Social Media | Internet Marketing Blog

Murdoch to make peace with YouTube?

Various reports indicate that Myspace-owner Rupert Murdoch will meet up with Google later this week -- a sign that the media mogul no longer wants to destroy YouTube. At least for now.

by Richard Maven 12 October 2006 13:16pm 0 comments

Jakob Nielsen’s tips on increasing community participation

In his latest post, usability guru Jakob Nielsen talks about participation inequality and gives some tips on how websites can overcome this problem.

In any given online community, be it a discussion board or a site such as Amazon which uses customer reviews to help sell its products, the rule of thumb is that 90% of users (Nielsen calls them lurkers) will never contribute.

by Graham Charlton 11 October 2006 15:42pm 0 comments

Study: ‘social local search’ catching on

Hitwise research director LeeAnn Prescott has released some data showing traffic to local directories employing user generated content (UGC) is growing faster than traditional 'yellow pages' (directory) sites.

by Richard Maven 11 October 2006 11:24am 0 comments

Clustering your search results

I have been thinking a lot about search lately, not only due to my reliance on Google that we all now share, but also because I currently reading an excellent book, The Search by John Batelle , about all things search and Google.

by Chris Rourke 11 October 2006 11:20am 1 comment

WPP's Martin Sorrell on Google, China and the internet

Sir Martin Sorrell’s WPP has made a series of investments in the online space this year, most recently the purchase of a 10% stake in Spot Runner, the US-based online ad agency which had also attracted the attention of Google.

He told us why...

by Chris Lake 10 October 2006 12:21pm 1 comment

Yahoo! links up with homepage provider

Former Google France boss Franck Poisson has hooked up with Yahoo!, which will provide advertising and search services on Webwag, his new customisable homepage venture.

The deal will see Webwag displaying sponsored links from Yahoo!, as well as launching what it claims is the sector’s first ‘personal wide web’ search feature – through which users can sift through their chosen content as well as the web as a whole.

by Richard Maven 09 October 2006 11:24am 0 comments

Digg disables pay-per-vote service

Digg has clamped down on a new service which claims to allow publishers to manipulate ratings on the social bookmarking site.

by Richard Maven 09 October 2006 10:13am 0 comments

SEMPO's Gord Hotchkiss predicts 'search showdown'

Gord Hotchkiss, chair of search marketing association SEMPO, is bullish about the industry's prospects, saying 2007 will be a "watershed year" for localised advertising and that various other revenue channels will drive growth.

But in an exclusive interview, he also points to challenges facing the sector, including the lack of transparency over click fraud and an upcoming "showdown" between consumers and advertisers over search data.

by Richard Maven 06 October 2006 12:45pm 0 comments

Myspace sees shift to over-35s

More than 50% of Myspace’s US visitors are now over 35 years of age, according to a report that shows the site’s appeal to older internet users is increasing as its mainstream popularity grows.

The research, by comScore Media Metrix, shows the site’s teenage visitors form a much lower percentage of its audience compared to last year, while over four in ten Myspace users are now between the ages of 35 and 54.

by Richard Maven 06 October 2006 11:18am 0 comments

Skype founders to compete with YouTube

Skype founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom are working on a secretive project which will see them compete with YouTube in the online video market.

The website, currently under the working title of the Venice Project, will aim to combine the video sharing of YouTube with the added attraction of professionally produced TV and video content.

by Graham Charlton 06 October 2006 11:00am 1 comment