Microsoft unveils Windows Phone 7 Series

As if there weren’t enough competitors in the smart phone market, you can now officially add another to the list. According to a Cnn.com article, “Microsoft Corp. unveiled a new operating system for mobile phones [February 15], marking its latest move to reclaim a leading position against rivals Apple, Research in Motion and Google.”

In efforts to reclaim what once was a considerable share in the percentage of smart phones sold (where Microsoft was once embedded in about a quarter of the phones on the market), Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer told CNN that “this is a major push for the company to get back in the mobile space.” Microsoft is expecting one of its biggest years to date, and in reading this article I have generated a few observations about the move, ranging from timing, the intended market they are entering, and most importantly the product itself.

To start, I believe the timing was about as good as it could be in introducing this product. While the official release date is set to be near the holiday season, you can never undermine the impact that a projects preconceived hype will have on its reception and overall performance in the market.  It was stated in the reading that at the end of 2009, BlackBerry continued to hold the lead with 41.6%, followed by the iPhone with 25.3% and Microsoft coming in third with 18% of the smartphone market share. With the ever-growing popularity of the iPhone building and BlackBerry being accompanied by the Droid, it was crucial for Microsoft to join the race before their competitors were out of sight. Alongside this, the product itself is a self-proclaimed best choice in a “one size does not fit all” mobile device world. To back this claim up, Microsoft has implemented a new operating system for the smart phone made up “live tiles” that update in real time…that’s right. You can see live Facebook status updates, Tweets, and stock performance simultaneously from one hub without moving to swap from application to application. These tiles are also customizable, to the point that the user can create tiles on the start screen for various contacts to receive updates from specific individuals.

One of the most interesting decisions made by Microsoft would have to be their intention to collect all of the company’s heavy hitters into one device. Their new “Windows Phone” is set to include access to Xbox Live for gaming, Zune for music and photos, and even the newly created Bing search engine. When analyzing all of this, Microsoft has put together a single product that I feel will compete with the major facets of all other competitors. Time will tell how well it fares, but I foresee this product making a big splash.

The Article:

 http://money.cnn.com/2010/02/15/technology/microsoft_mobile_software/index.htm?cnn=yes

SCHOOLS KILL CREATIVITY

Alright, everybody, get a snack, grab a drink, and get cozy for this video I found of Sir Ken Robinson, one of today's leaders in innovation and human resources, speaking on the current state of our educational system. He makes a very solid point about the outdatedness (if that's a word) of the system in that it was created in the time of the industrial revolution to prepare people for jobs in the industry. Unfortunately, today the job market and its demands have changed and there needs to be a change in the school system for it to keep up.
He's insightful, charming, and funny as hell.

Check him out and let me know what you think...

Oh La La, Internet Television!!!

In an article written by David Goldman, http://money.cnn.com/2010/02/24/technology/future_tv/indez.htm, he writes television will be "available anywhere, on any device, at any time," but at a cost.

Many online television viewers are frequenting websites such as Hulu and YouTube. The author cites that in December more than 178 million Americans watched TV online; this is unfortunately causing problems for network companies, advertisers, and other technology providers because of the issue of making enough money, and licensing fees are left out of the equation.

Creating revenue is clearly the biggest issue regarding Internet television. Advertisers are less likely to put money in placing ads on the Internet television because effectiveness is questioned. However, there are potentially positve aspects. With improvements in technology and more consumers purchasing the latest technologies, a newer audience can be reached and consumers are likely to begin watching television more online.

There has been talk of Hulu moving into a subscription service, but with the cost yet to be determined. Netflix is an example of subscription-based streaming service. This helps to set a model for mobile services and Internet providers to follow. Experts believe that for the Internet television to work successfully, a subscription model will have to be implemented.

I think this is a very innovated concept, taking television with you everywhere you go, but is this good for media? What are other potential pros and cons you see with Internet television? Who do you think this will directly affect? Do you think this will ultimately fail or succeed? Why or why not?

Google Voice

Have you heard about Google Voice yet? This new application by Google offers such great services as

• Voicemail transcription to text
• One phone number for all your lines (ie. work, cell, home)
• Personalized greetings for individual callers or groups of callers. (You can still keep that cool Meatwadd voicemessage for your friends without being embarrassed at work)
• Inexpensive international calling.
• You can screen your callers by sending them to voicemail and having the ability to answer at any time during their recording
• Easy conference calling through your cell phone.
• And the best thing of all: IT'S FREE!

Check out the Google Voice Youtube page for run-downs of the different applications.

Discuss...

Radio Stations in the cross-hairs

The recording industry wants to impose a performance tax that would financially hurt local radio stations, stifle new artists and harm the listening public who rely on free local radio.

For more than 80 years, radio and the recording industry have enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship: free play for free promotion. And it works. It’s a relationship that has sustained businesses on both sides.
In fact, radio’s free promotion of artists translates to as much as $2.4 billion annually in music sales for record labels and artists. And this doesn’t even include the enormous revenues they receive from concerts and merchandising.
But the labels–like many businesses–are struggling in this economy. They have failed to adapt to the digital age, and find their business model is broken. And now they want to impose a fee called a performance tax on local radio stations to subsidize their losses.
A performance tax would threaten the local radio stations that communities depend on. It would financially hamstring stations, stifle new artists and harm the listening public who rely on free local radio.

Read the complete article here: http://www.noperformancetax.org/Radio%20at%20Risk


#1. If you were an up and coming band or artist how would you feel about this fee?

#2. How else could the recording industry create revenue and still allow radio to play music for free?

Leaving Las Facebook

I found this article last week and I felt that it really reinforced why I never bought the social network hype in the first place. After seeing some of my friends become very dedicated to social network sites several years ago, I decided to not participate because of the amount of time and energy involved. The following article was on the front page of last week's USA Today.

SOME DISH SOCIAL NETWORKS TO RECLAIM TIME, PRIVACY

By Marco R. della Cava, USA TODAY

Facebook reports that it has 400 million active users worldwide. Make that 399,999,999. Laura LeNoir is done.
"I feel better, I feel lighter, I got my privacy back," says LeNoir, 42, an office manager at an educational software company in Birmingham, Ala., who logged off a few weeks ago. "People say, 'You'll be back.' But I read more, walk the dogs more. I'll be fine."

As the social networking train gathers momentum, some riders are getting off.
Their reasons run the gamut from being besieged by online "friends" who aren't really friends to lingering concerns over where their messages and photos might materialize. If there's a common theme to their exodus, it's the nagging sense that a time-sucking habit was taking the "real" out of life.

When I first closed my Facebook account, I felt disconnected from the world and missed the constant updates," says Leanna Fry, 32, of Provo, Utah, who is teaching English in Erzurum, Turkey. She signed off after feeling harassed by strangers. "But I've discovered I don't have to know what hundreds of people are doing. Now I have more time for people who really matter in my life."

Read the entire article: http://tinyurl.com/yh2f8mo

1.) How much time do you honestly average on social networking sites ( computer and mobile device)?

2.) Have you recently stopped using a social network site or thought about stopping? Why or why not?

Pandora rises out of the streaming music rubble

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In an online world saturated by struggling streaming music services, Internet radio site Pandora appears to be making all the right moves.

Last year, the 10-year old company recorded its first profitable quarter, doubled its subscription base to more than 40 million users and took in $50 million of revenue. The company also announced several new partnerships that allow users to take Pandora with them in the car and on the TV.

Pandora certainly seems to have found its sweet spot, making it a standout among other streaming services that have not been able to make it on their own. Social music site iMeem was scooped up by MySpace in December for just $1 million, and Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) bought cloud-based music service Lala for not much more. Analysts say even mighty MySpace Music may be unable to sustain itself for much longer.

The company attributed its ability to rise through the rubble to its substantial user growth over the past year. With a rapidly increasing number of subscribers, Pandora has been able to attract better advertisers and demand higher ad prices.

But growth is a double-edged sword. As more users listen to Pandora, the company has found itself doling out more in royalties. Company founder Tim Westergren said Pandora has finally managed to strike just the right balance.

"We've been able to grow our audience to attract advertisers and do so without going bankrupt," Westergren told CNNMoney.com. "We've gone out of business many times, so it definitely wasn't a smooth path, but we're starting to realize the benefits of scale."

Read the rest of the article at:
http://money.cnn.com/2010/02/18/technology/pandora/index.htm


Over the last year Pandora has been adding roughly 35,000 subscribers everyday. They attribute the majority of their success to the iPhone app. where subscribers can listen to Pandora anytime. Also, they announced they have a partnership with Ford to put Pandora in new vehicles through the automaker's new bluetooth stereo system. Do you think Pandora would be successful without the iPhone app. and eventually will Pandora be more prominent than terrestrial radio?