Microsoft goes social. Sort of.
Microsoft, which owns a small part of Facebook, dipped its own toe in the online social scene this week with a low-key unveiling of its So.cl (pronounced “social”) service.
The site, which is for students to share interesting discoveries online, looks like a curious blend of Facebook and Google +.
Right now it’s restricted to certain universities, and is a blend of web browsing, search (Bing, of course) and networking — including what it calls “video party”.
Developed by Microsoft’s FUSE Labs, it is “an experimental research project focused on exploring the possibilities of social search for the purpose of learning.”
In effect, Microsoft is trying to build on the fact that many students are looking for the same sorts of things online, and it gives them a way to put together and share their findings with other members interested in the same academic area.
We’ll see if its young users stick to such a lofty goal.
Microsoft says it’s not meant to replace Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, or to replace search engines. Indeed, you must log on with your Facebook account.
Facebook is starting to lose its touch
By Kevin Kelleher The opinions expressed are his own.
Facebook is steamrolling forward. It now boasts 800 million active users. The company is reportedly preparting for an initial public offering. It’s laying plans to sell a Facebook phone, strengthening its presence on the mobile web. But Facebook’s plans may be hampered by a new backlash against the company’s efforts to get its users to share more of their lives online.
In September, Facebook announced at its annual f8 developers conference that it was upgrading its Open Graph technology. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg introduced Open Graph in 2010 to let web sites and apps share information about users with Facebook. The revamped Open Graph takes sharing to a new level, allowing apps that automatically share what articles users are reading or what music they’re listening to.
Zuckerberg said the new feature would allow “frictionless experiences” and “real-time serendipity.” At the time, only a few observers found them to be scary. “They are seeking out information to report about you,” wrote developer and blogger Dave Winer. But suddenly, a critical mass of critics are speaking up about the changes, how they affect users and publishers alike.
Facebook has had its share of controversies in the past. In 2007, it introduced Beacon, an early version of Open Graph that automatically opted all users into its sharing features. In time, Facebook learned to allow users to opt in. But more importantly, its site changed how its users thought about privacy online. Today, it’s a given that the web is evolving into a social landscape where sharing personal information online is increasingly common. You either learn to share, or you stay off Facebook.
The latest round of complaints have a different theme: This time, the problem is that Facebook is getting the social web wrong. One of the key reasons for Facebook’s success is that Zuckerberg didn’t try to tell its users how to use a social network. He kept things simple and made changes only when the online behavior of users dictated them. Zuckerberg believed that, in time, people would grow more comfortable sharing personal data on its site, even if they found it creepy at first.
Yet it seemed that every year Facebook again found itself in the middle of some privacy controversy, with critics charging it was getting too intrusive. Facebook kept growing, and it would return the following year with new features designed to seduce users into sharing more. In that sense, Zuckerberg was right that in time many people would share more freely.
Okay, I agree and your point is well-argued. The only problem is that the people cited here tend to be tech-elites and not your average users. I wish the trend was true but I’m just not so sure it is. The average user absolutely rebels against efforts to “herd” them in a predetermined direction (as Netflix found out, painfully) but that’s not always the case. It’s more a case of ease of use – if FB makes sharing more complicated, people will leave in droves. If it’s easy, they’ll stay despite the insane consequences that result. The jury is still out on this one, though you are right in suggesting this could be – could be – a turning point.
In a twist, Zynga brings mobile game to Facebook
On Monday, Zynga said it would be bringing its most popular mobile game, “Words with Friends,” to Facebook. The social games maker said the game would be coming soon.
Players on Apple- or Android-powered devices will be able to carry over games from their phones or tablets onto Facebook. Zynga, in an attempt at bathroom humor, said this would allow “a seamless transition from your work computer to the bathroom… don’t lie, you know you do it.”
While it’s no surprise that Zynga would want to tap Facebook to attract more users to “Words with Friends” — a game you have to play with at least one other person — it’s a curious move for a company whose biggest IPO risk is its dependence on Facebook. Future investors are more likely to welcome an announcement in which Zynga distances itself from Facebook, like the recent one about Zynga entering mainland China through its partner Tencent.
The Scrabble-like word game is one of the company’s 12 games available on mobile devices. Zynga counts Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Alba and Reggie Bush as fans of “Words with Friends” but did not reveal any details about how these US Weekly regulars can spell.
What’s Happening, Twitter?
Twitter’s been making a lot of changes lately. They’ve introduced new technologies like lists — which is kind of like a friend filter on Facebook — and a new way to share one another’s Tweets.
Usage on the company’s website has taken off like a rocket, up 1,703 percent year-over-year in September, and that doesn’t even count people who access the service through text messaging or specialized applications on their smartphones or computers.
But today was perhaps the most radical change of all. Twitter changed its cosmically deep and evocative signature query, “What are you doing?”
Now, Twitter wants to know, “What’s happening?”
No, it’s not an homage to the ’70s TV show by the same name.
Instead, as company co-founder Biz Stone explained in a post on the company’s blog on Thursday, Twitter wanted to re-invoke its vision of a “mobile status update.” And while this all may seem silly to some, Stone wrote that it is an attempt to recognize the larger importance of the Tweeters and their interactions.
Sure, someone in San Francisco may be answering “What are you doing?” with “Enjoying an excellent cup of coffee,” at this very moment. However, a birds-eye view of Twitter reveals that it’s not exclusively about these personal musings. Between those cups of coffee, people are witnessing accidents, organizing events, sharing links, breaking news, reporting stuff their dad says, and so much more.
MySpace: Be ready to read this story twice
MySpace, the online social network (can we still call it that now that it has ducked out of the Facebook/Twitter competition?), appears to be pursuing what I’ll call the “two-pronged news strategy.” You get used to it when you cover media and technology. For those of you who don’t enjoy this privilege, it goes like this:
- Pick a news outlet that you like and whisper things to them about what you’re doing. It doesn’t have to be interesting, it just has to be exclusive. If you’re in public relations, you don’t even have to know that someone in your company is doing this. It works well for you.
- Let the rest of the press read the story and bombard your telephone and e-mail with messages demanding to know if it’s true. Score a big hit on the news cycle. Because you either decline to comment or only want to talk “on background,” it heightens the air of mystery — and newsworthiness.
- The official announcement of the news, which will always resemble 90 percent or more of what you read in the first round of anonymously sourced stories, will get just as much attention as that first round. It’s a 2-for-1 deal that is irresistible to many companies.
I don’t know that MySpace is doing this, and wouldn’t be able to confirm it if I asked. It could just be that the reporters who get the breaking news have great sources and the reporter asked smart questions that would yield good answers. I’ll let you judge.
The first example comes from Kara Swisher, tech blogger at AllThingsD, which is MySpace’s cousin in the News Corp family. She reports:
Microsoft’s MSN is in preliminary talks with MySpace about using the social networking site’s music service, MySpace Music, to help power music offerings on the giant portal. …
Sources said Microsoft execs don’t think they can do as good a job as MySpace is doing and don’t see the point in striking needed but complex deals with music labels, which the News Corp. (NWS) property already has.
MySpace, Swisher adds, would get a “gusher” of traffic. I asked MySpace whether we could talk about this. From spokeswoman: “Off the record I can’t comment.” OK.
Sucks being them….. having to set things straight,it will never happen.that news will go around the world a couple of times before is even slows down..HA
Twitter + Georgian blogger + South Ossetia = Hack Attack
If you were miffed at not being able to tweet your innermost thoughts and random musings to your followers yesterday, or post that smartypants comment on a friend’s Facebook status update, blame politics. Turns out the reason why Twitter was knocked down for hours, while Facebook users had trouble logging in and posting to their profiles on Thursday was a Georgian blogger who uses both services.
According to CNET, which cites Facebook’s chief security officer Max Kelly, the blogger also has accounts in LiveJournal and Google’s Blogger and YouTube platforms, and goes by the name of Cyxymu, which is the name of a town in Georgia. Kelly told CNET:
“It was a simultaneous attack across a number of properties targeting him to keep his voice from being heard.”
Now, for those who don’t follow international politics closely, here’s why the pro-Georgian blogger may have been targeted. August 8 marks the first anniversary of the war that broke out between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia. Russia sent troops into the separatist region last year, which Georgia claims forced it to launch a counter-offensive. Some other folks say the war started on August 7, 2008. So it was probably no coincidence that the Web attack on Cyxymu, the blogger who blames the attack on Russia, took place on the eve of the war’s anniversary.
Whatever the date, one thing is clear: the more Twitter becomes a communication tool in zones of conflict, the likelier it is to become a target for hackers with political motives. The micro-blogging service obviously needs to step up security so that hack attacks don’t shut it down. After all, regular folks like MC Hammer still need to get to the airport.
Keep an eye on:
- Platinum Equity turns up as the third bidder for The Boston Globe. (The Boston Globe)
- TV dealmaking season wraps up; prices, volume down. (Reuters)
- News Corp’s Fox has asked distributors to withhold DVDs from Redbox. (Bloomberg)
A new social network — more than an electronic scrapbook?
No one needs another Facebook or Twitter so any social networking site had better have something new. Serial entrepreneur Vince Broady, who has experience in knowing what people like through his background with games and entertainment, is convinced he has one. It launched this week as thisMoment.com.
Broady’s idea is to let people create what he calls “moments,” which I would call electronic scrapbooks. ThisMoment is designed to work in lots of places — on the thisMoment website, within Facebook (some security issues are still being resolved, he says, but you can use your Facebook ID to sign up), or on an iPhone.
Content can come from anywhere so long as it’s digital: text, YouTube, a video camera, your digital camera, Flickr, Picassa or Facebook. OK, all that might be tough in your old high school scrapbook.
Broady doesn’t exactly mind the word scrapbook (my word, not his), but he thinks that doesn’t really capture what his new product does.
“A scrapbook is solitary and this is collaborative,” he says, because a group of friends can all pour content into a single “moment,” and they can do it from anywhere. “A scrapbook looks backward, but a ‘moment’ can look forward to a trip I’m going to take, not just one I’ve taken,” he said.
In addition to individual moments, Broady has tapped The New York Times, Time Inc , and Hachett Filipacchi Media U.S.’s Road and Track, which are putting together pre-packaged moments of their own. He showed off a New York Times “moment” f Barcelona, which combines pictures, text and restaurant suggestions.
In this tight economy, Broady is funding the project himself and with a little help from his friends — other Silicon Valley denizens who know his work. He has raised $3 million and won’t seek funding from venture capitalists for awhile yet.
I would also suggest checking out the recently launched social network, http://www.HopOnThis.com. It’s not as big as MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter yet, but chances are it’s going to boom. They integrate a rewards program to keep members online and active, which also equates to the growth of a loyal member base. Not only can you generate traffic to your business by creating a profile, but you have a chance to win cash and prizes just for participating on the site. And yes, it’s completely free.
Swine flu: not so bad for CDC.gov
Too bad the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) doesn’t charge for its information or make money off its website — they could have made a pile of cash on the swine flu scare. (You know, if it wasn’t a government site.)
Web traffic measurement firm comScore says traffic soared at CDC.gov last month, as people visited the website amid concerns over the H1N1, or swine, flu.
In April, CDC.gov saw a 142 percent increase in traffic, or 5.7 million visitors, making it the top audience gainer among websites, comScore said. “When news of the swine flu pandemic erupted, many Americans turned to the Internet as their primary source of information for how to keep themselves and their families safe,” said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president at comScore Media Metrix.
Social networks also continued their tear last month, growing 12 percent to nearly 140 million visitors. That’s about three-quarters of the U.S. online population, comScore says, so chances are someone you know is either is Twittering, Facebook-ing or on MySpace. Twitter jumped 83 percent to 17 million visitors, while Facebook grew 10 percent in April from the previous month to reach 67.5 million visitors. MySpace had 71 million visitors.
Keep an eye on:
- Will The Boston Globe’s biggest union balk at the New York Times Co offer? (The Boston Phoenix)
- Web entrepreneurs may no longer need venture capital dollars (The New York Times Bits blog)
- MGM scrambles to restructure its $3.7 billion debt pile (Financial Times)
Photo: Reuters
Too many people have a very short term window on the H1N1 virus. People either ignored or have forgotten that just a few short weeks ago Mexico was in the grips of new influenza virus that was hospitalizing young adults. The various health organizations around the world ramped up to respond to a virus that appeared to be serious, Everyone needs to remember that at this point medical science knew next to nothing about the virus. Imagine trying to respond to a virus threat when you don’t know how easily or quickly it spreads, you don;t know how it spreads, you don’t how deadly it is and you don’t know if it can be treated with anything and it seems to cause severe illness. The WHO and others would have been criminally negligent if they did not alert the world to a possible serious threat.
H1N1 for now has not been too serious outside of Mexico. This is a blessing. It provided a kick in the pants for a planet that was only partly prepared for a serious flu pandemic. Nay sayers should remember that medical science can still not explain with certainty why the Mexican cases were so severe compared to elsewhere. The other thing to remember is the ability of the flu to mutate. As the virus travels the southern hemisphere this summer it is entirely possible for it change to cause more severe illness. If it does not and we prepare for a threat that does not come we can be grateful we dodged the bullet this time. If we don’t prepare and it comes back like gangbusters a lot of needless illness will occur. I know which path I want the WHO and others to take. Perpare, prepare, prepare.
Facebook hotter than MySpace: Yahoo CEO Bartz
Facebook is hot, MySpace is not. We didn’t say it, Yahoo’s new chief executive Carol Bartz did.
During Yahoo’s quarterly earnings call on Tuesday, one analysts asked Bartz what Yahoo’s strategy is for going after the younger demographic, i.e. the generation whose lives play out on social networks.
“That was one of the questions I asked the (Yahoo) board when I was speaking to them in November and December,” Bartz replied. “I have a 20-year-old and also two kids in their late 20s, so I’m very familiar with the Facebooks of the world and before that, MySpace, and see what the kids do. So I’m very curious about that demographic.”
As for Yahoo’s plans to go after the 15-25 age group, Bartz had two caveats on how aggressively the web company should pursue youngsters:
“They do grow up, and it’s interesting watching the older ones… they’re much more interested in looking at Yahoo Finance and Yahoo News. They don’t have all day to (put up) pictures on Facebook and chat constantly because guess what, they’re off the dole.”
And her second thought:
Pint-sized Club Penguin habitues tapped for virtual charity
Is it really giving if the money you’re shelling out for charity isn’t real? The 6- to 14-year-olds that Disney is targeting in a Dec. 12-22 charity drive on its social networking Club Penguin Web site probably would answer an emphatic “Yes!” to that existential poser.
That’s because donating the make-believe coins they earn playing games on Club Penguin to charities like the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and the World Wildlife Fund – two beneficiaries of past penguin largesse — means less “money” to spend in the snowy virtual world on rugs and armchairs for their igloos, or hairdos and clothes for their penguins. Talk about a painful choice!
Kids who donate will actually be voting on which of three real-world causes to support, and their giving will determine how the New Horizon Foundation, whose principals started Club Penguin, splits up a $1 million donation to charities that represent those causes. During last year’s 10-day campaign, 2.5 million kids ponied up more than 2 billion virtual coins to help other children around the world, New Horizon’s Lane Merrifield said.
This year’s campaign — at the height of a real-world global recession — could show whether Disney’s message that “It’s a Small World” — the one that sticks in parkgoers’ heads for days — is getting through.
I am a fan of Club Penguin and plan to give a 1000 coins to the charity so that lots of money can be donated.
Theo, age 6
