Spring is a time for new beginnings and growth. Here at Three-Forty Communications, we are excited to share some news about a little growth of our own. As you already know, we have been a sister company of Dig Communications (based in Chicago) for quite awhile. Dig represents such well-known clients in consumer PR as Miller, Wrigley, Sara Lee, and Spectrum Brands (which includes brands like Rayovac batteries and Remington Shavers).
We’re proud to announce a full integration with Dig and a new name: Dig Communications.
To our clients:
What does this mean for you? Basically, very little. The level of service and representation you experience currently will not change; only our name will. We will be phasing out our Three-Forty e-mails and switching to Dig e-mail.
You’ll be able to contact us with our first initials followed by our last names, at digcommunications.com
We can also be reached at our old emails for awhile and we will definitely keep blogging here.
A complete transition to a solid company with household name clients, and nothing changing on your end… the question is, can you Dig it?
VideoEgg: Quality is Remembered, Cheap Prices are Long Forgotten
The writing was on the wall. VideoEgg, one of the first user generated video publisher/hosting companies is shutting down its doors of its My VideoEgg Service. The company has been pursuing the online advertising network side of its business which has shown more success.
I have been working with start-ups in the tech space for 13 years now on the PR/Marcomm side of things. And I love working with and trying out new technologies. As we know some times the up starts don’t make it. But still for me – this closing is a bummer.
Many of my first child’s first moments were captured and shared with family via VideoEgg. Over the last several months I have been using YouTube b/c it was clear that VideoEgg was probably going to shut its doors. So now I must begin the process of uploading these old videos to my new YouTube account.
A few thoughts...
Thankfully, VideoEgg is going about this the right way and giving us time to get our house in order. (May 31st). Two months will go by fast but VideoEgg is doing the right thing by communicating to its customers as early as possible.
I wonder if VideoEgg missed out. While its pursuing the advertising network side of its business. I believe people will pay for a good product or service.
While I was driving through a very very small town in Pennsylvania yesterday (I am back east visiting family) I noticed a sign on little furniture shop that we breezed by. It read “Quality is Remembered, Cheap Prices are Long Forgotten.” Yes – I understand that you need to aggregate people to a service and from there you can prove out or work out business models. But if you have a service that is of value (in this case a place where many valuable memories are being stored and shared) this is a worth a price. Not to a potential advertiser... But a price to me that I am willing to pay.
Besides backing up...some times it does makes sense to go with a leader or an established company if you are trusting it with your most important digital data. That said... without the start-ups – chances are the big guys wouldn’t think about or wouldn’t offer some of the more compelling services (be it copying or acquiring).
So thank you VideoEgg for a great service and for at least giving us the time to take care of things. And thank you to the companies that go after the big guys or are trying new things to make our lives a bit better, more easier or more enjoyable – I’ll be out here willing to give your service a try or perhaps subscribe.
Readthewords.com
If this thing works...http://www.readthewords.com could be just the thing I have been looking for to take advantage of the commute in. Podcasts are great but I wish there was a way to listen to all the blogs that I track - my own personal morning radio show. And if we could get celebrity voices - even better. Ha - pretty funny to hear Walter Cronkite reading the morning posts from Venture Beat.
Life with no TV
A lot of the coverage and comments coming out of CES were to the extent of “there was nothing new” and there were only marginal updates to products. I think you need to look at some of the blogs to find the really gee-whiz fun or weird stuff - although AP video managed to find a device that Texas Instruments is developing that will project high quality images/video from your mobile phone. I guess this is what they mean by marginal updates... it’s a projector and there are plenty of projectors out there... but it seems pretty cool to me. Not too mention the fascinating science & technology development that goes into shrinking this projector down to fit into your pocket. (no TI is not a client :-)
Another theme that was talked about was content (over hardware) being more prevalent at CES and the partnerships to bring more content to internet enabled set-top boxes. Coincidentally, my first experiences with connecting my computer to the TV happened this past week when the storms blew DirectTV out. DirectTV informed us that we would have to wait 12 days until someone could come out to realign our dish.
We pretty much went through all of our saved shows on TiVo and finished season 1 of Heroes on DVD.... so it was time to connect the computer to the TV. Simple enough to do because we have a LCD TV – so no different than connecting my laptop to a monitor.
It is impressive the amount of content and first run shows that you can access (without downloading from iTunes or being part of the Hulu or Joost club). We streamed Desperate Housewives one night and the next we started making ground on season 2 of Heroes. I was amazed at how well my simple 802.11b Wi-Fi router did in streaming.
This experience definitely made me even more of a believer in the IPTV future as well as making evident the improvements that are needed.
Even if the TV is suppose to be the “sit back” experience - I can see the potential and fun for interacting with the show as a family (and dare I say the fun of interacting with commercials). The interaction might not be as active as one would do while watching a show alone but there were still enough content extras that were worth clicking on without causing a coup d’etat for the remote control.
So... here is to more marginal improvements in 2008.
Another theme that was talked about was content (over hardware) being more prevalent at CES and the partnerships to bring more content to internet enabled set-top boxes. Coincidentally, my first experiences with connecting my computer to the TV happened this past week when the storms blew DirectTV out. DirectTV informed us that we would have to wait 12 days until someone could come out to realign our dish.
We pretty much went through all of our saved shows on TiVo and finished season 1 of Heroes on DVD.... so it was time to connect the computer to the TV. Simple enough to do because we have a LCD TV – so no different than connecting my laptop to a monitor.
It is impressive the amount of content and first run shows that you can access (without downloading from iTunes or being part of the Hulu or Joost club). We streamed Desperate Housewives one night and the next we started making ground on season 2 of Heroes. I was amazed at how well my simple 802.11b Wi-Fi router did in streaming.
This experience definitely made me even more of a believer in the IPTV future as well as making evident the improvements that are needed.
Even if the TV is suppose to be the “sit back” experience - I can see the potential and fun for interacting with the show as a family (and dare I say the fun of interacting with commercials). The interaction might not be as active as one would do while watching a show alone but there were still enough content extras that were worth clicking on without causing a coup d’etat for the remote control.
So... here is to more marginal improvements in 2008.
Unreachable?
Hmm.... I guess there are no excuses left for not being able to do a conference call.
China Tests Mt. Everest Cell Station
China Tests Mt. Everest Cell Station
Where mobile tech really matters
In a world where we are throwing mobile phones out every 6 months, there has to be away that these phones (or new free phones) can get into the hands of people who need them more. Maybe there is a chance to stop a digital divide before it starts. This BusinessWeek article is a great example of how a mobile phone just might help.
Lazy Tech
It is amazing how lazy we can be when it comes to technology. And when I start feeling guilty about this – I check myself... and think about the big promise of... “technology is suppose to make our lives easier.”
In this instance its about video conferencing. There are some really good (and free) applications out there that make it easy to do video conferencing (Skype, Apple’s iChat – quality is probably the best – and some really cool upstarts that are making it easy to quickly video chat when you are in applications like Facebook or on someone’s blog.)
But when you get “older” and you find yourself trying to squeeze every last drop out of every last second of the day and come Sunday night at 6pm when you are spent... the thought of calling the other person to see if they want to video chat, walking over to the computer, logging on, opening up the app, etc.... is not that appealing (Yes – I know life is tough). Which got me thinking that the winner in the consumer video conferencing game just might be our friends at the cable/satellite companies (and the companies that provide the enabling technologies).
On that Sunday night - chances are the TV is on (even if you are not watching it). And when the phone rings – the TV flashes the Caller ID with the option of “Do you want to do a video call?” appears - The cable/sat companies are already providing the caller ID flash on the TV – so I will be eager to see when this comes to fruition. The size will be better than a postage stamp, I can easily ‘flick’ the remote, and I might not even have to get up from the couch.
iPhone, Malkovich, Malkovich, Malkovich, iPhone, iPhone…iPhone!!!
I gasped this morning as I woke up from a nightmare that had me stuck in this world where iPhone was the only word used to communicate. Unfortunately, upon waking up, I realized the nightmare was a reality and not just inspired by one of my all-time favorite cinematic scenes:
Muni Wi-Fi comes to the home town.
I don’t know whether this is a good thing or bad thing... but I can now “surf” the net before I surf in Pacifica
Driver Safety
I believe that I am a pretty safe driver... at least I try to be. (except for the occasions when I am trying to steal glances of the surf on my way into work... to see what I might be missing). I try to be smart while driving and refrain from doing stupid things with mobile devices, i.e. texting, reading email. I almost always use a Hands-free headset if I am on the phone. And the voice activated dialing on my Samsung is pretty darn good (especially compared to a few years ago). But it seems that as soon as I arrive in the city and start hitting the traffic lights, I have this uncontrollable urge to reach for my BlackBerry to skim through email... especially on the days that things are really busy.
If I can save just a couple of minutes by checking email while stuck behind traffic waiting for the light to turn - it is worth it... isn’t it??
This morning I had to laugh because while skimming through email I looked up to see if the light had turned green, it did. But yet no one behind me nor the cars on either side of me had moved or honked... at further inspection – it seemed each one of us in our cars waiting at that light were trying to save a few minutes.
If I can save just a couple of minutes by checking email while stuck behind traffic waiting for the light to turn - it is worth it... isn’t it??
This morning I had to laugh because while skimming through email I looked up to see if the light had turned green, it did. But yet no one behind me nor the cars on either side of me had moved or honked... at further inspection – it seemed each one of us in our cars waiting at that light were trying to save a few minutes.
This is a good thing...
The FCC says "no mobile phone calls on flights." From a story today: "The Federal Communications Commission has ended a proceeding that would have allowed mobile phone calls on airplanes, for now ending the possibility of phone conversations during flights."
Transparency
I think there was a collectively “ouch” heard throughout the PR world this morning when they learned about the WagEd/MSFT/Wired incident. Since I am posting this late and there’s been enough speculation on how this impacts stories, etc. I will spare you my opinion. What’s more interesting to me is the different platforms that all parties involved have to respond to the situation. Had this occurred before the world of blogs, WagEd would not have the forum to provide their thoughts. And it’s likely that Wired wouldn’t have used valuable magazine space to write about it. I guess that it’s all about transparency…
Interesting Data
Some interesting data out today… A study done by Global Insight estimated that over the past 35 years, US companies that received venture capital had accounted for:
-10 million jobs
-$2.1 trillion in revenue in 2005 -- representing 9% of the total private sector workforce , which also represents 16.6% of the total U.S. gross domestic product
According to SF Gate – the bottom line is that venture backed companies that survive grow into market leaders.
We concur.
-10 million jobs
-$2.1 trillion in revenue in 2005 -- representing 9% of the total private sector workforce , which also represents 16.6% of the total U.S. gross domestic product
According to SF Gate – the bottom line is that venture backed companies that survive grow into market leaders.
We concur.
Business 2.0's 25 Start-ups to Watch
Congrats to clients meebo and Turn for being chosen by Business 2.0 editors as 2 of the 25 start-ups to watch.
Check meebo out here: http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/biz2/0702/gallery.nextnet.biz2/4.html
Check out Turn here: http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/biz2/0702/gallery.nextnet.biz2/16.html
Check meebo out here: http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/biz2/0702/gallery.nextnet.biz2/4.html
Check out Turn here: http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/biz2/0702/gallery.nextnet.biz2/16.html
Treo No More
I finally made the switch from my Treo to the Blackberry. For the past 2.5 years I've been using the Treo and I feel like I just got out of an abusive relationship. The Treo Personal Business Connect Service was consistently UNRELIABLE. I was never 100% certain that the service worked. The VersaMail service, in theory, seemed great, but it was always terrible for me. As a phone it was fine, but that's not the reason I was using it.
So I switched to the Blackberry. I feel like a new person. It's reliable, was incredibly easy to set-up and did I mention it works???
Next change...making the switch from a PC to a Mac.
So I switched to the Blackberry. I feel like a new person. It's reliable, was incredibly easy to set-up and did I mention it works???
Next change...making the switch from a PC to a Mac.
Work Life Balance
There have been a few stories that have came out over the last month or so that talk about - Work Life Balance.
The latest is from Reuters reporting on a study from ACNielsen, which found “Work-life balance tops global New Year wish list.”
Also a story in a recent issue of BusinessWeek talks about how Best Buy is breaking the conventional thinking of the corporate 9 to 5 world – one where people need to put in “face time” and where the person who stays the longest at the office wins. The fact of the matter is that hardly anyone works from just 9 – 5. Technologies like mobile phones, BlackBerries and the wireless Internet have extended the work day well before 9am and way past 5pm. Some people look at these technologies as a bad thing... but we (three-forty) believe used properly... they enable us to be not only more productive but more importantly they free us from the florescent lit, four walls that we sit in.
They give us the ability to avoid rush hour or they let us take a break from work to go for a mountain bike ride during the middle of the day. I am not saying that these mobile technologies give us a the chance to slack off (the article talks about this a bit too) but it allows us to be more available to the client without being tied to the desk. Yes – the office gives a chance to collaborate and focus on work and that’s why we have one but your desk shouldn’t prevent you from having a life. There will be work that needs to be done by 8am or more work to be finished after 8pm but with the right mix of company culture, ethics and mobile technologies – it is possible to stretch more out of life.
The latest is from Reuters reporting on a study from ACNielsen, which found “Work-life balance tops global New Year wish list.”
Also a story in a recent issue of BusinessWeek talks about how Best Buy is breaking the conventional thinking of the corporate 9 to 5 world – one where people need to put in “face time” and where the person who stays the longest at the office wins. The fact of the matter is that hardly anyone works from just 9 – 5. Technologies like mobile phones, BlackBerries and the wireless Internet have extended the work day well before 9am and way past 5pm. Some people look at these technologies as a bad thing... but we (three-forty) believe used properly... they enable us to be not only more productive but more importantly they free us from the florescent lit, four walls that we sit in.
They give us the ability to avoid rush hour or they let us take a break from work to go for a mountain bike ride during the middle of the day. I am not saying that these mobile technologies give us a the chance to slack off (the article talks about this a bit too) but it allows us to be more available to the client without being tied to the desk. Yes – the office gives a chance to collaborate and focus on work and that’s why we have one but your desk shouldn’t prevent you from having a life. There will be work that needs to be done by 8am or more work to be finished after 8pm but with the right mix of company culture, ethics and mobile technologies – it is possible to stretch more out of life.
Phishing Scams getting more sophisticated
It's been a while since I even thought about phishing scams. But, today I got an email from Bank of America asking me to update my account. Luckily, I am not so naive to think that they really need me to do this and would actually email this to a whole list of "undisclosed recipients."
While the note looks somewhat legit, it is the next page that is pretty amazing. Here is the note:
As measures mesures of ensuring a safer and more secure Banking
environment,We have re-structured our Banking servers .
Hence, we have decided to put an extra verification process to ensure your identity and account information is protected.
Please click on continue, to the verification process and ensure your Account information is entered correctly to get verified.
It is all about your security.
Thank you.
My favorite line of course, "It is all about your security." It then sends you to a page where you'd have to fill out your information, including social security number, mother's maiden name, account information, etc.
I an not sure if I am more informed on these scams because I've worked with VeriSign or other anti-spam or anti-phishing vendors, but they still scare me. I worry that my parents or grandparents may fall victim to this. So be warned! Any incoming email that wants your private information Don't give it out.
It's Different This Time
Josh Quittner outlines why he thinks this tech boom is different than that of the late 90’s. He has some good points – companies are trying to be profitable, the exuberance has not reached the levels it once had, and Bill Gates has become irrelevant to many start-ups.
I agree with *most* of his points and I would also add that entrepreneurs these days don’t want to become a legend of a tech bubble. The entrepreneurs we are working with truly believe they have a company that will be around for the long haul – boom or not.
The idea that the web has become increasingly democratized (ahem, YOU are Time’s Person of the Year), many more opportunities will open up. Not just in content creation, but how we receive the content we want, what device, from who, when and how we can use it to help our everyday lives. Quittner also points out that many people believe that tech booms go in four year cycles. I hope that we are just on the cusp of innovation and that three years from now we’ll be looking back realizing that the YouTube’s of the world were just scratching the surface.
I agree with *most* of his points and I would also add that entrepreneurs these days don’t want to become a legend of a tech bubble. The entrepreneurs we are working with truly believe they have a company that will be around for the long haul – boom or not.
The idea that the web has become increasingly democratized (ahem, YOU are Time’s Person of the Year), many more opportunities will open up. Not just in content creation, but how we receive the content we want, what device, from who, when and how we can use it to help our everyday lives. Quittner also points out that many people believe that tech booms go in four year cycles. I hope that we are just on the cusp of innovation and that three years from now we’ll be looking back realizing that the YouTube’s of the world were just scratching the surface.
Venice Project Opens Up
I've been hearing quite a bit about the Venice Project from some industry friends, so am curious to see what it's all about. The project is pretty ambitious and has several barriers for success, though if anyone can do it - these guys can. Hopefully, I'll be beta testing it soon.
Yahoo Taps Community
I think Yahoo is doing a great job of collecting the community’s feedback... starting with this memo "leak.” Sure they are going to have to wade through a bunch of useless posts and comments but there is definitely a lot of good input out there.
I think I will start working on my memo.
I think I will start working on my memo.
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