http://blog.zunch.com The blog of a Zuncher. The thrills, trials and tribulations of working for one of the top ranking search marketing firms in the world. Though not an official site of Zunch Communications, Inc., this blog is unofficially sanctioned by the company. en-us Copyright 2008 Zunch Blog of SEO Technology, Search-friendly Website Design and eCommerce (Official Site) - Industry News http://blog.zunch.com/ Fri, 19 Sep 2008 13:16:26 CST What would you do if you received a letter from your Internet provider that they decided to place a limit on your Internet usage? or How would you react if you received a letter, along with your bill, that you would be charged additional fees if you exceed your limit?    Well, the U.S. broadband company, Comcast, has been waiting with anticipation to limit their most active subscribers from Internet downloads.  So, on October 1, Comcast, is planning to place limits on their subscribers online usage.  According to a Comcast spokesperson, 250 gigabytes totaled up to 100 times the normal usage.  So, that means their customers on average use about 2-3 gigabytes on a monthly basis and about less than 1% of their customers use well over that amount.    If you're considered one that routinely exceeds your internet usage (an Internet hog,) according to Comcast, you have to download a total of 62,500 songs or 125 movies per month to exceed your usage.  The Internet giant claims that they decided to limit usage to 'ensure fair access to the network' to all of their subscribers.  Time Warner Cable joined the bandwagon this past June when they started a monitoring trial in Texas by offering monthly plans and charging customers extra when they exceed their bandwidth limit.    Several critics feel that this is just a cheesy plot to thicken the wallets of Internet providers by limiting Internet access. Several customers feel this is unfair, especially for entrepreneurs in the entertainment industry who use this technology regularly. Comcast customers aren't the only ones who feel their decision to place a cap on downloads is way too drastic. It is said that the founder of GigaOm, Om Malik, described the limit decision as "the end of the Internet as we know it."     This news reminds me of a popular cafe that offers free Wi-Fi that I use to visit frequently. I would do research on my laptop while sipping my Mocha every day. One day the manager approached me and said, "You have to give other customers a chance to sit and work on their laptops, otherwise you will have to buy a Mocha every 30 minutes."    Whether its cafe owners or Internet companies - it makes no difference - they have the right to discontinue a particular service to customers who overuse it or charge additional fees to customers who exceed their limits. I like Time Warner's idea of offering customers an opportunity to purchase services and when they exceed their limits, then they know up-front that they will be charged additional costs - there's no hard feelings.   As far as the cafe I use to visit, I know longer give them my business because I feel the manager did not use tact when he told me that I exceeded my usage. Now I use a cafe that offers customers free Wi-Fi and they don't harass me just as long as I make an additional purchase once in a while. http://blog.zunch.com/post/Comcast_Places_Limits_on_Internet_Download_Hogs__.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Comcast_Places_Limits_on_Internet_Download_Hogs__.html rnjonjo@gmail.com (Robert Njonjo) Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:16:00 CST Industry News This past Monday, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT)announced that it would begin measuring the effectiveness of online campaigns in a new way, which they have dubbed "Engagement Mapping." Usually, the last ad a consumer saw online or clicked on got the credit for the sale, the lead or the traffic generated. But with so many marketing channels being available to online advertisers, consumers are often reached multiple times on different sites in different ways, says John Chandler, principal analyst for Microsoft's Atlas Division. "Instead of giving 100% of the credit to the last ad clicked, Engagement Mapping will take into account all of the marketing touch points when attributing conversion," he noted. Microsoft said it will release a beta version of Engagement ROI, an integrated reporting capability within Microsoft's Atlas Media Console, on March 1. National advertising clients and agencies such as Mindshare Interaction, Monster Worldwide, Sprint (NYSE:S) and Citi Cards (NYSE: C) have already signed up to participate in the program. “Engagement ROI spans the whole lifecycle of the campaign,” Chandler said. Microsoft anticipates that by using engagement ROI, rich media and video will be much stronger performers in terms of driving sales. "What makes this unique is the fact that they are putting the information into the hands of the advertisers," Roy Shkedi, CEO of AlmondNet, commented, "The advertiser can now have a report that shows the steps that led to the final acquisition." Mike Sprouse, Chief Marketing Officer of AzoogleAds noted “On the positive side, it's a very good indicator that the current metrics and measurement tactics for online marketers doesn't really provide a comprehensive view of a campaign's performance.”  Still, he was skeptical that Microsoft's solution is the answer. “I'm not sure engagement mapping is an easy to understand term,” he added. "For it to reach broad adoption, it has to be general enough to encompass a wide variety of actions on the Internet and also needs to be really simple and easy to understand." No kidding. I'm still confused as to how they will be able to track a consumer across all the channels they might cross before making a buying decision or taking some action desired by the advertiser. Particularly at a time when there is increasing concern about privacy on the Internet, I'm not sure how they can claim to essentially track a consumer every step of the way to a sale. We'll keep an eye out for reports of its success once the beta launches next month. http://blog.zunch.com/post/Engagement_Mapping_Not_Exactly_Sure_What_it_is_But_Microsoft_May_be_on_to_Something.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Engagement_Mapping_Not_Exactly_Sure_What_it_is_But_Microsoft_May_be_on_to_Something.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Wed, 27 Feb 2008 09:28:00 CST Industry News In yesterday's blog, I told you how it looked like Microsoft was backing off its attempt to buy Yahoo!, as Bill Gates said they would not up their offer and indicated they could move on with or without Yahoo!. Turns out Bill was doing a bit of a fake out on us. Now we learn that Microsoft is taking a different tack, essentially running an end around the current Yahoo! board of directors' rejection of their offer. Microsoft is now planning to to start a proxy fight to try to replace Yahoo's board of directors with a slate of more Microsoft friendly directors. This story for the San Jose Mercury News gives you all the current details. Looks like Yahoo! may have to give a call to Rupert Murdoch at Newscorp after all.   http://blog.zunch.com/post/Bill_You_Sly_Dog_You_Faked_Us_Out.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Bill_You_Sly_Dog_You_Faked_Us_Out.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Wed, 20 Feb 2008 09:36:00 CST Industry News A few weeks ago, Microsoft fired a shot at Yahoo!, rattling their sabres at the same time, and indicating that they fully intended to buy Yahoo! Since then, Google has offered to help in any way they could, albeit short of buying Yahoo! as that would be a merger that would never pass anti-trust muster. Rupert Murdoch's Newscorp also stepped in, renewing talks with Yahoo! regarding possible joint ventures or a merger. And if these efforts weren't enough, Microsoft's stock has fallen 13%, reducing the cash and stock offer from its original $44.6 billion value to about $41 billion. No one, outside of the Microsoft campus, seemed to want to see Yahoo! fall in Microsoft's hands. Many observers expected Microsoft to sweeten the pot, but now, based on statements made by Bill Gates, it appears Microsoft is moving on. A story appearing on Reuters indicates that Gates has no intention of increasing their bid, saying Microsoft's offer is "very fair" and "We can afford to make big investments in the engineering and marketing that needs to get done. We will do that with or without Yahoo!." Since Yahoo! has already rejected the original offer, and the deal is now worth less due to Microsoft's stock valuation, it looks like Microsoft is moving on and Yahoo! is safe for the time being. Of course, that doesn't mean that Newscorp might not continue its pursuit of Yahoo! http://blog.zunch.com/post/Microsoft_May_Be_T.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Microsoft_May_Be_T.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Tue, 19 Feb 2008 10:24:00 CST Industry News Yahoo! just told Microsoft to take a hike. Yahoo's decision to reject Microsoft's $44.6 billion takeover attempt has led to speculation as to what's next for the staggering online media giant.  A statement released by Yahoo!'s board of directors stated that the bid "substantially undervalues Yahoo including our global brand, large worldwide audience, significant recent investments in advertising platforms and future growth prospects, free cash flow and earnings potential, as well as our substantial unconsolidated investments." Translation-- $44.6 billion is not enough for Yahoo! to be led down the aisle somewhat willingly. This has led to several possible scenarios. One has Microsoft continuing to press Yahoo! by taking the proposal directly to its shareholders. No doubt, more than a few shareholders would love to cash out and move on. In another scenario, Microsoft might sweeten the offer to make it palatable to the Yahoo! board, which has made known its belief that the bid undervalues the company. Yet another scenario has Yahoo! taking defensive measures and either partnering with Google on search advertising (which will draw heavy scrutiny from regulators) or by again discussing a possible merger with the AOL unit of Time Warner. Microsoft desperately wants to close the gap between it and Google, far and away the leader in search engines. But even though the marriage of Yahoo! and Microsoft would combine the No. 2 and 3 players,  "Micro-hoo" (as it's unofficially been dubbed) would still substantially trail Google. Regardless, the game is on. Don't expect Microsoft to go away quietly.   http://blog.zunch.com/post/Yahoo_Says_No_Now_What.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Yahoo_Says_No_Now_What.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Tue, 12 Feb 2008 10:12:00 CST Industry News Google's chief executive, Eric Schmidt, has sent a message loud and clear to Yahoo!-- "Let's circle the  wagons and hold off Microsoft together." Google, of course, has the financial clout to go toe-to-toe with Microsoft. The problem is, Google can't counter Microsoft's offer to buy Yahoo!. That would be a marriage that would never pass anti-trust law muster. As a side note, because off Google's dominance of the search engine markets, a Microsoft purchase of Yahoo! probably would sail by any anti-trust concerns. Even a combined Microsoft-Yahoo! would still substantially trail Google in search engine market share. So how can Google possibly step in and help Yahoo! One solution, that might actually work, can be found in this New York Times article. Basically, Google could buy the right to sell ads on Yahoo!'s search results. This could give Yahoo! a long term guarantee of advertising revenue on its search results pages and theorically goose the stock price, thereby somewhat appeasing Yahoo! shareholders. It could also buy Yahoo! more time to figure out it's place in the Internet universe and reshape itself into a much stronger player, one that could maintain its indepdendence as a corporate entity. http://blog.zunch.com/post/Googles_Likely_Move_to_Keep_Microsoft_Hands_Off_Yahoo.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Googles_Likely_Move_to_Keep_Microsoft_Hands_Off_Yahoo.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Wed, 06 Feb 2008 08:24:00 CST Industry News According to Comscore, in December, Google's share of core searches stood at 58.4 percent. Yahoo! ranked second with 22.9 percent, followed by Microsoft Sites at 9.8 percent, Time Warner Network at 4.6 percent, and Ask Network in fourth place with 4.3 percent. Interestingly, Yahoo! experienced the most significant market share increase, gaining 0.5 share points as compared to November. This is as Yahoo! finds its stock price depressed and the company considering layoffs as a means to turn things around. Regardless, they are all chasing Google, and Google remains so far out in front, their hold on the marketplace seems insurmountable. The challenge facing the runner-ups is daunting. Is it a matter of changing their marketing to attract more searchers? Explore new options to offer? I'm not sure what the answer is for any of them, particularly Yahoo!. Normally, being number two in a market with nearly a 23% share of that market would be a good place to be, but in the world of Internet search engines, not so. Yahoo! investors want more. Unfortunately, that probably means the chopping block for some Yahoo! employees. http://blog.zunch.com/post/Chasing_Google.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Chasing_Google.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Thu, 31 Jan 2008 09:35:00 CST Industry News The final figures aren't in yet, but Internet ad spending continues to be a growth industry (even if a lot of companies still haven't figured out how to advertise properly on the Web). Year end figures aren't available yet, but according to BusinessWeek, through the first nine months of 2007, Internet ad spending stood at $5.2 billion. That's about a 27% leap over 2006's $4.1 billion in the first nine months. Contrast that with $15.5 billion for network TV in the first nine months of 2007, down from $16.0 billion in 2006. Watch for this trend to continue. More dollars will plow into Internet advertising and netwrok ad spending will remain roughly even, if they're lucky.   http://blog.zunch.com/post/Internet_Ad_Spending_Just_Keeps_Going_Up.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Internet_Ad_Spending_Just_Keeps_Going_Up.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Fri, 04 Jan 2008 00:51:00 CST Industry News Maybe we should make that (Web) address, since we are actually talking about URLs. Or better yet, we'll go with domain name. While I tend to spend less than ten bucks a pop for domain when I decide to buy one, other people seem to think some domain names are worth millions. Here are the most expensive domain names/web addresses purchased in 2006 and 2007-- 2006: Diamond.com ($7.5 million), Vodka.com ($3 million), Cameras.com ($1.5 million) 2007: Porn.com ($9.5 million), Computer.com ($2.1 million), Seniors.com ($1.8 million) Pretty ridiculous, huh? Especially when you consider that very few searchers on the Web would ever enter those URLs in a search term. I'm sure whoever is behind them considers it part of their branding, but does that really do much in the branding department? I don't think so. All they are doing is enriching whoever had the names before them. i guess there really is money to made in domain name squatting. Whoever bought those domain names should instead consider investing in search engine optimization/search engine marketing rather than over-priced URLs. They'd definitely get more bang for their buck.     http://blog.zunch.com/post/Whats_In_a_Web_Name.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Whats_In_a_Web_Name.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Thu, 03 Jan 2008 09:39:00 CST Industry News   Microsoft has launched its new mobile display advertising feature on MSN Mobile. MSN Mobile advertising partners currently include Paramount Pictures and Jaguar Cars North America, who began placing banner and text ads on the Mobile MSN site in the US at http://mobile.msn.com yesterday (December 10, 2007). MSN Mobile will offer additional content and services to US customers including the ability to purchase movie tickets, ring tones, wallpaper, games and video clips. Will we see a battle for mobile platform supremacy in the near future? http://blog.zunch.com/post/Microsfot_Launches_Its_New_Mobile_Platform.html http://blog.zunch.com/post/Microsfot_Launches_Its_New_Mobile_Platform.html james.sadler@zunch.com (James Sadler) Tue, 11 Dec 2007 08:49:00 CST Industry News