Tag Archives: google

Watch this space

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Fellow planning buffs, it’s time to check out a new tool.

Personally, I love a tool. Especially an online, shiny, expensive one supplied for free by the world’s most altruisitc company. Ahem…

Anyway, Watch This Space from Google – our favourite frenemy – offers industry trends info, a small but useful creative library (point your clients to it – you’ll be surprised how little online creative they see on a monthly basis), a whitepaper on mCommerce (nothing too ground-breaking but worth a read) and all kinds of other useful stuff…

Tuck in.

PS – a small prize to the person who unearths a factoid on the site that makes more than five people on the planning floor gasp in disbelief/excitement.

 

Convergence in action – Google TV

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Exciting times ahead for sofa addicts like me. Today Google officially announced the launch of Google TV. Set top boxes and TVs with the application built in are to be launched in the US in autumn. Here is a neat summary by @TheNextWeb.

OK, the video doesn’t make it sound that revolutionary, but it’s an obvious extension of the current restricted options available to watch streaming video or Video on Demand through your main TV set (hooking up your laptop, Sky Player through Xbox Live, iPlayer on PS3 and Wii, etc.).

Through IPTV applications, like Google TV and the forthcoming Project Canvas (pushed through by the OFT today), the user experience will become so much more straightforward, and viewing of online video content (and online video ads), which is already growing fast, will go through the roof.

Soon, the whole world will be ad-served. The cookie monster will have a field day.

Murdoch just don’t get it

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Even the world’s most successful media mogul can get it wrong every now and again. (Bit like the old people who run agencies… ahem, thanks for the reminder Sir Marty.)

Herr Murdoch has made another astonishing outburst about t’interweb and how unfair it makes trying to raise your next billon. You gotta love the old goat’s obstinacy, eh?

Turns out Murdoch wants to hide his sites from Google.

I kid you not. Omar’s in shock. Anyway, make of it what you will. I sense a digital Berocca session might be in order for Mr Moodoch…

BTW – for all good things MBA, head for T:/MBA content – there’s plentyof nickable slides and stuff there already and much more coming soon.

Ca gaze, super-mecs?

Ben’s Eye – 18/9

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Hello one and all,

‘Tis been a week when the PM finally mentioned the c-word (cuts) and the king of social media marketing has faced more problems with his health care plans.  But let’s not worry about that, here’s some media(ish) news.

Shock horror, web company makes money

No it’s not Twitter (that’s waaaay off) but Facebook (remember them?) who this week reached 300m users and is making money.  Seems there is money in the internet after all.

http://is.gd/3pn1Z

Look out for Fosters in the Rovers Return

as age old regulations on product placement are set to be relaxed.  Cue stampede to have your drink on the judge’s table during X-Factor

http://is.gd/3pnhg

Serendipity and the internet

Too much choice or too targeted?  Is the internet simply accumulating all the stuff it knows we will like through rss feeds et al leaving no room for chance discoveries?  Interesting post here

http://is.gd/3poCy

Google continues to conquer the world

You think it’s big here?  We’ve got nothing on Brazil and India where Google and their sites account for 30% of total time spent on the internet – scary stuff

http://is.gd/3po9A

And finally

RIP Patrick

http://is.gd/3pptC

Have a great weekend

Cheers,

Ben

Caffeine gets search bods buzzing?

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Omar Kattan gives us the lowdown on Google’s latest ‘secret’ offering, Caffeine…

Where you might have read about this: National newspapers, marketing trade press, blogs, forums.

Official press release: http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2009/08/help-test-some-next-generation.html

What are the known facts about this subject:

  • A secret Google project commissioned to improve search results in terms of size of index, indexing speed, accuracy, comprehensiveness and relevancy of search results.
  • Most of the changes are under-the-hood which means users will not see any dramatic difference in the look and feel of Google.
  • Google have opened up a web developer preview to collect feedback The Beta test version can be accessed here: http://www2.sandbox.google.com/
  • This new Google algorithm will capitalize on the growing interest in real-time search which was fuelled by Twitter’s search engine http://search.twitter.com/ providing up to the second search results.

Our point of view on the news/issue:

Google are always pushing the envelope on improving their search technology and this is in line with their policy of maintaining their leadership in the search field.

This could also be a PR exercise to counter the buzz around Microsoft’s launch of their Bing search engine (Replacement of Live).

Google Caffeine is capitalising on the growing interest in real-time search fuelled by the emergence of new non-traditional rivals such as Twitter and Facebook.

Who this might affect in the future:

This will primarily affect the three other major players in the industry (Yahoo!, MSN and ASK) as an improved Google would most likely mean more market share for the search giant.

This will also affect social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter who have been making inroads in real-time search.

Our clients might be affected in the future as an increase in search demand on Google will in the long terms push up PPC advertising prices.

Our clients will also be affected if they do not have an SEO/eVisibility strategy to address Google’s new and improved algorithm.

Why it’s important to know about this:

This development is the latest chapter in Google’s war with MSN and Yahoo to own search. The latest tie-up between MSN and Yahoo! and MSN’s launch of Bing (which is giving Google a run for its money) will see, in the near future, Google improving its algorithm and even buying up web properties such as Twitter.

If our clients do not have an SEO/eVisibility strategy to address Google’s new algorithm, they will lose out.

When this is likely to come into effect:

  • The beta version is up and running here: http://www2.sandbox.google.com/
  • The pre-beta version is US-based for now and it’s still unknown when the Beta will be launched.

Author: Omar Kattan

Contact details: omar.kattan@mediacom.com. Ext. 5246