After the buzz about CES 2008, all eyes are on Steve Jobs and his keynote speech on Macworld Conference and Expo, trade show produced by IDG World Expo dedicated to Apple, this coming January 15.
Last year, Apple unveiled the revolutionary and ultra hip iPhone in this same trade show. That’s why more than 50,000 people and 400 exhibitors are very excited to know if there are any blockbuster products and services still hidden in its product portfolio. According to a news article:
“What everyone wants from Steve is, ‘What’s next?’” said Creative Strategies’ principal analyst Tim Bajarin. “You don’t have to create a new blockbuster every year. What you have to do is make it better. … They’re looking for Apple to keep the record going.”
Based on previous reports and speculations on various publications and blogs, there are 3 major initiatives expected this year – the launch of iTunes movie rental service, an updated Apple TV set-top box and ultra-mobile laptop named Mac Mini.
Unfortunately, Steve Jobs is infamous for his secretive nature and marketing acumen that it’s really hard to surmise what’s up his sleeves until the actual presentation.
The blogosphere has spoken and the winners of the Performancing Blog Awards 2007 are all revealed to bring to you a solid collection of blogs in 28 different categories.
There are two winners per category. Reader’s Choice award is based on more than 61,000 votes garnered from the avid readers of Performacing. The Editor’s Choice, on the other hand, is based on the strict evaluation from the guys behind Performancing. Some blogs managed to win both Editor’s Choice and Reader’s Choice awards, a true testament of excellence.
Zen Habits, a blog with unique perspective on life, health, finance and productivity, snatched the Reader’s Choice award for the Best Overall Blog of 2007, beating 5 other high-caliber blogs such as Mashable.com, TechCrunch, Boing Boing, Problogger and Ars Technica.
On the other hand, the Editor’s Choice was awarded to TechCrunch for consistently sharing exceptional contents to its huge following.
Either a crew at Gizmodo was possessed by evil spirits or simply not thinking straight when they pulled a really nasty prank during CES 2008. They intentionally fired TV-B-Gone remotes to turn off monitors displayed at this prestigious event, much of course to the detriment of exhibitors striving to promote their products.
And just to show how mental these guys are, they have the cojones to admit this very unprofessional act and post a video as a proof. Naturally, Gizmodo fanatics enjoyed and even worshipped the infamous gadget blog for this very special treat.
But here’s something that’s no laughing matter. Journalists, professional bloggers and marketing experts criticized this childish and insensitive prank for it seriously damaged some companies showing off their products, particularly Motorola.
To borrow the words of Jason Calcanis, they are “idiots on a grand scale”. I would not be surprised if the event organizer CEA and some exhibitors sue Gizmodo for this stunt.
Moreover, this could also backfire on Gizmodo for other organizers might ban this blog from any major events in the industry and consumer electronics company might pull out their support.
Sure, this might just be a glitch for a very powerful blog like Gizmodo. Then again, the message is really simple: think before you act.
As announced during the the Consumer Electronics Show 2008 in Las Vegas, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will be probing US cable provider Comcast for allegedly restricting traffic to file-sharing services such as BitTorrent.
The bone of contention is net neutrality or equal treatment of all data regardless of its content, source or destination.
As expected, the company has denied the allegations and claimed that its bandwidth management technology might have slowed down the transfer of files. Moreover, it promised to cooperate with the regulator to straighten matters out.
“We believe our practices are in accordance with the FCC’s policy statement on the Internet, where the Commission clearly recognized that reasonable network management is necessary for the good of all customers,” said David Cohen, a Comcast executive vice president, in a news article.
The probe continues on the disturbing suicide case of the 13-year-old Megan Meier in 2006 triggered by a really nasty hoax on social networking site MySpace.
According to a news article, The LA grand jury already issued subpoenas to MySpace and other parties deemed connected to this incident. You might remember this tragedy started with a fake MySpace account created by a mother named Lori Drew living in the same neighborhood of Meier.
Posing as a 16-year old boy, she befriended Meier through MySpace and later sent cruel messages. Unable to handle those remarks, the poor little girl hanged herself.
Prosecutors are still studying the applicable laws to use in this case. Unfortunately, they cannot find a decent one. Fraud is an angle they are considering, wherein MySpace is the victim and Drew is the perpetrator because she created that false account.
The PR firm of retail store Sears is having a really tough time these days defending its image against the tirades of consumers and privacy groups over its two separate online policies.
According to The Chicago Sun Times, privacy advocates are accusing Sears of adding spyware on the computers of some customers so it can track the online activities of those users for market research purposes. But Sears is quick to refute these allegations, saying that those consumers gave their consent and the terms were clearly explained to them. Moreover, the information gathered from customers is not shared to other parties.
Another major setback is reminiscent of Facebook’s Beacon. Apparently, Sears has displayed publicly some confidential information in one of its website, ManageMyHome.com. Exposing data such as purchase history is like opening your door to muggers. A lawsuit is already filed by a customer for this very insensitive act.
Although Sears defended that this purchase history function is very helpful to the customers, it decided to temporarily shut down this service until a validation process is implemented.
Hoping to catch up with Google and Yahoo! in the search and online advertising game, Microsoft has announced its plan to acquire Fast Search & Transfer ASA, a leading provider of enterprise search solutions, for 6.6 billion NOK or $1.2 billion.
Moreover, this acquisition will bolster Microsoft’s research and development presence in the European market.
“Enterprise search is becoming an indispensable tool to businesses of all sizes, helping people find, use and share critical business information quickly,” said Jeff Raikes, president of the Microsoft Business Division. “Until now organizations have been forced to choose between powerful, high-end search technologies or more mainstream, infrastructure solutions. The combination of Microsoft and FAST gives customers a new choice: a single vendor with solutions that span the full range of customer needs.”
For Fast Search this acquisition means faster growth given Microsoft’s strong sales and marketing platform.
“By joining Microsoft, we can benefit from the momentum behind the SharePoint business productivity platform to really empower a broader set of users through Microsoft’s strong sales and marketing network. It validates FAST’s momentum and leadership in enterprise search,” said John Lervik, CEO of FAST.
Since the board of directors of this Norwegian company unanimously supported this offer, this acquisition is expected to go smoothly and quickly.
Ever dreamed of watching YouTube videos on TV? It is possible now, thanks to the new Panasonic VIERA PZ850 line of Plasma Internet-connected HDTV. As a bonus, you can also access Google’s Picasa Web Albums easily and seamlessly.
This is the outcome of the partnership between Matsushita Electric, the maker of consumer electronics under Panasonic brand, and Google. Don’t get overexcited for you can only access those originally created YouTube videos and not those video clips from your favorite TV shows.
“This is the first time mainstream consumers will be able to easily enjoy YouTube videos from the living room with the enhanced quality of a fully integrated widescreen TV experience. YouTube is already a huge worldwide sensation, and Panasonic VIERA Internet-connected HDTV’s will greatly expand users’ entertainment options,” said Toshihiro Sakamoto, President of
Panasonic AVC Networks Company.
All you need to do is click a button on the remote control and it will automatically direct you to YouTube or Picasa. These HDTVs will be available in spring 2008. However, there is no word on the pricing yet.
Gone are the days where online videos are used for sharing amateur or pirated clips for entertainment purposes. Now, top universities like MIT, Yale, Notre Dame, John Hopkins and Stanford are relying on this technology to impart knowledge to the global community.
To date, MIT’s free online lectures known as OpenCourseWare has the largest database of online videos, including the photo shown above where Physics professor Walter Lewin risks his life for the sake of Conservation of Mechanical Energy.
In fact, there is a special segment in iTunes called “iTunes U” where these online video and audio contents from 28 colleges are hosted free of charge.
Yale University even created widgets to make its free lectures called Open Yale Courses easy to share to the online community. More importantly, these open courses are available worldwide through partnerships with different organizations.
The next time you check out some cool videos at YouTube, why not visit some of the sites above to gain more insights in the academic world?
Social networking sites continue to grow its niches as many members share different passions and hobbies. Now, there is another startup aimed exclusively for everyday athletes.
Named Sweat365.com, it provides comprehensive support and free tools for athletes such as its patent-pending integrated fitness tracking tools, training information, training plans, race and event calendars and community forums.
The timing is really impeccable since many people are now into workouts to cut down the extra calories consumed during the holiday season. Also, fitness and health are almost always included in New Year’s resolution.
Since most athletic activities are social by nature, this is a venue to share tips, experiences, insights and inspiration to produce better results and achieve our fitness goals.
“Phil and I created this community as a practical, easy-to-use tool to help people achieve their fitness goals,” said Hefta-Gaub, Sweat365 chairman and CEO. “Historically, at the beginning of the new year millions of people resolve to lose weight and get in shape, only to discover that keeping this commitment seems to get harder over time. As two former couch potatoes, now devoted to being healthy and fit, we decided to create an innovative environment that helps motivate and inspire people to change their lives for the better, through the support and encouragement of their peers.”
After the buzz about CES 2008, all eyes are on Steve Jobs and his keynote speech on Macworld Conference and Expo, trade show produced by IDG World Expo dedicated to Apple, this coming January 15. 
The blogosphere has spoken and the winners of the 
As announced during the the 
The probe continues on the disturbing suicide case of the 13-year-old Megan Meier in 2006 triggered by a really nasty hoax on social networking site 
The PR firm of retail store 
Hoping to catch up with Google and Yahoo! in the search and online advertising game, 
