Will Justin Bieber Be Torn Apart by Our Petty Culture Wars? [Idols]

Inevitably, Justin Bieber has inflamed both the left and the right with his controversial Rolling Stone interview. Will Bieber become the latest casualty of our never-ending culture wars? More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gawker/full/~3/RxsYg1DK5vQ/will-justin-bieber-be-torn-apart-by-our-petty-culture-wars

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Media Companies Must Divide To Conquer

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The following essay is also

my Forbes.com column for August.

Media Companies Must Divide To Conquer

The media is something that for most, if not all, of our adult lives, we have taken for granted. Media giants form the terra firma of the marketing industry, both its paid and earned disciplines. They provide the lifeblood of services and bring us the audiences we need to do our jobs.

However, underneath it all, the harsh reality is that there's a new digital dynamic present today. This will mean that many media companies divide themselves into dozens of smaller independent operating companies if they wish to survive. Many won't.

First, there is some good news.

Over the last few years, to their credit, traditional media outlets have done an outstanding job adapting to new technologies, including social networks, mobile and tablets--and helping marketers do the same. Rather than see Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, the iPad, et al, as threats, most media companies have embraced them as potentially lucrative revenue opportunities. And they've innovated too.

Nevertheless, the media business, as anyone who is in it will tell you, is still reeling in pain. To paraphrase NBC head Jeff Zucker, analog dollars are not being replaced quickly enough by digital pennies.

There are at least three currents contributing to the pain.

First, there's the sheer ballooning of information. According to TechCrunch,Google CEO Eric Schmidt recently said that every two days we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization until 2003. "The real issue is user-generated content," Schmidt said at the Technomy conference.

Despite Google's best efforts to organize it all, this is one of three new realities that will force us to make choices about what we consume and from whom.

This leads to the second current: time. Despite our Herculean efforts, time and attention remain finite quantities. And, increasingly, we are burrowing deeper into social sites. According to Nielsen, time spent on social networking climbed 43% since 2009. It now accounts for 27% of the time Americans spend online, and is the most popular online activity.

What this means for media companies is that, like it or not, social networks and social information networks are becoming their largest distributors of content, perhaps only second to Google.

Finally, and not least of all, we have mobile. According to Morgan Stanley, in just a few years digital content consumption from mobile devices will surpass the same from PCs. No matter how sophisticated these devices get, the rise of mobile will have a dramatic impact on how our global society interacts with digital information. The devices lend themselves more to pervasive media snacking over meals.

The upshot of all of this is that the era of one-size-fits-all media is coming to an end. Faced with infinite choices (and competition from people we know), finite time and attention and form factors that favor short over long, consumers are going to--as a coping mechanism--increasingly drill to find sources that align with their worldview and interests, and let the rest float by.

Media analyst Ken Doctor, in his outstanding book Newsonomics, makes a strong case that there will be only a dozen major global news players. This is down dramatically from the hundreds we have today. Given the above trends, the rest many not make it. But I am optimistic that they can if they see the light now.

To survive many media companies will need to divide themselves into dozens of smaller, independent units if they wish to survive. Although few will say so publicly, some are already moving in a direction of verticalization and specialization.

Consider, for example, ESPN. The juggernaut of sports news has been aggressively rolling out a network of local-interest sites, like ESPNNewYork.com and ESPNLosAgeles.com, in order to cater to rich sports towns. Now it's in the process of adding similar mobile apps to the mix.

This approach is smart. It slices and dices content into micro chunks that cater to diverse interests, rather than trying to be one size fits all. Granted, ESPN itself remains a whole, but others may not be as lucky.

Just as Ma Bell divided itself up into dozens of baby bells back in the 1980s - and arguably to the benefit of consumers and the telecommunications industry - many media companies will need to do the same to cope with the new digital dynamic.

Let's hope that they are just as open to structural change and verticalization as they have been to embracing new formats.

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/steverubel/~3/Pwj3nLibz0I/media-companies-must-divide-to-conquer

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Zynga valuations place company at nearly $10 billion

Earlier this week, casual gaming juggernaut Zynga received yet another outside investment of an undisclosed sum of money. A number of news outlets speculated on the aforementioned sum and what it's done to the company's bottom line -- for instance, the Wall Street Journal (via Develop) reported that the investment was worth $250 million, valuing the company at somewhere between $7 billion and $10 billion. All Things Digital says the investment was for $500 million, and claimed (alongside the New York Times) that the company is worth "nearly $10 billion."

Meanwhile, Joystiq.com's gaming industry luminaries have valued the new investment at "many, many millions," placing Zynga's net worth at "the largest number anyone's ever seen or written." Feel free to use those valuations as well, business guys.

JoystiqZynga valuations place company at nearly $10 billion originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/19/zynga-valuations-place-company-at-nearly-10-billion/

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Puzzle Agent 2 coming this summer; Puzzle Agent 1 coming to PSN this spring

Puzzle Agent, the one-off pilot game of Telltale's Pilot Program, will be renewed for a second episode, ensuring that we'll see Nelson Tethers once more. The company announced that a sequel, Puzzle Agent 2, will launch on the PC, Mac, iPhone and iPad this summer (with more platforms to be announced at a later date).

Additionally, Telltale has announced a tentative "Spring 2011" launch window for the original Puzzle Agent on PSN. A teaser for the sequel can be seen after the break.

Continue reading Puzzle Agent 2 coming this summer; Puzzle Agent 1 coming to PSN this spring

JoystiqPuzzle Agent 2 coming this summer; Puzzle Agent 1 coming to PSN this spring originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/18/puzzle-agent-2-coming-this-summer-puzzle-agent-1-coming-to-psn/

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Skill Set: Woodworking Tips from Laura?s Dad

As we never tire of saying, we love it when family members get involved in MAKE. Our crack editorial assistant Laura Cochrane’s dad, Craig, is a general contractor and woodworker. He did the Dutch Wood Repair piece on Make: Projects and contributed his repair tips to our Make & Mend theme last year. Here, Craig [...]

Source: http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2011/02/skill-set-woodworking-tips-from-lauras-dad.html

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Something Borrowed: The Unbearable Lightness of Being Kate Hudson [Video]

Which Actress Is Now a Pimp for Hard-Luck Has-Beens? [Blind Items]

This star traded in the big screen for setting up C-Listers on "dates." This actor may quit his show to keep from cheating with his costar, and this fashion editor fired an assistant for not picking up her Xanax. Maybe the madam has an opening? More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gawker/full/~3/tFr93jEdspQ/which-actress-is-now-a-pimp-for-hard+luck-has+beens

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Multiplayer war in Total War: Shogun 2 encapsulates nearly everything

Sega has released a multiplayer trailer for Total War: Shogun 2. The war does appear large, though we're not so sure it's total. There are clearly some empty spots on the battlefield, and they're not even filled with corpses! Then again, we suppose "Substantial War" doesn't have the same ring to it.

Continue reading Multiplayer war in Total War: Shogun 2 encapsulates nearly everything

JoystiqMultiplayer war in Total War: Shogun 2 encapsulates nearly everything originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/18/multiplayer-war-in-total-war-shogun-2-nearly-encapsulates-every/

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Want to own a piece of SparkFun history?

When SparkFun first got started, we used the classic hot-plate technique for solder reflow. As we grew, it became more and more necessary for us to invest in a reflow oven. So we did - buying a used 1985 Vitronics SMD 300 Reflow Oven.


Isn't he handsome?

We lovingly named him "Gramps,"and though curmudgeonly, he has served us well. Gramps has worked on thousands of SparkFun widgets and is still kicking it like it's 1985. Unfortunately (for Gramps at least), we recently bought a newer oven with all the bells and whistles. So it has come to this - rather than ship Gramps off to the old folks home, we are trying to find him a new place to live. Gramps is for sale.


You can see Gramps in the left side of old production. Yes, Gramps has seen it all.

If you're interested, we have a Craigslist ad posted. The asking price is $1500 (though we will certainly entertain any reasonable offers). Gramps is in good shape and fully-functioning. He has 6 heating zones (3 top, 3 bottom) and comes equipped with dual ventilation and an instruction manual. All he needs from you is 220V/50A and your love and affection. Gramps is from 1985, so there is no warranty implied here and pickup is on your shoulders (not literally, Gramps is pretty heavy). If you're interested, check out the ad and shoot us an email!
 

Source: http://www.sparkfun.com/news/537

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