Personal Media Insights Digest: Android in the home, and in the fridge

Article name: Interview: Financial Times Experience  with Web Apps
Article link: Click here
Publishing, News & Media Industry Insights

• Interesting insights into why they went HTML5 and the success with it so far
• Dev. times have gone down, easier to debug problems + deploy fixes, shortened release cycles

Article name: NBC News Launches Interactive eBook Publishing Venture
Article link: Click here
Media / Entertainment Industry Insights

• NBC Publishing on tablets and ereader — a venture dedicated to releasing interactive ebooks

Article name:GM turns car windows into fantastical digital playgrounds
Article link: Click here
Automotive Industry Insights

• Windows of Opportunity project — uses smart glass as a platform for apps designed by an Israeli
• Uses augmented reality and GPS
• Allows passengers in separate cars to share messages and music
• Video of it in action here

Article name: HTML5 Please
Article link: Click here
HTML5 Insights

• Play and learn about the different functionality of HTML5

Article name: Leading global retailers meet changing consumer demands with IBM smarter commerce
Article link: Click here
Mobile Software Insights

• As part of its Smarter Commerce initiative, IBM announced new software that helps customers browse, shop and buy retail products on mobile
• Retailers can develop their own storefronts on mobile devices

Article name: KDDI putting ads in the notification bar on Android phones
Article link: Click here
Telecommunications / Carrier Industry Insights

• Japanese carrier places ads on notification bar and sends ads as push notifications to users

Article name: Winter X Games mobile app launches
Article link: Click here
Sports Industry Insights

• Cool functionality
• Watch X Games live on the iPad app
• Live streaming with Facebook + Twitter interactivity

Article name: The next big thing: Android in the home, and in the fridge [from CES]
Article link: Click here
Android / Ecosystem Insights

• Nearly every device in your house is going to be networked by an OS platform in the future
• Smartphone will become the portal to the other devices and appliances in the home — all will work together seamlessly
• Already being done to an extent — WiFi is being used to control lights in houses
• Eric Schmidt (Exec. Chairman at Google) said this: “You want to be able to walk into your house and have all the appliances adjust, know it’s you”

App: Tie Assistant

App link: Download here

Absurd App of the Day

• Tells you how tie 15 different knots and recommend the perfect neck candy for any occasion

Personal Media Insights Digest: Augmented reality and rabbits

Article name: Majority of digital magazine readers want in-app, eCommerce features Click here

Publishing, News & Media Industry Insights

• Digital subscribers are interested in ability to make impulsive purchases within magazine app
• Users want videos in digital editions to run less than a minute, no longer
• Idea that consumers may at the very least be demanding the means to buy advertisers’ products within their apps

Article name: Augmented reality heading to contact lenses Click here

Augmented Reality Insights

• New type of contact lens which can contain electronic displays.
• The technology has so far been used on rabbits
• Could one day be used in gaming

Article name: All your 6 year old wants for Christmas is… an iPad Click here

Tablet Consumer Behavior & Education Sector Insights

• According to new Nielsen stats, 44% of kids between the ages six and 12 want an iPad for the holidays
• Their hands intuitively interpret these touch devices as toys
• An iPad is an ideal kid pacifier. For starters, parent-selected children’s apps for the iPad are likely to be more educational than TV
• The old-fashioned story book is turning interactive, thanks to iPad apps

Article name: Did eBay just create couch commerce? Click here

Commerce and Media Consumption Insights

• eBay has added a “Watch with eBay” tab to its iPad app that will serve product listings according to what a consumer is watching on TV.
• Consumers only need to enter the zip code and cable provider when they first use the tab
• eBay ran a non-consumer-facing pilot program of the tab with Bold and the Beautiful that made every single item in an entire episode taggable

Article name: Media multitaskers pay mental price, Stanford study shows Click here

Consumer Behavior and Media Consumption Insights

• People who are regularly bombarded with several streams of electronic information do not pay attention, control their memory or switch from one job to another as well as those who prefer to complete one task at a time
• “They’re suckers for irrelevancy,” said communication Professor Clifford Nass at Stanford
• They’re not able to filter out what’s not relevant to their current goal

Personal Media Insights Digest: The future of voice search

Article name: Tablet computer are changing professional sports Click here to read

Sports Industry Insights

• NFL teams have purchased iPads for their players and coaches to use instead of the standard playbook. Baseball and hockey leagues have also taken notice of the advantages of mobile technology.
• These devices are slowly starting to change the way professional teams operate, offering high-quality video and Internet connectivity almost anywhere.
•  Allow coaches to watch college games while evaluating players involved in the draft, said head coach Raheem Morris

Article name: Social commerce fashion industry report – shoedazzle dazzles, manolo blahnik suck  Click here to read

Fashion Industry Insights

• Top 6 fashion brands social commerce IQ: 1.ShoeDazzle, 2. Rocawear, 3. Barneys NY, 4. Betsey Johnson, 5. Verragio, 6. Fergie Footwear
• fashion industry is the most intimately social
• New trends are predicted to be in-store technology (mobile and tablets), live streaming, allowing to buy directly from fashion live-streams on mobile

Nordstrom creates cross-channel interaction for brand loyalists Click here to read

Fashion and Retail Industry Insights

• Nordstrom launched its first mobile app this week – combines commerce, customer service and cross-channel engagement
• Customers can curate their own style
• Keeps customers within the app to purchase products

Article name: How does voice search change the travel industry? Click here to read

Travel and Airline Industry Insights

• Reschedule flights on-the-fly through voice command systems
• Siri doesn’t do flights at the moemnt, but Apple is mapping it towards high opportunity transactional industries – like travel
• Natural language voice coudl help cut inefficient online search and intermediary steps and costs
• technology and costs barriers are currently too high to develop user-acceptable speech technology

Article name: AOL shifts strategic focus to tablet, mobile-first monetization Click here to read

Publishing, IT and Internet Industry Insights

• AOL shifting its focus to mobile and tablets – more opportunities to monetize than compared to on the web
• Its media properties include Moviefone, Huffington Post, Endgadget, MapQuest, and Distro which they have built out mobile presences for
• They’ve seen this with iPad consumer behavior – “it is how people start their day and end their day”… “what we’ve seen with the iPad is that people lean back to engage”

Personal Media Insights Digest: Africa fastest growing mobile market

Article name: Sports Insights launches free sports betting app for iPhone Click here

Wagering/Betting and Sports Industry Insights

• The application empowers sports bettors with all the data they need to stay informed, right from their phone
• Innovations such as 1st and 2nd half lines and public betting trends sets the app apart as a game-changing solution in mobile betting market
• The app will arm thousands of sports bettors around the world with the information they need to make smarter bets

Article name: NYC marathon introduces App for iOS devices Click here

Sports Industry Insights

• Ability to geolocate and track any of the thousands of runners, from the recreational runner to celebs like Kristy Turlington and Jennie Finch
• Ability to engage with over two million fans along our 26.2 stadium
• App will be the first to integrate RFID chip timing and GPS to allow real-time tracking of race participants. Users can track up to 10 runners simultaneously. Something new this year, is the ability to track runners in real-time who choose to run with their smart phones

Article name: Republic Wireless: 419 per month for voice, text and data Click here

Carrier and Telecommunications Industry Insights

• A new carrier called Republic Wireless is enlisting the help of Wi-Fi networks to sell cheap smartphone services
• They offer voice, text and data for $19 per month, with no annual contract – roughly a quarter of the price of coverage plans on AT&T and Verizon Wireless
• The catch is that there will be bandwidth limits to ensure people do not over use it — expected to be 550 minutes, 150 texts or 330 megabytes of cellular data

Article name: Ericsson envisions the future of connectivity Click here

Future Mobile Insights

• Ericsson released a report on Monday saying that information flow through wireless networks will jump tenfold over the next 5 years
• 21 minute documentary is on the past, present and future of mobile technology and its impact on society
• A company spokesperson said the video envisions a world that is “different from Microsoft’s vision of the future” video

Article name: Industry says Africa fastest growing mobile market Click here

Africa Region Insights

• Africa soon poised to have 735 million people using their phones
• Mobile penetration second only to Asia
• Mobile banking is huge in Africa
• Changing human behavior — one high schooler noticed that boys used to write letters to ask a girl out on a date, now they use SMS

Article name: New app starts tab in your pocket Click here

Emerging Mobile Technology and Commerce Insights

• The Square launched a newer version of its app that allows people to start a tab in their pocket
• App recognizes when a user is within 100 metres of a business – using new iPhone location abilities
• This means users can purchase something without pulling out a wallet or phone
• Keep your money and that flashy phone in pocket folks

Personal Media Insights Digest: A new remix app for the music industry

Article: Small victories in the war against luggage here

Airline Industry Insights

• An average of 42 million bags are misplaced by airlines each year
• Delta Airlines will update its FlyDelta smartphone app so members of the loyalty program can trace their luggage
• The ability to track your luggage would prove a huge incentive to download an airline’s mobile application and increase the profitability and success of loyalty programs

Article name: A remix app for Lana Del Ray’s ‘Video Games’ here

Music Industry Insights

• An application for Mac users has sprung up with Lana Del Ray’s emergence online
• Can make changes to the song and video, rearrange lyrics, change beats among other things
• The app is free to download here

Article name: Coldplay live streams free concert on YouTube here

Music Industry Insights

• The typical cult-like behavior of music fans will always see them migrate to wherever their band is being shown/screened/played
• Also, as the online and mobile music experience becomes more immersive and socially connected, fans may be drawn to stay at home
• The online and mobile experience offers different camera angles, integration with social media, more metadata about the music, chat streaming
• Mobile and social media will lead to breeding of cross-border niche communities through common music tastes.

Article: Fox Sports lands UFC rights: multimillion dollar pact brings fight phenomemon to FX, Fox here

Sports and Media Industry Insights

• The Fox deal for UFC is another milestone in its rise as the fastest ever growing sport
• It will also be interesting to see how UFC viewing shares stacks up against other major American sports on Fox mobile properties
• It is essential that the testosterone-fueled event experience renders accordingly on personal media devices

Article name: Retailers issue mandate to ecommerce companies requesting easier mobile integration here

Retail and Fashion Industry Insights

• As consumers are becoming more familiar with shopping on mobile and have expectations form mobile sites and application, brands need to focus on creating the right user experience
• Retailers also want to be able to empower store associates with as much knowledge as the consumer has using mobile
• Retailers are focusing on inventory, loyalty and product details for mobile initiatives
• Using mobile in all phases of purchasing – researching, browsing, and purchasing

Article name: Say command: how speech recognition will change the world here

Automotive Industry Insights

• The automotive industry is innovating through some sort of linguistic fashion
• The idea of intelligent cars is about to hit the road fast, with voice recognition and mobile applications being central to the in-vehicle experience
• Future linguistic functionality will become the norm in applications, which will suit in-vehicle and consumer applications for the industry

Article name: A new wave in mobile commerce and content here

Carrier & Telecommunications Industry Insights

• There is a new force changing the mobile industry: evolving mobile data-charging models
• Carriers are looking at ways to create plans based on speed, content, time, location and quality of service
• The challenge is to make these plans easy to understand and measure

Personal Media Insights Digest: UFC and FOX partnership for fight industry

My weekly personal media insights digest:

 

Article: Retailers issue mandate to ecommerce companies requesting easier mobile integration here

Retail and Fashion Industry Insights

• Consumers are adapting to using mobile in all phases of retail shopping  – researching, browsing, and purchasing
• As user participation on mobile increases and become more familiar with it, user expectation on these platforms grows
• This is why retailers need to continue looking to designing UI and UX to differentiate and shape a compelling story in mobile
• Retailers want to be able to empower store employees with as much knowledge as possible — pointing to the need of enterprise solutions

Article: Luxury collection, Assouline inspire global travel with destination guide here

Publishing and Hotel/Travel Industry Insights

• Starwood Hotels & Resorts has partnered with Assouline to release 6 limited edition destination guidebooks
• Destination guidebooks are a perfect opportunity to publish on tablet platform to present photos, editorial content, videos, recipes, must-see lists and other features
• Tablets facilitate the rendering of luxury and high-end feel to products with high res. and ample screen real estate

Article: Fox Sports lands UFC rights: multimillion dollar pact brings fight phenomemon to FX, Fox here

Sports, Media and Entertainment Industry Insights

• The Fox deal for UFC is another milestone in its rise as the fastest ever growing sport — the deal will commence in January 2012
• As the attention on UFC increases, it will also be interesting to see how UFC viewing shares stacks up against other major American sports on Fox mobile properties
• As consumers increasingly watch UFC and Fox events on persona media, it is up to the brands to ensure the event experience renders accordingly on persona media devices

Article: 11 apps and sharing services for sharing, discovering and organizing music here

Music/Internet radio Industry Insights

• Good review of music sharing and listening services

NYC Event – MoMa: People + Technology, innit

Description of event

Talk to Me explores the communication between people and things. All objects contain information that goes well beyond their immediate use or appearance. In some cases, objects like cell phones and computers exist to provide us with access to complex systems and networks, behaving as gateways and interpreters. Whether openly and actively, or in subtle, subliminal ways, things talk to us, and designers help us develop and improvise the dialogue.

The exhibition focuses on objects that involve a direct interaction, such as interfaces, information systems, visualization design, and communication devices, and on projects that establish an emotional, sensual, or intellectual connection with their users.

List of works at event

http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2011/talktome/objects/

Review of event in media

Paint with your eyes? Design may change tech: http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/27/technology/moma_design/index.htm

My favourite work at the event

Newsmap.jp: http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2011/talktome/objects/146231/

Description

In the age of information saturation and overload, several news-aggregating websites and mobile applications cut through the noise by presenting the news landscape in a visually organized way. Newsmap draws on Google News’s constantly updated feeds and is arranged like a treemap (a hierarchical way of representing data that uses nested rectangles as an organizing element).

Professional Sports and Personal Media

I read an article this morning that immediately caught my eye:

Tablet computers are a game-changer in professional sports

It seems as though sports franchises are increasingly looking to personal media devices to help their players out in game preparation:

Here are the main takeaways from the article:

• The Bucs and the Baltimore Ravens have purchased iPads for their players and coaches to use instead of the standard playbook. Baseball and hockey leagues have also taken notice of the advantages of mobile technology.
• These devices are slowly starting to change the way professional teams operate, offering high-quality video and Internet connectivity almost anywhere.
• The Bucs first developed a customized application on the iPad as a draft tool to allow coaches to watch college games while evaluating players involved in the draft, said head coach Raheem Morris.
• Even if the NFL allowed computer tablets on the sidelines, it’s unlikely that Apple’s iPads would be used, because the league’s major sponsor Motorola has a tablet, the Xoom.
• The National Hockey League is also utilizing mobile technology, allowing its live games to be broadcast through paid subscriptions toNHL GameCenter Live on mobile devices including tablets.

Click here to read about it: http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/12/tech/tablet-computers-and-sports/

The Kobo Touch

Whether to purchase a Kobo Touch or not?

The tablet is a cheap as chips.. it’s currently going for $99.

Here is where you can purchase them: http://www.kobo.com/ereaders/kobo-touch-with-offers-us.html

Another ‘future’ personal media video

Here it is:

Here are my main takeaways from the video:

• Ericsson released a report on Monday saying that information flow through wireless networks will jump tenfold over the next 5 years
• 21 minute documentary is on the past, present and future of mobile technology and its impact on society
• A company spokesperson said the video envisions a world that is “different from Microsoft’s vision of the future” video
• About 900 million people will have a high-speed Internet connection to their smartphone or tablet by the end of this year