Douglas L Ross: Portals

AOL Video Instant Messaging Ban Lifted By FCC

Fri, 22 Aug 2003 16:06:20 GMT

The NYT wrote another editorial in its news pages by focusing about 75% of the arguments in this article on the anti-monopoly viewpoint and backhanding the logic for why the FCC had no business interferring in an emerging technology in the first place.

F.C.C. Lifts Ban on Video for AOL Instant Messaging. The Federal Communications Commission has granted a request by AOL Time Warner to drop restrictions on adding video to its AOL instant messaging service. By David D. Kirkpatrick. [New York Times: Technology]

Targeted Television Advertising

Fri, 22 Aug 2003 14:28:06 GMT

There is a significant battle going on for control of the intellectual property surrounding the delivery of targeted television and internet advertising.

Ad firm 24/7 pushing for patent power. 24/7 Real Media wins another patent for delivering digital ads, giving it new authority over the online-ad serving market as it pursues patent licenses to improve shareholder value. [CNET News.com]

Targeted Advertising

Wed, 06 Aug 2003 17:33:18 GMT

This article is about the expansion of the bid-for-ad-placement concept from strictly the search domain to the general "web-site" browsing context.

If You Liked the Web Page, You'll Love the Ad. Online publishers are beginning to sense the possibilities of having Google or Overture serve ads to their audiences. By Bob Tedeschi. [New York Times: Technology]

How Do Teenagers Spend Their Time

Wed, 06 Aug 2003 15:07:04 GMT

A number of news media have been reporting that Harris Interactive and Teenage Research Unlimited studies show that "the Internet has surpassed television in overall time spent to become the primary medium of choice among the 13-24 age group."

According to an article in PubZone [ http://www.pubzone.com/newsroom/2003/1x20030730x085831.cfm ] quoting the study results: "an average week for the teens and young adults includes 16.7 hours online (excluding email); 13.6 hours watching TV; 12 hours listening to radio; 7.7 hours talking on the phone; six hours reading books and magazines (personal, not academic). "

Carat On ITV Advertising

Wed, 06 Aug 2003 15:01:04 GMT

Carat has an interesting little item on their web site.

Is interactive TV advertising a lost dream?

09-Mar-2003

To many observers, interactive TV is starting to look like an unfulfilled marketing revolution. Potentially, iTV can bring a new dimension to advertising by adding relationship-building and transaction to what is already the most powerful brand-building medium. But operators' financial problems, over-promised and under-delivered technology and poor communication of digital's benefits have stalled mass take-up by consumers. With the current mismatch between potential and reality, is it worth investing time and money in interactive advertising?

Evidence collected by Carat strongly suggests that it is, and that iTV advertising can already deliver marketing ROI.

Although almost no-one switches to digital TV for the interactive services, Carat research with Netpoll has found that once people have access to them, they use them to an increasing degree.

Barry Diller's InterActiveCorp

Wed, 06 Aug 2003 12:47:20 GMT

Diller's InterActiveCorp reported solid second quarter results. On the conference call with Wall Street analysts Diller characterized his company this way: "The trinity of Amazon, eBay and Yahoo! has been expanded by one to include us." InterActiveCorp (formerly USA Interactive and which includes Expedia, Hotels.com, Match.com, Ticketmaster, HSN and is now acquiring LendingTree) had quarterly revenue of $1.5 billion [up 38% for the quarter] and generated ~$400 million in free cash flow.

The Amazon.com Portal

Mon, 21 Jul 2003 17:47:01 GMT

Amazon is apparently trying to do what the Library of Congress probably should do, that is make archived book content searchable.

Amazon Plan Would Allow Searching Texts of Many Books. Amazon.com is negotiating with book publishers to assemble a searchable online archive with the texts of thousands of nonfiction books. By David D. Kirkpatrick. [New York Times: Technology]

Autonomy Acquires Virage

Thu, 10 Jul 2003 12:24:45 GMT

Autonomy (Nasdaq: AUTN) announced the purchase of a small company called Virage (Nasdaq-SCM: VRGE) which they apparently intend to integrate with their existing Dremedia division. Dremedia software uses Autonomy's Intelligent Data Operating LayerTM (IDOL) technology and enhances it by providing a technology platform that automatically analyzes, understands, and manipulates video and audio content.

Acquiring Virage adds a software product suite that covers the creative side of video production, Internet publishing and webcasting. Virage is headquartered in San Mateo, California, and was established in 1995. It's products include:

VS ProductionTM for professional video production
VS PublishingTM for developing content into compelling Internet programming
VS WebcastingTM for planning and producing interactive, live and on-demand webcasts

The company has ~400 customers including: Cisco Systems, Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, Harvard University, NASCAR, Oracle Corporation, Pfizer, the United States Senate, Xerox and others. www.virage.com.

Here's an article in The Register about the acquisition. Autonomy swoops on Virage. Video Play [The Register]

Microsoft At NCTA

Tue, 10 Jun 2003 19:10:46 GMT

Yesterday at NCTA, Microsoft introduce Microsoft^® TV Foundation Edition what they descirbe as "a new digital TV software platform designed to help cable operators get more value from on-demand and other digital TV services"

They simultaneously announced support (http://www.microsoft.com/tv/mstvIndustrySupportPR.mspx) for the platform from cable industry vendors Motorola, Inc., SeaChange, Concurrent Computer Corp., MetaTV Inc., Two Way TV Ltd. and Advanced Digital Broadcast Ltd.

They also announced a customer win (http://www.microsoft.com/tv/cablevisionselectsmspr.mspx) for the software platform with Televisa's Cablevision (CVC) subsidiary, one of Mexico City's largest cable MSO with ~450k subscribers announcing that they will adopt it.

AOL Broadband

Tue, 01 Apr 2003 15:46:53 GMT

AOL announced it's new BYOA (bring your own access) service called AOL Broadband on Monday, March 31. Here's their press release: http://media.aoltimewarner.com/media/press_view.cfm?release_num=55253107 and an article in USA today about the announcement. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/webguide/internetlife/2003-03-31-aol-broadband_x.htm

Google (Distributed) Compute

Thu, 27 Mar 2003 18:00:57 GMT

CNET reported that Google's R&D Lab has floated a distributed computing test called Google Compute.

Google tests distributed computing [CNET News.com]

AOL Voicemail

Thu, 27 Mar 2003 14:41:23 GMT

AOL(r) Voicemail is a new premium service that enables AOL members to listen to their home voice messages online and their AOL e-mails over the telephone. It is accomplished using the Telco's caller ID and call forwarding features along with AOL servers to digitize and serve up voice messages as on-line files.

MSN Shifts ISP Strategy?

Thu, 20 Mar 2003 15:32:34 GMT

NYT reporting on a report that IDC released which claims that Microsoft is shifting its MSN strategy.

Coalition of Broaband Users and Innovators

Tue, 18 Mar 2003 16:20:30 GMT

A fight is brewing between a Coalition of so-called broadband "users" [comprised primarily of companies interested in access to broadband for Internet e-commerce] and the Cable industry. The link is to the Coalition's recent exparte filing with the FCC

BBC's Celebdaq Celebrity Trading Game

Thu, 06 Mar 2003 14:23:43 GMT

The basic principal is that clelbrities are traded on an exchange like stocks. Their value is influenced by player trading which in turn is influenced by, among other things, what the BBC broadcasts every Friday night at 10:30pm on BBC3. A very clever idea and apparently a sensation in the UK. Here's the link to the Celebdaq website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/celebdaq/index.shtml

Identity Theft

Thu, 06 Mar 2003 13:18:48 GMT

The Perils of Online Job Sites. Posting a résumé on the Internet is an accepted strategy for many job seekers, but doing so can attract more than just potential employers. ID thieves and marketers look for e-mail addresses, phone numbers and other personal information. First in a series by Kendra Mayfield. [Wired News]