On Internet Business

Will Spam Kill Twitter?

Posted by Michael under Social Media

Social Networking is a relatively young form of communication, but for huge numbers across the globe it’s their primary mode of communication. Still finding its feet, social networking and its ‘audience’ have been continually faddish since the birth and boom of the medium with Friends Reunited, MySpace and Bebo.

The latest big noise in this phenomenon is, of course, Twitter. Seen as a unique and independent antidote to the heavily ad-driven Facebook by its users, times may be about to change for the young upstart.

Spam has long been a blight on internet usage across the board, from personal email accounts to Facebook and Myspace, unsolicitated correspondance on all manner of products seems unavoidable.

When Twitter first launched, its unique system of Followers seemed ideal for avoiding spam appearing on your homepage. But as the popularity of the site grows, the spammers have inevitably latched on to this huge and lucrative audience. It has now been claimed that approximately 10% of Twitter messages are spam, and you only have to peruse their Trending Topics to see the sheer volume of contentless messages pushing products and services across the site. So how do they remedy the situation?

According to Christopher Peri, CEO of the Web-based third-party Twitter interface Twittfilter, “Technically what we’re now seeing is really Twitter spam 2.0. The first iteration of Twitter spam was a tweet that showed up with a picture of a pretty girl on it. You looked at it and realised you just got spammed. The second phase of Twitter spam, which we’re seeing today, is a lot harder to identify, and thus a lot harder to protect against.” Twittfilter is an interface designed to combat spammers by minimising the chances of you seeing their messages in your personal feed. They achieve this by applying a scoring system which is completely personalised to a user’s circle of friends. This makes it harder for the spammers to break into your network. Great if you’re using Twitter just like Facebook – to keep up with close friends and family, but rendered almost useless for those trying to genuinely network on Twitter.

In the past week Twitter users have, however, seen a huge drop in their follower numbers coming from the Twitter operators themselves. Far from losing faithful fans, this has been down to dramatic slashes in spam accounts from the site. By actively combatting the problem from Twitter HQ, their PR image remains on a high compared to rivals Facebook, who seem to embrace their spam-infested, ad-driven medium.

Perhaps this spammer-slaying is the best move Twitter can make. As the network gains huge popularity and gains enough credibility to achieve regular usage on Channel 4 News among other TV and Radio programmes, gaining their ‘grass roots vision’ is the only way Twitter can keep their status as the cool social networking location of the moment.

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Google Chrome OS – Is this the beginning of the end for Microsoft?

Posted by Michael under Search

Google have come along way from their humble beginnings as just one of many search engines in use on the net, to the household synonym for Search Engines. Their next big step on the ladder to internet domination has taken the form of their own browser, Google Chrome. As if the rave reviews for this alternative to the hugely popular Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox browsers isn’t enough, Google are pushing the boat out in an even more spectacular fashion.

Next on the agenda is Google Chrome OS – a revolutionary operating system to rival Microsoft’s Windows packages. Focusing on speed and user-friendliness, the system seeks to change the way our computers work via ‘cloud computing’. Put simply, this means that all the information we usually store on our hard drives – photos, music and documents – is kept in a virtual cloud online. Allowing your entire computer’s contents to then be accessible all over the world, Google Chrome OS means that users will never again be tied to one piece of hardware. If your hard drive and the whole operating system you know as your Desktop is stored online, Google Chrome OS offers you the chance to ‘log in’ to your entire operating system from any computer, anywhere and at any time. You never need to bring a bulky laptop on the commute again.

Other benefits of Chrome are centred around price. While Microsoft has monopolised the home computer market for decades, the growing size of their Windows packages, especially recently standardised edition Vista, has seen the size of home computer hardware and laptop memory having to grow in capacity, and of course price, to house this bulky software. That’s not to mention the fact that with hard-drive based software systems, faults and bugs are something we’re all too familiar with. However, with Chrome’s proposed internet-based memory storage operating system, cheaper computers and a freeware operating system mean that Google could hold the home market firmly in their hands.

As we increasingly make moves towards an entirely online existance, with photostorage sites, online email accounts and online music players already mainstays, Google may just have latched onto the new zeitgeist of the computing and internet savvy world in which we operate.

It almost sounds too good to be true, so what are the inevitable drawbacks? We’ve all seen the targetted advertisements appearing on plenty of pages across the web, eerily accurate at times and all generated by GoogleAds. If Google are so willing and so talented at getting information from us in order to generate ads now, what’s to stop them accessing your own private hard drive if you’re a Google Chrome OS user? Of course, they only ever do it to make money, so is it no harm no foul in this case?

I started off by talking about Google’s rise and rise, and while it’s exciting to watch, it could be a downside. With Google holding a monopoly around 70% of the Search market, and gmail growing every day, soon it seems that the once-independent bastion of the internet could find itself under the ownership of one overarching, all-powerful company.

That might seem reactionary, but is there any reason to celebrate robbing Microsoft of their crown only for Google to become the new super-power?

Related: The Times

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The Top 5 Most Popular Blog Posts

Posted by Michael under Paid Search, Social Media

Popularity is the professional blogger’s bread and butter, but knowing how you stack up against the vast and far reaching competition can be a huge task. That’s where Technorati comes in with their new Authority application. Authority tracks the success of a blog post or article by charting the number of links it has generated in the past six months, thus finding out exactly how big the waves your blog is making really are.

The top 5 blog posts of the moment according to Technorati Authority are -

Obama’s First 100 Days: The Good, the Bad, and the Geithner by Arianna Huffington

It’s unsurprising that analysis and scrutiny of the most headline grabbing US President in history should feature highly in blog rankings. Obama’s campaign, unique in its resonance with young people, has generated countless searches, articles and conversations across the internet like no political event before or since, and The Huffington Post’s powerful online presence has put it squarely at the forefront of the debate. This article sees Arianna Huffington dissect the good, bad and ugly of Obama’s seminal first 100 days in office, with statistics, opinion and analysis.

Technorati Authority: 25,920

Jew Haters Welcome At Facebook, As Long As They Aren’t Lactating by Michael Arrington

This article’s effects spread like wildfire across the internet, making print headlines and national news here in the UK, and abroad. Discussing Facebook’s dubious allowance of groups dedicated to Holocaust denial and vitriolically anti-Semitic sentiment, Arrington presents damning evidence of how these groups contravene Facebook’s own rulebook. A cutting tirade, this well researched and wittily put post made a serious impact in exposing the darker side of the most popular social networking site of the moment.

em>Technorati Authority: 14,922

Engadget’s recession antidote: win a pair of tickets to attend the Google I/O Developer Conference! by Laura June

Everyone loves a freebie, and when it’s coming from your favourite blog they know exactly what prizes will make you tick. Engadget holds firm as one of the biggest hitters in consumer technology blogging, and here used their considerable sway amongst the world of technology to give away an impressive prize in the form of tickets to one of the tech events of the year. The tickets are all gone, but this exercise in the internet feeding frenzy shows just how well a site can reap rewards with a little generosity.

Technorati Authority: 14,723

Ex-drug czar John Walters made a fool on CNN by Mark Frauenfelder

Boing Boing, the site on which this blog was posted, have a knack for spotting what their readers want. Hooked into the net-savvy audience, their eye for a story on almost any topic is often uncanny. This article simply presents a video and an outside link, showing a CNN interview on an always popular and controversial topic among internet users – illegal drugs. Simply marrying a pertinent article to a well sourced video piece means this trusted blog grabs readership and generates huge debate, with virtually no need to create their own original content.

Technorati Authority: 11,544

Facebook’s Tolerance of Holocaust Denial Won’t Last by Pete Cashmore

Michael Arrington’s post may have sparked the debate, but the world of blogs leaves much room for both new media style and a traditional journalistic approach. In this article, Cashmore applies a more professional voice and collects some of the most pertinent information on the topic. Collecting opinion from both sides of the censorship debate, the article provokes much thought and delves deeper into the repercussions for Facebook and its users.

Technorati Authority: 9,929

Find out more on Technorati Authority via the Technorati Blog

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Internet Business and the Cloud

Posted by Michael under Business Growth, Search

A must read for all internet entrepreneurs is Nick Carr’s, The Big Switch.

The Big Switch  can be fairly divided into two sections. The first section draws a parallel relationship between the 19th century electricity utilities of America and today’s computing industry. In the second section, Carr discusses the impact of the internet on business, society and culture.

Carr asserts that the business model, that persuaded companies to generate and use electricity as a ‘Utility’ service, would drive us towards a ‘Computing Utility’. Computing Utility i.e., Software virtualisation. Data Centre consolidation, IP connectivity, ITIL processes, hardware standardisation, and Shared IT Services model is gaining popularity among entrepreneurs and the Computing Utility model is looking more and more likely to become the dominant model of the future..

 In the Second section he deals with how computers are used and how they are facilitating the transformation of our society. In his own words:

 ”In the years ahead, more and more of the information-processing tasks that we rely on, at home and at work, will be handled by big data centres located out on the Internet. The nature and economics of computing will change as dramatically as the nature and economics of mechanical power changed with the rise of electric utilities in the early years of the last century. The consequences for society – for the way we live, work, learn, communicate, entertain ourselves, and even think – promise to be equally profound. If the electric dynamo was the machine that fashioned twentieth century society – that made us who we are – the information dynamo is the machine that will fashion the new society of the twenty-first century”.

 As in his previous book, Does IT Matter, Information Technology is represented as an essential commodity that is not sufficient for a competitive advantage. In The Big Switch, he insists that the cloud computing or computing utility has great potential to change the way IT products are used and ultimately our society and business.

 A central idea presented in the book is an unexpected polarization and inequality in the society that is arisen as a result of the internet.

 In The Big Switch, Carr has presented his ideas very thoughtfully and carefully in a way that provokes readers to think about the consequences of using the internet.

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The National Business Awards 2009

Posted by Michael under Business Growth

NBA09

Last night in Manchester, the North of England and Northern Ireland sector of the National Business Awards 2009. Receiving two nominations, myself and some of my management team were invited to attend the bash at the Manchester Hilton.

I was, of course, absolutely thrilled to make the list of finalists in the Entrepreneur of the Year Award and was equally delighted to be able to congratulate all the staff at Quayside on our nomination for Small to Medium Sized Business of the Year. Unfortunately this time we weren’t winners, but lost out to some very worthy competitors.

My congratulations go to Chris McLellan of Remote Asset Management, and to all at CEND Ltd, winners in both the categories respectively. I must add a hearty congratulations to all the winners and nominees present last night (see the full list for the region here).

The whole event itself was a great success, with warm and genial host Lucy Meacock in charge of proceedings. A lovely meal, great company and high spirits contributed to a memorable night for everyone. Many thanks to all involved for a great evening.

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The website I hate most – Ticketmaster.

Posted by Michael under Online Retail, Search

Ticketmaster are a market leader when it comes to event tickets which unfortunately means that I end up having to use their web site. I can’t understand why they have designed a site that is so unfriendly, time consuming and frustrating to use. The sequence for trying to buy tickets goes like this. 

1. Choose an event.
2. Select date.
3. Submit the number and type of tickets required.
4. Type in a difficult to read code (designed to foil bots).
5. Wait. In the case of some concert tickets this required 20 minutes, with the site repeatedly crashing.
6. Be told there are no tickets available for the performance. Return to step 2.

Any company that wanted to provide a decent user experience would show users ticket availability before they try and order them. I can’t believe how many times I have hit the submit button and how much time I have wasted to be told that there are no tickets available. 

 I wish I could find an alternative…….

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Price Comparison Websites Get Regulation

Posted by Michael under Business Growth, Online Retail, Search

The web is the place to find the best deals. For financial products like loans, credit cards, mortgages and insurance price comparison websites are extremely popular. According to Scott Wingo, Price comparison engines 15% of online sales. These websites allow consumers to compare the prices, features and benefits or various products from different suppliers in one place before making a decision.

Now the question arises, how do these websites earn money?

Price comparison websites earn a commission, when a customer buys or clicks on a product through the website. Price comparison websites also charge product providers for featuring their products prominently. If these websites are promoting products on the basis of their commission it can be misleading to consumers as the real best buy may be hard to find .One of the big insurers – Direct Line, is not featured on price comparison websites.

Eric Galbraith, chief executive British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA), says: ‘So many of these sites are offering services that are misleading and ultimately it is the consumer who will suffer. However, there are some price aggregation sites that want to get rid of any malpractices and prove that they are accurate and fair.’

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) published a report that urges price comparison websites to provide consumers ‘clear and fair information.’ The FSA is also considering bringing in some stringent rules for price comparison websites.

Major players have are prepared for the challenge and are launching a code of practice. Richard Mason, former executive from Moneysupermarket.com, founded the Comparison Consortium in February, 2009 and is now all set to publish a code for online insurance aggregators and professional guidance for the insurers who use them.

Major price comparison websites in UK like Confused, uSwitch, Moneyextra, Tesco Compare, Direct Line, Beat That Quote  and Moneyexpert are already part of the consortium.

“The Comparison Consortium’s committee…collectively has over 45 years experience in the price comparison industry, acquired from the UK’s biggest aggregators such as , Moneysupermarket, Confused, uSwitch, Moneyextra, Tesco Compare, Beat That Quote and Moneyexpert,” said Jennifer Rose, a spokeswoman for the consortium.

However, some major players like Moneysupermarket.com and GoCompare.com are not represented in the consortium.

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eBay in Trouble

Posted by Michael under Online Retail

lt is well known that ”fake” branded goods are available on Ebay. Last year eBay detected that 0.15% of all ebay listing were for counterfeit goods.  For years, the owners of upmarket brands have seen copies of their products being sold online.  Now these companies are taking action and have asked the Europe Union to ban the sale of any of their goods on ebay. Here is the email I recieved today.

“eBay was built on a simple idea – that we could empower people by building a global trading platform where practically anyone could buy or sell practically anything. But that idea is now under threat from certain brand owners and manufacturers who are trying to turn back the clock and block the sale of their products on online marketplaces and other websites across the EU.

Ultimately, what is at stake is the right of sellers to compete fairly in the wider online marketplace, and the right of buyers
to be able to access the best possible deals from the widest possible selection of goods.

Some of these brand owners argue that their objective is to prevent the sale of counterfeits on eBay. But thanks to our work with 31,000 other rights owners, only 0.15% of listings last year were detected or reported as potentially counterfeit. The real aim of these brands is to block the sale of all their products on our site – regardless of whether such items are new or second-hand, genuine or fake. It’s not just luxury items that are affected, but also everyday items like children’s toys, electronic equipment, lawnmowers and pushchairs. And if we want to prevent other brand owners from following suit, we need to act now.

We are therefore calling on European policymakers to amend EU competition law to stop these unfair trade practices. But we need your help to persuade them to take action. If you would like to join our campaign against online trade barriers, please sign our petition.

Regards,
Your eBay Team

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Sales by Online Channel

Posted by Michael under Business Growth, Online Retail, Search

Source: FBR Research 

Some of the most interesting numbers I saw presented by Scot Wingo at the Channel Advisor Catalyst event earlier this year where the split by online marketing channel.

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Google takes on Skype

Posted by Michael under Business Growth, Search

Google Voice is a service that will provide “one phone number for all your phones.”

After the acquisition of GrandCentral two years ago, Google has relaunched the service as Google Voice. Google has incorporated several useful features which include: 

• Easy voicemails
• Text messaging
• Call blocking
• Call screening
• Call conferencing
• Voicemail transcripts
• Low-priced international calls
• New user interface

There are established companies, such as Skype, SpinVox and Bueno, who compete in the Voiceover Internet Protocol (VoIP) market. However, providing a central interface to manage all phone calls and automated transcripts is an attractive feature that will encourage users to switch to Google.

Anyone can register with Google Voice by signing up at: www.google.com/voiceinvite .

Invitations will be sent as soon as Google Voice is available for widespread use.

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