Samsung partnering with OpenX

One of the stories that got buried with all the other major news this week was that Samsung is partnering with OpenX

It didnt get much coverage and whilst i dont have a lot of faith in the new management at OpenX it makes for a very interesting read.

At the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this year, Samsung expressed a vision of the future where consumers’ numerous household electronics, from TVs and laptops to fridges and dishwashers all communicate with another, per Mr. Elkin.
“You can see where advertising could easily fit across all of those devices,” Mr. Elkin said.
“It seems like Samsung, with its broader consumer electronics portfolio, is at least hinting in a longer-term perspective at how that device universe might work together in an advertising context,” he said.
- http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/ad-networks/12514.html
 
What are you thoughts? is this a big move for Samsung or will they fold before it gets off the ground as they dont have the long term vision to see it through. Will OpenX become the hub for buying impressions across "the rest"


Cheers,
Dean

ACCC Vs Google

The Australian ACCC is a government agency (kind of like the FTC in that they manage competition/truth in advertising etc they also play the legal role similar to that of  the Federal Attorney General).

A ruling came down yesterday that will interest everyone who has every place an online advertisement using "Key Words".

http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/sinodisp/au/cases/cth/FCAFC/2012/49.html?stem=0&synonyms=0&query=%22Australian%22%20AND%20%22Google%22&nocontext=1

This cannot be the final outcome for the case and i fully expect Google to appeal however the basics of the case are this.

The ACCC have won a $500m ruling against Google that they used keywords belonging to competitors in the advertisements they've placed and that Google is responsible for the action of its users contrary to the terms of use.

http://www.smartcompany.com.au/information-technology/049116-google-tipped-to-appeal-to-high-court-against-adwords-decision.html

http://afr.com/p/national/google_considers_high_court_appeal_Wxt50qW5KgVuCwahFAYTNP

What i dont understand about this case (thankfully i'm not a lawyer....) is how does this infer rights to a company far beyond its current use.

Eg does that mean i can never use the word "Honda" in any advertisement even though i sell Hondas (as does http://www.tradingpost.com.au/)

How does this affect the IP harmonization rules between the USA and Australia? technically arent the USA courts supposed to reflect the decisions made in Australia?

Free can only last so long

I noticed that the Orlando Sentinel paper is moving to an e-subscription model for their online content.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/os-orlando-sentinel-digital-memberships-letter,0,4485751.htmlstory

I personally think this is a great move.

Keep in mind if you dont live in orlando they arent trying to target you as a subscriber, they are trying to deliver local news that is relevant and valuable to people residing in Orlando.

Free can only last so long.

Let me know how you get on tell your waiter at the lunch restaurant that you really want the food to be free/or pay your mortgage with "free".

The point being is this news IS valuable to someone and a transaction where both parties get something of value can be made here, just publishing worthless pages to people who dont value it doesnt help the OS business model.

We've had a great run of ad sponsored content but this can only last so long, its time to move on where people pay for value.

Future media service delivery in a metered world

This story needs more attention – it’s a big deal about how future services are delivered in a metered world. http://gigaom.com/video/comcast-xbox-faq-update

Its a good idea, lol and something i proposed with a project in another world a long time ago ....sniff  :(  but how its going to be seen here in the USA is the interesting part.

Is it not breaking net neutrality rules.....or is it a duck?


Cheers,
Dean

OneGoldenSquare yet another IP-TV application

I was reading this press release
http://onegoldensquare.com/2012/03/absolute-radio-announce-samsung-smart-tv-convergence-app-for-android/


I'm kind of curious though, how are Samsung/OneGoldenSquare handling payments to the RIAA/other various international copyright bodies?

Are they tracking ip address location and correlating via a tracking mechanism?
or
Are they only allowing activation of this feature in certain countries where they have licenses already paid for?

Anyone have any thoughts?

Cheers,
Dean

Why Internet TV's will always be losing the battle against "Living room devices"

I keep seeing people talkign about Internet Tv's and they will eb the wave of the future taking over from Roku/Home Media PC's etc.

I cant stress this enough these seperate boxes will always have an advantage over "Internet tv's" in that they can be replaced on a regular basis every 1-2 years or so fairly cheaply; The average time for a TV replacement 4-5 years..... you do the math.

The CPU/smarts should ALWAYS be a seperate device to the TV...yes even if its an Apple TV.

Cheers,
Dean

Badgeville "Gamification Webinar"

This is a link the to “Badgeville Gamification webinar” I watchedn yesterday.

http://www.badgeville.com/resources/webinars/How_Brands_Drive_Engagement_With_Game_Mechanics.mp4 

The stats on the Mint.com users is staggering (and being married to a Mint.com user I see no reason to disagree with them).

Keep in mind though that badgeville didn’t design the mint elements…their example is a little lamer so I’m still looking for the reason why Mint.com “works” so well.

If you are a Mint.com user why do you think people love it so much?