Media

Would Social Media's Bubble Burst If Facebook Were To Cash Out?

by Ron Callari

Scaling to 600+ million users in six years is a monumental task for any social network. Ask MySpace which is scheduled to layoff 500 workers this week? But with a Time's Person of the Year nod, an award winning movie, a graphic novel and financial book-makers lining up to seed billions more in investment, one wonders if the Internet bubble we are currently experiencing will eventually burst when and if Facebook cashes out?

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Twitnic Table Tweets Timely Tales On Trees

Twitnic table lets users tweet out for information whenver they need to.

by Doug Bonderud

Designed to get an organic answer to your questions, the Twitnic Table takes Tweeting off of the Internet and puts it onto the pine.

Social Media's Magnetic Marketing Replacing Mass Marketing

Magnetic Marketing Solutions - Flip.to & UK Independent

by Ron Callari

The future of Web site content is on tract to become hyper-personalized, as Internet searches and commercial transactions become linked to people's preferences,versus Google's keywords and hyperlinks. As a result, 'Magnetic Marketing' will replace mass marketing where consumers and brands will form stronger and stronger bonds. Flip.to and the UK Independent are two examples of this emerging trend.

Jesus Tablet: Savior Of The News Industry? Or In Need Of A Resurrection?

Jesus Tablet: Savior Of The News Industry? Or In Need Of A Resurection?

by Ron Callari

Euphemistically called the "Jesus Tablet," Apple's iPad seemed to be the answer to ever newspaper man's dream, including Rupert Murdoch's. It was the first portable device with a large enough screen to make computing and reading convenient and expeditious. Apple finally produced a product that out-did the Kindle. Why wouldn't people pay for newspaper and magazine subscriptions with a tablet that was so handy?

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Social Media Bankrolls Users' Klout & Ability To Influence Others

by Ron Callari

When Twitter acquired Smallthought Systems' analytics application Trendly back in June, it was thought that other analytic software would take a back-seat or fall off the map entirely. This is not the case with Klout, a start-up that helps people measure their influence across a variety of social media sites - at least according to Kleiner Perkins Caulfied & Byers.

Social Media's Dark Side Casts Long Shadow Beyond Tucson Shopping Mall

Social Media's Dark Side Casts Long Shadows Beyond Tucson Shopping Mall

by Ron Callari

Much has been written in an attempt to make some sense out of the shootings involving U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson, Arizona and the subsequent deaths of her aid, a judge and four others. Suspected shooter Jared Lee Loughner's social media footprints are being examined for clues as to his motives. But perhaps we are following the wrong trail of evidence. Political extremists who are effective in radicalizing certain segments of society are also using social networks to rally support for their causes.

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Social Media Geek Squad Gets Critical As 'The Social Network' Gains Traction

by Ron Callari

Mark Zuckerberg might criticize the movie folks that produced the unauthorized flick of the birthing of Facebook, but movie critics think otherwise. The National Society of Film Critics went 'social' this week bestowing top prizes to The Social Network in four of its major categories. Director David Fincher, lead actor Jesse Eisenberg and screen writer Aaron Sorkin took home the honors for Best Picture of the Year.

Social Media Under The Gavel When WikiLeaks' Twitter DMs Were Demanded

Social Media Under The Gavel When WikiLeaks' Twitter DMs Are Demanded

by Ron Callari

Once again the popular microblogging site of Twitter is caught at the vortex of a political maelstrom where human rights are at issue. Differing from the Iranian election protests of 2009, this time the U.S. is appearing to be the heavy-handed oppressor. On December 14, the government's Department of Justice issued a court order to Twitter to the attention of its "Trust & Safety" department.

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Can Location-Based Social Media Be Taken Serious When It Goes "GTL"?

by Ron Callari

I know MTV's hit reality show "The Jersey Shore" is the network's highest rated show ever and has become a "guilty pleasure" of many who won't ever admit to watching it. I know the Foursquare team have become masters at TV-partnership marketing. But can the leading location-based social network be taken seriously by aligning itself with a pop-cultural phenomenon that offers little to no redeeming value for today's geo-location discourse?

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The Links Between TV, Social Networks, And Eating Disorders

by T Goodman

Researchers from Harvard Medical School's Department of Global Health and Social Medicine paid a visit to Fiji to study the effects of media, especially TV, on the rise of eating disorders among adolescent Fiji girls. You would think the answer would be obvious... It was not.

Social Media IPOs: Facebook Not To Steal LinkedIn's Thunder?

by Ron Callari

With Facebook's valuation scaling to $50 billion and Goldman Sachs anteing up $450 million for a private IPO with the social network, things are heating up as social media start testing the "Wall Street" waters. Book runners with the financial heft of Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and JP Morgan are rumored to be squiring LinkedIn in an attempt to beat Facebook to the public offering punch.

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'Social Media First' When Facebook Goes Live With Congressional Changing Of The Guard

by Ron Callari

Incoming House Speaker John Boehner wants his swearing in to catch Facebook fever. Not content to be picked up by just the traditional mediums of TV and radio, Boehner wants to earn some techie cred by being the first Speaker of the House to go "live" on the popular social media Web site covering his first day's floor proceedings and his initial speech as Speaker.

Social Media Traffic Shows StumbleUpon With Early 2011 Lead Over Facebook?

Social Media Traffic Shows StummbleUpon Taking Early 2011 Lead Over Facebook?

by Ron Callari

With Goldman Sachs obtaining a $450 million 'Private IPO' from Facebook this week, could things getting any rosier for the world's largest social network? But it seems that not even an award-winning movie, a graphic novel and Time's 'Person of the Year' can buy everything. Statistics are indicating that discovery engine StumbleUpon appears to be whooping FB's behind in generating more US social media traffic between December and January.

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Will Quora, Social Media's New Shiny Thing Exist On A Quorum Of Users?

by Ron Callari

Well, we're already a few days into the new year, and the tech-savvy early adopters are already hailing the new shiny thing. While Quora's user base had only scaled to 55,000+ this past Fall, in late December it took a noticeable bump in followers with the help - some say - as the result of testimonials from uberblogger Robert Scoble and others. But is the new, slick social network for everyone?

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Skype To Join China's Internet Graveyard Of Facebook, Flickr, YouTube & Google?

by Ron Callari

The Great Firewall of China is alive and well as companies like Google have been forced to relocate its operations to Hong Kong, and movers and shakers like Mark Zuckerberg while allowed to tour the country - is saddled with his social network being sequestered in "404 Not Found Territory" on China's Internet. But what about Skype - the Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) provider? Surely, China's Big Brother doesn't want to censor phone calls, as well?

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Social Media Adds Facebook's Open Graph To The Shopping Cart

by Ron Callari

As noted in my previous post, "Social Media News Feed Becomes Facebook's New eCommerce Marketplace," brands have learned while having a Facebook fan page is a necessary evil in today's world of eCommerce, very few customers ever revisit a fan page after originally LIKING it. What's needed to motivate consumers is a much more robust experience that allows Facebook to gather information about its users, both on the social network itself and from other Web sites tied to its Open Graph.

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2010's Disruptive Technologies At Odds: Ipad vs WikiLeaks

by Ron Callari

The game-changing technology of the iPad and WikiLeaks fast became part of the world zeitgeist this year. Under normal circumstances disruptive technology is a stand-alone innovation setting a new path for technology that went before. If iPad disrupted the laptop and eReader industries, and WikiLeaks was a political game-changer in the world of journalism - how did they cross paths to motivate one to reject the other?

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Social Media News Feed Becomes Facebook's New eCommerce Marketplace

by Ron Callari

As LIKE buttons populate the Web, Facebook is enmeshing itself into the fabric of the Internet to become its defacto eCommerce marketplace. Stand-alone Web sites are no longer enough to attract new or repeat visitors. The old school business model of eBay has become passé and are being replaced by start-ups like Yardsellr that are using the conduit of Facebook's News Feeds to cement deals.

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As Seen On TV: The Magic Jack - Product Review

by John P. Barker

We've all seen the commercial for the Magic Jack--an inexpensive USB device that can be used to make telephone calls via the Internet. But does it work?

Google Digests Travel Software To Fatten Its Travel Search Portal

by Ron Callari

Back in April, I speculated that Google would acquire ITA Software, the meta-search technology that drives online travel agents (OTAs) in addition to Bing Travel, and could throw a monkey-wrench into how online search would function going forward. In my post, titled, "Google & ITA Software Could Be Game Changers for OTAs. . ." I noted industry sources that predicted the buying price could go as high as US $1 billion.

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