Mobile Internet Report - Morgan Stanley

The Mobile Internet Report

Social Media ROI

Bloomberg news: Apple Surpasses Nokia as Most Profitable in Handsets (Update4)

Apple Surpasses Nokia as Most Profitable in Handsets (Update4)

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=email_en&sid=a8qsVhoSvY3o

Netlog Partner Event

From Yahoo! Mag, one good case we had on Netlog

From Y! Mag, one good case we had on Netlog....

Sono stato intervistato da Vodafone Lab..

http://lab.vodafone.it/blog/2009/10/29/netlog-il-futuro-dei-social-network-e-mobile/

Wired.com - ipod tou

Wired.com - ipod touch homepage takeover http://htxt.it/DoWX

Every Banknote has its own story....

Advertising a Nightmare

A very interesting article on the Guardian written by Dan Kennedy:


If you had told me five years ago that newspaper circulation in 2009 would enter what may prove to be its death spiral, I'd like to think I wouldn't have been too surprised. We have finally reached a moment that's been a quarter-century in the making, going all the way back to those sniggering television newscasts about the absurdity of digital delivery.

But if you had told me that only a tiny fraction of newspaper advertising would migrate from print to the internet, I'd have broken into a cold sweat. Back then I was fairly sanguine about the future of the newspaper business, imagining that it might make a more or less seamless transition to a free, ad-supported online future. Those of us who believed that were wrong. And though the situation may improve, it now appears that online advertising is never likely to generate enough revenue to bring us back to the golden age of newspapers.

Two news stories came out on Monday that tell us much about the state of the news business. The story on newspaper circulation got most of the attention, since it was the one with the big scary numbers. But it was the story on advertising that will mean a lot more in the long run.

I'll take circulation first. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, the leading company for tracking such things, daily newspaper circulation dropped by 10.6% for the six-month period ending on 30 September when compared to the same period in 2008.

The news was particularly grim in Boston, where I live and work – a consequence, I suspect, of our living in an unusually wired region, combined with skyrocketing prices for the print editions of our two dailies, the broadsheet Globe and the tabloid Herald.

According to ABC, Monday-through-Saturday circulation of the Globe fell by more than 18%, to 264,000, and by nearly 17% on Sundays, to 419,000. The daily Herald was down more than 17%, to 138,000, and the Sunday Herald fell 5%, to just 96,000.

When you consider that, in their 1980s heyday, the Globe sold more than 500,000 papers on weekdays and more than 800,000 on Sundays, and that the Herald's circulation was at least double what it is today, then it's clear that their print editions are in freefall.

Which might not matter if it weren't for the other half of this ugly equation. Because, like most papers, the Globe and the Herald attract a lot of online readers. In September, according to Compete.com, the Globe's Boston.com site drew 5.2m unique visitors, while BostonHerald.com pulled in another 1.3m. A recent study shows that some 74 million people visit a newspaper website each month.

But after years of sputtering growth, online advertising may actually be moving away from newspapers at a time when publishers are catching their first tantalising glimpse that the recession may be coming to an end.

According to Stephanie Clifford of the New York Times, advertisers increasingly see newspaper websites as an overly expensive buy, suitable for certain types of high-profile product rollouts but not for regular use. Never mind that an online newspaper ad brings in pennies compared to its print counterpart. On the web, there's always something cheaper – in this case, networks that automatically place ads on a wide variety of sites.

The bottom line is that though online advertising in the US is expected to rise this year by 9.2%, to about $54bn, it's actually declining at many newspaper companies, including the Times' parent company (among whose holdings is the aforementioned Globe). "That is a sobering trend for newspaper executives, who once hoped that online revenue would make up for plummeting print revenue," Clifford writes.

Indeed, in a video interview for Technorati's just-released State of the Blogosphere 2009 report, Dan Gillmor – author of We the Media and an enthusiastic advocate of new forms of online journalism – wonders whether the advertising will ever materialise.

"Whether there's a market in the end for advertising at all is an interesting topic for one of these [reports] in a future year," Gillmor says.

It's no wonder that, these days, much of the attention on the future of journalism is focused on non-profit models. As Clay Shirky and others have argued, we may have reached the end of an era that began with the rise of the penny press in the 1830s – that is, a time when advertisers, lacking other options, showered so much money on newspaper owners that they couldn't help but spend some of it on journalism, even after they had finished lining their own pockets.

Advertisers don't need newspapers anymore, at least not nearly to the extent that they once did. Newspapers, though, need advertisers. How is that existential dilemma to be resolved?

As Gillmor says, it will make an interesting topic for a future year.

Netlog, Social Community for Youngster

During this week I had the pleasure to receive the visit of Lorenz Bogaert, Ceo of Netlog.

We had the pleasure to lunch with Michele Ficara Manganelli, president of Assodigitale, talking about Social Media scenario, in one of the most beautful place in Brera.

I would like to point it out some interesting evidence that emerged from this conversation:

Netlog's is Europe's Popular online community.
Netlog is an online community site with a Focus on fun and entertainment. The website is very popular among youngsters in and outside Europe. (In Italy there are 4 mln active users).
Netlog was founded in 2003 by Lorenz Bogaert and Toon Coppens in Ghent, Belgium.

It counts more than 55 million members worldwide and is available in more than 38 different languages.

In the past years, we've seen a hype called social media, but Lorenz also believe that we're past that moment now and that an online community as Netlog is here to stay. Netlog is not a hype, it's a fact. Research has shown that social media are today an integral element of the communication mix, just like chat, sms, mail, mobiles or going to the pub and meeting friends.

Yahoo! Italy is the offical sales house of Netlog. For that reason we had also the opportunity to enjoy ourselves to their beutiful party @ Spazio Edra in Milan.

MySpace abandons race with Facebook

By Matthew Garrahan in Los Angeles
Published: October 22 2009 03:00 | Last updated: October 22 2009 03:00

The new chief executive of MySpace has told the Financial Times that the company is no longer interested in competing with Facebook, effectively conceding defeat in the race to become the largest online social network.

Owen Van Natta, a former Facebook executive who replaced Chris DeWolfe as chief executive of MySpace six months ago, said the company instead aimed to become an online hub for music and entertainment. "Facebook is not our competition," he said. "We're very focused on a different space."

The change in direction at MySpace comes as the NewsCorp-owned site has fallen behind Facebook. In September, Facebook represented more than 58 per cent of US social network traffic, according to Hitwise, the online research firm. MySpace, once the largest social network, saw its share slip from 66 per cent a year ago to 30 per cent.

However, MySpace continues to be one of the most visited sites on the web with more than 100m unique users worldwide. Facebook, by contrast, has more than 300m users.

Mr Van Natta wants to capitalise on MySpace's status as a leading online music destination and used a presentation at the Web 2.0 conference in San Francisco yesterday to unveil new features that enhance its music credentials.

The company has struck a deal with Apple's iTunes store to allow its users to buy tracks without having to leave the MySpace site. It has integrated iLike, a music application company , and launched Dashboard, an interactive tool for bands and musicians, as well as compiling the largest catalogue of music videos on the web.

Mr Van Natta said the applications were a "springboard" for the revamped MySpace and would be followed by other new features in the coming months that tap into the site's large online community.

"There is a movement around the socialisation of the web," he said. "People want to experience [what's available on] the web with other people."

MySpace has had a tumultuous six months since the departure of Mr DeWolfe. Shortly after his appointment Mr Van Natta and his new executive team embarked on a round of cost-cutting, shedding 30 per cent of the workforce .

He has also moved to streamline the website, scrapping unpopular features such as weather and a classified jobs sections.

Mr Van Natta said: "The engagement with our users wasn't there. One of the things we're focused on is relentlessly improving the user experience."

Like Mr DeWolfe, the new chief executive has developed a close working relationship with Rupert Murdoch, chairman of NewsCorp. "He's been very engaged with our strategy," said Mr Van Natta.

irst page view of bi

irst page view of bing twitter demo- didn't expect my twitpi... on Twitpic http://htxt.it/GPTR (via @twttimes)

Harlem Globetrotters headed back to TV

Basketball troupe inks deal with Cookie Jar Group
By Etan Vlessing

Oct 20, 2009, 01:03 PM ET
TORONTO -- The Harlem Globetrotters appear headed back to animated TV after signing a licensing and production partnership with the Cookie Jar Group.

Toronto-based Cookie Jar is to become global licensing agent for the traveling troupe of merry basketball players.

In addition, Cookie Jar will bring the pro sports entertainment property back to TV for the first time since Hanna-Barbera Prods.' "The Harlem Globetrotters" airing on CBS' Saturday morning cartoon slate in 1971 and '72.

NBC next reran the Globetrotters cartoon series, which featured star black basketball players, as "The Go-Go Globetrotters" in 1979.

Cookie Jar gave few details as it develops animated content around the Globetrotters global brand, with consumer product spinoffs.

Cookie Jar is best known for its "Caillou," "Inspector Gadget" and "The Doodlebops" cartoon series.

Bill Cosby Learns the Twitting, Tweeting, Twit and Tweetie [VIDEO]

Bill Cosby Learns the Twitting, Tweeting, Twit and Tweetie [VIDEO]

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