EBay & Google: another big alliance

Posted on August 28, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

Ebay and Google have partnered around foreign ads. This shows the importance of Europe and the emerging markets. It also points to the increasingly complicated online landscape. EBay would have loved to partner with someone else but their options weren’t great. Y! competes with them in auctions. Microsoft’s ad technology & network significantly lag Google, while strategically this may have been a better match, the pressure on eBay is such that they cannot ignore the short-run economics.

Source: EBay, Google Reach Overseas Text-Ad Alliance

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Mobile e-literature, Sugar Mama, Stash: Virgin Does it All

Posted on August 19, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

Okay, so I’m on vacation and not spending much time on the Net. That would explain the increased number of WSJ-sourced posts. Anyway, WSJ reports on yet another way to drive SMS traffic, this time through content especially created for the carrier.

In the past week, about 10,000 people have read the first line of a new novella called “Ghost Town,” about a homeless teenager: “‘U always come out of nowhere,’ Brad the quarterback laughed.”

So begins a story that’s being dubbed a “text novella.” Wireless company Virgin Mobile is beaming it to the cellphones of users who sign up, sending the story in 160-character installments through two text messages a day for five weeks.

Virgin Mobile has been suffering under the weight of debt raised to pay off their investors. Apparently, when pushed against the wall, the MVNO has gotten creative. They recently released Sugar Mama (watch ads, answer questions, get “free” airtime) and the Stash prepaid Visa card.

The novella-through-SMS is another neat idea, more of a PR stunt combined with a way to differentiate their offering to the base & get some lock-in (some emotional cost to leaving before the end) as opposed to a way to make lots of money.

However, one can imagine how this scales with a larger audience and more content. The mobile e-lit idea is no different from made-for-mobile movies. The interesting question is who will create the content. Will it be individuals, contracting with the carriers & MVNOs or will a number of aggregators emerge.

Source: WSJ.com – Mobile: E-Lit

Posted in Digital Media, Mobile | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Bob Metcalfe Responds to IEEE

Posted on August 19, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

Finally, here is the response from my partner Bob Metcalfe, posted on my partner Mike Hirshland’s blog. 

Link to VCMike’s Blog » Guest Blogger Bob Metcalfe: Metcalfe’s Law Recurses Down the Long Tail of Social Networks

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The meaning of Web Services

Posted on August 18, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

 …is apparently going down the drain as the WSJ article below considers broadband access to be a “web service”. I guess Web services are the new “OO” or “Internet-based”.

Link to HighContrast » Boeing Shuts Connexion: no more high-speed Internet access on planes

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Boeing Shuts Connexion: no more high-speed Internet access on planes

Posted on August 18, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

After investing over $1B and making less than $50M in revenues, Boeing has shut down its project for satellite-based high-speed Net access on planes.

Boeing acknowledged in June that it was in talks with commercial-satellite operators and other potential suitors, but it also hinted strongly that it might abandon the business altogether. The satellite operators concluded that there was too much risk in buying Connexion outright, a person familiar with the situation said.

Geeky friends of mine who flew on Lufthansa loved the service but, according to the article, usage was “in the low single digits”. I guess this goes to show that Lufthansa is disproportionately attractive to geeks. 😉

I would have enjoyed Net access on a long flight but the news is also a blessing in disguise. I wouldn’t have enjoyed people around me Skyping.

Source: WSJ.com – Boeing to Shutter Connexion As Web Service Fails to Catch On

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WSJ.com – Cable Industry May Need to Spend Heavily on Broadband Upgrades

Posted on August 17, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

WSJ reports on a Cable Labs research that puts some extra pressure on cable companies. While the truth is likely somewhere in the middle, this is good news for startups such as our Narad Networks. 

The report is inflaming some cable executives who insist existing networks can meet future broadband demands. “I wholly disagree with the conclusions,” says Mike LaJoie, chief technology officer of Time Warner Inc.’s cable division. Its assumptions “are not reflective of what our reality is.” Says Dave Fellows, chief technology officer at Comcast Corp.: “This report does not reflect our view.”

Source: WSJ.com – Cable Industry May Need to Spend Heavily on Broadband Upgrades

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EDU 2.0: The naming craze continues

Posted on August 15, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

Graham Glass (founder of The Mind Electric, which built Glue and sold to webMethods) has released the beta of his open education platform.

The early beta of EDU 2.0 is now officially live. You can access the site at http://www.edu20.org. To obtain a password, visit the site and register your email address.

Apart from continuing the 2.0 naming craze, EDU 2.0 makes sense. Graham and I talked about this soon after he started working on the venture. His idea was to open educational content up and make anyone an educator and everyone a student. Given how much time & effort people are willing to invest in their own and their kids’ education, I expect the community to succeed. 

And, BTW, this is another site built on Ruby/Rails.

Wishlist for the final release:

  • Much higher performance
  • Better site navigation & spiffier design
  • Fewer clicks to get around, e.g., a contributor’s profile should automatically include recent posts.
  • Introduction of rich media
  • Analytics to track individuals, groups, courses, etc.
  • Community translation capabilities so that content becomes available to people worldwide

Source: Graham Glass, etc.

Posted in SaaS, Web 2.0 | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Windows Live Writer

Posted on August 14, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

After Onfolio was acquired by Microsoft, JJ Allaire (founder of Allaire) moved to Redmond and is now a GM on the Windows Live team working on all sorts of cool things, including Windows Live Writer.

Today our team is shipping the beta version of Windows Live Writer.

I’m using the beta and I find it to be a better way to write posts. My screen is 1920×1200. I’ve yet to find a Web-based editor that can make meaningful use of it. It’s not that I’m not trying, BTW.

Wishlist for the next version (too late to mod this one):

  • Edit old posts
  • Create new categories w/o leaving the product.
  • One-click style selection (I have custom CSS styles defined in WordPress) that I’d like to be able to use w/o going to HTML.
  • Onfolio integration. I’m not sure exactly what this means but as an Onfolio addict I know I want it.

Source: Flying Upside Down

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Social Media Booms

Posted on August 13, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

Some interesting numbers on social media growth. Note two startups with >200% growth. 

With Wikipedia (181% growth) scuttling close behind in 10th place, MySpace was topped in growth by ImageShack (233%), Heavy.com (213%), and Flickr (201%).

Source: Checkbooks Ready: Social Media Booms

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The power of syndication

Posted on August 13, 2006 by Simeon Simeonov

The good people at Web 2.0 Journal picked up my piece on Metcalfe’s Law. Thanks.

Posted in Web 2.0 | Tagged , | 1 Comment