ESPN Goes Mobile First

You'd expect ESPN Mobile to emphasize mobile content. But the more-important change would be if all of ESPN had that same perspective. It might be a bit early to say that has happened, but there is little doubt thinking is changing.

The thinking at ESPN is to "program and design from the mobile standpoint first, then extrapolate what could be applied for the PC, television and print experience,” says Michael Bayle, ESPN Mobile VP. Mobile First at ESPN 

That is a shift of perspective.

50% of Adults Used Mobiles In-Store While Shopping

More than half of all adult mobile phone owners used their devices for some shopping-related purpose during the last while they were in a store Christmas and holiday shopping season, the Pew Research Center reports.

Some 38 percent of mobile phone owners used their phone to call a friend while they were in a store for advice about a purchase they were considering making. Some 24 percent of mobile device owners used their phone to look up reviews of a product online while they were in a store. The rise of in-store mobile commerce

Some 25 percent of adult mobile owners used their phones to look up the price of a product online while they were in a store, to see if they could get a better price somewhere else. That is the aspect of mobile in-store shopping that seems to worry most brick and mortar retailers.

Taken together, just over half (52 percent) of all adult mobile phone owners used their phone for at least one of these three reasons over the Christmas and holiday shopping season and one third (33 percent) used their phone specifically for online information while inside a physical store, either to check product reviews or get pricing information.

Millennials Trust UGC

About 51 percent of Millennials (born between roughly 1977 and 1995, by some estimates) say that recommendations from strangers through user-generated content on a company website are most likely to influence their opinion when making a purchase, compared to 49 percent who say that recommendations from friends and family is most influential, according to Bazaarvoice.

In contrast, Boomers (born between roughly 1946 and 1964, by some estimates) are almost twice as likely to favor recommendations from friends and family over user-generated content.

Some 66 percent of "Boomer" respondents say friends and family are influential when consumers are weighing purchases, compared to 34 percent who say recommendations from people they don't know are favored. Millennial Trust in UGC High

Yahoo Goes "Mobile First"

You can add Yahoo to the list of companies that have said their business strategy is "mobile first." Google executives have been saying that company's strategy is "mobile first" for some time. Most leading telecom service providers have been "mobile first," in terms of revenue, for some time as well.

Now Yahoo says "we’re moving forward with a 'mobile first' mindset."  Mobile first is simply a response to where revenue opportunities and growth now exist.


For Google, mobile first means new applications and initiatives are centered on mobile devices rather than PCs, mobile Internet rather than PC access to the Internet, and the mobile context instead of PC context.

That's why Android, Motorola Mobility and Google Wallet are associated with Google, where it might not have made so much sense in the past.

Inc. 500 Firm Blogging Down, Other Social Media Up?

For the first time since 2007, Inc. 500 firms seem to be blogging less, and shifting support to other forms of social media.

In 2010 half of the Inc. 500 had a corporate blog, up from 45 percent in 2009 and 39 percent in 2008.

In the 2011 study, the use of blogging dropped to 37 percent. The caveat is that the composition of firms in the Inc. 500 also has changed, and that makes a difference.

Companies in the advertising and marketing industry are most likely to blog, while companies in government services and construction make very little use of blogging. Still, it might be fair to note that firms across verticals are focusing more attention on Facebook and Twitter.

The platform most used by the 2011 Inc. 500 is Facebook, with 74 percent of companies using it.  But 73 percent use LinkedIn. About 25 percent of respondents said Facebook was the most effective social networking tool, while 24 percent said LinkedIn was the single most effective social networking platform.

Some 13 percent to 15 percent of respondents use text messaging, downloadable mobile applications and Foursquare.

Businesses do not use social media at the same levels. Since 2007, for example, studies by the University of Massachusetts have found significant differences between enterprise and smaller business use of blogging, for example.

In 2007, Inc. 500 firms were much more active users of blogging than enterprises were. At that time, eight percent of the Fortune 500 companies were blogging compared to 19 percent of the Inc. 500.

In 2008, 16 percent of the Fortune 500 used blogs, compared to 39 percent of the Inc. 500. The trend also held in 2009, with the Inc. 500 blogging at a rate of 45 percent, while the Fortune 500 had 22 percent of its list with corporate blogs. In 2010, half of the Inc. 500 were blogging, compared to 23 percent of the Fortune 500. 2011 Inc 500 Social Media

That seems to have changed in 2011. The latest study suggests use of blogging may have peaked as a primary social media tool in the U.S. business community, as adoption of blogging is declining for the first time since 2007 among the Inc. 500. The composition of the Inc. 500 has changed since 2007.

There has been an increase in companies providing "government services" and These companies are less likely to use certain social media tools, researchers suggest. It is unclear how much the changing composition of Inc. 500 firms affected the most recent findings.

FTC To Host Workshop on Mobile Payments

The Federal Trade Commission will host a workshop on April 26, 2012 in Washington,D.C. to examine the use of mobile payments in the marketplace and how this emerging technology impacts consumers.

This event will bring together consumer advocates, industry representatives, government regulators, technologists, and academics to examine a wide range of issues, including the technology and business models used in mobile payments, the consumer protection issues raised, and the experiences of other nations where mobile payments are more common. 


By some surveys, consumer trust issues remain significant.


Topics may include:

What different technologies are used to make mobile payments and how are the technologies funded (e.g., credit card, debit card, phone bill, prepaid card, gift card, etc.)?

Which technologies are being used currently in the United States, and which are likely to be used in the future?

What are the risks of financial losses related to mobile payments as compared to other forms of payment? What recourse do consumers have if they receive fraudulent, unauthorized, and inaccurate charges? Do consumers understand these risks? Do consumers receive disclosures about these risks and any legal protections they might have?

When a consumer uses a mobile payment service, what information is collected, by whom, and for what purpose? Are these data collection practices disclosed to consumers? Is the data protected?

How have mobile payment technologies been implemented in other countries, and with what success? What, if any, consumer protection issues have they faced, and how have they dealt with them?

What steps should government and industry members take to protect consumers who use mobile payment services?

To aid in preparation for the workshop, FTC staff welcomes comments from the public, including original research, surveys and academic papers.

Electronic comments can be made here. Paper comments should be mailed or delivered to: 600 Pennsylvania Avenue N.W., Room H-113 (Annex B), Washington, DC 20580.

The workshop is free and open to the public; it will be held at the FTC's Satellite Building Conference Center, 601 New Jersey Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.

FTC To Host Workshop

Technologists Versus Hollywood: A Long History

On January 17, 1984, by a five to four vote, the the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that video cassette recorders (VCRs) did not infringe on Hollywood studios’ copyrights. Keep in mind the issue here: it wasn't the use of a VCR to create and sell illegal copies of content; it was the existence and use of the devices.

The ruling in Sony Corp v. Universal City Studios, though, was an important but not unusual case of new technology being opposed by Hollywood and other content interests. In some ways, the clash is inevitable.

New technology nearly always us seen as enabling infringement of copyright of artists, even though, as content owners found out, technology also can create the foundation for new and large content markets. Though its day has passed, Blockbuster Video and the ability consumers now have to lawfully buy and own copies of movies and TV shows was the result of the decision.

Keep in mind that the technology in question was not even a consumer product. In 1976 a VCR costing $3,000, adjusting for inflation, about $11,360 in 2010 dollars. 

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But it also has to be said that the costly eight-year battle didn't help Sony, as its Betamax standard lost out to JVC’s rival VHS standard. Photocopiers provide another example of the tension. 


So do issues around game cartridge backup devices.

The point is that there is a long history of conflict between new enabling technologies and defenders of copyrights and intellectual property. There are legitimate issues, to be sure. But it also is true that copyright owners generally resist important new technologies related to the distribution of content and information.

In fact, some would say that the evolution of consumer consumption of video, for example, has been a story of ever-increasing ability of consumers to "watch what they want, when they want it," ever since the invention of the VCR.

Others would argue that better technology reduces consumer incentives to pirate content.


Technology and copyright interests often clash because copyright holders fear the new technologies will disrupt existing business models and will undermine intellectual property rights by enabling new forms of piracy. It is a legitimate concern, though some would say quite often overblown.

The recent battle over the "Stop Online Piracy Act" was one example of such tensions. The growing battle over Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement will be the next fight.