Home � � Mashable: Latest 26 News Updates - including “Opera for Tablets Teased on Video”

Mashable: Latest 26 News Updates - including “Opera for Tablets Teased on Video”

Posted by Ashim Adhikari on 5:30 AM // 0 comments

Mashable: Latest 26 News Updates - including “Opera for Tablets Teased on Video”

Opera for Tablets Teased on Video

Posted: 04 Jan 2011 02:03 AM PST


Opera has released a short video teaser of its upcoming product, Opera for tablets.

Having already established its mobile browsers, Opera Mini and Opera Mobile, as the best alternatives to many built-in browsers in mobile devices, Opera now seeks to do the same for tablets.

The new browser is shown running on an Android tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab; its capabilities include smooth panning and zooming, as well as a home screen with a grid displaying your most-visited websites.

Check out a very quick preview of Opera’s new browser in the video below.

More About: browser, galaxy tab, opera, Tablet, tablets, video

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WordPress Challenges Bloggers to Post Daily in 2011

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 10:37 PM PST


Over the New Year holiday, WordPress issued a challenge to its blogger-users: Write and publish one post a day (or a week) throughout 2011.

For non-professional and personal bloggers, writing and posting every day can be a tall order, so the good folks at WordPress have launched The Daily Post, a guide with daily tidbits of “inspiration, encouragement and advice about blogging.”

Any user who wants to participate in the challenge simply needs to state his intentions then tag posts with “postaday2011″ or “postaweek2011″ throughout the year.

Blogging more is a fairly common resolution among the digerati; in fact, it recently came up in a poll we conducted about tech-related goals for 2011. Quite a few users said they plan to consume less social media and create more content of their own in the coming year.

WordPress’ Daily Post seems like a good enough place to start. Its suggestions for evocative post topics are great springboards for thoughtful writing.

WordPress users also have the “Press This” bookmarklet for quick, Tumblr-like posting and a slew of mobile apps for on-the-go blogging, especially great for posting images.

Have you set a blogging goal for 2011? Will you be participating in the WordPress daily or weekly challenges?

Reviews: Tumblr, WordPress, poll

More About: blog, bloggers, blogging, WordPress

For more Social Media coverage:

Major VC Trends in 2010: More IPOs, More Acquisitions

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 10:12 PM PST


According to data just released by Dow Jones, venture capital had a good year in 2010, showing more exits than we’ve seen since the recession began.

Web-based startups had a particularly strong year, with a grand total of 62 aquisitions worth a total of $4.1 billion — almost double both the number of deals and the dollar amount of all deals in both 2008 and 2009. In both prior years, consumer information services startups saw 34 acquisitions worth $2.2 billion and $715 million respectively.

So, who was making all these big acquisitions? In the web sector Google, IBM and Facebook were the top three acquiring companies, nabbing 10, five and five startups respectively. Zynga also made the list with four companies acquired throughout the year.

Across all startup sectors, 514 companies achieved liquidity in 2010 with deals totalling $39.3 billion, up 25% from 2009 exits and much closer to the 613 exits we saw in pre-recession 2007.

Another interesting area of activity in 2010 was initial public offerings. In 2010, 46 venture-funded companies had IPOs that netted a total of $3.4 billion. That’s almost five times both the number and dollar amount of IPOs last year.

Jessica Canning is Dow Jones VentureSource’s director of global research. In a release, she said, "While it isn't clear if companies with blockbuster potential, like Facebook and Groupon, will come to market in 2011, there is a healthy IPO pipeline. Currently, 44 companies are registered to go public, up from 25 at this time last year."

Mergers and acquisitions were also up from 2009. Throughout 2010, a total of 445 M&As raised $33.9 billion, up 17% from last year, which saw 381 exits netting $20.8 billion. Another interesting and hopeful note: The median amount paid for a venture-backed company this year was $46 million — that’s a full 70% more than the median in 2009, a mere $27 million.

Here’s a look at the past four years in M&As for consumer-facing web services:

Image courtesy of Flickr, elycefeliz.

Reviews: Facebook, Flickr, Google

More About: acquisition, Dow Jones, exits, ipo, startups, vc, venture capital

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Android Nipping at iOS’ Heels in Market Share [STATS]

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 06:29 PM PST


Apple’s iOS might be top smartphone OS in the U.S. in terms of marketshare, but Android is gaining, especially among new smartphone buyers.

The latest smartphone market share survey from Nielsen looks at data from November 2010. This data shows the iPhone has retained pole position in overall smartphone marketshare in the U.S. with an estimated 28.6% of the market. RIM’s BlackBerry and Google’s Android platforms are essentially tied in second place, with 26.1% and 25.8% respectively.

In fact, Android’s numbers are up by almost 6% from another Nielsen survey from the month before.

Of course, current market share is only part of the picture. Nislsen’s study also tracks smartphone purchases from the last six months, and in this area, Android is the clear winner, representing 40% of purchases.

This kind of momentum has continued to build for Android steadily over the last six months. Looking at the U.S. operating system share over the last six months, Android has continued to grow at rates faster than its competitors. Apple has seen a slight uptick in market share, generally remaining steady, while BlackBerry is losing marketshare against its competitors.

Of course, all three platforms are benefitting from the continued surge in smartphone sales. Nielsen reports that 45% of recent phone buyers choose a smartphone over a feature phone. That underscores just how much room remains in the overall smartphone market.

When it comes time to replace a phone or renew a mobile contract, an increasing number of users are going to be faced with the decision of buying another feature phone or paying the same price (albeit with higher data fees) for a smartphone.

In this area, Android at a particular advantage, not just because of its strong ties across U.S. carriers but because of the many different models from various manufacturers.

Reviews: Android

More About: android, blackberry, iOS, marketshare, mobile market share, Nielsen, smartphone, stats

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Reddit Grew 230% in 2010 at Digg’s Expense

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 05:29 PM PST


According to the numbers, social news website Reddit had an amazing 2010, more than tripling its pageviews at the expense of Digg, its longtime rival.

Reddit, a subsidiary of Conde Nast, reports that it garnered 250 million pageviews in January 2010. While that’s nothing to sneeze at, it paled in comparison to Digg’s accelerating growth.

Fast forward to today. Reddit revealed that it received 829 million pageviews in December 2010, an increase of 231.6% from January. Not only that, but average time on site is up as well. (from 12 minutes and 41 seconds to 15 minutes and 21 seconds). On the other hand, Digg had just 200 million pageviews in July; and every indicator e have says that number is shrinking, not growing.

Reddit’s also more than doubled its number of servers from 50 to 119, increased its disk memory from 16TB to 48TB and increased its delivery of bytes from 10.1 trillion to 44.4 trillion, all with the same number of engineers on staff (four). In contrast, Digg recently made major staff cuts, although it still has more than four times the staff and more unique visitors, according to Compete and comScore.

The takeaway: Reddit gained big, partially due to the failure of Digg Version 4 and the ensuing exodus of users.

Can Reddit keep it up in 2011? And what will Conde Nast do with its now-hot Internet company? We invite you to speculate in the comments.

Reviews: Digg, Internet

More About: conde nast, digg, reddit, trending

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Viral App ThreeWords.Me Appeals to the Ego

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 04:35 PM PST


Fishing for compliments is something of a misdemeanor in most social circles — unless your circle is the Internet and you’re fishing with a shiny, new vanity app.

ThreeWords.me is making the rounds this week. It’s a simple app that lets you solicit three-word responses from your friends around the web. Each respondent simply goes to your unique ThreeWords.me URL and enters three words about you.

Your friends can also add comments along with their three words, and you can reply to any entries. In your dashboard, you can see which words people entered the most.

You might get a lot of complimentary words, but be warned, o ye of little self-confidence: The app allows for anonymous commenting, so steel yourself for trolls, profanity and put-downs. You can delete any of the entries at your discretion. You can also choose to make all your responses private.

The premise is ever so grade school, which adds to the app’s charm. While ThreeWords.me is without question a slightly narcissistic game aimed squarely at the perpetually insecure social media scene, it’s nevertheless cute and catching on like wildfire through Twitter and Facebook.

Its UI is simple, as well. You get to upload a background image and profile photo; other than that, the pages are decidedly bare-bones and lacking in the design department. Then again, the design isn’t what matters about this app; getting people to talk about — and hopefully compliment — you is what drives traffic to the pages in this case.

*Words blurred to preserve the author’s lingering sense of humility.

You can connect the app to Facebook, but sadly, you can’t use Facebook or Twitter to find your friends who are also using the app. You’ll have to do that part manually, a major shortcoming that’s likely holding the app back quite a bit in terms of adoption and growth.

ThreeWords.me puts us in mind of Formspring, Facto and a slew of other vanity apps we’ve been watching lately.

The app was created by college freshman Mark Bao, a teenager who’s been trying his hand at web-based entrepreneurialism for quite some time already. While we don’t see ThreeWords.me as a money-making endeavor right now, we’re sure the exposure can’t hurt.

Have you tried ThreeWords.me yet or seen others in your circle using it? Let us know what you think in the comments.

Reviews: Facebook, FormSpring, Twitter

More About: facto, formspring, threewords, threewords-me, vanity

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100+ Upcoming Social Media & Tech Events

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 03:24 PM PST

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Every week, Mashable puts together a calendar of upcoming social media and web events, parties and conferences. Would you like to have your conference or event listed here? If so, please contact us at least one month before your event to establish a media partnership. For more upcoming listings, check out Mashable’s Events section.

In the meantime, here are some tips on how to network, share your information and/or promote your event(s) using social media:

Mashable’s Weekly Social Media and Marketing Event Guide is proudly supported by Eventbrite, the Web’s Event Marketplace.

Upcoming Mashable Events:

The Mashable Awards, January 6, 2011, Las Vegas, NV: In partnership with Cirque du Soleil, The Mashable Awards Gala event will bring together the winners and nominees, the Mashable community, partners, media, the marketing community, consumer electronics and technology brands and attendees from the 2011 International CES Convention to Las Vegas on Thursday, January 6, 2011. Together, we will celebrate the winners and the community of the Mashable Awards at the Cirque du Soleil Zumanity stage in the beautiful New York New York Hotel. The event will be hosted by comedian Baratunde Thurston, The Onion’s Director of Digital, and the remix masters, Eclectic Method, will get the crowd in a party mood. The Awards Gala will also include acts and performances from our partner Cirque du Soleil Zumanity.

January 6-9, 2011, Las Vegas, NV: Join us at the 2011 International CES, the global platform for inspired ideas and innovation. With 2,500 exhibitors, CES continues to be the world’s largest consumer technology tradeshow and always reflects the dynamic consumer electronics industry. The International CES is not open to the general public and all attendees must be in the CE industry to be eligible to attend the show. Register FREE for the 2011 CES with the priority code MSHB, an exclusive promotion for Mashable readers.

January 6-9, 2011, Lake Tahoe, NV: The worlds of digital storytelling, snowsports and technology will converge on Heavenly Mountain Resort January 6 – 9, 2011 for the Tahoe Snowcial, a winter festival celebrating the global community of enthusiasts who live their passion in the snow and tell their stories online. Snowcial ties these worlds together in a participative, collaborative intermingling of industry leaders that sparks new ideas for the future, linking networks, passions and turns. Speakers include CEOs of Gowalla, Path and Vail Resorts with performances by OK Go and MC Hammer. Register with the promo code founderfriend and get 10% off!

January 12-14, 2011, Washington, DC: Social Media Legal Risk & Strategy – Social media has proven to be a critical medium for companies who are looking to have their services and brands penetrate the public sphere. The use of social media, however, has not come with an absence of legal risk. Join 16 lead counsels from Coca-Cola North America, IBM Corporation, Wal-Mart, Chevron, T-Mobile, Capital One, Dell, Aon Corporation, CSC, Nationwide and other fortune 500 companies as they discuss strategies to address and overcome the legal risks posed by engaging in social media. Mashable subscribers will enjoy a 10% discount when they mention MASHABLE in their follow-up email to ddrey@marcusevansch.com.

January 12, 2011, Las Vegas, NV: Influence People is hosting a one-day social media marketing conference in Las Vegas and it will bring together leading brands and marketing experts to explore the viral power of social networks. During this one-day event, a team of renowned marketing experts will provide guidance on how to effectively engage with customers via social media, give tips on how to maximize the impact of your campaigns and offer insights into new services to try and trends to watch out for. This is the ultimate event for anyone involved in social media or digital marketing. Register with the promo code mashable and receive a 10% discount.

January 12, 2011, Stanford, CA: The NextGen Conference brings together young, aspiring entrepreneurs and young, rock star entrepreneurs with more experienced entrepreneurs and venture capitalists. Join us for a full day at Stanford University and learn from the very best! Speakers include: Peter Thiel (Founder of PayPal, Clarium Capital, and the Founders Fund), Keith Rabois (COO of Square), Mark Suster (2x entrepreneur turned VC), Travis Kalanick (serial entrepreneur and angel investor), and more! Register and use the promo code NGCMASH!

January 13-14, 2011, Washington, DC: marcus evans invites you to attend the Social Media for Pharma Conference. Hear from your peers firsthand on how the new FDA guidance will mandate your social media strategies. By attending this conference you will learn how to boost product exposure, generate market research, build relationships and increase sales and overall business in the long term. For an exclusive discount as a Mashable member, please mention “Mashable” to Michele Westergaard at michelew@marcusevansch.com.

January 13-14, 2011, Wilmington, NC: This two-day event will feature the region’s most successful people in business, technology, internet marketing and social media. Keynote speakers, seminars and the expo will be designed to help companies and their employees develop professionally, make new connections and reach new customers. This BizTech event will focus on social media strategies, search engine optimization, PPC advertising, strategies to finance your business, cloud computing and more. Register with the promo code BIZTMASH and receive FREE admission to the expo and 10% discount off all BizTech events, if you register by December 22, 2010.

January 14, 2011, New York, NY: Tomorrow’s Media Plan: Where should you be allocating media spend in 2011?
Hosted by L2, Tomorrow's Media Plan is a half-day, intensive clinic that gives marketing and digital leaders tactical suggestions for where and how they should be allocating their online media spend in 2011. The clinic is highly interactive and takes place in a classroom setting. The curriculum is designed for executives tasked with understanding digital media trends and allocating capital across competing marketing channels. Academics and practitioners lead the group through a series of sessions with a balance of theory and industry case studies. Register and use the discount code Mashable_friends to get 25% off.

January 17-18 and 20-21, 2011, Singapore & Hong Kong: Join us at this interactive conference on Social Media Marketing to acquire effective techniques for boosting your brand performance and ROI. Find out how Intel, Nokia, Watsons, McDonald's, Volkswagen, HP, Canon, Johnson & Johnson, Wall Street Journal, SMRT and more incorporated social media activities to get ahead of conversations. Through in-depth case studies and workable solutions, learn how to develop coherent platform integration strategies, handle a social media backlash and identify KPIs for the effectiveness of social media campaigns. Register today and save 10% when you enter Mashable under Additional Info.

January 19, 2011, New York, NY: Mobile Healthcare Communications: Case Studies and Roundtables – Representatives from GlaxoSmithKline, Within3, Pfizer Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Roche Diabetes Care, and others will demonstrate the best case studies of how major healthcare brands are connecting with consumers and professionals through mobile communications. Register and use the promo code MASH for a discounted rate of $155.

January 19, 2011, Wichita KS: Explore & Engage with Brian Solis and Jason Falls – Explore & Engage is a unique opportunity to learn from two of the social web's leading experts in a rare and intimate workshop setting. Registration is limited to just 150 people. The program will open with a powerful message from Brian Solis, "Engage or Die". Jason Falls will respond with two hands-on workshops covering social media tools, tactics, content, planning, strategy and measurement. Between workshops participants will have the opportunity to visit with Jason and Brian and to have Brian sign copies of his book, “Engage”. The workshops are intended for those already active in the social web who want to take their business or organization to the next level of engagement. Register and use the discount code MASHABLE to save $25 on each standard registration.

January 20-22, 2011, Mumbai, India: Click Asia Summit 2011 is designed to be Asia's largest digital & mobile marketing conference and expo where industry thought leaders congregate to discuss online marketing, challenges faced by agencies, and the changing face of social media. Click Asia Summit 2011 is going to change the way you look at Digital and Mobile marketing. Please register by clicking here.

January 20-21, 2011, San Francisco, CA: The First Annual Gamification Summit brings together top thought leaders in game mechanics and engagement science for the first time. Hear what works and what doesn’t in this dynamic and fast-moving field through case studies, workshops, keynotes and panels delivered by experts such as Gabe Zichermann (author, Game-Based Marketing), Amy Jo Kim (gamification guru) and Jane McGonigal (TED fellow, debuting her new book) and network with other leaders in the space. Attend the Gamification Summit 2011 and learn how game mechanics and the new science of engagement are rewriting the rules of brand marketing, product design and customer acquisition. Know the score: Register now with the Mashable promo code GSMASH11 and save 10%.

January 20, 2011, London, UK: SMART Social Media for Business – What are the threats surrounding social media and are they offset by the realistic potential for business growth? With speakers from Twitter, Adidas, Nokia, The Times, Yahoo! & Lauren Rubin from Mashable, this is your chance to hear from the global leaders in social media strategy to find out how to mitigate risks whilst capitalizing on the vast opportunities. To learn more about SMART and to download the event’s agenda, please visit SMART2011.com.

January 20, 2011, Washington, DC: L2 is a think tank for digital innovation. L2 will host the Social Graph Clinic, an all-day intensive clinic addressing the opportunities, challenges, and underpinnings of social media. Held at the George Washington School of Business, the event will feature speakers from academia, public sector, and private industry to lead discussions on social media strategies, rules of engagement, and metrics for marketing and digital professionals. Register here for the Social Graph Clinic. The first 10 Mashable readers to register will receive a 25% discount on tickets (Please use the following discount code when registering: “MASHABLE“)

January 21, 2011, Boulder, CO: Mongo Boulder is a one day conference focused on MongoDB, the leading open source, non-relational database. The conference will feature sessions on schema design, indexing, administration, replication, sharding, and more. In addition to several of the MongoDB developers from 10gen, confirmed speakers include Michael Dwan of SnapJoy and Justin Smestad of Mongo Machine. The event is sponsored by 10gen, the company that develops and supports the database. Until January 5, 2011, attendees can purchase tickets at the early-bird rate (50% off the general admission price). Mashable readers may register and use the promo code mashable to receive a discount.

January 24-27, 2011, San Francisco, CA: The Emerging Media Conference is one of the largest and unique of its kind, welcoming the New Year with an opportunity to view and experience the latest in technology advances and upcoming product roll outs. For three full days there will be demonstrations, presentations, and discussions led by some of the most connected and recognized experts in the industry including Keynote Jesse Schell from Carnegie Mellon University. Whether you are immersed in the world of emerging media or just have a casual interest, this conference allows you to preview the future of the tech world like a seasoned insider. Register and use the promo code EmMeConMash to save 10%.

January 24-26, 2011, London, UK: The Digital Content Monetisation (DCM) Europe 2011 is a forum for media and entertainment specialists to find out how to deliver sustainable strategies to monetise their digital content. You will meet over 200 of your peers across TV, Film, gaming, music, publishing and sports. Mashable readers receive a 10% discount when they register and use the promo code MASH.

January 24, 2011, Washington, DC: There are no sales commercials masquerading as presentations here, or sleepy Q & A sessions where only 1 of 8 questions apply to your business. What’s Next DC is about brainstorming, case studies, energy, networking, strategy and – best of all – personalized solutions to your company’s most important challenges. We’ll have floating experts in a variety of fields available, so if you hear something you like and want to bounce ideas around right there on the spot, you can! We’ve scheduled group brainstorming/strategy sessions and niche learning sessions where you can discuss your areas of interest and expertise. There will also be an area dedicated solely to networking all day long. This is not just a conference, it is an experience. Come prepared and energized to learn and share with other Marketing, Public Relations, Advertising, and Communication Professionals! Register with promo code Mashable and save 25%!

January 25-26, 2011, New York, NY: Information Industry Summit – Save $100 with the promo code PRMMASH to attend this 10th annual Summit, the digital information industry's flagship conference. (Note: discount valid off the individual non-member rate only and does apply to current attendees.) With a theme on "Moving from Wired to Wireless," the Summit will address the sea-change shaping the industry: mobile business models and content delivery, as well as the top mobile technology trends. For complete details, including registration information, visit InformationIndustrySummit.net.

January 25, 2011, London, UK: If you don't have a plan to offer your mobile services, you could be left behind as consumers increasingly consume entertainment, social media, games and gambling via mobile access devices. Mobile Gaming will present a detailed and exciting roadmap for how gaming companies can take advantage of this new channel that has finally ‘come of age’ and multiply their revenues in the near future. Register and use the promo code MASHMOBILE.

January 26, 2011, London, UK: Monetising Social Games will show you how to integrate the phenomenal success of monetised social games into your product mix so you can catch the next wave of explosive customer acquisition and revenue growth via a channel that is legal in the USA, China and other markets inaccessible to traditional online gambling companies. Register and use the promo code MASHMSG.

January 27, 2011, San Francisco, CA: Macworld 2011 is your once-a-year opportunity to see and buy all of the newest, coolest stuff-hardware, software and accessories-for your Apple products. You will also find expert advice, demonstrations and instruction by the very people that develop these products. Macworld conference programs feature industry leading minds, presenting cutting edge product training on the topics – see our featured artists and presenters. Mashable readers who register today get 15% off conference packages and $10 expo only passes by clicking here.

January 29, 2011, Milwaukee, WI: Companies in the Midwest like Groupon are proof that innovation happens everywhere and Flyover Geeks: Bootstrapper’s Ball is coming to Milwaukee in January with a one day conference exploring the entrepreneurial condition. Experienced entrepreneurs with successful startups will walk you through how they did it and what what they are doing to keep their success on an upwards trajectory. You’ll hear about topics as diverse as funding your own retirement as an entrepreneur, legal advice, building lean and how to get past the word “No”. Come the the University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee campus) on January 29th and use the code FGBALL to get 20% of the admission price!

January 31 – February 3, 2011, Toronto, Canada: Attend the Advanced Learning Institute's 23rd updated forum on Social Media for Government: How To Engage Your Employees & Citizens By Using The Latest Web 2.0 Technologies To Drive Communication Results, to learn how to incorporate social media into your communications & marketing plans & leverage the latest interactive Web 2.0 tools & techniques to advance your organizational goals. Hear practical advice from: ON Ministry of Labour; Toronto Police Service; Northern Lights Canada; Royal Bank of Canada; Genome Alberta; ON Ministry of Health & Long-Term Care; Public Service Commission of Canada; City of Ottawa; Halton Region, ON & more. Register and mention Mashable to save $200!

February 1-3, 2011, San Diego, CA: The Green Data Center Conference will analyze new technology that will not only benefit our environment, but also save organizations money and increase efficiency. Industry experts and executives will gather to discuss the growing importance of green technology and the associated benefits. Corporate case studies will be presented to demonstrate how existing data centers have been retrofitted and new facilities built from the ground up. This conference will share valuable information that can be taken back and used immediately to gain measurable ROI. Register and use the promo code GDCSD10 to save 10%!

February 1-3, 2011, Santa Clara, CA: O'Reilly Strata Conference: Making Data Work – Turn data into decisions at Strata, the new conference from O’Reilly Media, focusing on the business and practice of data.Unprecedented computing power and connectivity are bringing new layers of experience to our lives in how we manage and present data sets of all sizes. Throughout three days of training, breakout sessions, and plenary discussions, O’Reilly Strata connects the decision-makers, practitioners, and leading vendors from enterprise and the web who are at the leading edge of this space. Topics include data science, acquisition, organization, machine learning, visualization, and more. Mashable readers can save 15% on registration with the promo code str11msh.

February 2-4, 2011, Austin, TX: Turn up the heat on your digital campaigns at Digital Marketing Forum 2011. From social media to email marketing to online advertising and beyond — DMF will cover everything you need to know to ignite your digital strategy in 2011. Best of all, each session will include examples from B2B and B2C campaigns—ensuring a highly relevant conference, no matter your level or target audience. So add some kick to your campaigns and join us in Austin February 2-4 and save $100 with code MASH100. It’s going to be spicy! For more information, please click here.

February 2-3, 2011, San Francisco, CA: Marketing and customer service are on a collision course. Social media now shine a bright light on customer service interactions, which increasingly have brand implications. Customer care can also offer valuable insights for marketing and product development. How many companies are adapting and turning this to their advantage? Still too few as old modes of thinking remain entrenched in organizations. Opus Research's Conversational Commerce Conference (C3) brings together a diverse array of interested groups and stakeholders to discuss the new social media landscape and its joint impact on marketing and customer care.

February 2, 2011, Austin, TX: Toyota, REI, Texas Instruments, Kellogg Company, and more will share case studies in corporate social media at BlogWell Austin: How Big Brands Use Social Media. You’ll learn how to get started, get past roadblocks, and make your social media program phenomenal — in one afternoon, for just $250. Get practical, how-to advice on creating great content, getting management buy-in, educating employees, keeping lawyers and regulators happy, simple and ethical disclosure, and engaging fans. Presented by GasPedal and SocialMedia.org. Register with the promo code THANKSMASHABLE and save 10%!

February 3, 2011, New York, NY: Did you ever want to meet, shake hands and give your summary to OVER 30 of the hottest VC Funds & Angel Investor Groups in the the NYC area? FundingPost is hosting its VC Showcase in midtown, NYC! At this VC Conference, OVER 30 VC Funds & Angel Groups will be exhibiting their firms during a great cocktail party setting. Each Fund will have their own table setup for the sole purpose of meeting great new companies. The first 29 Funds have already been announced! Register and use the discount code nyvcs.

February 4-5, 2010 Atlanta, GA: SoCon11, the South's premier social media networking event celebrates five years on February 4 – 5th at Kennesaw State University, just outside Atlanta. The two day SoCon11 event kicks off Friday night at the historic Carter Center complete with music, gourmet dinner buffet, and cash bar. Following is a day of networking and break-out sessions with some of the biggest names in digital media. This year it's all about mobile and as always, social media. Register and use the promo code MASH for 20% off.

February 7-11, 2011, New York, San Francisco, London, Hong Kong, Toronto, Sao Paulo, Rome, Istanbul and Paris: Coming this Februar to a city near you is the first 2011 edition of Social Media Week, to be held simultaneously in New York, San Francisco, London, Hong Kong, Toronto, Sao Paulo, Rome, Istanbul and Paris. Social Media Week is a co-curated, distributed conference featuring hundreds of free events taking place over the course of the week in interesting venues across each of the nine cities. Topically framed around social media, events include panels, parties, product demos, meetups and more, put on by media, communication and technology companies around the globe. Social Media Week was held for the first time in February 2009 in New York City. 2010 followed with an event in February that expanded to NYC plus five more cities, adding London, Berlin, San Francisco, Toronto and São Paolo to the fold, plus an event in September in Los Angeles, Bogota, Buenos Aires, Mexico City and Milan. Social Media Week 2010 attracted more than 17,000 attendees across 450 events, nearly all of which were made available for free to attendees thanks to sponsorship from a number of global brands, including Meebo and PepsiCo. Learn more about the February 7-11, 2011 event at http://socialmediaweek.org.

February 7-10, 2011, Orlando, FL: ARC's 2011 World Industry Forum: Driving Innovation, Sustainability and Performance will take place at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld! This forum will focus on challenges that will help you develop winning strategies. It provides an ideal environment for industry executives to collaborate, share ideas, and find new ways to attack their most pressing problems. The event includes sessions on the major issues facing our industry, with multiple tracks that enable executives to explore these topics from different perspectives. Owner/operators, solution providers, & technical experts will all benefit while contributing to the community's body of knowledge.

February 7-10, San Diego, CA: Online Marketing Summit, the premier educational event for marketing professionals, is coming to San Diego this February. Learn from the online marketing experts of Dell, Cisco, Intel, McDonalds, Google Disney and YouTube sensation Justin Bieber. Join your marketing peers to share ideas, hear from expert practitioners, and learn best practices in the areas of: Social Media, Search, Email, Analytics, and more! Register with the discount code SMART20 for 20% off.

February 7-9, 2011, New York, NY: Now in its 10th year, the ePharma Summit is going to be bigger than ever. We are looking ahead to new trends and opportunities in digital marketing with unparalleled insight from leading industry innovators. Join us for more novel mobile strategies, more regulatory insights, more customer perspectives, and more examples of what is really working now from the organizations you admire most. Join us February 7-9 in New York City at the most respected digital marketing event for the life sciences industry as we explore innovative e-strategies and proven techniques to drive business. Register with promo code XP1606MASH and save 10%.

February 8-10, 2011, San Francisco, CA: Social Media Strategies Summit – We have researched the social media buzz to develop and present to you a top of the line marketing conference that you can't afford to miss. With in-depth case studies from the nuts and bolts to micro-blogging and sustaining online communities, you leave with a refreshed vision to take your marketing plan to the next level for 2010 and beyond. Register and use the promo code MASH to receive a discount.

February 8, 2011, Los Angeles, CA: Federated Media presents Signal LA: The Content Marketing Conversation. Signal, a series of 1-day events is produced for senior decision makers in the media and marketing business. If you’re involved in the digital media ecosystem, you belong at Signal. The speaker line-up is stellar, and we're really excited for what we're sure will be an interesting, informative and impactful day. Please join us! More information and registration details at www.federatedmedia.net/events. Register with the promo code SIGMASH1 to save 10%!

February 8, 2011, Atlanta, GA: Mongo Atlanta is a one day conference focused on MongoDB, the leading open source, non-relational database. The conference will feature sessions on schema design, indexing, administration, replication, sharing, and more. In addition to several of the MongoDB developers from 10gen, confirmed speakers include Hugh Watkins of Ericsson and Jeremy McAnally of Intridea. The event is sponsored by 10gen, the company that develops and supports the database. Until January 18th, you can register at the early bird rate, which is half off the general admission price. Mashable readers may register and use the promo code mashable to receive a discount.

February 8, 2011, Springfield, MO: Social Marketing Boot Camp with Sarah Evans – Limited tickets are available for this unique boot camp style event with nationally renowned expert Sarah Evans. You'll spend a full six hours of session time with Sarah, taking an in-depth look at the role of social media in marketing your business or organization. You wont just learn effective social media marketing techniques, but will look at how social media works in conjunction with traditional marketing and public relations and why that's important, practical ways of engaging customers and prospects, case studies, help with creating a social media based marketing plan, hints and tips, ways to make your brand stand out online, effective engagement, latest trends, tools and resources, and plenty of opportunities for discussion and Q & A. Register and use the discount code MASHABLE to save $25 on each standard registration.

February 14-17, 2011, Washington, DC: Attend the Advanced Learning Institute's 23rd updated forum on Social Media for Government: How To Engage Your Employees & Citizens By Using The Latest Web 2.0 Technologies To Drive Communication Results, to learn how to incorporate social media into your communications & marketing plans & leverage the latest interactive Web 2.0 tools & techniques to advance your organizational goals. Hear practical advice from: ON Ministry of Labour; Toronto Police Service; Northern Lights Canada; Royal Bank of Canada; Genome Alberta; ON Ministry of Health & Long-Term Care; Public Service Commission of Canada; City of Ottawa; Halton Region, ON & more. Register and mention Mashable to save $200!

February 14-16, 2011, New York, NY: O’Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing Conference (TOC) – Explore the new world of “Publishing Without Boundaries” at the 5th annual O’Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing Conference (TOC). This premiere event provides an unparalleled opportunity for stakeholders from across the book publishing and tech industries to network, share ideas, engage in lively debate, and come away with the knowledge and inspiration to lead change within their own organizations. Not only does TOC cover what's working now, but we also look ahead to what will work as publishing transitions to the next phase. The people who attend TOC are the people who are shaping publishing's future. Mashable readers can save 15% on registration with the promo code toc11mash. http://www.toccon.com/toc2011?cmp=mp-conf-tc11-mashable-banner-ad

February 14, 2011, Barcelona, Spain: The Mobile Premier Awards are among the most influential events in the mobile industry and the point of reference in early-stage innovation during the Mobile World Congress. An international jury of the most recognized mobile industry experts will select the 20 finalists from all the local AppCircuses held during 2010 to showcase their app in a 3-minute pitch at the event in Barcelona in front of investors, operators, media companies, peer entrepreneurs, and press and influential bloggers. Register and use the promo code #BCNMASHABLE to receive a 10% discount.

February 16-17, 2011, Berkeley, CA: Content Marketing is a key digital trend for 2011. Come to the first conference dedicated to leveraging content to attract more customers: Contentmarketing2011.com. The conference will bring together leading brands, ad agencies, publishers, PR professionals and service providers to focus solely on the latest strategies, solutions and technologies in digital content marketing. The conference will reveal through real-world case studies how to use content marketing to increase business and explore the future of this extremely powerful marketing tool. Mashable readers can register with the promo code mashable and save $100 off the early bird rate.

February 16, 2011, San Francisco, CA: VigLink is hosting a one-day Forum and Communities Conference in San Francisco and will bring together leading brands, forum owners and community managers to explore strategies in forum and community development.
During this one-day event, a team of renowned experts will provide guidance on how to effectively engage with community, give tips on how to maximize the value of your communities and offer insights into new services to try and trends to watch out for. This is the ultimate event for anyone involved in creating communities. Register with the promo code mashable to get a 10% discount.

February 17, 2011, Miami, FL: Interested in meeting early-stage Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists in Florida? Then register for the FundingPost event on Thursday, Feb 17, 2011, at The University of Miami. FundingPost has hosted 175+ sold-out venture events in 20 cities over the past 9 years. At our next event, the panel of investors will focus on Early-Stage Venture Investing: How to meet investors, pitch them, and what it really takes to get them to write you a check! Guest Moderator, Daymond John, star of the ABC show Shark Tank will be moderating the panel. Register and use the promo code miami11.

February 20, 2011, Kfar Maccabiah/Ramat Gan, Israel: Join us for the MEGAComm Conference for marketing professionals and technical communicators. This 5-track, full-day event will feature sessions for marketing managers, sales directors, technical writers, documentation managers and many others. MEGAComm is our FIFTH annual conference, and offers a unique opportunity to hear from the experts in both these important English-based industries, network with hi-tech professionals from all over the country, and expand your knowledge. Keynote speakers include Jeff Pulver (well known entrepreneur and Producer of #140conf) and Danny Ayalon (Deputy Foreign Minister of Israel). Features session will include SEO, WordPress, Agile Documentation, Single-Sourcing, MediaWikis, Managing Content and much more. For more information, please click here.

February 23, 2011, Portland, OR: Join hundreds of your online marketing peers for the Fifth Annual SearchFest Internet Marketing Conference in Portland on February 23, 2011. Thought leaders and industry experts from around the country–including major brands like Intel, REI, and the New York Times–will deliver in-depth presentations on topics including Advanced Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing, Universal Search, Analytics, Paid Search Marketing and many more. Register with the promo code MASHABLEPDX to save 10% on your General Admission ticket!

February 23, 2011, Los Angeles, CA: DIGIDAY:ON MEDIA: Where THE digital media moguls caucus on the business of buying and planning and advertising across digital platforms. There is an enormous media market that media agencies have to master: Online Media, Social, Video, Mobile, Search, Apps, Ad Networks, Email, Targeting, Measurement, Emerging Platforms, and much more and media execs are constantly seeking the highest performance and most innovative platforms to help them run, create, engage and deliver their digital advertising creative and messages to their target audiences. ON MEDIA will be an event that brings together the leading media executives, buyers and planners for the ONLY a high level one-day summit to help them discuss and debate the current state of buying digital and how they can thrive in today’s fragmented media economy. Join us for this one of a kind meeting of the digital media moguls in Los Angeles. Register and use the promo code ONMASH to save $100 (Mashable reader discount).

February 24, 2011, Los Angeles, CA: DIGIDAY: MOBILE APPS: The event will bring together the leading executives from top mobile agencies, blue-chip brands, mobile app developers, mobile advertising networks, and content owners to discuss the explosive Mobile “app-vertising” market. The “app-vertising” business is igniting the imaginations of brand marketers worldwide and serving up a land grab for an increasingly valuable piece of real estate on the omnipresent mobile device in our pockets. The industry pioneers, visionaries, and leaders will converge to take a deep dive into the emerging mix of branded mobile applications and in-application advertising that is finally poised to deliver on the promise of mobile marketing. Attendees will learn and gain key insights on the innovative brands, the killer mobile apps, dynamic integrated content and offers, video, storytelling, and the rich functionality of apps. And a whole lot more! So what does the future hold for app-vertising? Find out at DIGIDAY: MOBILE APPS! Register and use the promo code APPMASH to save $100 (Mashable reader discount!).

February 24, 2011, New York, NY: The 11th Annual Digital Music Forum – We are the only event in the United States that brings together the top music, technology and policy leaders for high-level discussions and debate, intimate meetings and unrivaled networking about the future of digital music. Digital Music Forum is known worldwide for the news that is made in our auditorium, the deals that get done in our hallways, and the friendships and partnerships that are forged year after year. Why wait by the sidelines, when you can join the event that is helping to drive the industry’s future! For a limited time we are offering a special Holiday Rate of $199 – a $500 saving! Don’t miss the opportunity – Book NOW to reserve your seat!

February 25-27, 2011, Los Angeles, CA: The 9th Annual Southern California Linux Expo, the premier community run Linux / Open Source conference, will feature tutorial sessions designed to show users of all skill levels what Open Source can do and how to do it. Whatever your interest is in Open Source, SCALE 9X will have something for you. Register and use the discount code MASH9 for 35% off.

February 27 – March 1, 2011, Palm Desert, CA: Be part of the exclusive unveiling of the most promising new products and prototypes of 2011. DEMO Spring 2011 provides a window into technology’s future and introduces you to the people and companies who are paving the way. Attend DEMO Spring 2011 and you'll have access to this exceptional group of global innovators, be the first to see 70 new product demonstrations and 30 AlphaPitch presenters, test drive products, and network with leading venture capitalists and angel investors, CEOs, dealmakers, entrepreneurs and demonstrators. Register with promo code MSH1 and save 25%!

Feb 28-March 1 & March 3-4, 2011, Singapore & Hong Kong: Join us at this interactive two-day conference on Social Media & PR to acquire effective PR techniques for boosting your brand image and reputation. Find out how companies like Boeing, BASF, BT Asia Pacific, SAP, Microsoft, HP, Kia, Dow Jones and more have successfully grasped the intricacies of social media to make it work for them. By the end of the conference, you’ll be able to successfully integrate both new and traditional media into your PR strategies! Register today and save 10% when you enter Mashable under Additional Info.

February 28-March 1, 2011, Sydney, Australia: Social media marketing has rapidly evolved to the extent that it is no longer enough to just get on board the “social media marketing train.” Marketers are bombarded with tools and technologies without a real understanding of integrating social media effectively. Social Media Marketing – The Way Forward enables marketers develop and manage a sound strategy for your ongoing and future social media marketing projects, with practical and valuable insights shared by some of the most successful brands and campaign creators in both B2C & B2B social media marketing. Register with the promo code MPMASH and save 10%!

February 28, 2011, San Francisco, CA: The Future of Money & Technology Summit will bring together over 500 of the best and brightest thinkers around money, including entrepreneurs, developers, visionaries, press, investors, authors, solution providers, and organizations who work with them at the convergence of cash and commerce. We meet to discuss the evolving converging industries of finance & technology, and to do business in a proactive, conducive-to-dealmaking environment. Come learn & share how innovations in technology are changing the way we do business on a global and local scale. For more information, please visit www.futureofmoney.com. Register and save 10% by clicking here!

February 28, 2011, Israel: The Future of Nonprofit Summit: Israel (#FONSI) brings together some of the best professionals, innovators, lay leaders, organizations, brands, and other passionate people to explore tools and ideas to move the vital third sector forward. Join us for a day of innovation, collaboration and excellence where you will learn best practices, innovative ideas and valued case studies. Visit http://www.fonsi.co for complete details.

March 1-5, 2011, Hannover, Germany: CeBIT is the world’s largest trade fair showcasing digital IT and telecommunications solutions for home and work environments. The key target groups are users from industry, the wholesale/retail sector, skilled trades, banks, the services sector, government agencies, science and all users passionate about technology. CeBIT offers an international platform for comparing notes on current industry trends, networking, and product presentations. For more information, please visit: http://www.cebit.de and to receive your complimentary visitor registration to this elite event, please email lguiang@hfusa.com.

March 1-2, 2011, London, UK: TFM&A is the UK’s largest and longest running multi-channel marketing, media and advertising event. TFM&A will be delivering the latest industry insights, trends and developments as well as leading suppliers of digital, direct, data and CRM solutions. With free seminars and keynotes from big names like Microsoft Advertising and Experian, over 200 exciting exhibitors, a dedicated networking bar and cafe and many more show features, take advantage of your FREE entry to create a campaign that becomes a classic. Register at t-f-m.co.uk/mashable.

March 2-3, 2010, San Francisco, CA: EyeforTravel's Social Media Strategies for Travel Conference is North America's number one social media event for travel professionals. Now in its fourth successful year, the event brings together top travel brands to share key insights on how to maximize the impact of your social media initiatives. The two days are packed with case studies, presentations and networking opportunities. Please use the promo code MASHABLE for a $100 discount on the admission price.

March 2-3, 2011, Barcelona, Spain: Innovative e-Marketin is our exciting cross-industry event in which we offer you the opportunity to uncover the secrets to success from the most experienced e-Marketers in the world and learn how to put ideas into practice in the form of social networking activities, brainstorming sessions, talking circles, keynote case studies and insightful presentations. Why not treat yourself to one of our exclusive VIP passes? Let us pick you up from the airport and drive you directly to the venue. Register with the promo code EMK11/004 to save 10%.

March 2, 2011, Orange County, CA: Invisible or Remarkable? Seth Godin is back for one night only live and in person in SoCal. Join us for an unprecedented night of networking and evening with best-selling author, A-List lecture circuit speaker and marketing expert Seth Godin. This event is expected to sell out early. Reserve your spot now by clicking here.

March 2, 2011, Berlin, Germany: FEI is Europe's first and only event to solve your industry challenge in real-time. Explore best in class presentations by top multi-nationals, collaborate with world renowned experts, Listen to real-world visionaries choreographing "next" best practices, and participate in a real-time case study where you will tackle industry challenges and work to propel the industry forward. FEI is no ordinary conference — this is truly a catalyst for change. Register and use the promo code FEI2011MASH to save 20% off the standard rate.

March 3-5, 2011, Orlando, FL: unGeeked Elite Retreats brings together 24 speakers over the course of three days. The format is styled as an “open discussion” with topics centered around enhancing, positioning and leveraging both the internal and external brand. PPTs and Prezi’s are strongly discouraged and instead, on-going and intimate discussions among keynotes, regional speakers and attendees are encouraged. Speakers include: Amanda Hite, Dan Schawbel, Jeff Power, Amber Osborne and more. Register with the promo code unGeekedFlorida and save 5% off regular ticket price.

March 4-5, 2011, Louisville, KY: Code PaLOUsa is a two-day, eight-track software development conference in Louisville, KY that’s designed to cover all aspects of software development regardless of technology stack. We will have sessions revolving around Microsoft, Java, Ruby, PHP, and Clojure; along with sessions on higher, platform-agnostic levels. There will be 60 technical presentations and panel discussions from well-known professionals in the software development community and a keynote talk from Douglas Crockford of Yahoo! and JavaScript/JSON fame. For more information and to register, please visit codepalousa.com.

March 7-9, 2011, San Mateo, CA: The Android Developers Conference, March 7-9 in San Mateo, CA, is the world’s premier independent event dedicated to building, marketing and managing apps for the Android platform. The format includes dozens of top technical classes, workshops and breakout classes. Mashable readers can receive a $100 discount off the Full Event Passport and/or gain free admission to the exhibits (first time registrants only – cannot be combined with other offers) by inserting the code MEDIASPONSOR on the registration page.

March 8-10, 2011, San Jose, CA: At Search Marketing Expo – SMX West, you'll learn to maximize ROI from paid search advertising, optimize your website content for superior organic search results, expand your skills with local and mobile advertising expertise, master social media marketing on Twitter, Facebook and other SMM networks, boost conversions, and increase sales. Use the promo code smx100mashable and save $100 off your registration. For more information, please visit http://smxwest.com.

March 8-9, 2011, Brussels, Belgium: Are you looking to unleash the power of social media for CRM? As new channels and strategies emerge it is increasingly important to meet face-to-face to share knowledge, challenges and experiences. Enterprise Social 2.0: CRM will bring social media marketers and CRM experts together to share knowledge through real-world case studies, best practices, lessons learned and offering networking opportunities with some of the biggest brands and businesses today. Past speakers include: Google, Kodak, L'Oreal, Philips, Nokia, Lego, Siemens, Vodafone, SWIFT, SAP, Roger Smith Hotel, Dominos Pizza, Airbus and more. To receive a special discount, register now!

March 8-9, 2011, Amsterdam, NL: We’ve brought back some of your favorite speakers, as well as a number of new ones, and we’ve also added a few surprises to keep everyone on their toes. With some of the most interesting and engaging presenters from around the globe, FITC Amsterdam 2011 will be 2 days and 2 nights that will leave you inspired, energized and awed. Join us for an event that you will never forget! Register with the promo code Mashable10 and save 10%!

March 9, 2011, Dubai, India: The Cloud Computing World Forum Middle East and Africa will feature all of the key players within the Cloud Computing and SaaS market providing an introduction, discussion and look into the future for the ICT industry. Register today and get inspiration on how to address your latest issues with advice from real-life end-user case studies and practical examples. Register with the promo code MEAmash20 and save 20%!

March 11, 2011, San Jose, CA: The International Search Summit is partnering with SMX to run its global search and social media program at SMX West. Focusing specifically on international and multilingual topics, the summit will run on 11th March and give delegates the opportunity to attend both events. Topics at the Summit will include international link building, managing global content, international SEO case studies and multilingual video optimisation. The agenda can be found here, and will be regularly updated with confirmed speakers. Combo or Summit only tickets are available. Early Bird rates apply and Mashable readers can get $100 off the booking price with the discount code ISS@SMXmashable. For more information and to register, please click here.

March 15, 2011, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Want to know successful stories on how big brands build their brand and reputation online? Everyone can go online, but can you STAY online? Our conference, Digitalize Your Marketing Strategy, is going to be most anticipated event of the year! WE are bringing you the Malaysian's most valuable brands, review their successful stories and provide you hands on tips to manage your online marketing strategy. Our privileged speakers from Digi, Dell, Unilever, Intel and Microsoft will share case studies using social media, digital and search engine. Register with the promo code DYMSMASH and save 20%!

March 19, 2011, Cape Cod, MA: Geek Girl Tech Boot Camp (Cape Cod 2011): Geek Girl Boot Camps are full-day technology “unconferences” for women, taught by women, of all ages and knowledge levels where you can find workshops on everything to do with computers and the Internet! Workshops include PC and Mac, Social Media (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.), Location (foursquare, Gowalla, Yelp) Photoshop, QuickBooks, Blogging, Podcasting, WordPress, Google Tools, Dreamweaver, Video, Inbound Marketing, digital photography, and more. The workshops are designed for Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced. There are Discussion Groups and an all day Help Desk. The Mission of Geek Girl Camp is to educate and empower every girl and woman at every age level, on every skill level, at every income level on computer technology with fun and provide a legacy by giving back and paying it forward. Mashable readers get an exclusive $30 discount off the standard pricing of $139 with special code mashable2011 when registering!

March 22-24, 2011, Washington, DC: The Publishing Xchange is a two-plus day interactive conference with discussions revolving around the latest market dynamics as they relate to real-world publishing and marketing processes. You'll learn about the latest technologies and how to achieve the greatest return on your efforts and investments while utilizing the new media channels. Choose from 6 tracks produced by Outsell, The Seybold Report, InfoTrends, Thad McIlroy The Future of Publishing, What They Think and IDEAlliance. Discover the future of publishing, how to implement a cross-media campaign, how a printer can make the leap into this new world & so much more!

March 22-24, 2011, Washington, DC: Ready or not, the way workers create, manage, share and consume information is changing in profound and unprecedented ways. Join us as thousands of technologists and business users from the world’s top companies gather to explore the technologies that are changing the way the world works. Choose from 19 conference tracks and programs, including the SharePoint Summit @ info360, EMC's Information Intelligence Summit @ info360 and Oracle @ info360. Visit www.info360show.com for details.

March 23-24, 2010, Las Vegas, NV: Hear groundbreaking social media ROI case studies at Social Pulse 2011: The Corporate Social Media Marketing Event! This conference provides corporate marketing leaders from across industries the newest insights and case studies on how to drive measurable results and marketing ROI through smart social media strategy. Moving beyond theory and assumptions, it is the only conference that focuses on social media initiatives that have generated measurable results for America’s leading corporations. Register online or call 1-800-647-7600, and use the promo code MJK233 to save $200!

March 28-29, 2011, Paris, France: The Marketing 2.0 Conference features leading social media experts who will discuss and learn about the social media initiatives from brands, advertisers, researchers and analysts. Hear from leading people in social media about their strategies, revenue models and how they are approaching upcoming trends in the field. The event will also examine the current market conditions, future forecasts and predictions from leading researchers. Use the promo code mash2011 to receive a discount off the registration price.

March 29-30, 2011 London, UK: Social Media World Forum Europe is now in its 3rd year, the event this year will be providing a format for networking, engagement, and lots of social media debate around the latest tools, technologies, platforms, and emerging trends within social media marketing. With over 4000 attendees last year, the show has grown significantly to become one of the leading shows in its field, hosting a variety of free to attend workshops & conferences for marketers, pr professionals, developers, and the like. Mashable readers receive a 20% discount when they register and use the promo code MASH2011.

April 4-6, 2011, Boston, MA: SOCIAL MEDIA & COMMUNITY 2.0 STRATEGIES is a unique event that focuses on the business value of social media for established brands, as well as entrepreneurial companies. It brings together community experts with lines of business leaders who are using social media strategically to drive their business. From setting the strategy, to operationalizing it, to measuring the results – this event is a high-level think tank for and by those particularly focused on understanding and improving efforts and investments in the Social Media & Community space. Join the evolution and register today (Save 20% with the promo code SOCIAL11MASH).

April 4, 2011, Munich, Germany: The International Search Summit is partnering with SMX to run its global search and social media program at SMX München. Focusing specifically on international and multilingual topics, the summit will run on 4th of April and give delegates the opportunity to attend both events. Topics at the Summit will include international link building, the impact of display on global search, international SEO case studies and multilingual video optimisation. All sessions will be in English. The agenda can be found here, and will be regularly updated with confirmed speakers. Combo or Summit only tickets are available. Early Bird rates apply and Mashable readers can get 15% off the booking price with the discount code MASHABLE011. For more information and to register, please click here.

April 6-8, 2011, Phoenix, AZ: K-12 educators from across the country are invited to the Mobile Learning Experience 2011. Over the course of three days dozens of breakout sessions are offered. Leaders and visionaries like Travis Allen, Graham Brown-Martin, Scott Meech, Tony Vincent, and Susan Wells give inspirational, informative, and practical presentations. In addition to breakouts, there are keynote presentations, panel discussions, app sharing opportunities, and scavenger hunts. Topics include classroom management, assistive technology, higher-order thinking, movie-making, research, and personalized learning. Register at http://mobile2011.org.

April 6-8, 2011, Los Angeles, CA: Hispanicize 2011, the 2nd Annual Hispanic PR & Social Media Conference, is the first and largest conference devoted to Latino social media, bloggers and public relations professionals. The three-day conference will feature top industry keynote speakers and more than 24 professional development sessions. It’s also the first event to gather all the Latino and multicultural bloggers together for first time. For more information, please click here.

April 12-14, 2001, New York, NY: Market Research and Insights In Action is a connecting platform where global leaders meet to discuss strategic and key topics, exchange most recent experiences, and brainstorm on future developments. The event will include keynote presentations, case studies, interactive sessions, workshops, talking circles, panel discussions, business meetings and formal and informal networking activities designed to link and connect senior executives within the field of Market Research and Consumer / Customer Insights. Why not treat yourself to one of our exclusive VIP passes? Let us pick you up from the airport and drive you directly to the venue. Register with a promo code MRIUS11/003 to save 10%.

April 13-15, 2011, Singapore: The Internet Show Asia 2011 is a series of seminars and a large end-to-end showcase of the latest internet technologies and solutions. More than 10,000 attendees will be at the exhibition and conference to find new ways of doing internet business and enhancing product offerings through the internet – through case study presentations and speaking directly with solution partners. The show will aim to increase your ROI, it's all about business, not a technology show. For more details and registrations, please visit www.theinternetshows.com/2010/Singapore.

April 18-20, 2011, Dubai, UAE: Planet of the Apps Arabia 2011 is a three day conference dedicated to the opportunities and challenges of mobile applications in the Arab world. The event is for app developers, content providers, device manufacturers, network operators and brands to meet and discuss the current challenges and opportunities presented in this growing market. Key issues addressed will include; the sustainability of the current business models, consumer engagement, developer recruitment, app discoverability, platform choice and the importance of social media networks. Register with promo code Mashable and save 20%!

April 18-19, 2011, London, UK: The Mobile Research Conference is the must-attend annual event for brands, agencies and academics interested in engaging consumers and capturing real-time feedback through mobile phones. Mobile, along with social media and online networks, represents the latest frontier for market research. Attend MRC 2011 and discover how to engage respondents, extract insights for product innovation and optimize marketing activities. This 2-day event is designed for consumer insights professionals; corporate, agency and academic survey researchers; mobile operators and tech companies. Register and use the promo code FF-MASHABLE to receive 20% off the main registration price!

April 26, 2011, Los Angeles, CA: LA Games Conference – Over 300 of the most influential decision-makers in the games industry gather for the LA Games Conference to network, do deals, and share ideas about the future of console, PC, online and mobile games. LA Games Conference – now in its 4th year – features a lively and fun debate on timely cutting-edge business topics, demos as well unrivaled access to some of the most progressive companies in Hollywood, Silicon Valley and beyond. We invite you to join us at the event and take part in the discussion with executives, creators, investors, analysts, press and gamers who will be instrumental in shaping the future of this booming business. For a limited time we are offering a special Holiday Rate of $199 – a $500 saving! Don’t miss the opportunity – Book NOW to reserve your seat.

April 28, 2011, London, UK: The Augmented Reality Summit is designed to explore this new dynamic reality and provide delegates with the perfect opportunity to uncover Augmented Reality in full and explore the opportunity's AR brings any brand or company. The AR Summit is positioned at the forefront of this exciting continually developing new industry. Whether you are a Brand, Advertiser or Agency, Technology provider or Developer looking to meet key industry figures, keep up with the latest developments, technology's & tools or simply to network with other from the world of AR – Register and use the promo code ARMASH to save 25%!

May 2-4, 2011, Toronto, Canada: Now in its 10th year, FITC Toronto is one of the largest and longest running events of its kind in the world. With some of the most unique and engaging presenters from around the globe, FITC Toronto is a blitz of presentations, demonstrations, and panel discussions, sandwiched between the legendary FITC parties and abundant networking opportunities. Register with the promo code Mashable10 and save 10%!

May 4-8, 2011, London, UK: Digital Shoreditch is the voice of everything happening in Shoreditch. The festival explores and celebrates digital technologies; unites the digital community; and provides a platform for sharing knowledge. The activity culminates in a series of exhibitions, parties, presentations, open studios and games.

May 12-14, 2011, Chicago, IL: unGeeked Elite Retreats will be held at the SYNCUBATOR and brings together 24 speakers over the course of three days. The format is styled as an “open discussion” with topics centered around enhancing, positioning and leveraging boththe internal and external brand. PPTs and Prezi’s are strongly discouraged and instead, on-going and intimate discussions among keynotes, regional speakers and attendees are encouraged. Speakers include Julian Smith, Jason Falls, Spike Jones, Amanda Hite and more. Register with promo code unGeekedChi and save 5% off regular ticket price.

May 16-19, 2011, Prague, Czech Republic: The TERENA Networking Conference (TNC) is the largest and most prestigious European research networking conference – over 500 participants, including decision makers, networking specialists and managers from all major European networking and research organisations, universities, worldwide sister institutions and industry representatives attend. Through keynote speeches by renowned specialists and many parallel sessions, TNC presents an overview of the latest developments in research networking, both in the technical field and in the areas of application and management. For more information, click here.

May 17-19, 2011, London, UK: The World E-Reading Congress brings together digital and print publishers with e-reading platforms and device manufacturers to discuss the business models and opportunities provided by the growth of the e-reading industry. Publishers must be prepared for this dramatic industry upheaval. They must learn how to embrace this disruptive technology and the World E-Reading Congress will enable them to discover how they can profit from the E-Reading revolution. Visit our website for more information and register before January to save 10%!

May 24-26, 2011, San Francisco, CA: All About the Cloud. Save $100 with the promo code PRMMASH to attend the software industry's leading ISV conference on Cloud Computing. (Note: discount valid off the individual non-member rate only and does apply to current attendees.) You'll join an anticipated audience of more than 500 senior executives from ISVs, resellers, and platform / technology providers, as well as the industry's leading analysts, bankers, venture capitalists and the media. Key networking events include: a Golf Tournament, a Speed Networking Event, a Mardi Gras-themed Welcome Reception and an offsite Networking Reception featuring the Microsoft Rock Band Challenge. For details, including registration information, please visit AllAbouttheCloud.net.

May 24-26 2011, Gateshead, UK: Thinking Digital is an annual conference where the world’s greatest thinkers and innovators discuss the latest ideas, innovations and technologies. The conference provides an experience like no other, stimulating new thinking and new ideas. It's about what you'll learn, and who you'll meet. Our eclectic schedule means you'll listen to world-class authorities, meet amazing people, be entertained and outrageously inspired! When you leave Thinking Digital you'll know about things that you previously didn't even realise existed and have become part of our unique community. Register with the promo code TDCMASH and save 10%.

September 26-29, 2011, Kaua’i, HI: The Search and Social Woot! is an elite conference unlike any other that will provide you with the strategies and complete know how to thrive in this ever changing environment. Each day begins with morning sessions around the hottest topics. With Keynote Bruce Clay of Bruce Clay, Inc. and speakers from corporations such as Real Networks, Network Solutions, AT&T, Microsoft Bing and Logitech. Afternoons are spent in a relaxed environment including planned activities in which individual attendees can get to know speakers and each other on a more personal level continuing the discussion and building long lasting relationships. Register and use the promo code SSWootMash to save 10%.

September 29-October 1, 2011, Atlanta, GA: As pet owners, bloggers, consumer brands and those connected to the industry – including veterinarians – continue to build upon social media & marketing, pet social media education & networking is an extremely important aspect to mobilizing efforts and to address the challenges faced by pet owners. Whether you use YouTube, Twitter, Dog/Catbook or online forums to gather & share information about pets, it's increasingly important for this community to have a face-to-face forum. Established in 2009, the BarkWorld Conference & Expo is the only pet social media conference covering ALL facets of social media & pet education. Our 2011 annual conference will focus on many topics, including: how to take great photos your pet & use it online, how to build/design a blog & monetize, mobile applications, metrics/SEO, pet food demonstrations, promoting your pet/business via social media and using online forums. Join us for this 2 ½ day conference. You'll be amazed with the information you'll walk away with and the new connections you'll make; your well-trained, leashed, pet is welcome. Register with the promo code MASH2011 to receive a 25% discount.

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Facebook IPO Now Likely In 2012

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 03:20 PM PST


Facebook has dominated the headlines today with the news that it has raised $500 million from Goldman Sachs and Digital Sky Technologies at a $50 billion valuation.

In addition, the social network intends to raise another $1.5 billion through a “special purpose vehicle” that Goldman Sachs will be setting up to allow some of its clients to indirectly invest in Facebook.

There have been a lot of questions about the Goldman Sachs “special purpose vehicle” since the news broke. The key questions: Why is Facebook choosing to raise more money through Goldman Sachs? Will the SEC allow this move, or will it force Facebook to start disclosing its financial results to the public? And when will Facebook finally have an IPO?

SEC regulations and the nuances of private investment are complicated subjects, so we thought we’d try to clarify some of the issues surrounding the Facebook-Goldman Sachs deal, including figuring out the likely date of the Facebook IPO.

1. Why Are Facebook and Goldman Sachs Creating a “Special Purpose Vehicle”?

There is an SEC regulation, set by The Securities Exchange Act of 1934, that requires companies with 500 or more shareholders to disclose their earnings to the SEC. The SEC then publishes this financial information, making it public knowledge.

Facebook doesn’t want that headache at all. It doesn’t want to go through the audits, create the reports, or let its competitors know the details of its earnings and expenditures. However, the social network still wants $2 billion in fresh resources, so Goldman Sachs has come up with a very clever workaround; instead of having thousands of individual investors, Goldman Sachs will represent them all and invest on their behalf.

This is essentially what most brokers do on behalf of their clients, the shareholders. Instead of making a person an investor of record in Google, Goldman Sachs will invest money on that individual’s behalf, making him or her a benefitting investor

The New York Times‘ Steven Davidoff provides a stellar overview of the SEC regulations in question, but it essentially boils down to this: Goldman Sachs is helping Facebook circumvent the system so it doesn’t have to report earnings or raise money via an IPO.

2. Will the SEC allow it?

The SEC isn’t stupid; it knew that brokerage firms would try these types of workarounds. The New York Times dug up the SEC’s definition of a record holder, which includes a provision that says if a company creates a vessel for holding securities of record primarily to circumvent The 1934 Securities Exchange Act, then it will deem beneficial owners as record owners.

In other words, the SEC could deem that Goldman Sachs is circumventing its regulations with its “special purpose vehicle” and thus consider all of the investors within it “record owners” of Facebook. That would mean that the social network would be required to report its earnings.

We think it’s likely that the SEC will intervene. The SEC is already investigating the private secondary markets for potentially violating the same 500 shareholder regulation. It wouldn’t be much of a jump for the SEC to tell Facebook that its investment vehicle doesn’t preclude it from publicly disclosing its financial information. In fact, it’s likely to tell Facebook the opposite.

3. So, When Will Facebook IPO?

Now here’s where it gets interesting. Facebook and Goldman Sachs are setting up this “special purpose vehicle” to raise a ton of cash for the social networking company. They’re absolutely aware that the SEC will not be happy with their arrangement, and they also know that the SEC will likely step in and tell Facebook to disclose its earnings to the public due to the existence of the Goldman Sachs vehicle.

So why would Facebook go through all this trouble when the SEC is going to shoot them down anyway?

The answer is that this move buys Facebook more time to grow and prepare itself for an IPO. The SEC regulation wouldn’t take effect until May 2012 because the SEC only requires private companies to start reporting its financial information within four months after the end of its current fiscal year. So if Facebook violates the 500 shareholder rule this year, then it won’t have to start reporting its earnings until May 2012, 120 days after December 31, 2011.

That’s more than enough time for Facebook to prepare for its IPO. When the day comes that Facebook is required to release its financial information to the public, it will probably decide to just go all-in and become a public company, raising even more money in the process.

Essentially, Facebook has set the clock for its IPO to occur on May 2012 or earlier. Part of the reason we predicted no Facebook IPO in 2011 is because 2012 is the year most of our sources say the Facebook IPO is likely to occur. It all fits.

Mark your calendars and set your watches, everyone: The Facebook IPO is likely coming in 12 to 16 months.

Reviews: Facebook, Google

More About: digital sky technologies, DST, facebook, facebook ipo, goldman sachs, ipo

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Ford SYNC Now in 3 Million Vehicles

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 03:03 PM PST


Ford has announced that its Ford SYNC connectivity system has been installed in more than 3 million vehicles.

Ford first introduced the SYNC system in the fall of 2007. Since then, the technology, which Mashable recently opined is changing the way we drive, has become available on all Ford and Lincoln products, save those that are largely for commercial or fleet use.

Built on the Microsoft Auto platform, Ford SYNC offers connectivity with your mobile phone, voice controlled access to your music player and more. Ford released SYNC AppLink last spring, bringing BlackBerry and Android app support to the SYNC ecosystem.

Last year, Ford introduced MyFord Touch, the latest generation of the platform that includes better speech recognition and the ability to act as a Wi-Fi hot spot.

Ford sent us a lot of data, highlighting the growth of SYNC, but one particular figure really stood out to us: Customers who are buying Ford vehicles are opting to purchase the SYNC package — when it is available — nearly 80% of the time for current 2011 models.

To us, that standout feature is more impressive than just hitting the 3 million mark, because an 80% attachment on new car sales indicates that consumers and car owners are seeing connected components as a must-have feature for a new vehicle.

Have you used Ford SYNC? What do you think of the connected car revolution?

Disclosure: Ford is a sponsor of Mashable Awards.

Reviews: Android, Mashable

More About: cars, connected car, ford, ford sync, sync

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“Craigslist Killer” Story Dramatized in New TV Movie [VIDEO]

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 02:41 PM PST

Delete Key

Lifetime, the network renowned for made-for-TV movies featuring “women in jeopardy,” will broadcast the story of the infamous “Craigslist Killer” Monday at 9 p.m. ET. The film is airing just less than five months after the alleged killer, Philip Markoff, committed suicide in his Boston jail cell.

Markoff was a Boston University medical student, charged with the 2009 murder of Julissa Brisman, a masseuse he was said to have met with via a Craigslist appointment. Markoff, who pleaded not guilty, was also charged with robbing another masseuse at gunpoint four days prior to the murder. He was supposed to go on trial this month, but was found dead in his cell last August — one day after what was supposed to be his first wedding anniversary. His fiancee, who originally stood up for him when he was apprehended for the crimes, broke off the engagement in June 2009.

Lifetime’s film — already reviewed by a number of sites including The New York Times — seems to be a straightforward retelling of the case, with some details drawn from the book A Date with Death: The Secret Life of the Accused Craigslist Killer by Michelle McPhee. Jake McDorman and Agnes Bruckner play Markoff and his fiancee, respectively, while William Baldwin portrays the lead detective on the case. Reviews don’t make the movie seem particularly insightful, but the film is in the top ten U.S. Google searches today, and Twitter users are buzzing about it as well.

Watch a preview of the The Craigslist Killer, which airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT and 8 p.m. CT, below:

Reviews: Craigslist, Google

More About: craigslist, craigslist killer, craigslist killer movie, lifetime, Philip Markoff, television

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BitTorrent Surges to 100 Million Active Users

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 01:26 PM PST


BitTorrent, the company responsible for file-sharing tools BitTorrent Mainline and µTorrent, disclosed Monday that 100 million people are using the aforementioned software products per month.

In addition to this attention-grabbing number (which only applies to BitTorrent’s official clients — there are many more unofficial tools out there), BitTorrent announced a few more milestones: 1) More than 20 million people use the service per day, on average, 2) The client is downloaded an average of 400,000 times per day, 3) Clients check in from more than 220 countries every day, 4) Said clients access the software in 52 languages.

We’ve reached out to BitTorrent to ask to what they think has spurred this growth and will update this post with any further information.

In common parlance, BitTorrent is somewhat synonymous with piracy (hence our belief that the iPhone app iControlbits will be pulled from the Apple App Store), but the company itself has been fighting to legitimize its name of late by launching an Artists Spotlight Program and distributing a number of films.

Still, one has to wonder how many of those 100 million monthly users are staying on the straight and narrow when it comes to BitTorrent usage.

More About: bittorrent, file sharing, music

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10 Websites to Watch in 2011

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 01:01 PM PST


There are more than a trillion URLs in Google’s index. Yes, that’s a one with twelve zeros after it. And Google crossed that milestone two and a half years ago. With so many sites on the web in 2011, how do you know which to pay attention to?

Mashable’s editors haven’t quite visited a trillion pages, but we’ve checked out a lot in the past year, and we’ve compiled a list of 10 websites we think are poised to have big years in 2011. Some of these are relatively new sites we think will catch the mainstream’s attention next year and others are older sites that we think will finally hit the big time in 2011.

Check out our list below and let us know in the comments which websites you have your eye on for the coming year.

1. Kickstarter

Kickstarter, a crowdfunding platform for creative endeavors, was founded in April 2009 and had what many would consider a break-out year in 2010. But the site could be poised for an even bigger 2011. The unique all-or-nothing approach to funding has struck a chord with both creators and funders and is allowing enterprising individuals to bypass traditional establishments to create films, music albums, events, products and even new companies. Kickstarter helped hundreds of projects raise millions of dollars in 2010. Look for that number to continue going up in the next year.

-Josh Catone, Features Editor

2. OpenLeaks

OpenLeaks may very well be the WikiLeaks alternative in 2011, not as a destination, but as an enabler for media organizations to do the same as WikiLeaks. OpenLeaks, unlike WikiLeaks, seeks to be an intermediary between whistleblowers and other organizations and includes former members of WikiLeaks, most notably, Daniel Domscheit-Berg. The site will focus more on being a technological service for news organizations, likely enabling them to make it easier for their readers to submit such leaks to their own sites. This may keep the scrutiny from politicians and officials — something WikiLeaks has had to battle with this year — away from OpenLeaks, as they won't be the ones publishing the material.

-Vadim Lavrusik, Community Manager

3. Klout

As social marketing starts to surpass traditional marketing methods, companies will look for influential individuals who can rep their product well. Klout is one of the tools that companies use to gauge who the social influencers are. Look for them to make some big moves in 2011.

-Jehangir Irani, Multimedia Producer

4. Hipmunk

Hipmunk is fixing everything that's wrong with flight searches with a tool whose usefulness is immense. Once people get used to the interface and start telling their friends about it, Hipmunk's popularity will skyrocket.

-Ben Parr, Co-Editor

5. Gilt Groupe

Gilt Groupe, which hired its 500th employee in 2010, is rapidly expanding into new verticals (such as location-specific group buying deals, a la Groupon) and territories (like Japan). Its next target? Full-priced retail. It’s launching a men's e-commerce site in February. Expect to see further development in that area and the geographical expansion of its existing products in 2011.

-Lauren Indvik, Assistant Editor

6. Diaspora

Diaspora, the open source social network platform, released its code and opened up to private alpha invites recently. The platform was dubbed the alternative to Facebook, during Facebook's privacy fiasco, and generated a lot of buzz. But as the platform opens up to more users in 2011, we'll see how people react to it and whether it's something that will actually be an alternative option to the social networking giant

-Vadim Lavrusik, Community Manager

7. Quora

Quora has clearly found its place with the early adopter set and a number of active, high profile users who make the service interesting to engage with. In 2011, it will be interesting to see if the company is able to expand its audience while maintaining the quality Q&A that has made it so attractive to users thus far. In turn, we'll see if it's the next big thing or has a destiny more like that of FriendFeed, a community that was initially popular with early adopters but never found a mainstream audience (but ultimately found a home at Facebook).

-Adam Ostrow, Editor-in-Chief

8. Grooveshark

Among the many music streaming services in existence today, Grooveshark is one of the few that is both free and available to Europeans. It has a sleek, Google-like interface and a database with a huge amount of music (the service lets anyone upload music, so you can find many obscure, unknown, local or upcoming bands there). It also has an interesting array of features, such as skinnable interface, playlists, music sharing and promotions that don't feel like ads, and it relies on a freemium business model that offers just enough to entice users to subscribe. Barring possible problems with copyright holders and cash flow issues, which always threaten to shut down services like this, Grooveshark might be the next big thing in online music.

-Stan Schroeder, European Editor

9. Drupal

WordPress might get most of the love in the open source CMS space (for good reason), but Drupal provides a powerful option for individuals, organizations and brands that want to power complex, robust sites. With Drupal 7 set for release in early 2011, the Drupal team is actively addressing the one area the CMS has always received criticism: Usability. Thanks to shops like Development Seed and Lullabot, the Drupal ecosystem is becoming extremely impressive. Acquia, the commercial company from Drupal founder Dries Buytaert, continues to raise funding and offer an array of commercial and support services that better enhance the platform as a whole.

-Christina Warren, Mobile Reporter

10. Foursquare

I expect Foursquare to scale to an even bigger level in 2011. I won't be surprised if it starts to acquire smaller companies or make a major move to Silicon Valley, in order to make that happen.

-Jehangir Irani, Multimedia Producer

Reviews: Drupal, Facebook, FriendFeed, Google, Grooveshark, Mashable, Wikileaks, WordPress, foursquare

More About: disapora, drupal, foursquare, grooveshark, hipmunk, kickstarter, klout, List, Lists, openleaks, quora, things to watch 2011

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BitTorrent Remote App Hits App Store, But For How Long?

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 12:29 PM PST


Brief approvals aside, Apple has never welcomed BitTorrent clients to its iOS platform with open arms. That’s why the recent approval of the iPhone app iControlbits, a $1.99 app designed as a front-end for popular Transmission BitTorrent client has us scratching our heads.

Is Apple continuing to loosen its app review process, or was someone just asleep at the switch?

The idea of a native iOS front-end for Transmission’s remote access feature isn’t new. In the past few years, developers have tried to submit their apps to the App Store, only to find the doors closed. We covered one of those instances, Drivetrain, back in May of 2009. That app was essentially identical to what iControlbits [iTunes link] is doing now.

Other BitTorrent front-ends — including a would be front-end for μTorrent, µMonitor — have also been rejected in the past. Apps have briefly been able to slip through Apple’s system — by not using the word “torrent” in the app description and identifying themselves as “download managers” or “news readers” — but iControlBits is fairly brazen in its approach.

The screenshots for the app even show the in-progress download of both the latest Mac OS X combo update, as well as the IPSW file for the iPhone 3G. These are both files that Apple does not make publicly available via BitTorrent.

We must then, ask ourselves, how long will iControlbits stay in the store? I’m going to bet that the app disappears by day’s end. If the app remains, however, it could be a sign of a kinder, gentler, slightly less draconian Apple.

Incidentally, the app itself isn’t bad. The featureset isn’t overly rich — you can’t open or start new torrent downloads, for instance, but it does provide an improved interface and more advanced features than just using the iPhone-optimized web front-end. If you’re interested in this sort of thing, you might want to act now rather than later.

Tell us how long you think the app has in the App Store by taking our poll and leaving your thoughts in the comments.

[via TorrentFreak by way of ReadWriteWeb]

Reviews: App Store, Apps, Transmission

More About: bittorrent, bittorrent client, icontrolbits, iOS, iphone, transmission

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7 Stellar Examples of Branded Content from the Fashion Industry

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 12:13 PM PST


Macala Wright Lee is the publisher of FashionablyMarketing.Me. Wright Lee is a retail consultant whose firm, Fashionably Digital, specializes in marketing consulting for fashion, luxury and beauty brands. You can follower her on Twitter at @FashMarketing.

One of the most popular trends in the fashion industry this year has been brand generated content. From online blogzines to Tumblr-powered micro sites, branded content is quickly becoming a cost effective, long-term online marketing strategy that the fashion industry will continue to utilize as brands and retailers look for new, innovative ways to connect with customers online.

Branded content creation serves several purposes: customer entertainment, stealth advertising and social engagement. Brands that excel at this take branded content a step further, making it a tool that bloggers and other online magazines can use for their websites.

In 2011, branded content is going to be the consumer fashion marketing trend to watch. In order to see the evolution of how fashion labels leverage branded content, we should start at the beginning and review the best content from 2010.

1. Louis Vuitton – NOWNESS

Since consumers have been able to shop online, the most successful retailers with e-commerce have been those that set their brands apart by creating an experiential story. Those experiential stories are crafted though every communication tool – packaging and signage, highly stylized display advertising photography for print, radio and television ads that are then translated to the web, social networks and now mobile apps.

In 2010, no one did this better than Louis Vuitton and its NOWNESS. This website set the standard for the way almost any other fashion brand or retailer approached creating their own content. LVMH indirectly curated its world and the story it wanted to tell through the people who contributed to it in writing, photography and film, not directly as a brand itself. Burberry's Art Of The Trench, Ann Taylor's ArtSheSaid and even a fashion film available in Stella McCartney's new iPad app are strangely reminiscent of the content style found in NOWNESS.

Ruth Staiman, a luxury marketing expert explained “The brand’s first venture into branded content came in print in the late 1990s with the City Guides — small volumes of exclusive tips for the Louis lifestyle. City Guide 2011 debuted on NOWNESS with whimsical YouTube videos touring Paris, New York City and Berlin. And the Art of Travel video on Louis Vuitton's YouTube channel lets anyone experience the Louis Vuitton lifestyle. The channel has 50 videos, and the Art of Travel Page on Facebook has over 1,750,000 ‘Likes.’ ”

Through NOWNESS, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, Louis Vuitton has created a community that shares this content 24/7 globally to support the heritage of its brand and a new frontier of influencers.

To complete the assessment of NOWNESS, Nima Abbasi, founding partner of Syndicate Media Group said, "The beauty of NOWNESS is that it doesn't feel like branded content. It's a mix of editorial and video with a distinct, independent point of view that you can’t get anywhere else – and that's what consumers are craving. A good example of how luxury brands can participate in the social digital space and keep their brand cachet intact."

2. Net-A-Porter Magazine – iPad App

Net-A-Porter Magazine’s app for the iPad and iPhone is my pick for the best execution of branded content on a mobile platform. Perhaps one of the best shopping mobile apps available, the Net-A-Porter app, lets users watch exclusive video content including runway shows and interviews, share product suggestions via social networks and share feedback about their shopping experience.

Hamilton South, founding partner of HL Group, a strategic marketing and media consultancy, further explained the success of Net-A-Porter's branded mobile content. "I have a tremendous amount of respect for Net-A-Porter's success; they know their customer extraordinarily well. They consistently engage her via editorial content that is expertly mixed into the e-commerce landscape, a strategy they largely pioneered.  There is, however, an opportunity for Net-A-Porter to tell a larger, richer story about their brand as they continue to develop and expand the app in 2011. The best social media and branded content executions out there are driven by narrative, not commerce, and the Net-A-Porter iPad app still feels heavily anchored in transaction."

3. Club Monaco – Culture Club

Though Club Monaco was fashionably late to the social media party, it made up for it this year by launching one of the top five branded blogs online. Reminiscent of Test, Club Monaco's Culture Club is a curated digital heaven within the folds of its main website. The micro site, Culture Club, features the people, places and things that inspire its staff and friends. The curation changes every month, as do the featured contributors. Culture is really a genius idea for a brand on a budget; you can't go wrong crowd sourcing content from your personal social circles.

4. Alice + Olivia – 4AM Finds

Alice + Olivia, a brand that loves social experiments, crossed technology and fashion in its blog column 4AM Finds. Similar to the editorial must-have spreads you find in InStyle or Vanity Fair, a guest writer contributes a post about items that are hot or in-demand. Of course, one or two Alice + Olivia products are strategically integrated. 4AM Finds is a fresh way of selling through product visuals and editorial content, much like magazines do now.

5. Anthropologie – The Anthropologist

Following in the footsteps of NOWNESS, Anthropologie's The Anthropologist is a thought-provoking, inspirational, authentic journey that one can embark upon via video or photography. The connection to Anthropologie is not explicitly stated, with the exception of the copyright on the about us page. The brand has associated itself with the project, without completely taking it over.

Whitney Holum, a digital marketing specialist, said "The wonderful thing about Anthropologie’s Anthropologist is that it brings a sense of personality to their brand …  It allows a space for their guests to have a conversation with them far removed from a customer service channel.  There is no product push, they have simply created a space where sharing the ideas and creativity of others acts as a catalyst [for] spreading creativity and possibility.  The look, feel and essence of the curated content epitomizes anthropology itself, the study of humanity, and in that it truly personifies the Anthropologie brand.  If guests click through to their e-commerce site, or arrive at their website because of the search results populated by the words of Anthropologist, that’s simply a bonus and not the goal."

6. Gwyneth Paltrow – GOOP

Goop isn't a blog or a mobile app. It's a weekly newsletter founded by Gwyneth Paltrow and delivered to your inbox. Paltrow actually launched GOOP in 2008. It delivers simple messages and features relating to one of six categories – go, get, make, be, see and do. "My life is good because I am not passive about it," Paltrow writes. "I want to nourish what is real, and I want to do it without wasting time. I love to travel, to cook, to eat, to take care of my body and mind, to work hard."

The newsletter is simplistic, offering curated selections and recommendation in each of the categories. Consumers have always had an overabundance of choice when it comes to apparel, fashion and beauty. GOOP was the starting point of curated content and product selection, a trend that's evolved into online shopping models for sites such as Of A Kind, Style Trek and AHALife. Allowing online shoppers to simultaneously experience a product and an individual's of view or story via one shopping portal became a defining e-commerce trend in 2010.

7. French Connection – Manifesto

In 2010, brands, designers and retailers realized that men do in fact shop too; now it's all about marketing to men. Contemporary men's brand French Connection has steadily and consistently been doing its men's Manifesto. This year, FCUK Man and Manifesto have earned a place as one of the top five style blogs for men on the web.

What makes Manifesto successful is the way it talks to its Gen Y customer, from its graphics to its editorial point of view, easy-to-read format, and it’s engaging and entertaining style. Not every brand can start off with complex branded content initiatives, but a well-written, relevant blog is a great place to start.

So What's Next for Fashion Brands and Branded Content?

Fashion brands and retailers' approaches to branded content will continue to evolve; the examples above are already indicative of that. The value of branded content from a budgetary consideration is significant, especially when combined with the cost effectiveness of social media marketing. More retailers and brands are expected to jump on board.

Veronica Carvallo, social media manager at Attention USA, shares her insight on the budgetary considerations of branded content and what a brand needs to consider when creating successful content.
"Branded content's value (and budget spends) has significantly increased in the past year," Cavallo says. "Social media marketing has had a pivotal role on the increased inclusion of branded content in marketing plans; helping achieve a balance between entertainment and education, satisfying a consumer need without an in-your-face presentation of a product.”

What are your thoughts on the use of branded content as it relates to fashion brands in 2011?

More Business Resources from Mashable:

- Why the Fashion Industry Is Betting Big on Branded Online Content
- HOW TO: Get the Most Out of Facebook Insights for Small Business
- Top 10 Digital Advertising Innovations of 2010
- 5 Predictions for the Public Relations Industry in 2011
- 5 Ways To Optimize Your BlackBerry for Business

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, webphotographeer

Reviews: Alice, Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, YouTube, iStockphoto, test

More About: branded content, business, fashion, List, Lists, MARKETING, social media marketing

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Giant Real World Claw Game Can Be Played Remotely

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 11:40 AM PST


Remember how, as a child, you threw screaming tantrums when your prize of choice slipped through the metallic fingers of those claw machine games?

Well, now you can reclaim your youth by testing out “The Santa Claw,” a mammoth claw game you can play from the privacy of your computer.

The Santa Claw was fashioned from 2,000 pounds of steel, 700 feet of wire and 1.5 wheelchairs by Real Art Design Group, according to the Laughing Squid.

Merely sign in via Facebook or Twitter for a chance to have a go at the claw via your mouse or the arrows on your keyboard. If you manage to win a prize, it will be sent to your physical address.

Yes, it’s a bit late for a Santa-themed diversion (we already did the whole eggnog pong, mistletoe roulette thing a few weeks ago), but this particular toy was created to get rid of the man in red’s leftover gifts, according to the design group.

We’re not sure what those gifts include, but we’ll let you know should we manage to score one (our turn at the game will transpire in roughly an hour). Either that or we’ll throw a screaming tantrum.

Reviews: Facebook, Twitter

More About: humor, pop culture

For more Dev & Design coverage:

HOW TO: Win the War for the Most Talented Employees

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 11:13 AM PST

chess war image

Dan Finnigan is CEO of Jobvite, an SaaS platform for the social web that companies use to find and hire people. You can follow him on Twitter at @DanFinnigan and read his Jobvite Blog.

In 1997, McKinsey, the leading business consulting firm, published its famous study and book “War for Talent,” predicting a multi-decade shortage of skilled talent in the U.S. economy. We all know that wars are most often fought over scarce and important resources. Talent is certainly one of them.

Automation, reengineering the organization, outsourcing/off-shoring work, freelancing, allocating work online and crowdsourcing have not eliminated employer dependence on hiring full-time, high quality talent. Despite the recent prolonged period of high unemployment, companies still see a limited supply of, and a rising demand for the talent they need. And they can expect this "war for talent" to last a long time.

Nowhere is this clearer than in the San Francisco Bay and other pockets of innovation across the country like Austin, Texas. Last month, the news was dominated by the story that Google offered 10% pay increases and holiday bonuses of $1,000 for every employee. Google's arming up for this "targeted" war for talent as new startups continually try to poach talent from top companies — taking a page out of Google's playbook from five years ago.

Among my company’s San Francisco Bay Area customers, new job openings on a company by company basis are up an average of 17% in the last three months. The technology sector is not the only one ramping up hiring. Corporate profits are back near an all-time high, and companies are sitting on nearly $2 trillion in cash. As businesses gain confidence in the economy, some of this cash will be translated into jobs. Skirmishes are breaking out all over as a result of a long-term struggle for high-value resources that isn't going away.

Good News for Some

Even during the recession, we've seen unemployment is not an equal opportunity. The unemployment rate for workers with less than a high school diploma has typically been three times that of those with a college education. A recent report from the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) shows where we are headed: In 1991, fewer than 50% of U.S. jobs required skilled workers. By 2015, 76% of U.S. jobs will require highly-skilled workers, e.g. those with special skills in science, technology, engineering, or math. 60% of new jobs will require skills held by 20% of the population.

That adds up to a targeted war for talent in specific occupational, educational, industry and geographic sector — good news for the in-demand workers but not for the businesses that need to hire them.

Job Seeker Nation

The talent shortage is combined with a new attitude among the most in-demand sectors of the workforce. To understand more about job search intentions and practices in today's new employment climate, my company recently conducted a nationwide survey of 2,000 people called “Job Seeker Nation 2010.”

The results make it clear that workers conditioned by a long recession do not believe in job security and now feel they need to be prepared at all times to find a new job. We're rapidly evolving into a nation of free agents where "players" jump from team to team within shorter time periods. In fact, 53% of all working Americans surveyed -– representing about 63.5 million people –- aren't actively looking but are open to a new job. These are not "passive" job seekers; they’re active in networking and positioning for advancement. They're "proactive," laying groundwork for their next professional opportunity before they have to look.

Who are "Proactive Career Managers?"

Proactive career managers are younger, more educated and earn higher salaries than other segments of the workforce. 73% are age 18 to 44, 52% are college grads or post grads and 34% earn $75,000 or more annually.

They are more active in social networks (77% use Facebook, more than one third use Twitter and/or LinkedIn) and have more social network contacts than other groups. They are more likely to have found their last job through a referral (36%) or social network (16%)

Always Be Recruiting

Now that job seeking is a constant activity among high-skill workers, you as an employer need to generate a similarly proactive attitude toward recruiting in your company. Early on, one of our investors advised me to "always be recruiting." In practice, it means investing less in short-term fixes and one-off searches, and more in long-term assets and your own pipelines of talent.

If you approach hiring now no differently than you did two or 10 years ago, your company will lose the battle. Like today's workers are always looking for the next gig, you need to adopt some new methods to ensure a steady pipeline of talent. You can't just post jobs online and hope great people apply.

The good news is that the Internet has made identifying and finding people easier than ever before. However, it's also easy for your competitors. Some thoughts on winning the talent war:

  • Companies have to build relationships with a large number of people, networking in the same way individuals have to network.
  • Target the sectors of talent you need in the same way marketers know they must target prospects, then stay in touch until the time is right to hire.
  • Set the tone for hiring from the top –- the most successful company talent networks are headed by executives who make it a priority to recruit for their companies and motivate others to do the same.
  • Just as it's usually cheaper to keep a customer than acquire a new one, it's more cost-effective to retain good employees than search for new ones. Companies have to keep recruiting their own employees, because if you don't, someone else will.

The real key to winning is engaging your prospects –- and your current employees –- with a mission, a culture, and a sense of ownership. The targeted war for talent is a battle for hearts and minds. Are your troops and weapons trained to win?

More Business Resources from Mashable:

- 4 Web Apps For Managing Job Applications
- HOW TO: Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile
- 4 Top Employers for Social Media Professionals
- What Does Web Design Say About Your Small Business?
- 7 Tips for Building a Better Branded App

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Daft_Lion_Studio

Reviews: Facebook, Google, Internet, LinkedIn, Twitter, iStockphoto

More About: business, hire, hiring, jobs, millenials, Recruiting, skills, small business, social media, talent

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Sears Enlists Bloggers to Build Consumer Electronics Buzz

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 10:46 AM PST


In an attempt to earn some credibility in the consumer electronics category, Sears has enlisted some top CE bloggers for the Sears Blue Blogger Crew, which is making its debut by chronicling CES on behalf of the retailer.

The lineup, which includes Andru Edwards of GearLive.com, Kris Cain of LittleTechGirl.com, veteran blogger Kelly Clay of Lockergnome, WiredPRWorks.com blogger Barara Rozgonyi and Jenna Hatfield of Stop, Drop and Blog will blog, tweet and appear in videos for Sears. According to the company’s blog, the idea is to provide an opportunity “for our peers (i.e. fellow gadget geeks) to share their knowledge and experience in the technology space with their readers and followers, as well as our customers.”

The Blue Blogger Crew will also do interviews with members of the Sears Blue Consumer Electronics Crew (pictured) and will blog for Sears at other, yet-unnamed events as well. The company will also be looking to expand its blogger lineup throughout the year. As for compensation: For CES, Sears Electronics is covering travel costs and expenses for the bloggers in attendance, as well as providing each a small video camera.

Jeremiah Owyang, partner at the Altimeter Group, says that Sears’s strategy makes sense. “Organic wins over paid,” he says, “since the trust will be higher from consumers.”

Sears is far from the first to enlist bloggers to further its brand name. Walmart currently runs a program called Walmart Moms (formerly known as ElevenMoms) that blogs about products at Walmart, among other topics.

Len Kendall, account group supervisor for digital PR firm Golin Harris, concurs. “It’s great to see companies creating more balanced spokespeople for the products they sell. There was always a major gap between our friends (word of mouth) and celebrity endorsers or actors,” Kendall says. “While entities like the ‘Blue Crew’ are certainly influenced by the brand they’re speaking on behalf of, they’re also bringing their individual points of view, and previously earned audiences along with them, which lends a great deal of credibility to the brand.”

The push comes as other retailers that play in the CE space, namely Best Buy, have been aggressive on the social media front. Best Buy expanded its Twitter presence with Twelpforce, a Twitter support service the retailer launched during the 2009 holiday season. Best Buy doesn’t have a blog, but it boasts active community forums and 2.1 million fans for its Facebook Page, versus 342,702 for Sears.

The move is the second new front that Sears has opened in the online arena in the past two weeks. In late December, the retailer and its Kmart unit announced they will launch a movie download service that will compete with Best Buy’s CinemaNow, among others.

Reviews: Twitter, blog

More About: best buy, sears, WalMart

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Apple Is Now Worth More Than $300 Billion

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 09:38 AM PST


Apple has surpassed $300 billion in market capitalization, achieving a distinction shared currently by only one other company in the world.

By Monday at 12:10 p.m. ET, the price of Apple Inc. shares has risen by more than seven points to 329.75, giving the company an approximate market capitalization of $302.47 billion.

Apple has reported record earnings this year, thanks to the success of the iPhone 4 and the iPad. Apple sold 3.89 million Macs, 14.1 million iPhones, 9.05 million iPods and 4.19 million iPads in the fourth quarter alone.

Just eight months ago, Apple was worth $223 billion, making it the world’s most valuable technology company ahead of arch rival Microsoft. In October, shares of the computer and mobile device maker eclipsed $300, valuing the company at $274 billion.

Put another way, Apple is now worth six times the value of Facebook, and the company has increased its value by $50 billion in just six months.

Apple is now the world’s second most valuable company, bested only by Exxon Mobil Corporation’s $376 billion market capitalization. How long will it be until Apple challenges Exxon for the title of world’s most valuable company, though?

More About: apple, iOS, ipad, trending

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Is Instagram the Next Distribution Opportunity for News Media?

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 08:29 AM PST


From apps to podcasts, Facebook to Twitter, Flickr to YouTube, and more, mainstream media has embraced a number of new, technology-driven — and often social — platforms in the past decade to grow and engage its audiences. These tools have, in addition, created new opportunities for newsgathering and conversation.

In 2010, we applauded the news media’s efforts to create richly interactive experiences on a brand new form factor, the tablet, through dozens of iPad apps, as well as its burgeoning appropriation of Tumblr, which many organizations have used to give audiences a glimpse behind the scenes, to share relevant outside content and to engage readers on a more personal level.

While looking ahead to 2011 and the platforms that will shape the distribution of news media in the future, we were interested to hear that National Public Radio (NPR), an organization we’ve previously praised for its progressive use of social technology, is breaking ground on yet another social platform: Instagram.

Instagram [iTunes link] is a simple iPhone application with a built-in social network that allows users to snap, crop, enhance (via a range of stylistic filters) and share photos. The filters lend an artistic beauty — or consciousness, if you will — the photos might not have had otherwise. The photos tend to be better looking and better curated than those one could expect to find on TwitPic, for example. Users can then share their photos with their followers on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr and others using the app, who can boost their popularity by “like”-ing and commenting on them.

Launched in October, the app attracted 100,000 signups in its first week, and surpassed 1 million registered users in late December.

As far as we’re aware, NPR is the first media organization to use Instagram as an official tool for content distribution. “Our main focus has always been to go to the places where we believe existing and potential NPR fans are hanging out and give them an outlet to interact with us and our content,” says Andy Carvin, a senior strategist on NPR’s social media desk. “We [are always] keeping tabs on up-and-coming communities that attract smart, curious people who have an interest in news, music and the arts.”

The organization has posted 18 photos and attracted more than 1,000 followers since launching an account on Thursday. Carvin has already posted a note asking followers for feedback and what kinds of photos they’d like to see in the future, which elicited dozens of requests for additional behind-the-scenes footage.

“It’s probably just a matter of time before we get an iconic, newsworthy photo via Instagram, in the same way that Twitter and TwitPic have generated a number of newsworthy user photos, like Janis Krums’s famous photo of the U.S. Airways plane in the Hudson River,” Carvin observes.

Like Twitter, Instagram is a real-time social platform that enables popular images to rise to the surface quickly, both on its network and on the other social networks it is linked to. We doubt it will take a photo like Krums’s to get other news organizations to follow NPR’s lead. As a quick, easy-to-use tool for taking and distributing photos — and thus drawing in audiences — it arguably has no peer, although its accessibility is severely limited by the fact that it is an iPhone-only application.

For those of you without an iPhone, you can still access Instagram photos cross-posted to NPR’s Tumblr, and check out a sampling of images in the gallery below.

We’d also love to hear how you think news organizations can best take advantage of Instagram in the comments and on Twitter.

Screenshot Gallery





"Jason Lippa fires up the still at Stranahan's distillery. The whiskey maker is one of Colorado's most established craft distilleries."





"Audie Cornish and Scott Simon on election night."





"Judy Collins."









"Wafaa Bilal implanted a webcam in the back of his head. The camera is taking a picture a minute for a year, and the images are being streamed live at Mathaf, the Arab Museum of Modern Art."





"Aaron Neville revisits the house where he spent his teen years in uptown New Orleans. Photographed by NPR's Debbie Elliot."





Reviews: Facebook, Flickr, Tumblr, Twitpic, Twitter, instagram

More About: instagram, iphone, iphone app, media, National Public Radio, NPR

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The Muppets Do Kanye West’s “Monster” [PARODY]

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 08:10 AM PST

It’s the Monday after New Years, so this is likely to blow your addled mind just a little more than usual: I give you, Kanye West’s “Monster” as sung by the Muppets.

Again, this video is NSFW — if your workplace frowns on swearing puppets, that is.

Granted, this is far from an official video — if Katy Perry’s Sesame Street appearance was too hot for TV, this is basically an inferno — but filmmaker Bobby Miller certainly has created an entertaining melange of muppets and West’s music.

The real video for “Monster” leaked last week, so it was really only a matter of time before the parodies started rolling out.

What do you think of this one?

More About: humor, kanye west, muppets, music, pop culture, video, youtube

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The Art of the Checkin: From Location to Content to Brand

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 07:55 AM PST


Caroline Giegerich is the blogstress behind the Daily Marauder and a digital marketing consultant. Follow her on Twitter for more social media and emerging tech insights.

Within the spectrum of social media, the act of sharing essentially amounts to a desire to personally define ourselves to others. In the age of the social network, there are an almost infinite number of options for creating that personal definition on the web. Checking in is just one of the newer ones.

There is an art to checking in and a way to make it part of your online identity. Below, we walk through some of the obstacles and best practices for doing it right. Read on and let us know what tips worked for you in the comments below.

Location, Content, Brand

progression image

This all began with location but has shifted to allow users to check in to TV, movies, books and finally to brands. Each of these additional options allows us to personally define ourselves by answering the following questions: Where am I? What am I watching/reading? What am I buying?

While each of these choices from location, to content, to brand allows for an additional layer of sharing, they also each call for an additional level of activity from the user. It's not enough to visit a restaurant or watch a TV show; we now must announce to the world that we're doing it.

“If a tree falls in the middle of the woods but no one is around, does it exist?” Or the digital edition: “If you visit your favorite bar at Santacon and never check in on Foursquare, did it ever really happen?”

Simply put, we have fallen into the age of the overshare. There is a happy medium to be found, but we haven’t quite hit on it yet.

So, what do these companies think the reward is for users? And what do users think about interacting with these platforms?

Location: Cast of Characters

cast image

The San Francisco Chronicle claimed in October that there were 20,000 location-based applications in existence either with location as their core feature or with location weaved in. I've identified the four mentioned here simply for the story they tell about the evolution of this space. They also happen to be generally thought of as the leading location-based networking apps.

Loopt launched in 2006 and has approximately 4 million users on its platform. In the beginning, location was about coordinates rather than places. Foursquare and Gowalla both launched at SXSW in March of 2009. With both, the audience could now check in to locations rather than simply a cross street. Foursquare blazed ahead with specials and game dynamics, tapping into our inner need to compete with each other and resulting in its current lead of 5 million users to Gowalla's hundreds of thousands. Latecomer SCVNGR decided not to focus on checking in at one location or another, but instead, on what we are doing along the way.

In August, Facebook Places launched and shook up the location-based apps scene. It instantly had access to the more than 200 million active users accessing Facebook from a mobile device. At launch, Facebook Places merely allowed users to check in and tag others at the same location. No game dynamics. No specials (although Facebook Deals has since been added). The location wars continue.

Why Are We Checking In?

location image

There are five main reasons people use location-based applications: serendipity, game dynamics, as a personal diary, for sharing experiences and to score deals.

Dennis Crowley, co-founder of Foursquare, called the platform: "Technology that facilitates serendipity." The ability to find friends on the platform and sponsor serendipitous encounters is probably the most obvious reason why people interact with the platform.

Game dynamics fulfills the human desire to play and compete. Game elements that location apps use include mayorships, pins, badges, points, or any other competitive function of the application. Some people think game dynamics lack sustainability. Once I fight for a priority position and win, will I continue to fight for number one? What keeps us playing after we win?

The personal diary function gives us a running history of every location we have visited. On a recent trip to Munich for Oktoberfest, I found that I had forgotten the names of a few bars and beer gardens we visited along the way. Why? 1) It's Oktoberfest. I was drinking beers in steins the size of my face. 2) Everything was in German. When traveling, location-based apps become an excellent way to record the places we visit along the way.

Sharing experiences, such as leaving tips for friends at your favorite locations, is the best alternative to actually being there with them. It also helps us foster connections with people based on those shared experiences.

Finally, seeking out discounts at our favorite locations is a good motivator, and there is built in convenience since most people always carry their phones. However, location-based services have not yet figured out an easy way to allow a mass audience to tap into the deals on their platforms. Their success moving forward depends on their ability to ease accessibility and make users aware of specials.

Checking Into Content: TV, Movies, Media

Similar to why we check in to locations, checking into to what we're watching is less about chronicling our viewing habits and more about defining who we are to our friends.

Remember when watching TV used to truly inspire water cooler moments? Television and movies connect us. They give us something to talk about when we've exhausted commenting on the weather and traffic.

As DVR and On Demand erased our live viewing habits, television became less viable as a water cooler topic. It's time to bring it back. Enter GetGlue, Miso, Philo, Tunerfish and others. I may now live across the country from friends in New York City but I can still connect with them via GetGlue’s stream and see who is also addicted to The Walking Dead.

Similar to the location side, there are badges and the ability to become a "guru" of a piece of content. Unlike the location platforms, the competitive desire to become “the number one” on a television show or movie is not quite as enticing. There just aren’t incentives that are as compelling as those on location apps. So far, the issue has been a bit of the chicken and egg problem.

Content companies want to play on these platforms as they scale, but they don't want to invest too heavily until they see the mass audience in attendance. That audience may never materialize, though, if they don’t offer the incentives.

We choose what we check in to as a function of who we want to be. This is personal cachet. I don’t check into The Jersey Shore, but I do check into Boardwalk Empire. That latter shows something about my personality I want to display, the former does not.

Miss piling onto the couch and watching TV together? Enter the second screen experience. Applications like Miso are focusing less on the checkin and more on the information surrounding what's on screen, including comments from friends and additional information.

Checking Into Brands

On the brand side, checking in involves interacting with the brand in some way, either by scanning a barcode or using a virtual gift card. These platforms are the most recent entrants to the checkin space, so features and use cases are still being figured out.

As with the content checkin, there are similar reasons to why the audience is checking in, including game dynamics and personal cachet. With the latter, it stands to reason, that we will be more likely to check in to certain brands rather than others. The biggest reason why the audience will interact with brands, however, will ultimately be for discounts and deals. Simplifying the pathway to a discount will push these platforms to success. Retailers have used rewards programs for ages, but the days of plastic cards will soon be behind us.

From location to content to brands, our world has become way more checkin heavy. The “why” in all of this returns to the reason we use social media in the first place: to define ourselves. The checking in began with location, but the possibilities will only increase over time as each one us decides what things or actions we want to align with.

How do you use checkin apps?

More Social Media Resources from Mashable:

- 10 More Creative Uses of the New Facebook Profile [PICS]
- 10 Cool Facebook Status Tips and Tricks
- 6 Reasons Why Social Games Are the Next Advertising Frontier
- 3 Things Brands Must Do to Reach Millennials Online
- How Social Media Can Help With Your Long Distance Job Search

Image courtesy of bkbooth!

Reviews: Facebook, Gowalla, foursquare

More About: checkin, facebook, Facebook Places, foursquare, geo-location, getglue, gowalla, loopt, miso, PHILO, scvngr, social media, tunerfish

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“Angry Birds” Headed to PSP & PS3 This Week

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 07:37 AM PST


Good news PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable owners, Angry Birds will be available for download as a PlayStation mini title this week.

PlayStation minis are smaller games that can be downloaded to the PSP or PS3. The mini version of Angry Birds sounds like it will be similar to the versions of Angry Birds already available for iOS, Android and Symbian devices, complete with support for 63 levels of bird-flinging, block-busting, pig-smashing action.

Rovio, the company behind the chart-topping smartphone game, already confirmed that it was working on a console version of Angry Birds for Xbox 360, the Nintendo Wii and the PS3. The game has already eclipsed 50 million free and paid downloads, breaking through as one of the true cross-platform hits of the smartphone age.

The most recent addition to the main game, another set of levels and a new “Mighty Eagle” in-app purchase, continues to keep the game fresh. That, coupled with the insanely addictive nature of the game, keeps fans all over the world coming back for more.

Angry Birds for PSP, are you in?

[via Official PlayStation Blog]

Reviews: Android, Angry Birds

More About: angry birds, playstation 3, playstation portable, PS3, PSP

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About.com Founder Scott Kurnit’s Startup AdKeeper Raises $35M

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 07:25 AM PST


AdKeeper, the online advertising company led by About.com founder Scott Kurnit that lets consumers save online ads for later viewing, raised $35 million in Series B funding.

The round, led by Oak Investment Partners, comes as AdKeeper’s “Keep” button is set to roll out on online ads from AT&T, Best Buy, Ford and Gap on January 11, after a beta release in October. AdKeeper believes that consumers, although they profess to dislike ads, will actually save ads for later viewing if they find them entertaining or interesting. The company hopes “keeps” will become an ad metric along with impressions and clicks.

When interviewed by USA Today in November, Kurnit (pictured) said he wasn’t sure that consumers will actually save ads, though. “That’s the $64 billion question. If they do, then this is one of the top three or four Internet companies ever,” he said, noting that research showed that 56% of Internet users want to save ads.

For his part, Ian Schafer, CEO of digital ad agency Deep Focus, says that AdKeeper could succeed if it offers some value to consumers. “If ad keeper equals coupon clipper scaled to the size of the Internet, then I’m bullish,” Schafer says. “If it’s ‘Instapaper for ads,’ then the odds of me ever going back to look at my portfolio of things that I (the consumer) generally would rather ignore are very slim.”

Oak, which has backed a range of companies including Caribou Coffee, Jamba Juice and The Huffington Post, joins current Investors Including DCM, True Ventures, Spark Capital and First Round Capital.

Reviews: Internet, instapaper

More About: AdKeeper, advertising, MARKETING, Oak Investment Partners, online advertising

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This Morning’s 3 Biggest Stories in Tech & Business

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 06:42 AM PST

Social Media News

Welcome to this morning's edition of "First To Know," a series in which we keep you in the know on what's happening in the digital world. We're keeping our eyes on three particular stories of interest today.

Facebook Raises $500 Million in Funding

Facebook has received a massive new round of funding: $450 million from Goldman Sachs and $50 million from Russian investment firm Digital Sky Technologies, sources have told The New York Times, raising its valuation to $50 billion.

10 Million Galaxy S Smartphones Sold in 7 Months

Samsung has announced that it has sold more than 10 million of its flagship Android smartphone, the Galaxy S, in just less than seven months.

Toshiba & Vizio to Launch Android Tablets

Toshiba and Vizio will both unveil Android-based tablets this week at CES, according to sources. Toshiba plans to announce a 10.1-inch Android tablet with a dual-core Tegra 2 chip, a capacitive 1280×800 resolution display, a 5-megapixel back camera and a 2-megapixel front camera. Vizio will reveal an 8-inch tablet with three speakers, as well as an Android-based smartphone.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, DNY59

Reviews: Android, Facebook, iStockphoto

More About: facebook, first to know series, galaxy s, samsung, Toshiba, vizio

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Vizio Announces Android Smartphone and Tablet

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 06:40 AM PST


Vizio, a company best known for its LCD TV products, has announced the launch of an Android-based smartphone and tablet.

Known as the Vizio VIA Phone and Vizio VIA Tablet (which may or may not be their final names), the devices share a solid amount of features: A 1 GHz processor, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, GPS, a MicroSD card slot, HDMI output with HD video playback, an IR blaster paired with a universal remote control app and a front-facing camera for video chats.

The VIA Phone comes with a 4-inch capacitive touch screen and a 5-megapixel camera. The tablet, on the other hand, has an 8-inch screen and three speakers that provide stereo sound in both portrait and landscape position.

Both devices are part of Vizio’s upcoming VIA Plus ecosystem, which should provide a unified experience across Vizio’s phone, tablet, HDTVs and Blu-ray players. Though they’re both based on Android, Vizio has not mentioned which version. We’ll know more later this week as Vizio plans to showcase the new devices at CES.

Reviews: Android, Blu, Bluetooth

More About: android, Mobile 2.0, smartphone, Tablet, trending, vizio

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Samsung: 10 Million Galaxy S Smartphones Sold in Seven Months

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 06:20 AM PST


Samsung has announced that it has sold more than 10 million of its flagship Android smartphone, the Galaxy S, in just less than seven months.

Samsung’s Android bet has paid off from the start; after an extensive marketing campaign, Samsung shipped more than 1 million Galaxy S smartphones in the U.S. within their first month on the market.

Now, Samsung can boast some really impressive numbers for the Galaxy S. Overall, Samsung sold 4 million units in North America, 2.5 million in Europe and more than 2 million in South Korea.

[via Bloomberg]

More About: android, galaxy s, Mobile 2.0, phone, samsung, smartphone

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The Case for the Virtual Classroom

Posted: 03 Jan 2011 06:13 AM PST


Online education is often dismissed as a pipeline for expensive degrees of little value and a sponge for veterans' tuition payments. But while it's true that for-profit universities have made a hefty business out of e-learning, it's becoming apparent that learning online can also benefit almost everyone else.

"It's very clear that five years from now, on the web, for free…you will be able to find the greatest lectures in the world on the web," Bill Gates recently predicted in an interview at Techonomy 2010.

Gates is not the only smart guy pulling for online education to extend the reach, affordability, and even quality of education. Here's why the virtual classroom counts deans of prestigious universities, entrepreneurs, and people who want to change the world as its advocates.

1. Online Education "Doesn't Have to Suck"

This July, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s business school will enroll the first students of its online MBA program. Offering an online component to university courses isn’t a new idea. In the 2006-2007 school year, 66% of postsecondary learning institutions included in federal financial aid programs were already reporting that they offered some form of online education. But one of the top business schools making an entire degree program available online raised some eyebrows.

"What we try to explain is that [while] there are low-quality providers online, there are also low-quality classroom providers," Dean James Dean says. "There's nothing about the particular delivery mechanism that makes it intrinsically low quality, and that we had the opportunity to reinvent what was meant by online and to really shatter those perceptions."

The co-founder of 2tor, UNC's technology partner for the course, puts it more bluntly. "Online education doesn't have to suck," Jeremy Johnson says.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, Johnson is right. In a 2009 report based on 50 independent studies, the agency found that students who studied in online learning environments performed modestly better than peers who were receiving face-to-face instruction.

2tor also works with a master’s of arts in teaching program at the University of Southern California, and other partnerships with prestigious universities are in the works.

"We believe that we can basically preserve the higher education experience if the university controls the faculty, the curriculum, and the selective admissions," explains Alexa Scordato, the community manager for 2tor.

The USC online program, for instance, has components the student completes on his own time as well as discussion sections and lectures in which the class interacts through video feeds that several people have described as “stacked like the intro to the Brady Bunch.” The professor can break the students into discussion groups, and the class can interact outside of the classroom on a Facebook-like wall.

Ninety-eight percent of the faculty hold Ph.D.s or Ed.D.s, and the admission requirements are parallel to those of the program at the physical university. Online students complete the student teaching component of the program at one of their local schools, and their performance is evaluated by both a supervising teacher at that school as well as their instructor, who watches videos that the students take of themselves teaching. About 80% of the first class, according to USC, are now employed as teachers.

2. Universities Have Limited Physical Space

The online programs at USC and UNC charge the same tuition as courses at the physical university. According to Dean, maintaining a low student-to-teacher ratio and paying for technology means that, at least at UNC, the cost to the university won't be drastically reduced either. But offering programs online does enable both schools to educate more students without expanding its facilities.

"We're not that big of a physical facility, so in order to grow, we're looking for innovative ways to grow that don’t involve building new buildings," Dean explains. "This isn't really a good time to do that. So this is really an opportunity to give access to our MBA program to people around the world without having to increase the size of our facility."

Before instating its online teaching program in 2009, the MAT program at USC graduated about 100 students every year. By contrast, it currently has more than 1,500 students enrolled in the online program.

3. Education Can Change the World

Universityofthepeople

Over his 20 years of work at for-profit online universities, Shai Reshef started to notice something spectacular. Online communities that helped each other with their homework were popping up all over the Internet, and people were teaching each other –- for free. At the same time, open educational resources and open source technologies were becoming increasingly available. This gave him an interesting idea.

"If we take the millions of people around the world who could not afford going to university and teach them tuition-free, we're not only changing their lives, and their families’ lives, we also change their communities, their countries," he says. "And if we have a lot of them, we will change the world."

Reshef left the for-profit education industry and founded a very different organization in 2009. The University of the People is a completely tuition-free university that offers programs in business administration and computer science. Volunteer professors teach the courses using free and donated educational materials, and discussions take place in online rooms among about 20 students per class.

The university has enrolled about 700 students from 100 countries over five terms, the first of which will graduate from associate programs in 2011. But Reshef expects the power of the idea to reach many more than just the University of the People’s students.

"I think that what we're doing is building a model for developing countries’ governments, and they can see what we're doing and instead of keep trying, with the few millions that they have, to build universities, build buildings to create their own Harvard…instead of wasting the few million dollars that they have, they can build a university that is similar to us and teach the entire population," he says.

4. Global Understanding Is More Important Than Ever

In an increasingly global world, it makes sense for students to interact with students from other countries. An increasing number of students study abroad or cross international borders to attend school, but it's much easier to create an international classroom on the Internet, which has no borders to begin with.

"If you take a class, in our case, you're very likely to meet 20 students from 20 countries," Reshef says about University of the People. "We believe, by the way, that being exposed to 20 people from 20 cultures — the way they think, the way they function in the class — is as important, if not more, than the subject area itself."

Offering programs to international students without making them relocate can also make programs more competitive. Dean, for instance, says that UNC believes there are thousands of people worldwide who would qualify for a UNC MBA degree but who can't physically be in Chapel Hill.

The school hasn't opened its application for its online program, but it’s received 423 inquiries about the program since it made the announcement in November. More than half of them are from outside of North Carolina.

5. The Internet Empowers Self-Motivated Learners

The virtual classroom provides access to materials that were once only available to students enrolled in college courses. Consequently, we are approaching the day when self-motivated learners are limited only by their initiative.

Bill Gates habitually praises the efforts of Khan Academy, an organization that posts math and science lectures online for topics ranging from kindergarten level addition to college-level calculus. There are a number of similar websites. Academic Earth offers free videos of lectures with professors at top universities, and MIT posts free lecture notes, exams, and videos on a website that anyone with a desire to learn can access. In some ways, said Gates during the Techonomy interview, this approach is superior to traditional lesson plans.

"We re-teach the same concepts again and again," he said. "The teacher has no sense of who in his classroom is getting it, not getting it…and when you look at all of the successful innovations, it's where you let the student assess his knowledge, understand where they are, and proceed at a pace where they're actually seeing that they know something before they move on."

The Department of Education's meta-analysis, which focused on older learners, supports this. Online learners who self-monitored understanding — by, for example, deciding when to move on to the next lesson — performed better.

6. The Virtual Classroom Can Make the Physical Classroom More Effective

Blended

Nobody suggests that online learning will ever completely replace traditional classroom learning, especially for K-12 students. But research suggests that online learning can make classroom time more effective.

The modest difference in performance between online and physical classroom learners in the meta-analysis, for instance, was larger for those students who learned through a blend of online and physical classroom conditions.

The report warned that the results might not be caused by the medium itself because the students in blended learning conditions often had extra learning time and instructional elements. Which is exactly the advantage, says Sandy Sandy Khaund, the founder of Irynsoft, which makes social apps to complement online course material.

Right now class time is typically used by a lecture. But if teachers move the lecture online for students to watch on their own time, they can use the class time to work on activities and interact with students.

"It's sort of inverting the model so that homework happens in the classroom and classroom happens at home," Khaund says. "And the idea of that is that then the actual student-instructor relationship, the actual reaction, is going to be far more valuable."

There are other advantages to moving the lecture online, and universities like UC Berkeley offer video and audio podcasts of lectures for its on-campus students. When watching a lecture on a video, the student can pause it to reference something the teacher has mentioned or rewind and replay it to listen to something he didn't understand.

"If you try to do that in a classroom setting, it either slows everybody down or you don't ask the question and you're confused," Khaund says.

More Education Resources from Mashable:

- 8 Ways Technology Is Improving Education
- The Case For Social Media in Schools
- How Online Classrooms Are Helping Haiti Rebuild Its Education System
- 10 Free Online Resources for Science Teachers
- 7 Fantastic Free Social Media Tools for Teachers

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Pgiam

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