I suppose this is a good idea, it just feels premature. I'm not sure the criteria on which to base an awards are properly established yet. OK, Myspace, Youtube, and Facebook are popular but what does that actually mean?
Mashable! promises to "provide more details once nominations begin next week".
Start your engines!
Sunday, December 10, 2006
From the Department of Wishful Thinking ...
... Comes this bit of silliness (with a serious subtext).
News Ltd's veteran South Asian correspondent, Bruce Loudon, reports that Indian men are using condoms at least 5cm too large for them. The resulting failure rate is causing chaos with HIV/Aids prevention programs as well as birth control efforts.
Apparently a two year study by the Indian Council of Medical Research "showed 60 percent of men in the financial capital Mumbai had penises about 2.4 cm (one inch) shorter than those condoms catered for. For a further 30 percent, the difference was at least 5 cm (two inches)."
5cm! What's going on there? Who was kidding who when they agreed to adopt the "international standard" for condom sizes? I mean, 90% of the male Indian population is out of range - so to speak.
Maybe the condom importer got a cheap deal from Jamaica?
News Ltd's veteran South Asian correspondent, Bruce Loudon, reports that Indian men are using condoms at least 5cm too large for them. The resulting failure rate is causing chaos with HIV/Aids prevention programs as well as birth control efforts.
Apparently a two year study by the Indian Council of Medical Research "showed 60 percent of men in the financial capital Mumbai had penises about 2.4 cm (one inch) shorter than those condoms catered for. For a further 30 percent, the difference was at least 5 cm (two inches)."
5cm! What's going on there? Who was kidding who when they agreed to adopt the "international standard" for condom sizes? I mean, 90% of the male Indian population is out of range - so to speak.
Maybe the condom importer got a cheap deal from Jamaica?
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Got a media business to sell?
Well, Fairfax is buying.
The latest in the end of year media buying binges has been all over the papers yesterday and today.
But one small, yet to be publicised, web purchase by Fairfax adds an interesting twist to the current slate of big deals. It's an independent online operation that has been running for six years, quietly building an audience and a solid business in a space the majors just can't seem to get right.
So they buy it.
On Tuesday, sources tell me, Fairfax finalised a deal to buy Essential Baby for around $1.5 million. It may be that FXJ got a bargain. Then again, it's almost certain that they'll break it once the founder serves out her payout period. (These guys really don't know how to do social media.)
Tip yer hat to a smart mum in Bronte.
You heard it first here.
Added 9/12:
"I'm sick of these chump change deals," says Ernie Entrepreneur (currently raising finance for his own, very smart web 2.0 start up).
"Fair enough," says I. "But given this is a single owner operation with one sales staff, and has been taking in $50,000 a month in ad revenue, they ain't having to spread it too far."
"Sheesh, they could have worked the multiples a bit harder. Anyway, how far does $1.5 mill get you in Bronte?"
"Oh, you're a cynic, Ernie. It's a site about baby stuff. Even in Bronte that'll buy you a lot of nappies."
The latest in the end of year media buying binges has been all over the papers yesterday and today.
But one small, yet to be publicised, web purchase by Fairfax adds an interesting twist to the current slate of big deals. It's an independent online operation that has been running for six years, quietly building an audience and a solid business in a space the majors just can't seem to get right.
So they buy it.
On Tuesday, sources tell me, Fairfax finalised a deal to buy Essential Baby for around $1.5 million. It may be that FXJ got a bargain. Then again, it's almost certain that they'll break it once the founder serves out her payout period. (These guys really don't know how to do social media.)
Tip yer hat to a smart mum in Bronte.
You heard it first here.
Added 9/12:
"I'm sick of these chump change deals," says Ernie Entrepreneur (currently raising finance for his own, very smart web 2.0 start up).
"Fair enough," says I. "But given this is a single owner operation with one sales staff, and has been taking in $50,000 a month in ad revenue, they ain't having to spread it too far."
"Sheesh, they could have worked the multiples a bit harder. Anyway, how far does $1.5 mill get you in Bronte?"
"Oh, you're a cynic, Ernie. It's a site about baby stuff. Even in Bronte that'll buy you a lot of nappies."
Monday, December 04, 2006
Walkley shenanigans
I have nothing to add to this except to say I was sitting in the middle of the room and the smile on Stephen's face as he got to his feet and looked up at Milne ranting on the stage was electric: You can't buy publicity like this!
Friday, November 03, 2006
MSM and the Ozblogosphere
So, we had some good press in Crikey today. Makes a nice change. It's been interesting watching the reaction to Tim Dunlop's announcement about the blog he'll be writing on news.com.au from next week.
The comments on Tim's post varied from the how-could-you-write-for-them variety to the congratulations-wish-it-was-me type. My favourite was this one: "Congratulations Tim. I’m with Amanda. Working on a Murdoch web site is about as impure as driving a VW, using MS Software, drinking Guinness or watching Dylan do a blistering Lovesick at the Emmys."
For anyone who doesn't know Road to Surfdom, Tim writes one of the more intelligent, long running and, yes, popular blogs in the Ozblogosphere.
It's going to be an interesting ride for him, and I do hope that his more sceptical readers will come to see that writing a blog on news.com.au can be a win win. Certainly there'll be no attempts to curtail anything he would naturally do on Surfdom.
And for the record, no one in News Ltd has played any part in this. It's come about simply from Tim and I talking.
A throwaway line at the end of Margaret Simons' piece is worth highlighting:
"At the very least, the News Limited move suggests that a back door into journalism is ajar. Don’t want to do a communications course followed by a cadetship to break into journalism? Consider starting up a blog – if you can make it good enough to get noticed."
Well, it's not a "News Ltd move". It's just one arrangement on a News interactive site. But quibbles aside, my feeling is that this is absolutely true. And will become more so.
It has actually always been possible, but it does require that MSM editors and publishers actually read blogs - apart from the few who always have. Once they start it'll be game on ... as they say.
The comments on Tim's post varied from the how-could-you-write-for-them variety to the congratulations-wish-it-was-me type. My favourite was this one: "Congratulations Tim. I’m with Amanda. Working on a Murdoch web site is about as impure as driving a VW, using MS Software, drinking Guinness or watching Dylan do a blistering Lovesick at the Emmys."
For anyone who doesn't know Road to Surfdom, Tim writes one of the more intelligent, long running and, yes, popular blogs in the Ozblogosphere.
It's going to be an interesting ride for him, and I do hope that his more sceptical readers will come to see that writing a blog on news.com.au can be a win win. Certainly there'll be no attempts to curtail anything he would naturally do on Surfdom.
And for the record, no one in News Ltd has played any part in this. It's come about simply from Tim and I talking.
A throwaway line at the end of Margaret Simons' piece is worth highlighting:
"At the very least, the News Limited move suggests that a back door into journalism is ajar. Don’t want to do a communications course followed by a cadetship to break into journalism? Consider starting up a blog – if you can make it good enough to get noticed."
Well, it's not a "News Ltd move". It's just one arrangement on a News interactive site. But quibbles aside, my feeling is that this is absolutely true. And will become more so.
It has actually always been possible, but it does require that MSM editors and publishers actually read blogs - apart from the few who always have. Once they start it'll be game on ... as they say.
Monday, October 30, 2006
YouTube pulls Comedy Central
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Monday, October 16, 2006
Investigating the future
While Mark Day writes about Australian newspaper editors who don't understand their web sites, the editor of the LA Times is activating his newsroom to go out and investigate the problem themselves. It's an interesting approach.
As the NYT puts it: "While visits to newspaper Web sites are increasing, they account for a small part of revenue and do not draw enough advertising to support newsroom operations."
This is the problem facing all newspapers. But rather than hiring consultants, or simply wringing their hands - though it sounds like there's been a lot of that already - the LA Times editor "is dedicating three investigative reporters and half a dozen editors to find ideas, at home and abroad, for re-engaging the reader, both in print and online."
Their sense of urgency is admirably, if a little belated: “'We realized we had to act fast or we wouldn’t have anything to act for,' said Vernon Loeb, the paper’s California investigations editor, who helped originate the idea."
So, will they publish the findings as a paper insert or a site feature?
As the NYT puts it: "While visits to newspaper Web sites are increasing, they account for a small part of revenue and do not draw enough advertising to support newsroom operations."
This is the problem facing all newspapers. But rather than hiring consultants, or simply wringing their hands - though it sounds like there's been a lot of that already - the LA Times editor "is dedicating three investigative reporters and half a dozen editors to find ideas, at home and abroad, for re-engaging the reader, both in print and online."
Their sense of urgency is admirably, if a little belated: “'We realized we had to act fast or we wouldn’t have anything to act for,' said Vernon Loeb, the paper’s California investigations editor, who helped originate the idea."
So, will they publish the findings as a paper insert or a site feature?
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Media laws passed
Australia's route to a new media legislative environment passed its first step this afternoon after it was approved by the Senate. Next stop the House of Represenatatives.
Opinions are divided over what level of M&A activity this will prompt. Today's Oz says most of the big players will opt to wait and see. But others have said there'll be a fast and furious frenzy of buying.
The biggest objections to the changes are about what this will mean for diversity. But even that is not a clear cut matter. Some have argued that diversity would come from fewer, rather than more, media companies.
We'll know soon enough.
Opinions are divided over what level of M&A activity this will prompt. Today's Oz says most of the big players will opt to wait and see. But others have said there'll be a fast and furious frenzy of buying.
The biggest objections to the changes are about what this will mean for diversity. But even that is not a clear cut matter. Some have argued that diversity would come from fewer, rather than more, media companies.
We'll know soon enough.
State of the Oz print media report
It's report time. The third State of the News Media 2006 report has been published and lo and behold the US version has prompted an Australian one.
The Australian Press Council has just released The State of the News Print Media in Australia Report 2006.
It's about time we had a local study. It would have been nice, though, if they'd delivered it as a complete PDF file rather than just via some very rough html.
Anyway, despite some of the doomsayers, it's a surprisingly upbeat, albeit fairly thin, report:
"Terminal decline is not a description that is warranted for the Australian press, certainly not yet, given the innovative and vigorous response of newspapers to the challenges they are encountering. But the juggernaut of change is challenging everybody in the print part of the news industry."
And that's, understandably, where today's reports have taken the story. The Oz concludes that "newspapers do have a future, despite the rise - and rise - of the internet as an information source".
And some rise it is. Look at the year-on-year growth rates for the main news sites:
The Australian Press Council has just released The State of the News Print Media in Australia Report 2006.
It's about time we had a local study. It would have been nice, though, if they'd delivered it as a complete PDF file rather than just via some very rough html.
Anyway, despite some of the doomsayers, it's a surprisingly upbeat, albeit fairly thin, report:
"Terminal decline is not a description that is warranted for the Australian press, certainly not yet, given the innovative and vigorous response of newspapers to the challenges they are encountering. But the juggernaut of change is challenging everybody in the print part of the news industry."
And that's, understandably, where today's reports have taken the story. The Oz concludes that "newspapers do have a future, despite the rise - and rise - of the internet as an information source".
And some rise it is. Look at the year-on-year growth rates for the main news sites:
I can't help but think there's a lot of wishful thinking going on in this report. The authors are by and large working editors, with a couple of academics thrown in for good measure. There's nothing specifically wrong with that, but I just don't get the impression they are the best available sources for some of the analysis - particularly around the question of new media and the challenges it presents.
Elsewhere, Australian media organisations are conducting their own investigations into the road ahead.
Mark Day writes about a recent ABC session on the "digital future" and decides that "Just as TV did not kill cinema despite the dire predictions, the internet threat to newspapers is based more on its capacity to leach away advertising revenues than drawing away readers."
Well, that's a helluva capacity.
But it's not all. In the same article Day says he has been "talking to a bunch of newspaper editors about something they universally admit they don't yet fully understand: their websites."
And there lies the biggest problem for newspapers.
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