Zuckerberg's Facebook fan site hacked

A Facebook fan page dedicated to the site's creator, Mark Zuckerberg, was hacked Tuesday morning. The hack was relatively benign, only updating a single fake status update as the young billionaire, but was another embarrassing security lapse for a company often criticized for being too open with user data.

A status update from Zuckerberg on the fan page read: "Let the hacking begin: If facebook needs money, instead of going to the banks, why doesn’t Facebook let its users invest in Facebook in a social way? Why not transform Facebook into a ‘social business’ the way Nobel Price (six) winner Muhammad Yunus described it? http://bit.ly/fs6rT3 What do you think? #hackercup2011"

While the post was only up for a matter of minutes, over 1,800 people "Liked" the status update and a debate about its merits over 400 comments-long began beneath it. More than 2.8 million people are members of the fan page.

Facebook removed the entire fan page for a few hours after the fake update was posted, but the page was live again later in the day. The latest update currently posted to the page is from Dec. 15, 2010.

The "Hackercup2011" hash-tag in the post is a reference to Facebook's annual programming competition, but doesn't seem to bear much relevance to the update.

Meanwhile, Internet security experts are speculating about how the hack might have been perpetrated. Everything from Firesheep — a free Firefox Internet browser extension that allows users to take control of other people's password-protected pages like Facebook when on an unsecured network — to Zuckerberg's own weak password choices are being blamed.

"It is difficult to know exactly why or how Zuckerberg’s fan page was hacked. He could have also had some malware on his computer which grabbed his username and password when he logged on and then hackers used the information to attack the page," Internet security expert Graham Cluly told the Telegraph newspaper in London. "I think this hack is really embarrassing for Facebook, because if Mark Zuckerberg can be hacked, other users are just as vulnerable."

As of Wednesday, Facebook had declined to comment on the hack, though a post on the company's blog on Wednesday identified numerous new efforts to boost security on the site.

Story source: http://www.torontosun.com

More than Half of Marketing Budgets to Increase

The majority of global marketing professionals expect their overall budget to increase, with about half of respondents projecting overall marketing expenditure to increase slightly and an additional 9% saying it will increase greatly (25% or more increase) during the next year, according to [pdf] a new survey from Alterian. With only 10% estimating a decrease, Alterian projects this indicates good opportunity for industry growth in 2011.

Agencies Most Optimistic

When looking at industry segment, marketers appear most conservative about spending, where agencies appear most op¬timistic. Agencies (14%) are more likely than marketers (10%) to say expected marketing expenditure will greatly increase (25% or more) during the next 12 months. Marketers are more likely than others (32%, compared to 21% of marketing service professionals and 18% of agencies) to say they plan to maintain overall marketing expenditure during the next 12 months.

3 in 4 Social/Digital Marketing Expenditures to Rise

Three-fourths of those surveyed estimate their social/digital marketing expenditure will increase during the next year, with one-fourth overall projecting it will increase greatly (25% or more). Alterian says the estimated growth above and beyond overall marketing expenditure projection is indicative that social/digital marketing will drive general marketing growth in the coming year.

MSPs Maintain Social/Digital Expenditures

MSPs are more likely than others to say they plan to maintain overall social/digital media expenditure during the next 12 months. They are less likely than others to say they plan to slightly increase (5-25%) social/digital media expenditure in the next year. Again, agencies maintain the most optimistic outlook and are more likely than others to say expected social/digital media expenditure will greatly increase (25% or more) in the next 12 months.

Few Company Websites Tailor Experience

When it comes to audience engagement on company websites, only a small number (11%) tailor each visitor’s experience. With one third using their site as a corporate brochure and more than half (55%) concentrating on offers and campaigns, the large majority do not focus on any kind of individualized company or brand experience based on each customer’s needs and/or information. When it comes to websites, this indicates a mass marketing strategy is still the norm, as opposed to personalization.

Agencies Least Likely to Use Site as Brochure

Moderately ahead of the pack, agencies are less likely than others to say a client website’s main focus is to serve as a corporate brochure. Alterian analysis indicates that perhaps due to the nature of their business, agencies tend to be more advanced along the engagement maturity model. As consumers begin to expect more from their brand experiences and interactions, other industry segments will be obliged to catch up.

Top Performers More Likely to Have Data Access

Results of the recent Aberdeen Group report “”Predictive Analytics – Driving Sales with Customer Insights” indicate that top performing marketing organizations are more likely to have access to different types of customer data. Dividing respondents into best-in-class (top 20% aggregate performance) and all others (including industry average with middle 50% industry performance and laggard with bottom 30% industry performance), the study shows that 77% of best-in-class organizations have access to all customer transactional data, compared to only 58% of other organizations.

In addition, 64% of best-in-class organizations have access to customer behavior data, compared to 53% of other organizations. Similar discrepancies exist in levels of access to internal unstructured data (55% compared to 39%) and external unstructured data (41% compared to 26%).

Aberdeen advises that access to customer data enables sales-enhancing activities such as modeling lifetime customer value, market segmentation, and prioritizing inbound sales leads.

About the Data:This survey of 1,462 global marketing professionals was conducted from October 9, 2010 to December 17, 2010, both online and offline.

Mobile Devices to Overtake PCs This Year

There will be a significant consumer and enterprise shift away from the desktop and laptop PC in favor of mobile devices like smartphones, tablets and netbooks in 2011, according to a new white paper from Deloitte. “Technology, Media & Telecommunications Predictions 2011″ forecasts that out of $815 million which will be spent globally on PC- and non-PC computing devices, $375 million (46%) will be spent on smartphones.

The second- and third-largest revenue drivers will still be traditional laptops ($200 million, 24.5%) and desktops ($150 million, 18%). However, the remaining $90 million will consist of tablets ($50 million, 6%) and netbooks ($40 million, 5%). This means a combined 57% of 2011 computing device sales will consist of non-PC devices.

Rumors of the PC’s Death are Exaggerated

Deloitte estimates the current worldwide PC install base at more than 1.5 billion units, and PC device sales are expected to increase 15% year-over-year in 2011. By the end of 2011, Deloitte projects mobile devices will represent about 25% of the global computing device install base.

No Standard non-PC OS Seen

By the end of 2011, Deloitte predicts that no operating system will take control of the fast-growing non-PC computing market, which includes smartphones and the new generation of tablets. Some operating systems will capture more than a 5% share, but no single player will have yet become the de facto standard, as seen in previous computing ecosystems.

Enterprises Drive Tablet Growth

In 2011, Deloitte predicts that enterprises will purchase more than 25% of all tablet computers sold worldwide, a figure that is likely to increase in 2012 and beyond. Although some commentators view tablets as consumer devices, more than 10 million of these devices will likely be purchased by enterprises in 2011. Consumer demand for tablets is expected to remain strong; however, enterprise demand is likely to grow even faster, although from a lower base.

‘C’ is for Cookie

Deloitte expects media criticism of online privacy to continue in 2011; however, legislative and regulatory changes that impact the way websites gather, share, and exploit user information will be minor. Cookies, which are the small files of personal information that websites create on a visitor’s computer, are very likely to remain core to the online user experience. While new online privacy legislation is expected to be modest, Deloitte predicts the online industry will likely become far more proactive when tackling privacy issues, expanding their efforts to influence legislation and increasing their level of self-regulation with the goal of avoiding new legislation altogether.

Mobile Email Rises

In one sign of rising mobile devices being used for functions once handled by PCs, during November 2010, the number of visitors to web-based email sites declined 6% compared to the previous year, while email engagement declined at an even greater rate, according to new comScore MobiLens data. However, during the same time period, the number of users accessing email via their mobile devices grew by 36%.

Marketers Have Limited Social Media Understanding

Seven in 10 marketing professionals either have very little to no understanding (31%) about relevant social media conversations around their brand or clients’ brands, or use a few ad-hoc tools (39%), according to [pdf] a new survey from Alterian. The remainder report regularly to management. Alterian analysis indicates the majority do look to improve their level of understanding about these conversations and redirect their social media monitoring strategy to improve awareness and engagement.

Agencies 2x Likely to Report to Management

Breaking marketing professionals down into three key categories, agencies (44%) are twice as likely as either marketers (27%) or marketing service professionals (MSPs, 26%) to say they report regularly to management on the social media conversations happening around client brands.

Forty percent of both marketers and MSPs are using a few ad hoc tools, compared to 35% of agencies. About one-third of MSPs (32%) and marketers (30%) say they have little understanding about social media conversations, compared to one-fifth (21%) of agencies. No agencies say they have no understanding, compared to 2% of MSPs and 3% of marketers.

Europe Leads Ad Hoc Tool Use

Respondents in other geographic regions (30%) are less likely than North American (39%) and European (42%) respondents to say they are using a few ad-hoc tools to follow social media conversations happening around their (or client) brands. Interestingly, European respondents are least likely to say they report regularly to management (26%, compared to 29% of the rest of the world and 31% of North America).

The rest of the world has the highest rate of saying they only have a little understanding of social media conversations (36%, compared to 29% of Europe and 28% of North America) and no understanding (5%, compared to 3% of Europe and 2% of North America).

Email Channel Most Personalized

When it comes to creating personalized customer experiences, email is at the front of the pack with 72% of respondents selecting this as a focus. Direct mail (58%), website (56%), and social media (53%) campaigns are all personalized by between 50-60%, indicating that approximately one-fourth do not customize the marketing experience for any one channel. However, only 9% admit to not personalizing any channel, which shows the vast majority focus on creating a customized experience for at least one.

The trend of a personalized customer experience is clearly important, but Alterian analysis indicates it seems that the majority need some help seeing the value in executing this strategy across multiple channels.

3 in 4 Social/Digital Marketing Expenditures to Rise

Three-fourths of those surveyed estimate their social/digital marketing expenditure will increase during the next year, with one-fourth overall projecting it will increase greatly (25% or more), according to other study results. Alterian says the estimated growth above and beyond overall marketing expenditure projection is indicative that social/digital marketing will drive general marketing growth in the coming year.

Vint Cerf 'jealous' of Australia's $36 billion broadband plan

 

• One of the internet's pioneers
• $36 billion is "stunning investment"
• Filter net at production end, not distribution

ONE of the internet's founding fathers says he's "jealous" of Australia's $36 billion broadband network.

Vint Cerf, who helped develop email and TCP/IP technology, told The Australian during a visit to Sydney yesterday he thought the NBN was a "stunning investment".

"I continue to feel a great deal of envy because in the US our broadband infrastructure is nothing like what Australia has planned," he said.

Now Google's chief web evangelist, Dr Cerf was, however, not so kind towards Prime Minister Julia Gillard's bid to censor the internet, saying it was not an "effective move".

The Federal Government wants to force every ISP to filter websites rated with a refused classification tag, in accordance with a secret government blacklist.

Dr Cerf's advice was to instead attack the source of a problem at the production end, instead of focusing on its distribution.

"This (policy) is an understandable desire to be protective of society, but technically I don't think it's a very effective move," Dr Cerf said.

"The argument that there's bad information out there and therefore we should somehow supress it - one counter argument is the antidote to bad information is more information ... I think (web 2.0 pioneer) Esther Dyson was the first person I heard that from.

"This doesn't mean however that we could not, as a society, agree that certain kinds of information are societally unacceptable."

Dr Cerf said there was a big difference between the production and distribution of content that might be unacceptable to the general public.

"Some people would like to attack problems of content at the wrong layer in the internet architecture," he said.

The question to ask was: "Who is putting that information out in the first place? That's the place to attack the problem."

Read more about Vint Cerf's thoughts on the internet in Australia at The Australian

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/technology/vint-cerf-jealous-of-australias-36-billion-broadband-plan/story-e6frfro0-1225992747397#ixzz1Bu3mOcdp

Internet running out of IP addresses

The internet is running out of addresses.

With everything from smartphones to internet-linked appliances and cars getting online, the group entrusted with organising the web is running out of the 'IP' numbers that identify destinations for digital traffic.

Google engineer Lorenzo Colitti says one solution is to switch to a standard called IPv6 which would allow trillions of internet addresses, the current IPv4 standard only provides about 4 billion.

He says the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN, has been calling for a change to IPv6 for years.

Google, Facebook and other major internet players will add IPv6 addresses to their systems in a one-day trial run on June 8 to let all parties involved check for trouble spots.

Internet Armageddon all my fault: Google chief

The "father of the internet" says the world is going to run out of internet addresses "within weeks" – and it will be all his fault.

Google's chief internet evangelist, Vint Cerf, who created the web protocol, IPv4, that connects computers globally, said he had no idea that his "experiment" in 1977 "wouldn't end".

"I thought it was an experiment and I thought that 4.3 billion [addresses] would be enough to do an experiment," he said in group interview with Fairfax journalists.

The protocol underpinning the net, known as IPv4, provides only about 4 billion IP addresses - not website domain names, but the unique sequence of numbers assigned to each computer, website or other internet-connected device.

The explosion in the number of people, devices and web services on the internet means there are only a few million left.

The allocation of those addresses is set to run out very shortly but the industry is moving towards a new version, called IPv6, which will offer trillions of addresses for every person on the planet.

"Who the hell knew how much address space we needed?" Cerf said.

"It doesn’t mean the network stops, it just means you can’t build it very well."

Google's leadership shake-up

Cerf said Google's surprise leadership shake-up was essential because the search giant was beginning to move too slowly.

Today the company announced that Google co-founder Larry Page would take over as chief executive from Eric Schmidt, who has become its executive chairman. Until this point Page and co-founder Sergey Brin ran the company with Schmidt as a "troika".

"'As we got larger it was harder for us to move as quickly as we would like so I think this is part of the whole practice of speeding up decision processes," he said.

"Quick rapid execution is absolutely essential, especially in a highly competitive world like this."

Recent ex-Googlers who left the company to join Facebook, including former Google Australia engineer Lars Rasmussen, have said Google has become too unwieldy as it has grown.

Schmidt gave similar comments in a blog post today, saying that, as Google had grown, managing the business had become "more complicated" and the trio had been "talking for a long time about how best to simplify our management structure and speed up decision making".

Cerf said Schmidt, 55, had been chief executive for 10 years - "a nice round number" - and Page, now 37, was ready to lead the company into the future.

"Larry and Sergey are 10 years older than they were when they thoughtfully hired Eric to be the CEO ... so everybody's growing up," Cerf said.

"He was the only guy that stood up to them - these were two young, smart, incredibly brilliant guys who literally had just dropped their PhDs to go start this company."

It has long been held that Schmidt was brought on at Google to counter the lack of business experience of Google's founders, and Schmidt alluded to this in a tweet today.

"Day-to-day adult supervision no longer need!" he wrote after the leadership change announcement.

Taking on Facebook

Cerf would not be drawn on whether Google was developing a social networking site to compete with Facebook, as has been rumoured. But he said "our interest is less in the social networking aspect as it is in the patterns of behaviour".

"We really don't care about you personally we care about the patterns that you make. If we can match the patterns that you make with the patterns that the advertisers are trying to get in front of you, you benefit as well as the advertisers," he said.

"This is quite independent of the sort of things that go on in Facebook, which is more about personal information and personal interactions."

Praising the NBN

Cerf heaped praise on the National Broadband Network, saying Australia was making a long-term investment that would "serve you incredibly well in ways that even I can't figure out".

"The idea of being able to export your talents without having to export your people ... this is a very attractive proposition," he said.

"I honestly envy the political will to make this kind of long-term investment."

Google as ISP?

But despite Google's work in building municipal Wi-Fi and experimental fibre broadband networks in the US, he said it was unlikely Google would ever become an ISP.

"The intent is that as we build these [networks] out we will then turn them over to some other parties to operate and to make openly accessible," he said.

"This is not our business model. Our purpose was to document what the costs and problems are ... we're not in the business of building physical infrastructure except for our internal operation."

Asked whether recent privacy breaches at Sydney University and Vodafone - both of which kept detailed customer records online - highlighted the pitfalls of moving toward hosting everything in the online "cloud", Cerf said the cloud was not at fault.

"Just because it's sitting in an enterprise server doesn't mean that you're any better protected than you would be in the cloud," he said.

"When you're in the cloud business you better be good at securing your systems otherwise you lose all your customers."

Story source: Asher Moses and Ben Grubb www.theage.com.au

Schmidt Out as Google CEO

Google just dropped a bombshell: Eric Schmidt is out as CEO (as announced in the company's earnings report. We'll be covering the company's earnings call, which is sure to have more on this.

He will step down from the role starting April 4, and co-founder Larry Page will take charge of Google's day-to-day operations as CEO. Co-founder Sergey Brin will devote his energy to strategic projects like working on new products.
Schmidt will assume the role of Executive Chairman, focusing externally on deals, partnerships, customers and broader business relationships, government outreach and technology thought leadership--all of which are increasingly important given Google's global reach. Internally, he will continue to act as an advisor to Larry and Sergey.

On the Official Google Blog, Schmidt writes:
When I joined Google in 2001 I never imagined—even in my wildest dreams—that we would get as far, as fast as we have today. Search has quite literally changed people’s lives—increasing the collective sum of the world’s knowledge and revolutionizing advertising in the process. And our emerging businesses—display, Android, YouTube and Chrome—are on fire. Of course, like any successful organization we’ve had our fair share of good luck, but the entire team—now over 24,000 Googlers globally—deserves most of the credit.
And as our results today show, the outlook is bright. But as Google has grown, managing the business has become more complicated. So Larry, Sergey and I have been talking for a long time about how best to simplify our management structure and speed up decision making—and over the holidays we decided now was the right moment to make some changes to the way we are structured.
For the last 10 years, we have all been equally involved in making decisions. This triumvirate approach has real benefits in terms of shared wisdom, and we will continue to discuss the big decisions among the three of us. But we have also agreed to clarify our individual roles so there’s clear responsibility and accountability at the top of the company.
Larry will now lead product development and technology strategy, his greatest strengths, and starting from April 4 he will take charge of our day-to-day operations as Google’s Chief Executive Officer. In this new role I know he will merge Google’s technology and business vision brilliantly. I am enormously proud of my last decade as CEO, and I am certain that the next 10 years under Larry will be even better! Larry, in my clear opinion, is ready to lead.
Sergey has decided to devote his time and energy to strategic projects, in particular working on new products. His title will be Co-Founder. He’s an innovator and entrepreneur to the core, and this role suits him perfectly.
As Executive Chairman, I will focus wherever I can add the greatest value: externally, on the deals, partnerships, customers and broader business relationships, government outreach and technology thought leadership that are increasingly important given Google’s global reach; and internally as an advisor to Larry and Sergey.
We are confident that this focus will serve Google and our users well in the future. Larry, Sergey and I have worked exceptionally closely together for over a decade—and we anticipate working together for a long time to come. As friends, co-workers and computer scientists we have a lot in common, most important of all a profound belief in the potential for technology to make the world a better place. We love Google—our people, our products and most of all the opportunity we have to improve the lives of millions of people around the world.

Earlier Schmidt wrote an interesting post at Harvard Business Review today indicating that Google's strategic initiatives for the year are all about mobile. He wrote:

First, we must focus on developing the under­lying fast networks (generally called LTE). These will be 8-to-10- mega­bit networks, roughly 10 times what we have today, which will usher in new and creative applications, mostly entertainment and social, for these phone platforms.

Second, we must attend to the development of mobile money. Phones, as we know, are used as banks in many poorer parts of the world—and modern technology means that their use as financial tools can go much further than that.

Third, we want to increase the availability of inexpensive smartphones in the poorest parts of the world. We envision literally a billion people getting inexpensive, browser-based touchscreen phones over the next few years. Can you imagine how this will change their awareness of local and global information and their notion of education? And that will be just the start.

Here's the full release including the financials (see the balance sheets here):

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – January 20, 2011 – Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) today announced financial results for the quarter and the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010.

"Q4 marked a terrific end to a stellar year," said Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google. "Our strong performance has been driven by a rapidly growing digital economy, continuous product innovation that benefits both users and advertisers, and by the extraordinary momentum of our newer businesses, such as display and mobile. These results give us the optimism and confidence to invest heavily in future growth -- investments that will benefit our users, Google and the wider web."

In addition, Google has also announced plans to streamline decision making and create clearer lines of responsibility and accountability at the top of the company.

• Starting from April 4, Larry Page, Google Co-Founder, will take charge of Google's day-to-day operations as Chief Executive Officer.
• Sergey Brin, Google Co-Founder, will devote his energy to strategic projects, in particular working on new products.
• Eric Schmidt will assume the role of Executive Chairman, focusing externally on deals, partnerships, customers and broader business relationships, government outreach and technology thought leadership--all of which are increasingly important given Google's global reach. Internally, he will continue to act as an advisor to Larry and Sergey.

Commenting on these changes, Eric said: "We've been talking about how best to simplify our management structure and speed up decision making for a long time. By clarifying our individual roles we'll create clearer responsibility and accountability at the top of the company. In my clear opinion, Larry is ready to lead and I'm excited about working with both him and Sergey for a long time to come."

Larry said: "Eric has clearly done an outstanding job leading Google for the last decade. The results speak for themselves. There is no other CEO in the world that could have kept such headstrong founders so deeply involved and still run the business so brilliantly. Eric is a tremendous leader and I have learned innumerable lessons from him. His advice and efforts will be invaluable to me as I start in this new role. Google still has such incredible opportunity--we are only at the beginning and I can't wait to get started."

Q4 Financial Summary

Google reported revenues of $8.44 billion for the quarter ended December 31, 2010, an increase of 26% compared to the fourth quarter of 2009. Google reports its revenues, consistent with GAAP, on a gross basis without deducting traffic acquisition costs (TAC). In the fourth quarter of 2010, TAC totaled $2.07 billion, or 25% of advertising revenues.

Google reports operating income, operating margin, net income, and earnings per share (EPS) on a GAAP and non-GAAP basis. The non-GAAP measures, as well as free cash flow, an alternative non-GAAP measure of liquidity, are described below and are reconciled to the corresponding GAAP measures in the accompanying financial tables.

• GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2010 was $2.98 billion, or 35% of revenues. This compares to GAAP operating income of $2.48 billion, or 37% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2009. Non-GAAP operating income in the fourth quarter of 2010 was $3.38 billion, or 40% of revenues. This compares to non-GAAP operating income of $2.76 billion, or 41% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2009.
• GAAP net income in the fourth quarter of 2010 was $2.54 billion, compared to $1.97 billion in the fourth quarter of 2009. Non-GAAP net income in the fourth quarter of 2010 was $2.85 billion, compared to $2.19 billion in the fourth quarter of 2009.
• GAAP EPS in the fourth quarter of 2010 was $7.81 on 326 million diluted shares outstanding, compared to $6.13 in the fourth quarter of 2009 on 322 million diluted shares outstanding. Non-GAAP EPS in the fourth quarter of 2010 was $8.75, compared to $6.79 in the fourth quarter of 2009.
• Non-GAAP operating income and non-GAAP operating margin exclude the expenses related to stock-based compensation (SBC). Non-GAAP net income and non-GAAP EPS exclude the expenses related to SBC and the related tax benefits. In the fourth quarter of 2010, the charge related to SBC was $396 million, compared to $276 million in the fourth quarter of 2009. The tax benefit related to SBC was $89 million in the fourth quarter of 2010 and $62 million in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Q4 Financial Highlights

Revenues – Google reported revenues of $8.44 billion in the fourth quarter of 2010, representing a 26% increase over fourth quarter 2009 revenues of $6.67 billion. Google reports its revenues, consistent with GAAP, on a gross basis without deducting TAC.

Google Sites Revenues - Google-owned sites generated revenues of $5.67 billion, or 67% of total revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2010. This represents a 28% increase over fourth quarter 2009 revenues of $4.42 billion.

Google Network Revenues - Google's partner sites generated revenues, through AdSense programs, of $2.50 billion, or 30% of total revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2010. This represents a 22% increase from fourth quarter 2009 network revenues of $2.04 billion.

International Revenues - Revenues from outside of the United States totaled $4.38 billion, representing 52% of total revenues in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to 52% in the third quarter of 2010 and 53% in the fourth quarter of 2009. Excluding gains related to our foreign exchange risk management program, had foreign exchange rates remained constant from the third quarter of 2010 through the fourth quarter of 2010, our revenues in the fourth quarter of 2010 would have been $201 million lower. Excluding gains related to our foreign exchange risk management program, had foreign exchange rates remained constant from the fourth quarter of 2009 through the fourth quarter of 2010, our revenues in the fourth quarter of 2010 would have been $132 million higher. 

• Revenues from the United Kingdom totaled $878 million, representing 10% of revenues in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to 12% in the fourth quarter of 2009.
• In the fourth quarter of 2010, we recognized a benefit of $25 million to revenues through our foreign exchange risk management program, compared to $8 million in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Paid Clicks – Aggregate paid clicks, which include clicks related to ads served on Google sites and the sites of our AdSense partners, increased approximately 18% over the fourth quarter of 2009 and increased approximately 11% over the third quarter of 2010.

Cost-Per-Click – Average cost-per-click, which includes clicks related to ads served on Google sites and the sites of our AdSense partners, increased approximately 5% over the fourth quarter of 2009 and increased approximately 4% over the third quarter of 2010.

TAC - Traffic Acquisition Costs, the portion of revenues shared with Google's partners, increased to $2.07 billion in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to TAC of $1.72 billion in the fourth quarter of 2009. TAC as a percentage of advertising revenues was 25% in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to 27% in the fourth quarter of 2009.

The majority of TAC is related to amounts ultimately paid to our AdSense partners, which totaled $1.74 billion in the fourth quarter of 2010. TAC also includes amounts ultimately paid to certain distribution partners and others who direct traffic to our website, which totaled $333 million in the fourth quarter of 2010.

Other Cost of Revenues - Other cost of revenues, which is comprised primarily of data center operational expenses, amortization of intangible assets, content acquisition costs as well as credit card processing charges, increased to $877 million, or 10% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to $688 million, or 10% of revenues, in the fourth quarter of 2009.

Operating Expenses - Operating expenses, other than cost of revenues, were $2.51 billion in the fourth quarter of 2010, or 30% of revenues, compared to $1.78 billion in the fourth quarter of 2009, or 27% of revenues.

Cash – As of December 31, 2010, cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $35.0 billion.

Headcount – On a worldwide basis, Google employed 24,400 full-time employees as of December 31, 2010, up from 23,331 full-time employees as of September 30, 2010.

To read more on this story click here

Story by Chris Crum www.webpronews.com

Are Impersonal Messages Hurting Your Online Marketing?

Marketers who fail to segment and target their messages may be at risk

Marketing trends—especially in digital—are motivating brands to be more interactive and engaged with their customers. Rather than pushing out interruptive messages that targets will ignore or find annoying, many are working to create marketing experiences that appeal to customers as individuals. And they know if they neglect to do so their brand could be at risk.

In an Alterian survey of marketing professionals, nearly three-quarters said they or their clients tried to create personalized customer experiences through email, the top channel for doing so. Direct mail, website and social media fell far behind but nearly even with each other in the 53% to 59% range.

Notably, less than 9% of respondents said they did not use any of the cited channels for a personalized customer experience. While marketers may not use every channel at their disposal to do so, they recognize the importance of personalization.

Asked specifically about email, a plurality of respondents said they segment their audience and send different messages based on the segmentation. The second-most-popular response, however, was blast emails with basic personalization—which is often not enough to appeal to recipients. Only about half as many said they delivered truly personalized email marketing messages based on individual preferences.

Based on their usage of digital channels for personalized and interactive marketing, most respondents felt their brands could be at risk because of a lack of customer engagement. A majority of that group claimed to be taking action based on problems they had already recognized, but some still did not know where to start. Less than a quarter reported they were fully engaged.

Microsoft Core Search Query Volume Rebounds

Microsoft, which saw its total core search engine query volume drop 4% month-over-month in November 2010, rebounded strongly in December 2010 with a 9% gain, according to new comScore qSearch data. Microsoft’s core search queries grew from about 2.01 billion to 2.18 billion, placing it third overall.

Overall, Americans conducted about 18.2 billion total core search queries in December 2010, up 3% from about 17.7 billion the previous month. Top core search query provider Google experienced 3% month-over-month growth, from about 11.4 billion to 11.7 billion queries, while number two Yahoo stayed essentially flat with 3.43 billion queries. Number four Ask Network (-1%) and number five AOL LLC (-5%) both had fewer total core search queries in December 2010 than November 2010.

Microsoft Grows Total Core Search Share 6%

The top five rankings for total core search queries and total core search share were identical in December 2010, but Microsoft was the only search provider that saw its share grow, rising 6% from 11.3% to 12%. Google stayed flat with 64.3% share, while Yahoo lost 2.6%, dropping from 19.3% to 18.5%.

Microsoft Also Gains Explicit Core Search Queries

Microsoft had the highest percentage growth of explicit core search queries among any of the top five explicit core search providers, rising 4% from 1.88 billion to 1.97 billion. Google retained its number one spot with 3% growth, rising from 10.62 billion to 10.95 billion. Yahoo’s explicit core search query total remained essentially flat at 2.63 billion.

Overall, Americans conducted about 16.44 billion explicit core search queries in December 2010, up 3% from about 16.04 billion the prior month.

Google Grows Explicit Core Search Share

Explicit core search market share results did not change dramatically between November and December 2010. The top five ranking stayed the same, with Google having the largest growth, increasing its share 0.6% from 66.2% to 66.6%. Microsoft also incrementally grew its share from 11.8% to 12%, while Yahoo lost about 2%, dropping from 16.4% to 16% but remaining in second place.

Google, Bing Power 95% of Explicit Searches

comScore is also providing data on the share of algorithmic explicit searches that are powered by Google and Bing, and branded as such to the consumer. Google’s “powered by” share is composed of searches conducted at Google entities, as well as branded searches at AOL and Ask. Bing’s “powered by” share is composed of searches conducted at Microsoft entities as well as branded Yahoo entities.

In December, 69.4% of searches carried organic search results from Google, while 24.4% of searches were powered by Bing organic results.

Compete: Bing-powered Queries Grow 4% in Nov.

The query volume for Bing-powered search engines (which includes Microsoft Bing as well as Yahoo) grew 4.3% from October to November 2010, increasing from about 4.38 million to 4.57 million, according to recent data from Compete. As opposed to October 2010, when dramatic 16.2% growth in month-over-month Microsoft query volume (almost 1.9 million to 2.2 million) drove most of the Bing-powered query volume increase, Yahoo was the catalyst in November.

Social Media Strategists Look Hard at ROI this Year

Marketers must begin to seriously evaluate their programs and focus on internal education

Marketers and social strategists hope to develop better ways to determine return on investment for social media outreach in 2011.

ROI has always been a big issue, but as more companies plan to increase social media budgets in 2011, it has become a must-have. The Altimeter Group surveyed 140 social media strategists at multinational companies about their plans for 2011. When it came to social media programs, 82% of respondents reported they would be investing in brand monitoring in 2011, while 77% cited staff budgets and 78% training budgets.

Overall, every area of social media strategy will see more participation in 2011 than 2010. As consumers and influencers continue to flock to social media—and social media programs and marketing demand more resources and budgets—demonstrating ROI for those who determine said budgets is key.

And social strategists know it. Creating ROI measurements tops the list of internal social strategy objectives for 2011, with 48.3% of respondents highlighting that goal. Internal education and setting up an organizational model for social strategy are also top priorities.

Additionally, getting buy-in from stakeholders and increasing budget and headcount are also popular objectives, with 32.2% and 24.6% of respondents reporting such goals for 2011, respectively. Determining ways to measure ROI and demonstrating how social media can provide direct value and results will help reach several of these additional objectives.

Looking externally, social strategists also have several popular objectives for 2011, including website integration, developing ongoing dialogue with customers, and listening and learning about customers. As internal strategies for social media outreach become more developed, companies will have the resources and plans in place, and these external goals will also fall into place.

Facebook Drives US Social Network Ad Spending Past $3 Billion in 2011

Social network advertising to account for 10.8% of online market

US marketers will spend $3.08 billion to advertise on social networking sites this year, eMarketer predicts. Spending will be up 55% over the $1.99 billion advertisers devoted to social networks in 2010 and will rise by a further 27.7% next year to reach nearly $4 billion.

This year’s dramatic growth in spending will bring social media ad dollars to 10.8% of the total spent online in the US. Worldwide, where social network ad spending will rise 71.6% to $5.97 billion, that proportion will be somewhat lower, at 8.7%.

The 2011 forecast for US spending is $1 billion higher than eMarketer’s last estimate of US social network ad spending, made in August 2010. The primary driver of the change in projected spending is greater ad spending on Facebook, by far the biggest player in the space.

”2010 was the year that Facebook firmly established itself as a major force not only in social network advertising but all of online advertising,” said eMarketer principal analyst Debra Aho Williamson, author of the upcoming report “Worldwide Social Network Ad Spending: 2011 Outlook.” “In 2011, its global presence is something multinational advertisers can’t ignore.”

eMarketer predicts ad spending on the world’s top social network will reach $2.19 billion in the US this year and just over $4 billion worldwide—both more than double last year’s figure.

“If Facebook can continue to increase its global user base and boost the amount of revenue it generates per user, it could even surpass these forecasts,” Williamson said. “Facebook must continue to innovate its user experience and its ad platform.”

Parents of Young Children Prime for Social Marketing

Life stage a critical factor

Age plays a major role in how likely a person is to be a social media user, but important demographic characteristics go far beyond simply how old a potential user is. Consumers’ life stages influence their presence on social media as well as their concerns as shoppers and buyers, which is what makes them of interest to marketers on social sites to begin with.

Preliminary results from a Media Audit study of social media users highlight the differences in usage and interest among adults in different phases of their lives.

While the youngest respondents without children were most active on Facebook, Twitter or Myspace, the presence of kids made adults overall much more likely to be on social sites. More than 60% of adults with kids of any age living at home used Facebook, Twitter or Myspace, vs. 51.3% of all adults, and the parents of young children were especially avid users. Among respondents with children under 6 years old, 67.1% had used one of the sites in the past month, while 58% of parents of teenagers reported the same.

These young parents also represent a group more likely than average to make many big-ticket, family-oriented purchases, such as cars, video cameras, PCs, large appliances or a new home. And parents looking to make these purchases for their families are more likely than average to be found on Facebook and similar sites, especially parents of kids under age 6.

Having kids brings out many needs and desires for new parents, from an interest in sharing photos and videos of the little ones on sites like Facebook to the issue of buying a new Flip camera to take those videos. For marketers looking to target new families interested in buying such items, social is an especially good place to look.

Younger See More SocNet Benefit

While a majority of US adults are using social media (65%), and a similar number say they have received a positive benefit from its use, adoption is not consistent across the board, according to results of a new Harris Poll. Rather, younger Americans claim positive benefits as a result of their social media use much more often than do older adults.

For example, poll results indicate a majority of Echo Boomers (those 18-33) say they have received a positive suggestion for something to try from their activity on social media (59%), compared to 44% of Gen Xers (those 34-45), one-third of Baby Boomers (those 46-64) (34%), and just one in five Matures (those 65 and older) (19%).

Similarly, one-quarter of Echo Boomers have found a job opportunity through social media (24%), while only one in 10 Baby Boomers say the same (11%).

2 in 5 SocNet Users Take Offense

Despite all of the benefits people are receiving from their social media use, similar numbers say they have suffered negative consequences from this activity, such as the two in five social media users who say they have been offended by posts, comments or pictures they’ve seen (43%) and the quarter who say that unintended persons have viewed links or comments they’ve posted (26%).

Fewer social media users say they have suffered the more serious consequences of getting in trouble with school or work, or losing a potential job opportunity because of comments or pictures they posted online (7% for both).

Despite younger Americans receiving benefits from social media use more often than older adults, younger Americans also suffer the consequences of social media use at a greater rate. This may, in part, be due to younger Americans greater use of social media overall, which could expose them to both the benefits and consequences of what’s currently available.

Privacy Setting Benefits Widely Seen

Social media networks are increasingly offering privacy settings to combat the negative experiences some users have already experienced, and to prevent others from taking place. When social media users were asked if potentially negative experiences can be prevented through the use of these privacy settings, more than three-quarters agreed that they can be (78%) with three in 10 strongly agreeing (28%).

In addition, 71% of social media users are confident that their own privacy settings operate in the way they intend, but only one in five say they are very confident (18%). While a quarter of social media users are not confident in their privacy settings (25%), it seems that almost all social media users are at least trying to use these options for security assurance, as only 5% of social media users say they do not use any privacy settings at all.

Similarly to the other areas of social media explored, younger adults who use social media feel more strongly both that privacy settings can prevent negative consequences (82% of Echo Boomers say this, compared to 70% of Matures) and that they are confident in their own privacy settings (78% of Echo Boomers, compared to 61% of Baby Boomers).

Older SocNet Usage Dramatically Rises

While overall social networking use by online American adults has grown from 35% in 2008 to 61% in 2010, the increase is even more dramatic among older adults, according to new data from the Pew Research Center. In particular, the rate of online social networking approximately quadrupled among Older Boomers (9% to 43%) and the GI Generation (4% to 16%).

Despite the dramatic uptick in social networking among older adults, members of the Millennial generation still enjoy a healthy lead among all age groups in social network use, with 83% of online adults from 18-33 engaging in social networking. This increased about 24% from 67% in 2008.

Gen X has the second-highest social networking rate, 62%, up 73% from two years ago. The rate among Younger Boomers increased by a factor of 2.5, rising from 20% to 50%, while it tripled among the Silent Generation, going from 11% to 34%.

Google Improves Share of Search Engine Ad Spend

Google increased its share of search engine advertising spend from Q3 2010 to Q4 2010 by 3%, rising from 80.2% to 82.6%, according to a new white paper from performance marketing firm SearchIgnite. The Q4 2010 US Search Market Report indicates the Yahoo and Bing search engines, tracked as a combined unit by SearchIgnite, only accounted for 17.4% of fourth quarter search spend, down slightly from the previous quarter.

YoY Search Spend Climbs Each Quarter of 2010

In contrast to the year-over-year (YoY) declines experienced in 2009, punctuated by a nearly 10% drop in Q3, YoY search spend based on a same-client basis increased by 18.5% in 2010, setting up a positive start to 2011.

Growth of about 35% in Q4 2010 (see more detail below) brought up the overall average, as increases in the first three quarters ranged from roughly 5% to 15% (based on MarketingCharts estimates of SearchIgnite graphical data).

Q4 Ends Year on High Note

In 2010, Q4 saw particularly strong growth with 35.3% YoY increase in search spend (Q4 2009 YoY search spend was flat). All other underlying metrics in Q4 2010 show positive results, with 20.6% YoY increase in clicks, 2.3% YoY increase in impressions and 17.9% YoY increase in clickthrough rate (CTR).

In particular, search momentum built up throughout the quarter with accelerated spend (YOY Oct +25.4%, Nov +35.3%, Dec +44.8%).

Holiday Season Spurs Higher Retail Spending

The retail vertical reported even greater increases in search spend (36.6% YoY), average order value (AOV, 31.3% YoY) and conversion rates (22.5% YoY) for Q4 2010 based on same retail spend. Consumers are spending more per order compared to the Q4 2009 holiday season, which SearchIgnite says signifies an improvement in consumer sentiment.

Notably, AOV was up 48.3% YoY in December 2010. This is a significant improvement from 2009, when Q4 AOV declined by 13% YoY.

Microsoft Grows Total Core Search Share 6%

The top five rankings for total core search queries and total core search share were identical in December 2010, according to new data from comScore. However, Microsoft was the only search provider that saw its share grow, rising 6% from 11.3% to 12%. Google stayed flat with 64.3% share, while Yahoo lost 2.6%, dropping from 19.3% to 18.5%.

Protect Your Online Security When Using Wi-Fi Hotspots

Whether you’re heading home for the holidays or simply escaping to a warmer clime for a little sunshine, you’ll probably want to stay connected while you’re traveling from point A to point B. Public wi-fi access is everywhere—in cafes and even in the friendly skies.

Here are some tips to protect your online security when you use public wi-fi.

A public hotspot is a wireless network set up for shared Internet access. The hotspot host buys a wireless access point, connects that device to the Internet, and broadcasts its signal within a public place. Anyone with a wireless card within range of the host’s access point can access its network and use the Internet.

Most proprietors make it quick and easy for customers to use their hotspots. But by minimizing login requirements and avoiding encryption compatibility issues, they disable much of the security built into the wireless device.

This is a notable tradeoff. Without encryption, your plain text data passes unprotected through the air as radio signals. Those signals can be intercepted by anyone with a receiver and some basic, widely available tools.

When the hotspot you’re on doesn’t use encryption, someone who intercepts your data can read whatever you’ve sent--whether it’s a private email or a user name and password combination.

Beware of Cybercriminals

Although it’s unlikely that nosy hotspot neighbors will put your privacy at risk, you should be on the alert for the most serious hotspot danger: a cybercriminal.

These technically savvy hackers have the tools, skills, and patience to work around the limited protection measures some hotspot hosts take.

For example, some cybercriminals have learned to use social engineering methods to con hotspot users into divulging sensitive information. By wi-phishing, a cybercriminal can pre-empt a hotspot’s wireless signal with one of his own, spoof the legitimate network name, and replace the sign-up page with a look-alike. You’ll end up supplying your information to this evil twin, not the hotspot provider.

Once you’re on the spoofed hotspot, you may be redirected to other fraudulent or virus-laden Web sites, or even be tricked into setting up a “new account” and providing credit card numbers or other identifying information.

Tips to Keep Yourself Safe at Public Hotspots

With these security dangers lurking, protecting yourself at public hotspots becomes your own responsibility. Here are some things you can do to keep yourself safe:

• Be aware of your surroundings. Make sure no one is peering over your shoulder when you log into your operating system, email, IM, or other accounts.
• Never leave your laptop or handheld device unattended—not even for a moment.
• Don’t allow your wireless card to automatically join the nearest network. Instead, manually select the hotspot when you connect.
• Make sure you’re on a legitimate hotspot by checking with the host to confirm the network name and connection process.
• Turn off file sharing when you’re using a hotspot, and try to minimize the amount of sensitive, personal data you store on your laptops and mobile devices. You can usually turn off file sharing from your operating system’s network settings menu.
• Don’t do your online banking or trading at a public hotspot. Save it for a more safe and controlled environment.
• Limit email and IM to casual communications. If you use IM or email at hotspots, never send anything that should not be made public. Consider setting up an extra Web-based email account to use at hotspots.
• Don’t surf Web sites you wouldn’t want a stranger to know you’re viewing.
• Turn off your wireless card when you’re not using it.
• When you’re on a public hotspot, you have no idea what infections other connected computers might have, or whether there may be a hacker prowling the network. Norton Antivirus or Norton Internet Security--both from Symantec--protect you from viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and dangerous intruders.
• Make wise computing decisions. Always avoid using hotspots for important communications or transactions.

Conclusion

Public wi-fi hotspots can be both friend and foe during your travels, unless you take precautions. It’s up to you to protect your computer, your data, and your privacy with good tools and cautious computing habits. We hope the tips we offered in this article help you to do just that.

Story source: Norton article library

Floods go global in online coverage

Queensland's floods are making news in some, but not all, parts of the world.

America's CNN network is reporting online a 'scene of utter devastation' with aerial footage of the flooded Lockyer Valley and people being airlifted from their rooftop refuges.

Britain's BBC is leading its online news service with a story about the Brisbane flooding, reporting that 20,000 homes may be hit.

It is running eyewitness accounts from Toowoomba alongside footage of cars being washed away and smashed against bridges by gushing waters.

The networks' TV bulletins are also covering the story.

Ipswich mayor Paul Pisasale told Sky News on Wednesday that many calls from international media were among hundreds of mobile phone inquiries he has been attempting to answer.

The New York Times is leading online with stories from the Arizona shooting and its own weather emergency, a giant snowstorm approaching, but has a story about the floodwaters threatening Brisbane in its Asia-Pacific section.

The Times newspaper in Britain is leading online with the Brisbane floods, showing images of people wading through waters with their possessions.

However, the floods are not news everywhere, with no reports on the home pages of Canada's Ontario Times and Paris' Le Monde online sites.

Closer to home, the Jakarta Post online has news of the floods in its world section, while The China Daily has a story about the NSW floods trapping 1,700 people but has not updated its online coverage to include the latest on the Queensland floods.

Further east, the Times of India online is leading its world coverage with the floods, depicting thousands fleeing Brisbane 'to escape a tsunami-like tidal wave' and reporting 30 people dead, despite an official toll of 10.

Story source: www.bigpond.com

The Demographics of Social Shopping Sites

Many consumers unaware of the category

Retailers are eager to jump on social trends, be it a simple Facebook or Twitter presence, customer ratings and reviews, or more sophisticated experiences that bring the social graph to retail sites. Social shopping sites like Groupon and LivingSocial form another piece of the social commerce space, and despite the hype many shoppers have not yet jumped on the bandwagon.

According to JPMorgan’s “Nothing But Net 2011” report, two in five online buyers surveyed had not heard of social shopping sites, and another 28% knew what they were but had never used them.

Age and income were major determining factors for participation in social shopping sites, the survey found. Web users ages 18 to 34 were 10 times as likely as those 55 and older to have purchased from such a site, and twice as likely to have done so as 35- to 54-year-old respondents.

Income’s effect was less dramatic but still clear: 23% of web users with an income of at least $100,000 annually bought from a social shopping site, vs. 10% of those making less than $50,000. Income also determined whether internet users had heard of social shopping at all; the least well off respondents were significantly less likely to be familiar with the sites even though they did not use them.

Why Location Is About More than the Check-In

The marketing opportunity in location-based services

The check-in got a lot of press in 2010 although it was still an activity limited to early adopters, with the Pew Internet & American Life project reporting in November that just 4% of US internet users participated in location-sharing services.

Like social networking on mobile devices, location-based services are still in their infancy. eMarketer projects the number of mobile social network users will more than double between 2010 and 2015, and adoption of location-based services will rise with it.

“Savvy marketers know there is more to geolocation than just the check-in and immediate proximity to the consumer,” said Noah Elkin, eMarketer principal analyst and author of the new report, “Beyond the Check-In: Best Practices for Location-Based Marketing.” “Location services enable marketers to deliver a compelling offer when consumers are near the point of decision, yet they also help marketers understand the context of their target audience—their intent and state of mind.”

Explosive growth in usage of location-based services in 2010 suggests that checking in is ready to move into the mainstream. According to SNL Kagan, the number of location-based services users nearly tripled in 2010, reaching 33.2 million (including users of family tracking and navigation services provided by wireless carriers). Having Facebook in the mix will only help to familiarize people with the check-in and push it toward mass adoption.

“Checking in to take advantage of an offer will be the direct-response end point of a larger user location-based campaign that starts with branding and awareness-building,” said Elkin. “Proximity data will help guide marketer messaging at each stage of the purchase funnel, starting with building awareness about the location of a store or product, and becoming progressively more specific to include promotions or offers as a consumer gets physically closer. Success will come from the combined power of reach, relevancy and the ability to drive offer redemption.”

Stay Safe Using Location-based Services

Walk by The North Face store in several major cities in the near future, and your mobile phone may suddenly buzz with a new text message -- a coupon from the store.

That’s because the company is planning to push offers over your mobile phone whenever you're near one of their stores. The service is available to anyone who signs up for ShopAlerts.

It will be easy enough to sign up -- at the store, on The North Face Web site, or via text message, mobile Web sites and even Facebook. ShopAlerts also plans to carry coupons and offers from American Eagle Outfitters, REI and others.

It sounds like a very useful new service, but the technology holds dangerous pitfalls, say the experts.

Services that track your physical location through your mobile phone or other mobile device send information about where you are to various sources. Some sources are legitimate, such as retailers, restaurants, and other businesses. But some sources that get access to the information about where you are may intend to do you harm.

For example, if you use a service that publicises where you are, such as FourSquare, a tool you can use on your phone to “check in” at a restaurant, cinema or other location, you are also indicating that you are not at home. A Web site called PleaseRobMe has popped up to point out that this very public information can alert thieves and the like that your home might not be currently occupied. As the site states, “The danger is publicly telling people where you are. This is because it leaves one place you're definitely not ... home.”

Most of us -- 95.7 million, according to research group Gartner -- don’t think twice about allowing these services to know where we are. We get in our cars and turn on the GPS map to help us get to our destination; it couldn’t function without pinpointing our exact location. We are thankful when 999 is automatically clued in to where we are in times of trouble, like car accidents. And when a service on our phone lets us connect with others by broadcasting our location at that moment, it seems just as harmless. That’s just what thieves are counting on.

“Knowing where a target is is crucial,” says Richard Weinblatt, director of the Institute for Public Safety at Central Ohio Technical College, who runs the TheCopDoc.com. He advises that you give out information selectively and that you consider whether you trust the service with your information before you sign up.

In addition to the risk of having your home burgled, you are also putting some crucial data in jeopardy when you give the OK to services that ask for your location to help you find what you are seeking. There are two primary ways these services find you: Your cellular service approximates your location based on your distance to nearby cell towers, or the GPS software in your phone relays your spot to satellites. Your wireless provider then transmits your location to the service company, which in some cases stores that information on its servers.

The good news is, location-based services find out where you are only when you let them. Whether you’re actively posting your location or allowing a service to use GPS and cellular service technologies to find out where you are, it’s because you’ve made the choice of letting them know. What this means is that it’s already within your control to manage what information gets out there.

Here’s what you can do to protect yourself, your belongings and your personal information while still participating in these useful location-based services:

• Don’t link your home address to your account. This is the easiest way for thieves to find out where you are not. Most services either won’t make this information public or will allow you to choose what information you share. Pay special attention to ensure control of this information.
• Don’t use your full name. Robbers can easily look up your name if there is a record of your home address available anywhere online or even in the local phone book. To limit broadcast of where you are, hide your full name.
• Be selective about which services you allow to pinpoint your location. Many applications will automatically ask you if they can find out where you are so they can offer you content and services most useful to you. Allow them access only where you feel most comfortable.
• Be selective about who sees your location. In social networking applications involving your location, set limits on who is able to see that information -- everyone, all your contacts, select contacts or no one.
• Read the privacy policy. Above all, arm yourself with information on how each service works. Each privacy policy should indicate how the service uses any of the data it requests from you.

So-called location-based services can be as innocuous as the GPS-enabled maps you use in your car or on your mobile device, and they can even help save lives. But be vigilant about your use of them, and you will enjoy only their benefits.

Story by Laura Rich, Laura is a freelance writer based in Boulder, Colorado.

Trends in Consumers’ Time Spent with Media

There are only so many hours per day that consumers can spend watching TV, reading newspapers and surfing the internet. But as marketers may suspect, the time devoted to media is undergoing some not-so-subtle changes.

eMarketer recently conducted a meta-analysis of data from dozens of research firms using a variety of methodologies. The result is a series of estimates of how much time consumers spend with all major media, regardless of multitasking or simultaneous usage, from 2008 to 2010. The estimates apply to average media usage of the general public, not solely to the users of each medium.

The average time spent with all major media combined increased from about 10.6 hours in 2008 to 11 hours in 2010, according to eMarketer. TV and video (not including online video) captured the lion’s share of all media time, about 40% each year. The internet’s share of media time increased over the same period, from 21.5% to 23.5%, as did mobile’s share, from 5% to 7.5%. The share of time spent with magazines and newspapers fluctuated between 10% and 7.5%, while radio and all other media—video games, movies in theaters and outdoor media—declined.

To account for multitasking, an hour spent watching TV and surfing the internet was counted as 1 hour for TV plus 1 hour for internet use. Also, use of each medium is discrete: Time spent listening to the radio does not include streaming stations from the internet, for example.

In 2010, consumers spent an average of 4 hours and 24 minutes each day watching TV and video, while being online for 2 hours and 35 minutes. Mobile devices received an average of 50 minutes’ worth of attention every day—the same amount of time allotted to newspapers and magazines combined. eMarketer expects that time spent with mobile devices will continue to increase, most likely taking time away from print media.

In fact, time spent with mobile devices is rising faster than all other media. In 2010, consumers spent 28.2% more time with mobile devices, which covers all mobile activities on all mobile devices. That gain was even higher than the 21.9% growth in 2009. Time spent on the internet showed moderate but steady gains, at more than 6% each year since 2008. All other major media posted declines: TV and video lost 1.1% in 2010, while magazines and newspapers lost 9.1% each. However, as consumers continue to consume more media every day, those losses are not immediately significant.

Marketers need to pay attention to these trends as they project budgets and develop marketing strategies for the coming year—and years. Mobile devices will claim more and more media time per day, while TV, print and radio will slowly lose ground to digital media. Those trends have been most apparent with print media in recent years, but are now beginning to show up in TV and radio usage as well.

How Tweens, Teens and Parents Decide What to Buy

Teens more influential with parents and more reliant on web for information

Teens and tweens have very different approaches when deciding what electronics they want. For tweens, most just “know what they like,” according to the “TeenFluence Survey” conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of ConsumerSearch.com. Ads were the second most common factor affecting their decision-making. Just 10% cited online reviews and 17% checked out the product website.

Teens, meanwhile, were much more price-sensitive, likely starting to realize that money may not in fact grow on trees. More importantly though, the internet was a much bigger factor in forming preferences. Two in five teens said online reviews influenced their computer product preferences, and 37% cited product websites.

A study by Mintel similarly found that the influence of online information becomes more important as kids get older. "At the upper end of the age range, kids 9-11 are more likely to turn to more diverse resources for information, including online ads and social networking sites, while the younger kids, aged 6-8, have a stronger reliance on parents," said Fiona O'Donnell, senior analyst at Mintel, in a statement.

Parents surveyed by Harris gave responses very similar to teens. Online reviews and product websites were the biggest factors behind price when deciding on electronics to purchase. And while the children themselves were not the biggest influencer overall, 18% of parents with teens said they asked for their opinion. Parents of tweens were not likely to do the same.

Electronics are an area where teens are particularly influential. A May 2010 survey from Ketchum found teens were more likely to recommend electronics to their friends than any other product category besides entertainment. The Harris study also separately asked parents and their children who they thought knew more about different kinds of electronic devices. Unsurprisingly, it depended on who was asked. Teens said they knew more about each kind of product than their parents, while parents said they knew more than their kids. There were two exceptions, though: Parents admitted that their kids knew more about video games, and parents of teens reported that their kids knew more about smartphones. Neither tweens nor their parents said that tweens were particularly knowledgeable about anything other than video games.

The takeaway is that overall, the internet plays an outsized role for helping teens and parents decide what electronics to buy. Teens are also particularly influential with smartphone purchases. Tweens are easy to market to, but they have little influence.

Top Viral Videos - Dec. 2010

Sports, especially of the extreme variety, were prominently featured in four of the 10 most-shared online videos tracked by Unruly Media during December 2010. These included the top two videos: “Gymkhana Three, Part 2″ from DC Shoes and “Way Back Home” from extreme biker Danny MacAskill. Physical feats have always transferred well to the screen, and this month, online video viewers were impressed enough with several videos featuring athletes and athletic accomplishments to make them among the 10 most-shared.

Leading the way was an installment in the “Gymkhana” series of stunt driving videos from professional rally racer Ken Block promoting DC Shoes. This video rose from number three in mid-November to the top spot this month.

Another installment in the Gymkhana series was shared enough to rank ninth on the list for December, proving the global popularity and visual excitement of motorsports.

The second-most-shared video featured extreme biker Danny MacAskill performing a variety of eye-popping feats as he travels across the rugged terrain and crowded cities of Scotland. In addition, the more mainstream sport of basketball is represented by the number five video from Nike Basketball, featuring legendary NBA icon Michael Jordan telling modern-day NBA star LeBron James to quit making excuses about his many public relations gaffes and play ball.

Other Top Videos Run from Somber to Silly to Cute

The remaining six videos on the top 10 list are a mixed bag of somber, silly and cute, with some crossing multiple lines. The number three video, celebrating 20 years of anti-drunk-driving ads from Australian government agency Transport Accident Commission (TAC), struck a serious tone about the deadly effects of driving while intoxicated.

Much lighter in tone were three videos making a repeat appearance from MarketingCharts’ last analysis of the Unruly Media most-shared video list in mid-November 2010. Evian “Roller Babies” features roller skating infants, T-Mobile “Welcome Back” is a recording of a presumably genuine ambush singalong performed for arriving travelers at London’s Heathrow Airport, and NSFW “A Hunter Shoots a Bear” is a slightly off-color satire of bear hunting.

Meanwhile, Coca-Cola “Snow Globes” sets a heartwarming holiday tone with Santa Claus manipulating events in a city which exists as a snow globe on his desk. And the oddest entry this month, number 10 “The Entrance” from Heineken, is hard to categorize.

Combining humor, athletic feats, music and sex appeal, it features a suave young man making what can only be called the world’s greatest entrance to an elite cocktail party, exchanging numerous traditional greetings with people of different cultures, performing acrobatics, martial arts and magic, displaying some serious basketball skills, and heavily flirting with an attractive female singer. It is certainly eye-catching, which is really the effect any viral video ultimately aims to achieve.

Top 10 Most-shared Online Videos December 2010

1. DC Shoes - Ken Block’s Gymkhana Three, Part 2 – Ultimate Playground, L’Autodrome
2. Danny MacAskill – Way Back Home
3. TAC Campaign – 20-Year Anniversary Retrospective
4. Coca-Cola: Snow Globes: Coca-Cola 2010 Christmas Commercial
5. Nike Basketball: Michael Jordan’s Response to LeBron James What Should I Do Commercial
6. Evian – Roller Babies
7. T-Mobile – Welcome Back
8. NSFW – A Hunter Shoots A Bear
9. DC Shoes – Ken Block’s Gymkhana Two, The Infomercial
10. Heineken – The Entrance

8 in 10 Marketers Using Online Video Seek Higher Engagement

Close to 80% of marketers using online video on their sites do so to increase visitor engagement, or time spent, according to a recent study from TubeMogul. This is by far the most popular reason. Another 60% use online video to strengthen their brand, and almost 60% use online video to increase overall visitors (more than one answer was permitted).

Apple, Android, RIM in Tight Struggle to Lead Smartphone Market

The race for the lead in US smartphone operating system (OS) consumer market share is tighter than it has ever been, according to November 2010 data from The Nielsen Company. Nielsen research indicates the popularity of the Android OS among those who purchased a smartphone in the last six months (41%) makes it the leading OS among recent acquirers, while Apple iOS retains a slim lead in overall market share.

Android Surges among Recent Acquirers

As mentioned above, Android captured a roughly 41% share of Americans who had acquired a smartphone in the last six months in November 2010, well ahead of number two Apple iOS (about 27%). Both of these OS platforms grew in popularity among this demographic from June 2010 (27.5% and 21%, respectively).

In contrast, RIM Blackberry lost close to half its formerly leading share of recent acquirers in that same time period. While 35% of recent smartphone acquirers used the RIM Blackberry OS in June 2010, only about 19% did in November 2010, placing it a distant third.

Race for Overall Share Tightens

Despite its surge among recent acquirers, when it comes to overall consumer market share, Android OS (about 26%) is still behind Apple iOS (close to 29%). RIM Blackberry’s position is less clear. Its share (also about 26%) puts it within the margin of error of both Apple iOS and Android. In other words, RIM remains statistically tied with both Apple for first and Android for third. Apple’s clear lead over Android notwithstanding, Nielsen says this race might still be too close to call.

However, RIM Blackberry has lost its clear number one position in June 2010 (34%), while Android has gained more than 50% market share from 15% in the same time period.

More than 4 in 10 Recent Acquirers Choose Smartphones

All three smartphone OS leaders, Apple iOS, RIM Blackberry and Android, are benefiting from strong demand for smartphones. In November, 45% of recent acquirers chose a smartphone over a feature phone, while 31% of all consumers owned a smartphone.

Growth in smartphone ownership among both overall consumers and recent acquirers grew briskly from June to August 2010 and then moderated between September and November 2010.

Android Top New Smartphone App Platform

A leading 29% of smartphone application publishers say they will begin supporting the Android platform next year, according to the Millennial Media November 2010 Mobile Mix report. This outdistances the second-most-popular new smartphone app platform for next year, iPad (20%), by a healthy margin. Twenty percent of smartphone app publishers also plan to begin supporting Windows Phone7 next year. No other platform has anywhere close to this level of planned new support, with RIM coming in a distant fourth (12%).