Thursday, December 1, 2011

Mashable: Latest 29 News Updates - including “Shaq’s Social Media Guru Shares Her Secrets”

Mashable: Latest 29 News Updates - including “Shaq’s Social Media Guru Shares Her Secrets”

Shaq’s Social Media Guru Shares Her Secrets

Posted: 01 Dec 2011 05:17 AM PST


Shaquille O’Neal — all 7-plus feet and 300-plus pounds of him — isn’t just known for casting a huge shadow on the basketball court. He looms large in social media, too, as America’s most-followed athlete (second in the world behind Brazilian soccer star Kaka) and Twitter’s first-ever verified celebrity account.

He’s known for interacting with fans, announcing whimsical stunts like posing as a statue in Harvard Square and even announcing his retirement this year via social media.

But these and other “Random Acts of Shaqness” aren’t just the brainchild of the big man himself — many were developed in tandem with Amy Jo Martin, founder of Digital Royalty, a firm launched in 2009 to develop social media strategies with athletes, celebrities and companies looking to enhance their online presence.

Martin began working with Shaq in 2008 when he played for the Phoenix Suns and she was in charge of the team’s digital media efforts. She went from showing him how to navigate Twitter’s technical aspects — “he said he wanted to ‘take this thing over,’” she recalls — to developing extremely successful social media campaigns that helped turn Shaq into a Twitter superstar.

Before long, Martin started Digital Royalty and has since worked with other athletes and teams including the Chicago White Sox, Lance Armstrong and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. And her influence has only continued to grow. Now, she says, some 60% of her clients — including Doubletree by Hilton and Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh — come from outside the sporting world.

Q&A With Amy Jo Martin

Here, Martin, 32, tells Mashable how Shaq took over Twitter, what makes for a successful online presence and where she sees social media going in the future.

Mashable: Shaq as long been known for his effervescent personality. What made him so successful transitioning that to social media?

AJM: Shaq is really willing to buy into experiments and ideas and this space is all about innovation. I believe very little actually has to do with technology–that’s just a portion that complements the objective, which really comes down to communication and imagination. Whether it’s the Random Acts or retirement, he was always willing to experiment, and those experiments are what we have now turned into best practices. And his intent is really in the right place, in he didn’t have a desire to grow his social media presence because a specific brand wanted him to, but out of a genuine desire to interact with fans.

"With sports, the value is inherent in that there is a lot of natural storytelling ability. But with corporate brands that may not be the case, so humanizing the brand is key.”

Mashable: What are some of your favorite Twitter campaigns with Shaq, ones that he or his fans particularly enjoyed?

AJM: Random Acts is one thing he really riffed on and took from team to team and just carried out in different capacities. Sometimes he would call fans, or stand out on the street giving away tickets. It was a really grassroots approach. He decided to go on a diet once, and so we had the “Shaq Lite” diet, where the only rule was that if you cheated you had to tweet it, and fans really took to that. Those types of things were really innocent and organic and self-managed.

Mashable: Before you started your own company, was there one moment when you realized social media could be enormous for public figures?

AJM: There wasn’t one specific moment, but it was a pretty condensed period of time where I realized social media’s potential power. With in-game signage and things like that, teams were already looking to bridge the gap with fans and make human connections. So social media became a new way to communicate with individual fans but in a scalable fashion. It just took a little while for it to become widely accepted. It’s taken a while for corporate America as well as sports teams to see it as a communication tool as opposed to just an advertising channel.

Mashable: Besides Shaq, which other athletes do you think are particularly adept at using Twitter positively and effectively?

AJM: Steve Nash, who I helped early on, has really been able to vocalize his opinions on the NBA lockout and other issues. Lance Armstrong is someone who was an early adopter but doesn’t get enough credit. A lot of athletes think they need to be edgy to get noticed, and he’s edgy but also understands the types of things fans want. For example, if he just gets a new bike or is on a really cool ride, he’ll share visuals, which fans really want to see.

Mashable: What are some of the basic keys to a celebrity becoming successful online?

AJM: One thing is identifying value. For example, with The Rock the common denominator is his personality. He could be giving inspirational tips, exclusive info, or other insights, but it’s his personality that is the real value for fans in all of these different pockets. The other big thing is intent. It’s not just about putting more of a spotlight on the athlete, it’s about engagement. It’s a dialogue, not a monologue, and some people don’t understand that. Social media is more like a telephone than a television.

"The ability to be able to communicate with people one-on-one and still be able to do so in scalable way is extremely powerful.”

Mashable: You also do a lot of work now with non-sports entities as well. What are the similarities and differences there compared to working with teams or celebrity athletes?

AJM: With sports, the value is inherent in that there is a lot of natural storytelling ability. But with corporate brands that may not be the case, so humanizing the brand is key, like making Doubletree by Hilton more relatable than just a logo. That can be difficult at times but we really try to tell the story of a brand through the voices of the individuals who are living it. Doubletree is a good example, where some executives are speaking on behalf of their brand. They can actually be pretty hilarious and add thoughts on sports or travel and it can be really fun.

Mashable: Where do you see social media going in the future?

AJM: The ability to be able to communicate with people one-on-one and still be able to do so in a scalable way is extremely powerful. Brands being able to really unwrap the layers and interact with people triggers more loyalty and response and becomes a whole new layer of how we communicate. When you remove the traditional gatekeepers of communication, the potential is just infinite. It’s really only limited by the spread of technology worldwide and how long that takes.

More About: shaq, Social Media, sports, Twitter

Carrier IQ Tracking Scandal Spirals Out of Control

Posted: 01 Dec 2011 02:07 AM PST


Carrier IQ, a diagnostic tool installed in millions of smartphones all over the world, is gathering a lot of info about your activity – possibly even recording keystrokes, content of SMS messages and more – and sending it to a third party.

It’s present on nearly all Android devices, but not Galaxy Nexus, Google Nexus One, Nexus S, or the Motorola Xoom. It’s also present on iOS devices, but it seems to be active only when the device is in diagnostic mode.

This is the short version of what is quickly becoming a very complicated story with huge implications for user privacy.

Carrier IQ is a tool whose primary purpose is recording various info which helps carriers improve the quality of service for their customers.

In October, researcher Trevor Eckhart discovered that Carrier IQ is recording, among other things, your every keystroke and possibly sending it back to Carrier IQ’s servers. Carrier IQ responded by sending Ekchart a cease & desist letter and publishing a media alert, in which it claims the company is “not recording keystrokes or providing tracking tools.”

Fast forward to this week, when Eckhart posted video evidence (below) suggesting that Carrier IQ is recording keystrokes and reading incoming SMS messages on Android, more precisely on an HTC EVO 3D. Worse, the app cannot be stopped or removed by the user.

While this doesn’t prove that Carrier IQ is actually sending the data back to Carrier IQ’s servers, it’s definitely disconcerting to see all this done by an app which is completely out of users’ control.

From currently available info, Carrier IQ is present on most Android, BlackBerry and Symbian devices, but not on Google Nexus devices mentioned above, which is logical since it’s a tool meant to be used by carriers. References of Carrier IQ have also been found in iOS devices, but according to security researcher chpwn, it is disabled by default, and only works when the phone is in diagnostic mode.

All of this is reminiscent to the iPhone tracking scandal from April 2011, when it was discovered that Apple’s iPhone tracks your location history. Steve Jobs then famously said – in an e-mail reply to a question from a customer – that Apple is not tracking its users’ location, but Android is tracking everyone. The authenticity of such e-mails has often been disputed, but whoever sent that message might have been right.

Many questions are still left unanswered. We don’t know what Carrier IQ does with the data it collects, or whether it sends keystrokes, SMS messages or other info back to Carrier IQ’s servers. We don’t know the nature of the deal between Carrier IQ and – seemingly – most of the world’s carriers, since almost every device which is sold together with a carrier contract has the app installed. We’ll keep you updated as the story unfolds.

More About: android, Carrier IQ, Google, Google Nexus, iphone, tracking

For more Mobile coverage:

Hearst: We’ll Have More Than 1 Million Paying Digital Subscribers in 2012

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 09:29 PM PST


David Carey, president of magazine publisher Hearst Corp, expects the company will have more than 1 million paying digital subscribers by the end of 2012.

“We do expect in 2012 at some point to be able to have more than a million on e-subscriptions,” he said on stage at Reuter’s Global Media Summit Wednesday.

Carey disclosed that nearly 400,000 tablet owners have subscribed to the digital editions of magazines such as Cosmopolitan, Esquire and Good Housekeeping so far. Many of Hearst’s titles are available on the iPad, Nook Color and, more recently, the Kindle Fire. Subscriptions are growing by 10 to 15% per month, he added.

Unlike other magazine publishers such as Conde Nast, Hearst does not offer print subscribers free access to the digital editions of its magazines. Prices vary depending on the device. Esquire, for instance, costs $8.00 per year on the iPad — the same price as print — and $24 per month on the Nook Color. It’s not known to what degree those digital subscriptions are cannibalizing print sales.

He also said the company has been moderately successful in getting iPad subscribers to share their personal information. Between 60 and 65% of iPad subscribers opt to share their data — critical information for its ad sales team. Apple refuses to share subscriber information with publishers.

In other Hearst news, the company announced Wednesday morning it was adding blogger collectives to the sites of many of its titles, beginning with Redbook.

More About: david carey, hearst, ipad, magazines, Media

For more Business coverage:

Secret Hack Reveals New Google Bar [PICS]

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 09:08 PM PST


Using Google+? Add Mashable to your circles. You’ll get the latest about new Google+ features and tips and tricks for using the platform as well as top social media and technology news.


You might have heard Google is in the process of changing the design of its controversial black Google Bar across the top of most of its products. The company announced in a blog post on Wednesday that its infamous Bar would be replaced with a pop-up that appears when you move your cursor over the Google logo.

Now, we found a quick hack that will give you a first look at the redesign, and it’s as easy as downloading an extension, loading it into a Google Chrome browser, changing a small bit of code and then enjoying that luxuriant new Google look that banishes the bar forever.

Want to say goodbye to that ugly black bar across the top of Google products? Follow our easy step-by-step tutorial below, and you’ll get to see the brand-new Google user interface before anyone else. Special thanks to Maximilian Majewski for this quick and easy hack.

UPDATE: Some readers are reporting the update is now present on their browsers and Google accounts. To save you some time, check to see if the update is on your account before going through this process.

Either way, you can now access and use this new user interface. What do you think? Is it an improvement over the old black bar? What would you like to see instead? Should Google give you a way to revert to the old black bar?


1. Get this Extension, then click Add to Chrome




Get the "Edit This Cookie" extension: http://goo.gl/CeKtT

Click here to view this gallery.

Update 2:

If you’d rather just follow a list, here it is, courtesy of Maxilian Majewski:

1. Go get this extension to change cookies. http://goo.gl/CeKtT
2. Load Google.com and right-click to edit the cookies.
3. Change “PREF” to this (try triple-clicking it):
ID=03fd476a699d6487:U=88e8716486ff1e5d:FF=0:LD=en:CR=2:TM=1322688084:LM=1322688085:S=McEsyvcXKMiVfGds
4. Don’t forget to save your changes at the bottom.
5. Reload and you have the new Google bar.

More About: Google Bar, hack, How-To, secret

Your Laptop’s Wi-Fi Might Cause Male Fertility Problems

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 08:29 PM PST


Men beware. The Wi-Fi from your laptop could be hurting the health of your sperm.

A new study, published in the medical journal Fertility and Sterility by researchers from Argentina and the U.S., found that semen samples placed a little more than an inch under a Wi-Fi-connected laptop experienced more DNA damage and mobility issues than regular sperm. The samples were taken from 29 healthy men with an average age of 34.

After just four hours sitting under a Wi-Fi-connected laptop, 25% of the sperm samples were no longer mobile and nine percent showed DNA damage. Meanwhile, only 14% of the samples stored away from the computer were inactive, and they showed minimal DNA damage.

“Our data suggest that the use of a laptop computer wirelessly connected to the Internet and positioned near the male reproductive organs may decrease human sperm quality,” the report said. “At present we do not know whether this effect is induced by all laptop computers connected by Wi-Fi to the Internet, or what use conditions heighten this effect.”

The study also tested the sperm next to laptops that were not connected to Wi-Fi. They showed some damage — though less than the connected laptops. This suggests heat may also be a factor in impacting the health of your swimmers.

This is not the first time a study revealed that laptops might be harmful to sperm. A widely-reported 2010 study found that men who keep their laptops on their laps may be hurting the quality of their sperm due to scrotal hyperthermia — that is, elevated temperatures in the testes.

The latest study noted that more research needs to be conducted to learn the true effects of electromagnetic radiation generated by a laptop’s Wi-Fi connection — since it was conducted in an artificial setting.

Male infertility is not uncommon. In fact, about one in six U.S. couples have difficulty conceiving. According to the American Urological Association, a man’s fertility is a factor in 50 percent of these cases.

More About: laptops, sperm, wi-fi

Can Gamifying a Restaurant Get You Better Service?

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 08:04 PM PST


The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here.

Name: Objective Logistics

Quick Pitch: Objective Logistics’ software, Muse, rewards waitstaff and sales staff for good work.

Genius Idea: Automatically determining work performance based on criteria such as sales, tips, surveys and customer acquisition data.

Several startups have taken stabs at making work feel more like playing a game. Badgeville, for instance, rewards employees for activities such as watching training videos or sharing links to job openings. Bunchball and Seriosity offer similar motivations.

But in sales and restaurant environments, where nobody is sitting in front of a computer, these programs aren’t as viable. Objective Logistics hopes to provide a solution that seemlessly integrates with the point of sale machines that these companies are already using.

The startup recently raised a $1.5 million round of funding led by Google Ventures and Atlas Venture, and it is beta testing its software, Muse, in a 17-unit chain of restaurants called Not Your Average Joe’s. Muse uses data from customer payments, including sales and tips, to track each employee’s performance. Employees who perform the best win the shifts they prefer.

This simple beta version of the platform, says Objective Logistics co-founder Philip Beauregard, has resulted in a 1.8% increase in sales and an 11% increase in gratuities throughout the Not Your Average Joe's chain.

It’s not surprising that giving workers an incentive to work hard improves their performance. Sales commissions appeared on the scene long ago. What’s surprising is that Muse, which the startup plans to sell using a subscription model, works across multiple types of point of sale systems.

“[Point of Sale] integration is mind-blowingly difficult,” Beauregard says.”What we did is build what amounts to being the Mars Rover or Rosetta Stone of point-of-sale systems.”

Beaugard says he will use the new funding to incorporate other rewards in the platform and add a feature that offers employees tips for how they can improve their performance. An employee who sells a lot of appetizers but doesn’t ever sell desserts, for instance, might receive an incentivised “mission” to sell a certain number of after-dinner treats in one night.

“We aim to create a meritocracy in [the restaurant and sales enviornment],” he says.

Images courtesy of iStockphoto, wdstock

Series Supported by Microsoft BizSpark

Microsoft BizSpark

The Spark of Genius Series highlights a unique feature of startups and is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark, a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

More About: bizspark, muse, Objective Logistics

For more Business coverage:

Google+ Brand Pages: Multi-Admin Capability ‘Coming Soon’

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 07:27 PM PST


Using Google+? Add Mashable to your circles. You’ll get the latest about new Google+ features and tips and tricks for using the platform as well as top social media and technology news.

Google+ will allow multiple admins to manage a brand page “before 2012,” Kristoffer Sorensen, a Google marketing strategist, said on in a live Q&A on Wednesday.

Currently, brand pages are tied to one admin account that has total control over the page and profile. This has been a point of frustration for social media managers who have multiple team members updating their company social profiles.

Until two weeks ago, when Google gave select third-party apps early access to the Google+ API, the only solution was for a team to share one login or for one person to maintain the Google+ page alone. These situations are less than ideal because they can cause security and workflow issues. When the social media management tools in the pilot program integrated Google+ posting, companies not using these tools were still at a loss. Even some social managers using one of the six select services with Google+ are struggling as they wait for the early Google+ API to iron out some kinks.

Sorensen and his team addressed other popular feature requests in the live Q&A. While scheduled posting and events integration seem to be up in the air, the Google reps said analytics, widely-available Hangouts on Air and mobile page management are in the works.

How might the multi-admin feature help your Google+ brand page? What other features are you most looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below.

BONUS: Google+ Brand Page Tips


1. Access Your Brand Page




Once you've set up your brand page, you access it through your personal Google+ profile.

On your home page below your name and avatar pic is a drop down menu.

Open this menu to see your page, click on it to access it.

Click here to view this gallery.

More About: Google, Social Media, social media management

For more Business coverage:

8 Handy, Beautiful Social Media Tips From Grandma [PICS]

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 06:41 PM PST

Move over Sophia Petrillo, there’s a new Golden Girl in town sharing her timeless advice on how to act on various social networks and Internet hangouts. Props to Chacho Puebla and his latest project, Grandmother Tips, a humorous collection of tips our grandmothers never taught us, but we might share with our grandchildren.

The typography series features Puebla’s great aunt holding signs with bold, beautiful type, bestowing words of wisdom for a new generation, since the times they are a-changin’.


"Vimeo has more quality"





Click here to view this gallery.

More About: Facebook, Social Media, Twitter, typography

Your New Facebook Status: 63,206 Characters or Less

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 06:11 PM PST


Twitter, as everyone and their tweeting dog knows, limits your status updates to 140 characters. But Facebook? Facebook laughs in the face of such limitations. On Facebook, 140 characters is barely clearing your throat.

In a blog post Wednesday, Facebook’s Journalist Program Manager (and Mashable alum) Vadim Lavrusik announced that the limit of Facebook status updates has now been upped to “more than 60,000 characters.” When Mashable asked, Lavrusik explained what that meant, exactly: You can now post a status update measuring 63,206 characters.

But not one character more than that. Sorry, would-be Facebook novelists; you’ll have to split your prose into multiple updates. (As Lavrusik points out, an average novel will now require nine status updates.) This also goes for group messages and posts on your friends’ walls — so you can now annoy the heck out of them with unreasonably long catch-up messages.

Facebook update character limits have been expanding almost as rapidly as the social network itself. Until March 2009, the limit was barely bigger than Twitter’s, at 160 characters. Then 420 characters marked the end of your post’s potential. This summer, it jumped from 500 to 5,000, and now the limit has hit the stratosphere.

So much for social media keeping things short and sweet. At least one Facebook user has already attempted a status update with 60,000 characters of nonsense words, but he’ll need to add 3,206 more to hit the limit.

Below is Facebook’s visualization of the status update limits. Would you ever post a message this long? Let us know in the comments. But please, if you can, keep it short.

More About: Facebook, facebook status updates, Twitter

Amazon Santa App Helps Parents Find the Right Gifts [VIDEO]

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 05:44 PM PST


Amazon has launched an app for iPad and Kindle Fire that lets kids create holiday gift wish lists that parents can then browse and share with other family members. Learn more about the free app — dubbed “Santa App” — in the video above.

More About: amazon, Christmas, holiday 2011, ipad, kindle fire

Hands On With Spotify’s New App Platform

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 05:03 PM PST


What's New




The newly designed "What's New" screen features new albums and trending playlists and tracks from Spotify friends.

Click here to view this gallery.

Spotify just announced its new app platform. Partnering with the likes of Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, Billboard, Last.fm and The Guardian, the online music service aims to allow users to get more from their tunes.

As Mashable reader Cristian Parrino pointed out in the comments, the fact that an app has launched its own app platform is an intriguing move.

In short, Spotify is looking to expand its ecosystem — by allowing others to build on top of its interface.

We downloaded the preview version of Spotify and fired up some of the apps.

The Spotify Platform is clearly in the early stages, but the potential of this sort of platform is immense. For publications such as Pitchfork, Rolling Stone and Billboard, apps offer a way to provide content and perhaps even gain interaction. Reading an album review while listening to the album makes for a compelling user experience.

Still, the most interesting apps are those that integrate with the service in new and inventive ways. For instance, the Last.fm app allows users to generate related song playlists based on the track they are currently listening to. And TuneWiki brings lyrics to Spotify in a way that is real-time and synced alongside playback.

Whether or not Spotify can evolve from a simple service into a platform for other services — the way Facebook, Twitter and iOS did — remains to be seen. But we’re hopeful that Spotify apps will encourage more innovation in social music.

Check out our gallery of Spotify apps below, and let us know in the comments which ones you think you’ll enjoy the most.

More About: Feature, music streaming services, spotify, Spotify apps

Fowl Idea: Angry Birds Cookbook Finally Released

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 04:11 PM PST


The Angry Birds cookbook cover




This cover features all the game's popular characters.

Click here to view this gallery.

Do Angry Birds make Tasty Meals? Rovio Mobile sure as heck hopes so with the official release of its Angry Birds cookbook, titled Angry Birds: Bad Piggies’ Egg Recipes.

The book is stocked with cute illustrations and characters from the popular, bird-slinging mobile game. As the title suggests, the cookbook is packed with egg recipes including breakfast dishes (omelets), heartier fare (egg sandwiches), desserts (souffle) and more adventurous options such as “Egg Sushi.”

Bad Piggies Egg Recipes puts Angry Birds‘s bad guys front and center, and while the bright illustrations by Pasi Pitkanen and tongue-in-cheek recipe names — a sorbet recipe is called “Ice, Ice Baby” — may appeal to a younger demographic, the recipes themselves are actually pretty adventurous. Any kid can probably figure out eggs and hash browns, but you try finding a kid that can make a proper souffle or a noodle-crusted quiche.

More importantly, do the recipes actually taste any good? We’re willing to give Rovio the benefit of the doubt, but don’t take our word for it, The cookbook is more likely a way to bring kids and parents together to make some fun, non-threatening recipes. It’s also a good way to cash in on Angry Birds‘s tremendous popularity. The book costs a little more than $10 on Amazon and joins a parade of other Angry Birds-themed paraphernalia including plush toys, apparel, stickers, silly bandz, and so on.

The cookbook was released at Nokia House, a pop-up shop in London showcasing Nokia’s first Windows Phone, recombu reports. Mike Cooper, creative lead at Conversations by Nokia, filmed his two children making a “Shake ‘em Shake: Banana Alternative.” Apparently the results were egg-celent. Erhm.

Is the Angry Birds cookbook a brilliant idea or just milking the franchise for all its worth? Let us know in the comments below.

More About: angry birds, Mobile, mobile games

For more Entertainment coverage:

Future of WebOS: HP Decision Expected in Two Weeks

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 03:47 PM PST


After a disastrous wireless turn from HP that culminated last week with HP taking a charge of $1.66 billion to wind down its webOS mobile platform operation, HP’s CEO, Meg Whitman, has finally put a date on when the company will announce the fate of webOS: in the next two weeks.

That is according to an interview that she has given to the French newspaper Le Figaro (via TNW), in which she also notes that there are about 600 people left working in webOS, which further complicates its fate.

WebOS has been hanging in the air for months now, after HP abruptly announced this summer that it would discontinue making smartphones and other devices using the OS—just weeks after it had launched its first tablet, the TouchPad.

Since then, there have been rumors of potential buyers (including Amazon and Oracle); and even the thought that HP might hang on to the OS itself. After all, it already made one spectacular u-turn when it decided to hold on to its PC business, after former CEO Leo Apotheker had said the plan was to get rid of it.

Last month, it looked like HP was finally ready to spill the beans on what would happen with the platform business—with Whitman calling an all-hands meeting with staff in the division—but ultimately there was no news. Either that, or whatever news she hoped to deliver still hadn’t been finalized, because nothing came of that meeting.

The webOS platform held a lot of promise when it was first unveiled by Palm (which HP bought only last April for $1.2 billion). Its many supporters believed it provided an effective and engaging counterbalance to the trailblazing power that Apple and Google wield in the world of smarpthones and tablets. But today, with an almost negligible market share, it will take a lot of enterprise, attention, and investment if anyone hopes to get webOS up to speed again.

More About: HP, webOS

For more Mobile coverage:

Spotify Exec Sets Sights on ‘Ubiquitous’ Plans

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 03:09 PM PST


At its first-ever U.S. press conference, Spotify unveiled on Wednesday a new app platform that allows third-party developers to use the streaming service's music library and community. Although the apps are only available in beta versions right now for desktop computers, a company executive told Mashable that Spotify will be "everywhere" in the future, including on mobile devices such as the iPad.

"Spotify will eventually be ubiquitous, especially as more users want music on tablet devices. Music lovers want music everywhere, including when they drive their car," said Ken Parks, Spotify's chief content officer and managing director for North America. "Based on how well the desktop apps perform, we are very open to the future. A music store will also come."

A music store would allow members to purchase songs directly from the service could also arrive. This feature is already available for European Spotify. For now, Spotify is partnering with companies such as Rolling Stone, Last.fm, Songkick and tunewiki to provide apps that will make the site more engaging for users, from allowing them to access song lyrics to purchase concert tickets. Parks confirmed that some users will start to see the apps automatically pop up through Spotify as early as next week.

Overall, Spotify's business model is following a path similar to Facebook’s, starting first as a website before expanding to mobile and third-party apps. In September, the company rolled out social integration to Facebook and has attracted new members ever since.

Spotify has been under pressure recently from competitors such as Google Music, the recently-unveiled free service that allows users to upload, share and browse songs, and then listen to them on the go via cloud storage on Android devices. However, Park said he’s currently more concerned with “providing new ways to keep users engaged on the site and growing that user base" than standing out among competitors.

Parks also noted that the more people remain engaged on the site, "the more likely they are to return and pay for a premium service."

Spotify members can use the site for free for the first six months and later opt-in to premium packages for unlimited access.

A preview of the new Spotify apps is now available for download.

More About: Music, spotify, Spotify apps

Android Smartphones Have Big Security Hole [VIDEO]

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 02:26 PM PST


If Google was just starting to forget about the Android malware threats from earlier this year, now it has another security headache: Researchers at North Carolina State University just discovered a new vulnerability in some of the most popular Android phones being sold today.

The security flaw, described in detail in this white paper, is specific to a certain implementation of the Android operating system, the researchers say, so it doesn't necessarily affect all Android phones. Most Android handset makers integrate their own software (sometimes called “bloatware”) on top of the basic Android OS (for example, HTC's Sense interface) to serve up various services and differentiate themselves.

But that software is exactly what's opening up certain phones to malware threats, the research says. Dr. Xuxian Jiang led a team that looked at multiple Android devices, and found that some of the pre-loaded applications that various manufacturers put in, like text-message notifiers, created a "backdoor" to the phone that third parties could exploit.

What sort of problems could arise? That depends on what sort of malware those hackers use. Theoretically, the vulnerability could be used to install software that records phone calls, send text messages, or even wipe the phone's settings, according to Science Daily. It's not clear if hackers could use the backdoor to actually "root" the phone, but if it's possible, all bets are off.

The good news: the researchers also tested phones running stock Android, and those phones were "basically clean," Jiang says. So was the Motorola Droid.

But many other popular phones are vulnerable. The research specifically names the HTC Legend, EVO 4G, and Wildfire S; the Motorola Droid X; and the Samsung Epic 4G. Most at risk are users of the EVO 4G, which displayed the most vulnerabilities. The EVO is the third most popular smartphone in the U.S., according to research from NPD.

Short of throwing your cellphone away, there are easy ways Android users can guard against malware. First and foremost: download only from trusted sources, like the Google Android Market. While the Market doesn't have a 100% spotless record on malware, it's still the biggest and most secure app store for Android, and when Google learns of any problem, it acts fast.

Besides that, users should use a screen password, install OS updates as soon as they're available for your device, and caution from viewing sensitive information over public Wi-Fi. Finally, several security companies, such as Lookout and Norton, have free security apps that will help protect your phone from becoming a nest for viruses and trojans.

Jiang's research is ongoing — he's going further into the Android device catalog to see if any more phones are vulnerable to the same problem. Mashable contacted Google, Samsung, HTC and Motorola about the report, and we'll update this story with any responses.

More About: android, cellphones, EVO 4G, Google, malware, virus

For more Mobile coverage:

How to Communicate Your Software Needs to a Developer

Posted: 30 Nov 2011 02:07 PM PST


Brett Miller is the president of Custom Software by Preston (CSP). For more than 10 years, CSP has impressed clients with highly effective software solutions and teams of multi-talented software engineers.

It might seem obvious, but effectively communicating your project needs to software developers is more than just important. It could actually mean the difference between a project that achieves its objectives and one that does not.

Having an idea in mind and being able to discuss it intelligently isn't always enough to efficiently communicate all the critical nuances and required details. I strongly recommend that clients produce a requirements document to facilitate agreement among stakeholders, and in turn, to communicate that information to members of the development team.

SEE ALSO: HOW TO: Hire a Designer or Developer

Below are some techniques and exercises that can be used to help you document the vision for your software project.  Chances are you’ll discover new details and potentials that you hadn’t even considered before.

The good news is that you can't do this wrong.  The key to success is to take the time to thoroughly dig into your thoughts, identify vital details and pinpoint the scenarios you need to account for. Spending the time to be thorough at this juncture could end up saving many hours of development, which translates into fewer headaches and lower costs.
 

Let's Get Started

  • List a few websites you like. Is it the aesthetics or the functionality? Is there something you do not like about any of the websites?
  • List a few competitors. What do you like and not like about their websites?
  • List three adjectives. Give the developer three adjectives to describe the look and feel of the user interface that you would like built — for example, sophisticated, modern and edgy.
  • Input and Output of the application: Identify the information that’s entered into the application, manually or automatically. Also identify the information that the application produces.

Existing Applications

  • Documentation: Wherever possible, gather all the documentation (development codes, executable app, notes, documentation, etc.) and have it available for the developer.
  • Process Detailing: Your developer will need access to a live account to better understanding existing software. Even if the process is currently handled manually, providing details (and examples) on the specifics will give your development team a solid point of reference.

Application Users

  • Planned System Users: Categorize them into types when needing certain application capabilities wherever possible.
  • Features Needed: Describe the major features you want.

Add details to the major features categories identified above:

  • Where is this feature accessed and how is it used?
  • What are the different scenarios of usage, and if this happens, then what else can occur)?
  • Who is the capability designed for?
  • Why do they need to be able to do this?
  • Is this capability optional, due to cost or some other factor?

    • What additional details can you add to the feature list?

    • Internal vs. External: Which project responsibilities will be handled internally instead of having a development team work on it? (examples: drafting requirements, writing verbiage, testing, hosting, marketing, graphic design, etc.)
    • Internal Staff Capabilities: How technical is your staff to use the advanced features of the application?
    • Defining Success: What defines success on this project — affordability, user friendliness, aesthetics, simplicity, information organization or some measured combination of those factors?

    Final Check

    Has everything of importance been identified, categorized and explored in your documentation?

    Seasoned software developers have been through this analysis process many times. Your efforts to produce as much of this information as possible in advance will aid their efforts to reach your project's goals. Complete this documentation as thoroughly as possible and you will find yourself well on the road to project success.

    Image courtesy of iStockphoto, TommL

    More About: Business, contributor, developers, features, software development

    For more Dev & Design coverage:

    Coldplay and Friends Doodle With Pencils for a Good Cause

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 01:41 PM PST


    Owl by Jonathan Adler




    Click here to view this gallery.

    To help educate kids in need, celebrities such as Olivia Wilde, Coldplay, and Jonathan Adler are creating a series of pencil drawings made exclusively for Pencils of Promise. The proceeds from these celebrity doodles will be used to help build schools in the developing world.

    The program, called “Made With Pencils,” is simple: Celebs create whatever they want only using pencils. The drawings are then auctioned off by Pencils of Promise with all profits helping to build schools and deliver educational tools — such as pencils — to developing communities and children in need around the world.

    As you can imagine, the quality of the art fluctuates. Shaquille O’Neal submitted a signed outline of his own (massive) hand whereas artist Joe Fenton submitted a lush and highly-symbolic interpretation of the pursuit of knowledge. In all cases, the genuine effort and goodwill behind the works outweighs their artistic merit. Shaq might not be much of a visual artist but it’s meaningful that he was at least willing to give it the ol’ college try for a good cause.

    Most of the artworks center on themes of education and inspiration. So far, Made With Pencils only has the five works shown above, but Pencils of Promise has promised dozens more over the coming weeks from top talents including Hugh Jackman, Katie Couric, Russell Simmons, Steve Nash and others.

    Since the campaign’s launch on Nov. 29, the artwork has already started to gain a number of bids. Currently, all five were worth at least $250 with nine days still left before the auctions close. It’s safe to say bidders are paying more for the thought behind the art than the art itself, but with all proceeds going to help education, everyone wins.

    Take a look and let us know — would you hang any of these in your house? Does Made With Pencils help show a human side to your favorite celebs?

    More About: art, charity, education, Social Good

    For more Social Good coverage:

    Find a Job in Social Media, Communications or Design

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 01:25 PM PST


    If you’re seeking a job in social media, we’d like to help. For starters, Mashable‘s Job Lists gather all our resource lists, how-tos and expert guides to help you get hired. In particular, you might want to see our articles, How to Leverage Social Media for Career Success and How to Find a Job on Twitter.

    But we’d like to help in a more direct way, too. Mashable‘s job boards are a place for socially savvy companies to find people like you. This week and every week, Mashable features its coveted job board listings for a variety of positions on the web, social media space and beyond.

    Have a look at what's good and new on our job boards:

    Mashable Job Postings

    Community Intern (Winter/Spring 2012) at Mashable in New York, NY.

    Community Intern (Summer 2012) at Mashable in New York, NY.

    Editorial Intern (Winter/Spring 2012) at Mashable in New York, NY.

    Editorial Intern (Summer 2012) at Mashable in New York, NY.

    Editorial Intern (Winter/Spring 2012) at Mashable in San Francisco, CA.

    Editorial Intern (Summer 2012) at Mashable in San Francisco, CA.

    Tech Reporter at Mashable in San Francisco, CA.

    Sales Marketing Manager at Mashable in New York, NY.

    Billing Strategist at Mashable in New York, NY.

    Mashable Job Board Listings

    Marketing Manager at G3 Communications in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ.

    Sr. Director Delivery at iCrossing in New York, NY.

    Sr. Account Director at iCrossing in New York, NY.

    Social Media Manager – UCLA Marketing & Communications Services at University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, CA.

    E-Commerce Coordinator at Lafayette 148 New York in New York, NY.

    Executive Assistant/Office Manager at Howcast in New York, NY.

    Interns, Account Planning and Account Management at 180LA in Santa Monica, CA.

    Social Media Strategy Director at Likeable Media in New York, NY.

    Email Marketing Manager at Memory Lane in Seattle, WA.

    Community Manager at zooom productions in Los Angeles, CA.

    Software Developer in Test at Synacor in Buffalo, NY.

    Sales Planner at The Atlantic in New York, NY.

    Senior Digital Marketing Manager at The Atlantic in New York, NY.

    Integrated Marketing Manager at The Atlantic in New York, NY.

    Integrated Marketing Manager at Wikia in San Francisco, CA.

    Digital Strategist/Planner at BooneOakley in Charlotte, NC.

    Inside Sales Representative at Factual in Los Angeles, CA.

    Web Designer at Factual in Los Angeles, CA.

    Associate Marketing Strategist at ALLDAYEVERYDAY in New York, NY.

    Digital Sales Planner at The Reader’s Digest Association in New York, NY.

    Chief Operating Officer at Goldrun in New York, NY.

    Content Marketing Specialist at Digital Brand Expressions in Plainsboro, NJ.

    Jr. Internet Marketing Specialist at WebpageFX in Carlisle, PA.

    More About: COMMUNICATIONS, design, jobs, Lists, Social Media

    For more Business coverage:

    How to Check Your iPhone Data Usage

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 12:58 PM PST


    Wondering just how much data you’re pulling down in a given month on your iPhone? There are a few ways to check your usage.

    You can head to AT&T’s wireless website, log into your account, and create a billing report (under “Bills and Payments,” click “Create Billing Report,” and “Data Usage Trend”), which gives you a detailed graph on how much data you’re using. You can also estimate how much you use with your provider’s online data calculator.

    Find your usage for AT&T, Verizon, or by signing in to your Sprint account.

    However, this third way only requires you and your iPhone to see how much data you’re devouring.

    First, head to your iPhone’s settings app. Scroll down to “General,” then click on “usage.” You’ll see your minute breakdown, but at the very bottom you’ll see your data usage (sending and receiving) over the cellular network. If you’ve never reset your stats, you’ll find that this number will be fairly high.

    Since existing customers can keep the plans they’re on now, you can reset your statistics today (by hitting the “Reset Statistics” button at the bottom of the screen), and check back next week to estimate just how much bandwidth you’re eating up each month, and determine if you want to switch to a less expensive plan.

    Image courtesy of iStockphoto, izusek

    More About: apple, iphone

    For more Mobile coverage:

    Walmart’s Animated Fruitcake Comments on Your Facebook Wall

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 12:26 PM PST



    Walmart has released an uncharacteristically odd attempt at a holiday meme: Frank the Fruitcake, an animated dessert that sounds like comedian Bobcat Goldthwaite.

    The ad campaign, a nod to the comedic trope that the same fruitcake gets passed on uneaten, year after year, is new ground for Walmart. “The brief said, ‘Spread some holiday cheer,’” says Joe Alexander, creative director at the Martin Agency, which created Frank. Alexander says that though Walmart’s ads have been getting funnier, “They hadn’t really done this kind of loosey-goosey thing before.”

    Frank, which will be supported by a few banner ads, works like this: At the Frank the Fruitcake site you can load Frank to your Facebook Wall or send it to one of your Facebook friends. Once on your wall, a video of Frank will provide a running commentary. “Looks like you have a lot of friends,” Frank says at one point. “Call them up. Come on over. We can go caroling, play dreidels, whatever.”

    As voiced by Goldthwaite, Frank is meant to be, in Alexander’s words, “annoyingly charming” and embody a gift that no one wants. The only plug for the sponsor is a line about going to the retailer to get gifts “that everyone wants.”

    Any online holiday campaign, particularly one by a retailer, owes a debt to OfficeMax’s “Elf Yourself,” a campaign now in its sixth year that lets consumers graft pictures of themselves onto animated elf bodies. Alexander says Walmart was hoping to do something viral for the holidays, while ensuring that it was substantially different from “Elf Yourself.”

    What do you think of Frank? Sound off in the comments.

    More About: Advertising, elf yourself, Holidays, Marketing, trending, viral marketing, WalMart

    Tyra Banks to Host Google+ Hangout

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 12:12 PM PST


    Using Google+? Add Mashable to your circles. You’ll get the latest about new Google+ features and tips and tricks for using the platform as well as top social media and technology news.

    Former Victoria’s Secret model and America’s Next Top Model host Tyra Banks is hosting a Google+ Hangout Wednesday to promote her new book, Modelland.

    Beginning at 8 p.m. ET, Banks will be joined by two “superfans” in the Hangout: Emily Doherty, who tweets from @TyrasFanForever, and Sharontina Brightman, a.k.a. @TyrasLilSis. Banks’s digital director will moderate a live video discussion on the book, bullying and definitions of beauty.

    Viewers are invited to leave questions on Modelland‘s Google+ page and on Twitter using the hashtag #TyrasHangout. A few will be selected to join the Hangout discussion.

    Google+ has proved a good promotional tool as of late. Broadcasters, journalists and even the Dalai Lama are taking advantage of the platform’s novelty and group participation functions to draw awareness to their work.

    More About: Google, Google+, tyra banks

    Beyond the Great Firewall: How China Does Social Networking [INFOGRAPHIC]

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 11:47 AM PST

    China’s notorious Great Firewall — or as they call it, the Golden Shield — is known for blocking some high profile sites. Facebook, YouTube and Twitter are all victims. But that has not kept the world’s most populous country from getting into social networking. Some 500 million Chinese citizens are online and a quarter of the world’s social network users live under the firewall.

    So how then, do the Chinese connect online? On their own series of social networks, mimicking several blocked foreign counterparts. Renren and Kaixin001 fill Facebook’s void. Sina Weibo is the microblog of choice in Twitter’s absence. Youku is a video hosting platform, which only loosely enforces copyright laws; think of it as a YouTube-meets-Hulu, because many popular TV shows and movies are posted freely. Jiepang is the most popular location-based mobile app, with Foursquare-style checkins.

    This infographic, created by G+ (not to be confused with Google+), takes a look at China’s answer to social networking. Of the country’s half billion Internet users, half of them are on multiple social networks and 30% log into at least one network each day. Chinese citizens spend an average of 2.7 hours online per day — second to only the Japanese.

    In addition to blocking social networks, the Chinese government blocked some one million articles each day of 2010, shut down 1.3 million websites and the country saw 41% fewer sites total than in 2009.

    SEE ALSO: China Is Taking Over the Web, and Other Internet Trends [STATS]

    G+ suggests some reasons why the Chinese love social networking — long distance migration away from families for work, single child families leave children yearning for social interactions at home, the prevalence of affordable Internet and the widespread mistrust of the government-controlled media.

    “The Internet is a lot more influential in China in comparison to the United States and other countries,” Jens Thraenhart, president of China-based marketing company Dragon Trail, is quoted saying in the infographic.

    Backing up Thraenhart’s statement, a Synthesio survey says 95% of Chinese citizens say brands that microblog are at least somewhat trustworthy. Sixty-one percent of Chinese social network users have made a purchase because of digital advertising.

    What do you think the repercussions will be of China’s internal social networking habits? Who’s missing out, China or the rest of the world?

    INFOGRAPHIC: A Social Media Revolution - China's Answer to Social Networking

    Thumbnail image courtesy of iStockphoto, Bo1982

    More About: china, Great Firewall of China, renren, trending

    A Second iPhone 4 Catches Fire, This Time in Brazil

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 11:23 AM PST


    Looks like Australia isn’t the only country to have seen an incident of a combustible iPhone 4 over the past week. A similar incident has been reported in Brazil as well, where a device plugged in for overnight charging allegedly began emitting smoke and sparks less than a foot from its sleeping owner’s face.

    According to Brazilian media reports, the iPhone’s owner emerged unscathed but flustered. The device was made in France, where in 2009 a teenager claimed to have been hit in the eye with a glass splinter when his girlfriend’s iPhone began hissing — and its glass screen exploded.

    Also worth noting is that in Brazil the 8GB iPhone 4, newly introduced there, is believed to have the world’s heftiest price tag for the model, with devices reportedly going for more than $900, data plan not included.

    The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating the iPhone 4 that began emitting smoke and glowing red aboard a domestic flight there last weekend, as what exactly caused that combustion remains speculative.

    Apple has so far not responded to Mashable comment requests on the Brazilian or Australian reports.

    Hat tip to Brazilian Mashable reader Marcelo Magagnin.

    Image courtesy of www.blogdoiphone.com

    More About: apple, australia, Brazil, combust, iphone, iPhone problems, trending

    New Foursquare Button Lets You Collect and Use Reviews Later

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 10:59 AM PST


    Foursquare is adding two new features that aim to integrate publishers’ and brands’ content into users’ mobile activities, a “Follow” and a “Save to Foursquare” button.

    The additions, announced Wednesday, are also designed to give consumers information when they’re on the go.

    Save to Foursquare is an update of “Add to Foursquare,” a feature the company introduced in 2010 for a short time. Save to Foursquare does the same thing: It lets users save reviews and articles about a venue to their To Do list and then call them up when they check in or are in range of that venue. The previous iteration was phased out because publishers found embedding the button to be too cumbersome. The new version promises to be more of a turnkey solution for publishers

    Jonathan Crowley, director of media partnerships at Foursquare, says with Save to Foursquare a user can, for instance read an article in Time Out New York about a restaurant and then save it to the app. Later on, perhaps months even, Foursquare will serve up the article when he’s in range (if the user has activated Foursquare’s Radar feature) or produce it when the user checks in to the restaurant. Crowley says another application for Save to Foursquare is for planning trips. If you’re heading to San Francisco for instance, you can load Foursquare with reviews and other travel information.

    Publishers including New York magazine, CBS Local Digital Media, Time Out New York, Time Out Chicago and and AskMen.com, among others, will be offering that feature starting Wednesday. Foursquare has also introduced a Foursquare Bookmarklet that lets users save any webpage they like when they integrate the function into their browser.

    Follow, meanwhile, behaves much like Twitter’s Follow button for publishers and lets users receive updates from publishers and brands they want to follow.

    What do you think? Will you use these features? Let us know in the comments.

    More About: foursquare, Time Out New York

    10 New Google Analytics Features You Need to Start Using

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 10:29 AM PST


    Rachael Gerson spearheads the Analytics division at SEER Interactive. Follow her on Twitter @rachaelgerson.

    Over the past eight months, Google has steadily released one revolutionary new feature after another. On March 17, the company announced a new version of Google Analytics. Up until this point, users could decide whether they preferred to stick with the old interface or switch to the new one. However, Google recently announced that the old version of GA will be turned off in January 2012.

    If you’re not already familiar with the new version, take the next few weeks to get comfortable with it. To help you get started, let's review the top 10 features of the new Google Analytics.

    1. Dashboards

    Dashboards got a much needed overhaul in the new GA. Users can now create up to 20 personalized dashboards, developing widgets and formats that make the most sense for them or their company. For instance, each company department could develop its own distinct dashboard to quickly access site performance statistics that relate to department goals. Keep in mind: Dashboards can only be shared by users on the same login.

    At a minimum, these four widgets would benefit the average user.

    • Visits – Timeline (can also include Metric)
    • Goal Completions and/or Transactions – Timeline
    • Source/Medium – Table
    • Bounce Rate – Timeline

    2. Keyword Clouds

    Rather than viewing a long list of keywords to spot trends, users can now evaluate a keyword cloud. This cloud makes it easy to visualize top keywords based on different user-selected criteria, including visits, bounce rates and pages per visit.

    3. Real-Time Data

    In the past, Google Analytics data was typically delayed up to 24 hours after the visit. For the first time, GA offers a real-time data solution. With its real-time reports, users can view the activity on the site as it happens, drilling into the top active pages, top referrals, keywords and geographic locations driving the traffic. In addition to monitoring current activity on the site, these reports can also be used to test campaign tracking prior to launching campaigns.

    4. Site Speed

    When Google released this report several months ago, it required additional code to be added to sites. Now speed reporting is standard on GA, and doesn't need extra code. Use the site speed reports to get information about average page load time.

    Why is this important? A slow site can have a negative effect on quality score for paid search, so visits can cost more to a slower site. Google has also indicated that site speed may be an important factor in organic search rankings. Additionally, a one-second delay can result in a 7% reduction in conversions. Use this report to monitor site speed and avoid these issues.

    5. Search Simplifies Navigation

    GA has activated menu search, a phenomenal usability update. The tool makes it easier for users to quickly navigate to the proper report. Google also created an account search that lets users directly access the correct profile, rather than scrolling through hundreds to locate the right one.

    GA also introduced the ability to switch between multiple profiles while staying with and maintaining the settings of the same report. Previously this could only be done using a Firefox plugin.

    6. Webmaster Tools

    The new integration incorporates Google Webmaster Tools data into Google Analytics. Using this tool, users can get a better sense of which Google property (web, image, local) drove site traffic. Similar to statistics provided to paid search advertisers, Webmaster Tools provides impressions, average position and CTR data for GA.

    Although the numbers are not 100% accurate, they can be used to evaluate relative trends and to provide insight into data lost due to Google’s search update. Although the Webmaster Tools report is in Google Analytics, it’s limited to a single part of GA.

    7. Social Engagement

    Use Google Analytics to track how visitors interact socially with your site. A 2010 study showed 54% of small and medium-sized businesses said they already use or plan to use social media, and 17% planned to increase their social budget again from 2010 to 2011. With more companies making a push for social, it makes sense to analyze social site interactions.

    GA’s new social reports break down how many of a site’s visitors are socially engaged with the site, itemizing which social source and action occurred. That way you can determine how many of your visitors +1′d site content vs. how many Liked it, as well as the pages that prompted this social action. Social plugins ShareThis and AddThis easily integrate with Google Analytics, passing information on social interactions back to GA with minimal changes.

    8. Visitor Flow & Goal Flow Visualization

    Flow Visualization was announced in October, but only recently started rolling out to most users. Flow Visualization consists of two reports: Visitors Flow and Goal Flow. The Visitors Flow report can be used to visualize the “flow” of visitors through the site, while the Goal Flow is an improvement on the original Funnel Visualization reports.

    The Goal Flow report is especially valuable, as it simplifies evaluating a conversion funnel. Have a checkout process six pages long? Now you can determine at which page people are abandoning their carts. Then improve the process and save the sales.

    9. Event Tracking

    Prior to this new feature, any goal interaction with a site that didn’t result in a new URL needed to be tracked using special code to create a virtual pageview, which resulted in inflated numbers in GA. For the first time, Events can be used as goals. Want to find out how many people downloaded a PDF? Interested in knowing how many visitors viewed more than 30 seconds of a video on your site? Now users can easily track these events without affecting other metrics.

    10. Multi-Channel Funnels

    The Multi-Channel Funnels are a series of reports intended to help provide attribution information. For example, a person visits your site first from a paid search ad, then from an organic search listing, then from a link in Twitter, and finally from an email link. Therefore, which channel should get credit for the conversion? With many analytics platforms, the credit goes to the final funnel, thus, the email marketing campaign.

    Multiple reports in the new Multi-Channel Funnels allow users to view further back than the final channel. Now GA shows every interaction a user had with the site in the 30 days prior to conversion. Using these reports, departments can take credit for their assists to conversions, and companies can make more informed decisions about which marketing activities have the highest ROI.

    These are just a few of the many great advancements made to Google Analytics with the new rollout. While there are still several features missing (such as the PDF and email export functionalities, percent comparisons, missing graph by week option, etc.), Google is constantly striving to correct these with future iterations of the platform.

    What’s your favorite feature in the new Google Analytics?

    More About: contributor, features, Google, google analytics, trending, web apps

    Digitas CEO to Become CEO of Time Inc.

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 10:07 AM PST


    Time Inc., the magazine division of Time Warner Inc., has a new CEO after 10 long months of searching. Laura Lang, who served as CEO of digital ad agency Digitas since 2008, will become Time Inc CEO in January.

    Lang succeeds Jack Griffin, who was fired by Time Warner Inc. Chairman and CEO Jeff Bewkes after a mere five months on the job. “His leadership style and approach did not mesh with Time Inc. and Time Warner,” Bewkes said of Griffin in a memo at the time. Since then, the company has been led by an interim management committee composed of three Time Inc. executives.

    Lang will oversee a roster of 21 magazines, including such well-known titles as People, Time, InStyle and Sports Illustrated.

    Lang’s appointment is an unusual one, given her background in advertising. (Before joining Digitas in 1999, Lang was president of Marketing Corporation of America, a consulting firm.) Still, it could prove a strategic fit given the aggressive digital agenda Time Inc. has laid out for itself. In August, the company pledged to launch tablet editions for all of its titles by year end, a promise it appears to be making good on.

    Bewkes cited Lang’s fluency with digital and “strong relationships with the creative and advertising communities” as two factors in favor of her hiring.

    Is it worrisome to have a advertising maven as CEO of Time Inc., or is this a shrewd step in the right direction? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

    More About: magazines, Media, Time Inc

    For more Business coverage:

    Spotify Announces New App Platform

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 09:53 AM PST


    At Spotify’s first U.S. press conference in New York City, the streaming music service announced its new app platform.

    The new version of Spotify will include access to applications built by third parties that take advantage of the Spotify library and community. Spotify Platform launch partners including Rolling Stone, Last.fm, Pitchfork and Billboard.

    Apps take advantage of Spotify’s vast music library, as well as its deeper social integration with Facebook.

    The apps are built in HTML5, which conceivably means they will be easy to access in Spotify apps across platforms. Spotify says that the apps are available first and foremost for the desktop, but if it is a success, apps will come to other platforms. They’ll be available in the Spotify desktop app and to premium and free users.

    Spotify says it is open to all developers, but will still manually approve apps before listing them in the Spotify player. A preview version of the Spotify desktop app is now available for users that want to try out the apps early. A consumer release will be issued in December.

    Check out this video the Spotify team put together showing off the new platform:

    More About: HTML5, music apps, spotify, trending

    How Does Facebook Compare to the World’s Biggest IPOs?

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 09:43 AM PST

    When Facebook released news that it will be going public around April 2012, we decided to investigate how the company will rank among its global public peers. Sources indicate that Facebook plans to raise $10 billion in its IPO, but the number isn’t breaking any records.

    Where does Facebook fall on the global IPO scale? Find out by flipping through the gallery below. You might be surprised which companies have Facebook beat.

    SEE ALSO: Everything You Need to Know About Facebook's $100B IPO

    Note: The proceeds are recorded in actual dollars at the time of public offering, and are not adjusted for inflation.


    1. General Motors





    Headquartered in Detroit, MI, GM owns Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac and GMC.

    Proceeds: $23.1 billion

    Year: 2010

    Image courtesy of Flickr, Crouchy69

    Click here to view this gallery.

    More About: Business, Facebook, features, ipo

    For more Business coverage:

    Can a Hack Force HP Printers to Burst Into Fire? HP Says Hell No

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 09:29 AM PST


    A group of students at Columbia University recently showed how they could hack, with relative ease, an HP LaserJet printer and convince it to overheat.

    Naturally, the Internet pounced on such a sensational story, first reported by MSNBC. In full damage-control mode, HP quickly put out a statement, saying the fiery hack couldn't happen in real life.

    The hack works like this: HP printers (indeed, most printers) always scan a print job for a firmware upgrade. If an upgrade is included, it will automatically be applied — without checking what it actually is. Whether it's an HP-certified piece of software or something more malicious, the printer integrates the update.

    You can see where this is going. The students created a firmware update that exploited the vulnerability of the printer's fuser (the heater that bonds toner to paper), which resulted in the paper turning brown and eventually belching smoke.

    Could it happen to you? HP says no way. Although the company doesn't refute that printers can be hacked, it says every HP laser printer has a "thermal breaker" that's designed to prevent exactly this kind of overheating. The breaker is hardware fail-safe and can't be affected by a firmware change, HP said in its statement.

    While that's a relief, it still leaves the uncomfortable reality that HP printers are incredibly easy to hack. (The company says it’s working on a firmware upgrade to “mitigate” the issue). To be fair, the same can be said for most peripherals and simple devices, and as Sebastian Anthony points out over at ExtremeTech, the scenario is not unlike that story about the hackable insulin pump from earlier this year. After all, every electronic device is a computer, and they typically don’t have the same safeguards as the average laptop.

    Still, most users shouldn't need to worry, since office and home printers are typically protected by either a firewall or their home router, which keeps the printer's specific IP address hidden from potential evildoers on the Internet. This simple fact is probably why, as HP says, there hasn't been a single user complaint about printer hacking and no one's heard of a printer botnet.

    At least not yet. Now that Columbia has shown the world this potential vulnerability, the Great Printer Hack of 2012 may be in the works right now. Dibs on the movie rights.

    More About: hack, hacking, HP, inkjet, laserjet, malware, printer

    Aussie Court Gives Samsung Galaxy Tab the All-Clear, But Is It Too Late?

    Posted: 30 Nov 2011 09:09 AM PST


    A reversal of fortunes, of sorts, for Samsung in its ongoing case against Apple in Australia: an appeals court unanimously decided Wednesday that Samsung can go ahead with sales of its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet, possibly as soon as Friday. But even with sales getting the all-clear, some analysts seem to have already written off the device as an also-ran.

    The vote, from an appeals court in Sydney, should not come as too much of a surprise: during hearings last week, the three judges on the appeals bench indicated a strong leaning in the direction of Samsung in the case, with one judge questioning initial rulings by Justice Annabelle Bennett as unfair to Samsung and too in favor of Apple.

    Apple had originally succeeded in getting an injunction on the device, and now has until Friday afternoon to try to get a stay on the order, which would over-ride the appeal.

    But even if Apple does not succeed in getting that stay–there are already questions over whether Samsung’s Android-based device may have missed its window of opportunity in the wider market.

    Despite injunctions in two countries — Germany and Australia — the device has not exactly been the killer best-seller, or even marketing juggernaut, that Samsung had hoped would dent the stronghold that Apple has over the tablet market at the moment.

    Forrester research from Tuesday on the tablet market pointed out that at the moment consumers in the U.S., currently the biggest tablet market, are most interested in the iPad (61%); followed by Amazon’s tablet (24%); with Samsung’s tablets coming in third (21%). That put Samsung just five percentage points ahead a tablet that is no longer being made (the TouchPad from HP at 16%).

    Song Myung-sub, an analyst at HI Investment & Securities in Seoul, speaking to Reuters, thinks that accolade should be reserved for the Kindle Fire from Amazon, a low-cost Android-based tablet that has yet to launch anywhere but the U.S.:

    “Apple will continue to dominate the tablet market as Amazon appears to be the only viable threat at the moment and other vendors, including Samsung, continue to struggle.”

    Apple has been suing Samsung in Australia over patent and design violations, claiming that its larger Galaxy Tab tablet, which was due to debut in Australia months ago, was a ripoff of its iPad. Samsung is also lodging claims against Apple for patent violations of its own. In all there are 10 countries now where the two are sparring, including Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Japan, Korea and the U.S.

    Today’s news in Australia, at the very least, should serve to bolster Samsung’s public image, however, as it continues to fight its legal battles against Apple elsewhere.

    Just yesterday, Apple returned to the German courts to try to extend its tablet injunction on Samsung’s newest Galaxy Tab, the 10.1N, which Samsung claims circumvents the patents in question in the existing case. That case will get heard next month, extending the lag for selling the Galaxy Tab even further in a key market for Samsung.

    More About: apple, Apple iPad, samsung, Samsung Galaxy Tab

    For more Business coverage:
    Posted by at

    No comments:

    Post a Comment

    Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)