The deals content is not ready yet, will have it up soon
but today's news...
Zune exec on phone future, new iPods
There are a number of businesses where Microsoft is playing catch-up these days. But arguably one where the company starts furthest behind is in the music business, where it decided two years ago to scrap its partner approach and go it alone with the Zune in its effort to catch the iPod.
more
Source Subscription
Posts
All Comments
Custom Search
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
First DJ Hero Details: Turntable Controller, Mash-Ups, Guitar Co-Op
Recent Activision acquisition FreeStyleGames is hard at work on DJ Hero, a music rhythm game that will let gamers scratch to the beat of popular mash-ups with a laptop turntable peripheral, informed sources tell us today.
The game, which has been in development for nearly two years, is expected to hit shelves next summer and will likely include the ability to use Guitar Hero guitars for versus mode face-offs.
The controller, key to the game's success, has been through nearly a half-dozen iterations.
In the latest form, the device looks a lot like a simplified DJ Deck. There is a platter for scratching which will act like the strum toggle on a Guitar Hero guitar. Above the platter are three buttons for sampling. The controller also includes a cross fader and a sound effects dial which will act like the whammy bar in Guitar Hero.
Instead of flowing the musical notes down a guitar neck, DJ Hero will flow the music down and around a virtual record in a half arc. Either left top to middle bottom if you are left handed, or right top to middle bottom if you are right handed.
To play you will have to either hold a sample button and scratch, just hold a button or just scratch as the neon icons flow around the virtual vinyl.
Currently the wireless controller has grooves molded into the bottom so it will sit comfortably in a player's lap, though the team is also looking into legs for the deck so gamers can play while standing up.
The game in its current form features all mash-ups, think Beyonce Vs Jimi Hendrix, 50 cent Vs Beastie Boys. If they can nail the interface and get licensing for the music this could be a mammoth hit. Then again I love mash-ups.
*That's not a picture of the controller.
Link
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Blackberry Flip Phone?
Research In Motion Readies BlackBerry 'Assault'
SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones) -- With new models of the ultra-popular BlackBerry reportedly waiting in the wings, Research In Motion is nearing a crucial period as it faces immense competition in the smart-phone market from the iPhone and other devices.
Later this month, the Waterloo, Ontario-based company (RIMM) is expected to launch the BlackBerry Bold -- the latest update to its well-known family of devices -- in the U.S.
That will be followed by a fold-up, or clamshell, version of the BlackBerry Pearl that is expected to hit the market later this fall and target the large base of customers currently using devices like the Motorola RAZR.
Another much-rumored device is a touch-screen BlackBerry, though RIM has never publicly confirmed its existence. However, images and other information have been widely disseminated across gadget blogs and other Web sites.
"Do I think they are going to come out with more models this year? Absolutely, " said Ken Dulaney, a wireless device analyst with Gartner Inc. "If all the pictures moving across the Web are true, then this is a very good time for RIM."
Research In Motion has kept largely quiet about its plans for new devices. The company's co-CEO Jim Balsillie is slated to deliver a keynote address Thursday at the CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment Expo in San Francisco.
Several Wall Street analysts have already baked sales estimates for the new devices into their forecasts for the company's next fiscal year.
"RIM is expected to launch a broad consumer assault in [the second half of 2008], with multiple handsets, including the Bold, a touch-screen, flip, slider, 3G Pearl and others," Mike Abramsky of RBC Capital Markets wrote in a note to clients last month.
The new products will come at a crucial time for the company. RIM is facing more competition than ever in the smart-phone category. In addition, the slowing economy has put pressure on sales growth in the sector. A Sept. 8 report from Gartner Inc. found that global sales of smart phones grew just 16% in the second quarter compared to the same period last year, which saw a year-over-year growth rate of 55%.
In addition, RIM is facing concerns about the timing of its own product launches - and the ability of those new devices to compete with the iPhone.
Those concerns have pressured the company's once high-flying stock, which peaked at $148.13 in mid-June and has plunged by more than 30% since, sinking below the $100 mark Tuesday to its lowest closing price in nearly six months.
"There are numerous variables at any one time that make it very difficult to project RIM's financials on both a near- and long-term basis," Morgan Keegan analyst Tavis McCourt wrote in a report Monday.
While McCourt said he did not know details of upcoming launches, he said the recent sell-off in the shares makes for an "intriguing opportunity." He upgraded the stock to an outperform, or buy, rating from neutral.
A 'Bold' move?
While Palm Inc.'s Treo is widely considered to be the pioneer of the smart- phone category, the BlackBerry has quickly overtaken its rival as a leader in the sector. The BlackBerry's focus on mobile e-mail, with an emphasis on security and reliability, has made it a strong favorite among corporate users, while models such as the Pearl and the Curve have been popular with the consumer crowd.
But the lucrative smart-phone market has attracted several new players. Devices running on the ubiquitous Windows Mobile platform are proliferating from manufacturers such as Samsung, Motorola (MOT) and HTC. Palm (PALM) recently launched a new version of its Treo, with additional devices expected later this year.
In addition, the market has practically been turned on its ear by the iPhone from Apple Inc. (AAPL). A 3G version of the device went on sale in July and is already believed to have sold nearly 3 million units, according to analysts.
The first phase of RIM's response to the competitive onslaught is the BlackBerry Bold. Announced in May, the Bold is a 3G smart phone that updates the basic BlackBerry design with a sharper screen and improved Web browser. The device has launched in several markets across the globe, and made its North American debut last month in Canada.
More
SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones) -- With new models of the ultra-popular BlackBerry reportedly waiting in the wings, Research In Motion is nearing a crucial period as it faces immense competition in the smart-phone market from the iPhone and other devices.
Later this month, the Waterloo, Ontario-based company (RIMM) is expected to launch the BlackBerry Bold -- the latest update to its well-known family of devices -- in the U.S.
That will be followed by a fold-up, or clamshell, version of the BlackBerry Pearl that is expected to hit the market later this fall and target the large base of customers currently using devices like the Motorola RAZR.
Another much-rumored device is a touch-screen BlackBerry, though RIM has never publicly confirmed its existence. However, images and other information have been widely disseminated across gadget blogs and other Web sites.
"Do I think they are going to come out with more models this year? Absolutely, " said Ken Dulaney, a wireless device analyst with Gartner Inc. "If all the pictures moving across the Web are true, then this is a very good time for RIM."
Research In Motion has kept largely quiet about its plans for new devices. The company's co-CEO Jim Balsillie is slated to deliver a keynote address Thursday at the CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment Expo in San Francisco.
Several Wall Street analysts have already baked sales estimates for the new devices into their forecasts for the company's next fiscal year.
"RIM is expected to launch a broad consumer assault in [the second half of 2008], with multiple handsets, including the Bold, a touch-screen, flip, slider, 3G Pearl and others," Mike Abramsky of RBC Capital Markets wrote in a note to clients last month.
The new products will come at a crucial time for the company. RIM is facing more competition than ever in the smart-phone category. In addition, the slowing economy has put pressure on sales growth in the sector. A Sept. 8 report from Gartner Inc. found that global sales of smart phones grew just 16% in the second quarter compared to the same period last year, which saw a year-over-year growth rate of 55%.
In addition, RIM is facing concerns about the timing of its own product launches - and the ability of those new devices to compete with the iPhone.
Those concerns have pressured the company's once high-flying stock, which peaked at $148.13 in mid-June and has plunged by more than 30% since, sinking below the $100 mark Tuesday to its lowest closing price in nearly six months.
"There are numerous variables at any one time that make it very difficult to project RIM's financials on both a near- and long-term basis," Morgan Keegan analyst Tavis McCourt wrote in a report Monday.
While McCourt said he did not know details of upcoming launches, he said the recent sell-off in the shares makes for an "intriguing opportunity." He upgraded the stock to an outperform, or buy, rating from neutral.
A 'Bold' move?
While Palm Inc.'s Treo is widely considered to be the pioneer of the smart- phone category, the BlackBerry has quickly overtaken its rival as a leader in the sector. The BlackBerry's focus on mobile e-mail, with an emphasis on security and reliability, has made it a strong favorite among corporate users, while models such as the Pearl and the Curve have been popular with the consumer crowd.
But the lucrative smart-phone market has attracted several new players. Devices running on the ubiquitous Windows Mobile platform are proliferating from manufacturers such as Samsung, Motorola (MOT) and HTC. Palm (PALM) recently launched a new version of its Treo, with additional devices expected later this year.
In addition, the market has practically been turned on its ear by the iPhone from Apple Inc. (AAPL). A 3G version of the device went on sale in July and is already believed to have sold nearly 3 million units, according to analysts.
The first phase of RIM's response to the competitive onslaught is the BlackBerry Bold. Announced in May, the Bold is a 3G smart phone that updates the basic BlackBerry design with a sharper screen and improved Web browser. The device has launched in several markets across the globe, and made its North American debut last month in Canada.
More
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
First Look: Apple iPod Nano 4G
Posted by Donald Bell
When I first glimpsed the leaked photos of Apple's skinny, rounded-screen redesign of the iPod Nano, I have to admit I was a bit skeptical. It seemed so unlike Apple to revisit the older designs of its first- and second-generation Nano, and the wing-shaped form seemed a bit odd. Holding the Nano 4G in my hand, however, I'm starting to think that last year's squarish design was just an awkward, forgettable phase in the Nano's development. This year, Apple has set the Nano back on track with the thinnest, lightest design yet, and features that are hard to ignore.
Offered in a wide range of colors (nine total) for both the 8GB ($149) and 16GB ($199) capacities, the latest iPod Nano strikes a great balance of price and features. The iPod Nano 4G uses the same high-resolution 2-inch screen found on last year's model, only now the included screen uses a portrait orientation covered with rounded glass. Video playback requires you to turn the iPod Nano 4G on its side, much like the Flash-based Microsoft Zune MP3 players. Unlike the Zune, however, Apple has included an accelerometer within the 4G Nano that reorients the display based on how the player is held, making it easier to view photos or switch the player into Apple's Cover Flow music mode. The accelerometer also enables a new "shake-to-shuffle" feature that will automatically shuffle music playback when the player is deliberately shaken (a casual shake won't trigger the feature). The shake-to-shuffle feature can be switched off under settings and the button-hold switch at the top of the player will disengage it, as well.
Full Story
When I first glimpsed the leaked photos of Apple's skinny, rounded-screen redesign of the iPod Nano, I have to admit I was a bit skeptical. It seemed so unlike Apple to revisit the older designs of its first- and second-generation Nano, and the wing-shaped form seemed a bit odd. Holding the Nano 4G in my hand, however, I'm starting to think that last year's squarish design was just an awkward, forgettable phase in the Nano's development. This year, Apple has set the Nano back on track with the thinnest, lightest design yet, and features that are hard to ignore.
Offered in a wide range of colors (nine total) for both the 8GB ($149) and 16GB ($199) capacities, the latest iPod Nano strikes a great balance of price and features. The iPod Nano 4G uses the same high-resolution 2-inch screen found on last year's model, only now the included screen uses a portrait orientation covered with rounded glass. Video playback requires you to turn the iPod Nano 4G on its side, much like the Flash-based Microsoft Zune MP3 players. Unlike the Zune, however, Apple has included an accelerometer within the 4G Nano that reorients the display based on how the player is held, making it easier to view photos or switch the player into Apple's Cover Flow music mode. The accelerometer also enables a new "shake-to-shuffle" feature that will automatically shuffle music playback when the player is deliberately shaken (a casual shake won't trigger the feature). The shake-to-shuffle feature can be switched off under settings and the button-hold switch at the top of the player will disengage it, as well.
Full Story
Monday, September 8, 2008
GOOGLE MAY BE CHALLENGED BY DEPT OF JUSTICE OVER ADVERTISING...Developing
Top Lawyer Is Selected
As U.S. Mulls Google Suit
By JOHN R. WILKE
September 9, 2008
Washington -- The Justice Department has quietly hired one of the nation's best-known litigators, former Walt Disney Co. vice chairman Sanford Litvack, for a possible antitrust challenge to Google Inc.'s growing power in advertising.
Mr. Litvack's hiring is the strongest signal yet that the U.S. is preparing to take court action against Google and its search-advertising deal with Yahoo Inc. The two companies combined would account for more than 80% of U.S. online-search ads.
Google shares tumbled 5.5%, or $24.30, to $419.95 in 4 p.m. trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market, while Yahoo shares were up 18 cents to $18.26.
For weeks, U.S. lawyers have been deposing witnesses and issuing subpoenas for documents to support a challenge to the deal, lawyers close to the review said. Such efforts don't always mean a case will be brought, however.
Mr. Litvack, who was the Justice Department antitrust chief under President Jimmy Carter, has been asked to examine the evidence gathered so far and to build a case if the decision is made to proceed, the lawyers close to the review said.
It isn't clear whether a U.S. challenge would target the Google-Yahoo deal alone or take on broader aspects of Google's conduct in the growing online-advertising business. The agreement with Yahoo, announced in June, gives Google, of Mountain View, Calif., the right to sell search and text ads on Yahoo sites, sharing revenue with Yahoo, which is based in Sunnyvale, Calif.
Display and search-based Web advertising, which are dominated by Google, have transformed the media industry. As a result, a federal antitrust case against Google could set new boundaries for Internet competition, much as the Justice Department suit against Microsoft Corp. a decade ago broke ground applying antitrust law to new technologies.
Google has said the Yahoo deal doesn't violate antitrust law. It has forcefully argued -- in public testimony before Congress and in private meetings with Justice Department lawyers -- that the deal is pro-competition. The companies say they voluntarily delayed closing the deal until early October, to allow the U.S. to complete its review.
"We voluntarily delayed implementation of this arrangement to give the Department of Justice time to understand it, and we continue to work cooperatively with them," Google said. "While there has been a lot of speculation about this agreement's potential impact on advertisers or ad prices, we think it would be premature for regulators to halt the agreement before we implement it and everyone can judge the actual impact."
In a statement late Monday, Yahoo said: "We have been informed that the Justice Department, as they sometimes do, is seeking advice from an outside consultant, but that we should read nothing into that fact. We remain confident that the deal is lawful."
It is relatively rare for the Justice Department to hire a special counsel from outside the department. David Boies was brought in as a special counsel to build the landmark antitrust case against Microsoft in 1998. Stephen Axinn, another well-known New York litigator, was hired to challenge WorldCom Inc.'s proposed buyout of Sprint Corp. The companies abandoned that transaction in 2000 after the department and Mr. Axinn challenged the deal.
Mr. Litvack, who couldn't be reached for comment, resigned last week from Hogan & Hartson LLP, where he was a partner in the Los Angeles and New York offices. A Justice Department spokeswoman also declined to comment.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that a group of major advertisers complained to the department about the deal. The Association of National Advertisers, which represents major advertisers such as Procter & Gamble Co. and General Motors Corp., warned that the deal could lead to higher prices and limited opportunities for Web advertisers.
Microsoft also has objected to the deal, saying it would unfairly foreclose competition on the Web. In Senate hearings in July, Microsoft's general counsel, Brad Smith, testified that "if search is the gateway to the Internet, and most people believe that it is, this deal will put Google in position to own that gateway and the information that flows through it."
Source: Wall Street Journal
As U.S. Mulls Google Suit
By JOHN R. WILKE
September 9, 2008
Washington -- The Justice Department has quietly hired one of the nation's best-known litigators, former Walt Disney Co. vice chairman Sanford Litvack, for a possible antitrust challenge to Google Inc.'s growing power in advertising.
Mr. Litvack's hiring is the strongest signal yet that the U.S. is preparing to take court action against Google and its search-advertising deal with Yahoo Inc. The two companies combined would account for more than 80% of U.S. online-search ads.
Google shares tumbled 5.5%, or $24.30, to $419.95 in 4 p.m. trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market, while Yahoo shares were up 18 cents to $18.26.
For weeks, U.S. lawyers have been deposing witnesses and issuing subpoenas for documents to support a challenge to the deal, lawyers close to the review said. Such efforts don't always mean a case will be brought, however.
Mr. Litvack, who was the Justice Department antitrust chief under President Jimmy Carter, has been asked to examine the evidence gathered so far and to build a case if the decision is made to proceed, the lawyers close to the review said.
It isn't clear whether a U.S. challenge would target the Google-Yahoo deal alone or take on broader aspects of Google's conduct in the growing online-advertising business. The agreement with Yahoo, announced in June, gives Google, of Mountain View, Calif., the right to sell search and text ads on Yahoo sites, sharing revenue with Yahoo, which is based in Sunnyvale, Calif.
Display and search-based Web advertising, which are dominated by Google, have transformed the media industry. As a result, a federal antitrust case against Google could set new boundaries for Internet competition, much as the Justice Department suit against Microsoft Corp. a decade ago broke ground applying antitrust law to new technologies.
Google has said the Yahoo deal doesn't violate antitrust law. It has forcefully argued -- in public testimony before Congress and in private meetings with Justice Department lawyers -- that the deal is pro-competition. The companies say they voluntarily delayed closing the deal until early October, to allow the U.S. to complete its review.
"We voluntarily delayed implementation of this arrangement to give the Department of Justice time to understand it, and we continue to work cooperatively with them," Google said. "While there has been a lot of speculation about this agreement's potential impact on advertisers or ad prices, we think it would be premature for regulators to halt the agreement before we implement it and everyone can judge the actual impact."
In a statement late Monday, Yahoo said: "We have been informed that the Justice Department, as they sometimes do, is seeking advice from an outside consultant, but that we should read nothing into that fact. We remain confident that the deal is lawful."
It is relatively rare for the Justice Department to hire a special counsel from outside the department. David Boies was brought in as a special counsel to build the landmark antitrust case against Microsoft in 1998. Stephen Axinn, another well-known New York litigator, was hired to challenge WorldCom Inc.'s proposed buyout of Sprint Corp. The companies abandoned that transaction in 2000 after the department and Mr. Axinn challenged the deal.
Mr. Litvack, who couldn't be reached for comment, resigned last week from Hogan & Hartson LLP, where he was a partner in the Los Angeles and New York offices. A Justice Department spokeswoman also declined to comment.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that a group of major advertisers complained to the department about the deal. The Association of National Advertisers, which represents major advertisers such as Procter & Gamble Co. and General Motors Corp., warned that the deal could lead to higher prices and limited opportunities for Web advertisers.
Microsoft also has objected to the deal, saying it would unfairly foreclose competition on the Web. In Senate hearings in July, Microsoft's general counsel, Brad Smith, testified that "if search is the gateway to the Internet, and most people believe that it is, this deal will put Google in position to own that gateway and the information that flows through it."
Source: Wall Street Journal
Hi Viewers
Hi guys, some reason, this blog is growing but slowly and there are several returning visitors. I would love to hear your opinions about the articles I posted. Thanks guys!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Is Google’s Chrome All about Advertising?
Now that we’ve been talking about Google’s new web browser Chrome for the entire past week, I think it’s time to take a look at its core and finally realize that Google is actually an advertising company and advertising is exactly where Google’s main field of business is. Advertising is how Google makes the money to finance acquisitions of other companies and its own large-scale developments resulting in much-hyped product releases like Chrome.
And since Google is an advertising company, everything it does will sooner or later be integrated into its advertising business. I think Chrome is not supposed to be any exception here and so I wanted to highlight a few facts about Chrome and how it relates to ads so that we could better understand what we should expect the browser to do to influence the advertising industry as it is today.
First of all, it has become absolutely obvious that people got too accustomed to browsing the internet with various plug-ins to block out ads from web pages you browse (and sorry, I’m not linking to any of them - I’m a web publisher myself, after all). And when mentioning why they would not want to migrate to Chrome, the most popular reason I’ve seen people citing is inability to block ads. The reason is simple: many internet users have simply forgotten how many ads they can be exposed to online now and they are not ready to consume any of that sine they are perfectly fine with a plug-in to block each and every page from the sites they browse. So no matter how fast and powerful any new browser can be they won’t even consider migrating until they can turn the ads off the pages.
I myself don’t get this type of mentality at all as a publisher since my own revenue is heavily damaged by availability of these plugins. In fact, I think it could be a good idea to create a group of bloggers to fight with ad blockers to have them completely forbidden by each and every web browser - even if I know it is a goal impossible to achieve. I don’t understand how people want to enjoy all the content others work long hours to create and fail to see that these publishers also have bills to pay and need food to eat. But that’s a topic for another post - here I just wanted to mention that people enjoy the ad-free web world too much to migrate to any new browser that does not provide this experience.
But here comes the problem: as an advertising company Google will never make life easy for people that want to browse internet without bumping into Google’s ads everywhere. Such an approach is just plain obvious and that’s actually something I myself will support 100%. So when Google has an official repository for all the Chrome add-ons or extensions, if there is one plug-in that will hardly ever make it there - it is any ad blocker developed by any third party.
I am quite sure we will very soon see this need addressed somehow but I know equally well that no such plug-in will ever be distributed with Google’s help - after all, why would Google want to make a browser where people could avoid seeing ads same as they now do on Firefox?
Second thing about Chrome and advertising may sound like a conspiracy theory a little (or a lot) but I think it is obvious that owning a tool that allows you to track a user’s behavior to the highest degree possible and failing to use this information for your full advantage could be just unreasonable. And I am pretty sure that this is exactly where Chrome is supposed to do its job - to help Google serve better-targeted ads to web users and, thus, charge advertisers higher.
One of the related discussions is about Chrome’s Omnibox and the privacy invasion it can potentially be for any user keeping browser settings at defaults. The thing is that when a user has Google as a default search engine (and I think many of our readers do) and keep auto-suggestion for URLs and search terms enabled, Chrome will start talking to Google servers by sending every single character you type even before you hit ‘Enter’. But while this may not sound particularly dangerous, Google actually intends to keep 2% of this collected information along with the IP of the computer used to type those characters. And this is where the big game begins because the opportunities for advertisers to reach you better and make you buy their products once they know you need them are immense.
Imagine, for example, you are planning a Christmas vacation on some tropical island. Say, the first idea you have in mind is Bali Island in Indonesia so you start typing “Christmas Vacation Bali” but then you change your mind and decide to see what the most popular options are first before making your decision. So you delete Bali and instead type “Christmas Vacation tropical island”. This is where you hit the ‘Enter’ key on your keyboard but this is not when Google first receives any information from you - it already knows you had Bali in mind so probably the easiest thing to sell to you would be some nice vacation package on Bali. And right there along the results of your second search phrase you get a few paid links from Google Adwords publishers pushing vacations on Bali at you. Will you resist clicking them? Honestly, I would have clicked immediately myself and I don’t think I am the only one like that. It is obvious that this simple new addition can add a lot of power to advertising targeting and the way advertisers will face less difficulties in reaching us, the potential customers, with what we are willing to pay for anyway.
More
And since Google is an advertising company, everything it does will sooner or later be integrated into its advertising business. I think Chrome is not supposed to be any exception here and so I wanted to highlight a few facts about Chrome and how it relates to ads so that we could better understand what we should expect the browser to do to influence the advertising industry as it is today.
First of all, it has become absolutely obvious that people got too accustomed to browsing the internet with various plug-ins to block out ads from web pages you browse (and sorry, I’m not linking to any of them - I’m a web publisher myself, after all). And when mentioning why they would not want to migrate to Chrome, the most popular reason I’ve seen people citing is inability to block ads. The reason is simple: many internet users have simply forgotten how many ads they can be exposed to online now and they are not ready to consume any of that sine they are perfectly fine with a plug-in to block each and every page from the sites they browse. So no matter how fast and powerful any new browser can be they won’t even consider migrating until they can turn the ads off the pages.
I myself don’t get this type of mentality at all as a publisher since my own revenue is heavily damaged by availability of these plugins. In fact, I think it could be a good idea to create a group of bloggers to fight with ad blockers to have them completely forbidden by each and every web browser - even if I know it is a goal impossible to achieve. I don’t understand how people want to enjoy all the content others work long hours to create and fail to see that these publishers also have bills to pay and need food to eat. But that’s a topic for another post - here I just wanted to mention that people enjoy the ad-free web world too much to migrate to any new browser that does not provide this experience.
But here comes the problem: as an advertising company Google will never make life easy for people that want to browse internet without bumping into Google’s ads everywhere. Such an approach is just plain obvious and that’s actually something I myself will support 100%. So when Google has an official repository for all the Chrome add-ons or extensions, if there is one plug-in that will hardly ever make it there - it is any ad blocker developed by any third party.
I am quite sure we will very soon see this need addressed somehow but I know equally well that no such plug-in will ever be distributed with Google’s help - after all, why would Google want to make a browser where people could avoid seeing ads same as they now do on Firefox?
Second thing about Chrome and advertising may sound like a conspiracy theory a little (or a lot) but I think it is obvious that owning a tool that allows you to track a user’s behavior to the highest degree possible and failing to use this information for your full advantage could be just unreasonable. And I am pretty sure that this is exactly where Chrome is supposed to do its job - to help Google serve better-targeted ads to web users and, thus, charge advertisers higher.
One of the related discussions is about Chrome’s Omnibox and the privacy invasion it can potentially be for any user keeping browser settings at defaults. The thing is that when a user has Google as a default search engine (and I think many of our readers do) and keep auto-suggestion for URLs and search terms enabled, Chrome will start talking to Google servers by sending every single character you type even before you hit ‘Enter’. But while this may not sound particularly dangerous, Google actually intends to keep 2% of this collected information along with the IP of the computer used to type those characters. And this is where the big game begins because the opportunities for advertisers to reach you better and make you buy their products once they know you need them are immense.
Imagine, for example, you are planning a Christmas vacation on some tropical island. Say, the first idea you have in mind is Bali Island in Indonesia so you start typing “Christmas Vacation Bali” but then you change your mind and decide to see what the most popular options are first before making your decision. So you delete Bali and instead type “Christmas Vacation tropical island”. This is where you hit the ‘Enter’ key on your keyboard but this is not when Google first receives any information from you - it already knows you had Bali in mind so probably the easiest thing to sell to you would be some nice vacation package on Bali. And right there along the results of your second search phrase you get a few paid links from Google Adwords publishers pushing vacations on Bali at you. Will you resist clicking them? Honestly, I would have clicked immediately myself and I don’t think I am the only one like that. It is obvious that this simple new addition can add a lot of power to advertising targeting and the way advertisers will face less difficulties in reaching us, the potential customers, with what we are willing to pay for anyway.
More
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
