Major record labels take small stakes in YouTube

copyright Brand Republic
by Staff brandrepublic.com
published October 19, 2006


NEW YORK - Three major music companies have bought small stakes in YouTube, in a further sign that threats of legal action for copyright violation of music videos may be avoided.

Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music and the Warner Music Group have each bought small into the video sharing site, according to a report in The New York Times.

The paper says that the deals were struck before YouTube's acquisition by Google for $1.65bn (£883m) was announced.

FULL ARTICLE

Inside A Consumer-Generated Campaign: Kent State Students Compete to Create a Chipotle Ad

copyright Adage.com
by Andrew Hampp
published October 20, 2006


NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Matt Eck recently constructed a 4-foot football-shaped burrito out of electrical tubing, chicken wire and aluminum foil. Why? He's hoping to become one of those consumers who generate content for a marketer.

The burrito came into existence as part of an assignment for his video-field-production class at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. But in addition to an "A," Mr. Eck hopes his homework turns out to be worth $10,000.

Maximum creativity
That's what's at stake in a nationwide ad contest run by Chipotle Mexican Grill. Mr. Eck and his classmates are competing against 21 other colleges nationwide, including University of Kansas and University of Missouri. The promotion asks students to create 30-second commercials with minimal guidelines in hopes of churning out maximum creativity. The winning team is awarded $10,000 in cash, an exclusive run of their ad on the Chipotle website and the possibility of it appearing on national TV. An additional $10,000 will be donated to the winning college's film or advertising department.

A licence to print money?

copyright Marketing Week
by Catherine Turner
published October 18, 2006

Second Life is gaining a life of its own. The virtual reality website allows users to create an online existence for their alter ego and brands are already beginning to exploit this new "market". Adidas, Reebok and Toyota have set up shop, BBC Radio 1 and Sony BMG are organising concerts, and Vodafone has recently moved in.

The mobile phone giant joins advertising agencies Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH) and Leo Burnett, and media outlet Reuters - which will "report" from the virtual world - in cyberspace. But with an audience of less than 1 million "avatars", or residents, are brands simply piggybacking the latest fad rather than adding long-term value?

Not at all, says Justin Bovington, founder of Rivers Run Red, a design company specialising in the development of virtual world marketing and design. Bovington believes the three-year-old site - created by Linden Labs - is not a fad. He says Second Life membership is edging towards a "tipping point", with brands seeing it as another platform in an increasingly fragmented media mix. A year ago, there were just 80,000 members, but the figure may reach 6 million, he says. "Clients are asking agencies what their Second Life strategy is," he adds.

FULL ARTICLE

MySpace Influences Online Retail Visits

copyright Hitwise
published August 31, 2006

Google Responsible For More Than 14 Percent Of Online Retail Visits
MySpace Gaining Ground Accounting for 2.53% of Visits to Shopping Sites

NEW YORK, NY - August 31, 2006 - Hitwise, the world's leading online competitive intelligence service, today announced that Google was the top U.S. search engine responsible for 14.93 percent of U.S. upstream 1 visits to the Shopping and Classifieds category for the week ending August 26, 2006. Yahoo! Search was the second most popular search engine sending visits to Shopping & Classifieds websites, accounting for 4.69 percent of upstream visits for that week. MSN Search rounded out the top search engines accounting for 2.33 percent of visits to the category.

FULL ARTICLE

A New Branding Paradigm, Online and Off

copyright iMedia Connection
by Joseph Carrabis
published October 20, 2006

The NextStage CRO explains how the rise of online social networks means that brands must pull rather than push, and how to turn your brand messaging upside-down to reach your consumers.

I've written about my joke list and how sometimes what I receive is linked serendipitously to some research NextStage is doing. It happened in Social Networks and Viral Marketing, and it happened again in mid-June of this year.

FULL ARTICLE

A Superhero Suit for Athletes

copyright Business Week
by Marina Kamenev
published October 13, 2006

NEW YORK - d3o Lab invented a flexible foam material that hardens into a protective shell on impact. It may be the next big brand in sports.

Five years ago, snowboard-mad engineer Richard Palmer was hit with an avalanche of an idea. After one too many painful tumbles, the 39-year-old Brit reckoned there had to be a better way to avoid bruising than the restrictive, uncomfortable, and often ineffective gear available.

"I looked at protective products on the market and thought this is a load of crap," Palmer says. "I thought I could do something better."

Palmer quickly proved he's not just talk. His company, d3o Lab based in Hove, England, developed a futuristic liquid armor that hardens on impact.

FULL ARTICLE

Design Meets Diplomacy

copyright Business Week
by Stacy Perman
published October 11, 2006

NEW YORK - Doug Suisman's Arc project isn't a roadmap to peace in the Middle East—it's a blueprint of what a peaceful Palestinian state would look like.

Over the past three years, while teams of politicians, lawyers, and international negotiators have attempted to hammer out a sovereign Palestinian state—and, more importantly, an eventual peace agreement between the Israelis and the Palestinians—Los Angeles architect and urban planner Doug Suisman has quietly focused on a largely overlooked aspect of the conflict-ridden issue: What might Palestine look like after a peace accord is signed?

FULL ARTICLE

LINK - Suisman Urban Design

Napster on the Block: Online music service has put itself on the auction block and isn’t lacking for buyers.

copyright RedHerring.com
by P. Galapati
published October 16, 2006

LOS ANGELES - Speculation that online music service Napster is heading for a buyout heated up Monday after an analyst issued a research note that the company could soon get acquired.

Darren Aftahi, an analyst with ThinkEquity Research Partners, said some 10 to 15 companies could be looking to buy Napster. Potential buyers could include rival online music services, digital music hardware manufacturers, or a content company.

“An acquirer with a broader reach or audience makes the most sense in our view, as it would be able to leverage its scale to exploit the value of Napster’s assets more readily than Napster could as a standalone entity,” said Mr. Aftahi in his research note.

Buyers could include Yahoo Music, RealNetworks’ Rhapsody music service, AOL, Amazon.com, IAC/InterActiveCorp, Google, Sony, or Samsung, said analysts.

FULL ARTICLE

Jimmy Wales: "Nous faisions du Web 2.0 sans le savoir !"

copyright Le Journal du Net
by Baptiste Rubat du Merac
published October 20, 2006

JDN. Comment vous est venue l'idée de Wikipedia ?

Jimmy Wales. Je regardais la croissance des logiciels open source, avec le travail collaboratif de milliers de développeurs pour construire quelque chose entre eux. Je n'étais moi-même qu'un très mauvais programmeur, pour développer quelques sites Web. Mon expérience de l'open source se limitait à avoir installé Linux sur mon ordinateur ! J'ai eu alors l'idée d'utiliser l'open source pour une encyclopédie collaborative ouverte à tous. Notre objectif est ambitieux : regrouper et donner accès gratuitement à la somme du savoir humain. Mais je crois, en toute modestie, que le monde en a bes

FULL ARTICLE

Les produits coup de cœur du SIAL 2006

copyright l'Internaute
published October 19, 2006

PARIS - Quels sont les nouveaux produits que vous découvrirez bientôt en rayon ? L'Internaute vous présente les tendances du SIAL 2006, salon international de l'alimentaire.

FULL ARTICLE

Sneakerplay + Nike

copyright Threeminds.organic.com
by Misha Cornes
published October 19, 2006

I've been trading emails with Rob Jama, one of the founders of Sneakerplay, an online community all about sneaks. Wandering around this invitation-only site was a fascinating immersion into a hip-hop subculture, complete with battles (shoe vs. shoe, as voted on by the community), disses, and plenty of brand love, particularly for Nike's Air Jordan line. The posts are basically unintelligible for someone who isn't a hard-core sneakerhead.

But this is just how Rob wants it. As he writes: "I started the community site with a couple of friends as a way to connect with young, creative and style conscious individuals who have the same interests as ourselves, which lie mainly in street fashion and sneakers." Why be a social network for the masses when you can create a community for a little over 2,000 serious fans?

Nike for one has taken notice.

FULL ARTICLE

Clearification

copyright threeminds.organic.com
by Jonathan Nelson
published October 19, 2006

I find this campaign for Microsoft Windows Vista very interesting. Take a look at how they played with the branding. It's very subtle and they play with the logo. It's also very well done as content. The lead guy, Dimitri Martin, is a bigwig on The Daily Show.

http://www.clearification.com

Mythe et réalité du Web 2.0 to host

copyright le Journal du Net
by Antoine CROCHET-DAMAIS
published October 17, 2006

PARIS - Le rhabillage d'applications anciennes sous forme d'interfaces de nouvelle génération n'est pas nouveau. Mais les éditeurs spécialisés dans la reprise de vieux systèmes surfent eux aussi sur la vague du Web 2.0.

Avec l'apparition des serveurs d'applications basés sur les standards Web, les DSI se sont demandés comment faire évoluer leurs programmes d'ancienne génération vers ce nouvel univers. Pour beaucoup, la voie de la migration n'était pas toujours envisageable. Il est difficile en effet d'abandonner une solution qui a fait ses preuves en termes de sécurité et de performance et autour de laquelle l'entreprise a bâti une expertise, pour un environnement technologique émergeant.

FULL ARTICLE

Friendster's User-Gen. Political Ads

copyright iMedia Connection
by Roger Park
published October 16, 2006

Friendster has partnered with ViTrue, Inc. to host "Get Political," a user-generated political ad contest.


Through the partnership, ViTrue will provide its user-generated video platform to enable Friendster's 33 million members to share their opinions about U.S. politics. Friendster will first evaluate each video using ViTrue's review and approve module.

Kent Lindstrom, president of Friendster, says, "With the easy-to-use ViTrue video platform, our politically savvy members can engage in important political dialogue and use Friendster as their hub for political expression and participation. We're excited to see the creativity and passion that our members' political views spark in an effort to show support to their chosen candidates and political parties."

FULL ARTICLE

CBS Brand Channel on YouTube Launches

copyright imediaconnection.com
by Roger Park
published October 18, 2006


NEW YORK - YouTube, Inc. and CBS Corporation have launched a free and ad-supported CBS brand channel.

The ad revenue sharing partnership will feature clips from CBS programs like "Late Show with Dave Letterman," "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," "NCIS" and "CSI: Miami."

CBS plans to add more content such as news and sports in the upcoming months.

YouTube, which was recently acquired by Google Inc., announced a partnership in August with Warner Bros. Music to launch the first brand channel on its video-sharing site.

From the Sublime to the Insanely Ridiculous

copyright Threeminds.organic.com
by David Feldt
published October 19, 2006

At dinner last night the first thing the waitress asked us was the question that has become so derigeur: Still or Sparkling? This got me thinking about the evolution of that most basic and fundamental life-sustaining substance - H20 - and its marketing ascendence. Bottled water has become part of our pop culture - it has evolved from a symbol of health to European sophistication (remember Perrier in the 70s? Evian in the 80s? Fiji Water?) to spirituality (Madonna and Britney only drink Kabbalah Water) to the ultimate expression of our Hip-Hop Age - Bling!

FULL ARTICLE

Craig Newmark: "Le Web 2.0 est un concept marketing creux"

copyright Le Journal du Net
by Baptiste Murat du Merac
published October 18, 2006

PARIS - Chaque jour pendant une semaine, le Journal du Net interroge un pionnier américain du Web 2.0. Aujourd'hui, le fondateur Craigslist revient sur l'aventure du site d'annonces, ancêtre malgré lui du Web 2.0.http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif

JDN. Comment avez-vous eu l'idée de créer Craigslist ?

Craig Newmark. Je m'occupais d'une mailing list qui parlait des technologies de l'information mais aussi d'évènements culturels à San Francisco. Très vite, les membres de la liste se sont mis à proposer des choses à vendre, à demander des offres d'appartements à louer, d'emplois. J'ai alors réalisé que je pourrais facilement écrire un code qui transformerait les e-mails en pages Web, et permettre ainsi de la publication Web instantanée. C'est devenu Craigslist.org, nom suggéré par des amis.

JDN. Aujourd'hui, comment présenter Craigslist ?

Il s'agit d'un service localisé de petites annonces. Nous avons commencé en 1995 dans la région de San Francisco, mais aujourd'hui nous sommes présents dans plus de 300 villes, dans plus de 50 pays. Nous avons 5 milliards de pages vues chaque mois, soit le 7ème site en anglais.

FULL ARTICLE

M6 Web et Echovox créent une filiale de services pour téléphones mobiles

copyright CB News
by Fatima Hazene
published October 18, 2006

PARIS - M6 Web, filiale multimédia du groupe M6, et la société suisse Echovox, plate-forme de distribution de contenus pour la téléphonie mobile, ont créé Echo6, filiale commune de services pour les téléphones mobiles, ont annoncé les deux partenaires mercredi. Cette filiale commune, détenue à 50/50 par les deux partenaires, "a pour objectif de devenir un acteur incontournable du marché français du multimédia mobile en s'appuyant sur les synergies créées par ses deux actionnaires", ont indiqué M6 Web et Echovox dans un communiqué commun.

La nouvelle filiale devra "innover dans l'interactivité entre le mobile et les chaînes de télévision du groupe M6, développer des produits et services de divertissement mobile pour le groupe M6, proposer des prestations aux acteurs souhaitant développer une activité mobile (annonceurs, médias, producteurs de contenus...)", selon le communiqué. Les deux partenaires ont souligné que la création d'Echo6 s'inscrivait "dans le cadre d'un marché du multimédia mobile français en pleine explosion" avec "plus de 13 millions d'abonnés mobiles consommant des services multimédia mobile". "Ce marché estimé à près de 300 M€ en 2005 devrait encore doubler d'ici 2010", ont-ils précisé.

Orange lance une messagerie instantanée en partenariat avec Microsoft

copyright CB News
by fatima Hazene
published October 18, 2006

PARIS - L'opérateur de téléphonie mobile Orange va proposer à partir de décembre un service de messagerie instantanée développé avec Microsoft, auquel on pourra accéder aussi bien de son téléphone mobile que de son ordinateur. Baptisée "Orange Messenger by Windows Live", ce nouveau service permettra aux 135 millions de clients France Télécom en Europe d'intéragir avec les 240 millions d'utilisateurs de Windows Live dans le monde.

Le prix du service n'a pas été divulgué, mais devrait être basé sur une formule de forfait et nécessitera d'avoir un téléphone mobile compatible. Après un premier lancement en France, le service sera proposé sur les marchés où Orange est présent en Grande-Bretagne et en Espagne.

FULL ARTICLE

Universal takes legal action against two video sharing sites

copyright Brand Republic
by Jennifer Whitehead
published October 18, 2006

LONDON - Universal Music is suing two video-sharing websites only a week after it revealed a partnership with YouTube to make uploads of its artists' videos legal.



The sites being targeted are Bolt.com and Grouper.com. Universal said it plans to seek damages of $150,000 for each incident of copyright infringement as well as damages.

Universal, whose artists include U2 and Mariah Carey, said that the sites "cannot reasonably expect to build their business on the backs of our content and the hard work of our artists and songwriters without permission and without compensating the content creators".

FULL ARTICLE

Media Guy's Pop Pick: Programmable Web

copyright Adage.com
by Simon Dumenco
published October 16, 2006

So where's the web really heading? To keep track, I've bookmarked the very smart, very useful Programmable Web (programmableweb.com). It's a site created by Seattle technologist John Musser to keep track of the latest mash-ups -- websites or applications that combine information from two or more sources (e.g., Google Maps and a real estate database) -- as well as "what's new and interesting with Web 2.0 APIs, and the web as platform in general."

It's become a cult favorite of web developers, who check it compulsively for inspiration -- and a place for lay people like me to find groovy new web diversions. Musser presents multiple overviews, including the Mashup Matrix, where you can find out everything that's been mashed together with, say, Amazon or eBay or FedEx data.

FULL ARTICLE

Jay-Z Gets a Marketing Title at Anheuser-Busch. Rapper Named 'Co-Brand Director' for Budweiser Select

copyright Adage.com
by Jeremy Mullman
published October 17, 2006

CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- Anheuser-Busch is hoping Jay-Z can bring Budweiser Select beer the kind of blingy success Courvoisier and Cristal have enjoyed.

'His unique spin'
A-B named the aspiring hip-hop mogul -- aka Shawn Carter -- "co-brand director" for Bud Select today, noting, in a press release, that the rapper "will participate in Budweiser Select planning sessions to provide his unique spin, thoughts and insights on various brand programs."

The release added: "Jay-Z also will be involved in providing direction on other upcoming Budweiser Select television ads, radio spots, print campaigns and several high-profile events."

A-B's VP-brand management, Marlene Coulis, was unavailable to immediately answer questions about the extent of Jay-Z's role on the brand.

Fans download more than 250,000 tracks from Universal

copyright Revolution UK
by Danielle Long
published October 18, 2006

LONDON - European music fans have downloaded more than 250,000 tracks since Universal Music launched its download-only reissue programme in February.

The digital catalogue of previously out-of-print recordings by European artists was the first step in a multi-year drive to reinstate more than 100,000 European deleted recordings.

The initial offering comprised of more than 3,000 out-of-print tracks from the Universal Music Group's catalogue in the UK, France and Germany. The tracks were made available through online music services in 20 countries.

FULL ARTICLE

Wikipedia co-founder to launch rival social media site

copyright brandrepublic.com
by Ben Bold
published October 17, 2006

LONDON - Larry Sanger, the co-founder of Wikipedia, is launching a social media encyclopaedia that will attempt to balance the original's democratic principles, allowing anyone to add content, but with much greater editorial control.

Citizendium (sit-ih-ZEN-dee-um), which will go live in the next few days, will initially be made available to a limited number of content editors and members of the public who apply. It will become available to the masses by the end of the year.

Wikipedia, which hosts about 1.4m entries on subjects ranging from the advent of Western philosophy to the Wonderbra, allows any internet user to write and edit its content. This has led to criticism of its lack of factual reliability and impartiality. Sanger became frustrated by its refusal to bring in more authoritative control and left after its first year.

FULL ARTICLE

Digital Agency of the Year: Goodby, Silverstein. Hot San Francisco Shop Rides the Revolution

copyright Adage.com
by Gavin O'Malley
published October 16, 2006

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Ask someone in the know about Goodby, Silverstein & Partners 18 months ago and you'd often see a sort of sad look come over their face as they explained that the shop was one of the greatest TV and print agencies of all time, but looked like it was getting left behind in this digital age. Ask them today and the story is much happier -- Goodby, they will tell you, is back and better than before.

If you want evidence that the digital revolution has reached the San Fran shop, take a look at the work: Check out the cowabduction website for the California Milk Processors Board, or Goodby's use of interactive techniques to transform GM's Saturn car brand, or, if you haven't seen it yet, the e-mailable Comcast marionette. All make a great case that this shop is not what it was.

FULL ARTICLE

Voyages-sncf.com invente l'EcoComparateur

copyright CB News
by Fatima Hazene
published October 17, 2006

PARIS - L'agence de voyages en ligne Voyages-Sncf.com a lancé mardi un nouveau service, l'EcoComparateur (avec l'Ademe), qui propose aux internautes de trouver, en un clic, "le moyen de transport le moins cher, le plus rapide ou le moins polluant". Ce nouvel outil dont le développement a coûté "plus d'un million d'euros" permet de comparer, sur un même trajet, prix, durée de voyage et indice "environnement" (émission de CO2) du train, de l'avion (y compris low-cost), et de la voiture personnelle.

C'est "un outil de conquête de nouveaux clients", reconnaît Mathias Emmerich, directeur général de Voyages-sncf.com. "Sur les 400 à 500.000 internautes qui vont par jour sur notre site, 20 à 30.000 pourraient se diriger vers l'EcoComparateur", a-t-il estimé.

Canal+ va lancer un site communautaire

copyright CB News
published October 18, 2006


PARIS - Selon nos informations, le Groupe Canal+ va lancer dans les semaines qui viennent un site communautaire d’échange de vidéos, dans la ligne de YouTube ou de Dailymotion. Un lancement qui s’inscrit dans une refonte de la stratégie du groupe sur le Web, jusqu’ici relativement discret sur Internet hormis son site de vidéo à la demande, Canalplay. Canal+ travaillerait également en profondeur sur le site d’I Télé, destiné à devenir un grand portail dédié à l’information.

Le "show-biz" récupère le "buzz"

copyright Lemonde.fr
by Odile de Plas & Véronique Mortaigne
published October 15, 2006

PARIS - Internet va vite. Kamini, jeune infirmier noir, fils du médecin de Marly-Gomont (Aisne), vient de le vérifier. Ce rappeur dans l'âme ne vient pas d'une "té-ci" (cité), comme il l'explique dans un clip hilarant (www.kamini.fr) tourné cet été avec les moyens du bord. Mais, en trois semaines de septembre, il a fait le tour de la Toile, de la filière musicale et des médias. Filmé au milieu des vaches et des prés, le jeune homme, cheveux dressés, look de B-boy, raconte sa vie de "seul black" de Marly-Gomont. Un de "ces p'tits patelins que personne connaît, même pas Jean-Pierre Pernaut !". Une imparable description de l'ambiance rurale par le "pépito, bamboula" de service, comme on l'appelait dans la cour de récré, de l'école primaire jusqu'au lycée.

Un jeune homme de son temps, au vocabulaire urbain, et bien élevé. Mercredi 4 octobre, pas rancunier, Jean-Pierre Pernaut, au 13 heures de TF1, lui consacrait un reportage de trois minutes, tourné dans ce village de Picardie devenu depuis l'objet de toutes les curiosités. A cette date, Kamini a déjà fait le tour des plateaux de variété. Le 28 septembre, il répondait aux questions d'Ariane Massenet et Michel Denisot, sur le plateau du "Grand journal" de Canal+ ; le 22, il était l'hôte de Karl Zéro sur son site Web2zero, et se soumettait aux vannes de Cauet dans son émission de Fun Radio, retransmise sur Fun TV.

FULL ARTICLE

Pigsback.com receives £2.5m to invest in marketing

copyright Brandrepublic.com
by Ben Bold
published October 17, 2006

LONDON - Private investor network Hotbed is investing £2.5m into consumer relationship marketing website Pigsback.com.


Pigsback.com will use the money to boost its marketing spend in an attempt to increase its membership to 1m users by the end of 2007. Activity will include direct marketing and TV and radio advertising.

The site is pitched to advertisers as an alternative to banner and pop-up advertising. Its 300-strong advertiser base includes Carling, Dell, eBookers, Kellogg, Nestle, Nokia and Vodafone.

FULL ARTICLE

Say Hello to the Newest TV Powerhouse: Google

copyright Adage.com
by Claire Atkinson
published October 16, 2006

Is YouTube Really Worth $1.6 Billion? It Is If You Can See Convergence Coming.

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- When Mike Seal, a New York-based human-resources executive, realized his TiVo had failed to record the Oct. 4 premiere of ABC's "Lost," he simply pulled up his PC, connected it to his TV and streamed the show via ABC.com. That's just the kind of consumer behavior that is fueling talk of Google becoming the de facto sixth broadcast network.

For early adopters like Mr. Seal, the ability to play online video on a TV screen is today's reality. "It's so easy to do; there's no technical savvy," he said. "It's literally treating your flat screen as if it was a computer."

When it was announced last week that Google would buy YouTube, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said: "If you believe it's the future of TV, it's clearly worth $1.6 billion. If you believe it's something else, you could write down that maybe it's not worth much at all."

FULL ARTICLE

Exclusive! YouRangster's Billion-Dollar Boy Tells All. Is Chuck Chenly the Next Web 2.0 Poster Boy?

copyright Adage.com
by Simon Dumenco
published october 15, 2006


The internet world was shocked last week, of course, when Google's surprise $1.65 billion bid to acquire YouTube was announced and was quickly followed by Microsoft's $1.66 billion surprise bid to acquire YouRangster. A copycat move? Or a strategic triumph that will allow Microsoft to compete with Google/YouTube on its own terms? The jury's still out. In Media Guy's exclusive Q&A with YouRangster founder Chuck Chenly, the youthful tech mogul discusses the changing mobile-media landscape -- and the art of the deal.

Media Guy: First, explain YouRangster to us. Like YouTube, it's still pretty new.

Chuck Chenly: Yeah, I actually didn't register the URL until last Wednesday.

MG: Last Wednesday? Wow, didn't realize it was that new. When did you actually have the idea for it?

CC: Last Tuesday. I thought of it while I was in the drive-through line at In-N-Out Burger.

MG: You can drive?

CC: Yes, I can drive! I am 15-and-a-half, you know...

FULL ARTICLE

Newzy lance une version en lecture numérique

copyright CB News
by Frédéric Roy
published October 16, 2006

Le mensuel gratuit Newzy vient de mettre en ligne une version numérique de son édition traditionnelle. Réalisée par l'agence Timetobuy, cette version reprend l'intégralité de l'édition papier qu'il est possible de feuiller en cliquant pour tourner les pages. Une fonction de zoom permet de lire les articles tandis que les encarts publictaires sont reliés directement aux sites des annonceurs.
Cette version numérique, gratuite, permettra selon Newzy de toucher un public supplémentaire. Le magazines a ainsi acheté des bases d'adresses pour inciter 300 000 prospects à s'abonner gratuitement à cette édition électronique.

INTERVIEW. Jay Adelson CEO Digg: "Digg est une expérience qui a réussi"

copyright Journaldunet.com
by Baptiste RUBAT du MERAC
published October 17, 2006

Web 2.0. L'expression est sur toutes les lèvres. A tout seigneur tout honneur, le Journal du Net a interrogé quelques pionniers américains de ce nouveau Web. Aujourd'hui le créateur de Digg nous parle de l'aventure du site d'information collaboratif créé il y a moins de deux ans.

DN. Comment vous est venue l'idée de Digg ?

Jay Adelson. Kevin [Rose, le co-fondateur, NDLR] avait l'habitude de consulter des sites de "fans", comme Macrumors.com. Sur beaucoup de ces sites, il y avait, derrière la page d'accueil, une "page 2" comprenant des articles très intéressants, mais qui étaient comme cachés et donc repris nulle part. Kevin a eu alors l'idée de faire appel aux "masses" pour passer toutes ces informations au tamis.

FULL ARTICLE

Reuters opens virtual office to report from Second Life

copyright Branrepublic.com
by Ben Bold
published October 16, 2006



LONDON - Second Life, the virtual reality game world, is to have its own Reuters journalist keeping people in the real world abreast of events in the virtual one.

As part of the move, which made the front page of today's Guardian, the news agency will place its own correspondent in Second Life. Called Adam Reuters, in reality he is a London-based media reporter named Adam Pasick.

Pasick will report goings-on within the game, such as wars, crimes and business news. Conversely, residents of Second Life will be able to keep abreast of events in the real world by visiting the Reuters building in the game world.

Second Life is inhabited by 380,834 users. There is about $3.2m of real money within the game and about $70,000 is traded daily on its currency exchange. Companies including Reebok, American Apparel and Sony have set up businesses in Second Life and are involved in commercial activities such as selling clothes and creating online music festivals.

FULL ARTICLE

Un nouveau concept de distribution en Grande-Bretagne

copyright Altema.com
published October 16, 2006

Une nouvelle chaîne de petits supermarchés (Farmers'City Market) va ouvrir en novembre prochain, Outre Manche. Il s'agit de magasins fournis uniquement par des agriculteurs et éleveurs locaux. Ces structures ont pour objectif de regrouper sous un même toit boucherie, poissonnerie, fruits et légumes, fabrication de pâtes fraîches, à l'image de ce que l'on peut trouver sur un marché mais avec les avantages d'un supermarché (paiements en caisse, chariots.). L'aménagement intérieur de ces magasins a été conçu pour respecter "l'identité" des agriculteurs (informations sur l'origine des produits, coordonnées téléphoniques) et l'approvisionnement sera principalement local avec notamment le respect des saisons.

How GoogTube Merger Will Change Online Media and Marketing: Experts' Predictions About Long-Term Impact

copyright Adage.com
by Abbey Klaassen & Gavin O'Malley
published October 15, 2006


NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- What does Google's $1.65 billion acquisition of YouTube really mean for the future of online video-related media and marketing? That question has been ricocheting around boardrooms, business offices and bar stools throughout theindustry since the merger was announced last week. Ad Age asked five highly-respected authorities for their take on the landmark deal and its implications for the world of digital advertising. Read or listen to their answers below.

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Organics Fail to Yield Cash Crop for Food Giants: $14 Billion Category's High Prices Turn Off Consumers

copyright Adage.com
by Stephanie Thompson
published October 15, 2006

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- It's been enthusiastically embraced by marketers, blessed by Wal-Mart and touted as the holy grail of growth for an industry desperately in need of it. But after a stupendous start, organic foods are looking suspiciously like a sensation sizzling out.

$14 billion

Organics are a $14 billion business with a brisk growth rate, but they account for only 2.5% of total food sales despite hundreds of millions spent by major marketers in the past 12 months to make them mass. Some marketers are spending more to introduce organic versions of mainstream foods than they are earning from sales of organics, as consumers balk at paying double the price for organic versions of their favorite products. It's all mounting evidence that the trend, like the low-carb craze before it, is hurtling toward a crash.

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Coca-Cola France lance Talent Brut en Scène

copyright mailmovement.com
by Angela Paree
published October 16, 2006

Depuis le 5 octobre, Coca Cola France a lancé sa plateforme musicale, appelé TALENT BRUT EN SCENE, dédiée à la musique et au live, inaugurée lors du concert de One Two et Rinôcérôse à la Bellevilloise. En association avec iTunes, cette recette contient les ingrédients des dernières plateformes virtuelles telles que Myspace, Youtube.com, Wat.tv… Mais en plus de se faire connaître sur Internet où les titres des artistes sont aussi téléchargeables sur iTunes, un jury issu de différentes villes, sélectionnera de jeunes artistes leur permettant de se produire sur scène lors d’un festival. La concurrence se fait serrer…

LonelyGirl15, Is the End Here? What Everyone Is Talking About

copyright Adage.com
by Anne Marie Kerwin
published October 12, 2006



NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- It's Oct. 12, and if you have been following the saga of LonelyGirl15, you already know why that's a big deal. If you haven't been keeping up, we'll explain.

Oct. 12 is the birthday of Aleister Crowley, who lived from 1875-1947 and is known for his occult practices. (He also is reported to have had great influence on L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology, which counts several Hollywood celebrities among its followers.) Bree, aka LonelyGirl15, has a framed picture of him on her bedroom wall over what appears to be some sort of shrine. She has been preparing to take part in a religious ceremony that her parents are not allowed to attend, but that they consider to be a huge honor.

The ceremony and Bree's religion is the fuel powering the LonelyGirl storyline, and what the ceremony entails and what it means has been keeping LonelyGirl15 fans busy speculating for months. Even after Bree was unmasked as an actress and the LonelyGirl15 series revealed as the work of filmmakers in early September, a core group of fans have remained to see the end of the story.

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Control? Give It Up, Already. NBC Digital Czar: Big Media Must Deal With the 'Small Media' Known as Consumers

copyright Adage.com
by Claire Atkinson
published October 12, 2006



NEW YORK (Adage.com) -- NBC Universal digital czar Beth Comstock on surviving and thriving in the new media revolution: "Content is still king, but the monarchy has been overthrown. YouTube, MySpace, iTunes -- it's the invasion of the pronouns in a world all about me." But big media has a new place in the universe.

Ms. Comstock's comments, delivered at Mipcom, an international programming tradeshow in Cannes, France, echoed those made last week at the Association of National Advertisers by Procter & Gamble CEO A.G. Lafley and Burger King Chief Marketing Officer Russ Klein, who spoke about the need for marketers to cede control to consumers.

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Can You Hear Them? They're Talking About Us: Chrysler Re-Signs Brandimensions to Keep Up With Blog Chatter

copyright Adage.com
by Gavin O'Malley & Jean Halliday
published October 12, 2006

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Have you seen what the bloggers are saying about that Dodge ad! Well, Chrysler Group certainly has, thanks to its relationship with Brandimensions, a research firm that measures real-time consumer opinion based on buzz from social networks, blogs, message boards and other internet sources. After a short review, Chrysler has signed the firm to another three-year contract.

"More and more people are conversing with each other on social networks and blogs," said Randall McAdory, manager-business intelligence at Chrysler Group. "We want to know what they are saying about us."

Decision-making
Brandimensions is not only responsible for monitoring digital mentions of Chrysler Group's Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge brands, but is now involved on a strategic decision-making level. "We're helping them validate specific marketing initiatives," said Brandimensions' CEO, Bradley Silver.

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Chine : le e-commerce pèse 85,7 millions d'euros

copyrigt Journaldunet.com
published october 14, 2006

Evolution du marché du e-commerce en Chine en millions d'euros et en millions de CNY

Commentaire Au premier trimestre 2006, le e-commerce a atteint 85,76 millions d'euros (854,3 millions de CNY), selon Analysys International. L'institut estime que le marché du e-commerce doit sa progression aux efforts réalisés par les sites marchands sur le marketing en ligne et sur la logistique. La progression trimestrielle au premier trimestre marque toutefois le pas à 12,79 % contre 36,69 % au premier trimestre 2005.

Disney President Anne Sweeney: Mobile and Web TV Are the Future

copyright Adage.com
by Claire Atkinson
published October 11, 2006


NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Outlining Walt Disney Co.'s strategy for tackling a consumer-driven TV future, Anne Sweeney, co-chair of Disney Media Networks and president of Disney-ABC TV, revealed some of the company's numerous new-media initiatives around the globe at Mipcom, an international programming sales conference held this week in Cannes, France. Mobile TV, she told attendees, is going to be huge. Content delivered via wireless devices still has the potential to be a big winner, Disney executives believe, despite the company's decision to shutter its ESPN Mobile venture late last month.

A $27 billion market?
"Industry analysts predict that mobile television could be a global market worth as much as $27 billion by 2010," Ms. Sweeney said, adding that 500 million new wireless connections have been made globally in the past year.

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Google Docs & Spreadsheet Challenge Microsoft Office

copyright Adage.com
by Gavin O'Malley
published October 11, 2006

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Amid all the commotion over GoogTube this week, Google has quietly made a move to challenge another tech giant's territory by bundling its free word-processing and spreadsheet services. Any improvements to Google's web-based applications threaten the monopoly that Microsoft holds in the space with its costly Office software.

Fewer functions
The new Google Docs & Spreadsheets service doesn't offer as many functions as Microsoft's word processor and spreadsheet programs. Rather, it's being positioned as a simple -- and free -- alternative for nonprofessional computing tasks.

Google has already rolled out a host of free online services that compete against Microsoft's software, which it licenses to businesses and sells to consumers for approximately $400. Earlier this year, Google bought Writely, a web-based word-processing service and launched its own spreadsheet product.

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Al Gore : "La crise climatique menace l'avenir même de la civilisation"
LE MONDE | 12.10.06

©

Le moteur de recherche français Exalead lance sa version grand public

copyright CB news
by Fatima Hazene
published October 10, 2006


Le moteur de recherche français Exalead (exalead.fr et exalead.com), mise sur la simplicité d'utilisation a lancé mardi sa version grand public en français et en anglais. Objectif : contrer la prédominance d'acteurs américains comme Google et Yahoo de prendre 3% de parts de marché au niveau mondial dans les 4 à 5 ans. A l'horizon 2010-2011, cette nouvelle activité grand public, basée, à l'instar des principaux acteurs du marché, sur la vente de liens sponsorisés, génèrera la moitié ou les deux tiers du chiffre d'affaires de la société.

La vente de ces liens sponsorisés sera assurée par Yahoo avec qui Exalead a signé un contrat de régie publicitaire. Exalead compte réaliser en 2006 un CA de 5 M€, le double par rapport à 2005. Le moteur, accessible aux adresses exalead.fr et exalead.com, mise sur la simplicité d'utilisation et l'efficacité dans les réponses en accompagnant les utilisateurs dans leurs recherches par le biais notamment d'une "recherche avancée" facile à comprendre. Huit milliards de pages ont été indexées, le rythme quotidien d'indexation étant de 100 millions. L'interface repose notamment sur des vignettes de prévisualisation qui aident à la recherche. Les résultats peuvent être triés par type de fichier (son, audio, vidéo, etc) et aussi selon leurs extensions (.pdf, .doc, etc). Exalead compte parmi ses clients des sociétés comme Aviva, les banques BNP Paribas et Société Générale ou encore la Caisse des Dépôts et divers ministères français. Exalead est également le moteur de recherche d'AOL France et de Bouygues Telecom.

Tips from MSN Search, Yahoo Search Marketing and Google

copyright DMnews.com
by Giselle Abramovich
published October 10th, 2006

NEW YORK – MSN Search, Google and Yahoo Search Marketing led a discussion during a session Oct. 11 at Shop.org’s annual summit with tips for marketers, the most important being knowing one’s customers.

Some common problems that marketers share are tapping out with search, irrational bidders and the rising costs, said Brett Goffin, a national vertical search specialist for Google, Mountain View, CA.

“Use technology to manage scale,” Mr. Goffin said. “Also, continuously testing and stressing the importance of account structure and setup is crucial as well.”

Be in tune, he said. Know what your competitors are doing. Seventy-three percent of audience penetration by media is via Internet.

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Cingular Wireless sues telemarketers for calls to customers

copyright DMnews.com
by Melissa Campanelli
published October 12th, 2006

Cingular Wireless has filed three lawsuits to stop telemarketers from making unsolicited and illegal calls to Cingular customers.

The lawsuits were filed in the U.S. District Court in Atlanta. Cingular, one of the leading wireless operators nationwide, seeks injunctions and damages in all three lawsuits.

Cingular is the largest wireless company in the United States, with more than 54 million subscribers who use the nation's largest digital voice and data network. It is a subsidiary of Atlanta-based BellSouth Corp. and at&t Inc., whose merger was recently approved.

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Digital Media Buyers Love GoogTube Merger: View Move As Boost to Online-Video Inventory

copyright Adage.com
by Gavin O'Malley
published October 10, 2006


NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Less than a week after execs from Google and YouTube powwowed at a Silicon Valley Denny's, and a day after their announced merger, media buyers have already begun to adjust to the new digital landscape that marries the search giant to the online-video leader.

'Rock solid' model

"I couldn't be happier with the move," said Greg Verdino, VP-director of emerging channels at Digitas. "The AdSense model has been rock solid for Google, and now I see them extending that model into video."

"We've been in discussions with YouTube to determine how we can ingratiate ourselves into the user-experience and not disrupt it," said Sean Finnegan, U.S. director, OMD Digital. "You cannot deny that great a volume and that big a community."

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'Beer Cannon' Generates Web Hits But Not Sales: See Video of Milwaukee's Best Viral Ad Effort

copyright Adage.com
by Jeremy Mullman
published October 11, 2006




CHICAGO (AdAge.com) -- How much buzz does it take to sell Milwaukee's Best? Apparently a lot more than 3 million hits on YouTube and 197 blog mentions.

Beer Cannon
Proving that viral sensations don't always immediately translate into sensational sales, the bargain beer's video of its "Beer Cannon" that fires cans of Milwaukee's Best Light to destroy such unmanly targets such as china dishes, house plants and fruit has inspired discussion but not much consumption.

Sales of Milwaukee's Best fell 11% in supermarkets for the 52 weeks ended Sept. 9, according to Information Resources Inc., and sales of Best Light dropped 7.5%.

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