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News Corp Sites to Go Off Google in Months

Bart Salisbury — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:51:10 -0600

The pay-to-play debate for online media content heated up a bit with the announcement by News Corp. that Rupert Murdoch was reading to pull the plug on Google’s access to its online content. Jonathan Miller, the chief digital officer of News Corp. told the Monaco Media Forum “We believe that the value of high quality content is not recognized online so something needs to happen.” That something, according to Miller, will not happen right away, but in “months or quarters.”

Murdoch has long made it known that he deserves compensation for the content he provides online, and is actively pursuing ways to generate revenue more directly than advertising. The Wall Street Journal, for example, requires paid subscription for full access (although there are ways around this). However, the online market hasn’t been kind to those who put up such barriers. Apparently Murdoch believes that a leader is needed to make the first bold move, after which others will follow. “We will lead. There is a pent up need for this,” said Miller. There is also a pent up need for News Corp. to get its hands on a bit of the advertising revenue Google’s search engines generate, and which News Corp doesn’t share in.

Miller was dismissive of Google’s importance, at least for the News Corp.: “The traffic which comes in from Google brings a consumer who more often than not read one article and then leaves the site. That is the least valuable of traffic to us… the economic impact is not as great as you might think. You can survive without it.”

Google’s response was as expected: “Publishers put their content on the web because they want it to be found, so very few choose not to include their material in Google News and web search. But if they tell us not to include it, we don't.”

Whether News Corp can survive without Google is a question only pulling the plug will answer. It remains to be seen if News Corp. will follow through on their threat.

Image Credit: World Economic Forum/Wikipedia Commons

AT&T Tries to Get Verizon "Map for That" Ads Pulled From the Air

Ryan Whitwam — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:37:28 -0600

Verizon sure isn’t letting up with their new anti-AT&T ad campaign. Likewise, AT&T isn’t letting up with their legal threats. AT&T’s latest strategy swung into action on Wednesday night when they asked the federal court in Atlanta to order the ads pulled from the airwaves.

The ads (which we’ve discussed before) compare AT&T 3G coverage with that of Verizon. AT&T claims that the maps used in the ads are misleading because they do not show AT&T’s 2.5G EDGE network, instead displaying empty spaces. In a statement AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel said, “If customers think they can't make calls in the vast majority of the country ... that could do us irreparable harm."

The newest ad is holiday themed, borrowing from the story of the “Island of Misfit Toys”. Poor iPhone is a misfit because it is cursed with an inferior network… how sad. Big Red hopes the holiday season will be a good one for their new line of smartphones. Is that wishful thinking?

Google Buys Mobile Advertising Company AdMob for $750 Million

Ryan Whitwam — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:48:19 -0600

Mobile advertising is about to get a lot more Googly. Search giant Google has announced that they have purchased mobile advertiser AdMob for a healthy $750 million. Ads powered by the small startup have been seen in numerous apps on the iPhone and Android platforms.

AdMob was started in 2006 by Omar Hamoui, and has grown into a major player in mobile advertising. Google points out that the mobile world is becoming as increasingly important part of our daily lives. As such, Google would like to advertise to us in that part of our lives.

Google said in a blog post that app developers will enjoy better monetization of their content because of this deal. They also promise advertisers a more engaged audience. Finally, Google says we can all enjoy the benefits of better mobile ads delivering more useful information, because who doesn’t like ads?

Is Apple Trying to Convert Wannabe Windows 7 Pirates?

Ryan Whitwam — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:17:45 -0600

It’s suspicious ad placement any way you slice it. If you do a Google search for “download Windows 7” you’ll probably see an ad for switching to Mac. If you search for “buy Windows 7”, you get no such thing. The ad will show up in the “Sponsored Links” section at the top or the right side. If the search is repeated, several different versions of the ad will appear.

The theory goes that if someone wants to download Windows illegally, they might consult Google. Maybe if they don't consider Windows worth paying for, maybe they would pay for a Mac. Could it be that Apple is targeting Windows pirates? It’s not like software pirates have a reputation for buying things. Do people that intend to pirate Windows even search for “download Windows 7” anyway? Are they just after people who don’t know any better? If you have any possible explanation for this, let us know in the comments.

Microsoft to Give Away Free WiFi if You Search with Bing

Ryan Whitwam — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:48:48 -0600

Microsoft's Bing and JiWire have a proposition for you. Free WiFi in exchange for using Bing. Interested? The promotion would give users free Internet access at participating hotspots if they do just one search with Bing. In conjunction with JiWire’s advertising network, Microsoft will be extending the offer to various hotels and airports.

The campaign was started in September at several thousand locations. It managed to attract between 30 and 40 percent of visitors to the hotspots. This is extremely high, as most ads only get interaction from 0.1 to 0.2 percent of people. Microsoft reportedly plans to continue with the promotion, which is a part of JiWire’s Ads for Access campaign. The campaign allows companies to give customers something in exchange for their time. This can be taking a survey, watching a video ad, or (in this case) using the Bing search engine.

The next time you’re in an airport, keep an eye out for these ads. It could get you free access courtesy of a certain Redmond software giant.

Facebook Promises to Get Rid of Scam Adverts

Ryan Whitwam — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:05:57 -0600

Facebook is the king of social networking with more users than any other web 2.0 site. With all those users, it’s also an attractive place for scammers that want access to lots of eyeballs. After a few embarrassments, Facebook is promising to take a stronger stance against deceptive advertising.

Facebook has gotten a bit of a black eye in the press lately after some companies using the platform were accused of scamming users. These scams often come in the form of special offers and surveys within games. Facebook’s Nick Giano wrote in a blog post that the site was aware of the problem and was actively working on it.

Users of the site also encountered a rise in stimulus scam ads earlier in the year; Facebook notes that they were quickly removed from the site. Hopefully this new wave of scams can be dealt with in the same manner. Facebook claims that over 100 developer applications have already been removed or “brought into compliance" so far. Have you noticed any fishy behavior on Facebook?

Microsoft Pulls Out of Family Guy Deal

Paul Lilly — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 08:30:32 -0500

What the deuce? Microsoft, who earlier this month seemed stoked to sponsor Fox's upcoming "Family Guy Presents: Seth and Alex's Almost Live Comedy Show" has now decided to pull out of the deal. Under the original agreement, the variety show was to integrate Windows 7 into its routine, including shorts featuring the cartoon cast of Family Guy. But after viewing a taping of the comedy show, Microsoft got cold feet and walked away citing content concerns.

"We initially chose to participate in the Seth and Alex variety show based on the audience composition and creative humor of 'Family Guy,' but after reviewing an early version of the variety show, it became clear that the content was not a fit with the Windows brand," said a Microsoft spokeswoman. "We continue to have a good partnership with Fox, Seth MacFarlane, and Alex Borstein and are working with them in other areas."

According to Variety.com, jokes about deaf people, the Holocaust, feminine hygiene, and incest turned out to be too much for Microsoft. The skittish software giant did at first send out several notes expressing concern over the show's content, but in the end decided it was better to just part ways.

The show, however, has not been canceled but it's unclear who will step in to take Microsoft's place.

Small Businesses Look to Facebook and Twitter for Shameless Self Promotion

Paul Lilly — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:32:30 -0500

You and I might call it spam, but small businesses who promote their products on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter call it smart advertising. No matter what you call it, don't expect those product plugs to go away any time soon. In an online survey, Internet2Go found that 45 percent of some 2,400 small business respondents with fewer than 100 employees said they use social networking tools to push their services or wares.

"For these guys, costs was a big factor," said Greg Sterling, an analyst for Internet2Go. "They either need to hire a dedicated person or need more resources and don't have it.

We're talking really small businesses here, as most of the respondents -- 8 out of 10 -- had four or fewer employees and annual marketing budgets less than $5,000. Nearly half of all respondents said they spend less than $1,000 on advertising and marketing, so it makes sense they would flock to Facebook and other essentially free venues.

"We are going to see more and more of this behavior from other small businesses because it's free and you don't have to have expertise to set up these pages," Sterling said.