Pilot: 'Evolution' from boolab on Vimeo.
Wednesday 22 December 2010
Monday 20 December 2010
Tuesday 7 December 2010
Tuesday 23 November 2010
Tuesday 16 November 2010
Facebook's email service is about capturing the next generation of web users
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/8136764/Facebooks-email-service-is-about-capturing-the-next-generation-of-web-users.html
Wednesday 10 November 2010
Great campaign - moustaches do make a difference!
http://theinspirationroom.com/daily/2010/moustaches-make-a-difference/
Tuesday 9 November 2010
Wednesday 3 November 2010
Friday 29 October 2010
Tablecloth turns spilt wine into art!
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3202480/Tablecloth-turns-spilt-wine-into-art.html
Tube gets first wi-fi connection at Charing Cross (BBC news)
The move to get mobile phones working on the tube moved a step closer as BT announced wi-fi trials at Charing Cross underground station.
The six month trial will bring wi-fi connectivity to the ticket hall and both the Bakerloo and Northern line platforms.
It will be free for BT broadband customers and for mobile users with free wi-fi minutes.
Mayor of London Boris Johnson wants to see widespread mobile coverage.
The Charing Cross trial begins on 1 November.
London wi-fi
Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor of London's Transport advisor welcomed it.
"An ever growing commuter populous has been clamouring to be able to check their e-mails and browse the net whilst on the go.
This is an important step towards seeing how this could be achieved and is part of the Mayor's ambition to examine the way in which we can use technology to adapt the city's transport system to meet the need of those using it," he said.
Boris Johnson has pledged to make London a huge wi-fi hotspot in time for the 2012 Olympics.
More than half of London's councils have signed up for the scheme - known as Project Wi-fi.
Mr Johnson wants to see lamp posts and bus stops wi-fi enabled.
The City of London already has 95% wi-fi coverage.
The six month trial will bring wi-fi connectivity to the ticket hall and both the Bakerloo and Northern line platforms.
It will be free for BT broadband customers and for mobile users with free wi-fi minutes.
Mayor of London Boris Johnson wants to see widespread mobile coverage.
The Charing Cross trial begins on 1 November.
London wi-fi
Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor of London's Transport advisor welcomed it.
"An ever growing commuter populous has been clamouring to be able to check their e-mails and browse the net whilst on the go.
This is an important step towards seeing how this could be achieved and is part of the Mayor's ambition to examine the way in which we can use technology to adapt the city's transport system to meet the need of those using it," he said.
Boris Johnson has pledged to make London a huge wi-fi hotspot in time for the 2012 Olympics.
More than half of London's councils have signed up for the scheme - known as Project Wi-fi.
Mr Johnson wants to see lamp posts and bus stops wi-fi enabled.
The City of London already has 95% wi-fi coverage.
Wednesday 6 October 2010
Ruby Pseudo Wants a Word: It's Nice to be Nice
Ruby Pseudo Wants a Word: It's Nice to be Nice: "As Winter approaches and the days get colder and darker, we [the majority] get more depressed. It happens. It's the consensus. It rains, but..."
Friday 1 October 2010
Wednesday 22 September 2010
Friday 3 September 2010
Thursday 2 September 2010
Wednesday 4 August 2010
Monday 2 August 2010
Minority Report-style advertising billboards to target consumers
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/7920057/Minority-Report-style-advertising-billboards-to-target-consumers.html
Thursday 29 July 2010
HMV's new hmvdigital service invigorates music downloads market
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/jul/27/hmvdigital-music-downloads-market
Wednesday 28 July 2010
Friday 23 July 2010
Tuesday 6 July 2010
Monday 5 July 2010
Monday 21 June 2010
Facebook looks to boost advertising profile
Facebook’s founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg will take to the stage at Cannes in a bid to connect with advertisers wary of the internet
Facebook’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, will make a rare on-stage appearance before the world’s advertising community this week as the social network strives to generate revenues that match its huge reach. Mr Zuckerberg, who is usually more at home among software developers than ad men, will receive the “media person of the year” award at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival on Wednesday, after being interviewed in front of its audience of agency bosses and marketing chiefs.
This year’s Cannes Lions, historically an opportunity for ad creatives’ backslapping, will see more representatives than ever from the companies that pay ad agencies’ fees.
Chief marketers from Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Kraft and Coca-Cola, some of the world’s largest advertisers, will all present seminars at the event, in a sign of the shifting balance of power in ad land.
But agencies and their clients alike are desperate to better understand the world of social media, where brands can be built and broken by consumers beyond the control of traditional marketing.
In turn, Mr Zuckerberg’s attendance signals how determined Facebook is to woo the big consumer brands that have historically been wary of advertising online.
According to Experian Hitwise, Facebook displaced Google as America’s most popular website this year, with traffic to social networks also overtaking search engines in the UK.
With about 500m users, estimates of Facebook’s revenues range between $500m and $800m for 2009, with sales of about $1bn expected this year.
Ian Maude, analyst at Enders, says Facebook is “firing on all cylinders”, but adds: “They’ve really got to make [advertising] work. The fact that Zuckerberg is going to one of the main advertising events shows they are taking that very seriously.”
Just two years after beginning to monetise its audience in earnest, Facebook’s revenue per user is already half the level of that achieved by portals such as MSN and Yahoo, Mr Maude says. But relative to the many hours most users spend on Facebook each month, its income is “way behind” that of those more established sites.
Richard Pinder, chief operating officer of Publicis Worldwide, says Mr Zuckerberg should keep his pitch to Cannes attendees simple.
“Most of the people making the big decisions [in ad spending] are not on Facebook,” he says. “They fear Facebook. Zuckerberg should explain what it is and why it works, and not make them feel bad about it.”
David Jones, global chief executive of Euro RSCG, says recent controversy over users’ privacy did little to dent clients’ interest in Facebook, but warns: “If they keep making these missteps, it’s going to be way harder. Their biggest challenge is how they monetise the unbelievable success they’ve had.”
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2010. You may share using our article tools. Please don't cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web.
Facebook’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, will make a rare on-stage appearance before the world’s advertising community this week as the social network strives to generate revenues that match its huge reach. Mr Zuckerberg, who is usually more at home among software developers than ad men, will receive the “media person of the year” award at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival on Wednesday, after being interviewed in front of its audience of agency bosses and marketing chiefs.
This year’s Cannes Lions, historically an opportunity for ad creatives’ backslapping, will see more representatives than ever from the companies that pay ad agencies’ fees.
Chief marketers from Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Kraft and Coca-Cola, some of the world’s largest advertisers, will all present seminars at the event, in a sign of the shifting balance of power in ad land.
But agencies and their clients alike are desperate to better understand the world of social media, where brands can be built and broken by consumers beyond the control of traditional marketing.
In turn, Mr Zuckerberg’s attendance signals how determined Facebook is to woo the big consumer brands that have historically been wary of advertising online.
According to Experian Hitwise, Facebook displaced Google as America’s most popular website this year, with traffic to social networks also overtaking search engines in the UK.
With about 500m users, estimates of Facebook’s revenues range between $500m and $800m for 2009, with sales of about $1bn expected this year.
Ian Maude, analyst at Enders, says Facebook is “firing on all cylinders”, but adds: “They’ve really got to make [advertising] work. The fact that Zuckerberg is going to one of the main advertising events shows they are taking that very seriously.”
Just two years after beginning to monetise its audience in earnest, Facebook’s revenue per user is already half the level of that achieved by portals such as MSN and Yahoo, Mr Maude says. But relative to the many hours most users spend on Facebook each month, its income is “way behind” that of those more established sites.
Richard Pinder, chief operating officer of Publicis Worldwide, says Mr Zuckerberg should keep his pitch to Cannes attendees simple.
“Most of the people making the big decisions [in ad spending] are not on Facebook,” he says. “They fear Facebook. Zuckerberg should explain what it is and why it works, and not make them feel bad about it.”
David Jones, global chief executive of Euro RSCG, says recent controversy over users’ privacy did little to dent clients’ interest in Facebook, but warns: “If they keep making these missteps, it’s going to be way harder. Their biggest challenge is how they monetise the unbelievable success they’ve had.”
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2010. You may share using our article tools. Please don't cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web.
Monday 14 June 2010
Thursday 10 June 2010
Thursday 3 June 2010
Tuesday 1 June 2010
Bank note nanotechnology based on butterfly wings could beat forgers
Banknotes could become as beautiful as butterfly wings one day using technology borrowed from nature.
British scientists have found a way to mimic the iridescent colours of tropical butterflies, created by light bouncing off microscopic wing structures.
The research could be used to make banknotes and credit cards that are visually striking and harder to forge.
“These artificial structures could be used to encrypt information in optical signatures on banknotes to protect them against forgery,” said Mathias Kolle, a PhD student at the University of Cambridge. “In future we could see structures based on butterflies’ wings shining from a £10 note or even our passports.”
The Cambridge team studied the Indonesian peacock, or swallowtail, butterfly — Papilio blumei — whose vivid green-and-blue wings have an intricate surface pattern.
They made identical copies of the structures using nanotechnology.
Recreating the colours of beetles, butterflies and moths has previously proved elusive because of the technical challenge of precisely shaping materials on such a small scale.
“We have unlocked one of nature’s secrets and combined this knowledge with state-of-the-art nanofabrication to mimic the intricate optical designs found in nature,” Mr Kolle said.
“Although nature is better at self-assembly than we are, we have the advantage that we can use a wider variety of artificial, custom-made materials to optimise our optical structures.”
The research is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.
The Indonesian peacock may use the security potential of its wing structure to encrypt itself, the scientists believe.
“The shiny green patches on this tropical butterfly’s wing scales are a stunning example of nature’s ingenuity in optical design,” Mr Kolle said.
“Seen with the right optical equipment these patches appear bright blue but with the naked eye they appear green.
“This could explain why the butterfly has evolved this way of producing colour. If its eyes see fellow butterflies as bright blue, while predators only see green patches in a green tropical environment, then it can hide from predators at the same time as remaining visible to members of its own species.”
Wednesday 26 May 2010
Monday 24 May 2010
Monday 17 May 2010
Top 10 facts you didn't know about YouTube
196,000,000
The number of times Lady Gaga's Bad Romance video has been played, making it YouTube's top video of all time. ‘Charlie bit my finger’, a video of two young brothers, comes a close second with over 185 million views.
45,000,000
The number of 'hits' YouTube's front page receives every day.
1,000,000
In September 2005, Brazilian footballer Ronaldinho’s ‘Touch of Gold’ Nike advert became the first YouTube video to receive a million views.
2007
In December 2007 the Queen launched The Royal Channel, which features her annual Christmas Day message and shows recent and historical footage of the Royal family. In early 2009 Barack Obama and the Pope launched their own channels.
1,700
The number of years that it would take to watch every video on YouTube.
100
The number of years of video that is scanned by YouTube's Content ID technology every day. Content ID is YouTube’s copyright fingerprinting system which allows rights holders to block or make money from unauthorised use of their material. It is free of charge and being used by 1,000 content partners globally.
70
The percentage of YouTube traffic that comes from outside the US.
24
The number of hours of video that are uploaded to YouTube every minute of the day. This is up 20 per cent from May 2009, when it was getting 20 hours of video uploaded per minute.
23
The number of countries for which YouTube has a localised service. YouTube has been translated into 24 languages.
15
The average number of minutes a YouTube users spends on the site every day. Chad Hurley, YouTube’s chief executive and co-founder, told The Telegraph last month that he wants the site to be watched in the same way as television, up from 15 minutes per day to an average of five hours.
The number of times Lady Gaga's Bad Romance video has been played, making it YouTube's top video of all time. ‘Charlie bit my finger’, a video of two young brothers, comes a close second with over 185 million views.
45,000,000
The number of 'hits' YouTube's front page receives every day.
1,000,000
In September 2005, Brazilian footballer Ronaldinho’s ‘Touch of Gold’ Nike advert became the first YouTube video to receive a million views.
2007
In December 2007 the Queen launched The Royal Channel, which features her annual Christmas Day message and shows recent and historical footage of the Royal family. In early 2009 Barack Obama and the Pope launched their own channels.
1,700
The number of years that it would take to watch every video on YouTube.
100
The number of years of video that is scanned by YouTube's Content ID technology every day. Content ID is YouTube’s copyright fingerprinting system which allows rights holders to block or make money from unauthorised use of their material. It is free of charge and being used by 1,000 content partners globally.
70
The percentage of YouTube traffic that comes from outside the US.
24
The number of hours of video that are uploaded to YouTube every minute of the day. This is up 20 per cent from May 2009, when it was getting 20 hours of video uploaded per minute.
23
The number of countries for which YouTube has a localised service. YouTube has been translated into 24 languages.
15
The average number of minutes a YouTube users spends on the site every day. Chad Hurley, YouTube’s chief executive and co-founder, told The Telegraph last month that he wants the site to be watched in the same way as television, up from 15 minutes per day to an average of five hours.
Thursday 13 May 2010
Tuesday 11 May 2010
McDonald's and Facebook Teaming Up
TechNewsWorld reports that McDonald's is one of the early partners in Facebook's location-based feature that's in development.
What's a "location-based feature"? Facebook is essentially mirroring popular social-network platforms such as Foursquare and Gowalla, which allow you to share your current location via Geo-tagging (a GPS-like function). The idea behind Foursquare is rather simple: when you're out and about, you can "check in" at each location you go to, letting your social networks know where you are and what you're doing there. But you don't just walk into a spot and automatically update yourself-- one has to physically run the Foursquare program to "check in."
Facebook is hoping to catch this recent wave of "I'm right here, right now" through their status updates -- and McDonald's would use your location to create an advertisement for a McRib (or whatever), in an attempt to divert your body into the nearest Golden Arches location.
As TechNewsWorld points out, the McDonald's Facebook page is already incorporating a "get local" aspect, where you enter your zip code for personalized specials based on where you live. It still seems to be in a beta version though -- when we entered our New York City zip code, we were told that the features aren't available just yet.
Still, aside from providing an on-the-go ability to lure in customers, McDonald's also has a chance to connect with consumers depending on their patronage. One of Foursquare's defining features is a reward system for those who frequently visit the same establishments over and over. So if you consistently update your Facebook status in the same McDonald's, they could hypothetically start rewarding your patronage with special deals that other customers wouldn't necessarily be privy to.
Saving money and free apple pies is always a good thing but the downside to all of this is that McDonald's (and others that follow suit) will be collecting valuable marketing demographic based upon your Facebook profile -- Ronald and company potentially have access to their customer's like never before.
Facebook fans and those avoiding fast food, fear not -- you'll be able to opt out of the location-based feature.
Read more: http://www.slashfood.com/2010/05/10/mcdonalds-and-facebook-teaming-up/#ixzz0ncklLimd
What's a "location-based feature"? Facebook is essentially mirroring popular social-network platforms such as Foursquare and Gowalla, which allow you to share your current location via Geo-tagging (a GPS-like function). The idea behind Foursquare is rather simple: when you're out and about, you can "check in" at each location you go to, letting your social networks know where you are and what you're doing there. But you don't just walk into a spot and automatically update yourself-- one has to physically run the Foursquare program to "check in."
Facebook is hoping to catch this recent wave of "I'm right here, right now" through their status updates -- and McDonald's would use your location to create an advertisement for a McRib (or whatever), in an attempt to divert your body into the nearest Golden Arches location.
As TechNewsWorld points out, the McDonald's Facebook page is already incorporating a "get local" aspect, where you enter your zip code for personalized specials based on where you live. It still seems to be in a beta version though -- when we entered our New York City zip code, we were told that the features aren't available just yet.
Still, aside from providing an on-the-go ability to lure in customers, McDonald's also has a chance to connect with consumers depending on their patronage. One of Foursquare's defining features is a reward system for those who frequently visit the same establishments over and over. So if you consistently update your Facebook status in the same McDonald's, they could hypothetically start rewarding your patronage with special deals that other customers wouldn't necessarily be privy to.
Saving money and free apple pies is always a good thing but the downside to all of this is that McDonald's (and others that follow suit) will be collecting valuable marketing demographic based upon your Facebook profile -- Ronald and company potentially have access to their customer's like never before.
Facebook fans and those avoiding fast food, fear not -- you'll be able to opt out of the location-based feature.
Read more: http://www.slashfood.com/2010/05/10/mcdonalds-and-facebook-teaming-up/#ixzz0ncklLimd
Monday 19 April 2010
Wednesday 24 March 2010
Wednesday 10 March 2010
Wednesday 24 February 2010
Tuesday 23 February 2010
Monday 1 February 2010
Thursday 28 January 2010
Honda Swindon ad wins top award Anna-winning 'Bacon' press advertisement features a rasher of bacon and a poem praising workers and wildlife
A press campaign by Honda celebrating the return to work of staff as its Swindon factory re-opened has won the award for the best national press ad of 2009.
The ad, called "Bacon", features a rasher of bacon and a poem in praise of workers and worklife continuing at the embattled production plant.
Honda's ad, one of a number featuring everyday images associated with factory life such as an iron and a cup of tea, won the prestigious winner of winners grand prix at the Awards for National Newspaper Advertising last night.
To save the factory Honda was forced to close it for four months last year because of the recession-induced slump in car sales.
The temporary closure saw 1,300 workers take voluntary redundancy and the remaining 3,400 take a 3% pay cut for 10 months. Remaining staff were pleased to return to work at the plant, prompting Honda's ad agency Wieden & Kennedy to develop a campaign celebrating the reopening.
Darren Bailes, the creative director at agency VCCP, who nominated the ad for the award, described it as "news in the form of advertising".
The recession produced another winner last night with Nationwide taking home the award for best use of "topicality" for a press ad playing on the relative safety of the building society for customers compared with the state of high street banks.
"Solid. Stable. Dependable. Exciting, aren't we?" ran copy on the ad by agency Leagas Delaney.
The best art direction award went to an ad for ITV positioning the FA Cup as a competition where all teams have a chance to win the tournament. The ad, by Bartle Bogle Hegarty, features a milkman skipping around the tackle of a uniformed player. "Where all men are equal," runs the strapline.
"The ad highlights the romance of the FA Cup where even a team made up of milkmen and postmen can cause an upset," said Tim Delaney, judge and group chairman of Leagas Delaney.
A recruitment ad for the Children's Workforce Development Council called "Plasticine" bagged the best copywriting award. The ad was created by Publicis.
In the category of best online advertising on a national newspaper website the NHS's Smoke Free campaign was named winner. The ad was created by Agency Republic.
The award for best creative media partnership went to Lurpak for its "Saturday is Breakfast Day" campaign. The campaign was developed by Wieden & Kennedy and media agency Carat.
Saturday 9 January 2010
HOTTEST ART OF THE YEAR
http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article6978135.ece
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