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Tuesday, 21 June 2011
Twitter is the new Facebook
(CNN) -- Following a whirlwind week and a half of product announcements, you can throw Twitter's attempts to differentiate itself as an "information network" out the window -- there is little doubt the company is now entrenched in serious competition with Facebook for the much grander social networking crown.
After announcing that it would finally be bringing native photo and video sharing to its service on June 1, Twitter's biggest product win to-date came on Tuesday, when Apple announced that iOS 5 would include deep Twitter integration.
That means that the 200 million plus people with iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices (or at least the tens of millions able to upgrade to iOS 5) will have the ability to do things like post photos, videos and links to Twitter with a single tap.
Application developers will also be able to add this type of functionality to their iOS applications, further accelerating the impact of the partnership.
In summarizing the significance of that, my Mashable colleague Jennifer Van Grove wrote, "[Twitter] will soon be the social layer of iOS, enabling users to turn individual actions such as snapping a photo or reading an article into instant social activities."
For Facebook, who has long positioned itself as the social graph of the Web (and in turn mobile), that's a big blow.
Sure, application developers can still build Facebook integration into their iOS apps, but by making Twitter the default in apps like Camera, Safari and YouTube, Apple has dictated where millions of pieces of content will invariably flow.
At the same time, by adding native photo and video sharing and moving people over to its own Web and client experiences, Twitter is positioned like never before to capitalize on that content and keep people on its site, and in turn challenge Facebook where it dominates like no other: Engagement.
At the start of this year, Hitwise reported that the average Facebook user spends an impressive four hours and 35 minutes per month on the site, more than any other property on the Web, and more than double the average Twitter user's monthly two hours and 12 minutes.
But now that Twitter is turning itself into a social network, that could soon change. Instead of creating and consuming photos and videos on third-party sites -- something that's already hugely popular on Twitter and is Facebook's No. 1 time sink -- users will be doing it on Twitter.com.
Add to that the fact that Twitter now owns the most popular third-party client (TweetDeck) and has been systematically eating away at the ecosystem it enabled, and the numbers quickly add up.
The icing on the cake, of course, is the iOS tie-up, which for now gives Twitter priority seating over Facebook with tens of millions of highly engaged mobile users.
Granted, Facebook could also do a deal with Apple before iOS 5 rolls out this fall, but it's unclear what kind of relationship those companies have following last year's contentious split over Ping.
For the moment, Twitter's iOS win is a symbolic victory over Facebook that signals the company's growing ambitions as a social network.
In the long-run, however, it could very much be the partnership that helps move Twitter from Facebook's distant cousin to its arch rival.
After announcing that it would finally be bringing native photo and video sharing to its service on June 1, Twitter's biggest product win to-date came on Tuesday, when Apple announced that iOS 5 would include deep Twitter integration.
That means that the 200 million plus people with iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices (or at least the tens of millions able to upgrade to iOS 5) will have the ability to do things like post photos, videos and links to Twitter with a single tap.
Application developers will also be able to add this type of functionality to their iOS applications, further accelerating the impact of the partnership.
In summarizing the significance of that, my Mashable colleague Jennifer Van Grove wrote, "[Twitter] will soon be the social layer of iOS, enabling users to turn individual actions such as snapping a photo or reading an article into instant social activities."
For Facebook, who has long positioned itself as the social graph of the Web (and in turn mobile), that's a big blow.
Sure, application developers can still build Facebook integration into their iOS apps, but by making Twitter the default in apps like Camera, Safari and YouTube, Apple has dictated where millions of pieces of content will invariably flow.
At the same time, by adding native photo and video sharing and moving people over to its own Web and client experiences, Twitter is positioned like never before to capitalize on that content and keep people on its site, and in turn challenge Facebook where it dominates like no other: Engagement.
At the start of this year, Hitwise reported that the average Facebook user spends an impressive four hours and 35 minutes per month on the site, more than any other property on the Web, and more than double the average Twitter user's monthly two hours and 12 minutes.
But now that Twitter is turning itself into a social network, that could soon change. Instead of creating and consuming photos and videos on third-party sites -- something that's already hugely popular on Twitter and is Facebook's No. 1 time sink -- users will be doing it on Twitter.com.
Add to that the fact that Twitter now owns the most popular third-party client (TweetDeck) and has been systematically eating away at the ecosystem it enabled, and the numbers quickly add up.
The icing on the cake, of course, is the iOS tie-up, which for now gives Twitter priority seating over Facebook with tens of millions of highly engaged mobile users.
Granted, Facebook could also do a deal with Apple before iOS 5 rolls out this fall, but it's unclear what kind of relationship those companies have following last year's contentious split over Ping.
For the moment, Twitter's iOS win is a symbolic victory over Facebook that signals the company's growing ambitions as a social network.
In the long-run, however, it could very much be the partnership that helps move Twitter from Facebook's distant cousin to its arch rival.
Monday, 20 June 2011
(techradar) Details of Facebook's music dashboard are revealed
Facebook - close to facing the music
Facebook's upcoming music service looks likely to launch with the help of a number of big name streaming partners, it has been revealed.
This is according to GigaOm, which rounded up everything it knows about the music platform; including rumours that Spotify won't be the only partnership in Facebook's musical endeavour.
Although just what partnerships will be involved is not yet known, it is thought that a potential release date for the service will be at Facebook's f8 conference in August.
What is known is how the music service will work. Facebook is looking to integrate music into the site's normal homepage and use a tab for music, which will be situated under the other tabs currently on the left-hand side of the page, like Places, Pages and Games.
Click on this tab and a music dashboard will appear. To play the tracks you want to, you just use the playback button at the bottom of the Facebook page.
Get connected
It seems like the whole service relies on Facebook Connect – so you have to Connect with whichever music service you want for it to work through the Facebook page.
On the music dashboard, there will be recommended songs, other songs your friends are listening to. You will also be able to see what all your other friends are listening too at any particular time – and presumably mock them if a bit of Blue ends up on their digital stereo.
Facebook has remained tight-lipped over its music service, so expect more rumour and speculation to come in dribs and drabs.
The idea to mix music with social is an intriguing one – as we have seen with Ping, it doesn't always work. But unlike Apple who tried to bring the social to the music, Facebook is bringing music to the social, something which is a much easier prospect.
Read more: http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/details-of-facebook-s-music-dashboard-are-revealed-968262#ixzz1PoBVkpyz
Facebook's upcoming music service looks likely to launch with the help of a number of big name streaming partners, it has been revealed.
This is according to GigaOm, which rounded up everything it knows about the music platform; including rumours that Spotify won't be the only partnership in Facebook's musical endeavour.
Although just what partnerships will be involved is not yet known, it is thought that a potential release date for the service will be at Facebook's f8 conference in August.
What is known is how the music service will work. Facebook is looking to integrate music into the site's normal homepage and use a tab for music, which will be situated under the other tabs currently on the left-hand side of the page, like Places, Pages and Games.
Click on this tab and a music dashboard will appear. To play the tracks you want to, you just use the playback button at the bottom of the Facebook page.
Get connected
It seems like the whole service relies on Facebook Connect – so you have to Connect with whichever music service you want for it to work through the Facebook page.
On the music dashboard, there will be recommended songs, other songs your friends are listening to. You will also be able to see what all your other friends are listening too at any particular time – and presumably mock them if a bit of Blue ends up on their digital stereo.
Facebook has remained tight-lipped over its music service, so expect more rumour and speculation to come in dribs and drabs.
The idea to mix music with social is an intriguing one – as we have seen with Ping, it doesn't always work. But unlike Apple who tried to bring the social to the music, Facebook is bringing music to the social, something which is a much easier prospect.
Read more: http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/details-of-facebook-s-music-dashboard-are-revealed-968262#ixzz1PoBVkpyz
Thursday, 16 June 2011
Apple 'Planning To Ban iPhone Videos At Gigs' (SKY TECH)
Apple 'Planning To Ban iPhone Videos At Gigs'
1:39pm UK, Thursday June 16, 2011
Recording your favourite band at a concert or festival could soon be a thing of the past, if Apple gets its way.
People using mobile phones at a concert
Phones are often used to video performances
Patent plans filed by the corporation in late 2009 have come to light, showing plans to automatically shut off iPhone cameras if they are held aloft.
The Californian company's plans reveal that infra-red sensors would detect when a person is filming and would disable the camera.
In the patent, Apple describes "using the camera to capture a second image that includes an infrared signal with encoded data".
The phone would then determine whether that encoded data contains a disable command, and, if necessary, "disable a record function", or introduce a compulsory watermark.
In the same patent application, Apple outlines other ways the infra-red emitter could operate to the benefit of users.
A man looks at an iPhone at the Apple store in New York May 23, 2011. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS)
The use of infra-red might not be limited to concerts
One example cited is in museums.
A transmitter could be located next to a museum exhibit and its infra-red signal could include data that represents information about it, appearing automatically on the iPhone.
Apple also make it clear that there could be a future in retail environment for the software.
James Holland, editor of technology site electricpig.co.uk, said implementing such an idea would be a 'long way off'.
"Apple's plan is ingenious, and I can see why some music venues and artists would like it, especially if it stops bootlegging, but on the other hand many clubs and bars survive on word of mouth. To stop people taking photos to post to Twitter and Facebook would be lunacy.
"A patent is just an expression of an idea, and no guarantee Apple's actually building it into the iPhone.
"Implementing that sort of protection for a venue would be a large undertaking.
"Enough infra-red light, carrying a coded signal to switch off cameras, visible from every angle around the stage - that's not something you'd take lightly, and since Apple would surely charge for the equipment a venue would need, it's a long way off yet."
1:39pm UK, Thursday June 16, 2011
Recording your favourite band at a concert or festival could soon be a thing of the past, if Apple gets its way.
People using mobile phones at a concert
Phones are often used to video performances
Patent plans filed by the corporation in late 2009 have come to light, showing plans to automatically shut off iPhone cameras if they are held aloft.
The Californian company's plans reveal that infra-red sensors would detect when a person is filming and would disable the camera.
In the patent, Apple describes "using the camera to capture a second image that includes an infrared signal with encoded data".
The phone would then determine whether that encoded data contains a disable command, and, if necessary, "disable a record function", or introduce a compulsory watermark.
In the same patent application, Apple outlines other ways the infra-red emitter could operate to the benefit of users.
A man looks at an iPhone at the Apple store in New York May 23, 2011. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS)
The use of infra-red might not be limited to concerts
One example cited is in museums.
A transmitter could be located next to a museum exhibit and its infra-red signal could include data that represents information about it, appearing automatically on the iPhone.
Apple also make it clear that there could be a future in retail environment for the software.
James Holland, editor of technology site electricpig.co.uk, said implementing such an idea would be a 'long way off'.
"Apple's plan is ingenious, and I can see why some music venues and artists would like it, especially if it stops bootlegging, but on the other hand many clubs and bars survive on word of mouth. To stop people taking photos to post to Twitter and Facebook would be lunacy.
"A patent is just an expression of an idea, and no guarantee Apple's actually building it into the iPhone.
"Implementing that sort of protection for a venue would be a large undertaking.
"Enough infra-red light, carrying a coded signal to switch off cameras, visible from every angle around the stage - that's not something you'd take lightly, and since Apple would surely charge for the equipment a venue would need, it's a long way off yet."
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