Sunday, November 21, 2010

11 new stories on The Next Web today

11 new stories on The Next Web today

Link to The Next Web

Coming Soon: Murdoch’s (and Steve Jobs’?!) iPad Newspaper, “The Daily” [The Next Web]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 06:58 PM PST

We’ve known for some time that News Corp’s Ruport Murdoch sees the iPad as the future of digital content. What we weren’t aware of until a few days ago is his commitment to the platform has seen him confirm the launch of a digital newspaper designed specifically for the device. Its name? “The Daily.”

The name and existence were confirmed during an interview with Fox Business Network where Murdoch claimed The Daily to be one of the company’s most “exciting projects” (along with the relaunch of MySpace we assume).

Unfortunately the Australian mogul wouldn’t go into specifics but a piece recently published in US elite fashion industry journal Women's Wear Daily, described The Daily as "tabloid sensibility with a broadsheet intelligence."

What may come as a bigger surprise is that The Guardian is claiming the project is a collaboration between Murdoch and Apple’s Steve Jobs. That’s the first we’ve heard of Jobs’ involvement and so until we hear confirmation from Apple itself, we’re not convinced. We’re sceptical because you would assume Jobs would be aware of the flood of “conflict of interest” complaints from competing iPad publications if Apple were to invest in a publication for a platform it entirely controls.

A staff of over 100 have reportedly been lined up for the project with three managing editors: Mike Nizza, a veteran of The New York Times, AOL News and The Atlantic; Steve Alperin, a producer at ABC News, and Pete Picton, an online editor at UK Newspaper, The Sun. While the focus will be on old-school reporting, there'll be a sizeable video and design team as well.

The Daily is expected to cost 99 cents a week, or about $4.25 a month and will reportedly launch in beta mode sometime around Christmas. No print or web edition of Daily will be available, only iPad and tablet versions – potentially one of these.

Murdoch began his career with a single newspaper and is Chief Executive of News Corp., the third largest media conglomerate in the world, generating revenues in excess of US$30 million per year. While the company operated hundreds of publications, television channels, and websites around the world, Murdoch has made no secret of newspapers being his one true obsession. Lets hope he doesn’t die trying to save them.AFP



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5 Tablets To Look Out For In 2011 [TNW Gadgets]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 03:28 PM PST

So you're waging a battle in your head. Do you buy a tablet this year? Or do you wait to see what 2011 holds? Well, we already gave you a guide on what tablets to consider if you're going to buy this year, but how about next year?

While some of these are merely whispers in the wind, there is no doubt that 2011is going to spawn some pretty beautiful tablet devices. So, without further ado, here are 5 to keep in mind before you pull the trigger on a first generation iPad or Samsung Galaxy Tab.

5. LG (Optimus) Pad

LG hasn't announced their tablet device yet but if the specs hold up, this is going to be a very, very solid device. Right now, the device is known as the LG Pad or the LG Optimus Pad and according to a senior official from LG Electronics, who probably lost his job, it will be coming in Q1 with Android Honeycomb.

You know, Google's Android OS that actually works well on a tablet device.

In its defense, the Galaxy Tab will be getting Honeycomb at some point but don’t count on it being any time soon after its launch. Why? Just have a look at the whole Galaxy S/Froyo debacle.

It's also supposed to have a 8.9 inch display with a Tegra 2 chip from NVIDIA inside.

Sound good?

We thought so.

4. HTC’s Tablet

The tablet that doesn't even have a name.

According to a report by Digitimes, HTC is at work on a tablet device that is, surprise, scheduled to be headed to market in Q1 of next year. And it looks like it's going to be an absolute beast.

It apparently has a 1280 x 720 resolution screen which is mind blowing to say the least.  The Samsung Galaxy Tab, whose screen blew me away, has a 1024 x 600 resolution display.

Supposedly, other specs include an NVIDIA Tegra 2 chip, 2GB of internal memory, W-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth, and a 32GB memory card.

No word on the screen size, although with a resolution like that, expect it to be big.

3. Motorola MOTOPAD/Motorola Stingray

Word on the street is and that word belonging to one Elder Murtazin, the Motorola MOTOPAD, which may or may not be the same device as the Motorola Stingray, has been selected to bring in the era of Android 3.0 aka Honeycomb.

The MOTOPAD will apparently rock a 7 inch screen which is different than what a leaked Verizon roadmap had for the Stingray. That device supposedly had a 10 inch screen, 16GB of on-board storage, and an NVIDIA Tegra 2, and had LTE capabilities. Might these be the same thing or does Motorola have two tablets on the way?

We'll know in due time since the Stingray was rumored to be out in Q1.

2. BlackBerry PlayBook

This is the only official, living and breathing, tablet on this list and it might turn out to be one of the best.

You might have heard. RIM is bringing their own tablet to the market, sometime in the early part of 2011 and it's called the BlackBerry PlayBook. In case you missed it, take a look at this quick little video demo of the device that popped up a few days ago.

Watch it and tell us it doesn't look sweet.

As far as specs are concerned, the PlayBook rocks a 7 inch display with 1024 x 600 resolution, Cortex A9-based, dual-core 1GHz CPU which RIM says is faster than the iPad's processor, 1GB of RAM, two cameras (one front facing that is 3MP and a rear facing at 5MP), 1080p HD video, HDMI port, 16GB/32GB/64GB versions as well as the ability to run Flash and Adobe Air apps.

RIM is hoping to sell a lot of these and we wouldn't be surprised if they do.

1. Apple iPad 2/Second Generation iPad

Last and certainly not least, Apple's rumored update to the original iPad. Will it be called the iPad 2? Will it simply be the iPad once again? Little is known about Apple's plans but there is a lot of speculation out there.

We recently reported that the iPad 2 could possibly be ready for production in Q1 of next year meaning it has a chance to be out sometime in Q1.

How about features?

Well, it's said to have two cameras (yes!), retina display, USB ports, and an upgraded "smart" bezel.

So there they are guys. Unfortunately, this might have spoiled some plans to pick up a Galaxy Tab or an iPad but hey, with something as expensive as a tablet, it's always smart to weigh your options before you make a decision.



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Google Invests $1 Million Dollars in Shweeb’s Human Powered Monorail [TNW Google]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 12:31 PM PST

As part of Google’s Project 10 to 100, they’ve donated $1 million dollars to Shweeb, a company that wants to make an eco-friendly, human-powered monorail. The project sorted 150,000 ideas from over 170 countries, narrowing it down to 16 final ideas, which were then voted on by the public. In the end, Google donated a total of $10 million to five winning projects, working on global issues. Shweeb won for driving innovation in public transport.

The human-powered pods on the monorail are intended for short to medium distances in urban settings. Google’s $1 million will fund research and development to test the “recumbent cycling technology.” Basically, Shweeb puts humans in clear pods which are then powered by people kicking their legs as if they were on a bicycle. The original adventure ride concept system is situated at Agroventures Park in Rotorua, New Zealand.

See a video of it here:

Business Insider



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Why Google Acquiring Groupon Is NOT The Way To Go [TNW Social Media]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 11:29 AM PST

Who knows if the rumors about Google lining up to buy Groupon are true or not but there is usually no smoke without fire in these cases. The rumored figure for "the fastest growing business ever" is around the $3 billion mark but I'm not sure this is the perfect fit and I can see problems for both sides if this deal was to go through.

Google's Integration Would Be Too Slow

When it comes to acquiring start ups Google have not always been the best at getting them integrated with their own services or backing them to the full. Just look at how long it took to get grand central turned in to Google Voice or ask the Foursquare guys what Google did to their first hot start up Dodgeball. The key to the ongoing success for Groupon is speed and how quick they can roll the service in to other cities and countries. Competitors are springing up all over the place and Groupon need to keep growing as fast as possible and having the distraction of a complicated deal might not be the best thing in terms of their growth.

Margins Will Get Squeezed

The problem for this sector is that margins will get squeezed due to the fact that the business model could not be easier to copy. Competitors are already popping up all over the place with a mixture of carbon copies and more niche plays popping up in every country in the world. The margins have been great at the start but margins will get squeezed more and more as the competition tries to undercut each other. This is very much about a race to the bottom. I believe Google could be buying the company at the highest possible valuation.

Fitting In With Google's New Social Strategy

Google are about to launch their new social strategy including Google me and a social gaming platform and probably think Groupon would be the perfect compliment to these other social tools. Although Groupon involves lots of people and social elements though it really relies on email as the primary point of contact with their customer. Who knows what the new social efforts from Google will look like but I'd be far more excited about the self serve deals platform that Facebook unveiled a couple of weeks ago. Google does like making money though and they could just be buying this as a standalone money making machine that has nothing to do with their other social efforts.

Google's Analytical Nature

Google is great at numbers and technical problems but Groupon is not something that you can easily automate. It takes huge amount of sales staff to get the deals in place and it's not an automated process like most of Google's other products. There have been some noises about introducing self service platforms around Groupon which would make a lot of sense and allow the business revenues to scale at an even bigger pace but we know that Google's strength is numbers and data and not people businesses.

Why Sell Fasted Growing Business Ever?

The big question that people have to ask is why would you sell the fastest growing business? To start a bidding war? Because you knew it didn't have the legs long term? I know people enter business for different reasons but If I owned the fastest growing business ever that had the sort of revenue and traction that Groupon has I wouldn't want to sell it to anybody. Having said all of that $3 billion is not a small amount of cash and is more than enough for the Groupon team to enjoy the rest if their lives with.



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Promising New Interactive Football Game On Facebook, “I Am Playr” [TNW Social Media]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 11:24 AM PST

It's rare that you see something for the first time and just know instantly that it is going to be huge but that is very much the case with new interactive football game I Am Player. The first trailer for the game has just been released and it combines a brilliant mix of social gaming Facebook and the most popular sport on the planet…football. If ever something had success written all over it them surely this is it! The game is launching on Facebook in December and the grassroots hype about it is already huge with even the massive Nike on board as an integrated sponsor in the game. I've always wondered when the big sports games would start appearing in the social space and on Facebook in particular and it looks like they are about to arrive in force. The interesting thing is that this might appeal to a whole new group of people (young males) who might not have been enticed in to the likes of Farmville or Mafia Wars. Check out the video below and see what you think. Looks very interesting…



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Postling, a social media platform to watch, from the founders of Etsy [TNW Social Media]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 10:56 AM PST

Postling is a New York City based start-up that provides social media tools for small businesses to engage with their customers and communities. Simply put, Dave Lifson, Postling’s founder and CEO “wants to make social media easy and fast for everyone.”

The company launched in 2009 with an all-star roster of founders who met while working at start-up golden child Etsy, “the world’s most vibrant handmade marketplace.” Chris Maguire and Haim Schoppik launched Etsy, and Lifson, a former Amazon engineer, worked as their head of product management. After a few changes in the C-Level suite, the gentleman left to pursue a new venture to help small businesses.

Enter Postling, a business that focuses entirely on small businesses and the small business owners who don’t have more than 5 minutes a day to deal with social media. Their service tracks Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, WordPress, Blogger, Tumblr, Typepad, Squarespace, Drupal, Flickr and Bit.ly, among others, with publishing to YouTube coming soon. Unfortunately the Foursquare API doesn’t allow them to do much from the merchant end.

“What we’ve learned is that there is a lot you can get done in 5 minutes a day if you use the right tools like scheduling, email digests, instant notifications and reblogging. We’ve also found that people love content that gives a “behind the scenes” look into a business – who the owners are, information about where their ingredients are sourced from, the trips that owners take for business or vacation, the pets they own, etc. There are so many great ideas for posts that engage your fans that don’t necessarily have to be explicitly about your business.” – Dave Lifson

With Postling, when you wake up in the morning you get an email listing every new social media related comment, such as new Yelp reviews or new comments on blogs, Facebook and Twitter. The e-mail is an easy way to scan through them and then decide what you need to respond to, if anything. Maria Baugh, a Postling client, runs Butter Lane, a delicious cupcake shop in New York City’s East Village. “I am a huge fan of Postling,” she says. “At Butter Lane, we have so much going on with social media, like keeping up with Facebook, Twitter and Yelp. We’re all over the place! I was constantly finding myself looking on Facebook and Twitter every couple hours and it was taking up so much time. I came across Postling in summer 2009 and they solved all of my problems. One of the things I like the most is their daily e-mail digest of all of my social media activities.”

Postling recently announced a new instant notification feature, which can be turned on so you also get an instant email of any new comments. With Postling’s keyword tracking system, you can track competitors too. There are two options when signing up for Postling, a free option, which will let you post, respond and schedule posts, and a premium option, which is great for clients who need to invest in reputation monitoring. The service costs $25/mo.

Up next, Postling is working on an analytics product. “It’s going to be simple at first,” says Lifson, “Something that will show you a graph of posts you’ve made over time and comments you’ve gotten. We are also working on Klout integration.” They’re designing the product for the small business owner who’s not tech savvy, the kind of person who doesn’t want to be overwhelmed with a whole bunch of data. “We’d like to give them suggestions such as, ‘Hey you have a new follower who’s very influential. You might want to reach out ot them and say Hi,’ or ‘You just got a Yelp review you might want to reblog.’”

This week Postling accrued 15,000 users who have linked up 40,000 social media accounts. Their database is now tracking 10 million posts or new comments. They’ve also doubled in users since July and earlier this year had 7 consecutive months of over 30% month-over-month growth. Postling’s product is simple, which is why small business owners seem to love it but it does appear they could do a lot more with it to be more competitive with the HootSuites of the industry. In conclusion, Postling is a well built platform with a small pool of really talented employees packing powerful potential.

(And a note on one of their employees, in a complete coincidence, I follow Alexis Lamster, their VP of Customers, because she runs one of the most awesome Tumblr accounts ever. Prepare to drool.)TechCrunch



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The Name Game – The pitfalls of naming an Internet startup [TNW Social Media]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 10:55 AM PST

There are lots of challenges to contend with when launching an Internet startup, but one of the more fundamental is its name. It needs to stand out without falling foul of one of the many pitfalls out there.

Here are some common stumbling blocks encountered when searching for the perfect name…

No no, that’s not what I meant at all…

With online businesses, there’s always the risk that the name you think is perfect could be misinterpreted by someone else in another part of the world. Pongr is a US startup turning brand loyalty into a game. We were quite impressed when we took a look recently, although it may struggle to gain a large following in the UK, where “Pong” is slang for a bad smell.

How your startup name looks when all the words are run together in a domain name  can be a problem too. Just look at celebrity agent search service Who Represents, which resides at whorepresents.com or Therapist Finder, which is at www.therapistfinder.com.

It is possible to exploit unfortunate double-meanings though. Up-and-coming fashion startup Fashism has on the face of it a ridiculous name that could be taken as offensive by some (what’s next? “Hitlr”? “Hollow Coursed”?). However, fascist associations aren’t necessarily a bad thing in this case – it’s eye-catching and a little bit of controversy is a good thing in the fashion world. Still, it might make it difficult for the startup to go truly mainstream in future.

Twitter on my Facebook and I’ll sue you

If your product is designed to work with another well-known service, it might seem sensible to choose a name that alludes to that service. Unfortunately the current kings of the social media world, Twitter and Facebook fiercely protect usage of their names. Even names that sound similar can be in trouble.

Twitter has strict guidelines over use of its trademarks. You even have to be careful about the way you use the word “Tweet” in your service name. Facebook is even stricter; Placebook, Teachbook and Faceporn have all suffered at the hands of the Facebook legal department due to their names being close to the social network’s.

The domain’s taken, get creative

With good .com domain names in high demand, the most common problem of all is choosing a startup name with an available domain name to match.

At one time, the most common approach was to drop a vowel – that’s how Flickr got its name. As Flickr co-founder Caterina Fake explained in a recent comment on a TechCrunch post, “We tried to buy the domain from the prior owner… He wasn't interested in selling…. We liked the name "Flicker" so much we dropped the E. It wasn't very popular on the team, I had to do a lot of persuasion. Then the dropped "E" thing became something of a cliché…” It’s worth remembering that Twitter started life as Twittr, too.

Another option is to go for a domain name that’s different from your startup’s name. This could be risky, but seems to work fine for some – see TV check-in service Miso (at gomiso.com) and real-time web stats startup Clicky (at getclicky.com). Foursquare used to be found at playfoursquare.com until it managed to acquire the more obvious foursquare.com.

If your domain name is taken, perhaps the best option is to look at avoiding .com entirely and choose a little-used Top Level Domain. Libya’s .ly has proved a popular choice (see Bit.ly and Eat.ly for example), but use your imagination and you could find something that really stands out. Look at Instagram‘s use of the Armenian domain Instagr.am or Curated.by‘s Belarusian domain name which it even adopted as its actual name. Meanwhile, if you’re a music streaming startup, you might find that the Federated States of Micronesia’s .fm TLD is your friend.Image source



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Weekend Windows Fun: “How Windows Works” [TNW Microsoft]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 09:58 AM PST

I know this applies to any computer including Mac OS X and Linux. I feel the same frustration when my computer is performing a task and counting down from ten minutes and then ends with a message window that says ‘Finishing” which stays there for 3 more minutes.

Anyway, the frustrations of trying to communicate with a PC will provide us with many more years of inspiration to make graphs like these:



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Nokia built a multi-touch ice-wall, just don’t use your tongue [TNW Europe]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 09:40 AM PST

Leave it to the Finns. Just when you thought there wasn’t anything else you could do with ice, here comes a use right out of Harry Potter: a multi-touch ice screen.

Mobile giant Nokia decided that – since Finland has a tradition of ice sculpuring anyway – why not make an interactive touch ice wall. Really, why not?

Built out of a slab of 25cm ice weighing a ton, and then cut into 50cm to build the 2 meter by 1.5 meter wall. Nokia then polished the surface with a heat gun to give it a smooth surface. The wall uses rear-diffused illumination (the same tech used by the Microsoft Surface) which is basically a smart projection, instead of embedding sensors. According to New Scientist which first reported the ice wall:

A near-infrared light source mounted behind the “screen” bathes it in invisible light, and an array of near-infrared cameras, also behind the wall, are focused on the front surface. A hand placed on the ice reflects the light towards the camera array and the signal each camera receives helps a nearby PC establish the hand’s position, size and motion. The PC is also connected to a projector, which uses the data to project imagery – such as flames – beneath the user’s hand.

Of course, one of Nokia’s first suggestions for using this new tech is for the famous Ice Hotel in Sweden – now that would be something.

New Scientist, Engadget, Image credit



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LG Vortex – TNW First Look [TNW Mobile]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 08:37 AM PST

When you’re talking about Android phones, it’s usually a story of keyboards and massive screens. LG is taking a different approach toward Android by offering the Vortex. LG’s Vortex is a small, Android-based device running 2.2 on a 600 mhz processor. Featuring a 3.2 megapixel camera and a 320×480 capacitive touchscreen, it’s not the highest-end Android device you’ve ever seen, but it’s not meant to be.

Pictures on the Vortex come out acceptable, if not great. Low-light pictures, however, are nearly impossible. The touchscreen is a bit frustrating, as it feels like a harder push is required for it to respond than what we’ve seen. However, it’s bright, crisp and very readable.

Our initial feeling is that the Vortex is a great phone, given its $80 price point. The sole complaint that we have is that it’s been de-Googled because of the Verizon/Bing agreement. That means you’ll be using Bing as the default search for both typing and voice.

We’ll dig in and see what we think after a few days with the Vortex, but from what we can see so far, it’s probably a great choice for someone on your list who want a solid smartphone and isn’t an Android aficionado.



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Try This: Sucuri. Virus, Malware and DNS protection for your website [TNW Apps]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 06:46 AM PST

Here’s your little-known fact of the Saturday: your website is not safe. OK, so maybe it’s not little known but I’d venture to say that many people never think about the need to protect their website from attacks other than the occasional DDoS. Sucuri is a web-based application that hopes to be a one-stop solution for DNS, Whois, SSL and other malware attacks.

The idea is that Sucuri is somewhat like a malware scanner for your website. However, it also provides real-time monitoring of changes to your DNS, Whois and SSL settings. Considering the number of sites that we see which get DNS hijacked or otherwise taken over, this is becoming an important tool to have in your arsenal.

What happens when Sucuri finds a problem? First off, you’ll be alerted via email and Twitter. Then, the Sucuri software will go to work to fix the problem, no matter what it is. Sucuri offers scheduled checks, site monitoring and even a free (although limited) scanner.

Want the full deal? For $90 per year, Sucuri will monitor your single domain every 6 hours. You can get unlimited scanning and 3 complete fixes. Own more domains? Sucuri has plans that cover anywhere from 10 to 50. Oh, and if you’re not in the mood to do a subscription, Sucuri can do a one-shot scane and clean for $70. While the pricing might seem a touch high if you’ve never had a problem, you’ll quickly see the value the first time you’re attacked.

To us, Sucuri seems less like a malware scanner and more along the lines of Soluto for your website. Finding and fixing the little things that can cause big problems puts Sucuri as a service into a class of its own.



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The mind-boggling world of IPv6, and why it matters to the future of the Internet [TNW UK]

Posted: 20 Nov 2010 04:45 AM PST

This month has seen the launch of a new industry group, 6UK which has been set-up to promote the use of the new Internet Protocol (IP) version 6 in the UK.

What’s that? Although it’s all a bit geeky, moving to IPv6 is a problem that will soon enough affect everyone as the remaining Internet addresses are running out.

How IP works, and why it matters

The Internet does try to make life easy as people only have to remember names like www.google.com, but that’s because there’s a system known as DNS which translates the names to IP address. So, www.google.com is really 173.194.37.104  and the underlying things that make the Internet work all work on the numeric form and use IP addresses, that also means everything connected to the Internet needs an IP address.

IPv4, the current protocol making the Internet work which has been in use since the 1970s, uses 32 bits. This means that there are a total of around 4.3 billion IPv4 addresses. That doesn’t even cover the number of people on the Earth (about 6.8 billion) or the number of mobile phones (around 5 billion). It’s estimated that there are around 184.5m IPv4 addresses left. That might seem like a lot, but remember that everything that connects to the Internet (including your PC, your set-top-box, media streamer, iPad etc) needs an IP address.

Admittedly, not everyone on the planet is connected to the Internet, nor is every phone Internet enabled, but more and more “devices are and the number of addresses left is rapidly running out. Estimates are that the central body for allocating addresses (IANA) is expected to run out of allocation blocks somewhere between around March 2011 and then the local registries such as RIPE/APNIC/etc later in the year or early 2012.

IPv6 is the future

The newly launched 6UK is trying to help companies to see the benefit of migrating to IPv6 and therefore promote interest which may spur ISPs and network operators to act and implement IPv6 in their networks and offer IPv6 to their customers. At the event they had a slew of Internet celebrities, including Vint Cerf who now works for Google but was one of the architects of the current Internet.

IPv5 never materialised, but IPv6 has been around for at least 10 years and rather than a 32 bit address it uses 128 bits which gives about 340 trillion trillion trillion addresses - that’s a BIG number (or as they’d say in the Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, “That’s really mind bogglingly BIG”). With IPv6, there are enough addresses for people, stars, planets and more.

The good thing is that most modern operating systems and most of the equipment that powers the Internet all support IPv6, but it’s a heck of an effort to move everything across and keep everything running.

Japan managed it a while back, but elsewhere IPv6 migration has mostly been treated as an academic exercise and not been widely deployed. The UK isn’t leading the pack in adopting IPv6 either and is way down the list of countries that have some sort v6 infrastructure.

What happens if we don’t switch over?

It’s not all doom and gloom, even if IPv4 does run out of new addresses the Internet wont stop working. It just means ISPs will have to be very judicious when allocation addresses and it’s likely people will start charging for them, slowing the growth of the Internet.

What can be done now is ISPs and Internet backbone providers can move their core networks to IPv6 and then use clever translation techniques between IPv6 in the core and IPv4 to their customers – hopefully bigger companies, universities etc will directly implement IPv6 and they can give back their IPv4 address. As the core moves across then more and more equipment vendors will also support v6 and so consumer routers and devices will also get support and then everyone can really move across.

The good news is, you don’t need to do anything. The switch will be made at ISP level and above, but if it doesn’t happen, the future growth of the Internet could be severely stunted.Image source



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