Archive for technology
September 25, 2006 at · Filed under internet, technology
business week has on its cover a story about click fraud.
it gives a good overview about the subject and how it is impacting online advertisers.
it is very clear that google and yahoo don't have too much incentive to detect and fight click-frauds. yes there is a long-term, big picture risk for google and yahoo in case advertisers lose confidence in the cost-per-click (CPC) model, but in the meantime they are making lots of money. as someone quoted in the article said, if it would have cost them money rather than make them money they would have resolved it already.
i am not sure click-fraud can be completely resolved, but i think several measures could be taken to reduce it:
- tracking how much time a clicking user spend in the site - if the user (or bot) that clicked the ad leaves the site after a few seconds it is obviously not a very valuable click
- tracking geo location of the clicking user - if the visiting user is from Kazakhstan and the ad is for grocery service in dallas, tx then there is a good chance this is fraudulent click
- comparing user behavior based on source - if users that come from a specific site running the ad are behaving very differently from the average user that came after clicking an ad (lower conversion rate, less time spent in the site, etc.), it is a clear sign of fraud
to measure all this there needs to be software installed on the advertiser's site. i am not sure it is a good idea for that software to be coming from google/yahoo.. it makes more sense for google/yahoo to certify 3rd parties click-tracking software and work with the advertiser to define the specific parameters that would define a click-fraud.
all this may lead to a change in the model from CPC to cost-per-transaction (CPT). where CPT will be defined based on the specific circumstances of the advertiser, it may be buying something, or just spending a certain amount of time on the site, or getting to a certain stage in a process that takes place on the site.
CPT has been used for years in the online gambling and sex sites, and its about time it will be used by mainstream advertisers.
September 22, 2006 at · Filed under music, technology
MTV is acquiring Harmonix for $175M.
harmonix makes guitar hero which is a video game that let players play along popular songs, and works basically like dance, dance revolution.
we tried playing the game in a store in piermont a couple of months ago. i was TERRIBLE, but maskit picked it up quickly (i think she was playing Ziggy Stardust).
i think it will probably qualify as the video game that was most appealing to maskit ever. and i tried to get her involved in many with no success.
i don't know the metrics, but it seems like a very smart strategic acquisition for MTV. they could do a lot with tying it back to their TV and online businesses.
September 22, 2006 at · Filed under music, technology
we decided we want to buy the bose docking station for iPod. main reasons being:
a. our mediacenter has been dead for a couple of months, and we are yet to replace it with a new one
b. we have lots of music and podcasts on the iPod, which is also on the laptop with iTunes, but playing stuff from the laptop has a lousy quality.
c. when we do get a new mediacenter running, we could move the bose to another room instead of a stereo system (do people still use this name?)
d. we felt like it.
now that we have it. we love it. and roee loves it too. he enjoys listening to music and sometimes dancing.
September 22, 2006 at · Filed under internet, mobile, technology
i have been using Vonage for about 3 years, and i am not a very happy customer. some of it has nothing do with them, and more with cablevision which is my broadband provider.
but i think i am ready to make the next step and abandon my legacy VoIP vendor and move to a pure Skype set-up.
the idea will be to have a wireless (wifi) skype phone (like the one i just pre-ordered on amazon), have skype-in number, and use skype-out to make outgoing calls to PSTN.
i'll give it a test and if i am a happy customer then i will turn-off my vonage.
September 14, 2006 at · Filed under technology
following apple's release of the new ipod microsoft provided more information about their coming zune player.
few highlights:
- comes in white, black and brown???
- 30GB
- WiFi
- FM Tuner
- 3 inch display
- supported formats: WMA, MP3, AAC; photos in JPEG; and videos in WMV, MPEG-4, H.264
bottom line: much better than current iPod
i think i'll wait till its available rather than buy one of the new iPods.
September 11, 2006 at · Filed under internet, technology
after several years of using imagestation to store and share my photos, i have moved to flickr.
i even paid flickr $24.95 for the PRO account, so i could upload all my photos in their original size and store them there forever*.
i should have made the move long ago. but i liked the fact that imagestation lets me store as much photos as i like, and did not charge me anything. but now that they want $4.95 a year, my recent frustration with their uploading tool, and the fact that flickr is just so much better, made me move.
* forever meaning as long as i keep paying..
July 23, 2006 at · Filed under internet, technology
so it's official. microsoft will release an "ipod killer" by the end of the year.
there is a pretty, and very unmicrosoft like teaser site comingzune.com that was put up by microsoft. if this is an indication to the approach they are taking with zune, then there are reasons to be optimistic.
i really hope they'll come out with a great device, and will be able to put a dent into apple's market share.
July 13, 2006 at · Filed under internet, technology
i have played with the new firefox 2.0 beta for a few days.
here is what i like:
- integrated spellcheck (awesome!)
- the new search bar (with suggestions and history)
- re-opening a tab you just closed..
- better crash handling (restores session, including tabs and input fields)
what i don't like:
- i need to use the "better crash handling" way too often… they have serious stability issues
- i don't know. i expected more. doesn't have the new browser smell if you know what i mean.
July 12, 2006 at · Filed under internet, mobile, technology
there have been many companies that announced they are launching an "iPod Killer" over the past couple of years, but iPod's market share continues to grow, and most of those "killers" are long buried and forgotten. now microsoft joins the fray and is coming up with its own MP3 player.
i read this article that is giving microsoft some tips on how they can try and take market share away from iPod, so i thought i'll try to offer them some tips, too
1. Form Factor is more important than features
take a lesson from Motorola's success with RAZR. Motorola proved that when it comes to a mobile phone the mass market cares more about the form factor than the features. rather than come up with the latest and greatest features they chose to focus on building the coolest looking device.
and it worked. people didn't care about the features and the ease-of-use of the software, they just wanted to use the coolest looking device.
microsoft should try to come up with a more appealing design for its device (slim seems to be "in"). if the picture below reflects their final design i think they may have not done enough..
2. Brand is more important than Form Factor
more important than form factor is the brand. iPod continue to prove this point. people don't even compare its with Creative, Samsung or Sony devices, they don't bother to look at those other brands. they just want their iPod, because that's what everybody else has. this is the toughest hurdle microsoft (or any other competitor) has to clear.
generating coolness is far from an exact science. and microsoft has some brand challenges to deal with.. i think their best chance is to try and work through influential grassroots, and one way to get the support of these guys is by implementing #3 - #5..
3. DRM is evil
many people are upset (the french parliament, too..) about the walled garden apple has built with iPod and iTunes. i can't play music i downloaded from iTunes on other devices, and i can't play music i bought from other services on my iPod.
this is a typical apple/steve jobs strategy and one that has lead to apple losing the PC business to microsoft. if apple is not careful they can see this market evaporate for them as well.
if microsoft can pick up the glove and lead the charge for an open, user-friendly, minimal DRM eco-system (maybe give a strong embrace to creative commons?). it may give them the "street cred" they so desperately lacking and start generating some real support from the users.
4. something better than itunes, embrace Podcasts and Vodcasts
the iTunes software sucks. it is heavy, slow and cumbersome. microsoft should offer a simpler version of the windows media player to manage the device, and create an easy-to-use interface to access podcasts and vodcasts. the podcast support in iTunes is an after-thought and it looks that way.
5. open yourself to the developers community
the iPod/iTunes is a closed environment, making it very difficult for developers (whether it is small companies or individuals) to create extensions and innovate.
microsoft should make its device and desktop software open to the developer community, so new features could be introduced and let the device/service be used in ways microsoft did not envision themselves.
6. WiFi, connectivity
iPod is really lacking connectivity. i would add to an MP3 player both WiFi and wireless data (EDGE?) capabilities. it will enable people to purchase music and videos, as well as download podcasts and vodcasts to their devices.
in addition they should let people share content between the devices (goes back to the DRM issues). they could do some really cool stuff with sharing over WiF
7. FM radio
not a great technology innovation, but really missing from the iPod.
if they implement all of the above i think they can generate some real buzz and get users excited. can't promise them millions of users, but i'll do my share and buy one.
June 23, 2006 at · Filed under internet, technology
last week there were several reports about the RIAA sending cease-and-desist letters to YouTube users who created videos using music protected by copyrights.
the WSJ reported about it and other major news sources, and the blogging world went crazy. but so far i have not seen any copy of these cease-and-desist letters, nor any credible person claiming that he received such a notice. which leads me to believe this story is a hoax.
i have very little respect or regard to the RIAA, but i doubt that they could be that stupid (though they were stupid enough to sue 12 year old girls for file sharing..).
« Previous entries ·
Next entries »
