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Come farà Facebook a conquistare il mondo

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Via Techcrunch

Remember three years ago, when Microsoft paid a quarter-billion dollars for 1.6% of Facebook and the exclusive right to run banner ads across Facebook.com? Tell the truth, how many of you thought that was a killer business decision? I can’t say I did at the time. But as that deal is about to expire in 2011, Facebook’s status as a revenue juggernaut is rarely questioned any more.

In fact, I have been mulling over data from both companies, and I’m ready to declare in public my belief that Facebook will be bigger in five years than Google is right now, barring some drastic action or accident. Futhermore, Facebook will grow without needing to cut into Google’s core business of text ads, which are still 99% of Google’s profits. Even if every single Facebook user performs just as many searches with Google as ever—including Google Instant, mobile search, and YouTube—Facebook will inexorably grow as big as Google is today and maybe bigger, because Madison Avenue’s brands are less interested in targeting than they are in broadcasting to vast mother-loving buckets of demographically correct eyeballs, and Facebook has become the perfect platform for that.

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Google Berlusconi

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Via Gabriele Farina Una delle prime cose che faccio quando accendo il pc al mattino è fare un salto su Google per vedere se si sono divertiti a proporre un nuovo doodle segnalando anniversari e ricorrenze. Immaginate quindi la mia sorpresa quando stamattina andando sull’home page di Google ho scoperto questo. Come mai Google fa … Leggi tutto

Il trasparency report di Google

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Google ha deciso di pubblicare una mappa interattiva del suo trasparency report in cui descrive le richieste di rimozione contenuti avute da governi, enti, aziende o privati Transparency is a core value at Google. As a company we feel it is our responsibility to ensure that we maximize transparency around the flow of information related … Leggi tutto

Le idee di Google per i tablet con Android

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Viac Lilliputing

I get the feeling that Google never really wanted Android tablets to exist in the first place and is just now playing catch up in response to the obvious demand. The company has another mobile operating system in the works called Google Chrome OS, which is basically an OS built around a web browser. Instead of downloaded apps, it will run web apps, although we expect there to be some offline caching capabilities which should let you do things like read eBooks or watch videos even when an internet connection isn’t handy.

Since Google is first and foremost a company that makes its revenue from web-based advertising and web-based software, it’s no surprise that Google’s vision for the future is cloud-based apps instead of downloads. Google doesn’t offer as many desktop apps as it used to, instead focusing on the cloud.

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I piccoli grandi problemi di Android

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Via Techrepubblic

By some reports, the Open Handset Alliance is in now shambles. Members such as HTC have gone off and added lots of their own software and customizations to their Android devices without contributing any code back to the Alliance. Motorola and Samsung have begun taking the same approach. The collaborative spirit is gone — if it ever existed at all. And, Google is proving to be a poor shepherd for the wolves-in-sheep’s-clothing that make up the telecoms and the handset makers in the Alliance.

As a result, we now have a situation where the U.S. telecoms are reconsolidating their power and putting customers at a disadvantage. And, their empowering factor is Android. The carriers and handset makers can do anything they want with it. Unfortunately, that now includes loading lots of their own crapware onto these Android devices, using marketing schemes that confuse buyers (see the Samsung Galaxy S), and nickle-and-diming customers with added fees to run certain apps such as tethering, GPS navigation, and mobile video.

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In autunno forse arriva il tablet di Google

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Via Engadget

We’ve been waiting on pins and needles for Google to announce some official Android tablet plans for so long we’d almost forgotten about Mountain View’s other operating system — but from what we’re hearing, Chrome OS is about to jump to center stage with a tablet debut on Verizon just before the holidays. Our friends at Download Squad are told by a reliable tipster that HTC is building a Tegra 2-based Chrome OS tablet for Google with a 1280 x 720 multitouch display, 2GB of RAM, at least 32GB of storage with the possibility of expansion, GPS, a webcam, and the usual wireless connectivity, including a 3G radio. Launch is pegged for Black Friday on November 26, and apparently the plan is to offer the device for extremely cheap or free on subsidy, which makes sense — it is just a browser, after all, and “free” sounds mighty nice compared to the iPad’s $499 entry point. (Of course, you’ll undoubtedly be tied to a Verizon contract, but we’ll just let that slide for now.) We’ll see how much of this comes true in the next few months — we’re certainly intrigued.

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Il grande fratello Google

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Via Repubblica.it

Ecco il Grande fratello Google Ci scheda per la pubblicità Google ci spia. Traccia e registra i nostri movimenti sulla rete. Vede quello che cerchiamo, vede quello che leggiamo o guardiamo. Sa dove siamo. Conosce i nostri interessi, anche quelli che vogliamo tenere nascosti. Controlla il contenuto e i destinatari delle nostre email. Pochi lo sanno, qualcuno lo sospetta, quasi tutti lo ignorano, ma è proprio così. Ci spia. E poi ci scheda, conservando la mole di informazioni che ci riguardano in un database per un anno e mezzo. Otto italiani su dieci che usano Internet sono finiti nei database di Google. Più riesce a conoscerci, più specifica, corrispondente ai nostri gusti e quindi efficace sarà la pubblicità che ci farà trovare sui siti che visitiamo. Per i cervelloni del marketing è semplicemente behavioral advertising, pubblicità personalizzata. I difensori della privacy, invece, usano un termine più sinistro: profiling. Profilazione degli utenti. Ormai lo fanno quasi tutti i più grossi operatori del web. Ma nessuno in maniera capillare quanto il gigante di Mountain View. Ma quante informazioni riesce a raccogliere il colosso della rete?

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