La Soul has partnered with Nike to bring us the “Are You in?: Nike+ Original Run,” 44-minute workout LP. This marks the return of the hip-hop trio to the music scene after a break of 5 years.

The album, part of Nike’s SportMusic range of music, is yet another example of the brand’s complete dedication to constantly reinventing themselves. Marketers have ventured into branded music before, but the SportMusic albums are different because they sell for $9.99 each, making them a revenue stream of their own accord. De La Soul have admitted to being approached by other brands, but say they went with Nike because they shared a common approach to the project. The group especially appreciated the fact that they were able to get feedback from Nike Plus runners.

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(* Source: Lee Ryan *)

Lee says...

I noticed recently that there was new material uploaded recently about youth, including youth in Asia. I am not sure about the term millenials (which may or may not have two n’s). Some things don’t change - youth consistently have the same core requirement of this lifestage - to both fit in and stand out, and as a client commented to me after a global presentation - “Youth are always bored.” Last year i was in a home in Ho Chí Minh observing a teenager take us through her media collection, and there were connections for me with Catcher in the Rye (it’s amazing what a yahoo 360 site can trigger). Yet observing youth in the same city in internet cafes playing some extraordinary blend of Karaoke and dancing games reminded me of nothing else in the world. Expressions of different needs are constantly changing, and it’s always intriguing to see what are the emergent trends and regional & country differences.

So again - i have compiled a collection of links and sites on the basis of where i would send some young qualitative researchers. It is work by people in their industry, and it ranges from global to Asia. Some of it is a bit older because i believe the site has some good thinking. I have tried to choose a range of different examples. Please comment if you can add to the list (click on post title and scroll to the end of post to add comment). If you haven’t already seen it scroll down to see the deck on slideshare about Korean B Boys and audience 2.0 (thanks Guy for this link).

Digital Youth Research is an academic research project carried out by researchers at the University of Southern California and University of California exploring how kids use digital media in their everyday lives. The research team interviewed over 800 youth and young adults and conducted over 5000 hours of online observations as part of the most extensive U.S. study of youth digital media use to date. They found that social network sites, online games, video-sharing sites, and gadgets such as iPods and mobile phones are now fixtures of youth culture. The research finds today’s youth may be coming of age and struggling for autonomy and identity amid new worlds for communication, friendship, play, and self-expression. Key highlights are available on the site.

Danah Boyd has also investigated how American teenagers socialize in networked publics like MySpace, Facebook, LiveJournal, Xanga and YouTube which has caused some discussion on the net.

Flamingo is an international qualitative research consultancy and youth is one of their specialisms. They have some excellent pieces in their Thinking section.

Barking Robot by Derek Baird, was voted by mobileYouth as a top marketing youth blogger as was Paul MacGregorand Lisa Li Yi.

Universal Mccann research into social media, uploaded to slideshare regularly provides rich sources of data on young people

Insites Consulting has some interesting updates around their work with youth including a piece about authenticity, and their explorations with netnography. Useful because of their attention to methodology

Being Young Ian Stewart has released some excellent pieces from his time at MTV, on widgets, a fundamental piece about trends in Asia from a couple of years ago, and of course on music matters..

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(* Source: Erik Schonfeld *)

Erik reports...

What if you could peer into the thoughts of millions of people as they were thinking those thoughts or shortly thereafter? And what if all of these thoughts were immediately available in a database that could be mined easily to tell you what people both individually and in aggregate are thinking right nowabout any imaginable subject or event? Well, then you’d have a different kind of search engine altogether. A real-time search engine. A what’s-happening-right-now search engine.

In fact, the crude beginnings of this “now” search engine already exists. It is called Twitter, and it is a big reason why new investors poured another $35 million into the two-year-old startup on Friday. Twitter is not the only company trying to solve this problem. Facebook, FriendFeed, and even Google are trying to crack it, but Twitter has a decided advantage in that it is capturing the vast majority of the real-time thought stream on the Web (because more people enter their thoughts directly into Twitter’s database than any other, and are doing so at an increasing rate).

What makes Google and other search engines so valuable is that they capture people’s intent—what they are looking for, what they desire, what they want to learn about. But they don’t do a great job at capturing what people are doing or what they are thinking about. For thoughts and events that are happening right now, searching Twitter increasingly brings up better results than searching Google.

Whether you want to know how people are mentally gearing up for this week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona or what they are thinking about today’s Ireland vs. Italy rugby match, searching Twitter will give you a pretty good smattering of sentiment and opinion. It is also a lot faster at getting out the essential details about breaking news, such as the Mumbai attacks or the plane that landed on the Hudson.

Twitter’s search engine is powered by Summize, a startup it acquired last July. But it also developed a feature called Track, currently disabled but coming back soon, that allowed people to follow the mention of specified keywords. John Borthwick, an investor in Summize (and thus now an investor in Twitter), explained in a blog post earlier this month ago why he thinks that “Twitter search changes everything.” Excerpt:

Imagine you are in line waiting for coffee and you hear people chattering about a plane landing on the Hudson. You go back to your desk and search Google for plane on the Hudson — today — weeks after the event, Google is replete with results — but the DAY of the incident there was nothing on the topic to be found on Google. Yet at http://search.twitter.com the conversations are right there in front of you. The same holds for any topical issues — lipstick on pig? — for real time questions, real time branding analysis, tracking a new product launch — on pretty much any subject if you want to know whats happening now, search.twitter.com will come up with a superior result set.

. . . How is real time search different? History isn’t that relevant — relevancy is driven mostly by time. . . . This reformulation of search as navigation is, I think, a step into a very new and different future. Google.com has suddenly become the source for pages — not conversations, not the real time web. What comes next? I think context is the next hurdle. Social context and page based context. . . . Twitter search today is crude — but so was Google.com once upon a not so long time ago.

Twitter may just be a collection of inane thoughts, but in aggregate that is a valuable thing. In aggregate, what you get is a direct view into consumer sentiment, political sentiment, any kind of sentiment. For companies trying to figure out what people are thinking about their brands, searching Twitter is a good place to start. To get a sense of what I’m talking about, try searching for “iPhone,” “Zune,” or “Volvo wagon”.

Why can’t Google simply index Twitter? It does, but its search results give more weight to links than to time. It could create a new search product along the lines of Blog Search or News search that is geared more towards Micro-messaging services such as Twitter, FriendFeed, and the rest. But what it really needs to go beyond simply indexing Twitter after the fact. IVP partner, and Twitter investor, Todd Chaffee, suggests:

If they were really smart they could partner with Twitter and make Twitter their real-time feed.

Doing that would require Google to “affirm Twitter’s dominance in this category and the importance of the Twitter data stream,” contends Borthwick. But so far, Google has pretty much flubbed this opportunity to open up real-time search. It bought Twitter competitor Jaiku, only to shut it down. And now it is hoping to create a counterweight to Twitter’s growing strength in real-time data by open-sourcing Jaiku. Good luck with that one.

Listening to Twitter’s investors gives a good sense of how they think Twitter can become a game-changer in real-time search. While it is instructive, it is also important to note that much of this vision has yet to materialize. Twitter’s current search is extremely crude, as Borthwick readily admits. It simply brings up the most recent Tweets with the keyword you are looking for. There is no ranking or clustering beyond that.

An undifferentiated thought stream of the masses at some point becomes unwieldy. In order to truly mine that data, Twitter needs to figure out how to extract the common sentiments from the noise (something which Summize was originally designed to do, by the way, but it was putting the cart before the horse—you need to be able to do simple searches before you start looking for patterns). But what is the best way to rank real-time search results—by number of followers, retweets, some other variable? It is not exactly clear. But if Twitter doesn’t solve this problem, someone else will and they will make a lot of money if they do it right.

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(* Source: Robin Wauters *)

Robin says...

I’m not going to discuss the economic meltdown and its devastating effect on technology companies and internet startups in this post, but rather something that crossed my mind earlier this morning: “Web 2.0″ seems to become more and more a void (and an avoided) term. Of course, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it is definitely apparent.

So why do I say it’s fading? For one, because the number of startups that contact us and include the term Web 2.0 in the subject line or message is visibly dropping (and that’s a good thing), and I hardly ever see it mentioned anymore on other technology blogs and news sites either. That’s not really tangible, so I took a look at the number of mentions of the phrase across the web, and they seem to be decreasing significantly, reflecting my feeling on this.

Judging by Google Trends, which shows how often a particular search term is entered relative to the total search volume across various regions of the world (and in various languages), the term started being used at the end of 2004 when Tim O’Reilly organized the first edition of the Web 2.0 Conference. Search queries for the term started picking up in the middle of 2005, when TechCrunch was started - with the tagline “Tracking Web 2.0″ by the way - and the number kept increasing until the end of 2007. After that, the trend is clearly downwards, falling back to the level it reached in early 2006 today. If the trend continues, there should only be a handful of people left who scour search engines for “Web 2.0″ by 2011.

Also noteworthy: take a look at the geographic regions that have generated the highest volumes of worldwide search traffic for the term over the years - it’s Asia, with the top 5 regions being India, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Malaysia (in that order). Furthermore, Google Trends pegs the number one language in which people search for stuff related to the topic of Web 2.0 to be Russian before English.

And just in case you’re curious: “Web 3.0″ doesn’t seem to picking up much.
Let’s all rejoice.

Google’s “Insights for Search”, a beta service that analyzes a portion of worldwide Google web searches from all Google domains to compute how many searches have been done for the terms you’ve entered - relative to the total number of searches done on Google over time - gives an even better overview:

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(* Source: trendwatching *)

"Captures the growing importance of 'generosity' as a leading societal and business mindset. As consumers are disgusted with greed and its current dire consequences for the economy—and while that same upheaval has them longing more than ever for institutions that care—the need for more generosity beautifully coincides with the ongoing (and pre-recession) emergence of an online-fueled culture of individuals who share, give, engage, create and collaborate in large numbers.

In fact, for many, sharing a passion and receiving recognition have replaced 'taking' as the new status symbol. Businesses should follow this societal/behavioral shift, however much it may oppose their decades-old devotion to me, myself and I.”

Read more on the 3 trend-drivers for GENERATION G here:

Download GENERATION G as PDF

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(* Source: Morgan Stanley *)

Mary Meeker shares the below presentation on tech trends at the State of the Technology Industry November 2008 Web 2.0 Summit.

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(* Source: Marta Strickland *)

Martha says...

It's hard to pay attention to the news of the web industry this week. I've seen digests on other blogs become shorter and shorter. Right now, everything else going on in the world seems more interesting, scary, captivating, devastating...

But if you were paying attention this week, you would have seen an underlying trend, and that is this... social media is growing up.

What's Been Happening This Week?

The Playful But Powerful Google
Google had a few unserious moments this week. It introduced two joke features, an audio preview for YouTube comments and "mail goggles" for G-mail that prevent users from drunk e-mailing by forcing them to do math problems.

But as an ongoing trend, Google continues to be an innovator and a magnifying glass into online culture. They are implementing high-definition imagery and textual advertising into Google Maps. And, ReadWriteWeb had a great article on how one can use Google trends to analyze America's reaction to the debates. Popular campaign words, such as "maverick", saw a huge spike during the debates, as viewers at home everywhere in this nation turned to Google for a true definition.

The Social Network War Is Coming To An End, Or Is It?
It may happen in the next month folks. A battle that has been raging for more than a year might come to a close. As for the first time in US history, Facebook is set to overtake MySpace in traffic numbers. What could this mean? Will Facebook become MySpace like everyone fears?

Better question.. do we even need Facebook? The up-and-comer, Ning, just announced that it has hit the half a million mark with over 500,000 niche social networks. Maybe Facebook and MySpace are they the Netscape and AOL of the 2.0 world? They started the trend, but will fail to innovate quickly enough, as more nimble companies grow in popularity.

Enterprise Embraces Social While Everything Else Falls
Despite reports that half of social media campaigns will flop, there is more and more enterprise dollars being invested in the space. As risky as it may seem, it is far more risky to do nothing. We have 93% of consumers saying they want brands to join them in the space. And we also have compelling statistics to show that their purchase behavior and brand opinion is being shaped by social media experiences.

This space is evolving at intense speeds. We've moved passed the time of "my top 8 friends" and superpokes. Best Buy is building an enterprise Twitter for employees. Digg is flushing out those who are trying to scam the system. YouTube is building in e-commerce options into their site.

The good times are over. RIP. Things are about to get a lot more serious.

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(* Source: Dan Taylor *) 

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(* Source: Henry Jenkins *)

Some takeaways comments from Henry Jenkins from a recent report released by the Pew Internet & American Life Project offers some valuable new data about the place video games play in the lives of American young people.

At the most basic level, game playing has become more or less universal.

• Fully 97% of teens ages 12-17 play computer, web, portable, or console games. 50% of teens played games "yesterday." 

The Pew research may also force us to rethink once again the assumption that there is a gender gap in terms of who plays games:

• "99% of boys and 94% of girls report playing video games. Younger teen boys are the most likely to play games, followed by younger girls and older boys. Older girls are the least "enthusiastic" players of video games, though more than half of them play.
  
• Some 65% of daily gamers are male; 35% are female. Girls play an average of 6 different game genres; boys average 8 different types."

The Pew Data complicates easy generalizations about the place of violent entertainment in the lives of American teens.

• The five most popular among young Americans are Guitar Hero, Halo 3, Madden NFL, Solitaire, and Dance Dance Revolution. Of these, only Halo 3 would qualify as a violent game. Over all, non-violent genres were the most popular.
  
• But, 50% of boys name a game with an M or A/O rating as one of their current top three favorites, compared with 14% of girls. (0ne of those places where gender really does make a difference in how people relate to games.) 32% of gaming teens report that at least one of their three favorite games is rated Mature or Adults Only.
  
• 12- to 14-year-olds are equally as likely to play M- or AO-rated games as their 15- to 17-year-old counterparts.

The Pew Data further challenges the idea that game playing is a socially isolating activity.

• The researchers found "65% of game-playing teens play with other people who are in the room with them. 27% play games with people who they connect with through the internet. 82% play games alone, although 71% of this group also plays with others. And nearly 3 in 5 teens (59%) play games in multiple ways -- with others in the same room, with others online, or alone."

More here

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(* Source: Helge Tennø *)

Helge says... 

Demonstrating the great potential of digital opportunities, and moving dollars and minds from the rather ineffective – and way to ominous – interruption marketing.

The angle I decided on was not saying that this is THE new thing, but rather finding the reasons why this is happening right now, and showing that this is a natural consequence of a larger set of trends and ideas.

The six important ideas/trends for Content Marketers are:

1. Culture
2. Technology
3. Mobility
4. Activity
5. Ineffective
6. Emotional Research

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(* Source: Erick Schonfeld *)

Erick says..

Founded by Tekin Tatar and Kemal Ozisikcilar, BeFunky offers two services: The Cartoonizer and Uvatar. The Cartoonizer lets you upload photos and give them a cartoon effect. Uvatar lets you create a more realistic avatar based on a photo. The startup is releasing a newly designed Website today, and upgrading its Uvatar service to make it more automated.

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(* Source: b-side *)

I've been watch this social networking meets music space for some time (nearly 2 years now) and been on the side experimenting with blogs (blogger), various social networks (myspace, facebook) and now have launched our very own RightClicka widget.

Have a listen and drop us a few comments... enjoy the music.

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(* Source: Gavin O'Malley *)

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(* Source: Aki Spicer *)

Aki gives a a good perspective on this topic. Read on...

| View | Upload your own

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(* Source: PSFK *) 

Christine Huang say... 

Last week, outspoken network-theory scientist Duncan Watts brought to life his argument against Malcolm Gladwell’s Tipping Point at the offices of Fast Company. Watts, who’s currently working with Yahoo in lieu of his regular gig at Columbia, argues that the “influencers” whom Gladwell claims, in essence, make our world go ’round, are no more influential than ordinary, non-node individuals. Anthropologist (and PSFK Conference speaker) Grant McCracken was at the talk and offers some interesting commentary in response to the case presented by Watts, whose anti-tipping point theory was featured in Fast Company’s February issue. McCracken’s thoughts:

[Watts] argues that news travels as readily through ordinary people as influential ones. This means that our world is not “hub and spoke”… No, as Thompson put it, networks are democratic. We are just as likely to “get the news” from a friend as we are from a networking paragon.

Even in this narrow form, the Watts-Thompson argument has revolutionary implications for the world of marketing. If their argument is true, it feels like we are looking at a turning point, not a tipping one. Many marketers thought that Gladwell’s model gave them a way to “game” the diffusion effect. All we had to do was influence the influencers and entire markets will fall before our approach…

If marketing learned anything in the 20th century, it is that consumers are smarter than this, that there are no tricks in any case, that the world is not about process, it is stubbornly about content. If the marketer wants influence, the solution remains what it has always been. The answer is to build great products, brands and messages. It is these, and not “memes” or “viruses,” that capture attention and prompt choice.

Grant McCracken on CultureBy: Marketing reimagined: revolutionary implications of the Watts-Thompson reply to Gladwell

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(* Source : NextGreatThing *)

Allison says :

Artists and labels have been exploring different ways to market and monetize their music beyond MySpace. We just heard that Sony BMG is going to be selling J Lo’s latest album, Brave, on a fancy wooden flash drive (for $70!!) Meanwhile, artists are dropping their labels like bad habits. AmieStreet, MOG, Pure Volume, Indistr, Sellaband, Navio, Roadsound, iFanz, RCRDLBL, iMeem, Popfolio… These are just a few sites out of hundreds they can use to do promotion, distribution, and sales. In addition to the bands we mentioned last week, even the Oldies are going new media; the Eagles, Joni Mitchell and now Aretha Franklin have all dropped their labels to try the digital model.

The next frontier is the handset. Mozes has taken a step there by enabling bands to text fans updates and messages. The real application, though, will be mobile social networking sites, like the newly launched KylieKonnect for Australian singer Kylie Minogue. The dot mobi site (www.kyliekonnect.com redirects to ourtribe.mobi) lets fans blog, communicate with other users and upload images and video all via mobile phone. There is a Kylie’s own blog, a newsfeed and place to buy Monogued-up wallpapers and ringtones. The site, set up by New Visions Mobile, will allow Kylie’s fans to establish a closer connection with her (or the illusion of one), and she will likely profit off it through site sales. Unfortunately for fans, Mashable reports that you seem to need a European-based mobile number to register, just going to show that this sort of technology not as widely embraced (and developed) in the U.S. as it is in Europe, Australia, and Asia.

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(* Source : Virtual World News *)

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(* Source : NYTimes *)

Louise Story says :

Rob Bennett for The New York Times

Joggers in the Nike Running Club in Manhattan last month. Nike is spending more of its advertising dollars on services for consumers like workout advice, online communities and races.

Since April, Mr. Saenz, 53, has been running with a Nike+, a small sensor in his running shoes that tracks his progress on an Apple iPod he carries. After each run near his home in Louisville, Ky., he docks the iPod into his computer and posts details of his run on the Nike+ Web site. There, he has made friends with other runners around the world who post running routes, meet up in the real world and encourage one another on the site.

Nike’s famous swoosh is there all along. For Nike, this is advertising.

“It’s a very different way to connect with consumers,” says Trevor Edwards, Nike’s corporate vice president for global brand and category management. “People are coming into it on average three times a week. So we’re not having to go to them.”

The success of Nike+ is bad news for the traditional media companies that have long made money from Nike’s television commercials and glossy magazine ads.

Last year, Nike spent just 33 percent of its $678 million United States advertising budget on ads with television networks and other traditional media companies. That’s down from 55 percent 10 years ago, according to the trade publication Advertising Age.

“We’re not in the business of keeping the media companies alive,” Mr. Edwards says he tells many media executives. “We’re in the business of connecting with consumers.”

Mr. Edwards may be more blunt than most. But many large marketers are taking huge chunks of money out of their budgets for traditional media and using the funds to develop new, more direct interactions with consumers — not only on the Internet, but also through in-person events.

Adventurous companies like Nike have been experimenting with these alternatives since the 1990s. But now, even the most conventional marketers are making these alternatives a permanent — and ever bigger — part of their advertising budgets.

Last year, Johnson & Johnson decided to boycott the so-called upfronts, an annual event when advertisers get together with television executives to negotiate for commercial time. In August, General Motors said that 2008 would be the last year for its longtime sponsorship of the Olympics. In May, A. G. Lafley, the chief executive of Procter & Gamble, told financial analysts that the company would spend less on traditional media and more on its Web site, in-store advertising and promotional events.

“If you step back and look at our mix across most of the major brands,” Mr. Lafley said, “it is clearly shifting.”

More here 

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(* Source : Jordan Chark *)

Avatar creator Meez is back in the news this week, but there are dozens more avatar creation tools gunning for this market. Today we attempt an overview of that market: please add more suggestions in the comment section.

Weblin- Create an avatar and use it as your virtual self within web pages in real-time, interacting with other Weblin users who share the same interests.

Meez.com- Create a 3D animated avatar for export directly to most web profiles, blogs, etc.

Second Life- Use this extremely popular virtual world to do just about anything, but first, you have to create your avatar. Here, avatars can be customized almost entirely, with plenty of room to create a most accurate likeness of yourself.

Mypictr- Use any image and resize, crop, customize, and export it to many other web 2.0 social networking sites and profiles, like Facebook, and Digg.

Gizmoz- Create, animate, and share photorealistic, great looking avatars, and even video clips featuring them. The animation and overall look of the avatar is sourced from a real picture, actually ending up almost like a personal CGI generator.

Mii Editor- Create your own “Mii”, the avatars characteristic of the Nintendo Wii.

Simpsons Avatar Maker- “Simpsonize yourself” by creating an avatar in the classic style of the Simpsons.

Gickr- Instantaneously create an animate gif file by either uploading your own pictures, or sourcing from Flickr.

Gravatar- Create an 80×80 pixel avatar by uploading an image which is then associated with your email address, appearing on Gravatar enabled websites and blogs without additional effort.

IMVU- Create and dress up your personal avatar which can then be used in their virtual chat-rooms or with their visual messenger client.

fix8- Create, animate, and dress up your avatar primarily through interfacing with your webcam in order to capture real movement and look.

Zwinky- Customize your personal cartoon avatar and share it across the web.

Digibody’s Caricature Maker- Use the components of a caricature to create your unique caricature avatar.

Faketown- A pixel-art, avatar based, MMORPG, similar to second life, but much less realistically.

DoppelMe- Simply assemble an apparently “hand drawn” avatar image for use anywhere.

SitePal- A pay-based 3D, animated avatar creation service aimed towards business looking to create a personal presence on their website.

Gaia- Another avatar-based MMORPG, this one, anime-styled.

imbee- The social network for young people includes an avatar creator featuring images of animals from the National Geographic Kids library.

Myrl- A social network based on avatars in the “metaverse”, supposedly using avatars to connect with the web by virtue of collaboration. Close to it’s beta launch, this definitely looks like something to keep an eye out for.

Kaneva- Yet another avatar-based virtual world, Kaneva looks like a valid Second Life alternative.

Blogscoped- Chat with others in this virtual, visual, chatroom, which makes efficient use of user avatars. While it may not appear to be that “web 2.0″ it uses PHP, MySQL, Ajax, and the Google API, which effectively categorize it as so.

MojiKan- A somewhat odd MMORPG for customizable 3D pet avatars.

Frenzoo- Customize and use one of their well-designed avatars in chats as well as a variety of other environments.

Clickbeurs (Dutch)- Create an avatar and apply for a job through virtually chatting with potential employers, a somewhat odd idea.

Mr. Picassohead- Create stunning, Picasso-like paintings which are easily transformed into avatars.

Whyrobbierocks- Create a “stereotypical” avatar for use on various social networking sites, IMs, etc.

Weeworld- Interact with some quite uniquely designed avatars in a virtual world primarily based on chats and mini-games.

Voki- Create an avatar, record your voice, and share. A possible alternative to something like Sitepal, but geared more towards a less-business-oriented audience.

Honorable Mention

While all of the sites (except for a couple, added for their significantly customizable avatars and creation engines) above are primarily based upon the principle of avatar creation and customization, I’d like to quickly mention the importance of your “avatar”, or probably more aptly named character in many popular MMORPGs. The likes of which are probably most easily recognized in games like World of Warcraft.

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(* Source : Rachel Konrad *)

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Your favorite pants are fraying? You may soon be able to order replacements directly from the factory where they were made, according to the chief scientist of an ambitious Chinese Internet project.

China's government is building a vast virtual world dubbed Beijing Cyber Recreation District, which founders say will help the manufacturing superpower evolve into an e-commerce juggernaut.

Some supply-chain experts say the project is impossibly grandiose in its goal to provide direct links between tens of thousands of Chinese manufacturers and millions of individual customers around the world. But every "Made in China" label eventually could include a Web site where customers could order more — and Chinese factories would produce custom-made goods and send them directly to consumers' homes, mused Chi Tau Robert Lai, chief scientist of the virtual world.

The 3D world is supposed to be the online counterpart to the China Recreation District, a theme park, mall and playground being built in a former steel plant in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics.

Some Chinese-language Web sites of the CRD are already up, but most of it — including the first direct links to manufacturers — won't come until the second half of next year at the earliest, Lai said.

In addition to connecting factories with people outside China, the project will allow businesses outside China to tap the nation's burgeoning middle class, he said.

"This makes you have to think of China in a different way," Lai said Thursday evening at the Virtual Worlds Conference & Expo in San Jose. "We are stepping back and trying to blend the human and the computer to touch everything associated with people's lives."

More here 

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(* Source : Worldsinmotion.com *)

Posted by Leigh Alexander :

Looking at market penetration, Mitham opined, "I think it’s pretty fair to say that virtual growth to date has been heavily based on word of mouth and viral marketing.” Moreover, Mitham expects the trend to continue, calling on the example of companies like BMW opening Second Life islands to widespread media coverage as a driver of Second Life population growth.

Finding New Markets, Developing Existing Ones

One can't rely purely on PR for advertising, Mitham added, stating that he hopes to see traditional marketing to start happening. "We’re seeing children actively adopting Club Penguin, Whyville, Habbo... as they eventually grow out of it, they will be looking for new worlds to grow into. There’s a huge market already there, waiting to happen."

The market is developing globally, too, Mitham said, noting that European countries are also actively embracing virtual worlds. Though typically Russia and South America are slower to adapt, Mitham noted, these are large growth areas that will begin adopting virtual worlds more in the future.

"We don't see much for 'silver surfers,'" Mitham added, noting that older users are also a prime growth area. Similarly, he expects corporate adoption to broaden, as companies like IBM encourage their employees to move into virtual worlds for corporate uses, and educational institutes are using virtual worlds in the classroom for the set aged 8 to 15.

Engaging New Users

It's a matter of product development, he said -- developing new products for marketplaces that already exist. Mitham also noted that better user interfaces and new user orientation will assist in driving more widespread adoption, as will other avenues of access like web-based remote viewers.

Diversification is the other key avenue, Mitham noted -- bringing new products into untapped markets, as with category-centric "vertical worlds". One example Mitham raised is Football Superstars, a virtual world currently in development for people who play football and soccer. Half the world is for playing football, the other half is for living the life of a footballer.

Beyond this, there are platform-centric virtual worlds, such as Sony's upcoming PlayStation Home, which will be used as a convergence tool for gamers. "The reason for going in isn’t the new technology; people are going in for a specific reason,," Mitham said.

Additionally, Mitham said that avatars that can cross worlds -- the interoperability work IBM is currently involved in -- will be "a really good driving factor for getting more people engaged in virtual worlds."

Mitham offered some projections on growth in virtual worlds he believes will take place between the fourth quarter of 2007 to the fourth quarter of 2008. He anticipates growth of registered accounts in Second Life to increase from 10 million to 20 million, 1 million to 7 million for There, .6 to 3 million for Kaneva, from zero to 10 million for the Chinese virtual world HiPiHi, an increase from 3 million to 10 million for Whyville, and from 15 million to 30 million for Club Penguin.

More here 

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(* Source : Worldsinmotion *)

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(* Source : Mashable *)

Kristen Nicole says :

Gigya is creating an updated version of its online widget tracking service that will allow developers and web publishers to define and track any type of activity within widgets. Used in conjunction with Gigya’s Wildfire, developers can track widget performance in a more extensive manner, from its initial installation on a user’s page, to the clicking of a link within a widget and the viewing of a widget’s video.

This will, of course, enable you to better lay out your widget strategy, see how widgets are being used across platforms and social networks, and more easily respond to the market. In setting all of this up for your Gigya widgets, you can even choose your own name for various actions, so you’re tracking widgets in a way that makes the most sense for you and your distribution purposes.

Gigya’s Wildfire tool was launched in recent weeks to let developers create applications for use on Facebook. With MySpace and other networks getting ready to open their platforms as well, tracking tools for widgets and applications will become more important, especially as metrics move to become more inclusive of widget distribution, which is when advertising potential comes into play as well.

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(* Source : Marketing Vox.com *)

MyePets: So cute it's sickening

Tween marketing has undergone a bit of a golden age online in 2007, thanks to sites like Club Penguin and Webkinz which rely heavily on interactivity to keep kids coming back.

According to Advertising Age, interactive tween sites are now taking a page out of the Webkinz handbook, whereby kids purchase an offline item to either join or enhance the online experience.

To proliferate its virtual world, Webkinz relied on word-of-mouth to get youngsters buying stuffed animals that came with codes that "activated" a virtual pet online.

Mattel's Barbie Girls site will soon offer 5.5 million users the option of buying an MP3-player/flash drive that unlocks additional features on the site, where girls spend an average of 30 minutes a session.

Meanwhile, MGA Entertainment introduced Be-Bratz, a line of dolls "sold with a pet pink mouse and flash drive" that hooks users up to a virtual world online.

MyePets.com, another MGA project, has a business model slightly closer in type to Webkinz, where kids "rescue" homeless pets from the store (a la Pound Puppies, a series of despondent stuffed animals from the '80s) in exchange for access to the site.

Though it may seem the market for tween-focused virtual worlds is getting overcrowded, interactive sites now largely come stock alongside major toy launches.

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(* Source : Stefanie Olsen *)

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(* Source : Kristen Nicole *)

There.com has partnered with CosmoGIRL to bring its brand into the virtual world. This will be a “physical” virtual location where users can come to a dance party, fashion shows, spa makeovers, play in photo booths, shop for clothing and accessories, and visit live events held by CosmoGIRL. The extension of branding in this way is a good format for the publication to use, considering the growing popularity of web-based virtual worlds and the niche audience of teen girls that are found on There.com.

This could prove to be a better alternative for branding than Second Life, which has a broader user base. It could also prove to be a good distribution channel for other brands looking to market to teen girls in a virtual manner, as they can offer digital goods to be doled out via CosmoGIRL without the necessity of launching a full-fledged virtual marketing effort on their own. It will be interesting to see if a virtual venue of this nature could do better than an online network like Flip, which hasn’t met company expectations for growth. CosmoGIRL’s virtual playland opens up at There.com on November 20, 2007.

In other virtual world news, SceneCaster has recently signed on Turbo Squid for the provision of 3D objects to be used in its graphic creations, and Multiverse has signed a similar deal with Google 3D Warehouse.

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(* Source : Kristen Nicole *)

Bands Jamiroquai and Oasis may be following Radiohead’s lead to let fans download new music from the band’s latest album for free, if they visit the site for the radio station XFM. With no contracts to labels, Jamiroquai and Oasis could be considering this move, which often gains a good amount of traction from the fans and spurs the viral growth of their content.

The success of Radiohead’s promotion is cited as the cause for people to pre-order the band’s box set, which costs about $80 and includes vinyl records, a CD and artwork. The hope is to make money on the peripherals, which still come at a premium. That means Radiohead is looking to make money from concert ticket sales, and other merchandise. We’ve already seen Throwdown’s opinion on the matter. And while the concept of giving away something for free isn’t new, it does look to be gaining steam.

[via the telegraph]

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(* Source : Fred Cavazza *)

Virtual universes are hype, that’s a sure bet. With very strong media coverage for universes like Second Life or World of Warcraft, announcers and users are discovering new spaces for playing, communicating, entertaining and even working which are in complete rupture with 2D spaces they already know.

Complete rupture? No, not exactly since most of these universes are evolution from existing services (chats, social networks, maps…). All these virtual universes bring some oxygen to sometimes unappealing concepts by providing new possibilities. But with new opportunities comes a lot of covetousness and build a very competitive environment inside which the most media covered are not the most interesting.

Did you know it?

• There are more than 150 millions of Neopets‘ users which have already created more than 217 millions of accounts (you can count again, that’s more than MySpace)
• KartRider and QQ are social platforms which generated nearly $100M in quarterly earnings (it’s quarterly earnings, not annual turnover)
• There was $1 Billion Invested in Virtual Worlds in the Last Year (again, it’s $1 billion, not $1 million)

Do these figures astonish you? Well… so they did to me! But they are real.

Four main fields

Comparing all these universes won’t make any sense. First of all because they are very different and then because they target very different audience. But if you REALLY need a comparison, then you can have a look at these two (partial) comparison charts: Virtual Worlds Comparison Chart, Casual Immersive Worlds and Virtual Worlds Platforms and User Numbers.

Let me introduce you to these universes by using a map where I positioned most of them. All of these are not vast virtual world like Second Life, but they all share common characteristics: avatars, virtual currency and virtual places where avatars can meet, chat, play and interact.

This map is divided in 4 main fields:

• Social, with universe revolving around community building
• Games, with universes relying on online games
• Entertainment, where music, videos and films related content
• Business, where selling or exchanging goods is the main motivator for users and with enterprise applications (virtual training, serious games…)

Please not that these fields overlap themselves:

A wide typology of uages

You can find on this map various groups which are related to specific usage:

• 2.5 & 3D Chats, which are an evolution to instant messaging services but with a much stronger immersion (IMVU, Taatu, Citypixel, Faketown…)
• Avatar-centric, where avatars are at the center of interactions and functionalities (Neopets, Club Penguin, Stardoll, Virtual MTV…)
• Social Platforms, universes which inherits from social networks and sharing platforms while adding some avatar management and online games (Habbo, Cyworld, QQ, Gaia, Playdo…)
• Branded Universes, which propose a total immersion inside the brand’s graphical universe and products range (Barbie Girls, Pepsi Town, MyCoke, ToonTown, T-Works, Home…)
• Virtual Worlds, where users experience nearly total freedom of action (Second Life, HiPiHi, There, Entropia Universe…)
• MOG, online gaming platforms relying on casual games for developing sociabilization (KartRider, PuzzlePirates, MapleStory…)
• MMORPG, Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games which requires a stronger social involvement (World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, Dofus, RuneScape, Lineage II…)
• Online Sport Games, based on collective or individual sports (Football Superstars, Online Soccer Manager, Fishing Champ, Ultimate Baseball Online…)
• Adult Games, money games targeted at adults (PKR, Cameo Casino…)
• Virtual Sex, 3D dating spaces (Red Light Center, Virtual Ibiza, Naughty America…)
• Virtual City Guides, which are natural evolutions of local and mapping services (Google Earth, UpNext…)
• Serious Games, which are deploy inside enterprise to build 3D collaborative spaces, virtual training classes and augmented meeting rooms (Innov8, MPK20, Quaq…)
• World Generators, which allows 3D world creation (Active Worlds, Multiverse, Metaplace…)

Obviously, all these universes are not at the same maturity level: some are approaching the final stage of their life cycle (like Everquest), some others are crossing a turbulence area (Yankee Group Says Hype of Second Life Far Outweighs Its Ability to Impact Mainstream Interactivity), others are growing very fast (Gaia Online) and some are repositioning themselves (like IMVU which is morphing into a social network and Entropia Universe which will try to compete with video games).

A nearly saturated market?

With more than 150 active or soon-to-be-launched virtual universes, accept some numerous take over and disappearances. In this profusion, which universe is the right one? Its’ a hard guess since only two audience niches are sharply targeted: teen and adults (Virtual Worlds Are Trendy Spot for Kids and Teens).

It took 10 years to structure the internet media landscape and provide announcers with reliable communication tools (adwords, adsens…) and measure tools. How long will it takes with the virtual universes media landscape? Who will master advertising inside these new territories / markets? Is co-creation a reality? So many questions… which will find answers in the next months. Stay tuned.

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(* Businessweek *)

Olga Kharif says :

IAC/InterActiveCorp's gaming foray could revolutionize online games and hurt console makers—if it succeeds

Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI) is entering yet another arena. The Web conglomerate, owner of businesses such as Ticketmaster.com and the dating site Match.com, announced Sept. 18 that it has acquired a majority interest in GarageGames.com, a game publisher and provider of programming tools for indie game developers.

The acquisition, which will lay the foundation of a new division focused on Web-based gaming, marks the latest and biggest move in IAC's bid to become a major player in that market. In the past few months, IAC has snared several video gaming executives from rivals, including Nicholas Lehman from Viacom (VIA). "We think this is an untapped $2 billion market today growing to $5 billion in three years," says Shana Fisher, IAC's senior vice-president of strategy and mergers and acquisitions. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime market opportunity, we think. And we are investing appropriately."

Viacom's Big Bet

While the acquisition's terms were not disclosed, BernsteinResearch (AB) estimates it will cost IAC between $80 million and $100 million. InterActive also says it hopes to announce a collaboration with a major gaming studio in the next week.

At first glance, IAC is arriving rather late to Web gaming, which is already the third most popular online activity after e-mail and chat, according to the Stanford Institute for the Quantitative Study of Society. In May, the number of unique visitors to gaming sites reached almost 217 million worldwide, a jump of 17% from a year earlier, according to traffic data tracked by comScore (SCOR). The sector attracted 28% of the total worldwide online population in May and recorded an average of nine visits per visitor.

As such, a wide array of media and Internet titans have already been staking out the positions to claim a piece of a market that, according to DFC Intelligence, is expected to swell from revenue of $3.4 billion in 2005 to more than $13 billion in 2011. Viacom's MTV Networks alone expects to dump $500 million into gaming in the next two years. Meanwhile, portals led by Yahoo! (YHOO) and Microsoft's (MSFT) MSN have built up their offers to lure online players. Microsoft also offers owners of its Xbox gaming console an online portal called Xbox LIVE Arcade where they can play games, including GarageGames' own Marble Blast Ultima, where players navigate marbles through moving platforms. Similarly, the Cartoon Network (VIA) has been working to adapt its games for online play with Sony's (SNE) PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's (NTDOY) Wii consoles.

More here 

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( Press Release via Virtual World News *)

TORONTO , ON – October 7, 2007 – SceneCaster today announced the release of the first immersive 3D Web application for Facebook - where anyone can create, transform and explore interactive 3D scenes and share them with their friends – all within Facebook. The application is available at: http://apps.facebook.com/scenecaster.

SceneCaster extends the rich visual experience of 3D on the Web to all Facebook users including consumers, creative professionals, and social media enthusiasts. Bridging the gap between the virtual and real worlds, SceneCaster also connects the Facebook 3D experience to eCommerce sites such as eBay and Amazon, product catalogs from leading manufacturers and retailers and to other rich media social networks such as Flickr.

SceneCaster is breaking new ground in 3D Web applications as the first 3D immersive experience that is built to leverage the "social graph" of Facebook. The Facebook economy is growing every day that could see it achieve 200 million users next year up from over 40 million today. SceneCaster delivers new conversation opportunities to all Facebook users while also providing an innovative revenue model simultaneously with each Facebook profile.

"Facebook facilitates better communication and an easier way to share & discover meaningful content," said Rodney Rumford, Editor of FaceReviews.com, a leading Facebook application review, rating and consulting service based in Solana Beach, CA. "SceneCaster in Facebook makes communications with my real world friends much richer and efficient. SceneCaster's great 3D immersive experience is revolutionary in concept and execution to sharing and discovering the 3D Web." Rodney's review of the SceneCaster Facebook app can be found at http://facereviews.com/2007/10 /04/facebook-3d-rooms-with-scenecaster

SceneCaster was first beta launched on September 25 th at DEMOfall '07, the technology industry's leading conference for innovative and disruptive technologies. Industry media and pundits have praised SceneCaster's debut with over 250,000 pages of reviews and comments residing on the Web today.

"SceneCaster's mission is to mainstream the 3D Web by lowering the barriers to adoption for the largest possible audience," said Mark Zohar, SceneCaster founder. "We've built it from the ground up by combining the very best the Web has to offer today – search, eCommerce and Facebook – with a rich, immersive 3D experience that is accessible within a standard Web browser."

About SceneCaster

SceneCaster is a 3D Web community where anyone can visualize their ideas, share them, and make them real. SceneCaster bridges the gap between the virtual and real worlds by connecting the 3D Web experience to online storefronts, product catalogs from leading brands and retailers, social networks, and consumers' dreams. SceneCaster is a brand initiative of View22 Technology Inc., a leading provider of 3D Web commerce and media solutions used by Global 2000 companies. For more information please visit www.scenecaster.com.

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(* Source : Jason Fry *)

New Efforts Try to Make It Easy

Last week Starbucks began testing a new service letting those with iTunes on their laptop, or carrying an iPhone, identify and download songs playing in the ubiquitous coffee bars.

In recent weeks we've heard Apple tout its new iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store. We've seen Microsoft show off improvements to its Zune music player, talk up the player's ability to share music, and unveil Zune Social, a new community site. Cellular-service providers such as Sprint Nextel, Verizon Wireless (a Verizon/Vodafone joint venture) and AT&T continue to sell songs over the air and experiment with various music-related offerings. And what about services that recommend and stream music, from Pandora to Rhapsody?

There's a flurry of activity around a common theme: making digital music truly mobile, instead of contained in music players that get topped up at desktop PCs. But what will be the effect of this newfound musical mobility? Could it mark a substantive change in the digital-music experience? Or will wireless buying and sharing remain mere offshoots of the familiar PC/MP3 player ecosystem?

Currently, both buying and sharing are largely restricted to the PC. Music players with wireless capabilities – such as Sandisk's Sansa Connect -- are fairly new. Meanwhile, the cellular-service providers' efforts have largely been stillborn -- because until fairly recently they wanted to charge as much as $2.50 for a download, despite the fact that iTunes had made $1 a de facto standard. Why the high prices? A number of reasons, from the record industry's desperation for an alternative to the iTunes model to infrastructure costs that cut into already razor-thin margins on downloads. Wireless carriers were stuck with a bad choice between a low-margin business or a low-volume one.

The carriers have accepted 99-cent downloads and tried to escape the low-margin trap by expanding their musical offerings to include access to streaming music, ringtones and ringbacks, music videos, the ability to "sideload" digital music from PCs to phones and even services that "listen" to snippets of music and identify the song.

More here 

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(* Source : Virtual World News *)

CVSherman says :

"The game industry may have created the idea of online entertainment, but the days of orcs and elves ruling the online space is drawing to a close," said Christopher Sherman, Executive director of the upcoming Virtual Worlds Fall Conference and Expo taking place October 10-11 at the San Jose Convention Center. The show is attracting big wigs from across the entertainment industry.

"There will always be a place for platforms that just want to allow users to play a game together, but now interaction is key. Community is key," said Sherman who jumped from the game industry to the virtual worlds industry late last year. "The content revolves around and facilitates the community. Treating the online environment like less of a game and more of community or virtual world is key. Major media companies are now looking at anything they do as online entertainment - with a virtual world tied to it."

Case in point: Raph Koster, the former Chief Creative Officer of Sony Online Entertainment, recently took the wraps off of his stealth startup Areae with the announcement of Metaplace. Metaplace is designed to provide an easy-to-use interface allowing users to create virtual worlds that can run anywhere and do anything.

Said Sherman of the announcement, "Whether or not Metaplace is successful, the wake-up call for the game industry has been issued."

Virtual worlds like Kaneva strive to provide activities for their users, including games. Developers like Trilogy Studios, who created a Virtual MTV environment, have a background in next-generation console games like Medal of Honor and The Chronicles of Riddick. It shows in their products. MTV's Virtual Pimp My Ride lets users build experience points while socializing.

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(* Source : PSFK *)

Alisson  Mooney says :

Kids are consumers (virtually)! That was the message on the “New School” panel at the YPulse Tween Mashup on Friday. Speakers from Stardoll, WhyVille, and Cartoon Doll Emporium all recounted that young users of their virtual worlds wanted brands brought into their online environments.

Mattias Mikshe, CEO of Stardoll, said that users were begging for real world brands (“everything from Gap to Gucci.”) This is what led them to create “StarPlaza,” an in-world mall stocked with virtual brands (they now have 9). LVMH-owned Sephora and DKNY just became the first real world brand to set up shop there (featuring the same items as the stores). Cartoon Doll Emporium, a similar “paper doll” site, is also working with offline brands.

The virtual world meets social network WhyVille has 3,000 different lines of clothing—by 3,000 different girls. CEO Jim Bower says they want to have a Whyville store with the designs from 12 year olds. But kids in WhyVille aren’t immune to brand fever: one group of kids actually created M&Ms costumes for their avatars. Over in WeeWorld, users “consistently asking for brands to better express themselves,” says Marketing and Editorial Director, Maura Welch. “By choosing to wear the assets,” she says “the users are endorsing the brands to their friends.” According to the site’s latest food and drink survey, users’ WeeMees (avatars) were jonesing for some Sprite, Gatorade and Cheerios. As it is, they can already pimp themselves out in Armani sunglasses while they pop Skittles.

According to Mikshe, the kids can “distinguish between being marketed to and adding value.” Or maybe the marketing has just done its job. The demand is there for the brand names, creating a pull rather than a push scenario. And now that these brands can provide utility online, they are becoming more and more integrated into the lives of young consumers.

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(* Source : MediaPost.com *)

Laurie Petersen says :

TURNER BROADCASTING SYSTEM, INC.'S NEW Products Group has signed a one-year deal with Kaneva to build and test virtual world extensions of its entertainment properties.

Each Turner Web community and corresponding virtual space inside Kaneva will contain video players for video streaming of select Turner network content.

"Our exploration with Kaneva of virtual worlds is yet another example of Turner staying at the forefront of consumer technology trends," said Blake Lewin, vice president for TBS Inc.'s New Products Group. "Through this opportunity, we hope to leverage the Kaneva platform to explore how users interact with our brands in a virtual world."

The agreement will grant Turner access to Kaneva's technology and tools to create and use Web communities and Virtual Spaces on the Kaneva Web site and in the virtual world of Kaneva.

"Turner is an ideal flagship media partner for Kaneva," said Christopher Klaus, founder and CEO of Kaneva. "Turner's high-quality programming and credibility is synergistic with our unique focus on delivering entertainment to the masses inside a virtual world. As a result of this partnership, we will provide entirely new ways for audiences to watch, participate and interact around their favorite TV programming."

Kaneva, which is Latin for "canvas," is a virtual entertainment world that unifies the 2D Web with a 3D experience. It integrates social networking, shared media and collaborative online communities into a modern-day, immersive 3D virtual world. Kaneva enables its members to hang out with their friends online and in 3D, share entertainment, express creativity and passions, and establish meaningful connections with others.

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(*Source : Emarketer *)

Paul Verna says :

Since the beginning of the digital music revolution, artists have taken the lead on innovative ways to deliver music directly to their fans.

Some, like Prince, have given away front-line product free. Others, like Tori Amos and Alanis Morissette, have offered up Web-only exclusives, also free.

Then there have been the famous holdouts: Metallica, which joined the fight to shut down Napster, and the Beatles, who, despite years of rumors to the contrary, are still conspicuously absent from iTunes and the rest of the legal Web.

Now comes Radiohead with potentially the most ground-breaking move of all: putting its new album, "In Rainbows," out there for fans to pay what they want.

This museum model of a "suggested donation" is entirely untested, and the industry will be watching closely to see how the experiment plays out.

That said, it is important to keep in mind that this is a niche play from a band that already has a huge, loyal audience, not to mention ownership of its own masters. Whether fans pay for this album will have little bearing on the decisions of rank-and-file artists who don't have Radiohead's clout.

Nor is this move likely to affect the labels' digital strategies. Even if the gambit is wildly successful, it will not change the fact that the industry is staring down the barrel of free-falling CD sales and insufficient digital volume to make up the slack.

Still, it will be interesting to see what happens with "In Rainbows." Some of Radiohead's legions may actually pony up some serious dough, if nothing else to reward the band for not treating its fans as if they were criminals.

While most fans will probably help themselves to the album gratis, inevitably there will be a few crackpots who will pay obscene sums for it, maybe for the attention, or maybe just because they have money to burn and can't help themselves.

It will take only a few of those to give Radiohead a much bigger and more immediate payday than it would have ever gotten from Capitol, its former label.

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(* Source : THe Guardian *)

Owen Gibson says :

• Band bypass record labels to get release out quickly

• Internet experiment lets fans put a price on art

Their music has long been praised for blurring boundaries and breaking moulds. Now Radiohead are hoping to establish a new model for the struggling record industry by inviting music buyers to decide how much they want to pay for their new album.

To their biggest fans, eagerly awaiting their first studio album for four years, it is near priceless. Those who believe Radiohead long ago descended into self-indulgence may only risk pennies. But thanks to this ground-breaking experiment, the band will bypass record labels altogether and will be able to put a fiscal value on the public's appreciation of their art.

 The release was announced with a short message from guitarist Jonny Greenwood on the band's website, revealing that the new album, In Rainbows, would be available to download from October 10. Orders started rolling in yesterday, with customers able decide how much to pay - from nothing (plus a 45p administration charge) upwards.

Radiohead's "honesty box" experiment will be closely watched by other artists, their record labels and management companies.

In Rainbows is the most high-profile attempt yet to restructure the economics of a music industry struggling with the effects of digital piracy. Despite a booming live scene, CD sales are less profitable than ever thanks to increased competition and piracy.

With the role of the internet in helping new acts from Arctic Monkeys to Enter Shikari rise to prominence already well documented, more established artists are attempting to revolutionise the way music is sold.

Prince caused uproar among music retailers by giving his latest album away with the Mail on Sunday and yesterday the Charlatans said they would give their new single and album away for nothing through the radio station Xfm.

More here 

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(* Source : Kris Graft *)

A new study from Yankee Group finds that the hype surrounding Second Life is considerably bigger than the virtual world's real-life relevance.

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(* Source : David Fishman *)

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(* Source : Reuters *)

Michele Gershberg says :

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Young girls waiting to grow into full-time fashionistas will get a chance to experiment with couture as designer Donna Karan and cosmetics chain Sephora open shop in the virtual play-dress world of Stardoll.

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(* Source : Michael Estrin *)

Now that fashion designer Giorgio Armani has opened a store in Second Life, there really is no excuse for a poorly dressed avatar.

According to a Reuters report, Armani's Second Life store will allow residents to purchase virtual clothing using the site's Linden Dollar currency. Second Life residents also can purchase real clothing with U.S. dollars by going from Armani's virtual store to his website.

Armani, who will attend his store's virtual opening by sending a well-dressed avatar, joins a slew of companies that have embraced Second Life as a marketing tool. Most recently IBM opened up a customer service center in the virtual world, while HBO has mined the site for content by optioning a Second Life film.

With growing interest in virtual worlds coming from brands, Google has taken notice. Early this week, rumors surfaced that Google may be working on its on virtual world to rival Second Life.

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(* Source : IMediaconnections.com *)

Britanny Lawson says :

Get the lowdown on the five most popular Facebook widgets and what this trend means for brands and marketers.

Facebook has upped the ante in its latest effort to gain supremacy over the social network scene. The website's creators opened up the applications setting on May 25, 2007 for users and companies alike to upload widgets that can be embedded in any user's profile. Currently there are over 3,400 applications available to users, ranging from slideshows to horoscopes to personal aquariums.

The widgets are designed to engage users for longer periods of time on the Facebook website by creating activities for people with similar interests. Essentially, Facebook's profiles have changed from a place where you just read about someone to a place where people can engage in activities. This change is effective in generating traffic for Facebook, as well as for the companies creating user apps, and has been termed the Facebook Effect.  

The Facebook Effect is seen in the dramatic increase in web traffic to the top five company applications:

1.) Slide, Inc. has capitalized on the cornerstone of the social network sites -- picture sharing. With over 2.7 million active users daily, the company's Top Friends slideshow application is Facebook's most popular. Their widget, which is exceedingly simple, is available on every social network site, and reaches over 65 percent of all widget-users. Facebook is by far their largest patron and since the end of May has seen an increase of over 265 percent in daily unique visitors, according to Quantcast.

2.) Video by Facebook is the second most active application on the network. This tool comes on the heels of the success of YouTube and allows users to upload their own video content. Video has just below one million active users daily. Facebook's creators have seen the success of social media sites that employ user-generated video and harnessed this technology to generate more user activity on their site.

3.+4.) FunWall! and My Questions? are also in the top five, with a quarter of a million users daily. At a glance, they appear to be created by independent Facebook users. However, this application is funded by Slide, Inc.. The FunWall is a take on the basic wall feature in which users could post comments on each others' pages. It has replaced the basic wall because users can write graffiti and post movies or pictures, which has been a theme throughout social network sites. My Questions? allows users to ask all of their friends a generic question and see the responses on their page. Slide, Inc. has established that it is a heavyweight in the widget marketing platform by creating three out of the top five widgets.  

5.) iLike, Inc. allows users to upload their favorite music and has seen its traffic double since the end of May. This reveals another possibility for the widget platform -- the diversification of the point of sale for companies. Record labels such as SNOCAP have made it possible to sell music anywhere that HTML can be embedded into a web page. This could spell success for artists and music companies. 

The question, then, is how Facebook and companies such as Slide, Inc, and iLike plan to turn this popularity into financial success. As sites such as Nielsen have changed the way in which they rate websites by placing more emphasis on time spent on a website than on clicks, this could translate into ad success for Facebook. These applications keep users active on creators' respective pages as they take quizzes about their friends or play video games that are out of distribution. This will increase Facebook's rating on the Nielsen sale, and in turn increase the appeal for click advertisers. 

At the end of April 2007 Facebook had 20 million users; since then they have increased their user base by more than 50 percent to over 31 million in less than six months. Their daily uniques have doubled as well. This is in stark contrast to MySpace, which still has the lead over Facebook, but has remained relatively stable in the amount of unique clicks it receives each day. Is Facebook's rapid growth a result of its application platform? Perhaps. Regardless, Facebook's growth is putting the pressure on MySpace.

More here 

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 (*Source : Kristina Knight *)

The most recent report from online metrics firm Nielsen//Netratings indicates that marketers may have more luck targeting users who visit more than one social networking hub.

The report also found that the 12-17 demographic increased their use of the social networks more than 120% in August.

According to the report, users between the ages of 12 - 17 who visit both MySpace and Facebook, spend more time on both sites than users who visit only one or the other of the social networks. Here is the break down: in the 12-17 demographic, users who visited both sites spent 20% more time on MySpace than users who only visited MySpace. Facebook saw an even great increase (26%) from users who frequented both sites than from users who were exclusive visitors to Facebook.

"[Teens] are venturing onto multiple networks to experience new features and broaden their connections,” said Jason Lee, media analyst, Nielsen//NetRatings. “This demographic is typically drawn to what’s new, and since they are growing up online, they are not afraid of learning the latest Web technologies.”

Though the report focuses on teen users, the trend is one that marketers should watch because the use of social networks in all age groups is growing at astonishing rates. With so many new users signing on and experienced users looking for new networks to try, it makes sense to keep a steady flow of campaigns going into the social space.

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(* Source : BBC News *)

Jonathan Fieldes says :

The tool could be embedded in blogs as well as used in gaming Metaplace demo

Users of Metaplace, as it is known, can build 3D online worlds for PCs or even a mobile phone without any knowledge of complex computer languages.

The web-based program is the brainchild of Raph Koster, one of the developers of massively multiplayer online games such as Ultima Online.

Users make the virtual spaces from simple building blocks.

The results, which could be used for gaming, socialising or e-commerce, can be embedded in a webpage, facebook profile or blog.

"We are out to democratise virtual worlds and bring them to absolutely anybody," said Mr Koster, founder of Areae, the company behind Metaplace.

"You can come to the site, press a button and have a functioning virtual world that supports multiple users in about 30 seconds."

Web puzzle

Second Life is one of the most popular virtual worlds

There are already a number of popular virtual worlds such as Second Life, There and Entropia Universe. In addition there are games worlds such as World of Warcraft (WOW).

Most of these require a person to download specialist software or buy a game and there are no links between the different universes.

"They're all walled gardens," said Mr Koster.

In contrast, Metaplace is entirely web based and connections can be made between all of the different worlds.

"We modelled this on the web," said Mr Koster. "You can think about each world being a webpage and every object within in it is a link."

Users can create the worlds using different methods.

People with no programming background can use the graphical interface and choose worlds from a number of templates, such as a shop or a puzzle game.

They can also clone worlds developed by other Metaplace users.

More competent visitors to the site can build a world from scratch using the tool's own programming language known as metamarkup.

The language is "platform agnostic", according to Mr Koster, which means that it can be used to create worlds which can run on anything from a powerful PC to a mobile handset.

User control

We want to see 10,000 virtual worlds so that lots of wild and crazy stuff gets made because that is the only way it will advance as a medium Raph Koster, founder, Areae

"Others may want to make a book club that is integrated with Amazon where people can get together and chat every Thursday night about a book but they can actually see the pictures of the books on the wall, click on them and buy them," said Mr Koster.

"The applications are pretty open."

When complete, each world is given its own page on the Metaplace website.

 More here

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(* Source : Nextgreatthing.com*)

Sherrie Hui says : 

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(* Source: Duncan Riley *)

FlowPlay

FlowPlay is a virtual world community built around browser-based casual games. Users play casual games as their own created anime-like avatar, earning virtual goods for their character including clothing, refrigerators and other virtual store items. The site wants to provide the option to play casual games or interact with people in the virtual world (or both).

Animation virtual world product, anime style 2.5D visuals

strong privacy features to protect the kiddies

similar to Hobbo Hotel, Cyworld, Club Penguin, but with casual games emphasis.

Pitched a girls…well it appears to be, you can win dresses and stuff.

Unfortunately the time was used to show a demo video, not the best use of their time on stage. Will appeal to kids.

Metaplace

Areae’s Metaplace platform aims to revolutionize the virtual worlds space with a platform that will provide an open, easy-to-use interface which will allow users to create virtual worlds that can run anywhere. Metaplace-created virtual worlds will allow user to play games, socialize, create content and conduct commerce. Metaplace-created virtual worlds can be embedded into external sites, including Facebook, MySpace or a blog. Virtual worlds in the Metaplace network can be easily linked together.

Virtual world product, market still growing.

Virtual worlds are like AOL in 94, walled gardens etc, not a good thing according to them.

Has Facebook, MySpace widget, blog widgets, 30k embed.

Generic virtual world platform, can have Sim’s style games, shooters, even an Amazon store front.

Virtual world can also import XML: content, services etc can be imported.

Users can set up their own world from scratch, each world communicates with each other.

“virtual worlds for everyone”

Woome

WooMe brings speed dating online and extends it to let users meet new people live in speed sessions that are “fast, fun and free.” WooMe doesn’t require long forms or lengthy profile descriptions, users simply find a session that interests them and meet five people in five minutes. Users can also create their own session based on their interests and can invite people they want to get a know or friends.

Speed dating product.

Good presentation, talk to people quickly via webcam, both parties must agree to hookup

Zivity

Zivity offers a social networking platform focused on “sexy models and beautiful photography.” With a $10 subscription, members receive five votes that they can cast for models and photography they find appealing, with 80c out of every $1 vote cast being distributed to the model and photographer. There is no limit on the amount of money that a photographer or model can make; as long as a photo remains popular, models and photographers will share in ongoing royalties whilst retaining full ownership of the pictures.

Lots of warnings prior to this demo about it including porn…so far all we have is clothed model…false advertising perhaps?

User gen content makers aren’t making money, Zivity wants to change this…well at least for “sexy pics.”

Demo has PG rating…seriously, complete with the PG on the screen.

Ahhh…breasts. PG obviously different in the US to Australia

Kaltura

Kaltura is a collaborative Media startup that allows groups of users to do with video, audio, and animation what wiki platforms enable them to do with text. Think of it as YouTube meets Wikipedia. See our full post here.

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(* Source: BBC News *)

Some admit that they have only downloaded legally "once"

Those are the key findings of a new survey conducted by analyst firm Entertainment Media Research.

The survey found that some 53% of people actively surf social networking sites to find music.

A further 30% said they went on to buy or download music that they had discovered on a social network site.

Personal taste

On popular sites such as MySpace and Bebo, the numbers of people who use sites to find music rises to 75% and 72% respectively.

Some 46% of those surveyed wished it was easier to purchase music they had discovered on social networking sites, for instance via a "buy now" button on the site.

John Enser, head of music at the law firm Olswang that co-authored the survey, believes social networking sites could represent a new platform for the music industry.

"Surfing these sites and discovering music is widespread with the latest generation of consumers but the process of actually purchasing the music needs to be made easier," he said.

The survey - which interviewed 1,700 music consumers aged 13-60 - found that music was increasingly key to social networkers. Some 39% have embedded music in their personal profiles.

Seventy percent said they did this to show off their taste, with half saying it was a good way of reflecting their personality.

More here 

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 (* Source: Ypulse *)

According to the teen panel at YPulse, yes.

Social networks are the new hubs and operating systems. Facebook and MySpace messages are the new email. Teens check these sites several times a day as opposed to that many times a week. “Even then, my emails are all from Facebook,” said one girl on the panel. Some even call it “email.” “I use it to communicate with adults, but hardly ever with friends” said Ashley Qualls (right), and that was the consensus.

This anecdotal evidence is backed up by the latest report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project. According to their overview, 91% of all social networking teens say they use SNS like Facebook, MySpace and MyYearbook to stay in touch with friends they see frequently, while 82% use these sites to stay in touch with friends they rarely see in person. 72% of all social networking teens use these sites to make plans with friends.

Call for an SNS Client
As Social networks threaten AOL and Microsoft, the question is raised of compatibility. Just as IM clients like Jabber, Adium and Pidgin amass all your IM addresses into one central server, social networks need a similar aggregator. With the proliferation of niche SNS, teens are signing up for them like clubs on the first day of school. Join as many as you can and see what sticks. As such, they are also impermanent, unlike phone numbers or addresses for adults. This causes the digital drop-off effect (to coin a phrase). A friend can leave a social network and be impossible to find again. Until all social networks open their APIs like Facebook, though, this may be long way off….

IM Texting U
Alternatively, teens use IM for friend-to-friend messaging. A friend’s little brother actually asked his prom date out over AIM (where’s the romance?) But Aseem Badshah from Scriptovia (left) boldly declared that even “IM is dead”–that texting has taken its place. Aseem sleeps with his phone under his pillow and even takes it into the bathroom while he showers. Catherine Cook admits to sending over 1,000 texts a months, often typing away at the dinner table. Indeed,  more than 158 billion text messages were sent in the U.S. in 2006. We’re guessing a good portion where over pot roast.

The Hard Cell
The mobile panel later in the day spoke about SNS opportunities via mobile—definitely an emerging space (check out VelvetPuffin). 73% of teens ages 13-17 are sending text messages from their cell phones. 40% of teens have downloaded apps to their phones, such as Facebook. But right now, only 20% of teens have e-mail on the handset. For this to truly evolve, data plans need to come down in rates (ad-based models? Check out Mobile Campus), and mobile phones need to be more, well, mobile.

 More here

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(* Source: Vivian Salama *)

A South Korean version of MySpace is emerging as a potent political force. How Cyworld is reshaping the country’s presidential campaign.

Cyworld, says its creators at SK Communications—South Korea's top Internet provider—was designed to appeal to Koreans with its two-dimensional bubbly cartoon characters and bold graphics. Users exchange real money for the Cyworld currency of dotori, which translates as “acorns.” With it they can accessorize their own pages or buy gifts for others. The virtual currency has become so popular that it spills over into real life, too. Jung-Eun Lee, a 33-year-old Seoul-based reporter, for example, says her birthday gifts included dotori from her husband and Cyworld gifts from friends.

According to company officials, about a third of Cyworld users are between the ages of 30 and 50. But it’s among younger users that the site has hit the mother lode: corporate spokesmen say that a whopping 90 percent of South Koreans in their 20s are registered users of Cyworld. That’s especially important given that the government lowered the country’s voting age to 19 last year, making an additional 4.2 million South Koreans eligible to vote since the last presidential election in 2002.

Not surprisingly, the politicians' Cyworld homepages—known as “minihompys”—blend right in with those of their young constituents. The candidates design their characters—complete with virtual wardrobe; fix up their Cyworld homes; they even have Cyworld buddies who generally consist of their supporters. The candidates reach out to their buddies via messages, articles or save-the-date memos for campaign-related events. Another key feature: in order to register, Cyworld users must have a Korean national ID number, so candidates can be sure they’re connecting with genuine voters.

More than 90 percent of South Korean households have high-speed broadband at home, making it one of the world’s most connected countries. During the 2002 election, South Korea’s current President Roh Moo Hyun’s core supporters consisted of the younger, Internet-savvy generation, as opposed to the conservatives who backed his opponent, Lee Hoi Chang. On the morning of the election, Roh supporters launched a massive campaign, sending e-mails and text messages to more than 800,000 people, urging them to vote. The use of both technologies is attributed by many as one of the main reasons Roh came out on top.

More here 

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 (* Source: Mark Baard *)

That hipster you always see talking into his Bluetooth headset might soon be able to use a similar device to leap into Second Life without even stepping out of line at Trader Joe's.

Researchers at a recent virtual worlds conference at MIT said that special eyewear, display "badges," and speakers worn about the neck will allow us to live more fully through our avatars -- those idealized versions of ourselves that typically boast better proportions than the saggy originals.

Second Lifers wearing the gadgets will be able to attend "in-world" parties and gallery openings, whether they are sucking down beers at Cornwall's or stuck in Fenway traffic. Motion detectors and other sensors in the devices will also show your virtual mates what you are up to in the real world.

It might sound like public safety officers will need to shift focus away from the risks associated with driving while chatting on cellphones to the inherent dangers of operating in two realities at the same time. But conference participants said such concerns are premature.

"It's like you're not going to be allowed to be in a virtual world while driving in the real world," said Robert Sutor, vice president of open source and standards at IBM.

Linden Lab vice president Joe Miller described one of the early products that will bridge the two worlds as a wearable box that creates a "3D sound field" that allows the wearer to hear voices from his virtual world without completely shutting out the real people around him.

The prototype speaker device presented to Linden recently by a developer "is not ready for prime time yet but it's working pretty well," said Miller, speaking at "Virtual Worlds: Where Business, Society, Technology & Policy Converge," sponsored by MIT and IBM.

Linden is encouraging open source developers to create client software for mobile devices. And Blizzard Entertainment, creator of the online multiplayer game World of Warcraft, is hiring developers with experience in Symbian and Adobe Flash Lite for its mobile interface initiative.

Conference participants said cellphones are likely to be the first mobile devices to create two-way connections between real and virtual reality.

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(* Source: Nextgreatthing.com *)

The “Next Great Things” on the web are popping up faster than pimples at puberty. But teens don’t fear change, they embrace it. This is what Michael Wood from TRU, the teen research firm, calls “Obsolessence” (= obsolete + essence??). Teens want a new cell every year, new kicks every 3 – 6 months, and a new gaming console or jeans whenever. Nowadays, “brands are born to die,” he says. The upside is, they can be resurrected—just look at Keds. But odds are they’ll be over again as fast as Misha’s Barton’s 15 minutes, which was so 30 seconds ago.

With this in mind, here’s a round up of some sites and services that have caught on with youth. Yes, some may be over by the time this is posted. But others are indicative of major trends that are shaping the web as a whole.

1. Boys have long dominated the online gaming arena, but online doll sites like Stardoll and Cartoon Doll Emporium have changed all that. Girls of all ages, even their moms, are logging on to dress everyone from Barack to Britney (guess someone has to make sure she’s covered). Mattel has since launched its version, BarbieGirls.

2. Hypemachine, NonStopRiot, and Critical Metrics are hyperaggregators that make it a lot easier to discover and stream niche music that’s getting buzz. Never heard of The Loose Salute by The Mutineer? Listen now. While lots of blogs feed into the sites, Flavorpill music editor Colin Nagy tipped us off to a couple that stand on their own: Paper Thin Walls and Stylus Magazine.

3. Video sharing sites keep surging in popularity—they are a place where high school loners, prom queens, and drama dorks unite. Vimeo, created by the college humor guys, has truly developed into a more intimate, youth-focused alternative to YouTube. Kyte.tv, Stickam, and Splashcast all have video chat rooms that let youth connect in real time. With Kyte you can even embed your own channel in your SNS page.

4. Black20, a young-blooded start-up based in Brooklyn, produces online comedy shorts to rival anything on cable. Check out their first YouTube hit, The Easter Bunny Hates You, and their new virals like Star Wars PSAs and Sheffield Quigley, the official MySpace photographer.

5. Mashups are a creative outlet for anyone on the web–tech developers, new media artists, time-killing teens. Create psychedelic API Mashups on We Feel Fine and Tagnautica or star in a documentary for your Girl Talk Remix on Eyespot.

6. Second Life, Kaneva, Entropia, HiPiHi … yes, avatar-based games are all the rage, but 3B.net takes these virtual worlds and brings them back to reality. The site lets you turn your 2D social network page into a 3-dimensional space where your profile, pictures and friends are rendered into a gallery setting. The web will be 3D in 5 years, will you be ready?

7. The web provides lots of easy ways to monetize your personal content–or just personal opinion. With MyNuMo you create and sell your own ringtones, wallpapers and videos while FavoriteThingz lets you cash in on your own WOM. Sure beats babysitting.

8. MySpace’s music star Lily Allen turned into a YouTube success with this Simlish Smile video. Other artists that have recorded in the language of the Sims game: Depeche Mode, Black-Eyed Peas, Barenaked Ladies, the Flaming Lips and the Pussycat Dolls. Is Simlish the one true universal language?

9. Eventful harnesses the “crowd clout” of fans; their demands can bring a band, a politician, a comic to their city. (So hot right now on college campuses: Republican Presidential Candidate Ron Paul.)

10. While teens are becoming champion texters (literally), they still love to talk. Jaxtr lets them link their phones to their SNS pages by adding a click-to-call option. Given the popularity of Skype in Asia and their deal with Bebo, look for VoIP apps in the future.

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(* Source: The Associated Press *)

NASHVILLE, July 4 (AP) — Album sales have continued their downward slide this year, but sales of digital tracks are up almost 50 percent over this time last year.

A total of 229.8 million albums were sold in the United States from Jan. 1 to July 1, according to Nielsen SoundScan figures released Wednesday. That is a 15 percent decrease over the same period last year. Sales of digital tracks increased 49 percent, to 417.3 million this year.

The decrease in album sales becomes only 9.2 percent, however, if digital singles are bundled together and counted as albums.

The trend away from albums and toward digital tracks has been going on for a few years, and industry insiders attribute it to pop music’s emphasis on hit singles. Consumers simply buy the songs they want and skip the albums.

One of the most consistent album chart-toppers is the blockbuster “Now That’s What I Call Music!” series, which features a compilation of the hottest tracks of the season and routinely makes its debut at No. 1. “Now 24” is the ninth-best-selling album so far this year.

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(* Source: Christopher Healy *)

FIRST THINGS FIRST Tom Faulkner, 31, outfits his fighter for a wrestling match.

AFTER a long shift at the television station where he works as master control operator, Tom Faulkner of Clarksville, Ind., can often be found at his Xbox 360, engaged in his favorite wrestling game, WWE SmackDown vs. Raw. It will be an hour or two, though, before Mr. Faulkner, a 31-year-old father of two, plays a match — if he decides to do so at all.

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VIRTUAL CLOSET The character-creation mode of Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground includes a Nixon jacket, an Adio shoe and pants by Quiksilver.

Flicking the thumb stick of his controller, he quickly bypasses the built-in roster of World Wrestling Entertainment professionals and heads straight for his favorite feature of the game, the “Create-A-Superstar” mode, where Mr. Faulkner excels as a virtual fashion designer.

Will Mr. Faulkner attire his brawler in a classic spandex unitard or a Brooks Brothers-style button-down shirt and blazer? If he opts for one of the menu’s 20 styles of tights, which of the 45 patterns will he choose? And which if any of the 346 graphical add-ons — from Gothic crosses to butterflies — will he use to adorn his wrestler’s costume? And what kinds of tops, socks, shoes, gloves, hats, jackets and jewelry should his grappler wear? Should Mr. Faulkner design a separate outfit for him to don backstage?

While men like Mr. Faulkner are more likely to be found reading Electronic Gaming Monthly than the latest issue of Men’s Vogue, customizable fashion is playing an increasingly large role in the video games they play. Female-friendly games like the Sims and online virtual worlds like Second Life are already well known for offering an almost infinite wardrobe from which users can choose their characters’ couture.

But playing dress-up in a digital world is not just for the girls. Testosterone-heavy male-targeted games now feature costuming elements, allowing young men to express themselves through clothing in a way no traditional male pastime has allowed before.

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(* Source: Nextgreatthing.com *)

 
Music in video games has come far since the days when Tetris would speed up “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” until you had a seizure. (We still get sweaty palms during the Nutcracker.) Now, video games soundtracks are the new launching pad for artists and composers.

It all started with "Guitar Hero", itself a surprise hit that sold over 1 million units since its launch in November 2005. This exposed the in-game songs-17 of which were by indie bands from Boston–to a huge audience. People liked the new songs and wanted to listen to them–independent of the game. It was all very low budget. In fact, many of the tracks were played by members of the Harmonix development team including “All of This” by Shaimus, which wound up garnering over 150,000 plays on MySpace and 6,000 iTunes downloads.

Games are wasting no time capitalizing on the trend. Already, gamers can purchase bundles of new songs for the Xbox 360 version of “Guitar Hero II.” The PS3 version of “SingStar Pop,” which will launch this fall, has an online library of hundreds of tracks called the SingStore, where users can buy and download music. The platform represents a new opportunity for unsigned bands to get a boost. “Guitar Hero” was launched with a contest called “Be a Guitar Hero,” which invited people to submit songs for inclusion in the game. Expanding on this idea, Harmonix recently announced that they will be taking requests for possible tracks and bands to be included in their new game, “Rock Band,” scheduled for release Holiday 2007. Fans may go to the game’s official site and nominate up to four songs to be in the game.

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(* Source: Bernhard Warner *)

Web personalisation has given life to a whole ecosystem of bolt-on applications. 

Proclaiming “the end of search” has become the hot prediction of 2007. The blank canvas that is the search engine is no longer sufficiently intuitive in our information-overloaded lives, the thinking goes.

Instead, we need a host of applications that bring us ticker-style newsflashes, personalised information feeds, weather forecasts, our friends’ whereabouts, our holiday snaps and a communal calendar in a single location. Hence, the rise of the “widget economy”.

Net measurement firm ComScore earlier this month took a stab at measuring the use of widgets – programs that pull information from one site to another. It claims that one in five net users, or 177 million people, used a widget in April, giving us the first measurable glimpse that these tiny pieces of code are much more mainstream than previously thought. It’s the rise of user-generated content – from photo-sharing to map-building applications – that is fuelling the growth.

In fact, the ComScore data would suggest the rise of widgets owes its ascendance to little more than our desire to share photos and peek through those of strangers. The nearly identical photo-sharing, slideshow-generating sites – Slide, RockYou, PictureTrail and PhotoBucket – each drew staggering, search-engine sized traffic numbers in April, ComScore reports. Video and music referrals are big too, as is anything that has to do with geo-tagging, an activity that will explode once everyone gets back from their summer holidays and posts their photos online.

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 (* Source: Informationarchitects.jp *)

We have done it before: The 200 most successful websites on the web, ordered by category, proximity, success, popularity and perspective. We have done it again – and better. Upon popular demand – here is iA’s next Web Trend Map:

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V-dubs rock

First Act

VW

Levis’s RedWire DLX iPod Jeans: Picture Source

Levis Store

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Ed Cotton and his Influx Insights gang have been looking through the vast collection of videos on YouTube to find some gems that spotlight tribal youth culture of today and the past. Videos cover goth, punk, gamers, Harajuku girls and more. Nice work, fellas.

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