Yahoo Targets Internet Growth Areas

Where are the growth opportunities in the Internet economy? Take a look at where Yahoo is planning its future investment. Social media, video and mobile access. I think  they’re right on with this outlook but they did just get beat out for YouTube (video) and they were not able to complete a deal with Facebook (social media). About the only place Yahoo has some traction is in mobile phones. Yahoo Go is available on several popular phones and they plan to be everywhere by the end of the year. Yahoo’s mobile stuff is actually quite good and useful. They’re doing better than most, but watch out because Google maps is available on phones as is gmail and the google rss reader.

Tattoo Your RAZR – Wicked Cool

Always finding new ways to breath new life into the RAZR line, Motorola and T-Mobile have introduced new RAZR models with laser tattoos based on the work of artist. These phones look great and if I weren’t so interested in moving to a smart phone, I’d want one.

Palm Treo Breaks News

Using a Palm Treo 700, a Fox News cameraman was able to shoot video and send it directly to Fox which proceeded to use it live on-air. This is the first time a major news organization has used live streaming video from a cell phone. The cameraman was actually on a completely different assignment but was close by when a single-engine plane crashed into an apartment building in downtown New York. The software technology used is called CometVision from Comet Video Technologies.

With so many cell phones now having camera and video capabilities, this kind of on the spot citizen media link to major new outlets will only increase. I can see the possibility for an affiliate citizen media program. For every photo I make available to a major news outlet, I can get compensated. For every minute of video I provide, I can make a little cash. How soon until we see fake, staged news events created by people who want to see their stuff on tv or who just want to screw with the system?

Details Of Microsoft Zune Released

So Microsoft has officially released the details of the Zune MP3 player. One of the big things they are touting is the wireless connectivity. However, it appears to be Wi-Fi and not Bluetooth. The player allows you to share music and playlists with friends, who can listen to tracks three times in a three day period. But if it’s Wi-fi, we both have to be near a hotspot and those aren’t everywhere yet. If it were Bluetooth, we would only have to be within a few feet of each other. Makes allot more sense to me. The Zune should be moderately successful, but I don’t see any real threat to the iPod just yet. Apple could put the wireless features into the iPod in a second. But I like the Zune being around because it will force Apple to stay sharp and keep innovating fast.

Yet Another On-Line Music Store

Samsung will introduce a new line of mp3 players and a digital music download service run by Music Net. Music Net already powers stores like Yahoo Music and Urge from MTV.  Were getting a glut on music download services and may of them all being tied to the mp3 player you own. Microsoft will also launch a store with the Zune player later this year. Just how many on-line music stores can we handle? I think within a few years we will see these stores start to drop like flies and only the strong will remain. iTunes, Microsoft, Yahoo. After all the hand wringing over digital music and downloading on-line digital music downloading is the hottest thing going. Within 10 years, it will be rare to find someone buying a physical cd.

Movie Downlods From iTunes – Finally!

Looks like the stars are aligning and Apple is ready to announce its iTunes movie store on Sept 12th. It should come with a new iPod that sports a large screen for better movie viewing. Like TV, I think this will be very successful for Apple and a great thing for customers. Let’s just hope the DRM allows us to burn a DVD. If not, that would really suck.

Like so much of technology,  this points to the furthering of mobile. Less and less are we required to sit at once place to experience media and/or get things done. Our technology is really going with us. Too bad Netflix and Tivo couldn’t pull this off sooner. They had such a great opportunity but now with Apple in the game, they’re toast. It’s shocking to see Microsoft sitting around with nothing to show. No digital music, no movies, no tv, no nothing. Just trying to ship an OS. Somehow I think Zune will not quite live up to expectations. Take a look at what happened with the Ultra Mobile PC. So much hype and then, oh, is that it? Except for the Xbox, Microsoft has a bad record with hardware. And why will the millions of people who have already invested hundreds or thousands of dollars into iTunes music want to switch. You can’t take your DRM music with you, not legally anyway.

The days of downloadable movies are upon us. Bye bye Blockbuster.

Talk Of 4G Cell Phones

The mobile phone industry is already talking about the next generation cell phone technology. 4G? Are you kidding me, they didn’t ever really deliver 3G. I have been with Cingular, T-Mobile and AT&T in the past three years and have never had the opportunity to go full 3G. The industry complains that the market never responded to 3G. Not so! Most of us couldn’t even get it, and charging an extra $19.99 per month for unlimited data is too steep. So many promises, and not much delivery, at least here in the US. I’m not buying into anymore of it. Stop talking and start producing.

Lawsuits For The Tech Addicted?

It’s becoming an American tradition. If you’re life isn’t what you want it to be, sue someone.

Gayle Porter, associate professor of management at the Rutgers University School of Business in Camden, New Jersey, has written a paper that states workers whose personal lives suffer as a result of tech addictions could turn their sights on their employers.

This stuff is akin to sueing McDonalds because you ate too many Big Macs. Unless it’s in your employment contract or someone made a definative statement to you that you must be available for phone meetings after hours, I see no case here. Of course it’s not that simple as there is great peer pressure to keep the Blackberry on and respond to messages no matter what the hour. Someone is going to have to get fired and claim it was a direct result of the overuse of technology. But don’t call it an addiction, I don’t think that’s going to work.

Apple Battery Recall

Apple is getting into the act, issuing a recall of over 1 million batteries. I wonder if Sony will eventually have to take all these back as they are the OEM. As if Sony needs any other problems.

Microsoft Zune – Much Ado About Nothing

Gizmodo has posted a photo and some details of the Microsoft Zune mp3 player. Yawn. I think this is a whole lot of nothing. Microsoft is the 10,000lb gorilla but they have never been able to match Apple on ease of use or overall quality of experience. Plus, why would I walk away from the huge investment in songs I have purchased from iTunes that only play on iPods? Will Microsoft really offer to convert all of them to Windows Media format? From one proprietary DRM format to another. I don’t see where the customer wins. Might has well stick with the iPod.