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  Mike Butcher from Techcrunch Europe above left, prepares to give SoundCloud another award. John Oliver, from the Daily News show provided some of the entertainment. He said he had no idea that AOL still existed (AOL owns Techcrunch and the awards), and that he considers anyone with an AOL email to likely be a serial killer from the ’90s.   There was an awkward scripted banter performed by Michael Arrington, TechCrunch founder, and his former AOL boss Tim Armstrong as they avoided eye contact and awarded Mark Zuckerberg, (below) CEO of Facebook, with “Best CEO.”   …

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Happy, Lonely or Neither: Is Social Media Creating Its Own Planet?

“Is Social Media Creating Its Own Planet?” based on what people are talking about online this week. In the category of “What planet are you on?” we’ve got a couple of doozies. First up, have you heard about the Notre Dame football star named Manti Te’o who is either the victim of a cruel hoax, or quite the hoax master himself? Te’o either created a fictitious girlfriend who died during football season bringing on the sympathy big time (can’t hurt when you’re up for the Heisman Trophy), or met a woman who really was his girlfriend, except she wasn’t who she seemed. For the time being she has vanished – either in a car crash or from leukemia, or both. Our second story in the “What planet are you on?” category is a more serious one. The Internet has always been a hotbed for conspiracy theorists, so we suppose it was only a matter of time before they got a hold of one our tragic mass school shootings and tried to debunk it. A group of “truthers” have emerged in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that claimed of the lives of…

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Paul Gillin’s Attack of the Customers: Don’t Be A Victim

I now have a copy of Paul Gillin’s book Attack of the Customers, available on Amazon, which I’ll dive into just after CES. The jist of it is how customers are rising up to have their voices heard: Why critics assault brands online and how to avoid becoming a victim. He raises the point that an attack from a customer or a flurry of customers can go global and viral ina matter of hours, not days or weeks. The impact to a big brand once something negative goes viral can be traumatic. Attack of the Customers explains how social media can be used to destroy as well as to build. It offers actionable strategies to prevent and prepare for disasters before they strike a company, demonstrating ways that creative engagement can turn critics into raving fans. Read an excerpt from the book Gillin published many months ago before the book was published using the example of when Procter & Gamble announced the most significant technical advance in disposable diapers in a quarter century. The new Dry Max line featured an absorbent gel that improved diaper efficiency while cutting materials and costs by 20%. He uses real…

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Miscommunication Issues Due to Cultural Gaps in Instant Messaging

The advent of the internet made communication so convenient – numerous platforms and applications now exist to connect people that are thousands of miles apart. Though communication channels have become streamlined and standardized, cross-cultural communication in professional and academic situations still proves to be a challenge, especially when it comes to chat programs and instant messaging services. We conducted a survey called The Challenges of Working in Virtual Teams and and found 87% of respondents noted that at least 25% of their productivity depended upon working virtually and 61% of respondents reported virtual work with individuals based both domestically and internationally. The challenge that globally dispersed, virtual teams have in communicating their ideas is that their members often come from different cultural backgrounds. Cultural differences hinder comprehension and language barriers make communicating even more problematic. Chat programs and instant messaging are communication technologies that can ease this kind of communication stress. Based on The Challenges of Working in Virtual Teams, of those who work virtually, 28% reported using email, 19% instant messaging and 7% text messaging (SMS) – all written forms of virtual communication. However, according to the survey,…

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Mobile Loco Brings the Best of Advertising, Geo-Location and Branding to the Mobile World

Held last week in San Francisco, the MobileLoco event merged the best of geo-location, advertising, branding and the mobile world. Run by serial marketer Mark Evans, the event aspires to dive into the brand, advertiser and mobile convergence in the context of the Social, Local and Mobile (SoLoMo) marketplace. The discussions revolved around what this convergence means for big brands, consumers, SMBs and the mobile and location industry. On-stage, we heard from the likes of Andrew Mason of Groupon, Benchmark Capital’s Bill Gurley, Banjo’s Danien Patton and the Mobile Engineering Lead of Airbnb Andrew Vilcsak.  Other voices included Bloomberg TV’s Cory Johnson, Google’s Don Dodge, Nextdoor’s Nirav Tolia, Postmates Bastian Lehmann, Foursquare’s Holger Luedorf, Micello’s Ankit Agarwal and others. Above: Andrew Mason, CEO of Groupon Client inTooch partnered with MobileLoco so users could easily and seamlessly exchange contact and social network information on the fly. A free mobile app for iPhone and Android, attendees could network that much faster and more efficiently using the app rather than have to exchange business cards or manually add Twitter and Facebook ‘handles.’ Above: Steve Brehaut,…

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Mobile App Airport Chatter Launches Today: Connect to Airport, Airlines, Retailers and More

Over 4 billion passengers pass through airports annually and yet the majority of us often have frustration and stress while traveling. Launching today is a new service called Airport Chatter, which is a free mobile app that provides you with the information, tools and interactions to make air-travel a better experience. They help travelers connect to airports, airlines, retailers and other travelers. Discover the airport around you, with over 4,600 detailed venue profiles we make sure you have the information you need. From the closest burger spot, to the best rated coffee shop and the ATM’s near your gate, airports become small and friendly again. They’ll also provide reviews from the traveling community surrounding you and you can share your own interesting experiences by rating and reviewing airports and their venues. Users can also use Radar to connect with other travelers in the airport, meet new friends, share experiences and make your trip more interesting. To download on the iPhone store, check it out here.

LeWeb’s The Internet of Things: From Lightbulbs + Robots to Augmented Reality Apps + Air Quality

LeWeb Paris continues to grow year after year, with this year reaching over 3,500 attendees.  From a couple of hundred attendees in the first year, they had 5,000 attendees this past year alone for both their London and Paris events, London being a test, something that they plan to continue doing in the years ahead. They attract big players like Orange, Microsoft and others and mid-tier players known in Europe and beyond, like Parrot, as well as tons of start-ups eager secure funding and entrepreneurs looking for the next big thing. It’s also an incredible place to “schmooze” on the floor at the event itself as well as the umpteen after parties and events they hold in the evenings throughout the center of Paris. I returned to San Francisco from an exhausting trip of meetings and pow-wows to hear that LeWeb was acquired by Reed MIDEM, one of the leading events organizers in the world. How that changes the format of LeWeb moving forward is yet to be seen, but more budget and marketing should ‘in theory’ lead to more “high-touch” events, better food and higher profile speakers. That said, it could also…

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The iPad Mini: Why Apple Thinks You’re an Idiot

  Behold the chamfered edge  I have quite a bit of Apple product fatigue. I’ve owned seven iPhones, three iPads and two mac minis in my time. They are quite pricey, and when the newest gadget comes out, the current one becomes pretty much worthless. When the iPad mini was announced, I felt that fatigue. I thought to myself – if I am going to complicate my life with yet another device, it better be good. And chances are, if it’s an Apple gadget, it will be good. I tried to work out where an iPad mini would fit in my life. Besides the large screen (the TV), the small screen (the phone) and the medium-sized screens (iPad and notebook), where would this new in-between screen fit exactly? Is this some kind of Kindle competitor that I would read books on? Is this a more casual iPad, or just a smaller iPad for people who would prefer something smaller? Nicely priced The price is nice (from US$329) and it’s a gorgeously thin, light and compact device. In fact it made my iPad 3 64GB feel like a tractor, which is…

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