The Connected World 12
July 31, 2007
This is the relaunch of The Connected World Podcast. Here I recount the story of how I got from my discovery of technology and my original Apple II to where I am today, striving for a career in new media. This podcast should provide the background information important to understanding where I am coming from as we take the wild ride that is new media together.
This is a two way street. I don’t want to talk at you, I want to talk with you. Please give me your feedback. Send email to theconnectedworld@gmail.com or call the phone line at 206-203-1387.
Outside The Echo Chamber
July 26, 2007
I was playing around with Ning today. Ning is yet another social network system but with a twist. Ning lets anyone create and run their own social network, using Ning as the platform. It supports all the usual features and has a very nice user interface. Facebook, with its new platform, apps and groups is coming closer, but Ning was designed to be a social network creation platform from the start and has some advantages in that.
The point isn’t any of that, however. I found a Ning group devoted to diabetes. I am a type 2 diabetic and it was a welcome pleasure to find a whole group of people exchanging and sharing information and sympathy. Most of my “friends” on all the social apps and networks I am involved with are tech people or podcasters/bloggers. This is sometimes referred to as the echo chamber. Podcasters and bloggers talking to each other about podcasting and blogging. But now I am getting friend requests from people who are not connected to the tech word in any way. My relationship with them is based on a shared burden we carry for the rest of our lives. It’s refreshing to get out of the echo chamber and talk about something other than new media, web 2.0 and podcasting. I’m also learning a ton from these people. For the first time, I am seeing the benefits of social media for most of the people in the world who live outside the echo chamber. Its exciting and I think I’m going to seek out other groups outside the chamber as well.
Technorati Tags: Diabetes, ning, Socialnetworks
CBS Aims to Spread Web Content
July 20, 2007
It’s a very encouraging day as CBS figures out how to be effective on the Internet. The network will spread its content over 400 sites by the fall.
“CBS is al about open, nonexclusive partnerships,” CBS Interactive president Quincy Smith said. “Just CBS.com is not the answer” to reaching viewers, he added, so the network is devoted to going out where the viewers are, not forcing them to CBS.com.
This runs counter to NBC, who is creating a social network on their site. There are already too many social networks as it is, why do I want to join NBC? As CBS has figured out, you cannot assume to be the be all, end all site for your customers. You have to reach out to them, where they are on the net. A huge bravo to CBS!
Smith added that the network may reach out to fan-site producers to program CBS’ Web-site content. He cited a fan clip he admired: a digest of every season of The Sopranos in seven minutes, now available on YouTube. That clip might be too long, violating guild contracts and causing rights issues, but the network might take such an example and create a version running two minutes, he said.
I don’t know who put what in the CBS water cooler, but it’s working! Bringing in fans/customers to help build website content? Wow, pretty amazing. Now we still have networks, including CBS’s other half Viacom, trying to sue the pants off everyone, but it’s an encouraging development nonetheless. Let’s hope others take notice.
Technorati Tags: CBS, NBC, Socialnetworks
Tales of corporate delusion
July 16, 2007
Also known as, corporate execs say the funniest things. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe president David Reeves said he expects the Sony PS3 game console to the “the winner” by March ‘08. And I expect that someone will hand me an iPhone as I leave work today. Don’t count me in for helping, I plan on getting a Wii for Christmas this year.
Technorati Tags: PS3, Gaming, sony
YAIBR (Yet another iTunes Beatles Rumor)
July 12, 2007
I’m a Beatles fan and would love to buy yet another copy of my favorite Beatles music from itunes, but I’m sick of the rumors and stories. The latest is of a Yellow Submarine iPod with the entire Beatles catalog. Great, fine, wonderful, make it so already. The Beatles have dragged their feet getting into CD and now drag their feet getting on to digital distribution. It ain’t rocket science guys. And what about some of the other big time classic rock acts. Led Zeppelin? The early stuff from Aerosmith? None of this makes any sense to me as Wall Mart and Best Buy are the leaders in CD sales and I don’t think you’re going to find much Zeppelin there. The best chance to sell music for older acts anymore is digitally, but they are nowhere to be found.
Technorati Tags: Beatles, iTunes, iPod
MPAA Fake Bittorrent Site Outwitted
July 6, 2007
The MPAA, RIAA, take your pick; these guys never learn. The latest in the saga of stupid anti-piracy tricks is a fake bittorrent website supposedly loaded with first run movies for download. Actually an MPAA front run by a company called Media Defender, the site was designed to trap and bust people trying to download copyrighted content. What happened next should surprise no one. The website ZeroPaid found out, ran an article which hit digg.com among other sites and in a matter of hours, everyone was the wiser. You can’t sneak around the web playing dirty tricks on people. Someone is going to find out and the word will get out, fast. So the MPAA accomplishes nothing and looks like idiots in the process. I can’t believe the MPAA is going to walk through the same meat grinder the RIAA is waking through already.
Technorati Tags: MPAA, Piracy, Bittorrent, RIAA
iPhone shows need for new wireless network
July 3, 2007
An interesting article here, mostly about Reed Hundt, a former chairman at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission and vice chairman of Frontline Wireless who is lobying for spectrum to be made available for a national wireless broadband network. Reed says the launch of the iPhone shows the shortcomings of the EDGE network and the need for a much higher speed network. What caught my attention was a quote by an AT&T spokeman.
“We believe the EDGE network was designed for a product like the iPhone,” Smith added. “We’re confident with its ability to support the device.”
Most every review of the iPhone I have read says the biggest shortcoming of the phone is the slow EDGE data network. This kind of asinine quote is the kind of thing that drives me nuts. Some line written by a pr hack deep inside AT&T with absolutely no connection with reality. It’s so depressingly old school and out of touch. Releasing a statement from some anonymous spokesman saying EDGE is great doesn’t make it so and we all know it.
Wake up and smell the new media landscape AT&T. We don’t use spokespeople anymore and when the emperor has no clothes, we acknowledge it. I want the truth from AT&T. EDGE isn’t as good as it needs to be for advanced smart phones like the iPhone and we’re hard at work on a new, much faster network. I might not be happy that they don’t have that higher speed network ready yet, but I would respect the fact that they are being straight up with me and that they care about improving things as soon as possible.
Technorati Tags: apple, edge, iphone, att
Universal Playing Chicken with Apple
July 1, 2007
In a high stakes game of chicken, Universal Music Group, the largest music corporation in the world notifyed Apple it will not renew its yearly contract to sell music on iTunes. Universal will sell music “at will”. There are many interesting quotes from this article.
But if Apple were to decide not to carry Universal’s recordings, the music company would likely sustain a serious blow: sales of digital music through iTunes and other sources accounted for more than 15 percent of Universal’s worldwide revenue in the first quarter, or more than $200 million. (Vivendi does not break out revenue from Apple alone).
Some industry observers have cautioned against taking on Mr. Jobs directly. “When your customers are iPod addicts, who are you striking back against?,” said Ken Hertz, an entertainment lawyer who represents artists like Beyoncé and the Black Eyed Peas.
Seems to me that Universal shouldn’t mess with Apple. Both companies would suffer damange if Universal started pulling songs, but I’m not sure it would be mutual assured distruction. Consumers love Apple right now and most think the music industry sucks. The music industry is desparate to get on better negotiating terms with Apple, but packing up your toys and going home isn’t the right way to go.