jump to navigation

E-bookworms on hold November 13, 2009

Posted by kewroad in iphone, new media.
add a comment

Looking at Billy’s entry from yesterday about reading world literature on the iPhone we had a look at the German situation again and found that regarding e-books it’s the same with all new technology or media like the fax machine, internet, CDs, digital cameras: nobody wants to change old costumes naturally, but cannot hold off the development. As usual Germany is far behind other countries regarding changes.

A popular German literary critic finds reading books on an iPhone is a contradiction: People with an iPhone don’t read anymore. They are just playing around. Personally I doubt that there will be e-bookworms in the near future. Reading a book to me means slouching about on the sofa with a blanket, having some music, a candle light and letting the pages of the book be the only contact to real life for a while.

Bettina

Why the eBook has potential November 12, 2009

Posted by billyburnettgbc in Uncategorized.
Tags: , , , , , , ,
1 comment so far

I made the mistake of mentioning to a colleague on the way back from a meeting the other day that I was currently reading the entire collection of Sherlock Holmes on my iPhone. Rather than be shocked at questionable literary tastes, he was, instead, appalled that I was reading a book on my phone.

A recent report by Flurry, a San Francisco based analytics firm, however indicates that I may not be alone, with 1% of the entire U.S population already reading a book on the iPhone in August ‘09. With the recent global launch of the Amazon Kindle and the availability of a PC version announced yesterday, the future of the printed word in my opinion looks bleak.

Stack of Books

Books are not just not that portable

Firstly, the cost of eBooks is considerably less than that of the physical version. The entire works of Sherlock Holmes cost me just £1.49 and a variety of classic tales, such as The Picture of Dorian Gray and Aesop’s Fables are free. I admit that the cost of more recent books are, in some cases, more expensive, however as publishers embrace this platform surely this will change?

Another great advantage is access. When previously I had finished a book I had to plan a trip to the local bookstore and walk around in the hope of something catching my eye, or in the event I knew what I was after, a copy actually being in stock. Anyone who has finished a book midway through a long journey will share my frustration at this arduous process. With the iPhone I can quickly scan, purchase and download a new book in a matter of minutes.

My phone weighs 133 grams and the average book weighs 340 grams. I can therefore carry hundreds of books on the 16GB memory of my iPhone and put it neatly in my pocket, whilst I would need a pull cart to carry the equivalent amount around the town. The latter would likely get a few odd glances on the train into work or in the local pub on a Friday night. eBooks are, in brief, very portable.

Apart from being convenient, I also feel that the rise of the eBook will actually benefit society. The internet has provided millions of people with access to a wealth of information and with the proliferation of mobile handsets this has been expanded to billions. The rise of eBooks represents a global library that will get digital natives interested in reading again (as shown by this Daily Telegraph article).

My last point and one that I know will interest the more eco-conscious of you – eBooks are environmentally friendly when compared to the long-term carbon footprint of its printed predecessor.

As our mobile handsets continue to evolve to an entertainment, information and communication hub for the masses, and both publishers and companies like Google embrace the market, I feel that that the printed book may fall, although not completely, by the wayside. My colleague did however get the last laugh on this occasion, my battery died halfway through the journey!

Symbian Exchange & Exposition: My Thoughts October 30, 2009

Posted by billyburnettgbc in mobile.
Tags: , , , , ,
1 comment so far

With Gartner’s prediction that Symbian will continue to dominate the OS market for the foreseeable future, I was excited to get the opportunity to attend this year’s Symbian Exchange & Exposition in London earlier this week.

The first “large” event organised by The Symbian Foundation, it was an opportunity to cement the operating system as a major player in the OS wars amongst the developer community despite recent headlines being dominated by new market entrants, such as Google and Apple.

SEE '09 Security

Someone had tried to smuggle in an Android handset

So, how was the event itself? Well notably smaller than previous years, with fewer exhibitors, less “big brands” and visitors being evident from the moment you walked onto the floor. This is perhaps a sign of the current economic climate, but also the changing focus of the show – which is education.

With considerably more keynotes and seminars taking place than any other year, with a comprehensive main stage agenda complimented by a series of “topic rooms”, Symbian seemed keen to engage with the developer community and address their concerns. For example, Symbian was keen to highlight the reach of the platform both in terms of market share, but also the growing number of active Nokia Ovi Store users and future benefits of the Horizon Directory.

So, did Symbian succeed? When walking the floor I often heard the Android OS mentioned by both media and attendees as a viable alternative, perhaps strengthened by the timely announcement of the 2.0 SDK. Several media also remarked, when looking at the Symbian Wall of Ideas, that many of the features requested were already available on alternative platforms.

Overall, the event seemed to answer a lot of the concerns of the developer community and provide a clearer view of Symbian’s strategy moving forward. However, with several new handsets coming out on the Android platform in the coming months and Apple continuing to be the media darling, this is the first step on a very long journey to win back the developer community.

Microsoft Windows 7 Launches with a Successful Whimper October 23, 2009

Posted by kewroad in Journalism, Microsoft, Windows 7, pr.
add a comment

Impressed this week with how “little” Microsoft has done to launch Windows 7.  Seems to have learnt the mistakes of the Vista and past hullaballoo and gone down the path of “less is more” and well-judged restraint. (though the Japanese haven’t been able to restrain themselves e.g. the Windows 7 Burger King burger).

 And, with expectations nicely calmed if not lowered to zero, the media’s response has been pleasantly positive. Few commentators have found much to complain about except the price and the fact that XP users – who hated Vista and were most enthusiastic about what Windows 7 would offer – have to pay the most to upgrade. 

Notwithstanding it’s been so low-key (actually overshadowed in the UK by much bigger stories e.g. Nokia suing Apple, nasty but thick right-wing politician on premier UK political chat show) the PR approach does follow the old maxim of the most powerful stories are Man bites Dog, not Dog bites Man in that Microsoft launches a (so far) Good OS rather than launching a Bad OS.

The internet now drives opinion not the print media October 18, 2009

Posted by kewroad in 2009 predictions, Journalism, Twitter, information technology, internet, new media, pr, print media, social networks.
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
add a comment

The furore since Thursday evening over the Daily Mail’s Jan Moir’s take on the death of Stephen Gateley serves to demonstrate that communications and opinion is no longer in the hands of journalists alone.  Twitter not only ‘breaks news’ – it also provides the facilitate to quickly garner masses of public opinion around news.   In the old days, a journalist would express a view and all that might happen is a letter from Mr Angry from Bournementh in the letters page the following week.   Many of might have wanted to comment but didn’t have the inclination to write a letter.  Not only does the popularity of Facebook and Twitter  now enable people to comment instantly but these social media tools also enable us to come together collectively, quickly and forcefully to drive comment and lead opinion.

Is this new wave of influential public opinion revolutionary? Well almost.  When before could a swell of opinion be expressed so quickly and powerfully? Long-term, this must have a positive effect on the old powers of the handful of media moguls who have long domintated the printing presses. Surely, long-term, it will be public opinion that drives the news agenda.  This new power of the people can’t be underestimated. Such was the rumpus caused by the Daily Mail article that the  newspaper lost significant advertising revenue. The mail had to remove adverts from big brands like Marks and Spencer, Nestle, Visit England, Kodak and the National Express. 

As the Observer recently reported, the print media is changing beyond all recognition and will never be the same again. We are currently living in a period of incredible change in communications and social media. No one really knows what the outcome will be, all that is for sure is that it won’t be the same as before. 

Sue Grant

October 5, 2009

Posted by kewroad in Uncategorized.
add a comment

I was recently asked to give my views to journalist Alex Blyth for a piece for PR Week on women in technology – have we finally come of age? 

From a gadget perspective, this new world has definitely opened up tech for women. From young female gamers who have been brought up using mobile phones, PSPs, DSs and playstations to mums organising their children’s social activities via text and communicating with their childrens’ schools over the web. You are now as likely to see a blackberry being used in the school playground as you are in the office..just ten years ago few women even had a mobile phone (unless they worked in tech).  In terms of social media this is also exciting for women simply because women love the art of conversation. From keeping in touch with friends and contacts via Linkedin and Facebook to sharing thoughts on holidays, families and fashion in blogs and online communities. It embraces all ages from myself at 46 to my ten year old daughter who has grown up with MSN, Facebook and now Twitter all as a way of communicating and following people (though I’m still not sure I should be letting my ten year old use Twitter) All of this of course creates exciting new opportunities for the PR industry with  many more avenues for ‘talking’ to your audiences and communities. However, a slight negative.  The glass ceiling still exists and probably always will. Look at the majority of boards of PR firms – even the tech ones – aren’t they still run mainly by men?  Quite often, this happens because women take time out to bring up their children, which of course is absolutely the right choice for some people – life is about choice.  As a result there are still few women running the large global technology brands. It’s probably still true that whilst the majority of account execs and managers and even account directors are women in agencies, the majority are men at the top even today.

It’s shiny and new but the question is do you need it? October 1, 2009

Posted by andysephton in internet, new media, social networks.
Tags: , , , , ,
add a comment

The internet is buzzing with Google’s latest invite only toy, Google Wave, an online tool for real-time communication and collaboration that, if you believe the hype, is pretty much the best thing ever to come out of the internet. The highly coveted and sort after invites to gain access to the beta version are in high demand with one apparently selling for $5,100 on eBay.

This strange fever that surrounds these new online tools got me thinking about whether new is always the way to go. One blogger I found on the web made the very valid point that: “Just because people have access to a technology doesn’t mean they will use it. We used to have real time collaboration online (they were called chat rooms), but we got over that”. When it comes to online technology the key is to find out what works for you and not what everyone is talking about.

Social media as a whole can seem a scary concept to more conservative companies who are only starting to consider if this area is right for them. What they really need to be looking at is what parts of the social media sphere are appropriate for their business. Facebook has a lot of users but for many businesses have no place in their social media strategy. Twitter is good for short, snappy updates but sometimes you have more than 140 characters to say. LinkedIn can be great for finding new business contacts and answering fellow user’s questions but is it reaching the right people for you?

Don’t get me wrong, these tools could be perfect for your business but the point I am trying to make is that you need to make sure that they are. Don’t just use them because everyone else does. If a tried and tested blog is the best way to get your message out, go for it. If you can’t dedicate the time to keep your Twitter account full of relevant Tweets there is little point in having one. Also please remember that social media is too new an area for anyone to truly be an expert on this area and we are all still learning. Also remember that just because something is not right for your business now does not mean it won’t be in the future.

Many of the new tools will be full of bugs and glitches in the early days and the one that got no hype to start with could evolve in to the communication tool of the century. Do your research, talk to as many people as you can and remember to go back and look at the tools you wrote off in the early days. They might have got their act together and become a perfect fit for your business.

Want to live forever? Social media could hold the key if you are not prepared September 28, 2009

Posted by andysephton in social networks.
Tags: ,
add a comment

Social media, the buzzword of the moment, gives everyone the chance to create on online profile and share it with the world. This profile is your window to the public and whether you are a company or an individual it is becoming nearly impossible to control who accesses it and increasingly important to make sure they are seeing the right thing.

When managing our social media profile there are several issues to consider such as tone, key messages we want to put out there and who we want to see us. The area that is often overlooked is what happens to the profile after we are gone? (www.mydeathspace.com)

One of my colleagues decided to do a quick Google search on a potential LinkedIn contact before sending an invitation to connect, as it turned out the contact was unfortunately no longer with us as they had passed away. This got me to thinking about how we handle our social media profile; we plan for the now not the future. If something happened to you would anyone you know be aware of all your social media activity? Does someone have a copy of all your passwords? If not the social media space could be your key to eternal life as your profile continues on regardless.

This lesson is also applicable in the world of business. When one business acquires another are they making sure that all the social media activity of the acquired company is firmly under their control? When a company falls on hard times and has to close its doors do they make sure they are no longer showing up in the online world?

A social media profile is forever, not just for Christmas, and we need to be considering this in our strategy. You can have your social media strategy planned out to within an inch of its life, know where all your communication channels are and think you are putting out a unified message but people who have access to profiles that relate to your business but are no longer involved hold immense power.

The key is to make sure you do a complete social media audit on a regular basis, whether you are a company or an individual, to make sure you are the only one controlling your message. We also need to make sure that we keep an accurate record of activity and ensure that there are people out there who know what to do if the worst happens, living forever may sound great but there are better ways to be immortalised than by an out of date social media profile.

German election results as predicted – preliminary prognoses via Twitter to be prosecuted September 28, 2009

Posted by kewroad in Uncategorized.
add a comment

Much Ado About Nothing: The coalition of conservatives and liberals will take over the German office leaving the Social Democrats and the Greens crossing the valley of tears. This result has been predicted by all polls and expected by most of the Germans. And also somehow the election supervisors expected to find the first prognosis via Twitter before 6 p.m. when the polling places officially close – and they did. This could manipulate voters before they enter the polling place and is therefore perceived as a violation with fines up to 50,000 Euros. But authorities said they need to check every single tweed and find out those who actually revealed the real prognosis in advance. Others just put in what they wished their favourite party to end up with. This would then be just a misunderstanding of democracy rather than an offense.

Germans can’t wait for election Sunday September 25, 2009

Posted by kewroad in government.
Tags:
add a comment

This Sunday Germans have two reasons to be very nervous. One is the uncertainty about the result of the national election, because polls indicate that no expected coalition will gain majority and take over. The other one is: will the election be manipulated by Twitter? On the afternoon of the election day all parties receive what they call exit-polls including figures and trends about the votes. So everybody fears that the parties publish the figures via Twitter which could make those change their mind who go  voting in the later afternoon.

Earlier this year MPs were distributing the results of the election of the Federal President via Twitter in advance. The conclusion of this could be: Germany is not that far behind when it comes to social networks and the internet really provides a forum to political discussion.

To be continued.

Bettina Joedicke