David Moth

Smartphone penetration hits 42% across 'EU5'

Smartphone penetration reached 42% across the UK, France, Italy, Spain and Germany (EU5) in October, compared to 39% in the US.

The data from comScore shows that Symbian is the dominant operating system in the EU5 with 32% market share, compared to 28% for Android and 21% for iOS.

by David Moth 26 January 2012 11:53am 0 comments

Taco Bell, Dunkin' Donuts and more test Facebook loyalty scheme

A loyalty scheme run by start-up Plink will give Facebook Credits to consumers in return for purchases at Taco Bell, Dunkin’ Donuts and others.

This aims to take advantage of the boom in virtual currency, which is currently a $2.1bn industry.

by David Moth 26 January 2012 10:48am 0 comments

Lego launches social media platform for fans

Lego has launched a social media platform for fans, through which they can share and discuss their love of the brand.

The site, called ReBrick, is a hub for bookmarks to other sites that host user-created content about Lego.

ReBrick then acts as a discussion forum for links posted by users, who must be aged over 13.

by David Moth 25 January 2012 13:31pm 4 comments

House of Fraser targets students with Facebook discounts

House of Fraser is offering a 10% discount to students who ‘like’ the brand on Facebook.

The social media campaign mirrors a discount that is already available in-store as House of Fraser (HoF) tries to bring consistency to its online and offline offerings.

by David Moth 25 January 2012 12:18pm 1 comment

New Google privacy policy shares user data across multiple products

Google has consolidated its privacy policies so that data held in separate product accounts will now be merged into one.

It means that when signed in, a user’s data will be shared across Gmail, YouTube, Google+, Maps and search.

by David Moth 25 January 2012 10:28am 3 comments

Deloitte says Facebook is worth £12.7bn to EU economy

A new study from Deloitte estimates that Facebook’s economic impact is worth £12.7bn to the EU and Switzerland, supporting over 232,000 jobs.

The report, which was commissioned by Facebook, found that in the UK alone it supports 35,200 jobs and contributes £2.2bn to the country’s GDP.

by David Moth 24 January 2012 16:46pm 4 comments

Could M&S' new personalised recommendations be more social?

Marks & Spencer has introduced personalised recommendations to its website.

Customers will be shown other products based on recently viewed items, items that other customers have purchased and top sellers.

M&S says that by adjusting results in real-time users see suggestions that are “highly relevant and meaningful.”

by David Moth 24 January 2012 14:41pm 1 comment

Digital music revenues close to offsetting decline in CD sales

Digital revenues for record companies hit $5.2bn in 2011, up 8% year-on-year.

The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) Digital Music Report for 2012 found that a slower rate of decline in physical sales meant that overall the market’s drop slowed to 3%, at around $16.2bn.

by David Moth 24 January 2012 11:38am 0 comments

MSN extends mobile presence with new iPad app

MSN has extended its mobile offering with a new iPad app, mirroring the format of its redesigned website with five different channels.

The site is already available on mobile, PC and Xbox, and MSN says the free iPad app is part of a plan to bring its content to as wide an audience as possible.

by David Moth 24 January 2012 10:03am 1 comment

YouTube users now upload an hour of footage every second

YouTube has announced that its users upload 60 hours of footage per minute and watch 4bn videos each day.

Aside from being an impressive milestone, the statistic will be a useful sales tool for the video site as it seeks to bring in more advertising revenue following its recent redesign.

by David Moth 23 January 2012 17:46pm 1 comment