5 Enterprise Video Platforms

Some of use might say we have been surprised at how effective YouTube has become as a venue for hosting business-related video. But that is not stopping other contenders from trying to create business-optimized video sites and services. The sites generally offer ability to upload video, encode it, view and share it online and track analytics.

5 Video Platforms Vying to Be the YouTube of the Enterprise

Oddly Enough, the "Walled Garden," of "Curated Experience" Seems Necesary

Few debates last forever. They get resolved, one way or the other.

The old debate about the advantages of "open and closed" ecosystems is one of those debates. Once upon a time, not so long ago, people talked about how “walled gardens” (like AOL and CompuServe, back in the day) would inevitably lose out to the free, wild, open Internet.

Apple always has been the salient exception to the rule, but one reason people don't have to debate this question is that both approaches have worked in the marketplace.

These days, malware is a bigger problem, and that more or less argues for some level of curation within any ecosystem. It's not "totally open" or "totally closed," but rather "structured to be consistent and safe," in a way.

The Walled Garden Has Won

Content Marketing at SxSW

At a panel at South by Southwest (SxSW) on "Brave New World: Debating Brands' Role as Publishers," the big political issue, as you would expect, was the impact on "journalism" once brands become media and publishers in their own right.

Moderated by National Public Radio host Tom Ashbrook, the panel included Lora Kolodny, TechCrunch; Pawan Deshpanda, Hivefire CEO; Joe Polizzi, Junta42 founder and me, representing Carrier Evolution. The broad issue is that both consumers and businesses now are creating content that overlaps with the sort of content traditional media once monopolized.

That obviously raises the issue of how consumers and citizens can be protected from attempts at manipulation by government and special interests of all sorts, as the number of voices grows exponentially and the number of of organizations and people producing traditional news media shrinks both absolutely and relatively. There seemed to be general agreement that "new" publishers need stronger and more effective systems to address those sorts of issues. 

A separate following panel, featuring C.C. Chapman and Ann Handley, authors of "Content Rules," rather more directly addressed the practical issues organizations have as they become content publishers.

What nobody seemed to dispute is that the line separating "traditional media" from "user generated content" and "brand-sponsored and created content" is porous, and that the trend will not stop. You can follow some of the tweet streams at #contentrules, #curatedebate and #brandjo on Twitter.

Video and audio will follow.  But here's some video of C. C. Chapman at an earlier event, talking about content marketing. 

Watch live streaming video from fullsailuniversity at livestream.com

Potential T-Mobile/Sprint Merger "Likely" to Get Regulatory Approval

The U.S. government would likely to approve a potential future merger between Sprint and T-Mobile, Paul Gallant of MF Global argues.

'We believe the government would be inclined to approve a T-Mobile/Sprint merger due to the stronger competitive counterweight it would provide to AT&T and Verizon Wireless," Gallant says.

Analysts: Approval for potential T-Mobile/Sprint merger 'likely' - The Hill's Hillicon Valley

Telcos Driving "Premium Channel" Growth

Showtime and Starz networks recorded substantial increases in their sub counts during the fourth quarter of 2010, up 937,000 and 735,000, respectively. Telco once again contributed the lion's share of new additions accounting for nearly half of both networks new units.

In fact, telcos have premium channel take rates far above that typically seen at cable TV and satellite networks.

SNL: Article

Twitter Founders Talk About Company History

U.S. Business Fiber Access Up to 28%

Business fiber penetration increased to 27.7 percent in the United States and 18.4 percent in Europe at the end of 2010, according to new research from Vertical Systems Group.

New fiber activity in 2010 was substantially higher for the small and medium-sized business market segment than the enterprise segment, both for the United States and Europe, as you might expect.

Most enterprise locations already have access to fiber access connections.

StatFlash -2010 Fiber Penetration in U.S. and Europe

40% Of Google Maps Usage Is Mobile

About 40 percent of Google Maps usage is mobile, says Google VP Marissa Mayer. On Christmas day and New Years day there were more mobile usage of Maps than desktop instances, a first for Google products. Google Maps now has 150 million mobile users, she says.

Marissa Mayer: 40% Of Google Maps Usage Is Mobile (And There Are 150 Million Mobile Users

Skype Adds Advertising

Skype is going to be showing ads in its user dashboards in the United States, United Kingdom and Germany. Skype says the ads will appear "occasionally."

The initial plan is to show an ad from one brand per day in each of the markets where advertising is being sold.
The ads will appear in the Home tab in Skype for Windows, and Skype says it may experiment with ads in other areas as well.

The ads won’t interrupt your Skype experience, the company promises. You won’t suddenly see annoying pop-up ads or flashy banner ads in middle of conversations. Skype says it also might use non-personally identifiable demographic data (e.g. location, gender and age) to target ads.

Skype - The Big Blog - Advertising in Skype

Videotron to Launch 4G

Videotron Ltd. is testing and plans to roll out new HSPA dual carrier technology (a fourth generation platform) that will support mobile network speeds of up to 42 Mbps.

The company, a subsidiary of Quebecor Media Inc., said it has also introduced “direct tunnel” technology, “which sends mobile data over the network by the most direct route, reducing the latency delay on the network and thereby optimizing the effectiveness of data transmission.”

Videotron to roll out new HSPA technology | The Wire Report

SEO Versus Content Quality: SEO Gets Too Much Attention

Apple iPad 2 Review (Just for Fun)

SMBs to Boost Social Media and E-mail Spending in 2011 - ClickZ mobile

http://m.clickz.com/clickz/stats/2033634/smbs-boost-social-media-email-spending-2011?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%25253A+clickzstats+%252528ClickZ+-+Stats%252529&utm_content=Google+Reader

Girl Sells Spot in iPad 2 Line for $900, Nerd Pays Up -- Daily Intel

http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2011/03/girl_sells_spot_in_first_spot.html

The Secret to Apple’s Success

http://l2thinktank.com/blog/2011/03/the-secret-to-apples-success/

Amazon Terminates Affiliate Program In Illinois After New Tax Law

Amazon is terminating its affiliate marketing program in Illinois after the state passed a new law requiring ecommerce companies like Amazon to charge sales tax in the state, even if they have no physical presence there.

Amazon's nationwide associates program lets anyone earn money for referring customers to Amazon, and it is said to be a significant source of income for many small web publishers.

Ironically, the law is supposed to protect small in-State mom-and-pop businesses from larger retailers such as Amazon. Amazon has faced similar laws in a few other states, and typically dissolves all in-State marketing affiliations when such laws are passed.

One might cynically note that such laws are supported by Amazon's competitors (large national chains) and obviously by tax collection interests. But the unintended consequences always seem to include damage to some local businesses who are Amazon affiliates.

Amazon Terminates Affiliate Program In Illinois After New Tax Law

Netflix Not Threatened by Facebook Video

“Nobody goes to Facebook to watch movies,” Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos said. Netflix will eventually get shows from Warner Bros.’ sister company HBO by offering to pay the cable channel the “right amount,” he added. That's true. But one suspects the firm defense of Netflix positioning in online video is, at some level, part of the tug of war between Netflix bullish investors, and those who believe the valuation is too high.

Netflix Not Threatened by Warner-Facebook, Official Says - Bloomberg

Web players must help fund networks says new GSMA chief

Mobile operators have been arguing for some time that if over-the-top providers are going to take much of the revenue from the mobile data boom, they should also help invest in the networks to support it. It's the sort of thing that one hears in an ecosystem changing rapidly, with value and revenue distributions changing just as rapidly.

Franco Bernabe, former CEO of Telecom Italia and now the new head of the GSMA, says it is time to review the way networks are funded. Application providers won't agree. But it is hard to see how broadband consumption can keep growing, with matching investment, if additional revenue to build and upgrade the networks is not available. And one can argue such revenue will not be available if usage grows by two orders of magnitude while retail prices grow only linearly. 

For that reason, talk of two-sided business models will grow.

Web players must help fund networks says new GSMA chief - Rethink Wireless

BT UK Frustrated by Lack of FTTC Demand

Fiber access does not sell itself, BT has found. As it begins to market its new fiber-based access services, BT has found that consumer demand for 40 Mbps Internet access is less robust than some had anticipated.

"Cardiff has been given a head start by Openreach but some fiber-enabled parts of the city are proving to be a bit slow out of the blocks to take up the opportunities fibre presents," said Richard Hall,BT Openreach NGA Deployment Director for Wales.

"With the notable exception of Whitchurch, residents are proving slow to take advantage of the technology on their doorstep and so we are working with the local council to raise awareness and drive demand," he said.

In the U.S. market, service providers have not fared much better with sales of 50 Mbps or faster services, which largely remain products bought by business customers. Another typical U.S. market issue also could be a factor. Customers in these areas already can buy fast service from Virgin Media.

BT UK Frustrated by Lack of Superfast FTTC Broadband Uptake in Cardiff Wales − ISPreview UK

Kenyan Farmers Use Mobiles for Crop Insurance

Farmers in Kenya while purchasing seed and fertilizer for their crops can, at the same time, use their cell phones to scan a bar code on the products to purchase weather related crop failure insurance. They receive weather advisories on the same devises. Ultimately, if the rains are not sufficient or abundantly destructive they will receive payouts on those devises.



There are no forms to fill out nor claims to file. The entire system is automated on their mobile phones. This insurance scheme is the result of a partnership between UAP Insurance Company of Kenya, Safaricom Ltd., and two crop input providers (MEA Fertilizers and Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture seed supplier).

African Farmers Insure Crops and Recieve Payments Via Cell Phones