Bing Expands Twitter, Facebook Integration

Bing has released a couple new social search feature, utilizing Twitter and Facebook in new ways.
First off, Bing has started adding tweets into Bing News. “Awhile back we introduced Bing social which lets you plunge into the real-time tweet stream to uncover the latest updates on the Web,” Bing says. “This week we took it a step further by integrating some of this real time social data into Bing news.”
You can see a realtime feed of tweets in the right hand column for additional news or updates related to whatever keywords you’re searching for. Want the latest on Groupon? You can get the traditional news articles and blog posts along with Groupon-related tweets as they roll in.

“As we’ve seen with the tragedy in Japan or political turmoil in the Middle East, real people are relaying timely and compelling items not captured by traditional outlets,” says Bing. ”Bing news now lets you compare and assess authoritative news analysis alongside real-time citizen journalists so you can decide which content sources you want to use.”
As far as the new Facebook integration, they’ve rolled out a new Facebook share option on results for movies, TV shows, actors, bands, and artists.
Bing has been finding more ways to integrate with Facebook – one area where Google continues to do very little. There is a lot of potential for Facebook data to make search results more relevant, but moves like this also help to promote Bing itself.
Bing’s market share has grown every month since its launch, according to the company.

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237 
Source: http://www.webpronews.com/bing-expands-twitter-facebook-integration-2011-03

United States No Longer Leader of Retweeted Tweets on Twitter

In what I can only describe as an informal poll of sorts, it appears that the United States is no longer a leader when it comes to Top Tweets on Twitter that are being Retweeted. Take a look at the last seven days of data from Tweetmeme and you will see that the majority of all of the retweets on Twitter are not Tweets that originated from the United States or English-speaking Twitter accounts.

I took a look at the last 7 days of Twitter retweet data according to Tweetmeme and found that only one of the top 15 tweets that were retweeted the most actually had some English in them. I could only find one that I could personally understand, mainly because I only speak English. The top tweets in the past 7 days that are being tracked by Tweetmeme are mostly in Japanese.
At first glance, it appears that the top 15 tweets in the past 7 days were retweeted at least 10,000 times, with many having been retweeted at least 15,000 times. There are major differences, however, when it comes to the categories of Tweets and the language:
Comedy – English
Entertainment – English
Gaming – English
Lifestyle – English
Technology – English
There also appears to be a significant amount of difference between the top overall Tweets in the past 7 days (many have at least 15,000 retweets as previously mentioned) and those that are in the Technology category, for example. The Technology-related top tweets, mainly in English, have been retweeted about 1500 times or more.
Originally published at BillHartzer.com

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/united-states-no-longer-leader-of-retweeted-tweets-on-twitter-2011-03
About Bill Hartzer
Bill Hartzer currently is the President of BillHartzer.com, a Strategic Online Marketing Consultancy that includes services such as search engine optimization, social media marketing, and online reputation management. Bill Hartzer formerly managed the Search Engine Marketing division of Vizion Interactive and MarketNet, leading interactive marketing and website design firms in the Dallas, Texas area.

Google Summer Of Code Applications Sought

College students with programming skills should start thinking about whether taking a long break or slaving away at a retail store is really the best way to spend this summer.  A certain search giant announced today that it’s now accepting applications for the 2011 Google Summer of Code.
If you’re not familiar with the concept, a post on the Google Open Source Blog explained, “Google Summer of Code is a global program where university students are given a stipend to write code for open source projects over a three month period.  Through Google Summer of Code, accepted students are paired with a mentor from the participating projects, gaining exposure to real-world software development and the opportunity for employment in areas related to their academic pursuits.”
That stipend amounts to $5,000 per person, by the way, so even if Google or the mentoring acquisition doesn’t make a job offer, participants aren’t exactly laboring for free.

Also, the program isn’t nearly as exclusive as you might imagine (and we mean that in a good way).  Google allowed 1,026 students to participate in 2010, and may back as many as 1,176 this year, meaning lots of individuals will get to benefit.
So students should by all means consider applying to the Google Summer of Code program.  Since the deadline isn’t until April 8th, everyone still has time to review the 175 accepted projects and write up how they’d contribute.
Plenty more information is available here if anyone’s interested.  Good luck to all of the applicants.

About Doug Caverly
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news. 
Source: http://www.webpronews.com/google-summer-of-code-applications-2011-03

Google’s Algorithm Impact Over the Years in Graphic Detail

SEOBook has posted a very interesting infographic from Jess.NET, about Google’s “Collateral damage” and “How the Evolving Algorithm Shapes the Web”.
The infographic illustrates the story of Google’s rise to Internet power and the impact it has had on webmasters and publisher. While not covering every algorithm change over the years, it does a pretty good job of highlighting the major shifts in webmaster practices that have been largely influenced by Google.
It wraps up with the Panda update and plays heavily on Demand Media’s content business wemodel, which is still proving successful. It does emphasize, however, just how dependent on Google webmasters and publishers have become, and shows why it is in your best interest to diversify your traffic sources.

Click to View Full Size

“Rather than using unobtrusive measurement, Google both measures & monetizes the publishing ecosystem,” says SEOBook. “Their most recent algorithmic update likely shifted over $1 billion in online ad revenues. Their editorial philosophy & ad programs have likely had more impact on the shape of the web than anything or anyone since Tim Berners-Lee created it.”
“Some of the biggest problems in search (like content farms) were created by Google,” the site adds. “This image highlights how the search ecosystem has changed since Google has become a serious player, and how Google has used their amazing marketshare to bend the web to their will.”
Google’s Panda update has been incredibly controversial for something that was intended to improve the quality of results for users. Many think that the results are indeed better now, while others are skeptical or flat out disagree. Either way, it’s affected a great deal of sites  - some deservedly so, and others which are more debatable.

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/googles-algorithm-impact-over-the-years-in-graphic-detail-2011-03
About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237

More Hints at Google’s Social Strategy

Even before all of this Google “social layer” talk started, we talked about how Google already had many of the components of a powerful social network – just spread out across different products. Basically, there just hasn’t been an effective way of bringing it all together for users.
Putting The Pieces Together
It looks like Google is trying to correct that, as various hints have been revealed over the last few months – the navigation bar, the updated profile, and the Google accounts for YouTube users are a few that come quickly to mind.
It appears that Google is more adamantly promoting (or inserting, rather) the Google Profile in more of its services.
MG Siegler points to a note left on the Google Groups message board, saying, “Google Groups-specific profiles will no longer be supported. Instead, you will be able to use the new Google Groups to (optionally) link your new and improved Google profile with your groups. Starting July 1st 2011, you will not be able to make changes to your Groups profile. Your profile information will be available for export from your profile page until November 1st 2011. This change will not affect the nicknames you might have chosen for yourself to participate in groups. It will only affect the custom profile fields, such as your photo, location, and occupation.
One more example of things being more tied together.
Going Public
He also points to the following message in the Google Profiles Help Center, as previously pointed out by The Next Web:
The purpose of Google Profiles is to enable you to manage your online identity. Today, nearly all Google Profiles are public. We believe that using Google Profiles to help people find and connect with you online is how the product is best used. Private profiles don’t allow this, so we have decided to require all profiles to be public.
Improving Search?
That’s a very significant factor of all of this as well. We have to wonder if this won’t backfire in some Google Buzz-like privacy backlash, but it will certainly ensure that content there will be discoverable – by users, and perhaps more importantly to Google – by its search index.
You know how Google won’t do much in the way of connecting with your Facebook account? That hurts it in search (one area where Bing has an edge and Facebook itself could become a dangerous threat). Remember when Google CEO Eric Schmidt said they’d find other ways to get that data? This may have been at least part of what he was referring to. Of course that involves people using the profiles, but we’ll see how that goes.
Google’s Profile Message continues:
Keep in mind that your full name is the only required information that will be displayed on your profile; you’ll be able to edit or remove any other information that you don’t want to share.

If you currently have a private profile but you do not wish to make your profile public, you can delete your profile. Or, you can simply do nothing. All private profiles will be deleted after July 31, 2011.
The Components of a Good Social Network
So let’s look at some of the components that when brought together would give Google more of a social network-like experience:
1. Google Buzz – The Newsfeed
2. Google Profiles – The Wall
3. Picasa Web Albums – Photos
4. YouTube – Videos
5. Google Music (pending) – Music
6. Android/The Android Maket – The platform and means to obtain apps usage (including games)
7. Chrome/Chrome OS/Chrome Extensions Gallery/Chrome Web Store – Same as Above
8. Google Latitude – Location-based service/Check-Ins
9. Blogger – Blogs (More open version of Facebook Notes)
10. Gmail – Email, Chat, Video Chat
11. Google Calendar – Event organization
12. Search – important to any social network
13. Google Docs and Google Wave (tech still could appear in other services) – Group collaboration
14. Google Apps – Getting it used internally at businesses and schools
15. Aardvark – Q&A
16. Google Reader – Easily Follow news sources and share links
17. Knol – Wiki-like content to provide information pages about subjects (note: not wiki-exactly, but certainly a competitor to the information pages on Facebook)
The list goes on…


All of this can be expanded upon and promoted in Google’s most powerful product – search. Google also continues to rapidly acquire new companies, which will no doubt fuel the strategy even more.
The bringing together of all of these assets in a thoughtful and useful way will be critical, which is probably why it’s taking so long. Google’s not rushing this, because it could have a huge impact on the company’s whole future going forward. Much of it is about staying on the cutting edge of web technology – the biggest area where Google has to compete with Facebook. Facebook is taking away a great deal of engineering talent that might have once gone to Google instead (or in many cases actually came from Google) – much how Google was doing to Microsoft a decade ago.
Google has been criticized for its social efforts a lot over the years. With Larry Page taking the helm again, and reportedly looking to get back to the more startup-like atmosphere that Google had in its early days, there is another fascinating element of which we just don’t know the pending impact.


Source: http://www.webpronews.com/more-hints-at-googles-social-strategy-2011-03

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237

Twitter May Rent Facebook’s Old New York Offices

People have compared Twitter in Facebook in many ways over the years, and now, it looks like one more similarity between the two companies might soon exist.  Rumor has it Twitter will take over some offices Facebook used to occupy in New York.
New York Observer reporter Laura Kusisto wrote late yesterday, “The little blue bird has been perching in a spartan temporary New York City space since September, searching for the perfect spot for its first New York City headquarters.  Now The Observer has learned that it plans to sublease Facebook’s former digs at 340 Madison Avenue, according to a source with knowledge of the deal.”

The location would represent an interesting choice on Twitter’s part.  Setting aside the Facebook connection for a moment, the success of the television show Mad Men has ensured that people everywhere connect Madison Avenue with advertising.
The move might signal that Twitter intends to finally ramp up its monetization attempts and reach out to many different companies, then.  Which would arguably fit with CEO Dick Costolo‘s business-oriented mindset.
The move would prove that Twitter can afford to pay for some premium New York City real estate, too.
Anyway, Facebook’s new New York offices are only a short distance away – they can be found at 335 Madison Avenue – so, for better or for worse, it’s not like Twitter would be the sole social media/tech company operating in the area at this point.

About Doug Caverly
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news.

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/twitter-may-rent-facebooks-old-new-york-offices-2011-03

Facebook Bans 20,000 Kids Per Day

Anecdotal evidence suggests that it’s not unusual for children to have Facebook accounts.  You even hear of parents setting up the occasional account for an infant.  But it seems Facebook does try to enforce its terms of service and keep kids off the site, with one exec indicating it boots 20,000 youngsters a day.
For the record, Facebook’s Privacy Policy states, “If you are under age 13, please do not attempt to register for Facebook or provide any personal information about yourself to us.  If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under age 13, we will delete that information as quickly as possible.”
As for that interesting statistic, it comes from former FTC Commissioner Mozelle Thompson (who’s now an advisor to Facebook).  According to Australia’s Daily Telegraph, he told the Australian Federal Parliament’s cyber safety committee, “Facebook removes 20,000 people a day, people who are underage.”
Which adds up to about 7 million accounts per year.
That’s done in at least in part to protect the children.  After all, there’s zero chance of kids encountering bullies, objectionable material, or sleazy adults on Facebook if they’re made to stay clear of the site.
It also helps safeguard Facebook.  Consider all the negative press that might result from any sort of tragedy, followed by additional scrutiny from lawmakers and perhaps calls to boycott the social network.
So we might see more of an effort from Facebook to regulate who’s able to sign up, considering that Thompson admitted the current system often doesn’t work.  Australian authorities are thinking about ways to educate parents and lawmakers, as well.

About Doug Caverly
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news. 
Source: http://www.webpronews.com/facebook-bans-20000-kids-2011-03

Firefox 4 Official Release – Was It Worth The Wait?

While Firefox 4 could be obtained yesterday, today marks the official release of the Firefox 4 (RC) download. For those who are keen towards browser advancements, these past couple of weeks must feel like heaven. We’ve taken a couple of steps towards the implementation of HTML 5 with the release of Google Chrome 10, Internet Explorer 9, and Firefox 4. Is Mozilla’s latest release up to the challenge?
The Interface – A bevel too much…
We’ll start with the less technical aspects of Firefox 4, as many have little use for the more intensive features of Firefox. I’m currently on the Mac version of the web browser, which actually looks a bit different than the Windows version.
Firefox 4 (Windows)

Firefox 4 (Mac)

Like in previous iterations, the browser interface is designed to mirror Safari in a lot of ways. The top portion of the browser is colored directly like Safari. The only major differences are the shape of the back/forward buttons, and the tabs are on top of the address bar when using Firefox 4. Oh, Mozilla also has their home and bookmark button to the right of the Google search bar instead of the left.
My only real complaint with the Mac version of Firefox 4 is the deep bevel the tabs have when sitting atop the address and search bar. I don’t know if the irksome feeling comes from my hatred of bevel from Photoshop, but I don’t like. Feel free to ignore this inkling, however, as I’m sure there are plenty of bevel supporters out there.
The differences in IE9 and Firefox 4 feel much more distinct, and I actually prefer IE9′s interface. Microsoft really took a glance at Google’s playbook, as the more I use IE9 the interface reminds me of Chrome. While there’s no glaring negatives found on Firefox 4′s interface for Windows, it comes off busier in the top bar area than IE9.
Speed – Javascript, and accelerated graphics are welcome…
Firefox 4 is fast. I could really leave it at that three word sentence and be done. Instead, I’ll dive into a bit more of the details behind the heightened speed. I’m not going to get caught up in comparisons to other browsers. The load times for the three latest versions of Chrome, IE, and Firefox are very close. In fact, depending on where you want to look, each one performed better than the other in certain benchmarks.
Firefox 4 is much more javascript friendly than the previous version. I’ve it put through the paces on some extremely javascript dense sites, and the difference between 4 and 3.6 is like night and day. I put the browser through my ESPN3.com test. Firefox 4 was like a cheetah in comparison to 3.6, and IE9 wouldn’t even load ESPN3. Due to this test, I know which browser will be used at home as I access my most used site.
Another cool feature Mozilla provides which could add to the speed of browser usage is “Mozilla Sync“. This allows you to save the data on your browser then transfer it to other computers and mobile devices. It certainly beats the old methods of emailing passwords to yourself, or writing them down.
HTML5 – The future of the web, and Firefox 4 is ready…
While there have been some major upgrades, most of them pale in comparison to the support of HTML5. Hardware acceleration, HTML coded hi-def video, 3D graphics, and a lot more additions can be found in HTML5. Of the sites I’ve tested Firefox 4 on, the browser has passed with flying colors.
Here are a couple examples of the power HTML5 has in terms of bringing a new experience to the internet:
iPaint - This beta web app has taken all the functions of MS Paint, made some additions, and have brought them all to the web browser. Firefox 4 loads the app perfectly, and after using all the functions provided the browser didn’t hiccup once. Have fun laughing at my crude image, provided by iPaint.

Motivational Poster Creator – This app is from Mozilla’s demos, and it highlights how HTML5 can allow users to take offline files and implement them within a web page. I can think of no better way of demonstrating this than with a Motivational Poster. Again, all of this was done using tools provided by HTML5. Enjoy.

The browser handled the entire process of accessing my image, embedding it in the webpage, and adding my custom text perfectly.
The browser to win them all?
There are a couple of more additions to Firefox 4 that will take some time before full judgement can be rendered, specifically with the security capabilities added onto this version.
At first use, I can find zero reasons why someone shouldn’t use Firefox 4. On the flip side, there’s no reason beyond some Firefox add-ons, that I would recommend this browser over Google Chrome. Due to IE9 failing my ESPN3.com test, I’ll probably switch off between Firefox and Chrome at home.
I did run into an interesting cache issue with WordPress, which involved overwriting an image. I had to clear my cache before the change registered, which is something I’ve never had to do while using 3.6. Has anyone else noticed any slight quirks?
How has your experience using Firefox 4 been? Even though it’s still early, first impressions mean a lot. What have yours been like?

About John Vinson
John Vinson has been a part of the WebProNews and iEntry Network since 2007. Follow WebProNews on Facebook and Twitter. 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/firefox4-official-release-2011-03

YouTube Introduces Powerful Image Stabilization, 3D Tools

In 1999, The Blair Witch Project caused some moviegoers to run out of theaters. Ten years later, Avatar had pretty much the opposite effect. And now YouTube seems to have learned from both developments, introducing an image stabilizer and a 3D tool this afternoon.
Let’s start with the image stabilizer. It aims to smooth the sort of jittery, jerky movements that (in addition to argumentative and whiny characters) made The Blair Witch Project less than mediocre. This is achieved through a “unified optimization technique,” according to a post on the YouTube Blog, and in case you were wondering, a YouTube representative added via email that it’s unrelated to the acquisition of Green Parrot Pictures.
The stabilizer’s effectiveness is impressive. You can see it at work in the second of the two videos below.
As for the 3D tool, YouTube’s official blog post stated, “If you’ve used a pair of cameras to capture stereographic video, but need the two streams to be synchronized and laid out in a way compatible with YouTube’s 3D feature, this new tool will do the work for you.”
Together, the two features are sure to earn the attention of plenty of content creators, from amateurs with camcorders to almost-pros trying to conduct groundbreaking experiments.
The new features will of course benefit YouTube’s more passive users, too, allowing them to suffer fewer headaches and enjoy cutting-edge effects.
Both the image stabilizer and the 3D tool are live right now and free for everyone to test and employ.

About Doug Caverly
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news. 
Source: http://www.webpronews.com/youtube-image-stabilizer-3d-tool-2011-03

Google Books Deal Blocked

Barring more legal maneuvering, the proposed Google Books Settlement – which would have cleared the way for Google to scan, digitize, and distribute millions of works – will not stand as is. This afternoon, Judge Denny Chin rejected the settlement, agreeing with opponents that it would give Google an unfair advantage.
U.S. Circuit Judge Chin expressed his opinions in a court document refreshingly light on legalese. He wrote, “While the digitization of books and the creation of a universal digital library would benefit many, the ASA [Amended Settlement Agreement] would simply go too far. It would permit this class action . . . to implement a forward-looking business arrangement that would grant Google significant rights to exploit entire books, without permission of the copyright owners.”
Then Chin continued, “Indeed, the ASA would give Google a significant advantage over competitors, rewarding it for engaging in wholesale copying of copyrighted works without permission, while releasing claims well beyond those presented in the case.”
Finally, the judge finished, “I conclude that the ASA is not fair, adequate, and reasonable. As the United States and other objectors have noted, many of the concerns raised in the objections would be ameliorated if the ASA were converted from an ‘opt-out’ settlement to an ‘opt-in’ settlement.”
Google hasn’t yet said much in response. It’s possible the search giant will follow Chin’s opt-in suggestion; it would almost certainly be the quickest and easiest way to resolve the matter, which has been in lawyers’ hands for years.
Or perhaps, given that Google is in no apparent hurry and has plenty of cash, the company will appeal Chin’s decision.
As always, we’ll be sure to continue following the situation.

About Doug Caverly
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news. 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/google-books-deal-blocked-2011-03

Facebook Places Launches In More Countries

A service that exists to let people broadcast their physical location has, fittingly enough, begun operating in a few more spots.  There’s word today that Facebook Places now works in Brazil, Bulgaria, Egypt, India, Israel, Malaysia, the Philippines, and South Africa.
Facebook Places only crossed the Atlantic for the first time in September, rolling out in the UK, so the latest expansion makes for a quick – and impressive – continuation.  Assuming nothing goes wrong, it’ll demonstrate that Facebook has plenty of skill dealing with different languages and unusual technical demands.

The move also shows that Facebook thinks it’s addressed all the privacy issues related to Facebook Places to the satisfaction of many different cultures.
Then here’s one more interesting thing about the new rollout: it puts additional pressure on Orkut and Facebook’s check-in rivals.  After all, Brazil and India were two of only a handful of countries around the world where Google’s social network has achieved much success, and now people there have another reason to use Facebook.
As for how this could affect a company in the check-in space, Willis Wee pointed out, “1.7% of the Foursquare users come from Malaysia.  Foursquare last reported that it has 6 million users.  So, 1.7% would be equivalent to 102,000 users. . . .  That doesn’t look too good, especially when Facebook has over 10 million users in Malaysia.  If just 10% of users were to adopt the Facebook Places, it would be practically game over for Foursquare in Malaysia.”
Anyway, credit goes to Wee, who’s based in Malaysia, and Philippines-based Arnold Zafra for reporting the development.

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/facebook-places-expands-2011-03
About Doug Caverly
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news.

Internet Explorer 9 Reaches 2.3 Million Downloads In 24 Hours

Microsoft announced today their latest version of Internet Explorer reached 2.3 million downloads in 24 hours. Will IE9 be the catalyst to allow Microsoft to gain some ground back in market share?
The past few years, IE has steadily lost ground to the likes of Mozilla’s Firefox and Google Chrome. In 2007, IE controlled 80% of the market. The latest reports have them sitting at 57%.
Simplistic interfaces, faster load times, better security, have all been reasons behind IE losing ground. It appears Microsoft has remedied many of these problems, and reviews have pointed out these improvements.
PCMagazine gave IE9 a 4/5 rating, saying this of the browser, “Microsoft’s new browser is faster, trimmer, more compliant with HTML5—a major improvement over its predecessor. It also brings some unique capabilities like tab-pinning and hardware acceleration, but only Windows 7 and Vista users need apply.”
Unfortunately I’m unable to provide my own thoughts as I’m on a Mac computer at this time. If you have a Windows computer and use XP, you’ll be left out in the cold as well.
While it has a small window of platforms for which it’s available, IE9 has these improvements listed on their product page: pinned sites (for Windows 7 users), tracking protection, InPrivate browsing, HTML5 compatibility, and more.
One feature I’m excited to see in motion is how IE9 will share the burden of graphics rendering with the GPU on more graphic intensive websites. HTML5 is supposed to push the capabilities of graphics integration, and being the go-to browser for this integration could be a strong investment for the browser’s future.
Firefox 4 will release next Tuesday; this version has been in beta since July 2010. The release certainly will provide IE9 with some staunch competition out of the gate. In a couple of weeks it will be interesting to see how the pieces of market share will be divided up. Many have switched to Google Chrome as well, providing a third option in the market.
Has anyone had the opportunity to use IE9 yet? If so, are the improvements as great as many reviewers have been letting on? Or are you still waiting for Firefox 4?

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/ie9-downloads-microsoft-2011-03

About John Vinson
John Vinson has been a part of the WebProNews and iEntry Network since 2007. Follow WebProNews on Facebook and Twitter.

Social Networking Growth Set To Peak

The double-digit growth of social networks in the U.S. are on track to reach their peak, according to a new report from eMarketer.
eMarkter estimates nearly 150 million Internet users will be active on social networks at least monthly this year, bringing the reach of such sites to 63.7 percent of the online population. By 2013, 164.2 million Americans will use social networks, or 67% of internet users.


“With fewer new users signing up, social network users will be more sophisticated and discerning about the people and brands they want to engage with,” said Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer principal analyst and author of the new report. While the social network audience has expanded to include a large number of users from Generation X, boomer and senior demographic, the youngest age groups are still the most active.
More than half of internet users ages 45 to 64 and over four out of five 12- to- 34-year-old online users will be regular social network users in 2011. The highest penetration level of all age groups will remain in the 18-to-24 age group, where 90% of internet users will use social networks this year.
“In 2011, social networks will need to cement their relationships with their users, particularly people ages 35 and older, in order to keep them engaged,” said Williamson.
“Marketers and media companies can contribute to this effort by creating compelling user experiences that make people want to stay connected to social networks so they can gain access to experiences, deals or content they may not be able to find anywhere else.”

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/social-networking-growth-set-to-peak-2011-03
About Mike Sachoff
Mike is a staff writer for WebProNews.

House of Cards, Facebook: Coming Soon to Netflix

Earlier this year, Netflix announced that it was working on some new Facebook integration. In January, the company informed shareholders that it would connect with Facebook in order to develop personal Netflix accounts.
“We’re working on an extensive Facebook integration, which will further the notion of a personal Netflix account,” a letter letter from the company said.
According to a report from Investors.com, Netflix has been rolling out versions of the Facebook integration for a couple weeks to certain test segments, but the final implementation could be different in the end. The final product will reportedly be rolled out sometime this year.
Movie studios are also starting to try out streaming movies on Facebook itself, leaving some wondering if Netflix should be worried about that. Investors seemed a little worried when that news came out.

Netflix is also getting into exclusive programming, though. The rumored “House of Cards” show , which involves David Fincher and Kevin Spacey, was made official today by Netflix. Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos wrote:
We’re delighted to tell you that in late 2012 Netflix will be bringing to our members in the U.S. and Canada exclusively “House of Cards,” the much-anticipated television series and political thriller from Executive Producer David Fincher and starring Kevin Spacey. We’ve committed to at least 26 episodes of the serialized drama, which is based on a BBC mini-series from the 1990s that’s been a favorite of Netflix members. Originally written as a novel by former UK Conservative Party Chief of Staff Michael Dobbs, “House of Cards,” explores the ruthless underside of British politics at the end of the Thatcher era. Reset against the backdrop of modern-day U.S. electoral politics, this new one-hour drama follows Spacey as an ambitious politician with his eye on the top job. Fincher, the Oscar-nominated director of “The Social Network” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” will direct the pilot written by Beau Willimon (“Farragut North” and the upcoming George Clooney-directed “The Ides of March.” )
The TV shows and movies that you are able to watch instantly are licensed from movie studios, TV networks, distributors and sometimes directly from the producers of the films and TV shows. “House of Cards” is unique, as it is the first exclusive TV series to originate on Netflix. Typically, we license TV shows the season after they run on a broadcast network or cable channel and occasionally, we have episodes from a current season, as is the case with “Saturday Night Live” from NBC, “Spartacus” from Starzplay and “Wizards of Waverly Place” from Disney Channel. In all of these cases, the shows are produced before we bring them to Netflix. “House of Cards” represents a slightly more risky approach; while we aren’t producing the show and don’t own it, we are agreeing to license it before it is successfully produced.
He also says Netflix may bring more exclusive programming to its service in the future. Sounds like a smart idea to me, particularly if they are able to do so with content involving A-list talent like with this show.
A report from the NPD Group this week found that between January and February, consumers watched 61% of their movies from Netflix. Number 2 was Comcast, with only 8%.

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/house-of-cards-facebook-coming-soon-to-netflix-2011-03
About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237 

UPDATE: Twitter Number Crunching

Yesterday, we told you about Twitter development team member Ryan Sarver’s message to third-party client developers.  In this message he stated that it was Twitter’s goal to create a uniform experience for users, and many non-official clients were preventing that from happening.  He also explained that most users access twitter through official clients, quoting a statistic that showed that figure to be 90%.
Well, it seems social media company Sysomos took issue with that last part.  They decided to crunch their own numbers and came up with a entirely different picture of the Twitter landscape.  Sysomos took a large sample of tweets (25 million) made on the day that Twitter’s API rules were officially updated.  What they found was that 42% of those tweets were made through non-official clients; a staggering break from Sarver’s number of around 10%.
Here is Sysomos’ breakdown of those 25 million tweets:

And here is a breakdown of individual clients’ share of the non-official pie:

The gigantic discrepancy can be explained quite easily, according to Sysomos: “Twitter’s number focus on the total number of user’s while our analysis looked at total tweets. It means there may be many Twitter ‘official’ users who are not very active.”
While this explanation is simple, it is still alarming for Twitter.  It seems the truly Twitter-happy are tweeting more and more with third-party clients and many official client users are stagnant.  Other possibilities are that people are reading tweets through official clients but prefer actually tweeting themselves through other clients.  Maybe some people are spreading their Twitter love around and using multiple clients.  Either way, if clients like Ubersocial and Tweetdeck continue to remain so popular, Twitter will have a hard time promoting the uniform experience that Sarver said was so important.
Read the full Sysomos blog post here.

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/update-twitter-number-crunching-2011-03

LinkedIn Announces Feature Phone App

Smartphones may be omnipresent in college classrooms and certain offices, but the reality is that many, many people still own more basic devices.  So LinkedIn, which used to take some pride in the fact that the average member’s income was around $100,000, today unveiled a new app designed to work with feature phones.
The app was built by Snaptu, and should be pretty flexible in terms of compatibility – it’s supposed to work more than 2,500 types of phones.
Another point in the app’s favor: it’s free.
As for what it’s supposed to do, Chad Whitney, a senior product manager at LinkedIn, explained on the corporate blog that features include the option to “[v]iew your update stream to glean insights from what your network is doing,” as well as “[g]ather ‘meeting intelligence’ about the customers and partners you’re meeting with on a daily basis through search.”
Then it’s possible to “[g]row your network by inviting people to join your network (and by accepting their invitations),” and “[a]ccess your connections to see how their networks have grown, who you have in common, and what’s changed on their profile,” too.

This development could help LinkedIn attract many new members, or at least convince some existing members to become more active.  Whitney predicted changes in Brazil and India in particula

About Doug Caverly
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news. 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/linkedin-feature-phone-app-2011-03

Web Apps Running Slower on Apple Products

Let’s face it: America is too busy to be saddled with any extra tap of the thumb, and launching anything through mobile Safari is groan-worthy.  But is Apple intentionally slowing down web apps launched directly from the home screen?  According to an exclusive at The Register, that is precisely the case.
Of course web apps do not need to be downloaded through the Apple app store, where Apple garners 30% of every app sold.  Herein lies the crux of some mobile web app developers’ arguments for sabotage.  The Register quotes one such anonymous web app developer who says, “Apple is basically using subtle defects to make web apps appear to be low quality – even when they claim HTML5 is a fully supported platform.”
What are these purported defects?  Well, it is a three-tiered problem.  First, the iOS 4.3 Safari browser runs on what is called the Nitro Java-Script engine.  This high-speed engine is not used when home screen web apps are launched.  Second, these web apps cannot use the HTML 5 application cache like official Apple apps can.  This means they cannot be used without an internet connection.  Lastly, they are not rendered with Apple’s new asynchronous mode, but with the older synchronous mode.  This lowers the quality of the web apps.
The Register quotes mobile app developer Alex Kessinger: “If it is conspiracy, it makes a lot of sense for Apple. If you ‘disallow’ home screen web apps, you prevent people, in a way, from bypassing the App Store.”
The conspiracy theory is not universally accepted, however.  Dissenters say that Apple has absolutely no incentives for any app to run poorly.  Dan Frommer at BusinessInsider reminds us that “Apple makes the vast majority of its iPhone revenue and profit from selling iPhones, not from selling apps. Therefore, Apple’s best interest is making web apps fly, not slowing them down in any way. That’s how Apple can sell more iPhones, and that is its main objective.”
If the problem does in fact exist, some say that it is a simple bug, and will be fixed.  Obviously, some believe in more sinister motivations.

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/web-apps-slower-on-apple-products-2011-03

 Josh Wolford

Facebook And Mobile Apps Becoming More Important To Small Businesses

Small businesses are increasingly relying on mobile applications, Facebook pages for their companies, and employees working remotely through wireless technologies, according to a new survey from AT&T.
More than a third (38%) of small businesses said they could not survive without mobile apps or it would be a major challenge to not have access to mobile apps. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of small businesses indicate they use mobile apps for their business. GPS/navigation and mapping mobile apps are the most popular, with nearly half (49%) saying they use them for their small business.
The survey found a significant increase in small businesses that have adopted social media as a business tool, with 41 percent reporting they have a Facebook page for their business. Usage is up from 27% in 2010, representing a 52% jump in just one year. Additionally, of all businesses reporting that they utilize social media, 41% responded that they’ve seen measurable success – in terms of better communications and relationships with new and/or existing customers.
Four in ten (40%) of small businesses report that all their employees use wireless devices or wireless technologies to work away from the office. This is up from 24% in 2008 and is expected to grow to 50% by 2012.
According to AT&T survey also found that one-third (33%) of small businesses indicated that they are using cloud-based or software as a service. In addition, despite recent headlines and media campaigns, nearly one-third (32%) of small businesses surveyed acknowledged they do not know what is meant by cloud-based or software as a service solutions.
Four in ten (40%) of small businesses report that all their employees use wireless devices or wireless technologies to work away from the office. This is up from 24% in 2008 and is expected to grow to 50% by 2012.

About Mike Sachoff
Mike is a staff writer for WebProNews. 
Source: http://www.webpronews.com/facebook-and-mobile-apps-becoming-more-important-to-small-businesses-2011-03

Has SEO Peaked?

To sum up a lengthy post (at least my interpretation of it), the point Tofel makes is that publishers are abusing search to get views (nothing new there), and the news industry is suffering for it, but with Google taking stronger action, SEO tactics might fall by the wayside.
He does make some interesting points. For example, “The Huffington Post/AOL deal may mark something of a watershed in this progression,” he writes. “Much of the $300-million-plus in value HuffPo has built has been in playing very smartly by the SEO rules of the first decade of this century. But if it is true that most entrepreneurs sell out near the top, and it is, then perhaps we have just been sent a signal by one of its masters that the dark arts of SEO have peaked and that the century’s second decade will see them fade, perhaps into near nothingness by the third decade. In other words, it seems increasingly likely that, when the history of this era is written, SEO will turn out to have been a transitional phenomenon.”
He also refers to Google’s recent crackdown (Panda update) on low quality content as a “small step in an inevitable direction, with the direction being the sunset of SEO.”
Google’s Panda Update did make it pretty clear that quality content is more of a focus than ever before, as many sites felt its wrath. Google’s search results still have quality issues, and probably always will. It’s not perfect, and Google would no doubt be the first to acknowledge that. That’s why Google’s engineers always have their work cut out for them, keeping up with new tactics (and old ones that still work) employed by site-owners to get their content moved up in the rankings. Google has even said that its current algorithm can still be gamed. You can still optimize.
Google, of course encourages many white hat optimization tactics – those which help it index the content more efficiently, and provide a better user experience. It is the black and even “gray” hat stuff, I think, that Tofel is mostly referring to. He does say “the dark arts of SEO.”
A tactic’s placement on the gray scale, will vary, depending on who you talk to anyway. The Panda update should be considered a call-to-action to not rely totally on Google for web traffic. Smart site-owners have always known this, but sometimes (to quote Cinderalla), “you don’t know what you got, ’til it’s gone.” That goes for web traffic.
We’re seeing a large trend of publishers trying to put a great deal more emphasis on social channels to decrease their dependence on Google. Meanwhile, social channels are also becoming go-to sources for finding a lot of types of information.
This is why getting social search right is so important. Google is trying, but so far failing. Don’t get me wrong, Google’s social search can be useful, and it is getting better, but as long as it doesn’t include Facebook data, it’s just not going to be as good as it otherwise could be – that is unless Facebook goes the way of MySpace, which is looking more and more unlikely at this point. Even then, however, it would still leave Google imperfect. There are still millions of people who use MySpace.
This is working in Bing’s favor. Bing has been doing more with Facebook data, but it has the challenge of winning over users – a challenge that isn’t as difficult for Google at this point, and there are still plenty of areas where Google simply offers a good user experience. Social isn’t everything. But it is is very important.
This is also why Facebook itself could eventually make a huge splash in the search space, if it chose to do so. The social network seems to be taking on just about every other industry (now movie rental). Why not search? We discussed this in more detail here.
Every time the “is SEO dead?” conversation comes up, which is fairly often, the general consensus, is ordinarily along the lines of “no, it’s just changing.” I think that still holds true. Even as social grows more important, search will always have its place, because users will always need to find something, and their friends will not always have the answers. Even if some friend does have the answer, they’ll have to find it – sometimes without starting a new conversation.
While the big brands battle with corporate politics and struggle to strike a perfect version of social search, other smaller companies are doing interesting things, building upon the big services we already use – companies like Greplin, Wajam, Backupify, etc.

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Right now, users have options to enhance their own search experiences. These options will continue to improve. It will be interesting to see if the big players can take these types of things mainstream, and make them the normal search experience for the average user.
As far as SEO peaking, I’m going to go with the usual, “it’s just continuing to evolve” conclusion.

author: Richard J. Tofel at Nieman Lab posted an interesting article, saying that, “someday, the sun will set on SEO,” and that “the business of news will be better for it.”

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/seo-search-tactics-social-media-social-search-2011-03

Block Domains in Google Search Results

Google just made a huge move that may have heavier ramifications on search quality than even the Panda Update. Google has basically taken the ability to block sites that it released in a Chrome extension recently, and simply added it to the Google search user interface, meaning that many more people are likely to take advantage.
Now, if you don’t want results from a certain site anymore, you can simply block it. So, you better produce quality content if you don’t want people to block your site.
Google Search Quality Engineers Amay Champaneria and Beverly Yang explain, “Once you’ve blocked a domain, you won’t see it in your future search results. (Side note: Sometimes you may have to search on a new term, rather than simply refreshing your browser, before you’ll notice the domain has been successfully removed.) The next time you’re searching and a blocked page would have appeared, you’ll see a message telling you results have been blocked, making it easy to manage your personal list of blocked sites. This message will appear at the top or bottom of the results page depending on the relevance of the blocked pages.”
 

 Users will always be able to see a list of their blocked sites in their search settings, so if you want to unblock a site, you can always do that. You can block a new site on settings page as well.
“We’re adding this feature because we believe giving you control over the results you find will provide an even more personalized and enjoyable experience on Google,” the two engineers say. “In addition, while we’re not currently using the domains people block as a signal in ranking, we’ll look at the data and see whether it would be useful as we continue to evaluate and improve our search results in the future.”
The main obstacle Google is likely to have to deal with in terms of this being a useful signal for rankings, is the potential for it to be abused – think competitors, biases, spite, etc. If there is a way to prevent that kind of thing, this would clearly be a useful signal. That might not be so easy though.
Users should start seeing the feature in their Google searches today or tomorrow in English for Chrome 9+, IE8+ and Firefox 3.5+. They’ll expand into more regions, languages, and browsers soon, the company says.

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/block-domains-in-google-search-results-2011-03

Google Android Top Smartphone Platform In U.S.

For the three month average period ending in January, 234 million Americans used mobile devices, according to a new report from comScore.
Samsung was the top handset maker with 24.9 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers, up 0.7 percent from the three month period ending in October. LG ranked second with 20.8 percent share, followed by Motorola (16.5%), RIM (8.6%) and Apple (7%).
comScore said 65.8 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones for the period ending in January, up 8 percent from the previous three-month period. Google Android took the top spot among smartphone platforms for the first time in January with 31.2 percent market share. RIM trailed closely with 30.4 percent market share, followed by Apple with 24.7 percent. Microsoft (8%) and Palm (3.2%) rounded out the top five.

In January, 68.1 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers used text messaging on their mobile device, while browsers were used by 37 percent of subscribers (up 0.8%). Subscribers who used downloaded applications accounted for 35.3 percent of the mobile audience, representing an increase of 1.6 percent.
Accessing social networking sites or blogs increased 1.1 percent, representing 25.3 percent of mobile subscribers. Playing games represented 23.7 percent of the mobile audience, while listening to music accounted for 16.5 percent (up 1.1%).


About Mike Sachoff
Mike is a staff writer for WebProNews. 
Source: http://www.webpronews.com/google-android-top-smartphone-platform-in-u-s-2011-03

Embed Facebook Updates or Tweets in Your Content with SocialDitto

Last month, we introduced a tool called SocialDitto. The idea was to offer a tool that would do for Facebook posts what Blackbird Pie did for Tweets. It simply lets you embed posts into articles, blog posts, or any webpage.
Now, SocialDitto works for both Facebook posts and Twitter tweets, so content producers, bloggers, and journalists can do either with one tool (with more services to be supported in the future).
There are plenty of cases when such a tool can be useful. I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of Tweets embedded in news articles. You’ve likely also seen screenshots of noteworthy Facebook posts. With SocialDitto, you can simply paste the URL of the post/tweet into the box, and get embed code, which will produce a box containing the post, with clickable links and all. It’s quite convenient.
Let’s say for example that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg just bought a dog and created a Facebook Page for it. Big news right? If you were covering it, wouldn’t it be nice to include one of the dog’s updates in the article for added value?

BeastJust learned how to climb stairs. I'm such a champion. 2 hours ago · 372 likes · 80 comments

When we talked about SocialDitto previously, we used the example of when the Green Bay Packers won the Super Bowl, providing a nice embeddable version of an update from the team’s official page. If you had been covering their offensive coaching staff changes, you may have embedded this tweet from the Packers’ Twitter account:

@packers
Green Bay PackersPackers announce offensive coaching staff changes: http://pckrs.com/rtb9 10 days ago via web · powered by @socialditto

You get the idea.
You can even switch between the old-style Twitter design or the new style. As an added benefit, I often find that the timestamp is off when using BlackBird pie, SocialDitto keeps that more accurate.
“Our goal is to make SocialDitto synonymous with social media conversations,” says SocialDitto lead developer Mike Marr. “We filled a gap by providing this service for Facebook, and we’ve expanded upon the popular BlackBird Pie for Twitter. Feedback has been very positive. We still have a long list of additional features to implement, including support of additional social media sites.”
The bottom line is that news-makers use social media, and they often say worthwhile things through their social media accounts. SocialDitto simply makes capturing these things for articles easy and user-friendly.
SocialDitto’s developers are listening. Feedback welcome.

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/embed-facebook-updates-or-tweets-in-your-content-with-socialditto-2011-03

Google Instant Previews for Mobile

Google launched Instant Previews back in November. This is simply a feature that lets you see a preview thumbnail of a search result before you click through to view it. This gives you an idea of what it will look like at a quick glance, and gave webmasters another reason to make sure they are using an appealing site design.
Today, Google announced the launch of Google Instant Previews for Mobile (for Android (2.2+) and iOS (4.0+) devices across 38 languages).
“Similar to the desktop version of Instant Previews, you can visually compare search results from webpage snapshots, making it easier to choose the right result faster, especially when you have an idea of the content you’d like to see,” says Brian Ngo, a software engineer on Google’s Mobile Search team.
“For example, if you’re looking for a webpage that has both photos and descriptions, you can use Instant Previews to quickly identify these pages by navigating across the visual search results with a few swipes of your finger,” adds Ngo. “Or perhaps you’re looking for an article, a step-by-step instructions list, or a product comparison chart—with Instant Previews, you can easily spot pages with the right content without having to navigate back and forth between websites and search results. And when the mobile version of a website is available, we’ll show you a preview of the mobile page.”

Google MobileNow you can use Instant Previews on your mobile device to find what you’re looking for faster. Do a search on www.google.com and tap on the magnifying glass next to any search result to see a side-by-side comparison of webpage snapshots. When you find something you like, tap on the preview to go straight to the webpage. 3 hours ago · 66 likes · 3 comments

Just like with the desktop version, to see previews while you search, tap the magnifying glass icon next to results.
Google said upon the release of the desktop version of Instant Previews that people who use them are about 5% more likely to be satisfied with the results they click. Anything that helps improve your bounce rate has to be appreciated. Now, you just have to worry about making sure your previews are enticing.

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/google-instant-previews-for-mobile-2011-03

Facebook Insights Analytics Tool Gets New Features

Facebook has launched a new version of its analytics tool Facebook Insights. The new version, we’re told, includes real-time reporting capabilities for social plugins.
“The updated analytics tool helps website operators better understand what visitors are interacting with so they can optimize site content and keep people coming back for more,” a representative for Facebook tells WebProNews.




The new version of Facebook Insights comes with:

• Deeper analytics, including impressions, referral clicks and most popular pages.
• Real-time engagement: Up-to-the-minute analytics for quick optimization.
• Access to aggregate and anonymized insights into how people are interacting with content, including impressions of the Like button and Comments plugin and click metrics.
• Demographic information for interactions based on aggregate, anonymized data. For example, an e-commerce site could see which products are generating the highest levels of interaction from a specific demographic and alter future product decisions based on that data.
• These new metrics will also be available through the Graph API and can be exported at any time.

This comes at a time when a lot of website owners are looking for ways to decrease their dependence on Google (and search in general). Facebook is certainly one of the more important sources of potential traffic and engagement.

About Chris Crum
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/facebook-insights-analytics-realtime-social-plugins-reporting-2011-03

Facebook To Overtake Yahoo In Display Ads

Facebook is on track to overtake Yahoo in display ad revenue this year, according to a new estimate from eMarketer.

 Facebook's display ad revenues will reach $2.19 billion this year, accounting for 21.6 percent of all U.S. display ad dollars. Yahoo's market share will reach 16.4 percent, while Google will account for 12.6 percent of display ad spending.
“Yahoo!’s US display ad revenues will increase by double digits each year from 2010 through 2012. Despite that, not only will Facebook’s display revenues surpass Yahoo!’s this year, Google’s revenues will exceed Yahoo!’s next year,” said David Hallerman, principal analyst at eMarketer.

“What that leapfrogging trend confirms is the strong demand among brand marketers for online display ad placements.”

 In search, Google will maintain its position as the top site with an increase in market of nearly 4 percentage points to 75.2 percent. eMarketer predicts Microsoft search revenues will be up 16.4 percent this year, while Yahoo revenue will drop to $1.1 billion in 2011 from $1.28 billion in 2010.

“Even as some observers expect Google’s search revenues to fall due to competition from Bing, the reported revenue reality shows that after a relatively ‘slow’ Q1 2010, net US ad revenues at Google grew by 27% or more each of the following three quarters,” said Hallerman.

“It will be hard for Bing to stop the Google juggernaut, and, in fact, Bing’s search gains are basically accompanied by Yahoo!’s search losses.”
  About the author:
Mike is a staff writer for WebProNews.

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2011/03/01/facebook-to-overtake-yahoo-in-display-ads

Major Real Estate Firm Switches To Google Apps

Chalk up another win for Google Apps.  Fairview Cadillac, a real estate firm with 1,800 employees and a portfolio worth over $19 billion, is switching to it, and an exec has gone on the record outlining the forecast monetary savings and other benefits.

Scot Adams, SVP and CIO at Cadillac Fairview, wrote today on the Official Google Enterprise Blog, "Prior to switching to Google Apps, we had been providing IBM Lotus Notes for about $190 per user per year, plus the cost of storage.  Google Apps' simple $50 per user per year price tag was very compelling . . ."

That's not the end of the story, though.  Adams also wrote, "The initial reason we looked at Google Apps was cost savings, but the ongoing value of access to information from anywhere, totally independent of the device, is where we're seeing the real gain."

So Fairview Cadillac's transition represents a definite win for Google.  Granted, many people would consider Microsoft a more serious competitor than IBM, but it seems reasonable to suppose that Fairview Cadillac didn't forget about Microsoft, with its market cap of $220 billion, when considering its options.

Google's no doubt hoping this endorsement will now push a few more companies in the direction of Google Apps.  After all, what's good enough for "one of North America's largest investors, owners and managers of commercial real estate" should serve the needs of many other organizations.

About the author:
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news. 

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2011/03/01/major-north-american-real-estate-firm-switches-to-google-apps

Google Apps Users Get New Gmail Contacts Features

Google announced that it's rolling out an updated version of Gmail Contacts for Google Apps. In addition to improvements made to Contacts for regular Gmail users last summer, the new version comes equipped with some business-specific features. 

For example, users can add new contact info that will default to "work" rather than "home" field types. Users can view contact details from the domain directory along with the contact details they added themselves. You can also add contacts from the domain directory to your "My Contacts" list with one click. 

There is a new group management feature that lets you add email addresses to groups, and pick from a contact's multiple email addresses to use on a group-by-group basis, and you can revert changes to you contacts for up to 30 days. 



Admins can enable new the new interface under "Service Settings" and "Contacts". That's in the next-generation admin control panel. Google notes that it could take up to an hour for users to see the changes. 

Google outlines the differences between the current and the next-generation control panel here.

About the author:
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237

Source: http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2011/02/28/google-apps-users-get-new-gmail-contacts-features

Facebook Will Give Your Mobile Phone, Address Info to Developers Again

Remember last month, when Facebook announced it was granting access to users' mobile phone numbers and home addresses to third-party developers (upon users granting permission)? Soon after, the company suspended the feature as privacy concerns quickly escalated. 

Facebook said it had received useful feedback that they could make people more clearly aware of when they are granting access to contact data. The company said it was temporarily disabling the feature. 

Now, in a letter to Congress (pdf), Facebook (via CNET's Declan McCullagh), Facebook is talking about bringing the feature back. In the letter, Marne Levine, VP, Global Public Policy says Facebook is  "assessing potential additions to the permissions screen that would appear when an application requests a user's contact information, to determine whether those additions would provide clearer notice to users regarding the information the application is requesting."
  

"The decision to temporarily suspend the permissions for contact information was sparked by some initial user feedback over the first couple days that the permission was offered," wrote Levine. "A key Facebook priority - indeed, one of our foundational principles - is to ensure users can exercise control over their information, and we are always striving to improve the notices we provide to users. On review of the user feedback we received in the wake of the product launch, we determined that we might be able to increase visibility of these categories of data in the permissions screen, and we decided to suspend the feature pending that review. Facebook is committed to providing clear notices to users because we know how important it is for users to trust that they have control over their information."

Facebook says it has not decided when or in what manner it will re-deploy the permission for mobile numbers and addresses. Based on the letter, however, I'd expect them back before too long. 

About the author:
Chris Crum has been a part of the WebProNews team and the iEntry Network of B2B Publications since 2003. Follow WebProNews on Facebook or Twitter. Twitter: @CCrum237

Source:

http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2011/02/28/facebook-will-give-your-mobile-phone-address-info-to-developers-again