Pondering Primate December Newsletter

Pondering Primate December 08


CNN pitches a cheaper wire service to newspapers, an alternative to The Associated Press
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WalMart adopts wind power link

The new remote link
Wiimote, which is essentially a 3D mouse, and thus ideally suited for the speedy, point/click/drag navigation that a true big-screen Internet experience requires

FCC pushing free Web plan link

Credit card industry may cut $2 trillion of lines of credit link

Even cows being hit with greenhouse gas tax link

Advertisers tap another sense to pitch products link

Experiential marketing is also an acknowledgment that products and brands must offer alternatives to the interruptive model of peddling that has been the mainstay of advertising for more than a half-century, which disrupts what consumers want to watch, read or hear

The “phone book” for the Internet. New domain .tel link

Increased definition of “broadband” to Mbps by 2010
Telcos and tech companies issue “call to action” for national broadband strategy.
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Tax breaks, low-interest loans to build out high-speed networks. link

Energy

F.P.L breaks ground on the first utility-scale solar investment in state (Florida)
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Electrified walls and ceilings. While AC has huge advantages over DC for transmitting power, Patterson said, many of the devices in use in buildings today have to convert it into direct current, with resulting efficiency losses link

How much is the express lane worth to drive during rush hour?
From .25 to $2.65 tolls change according to traffic volume. link

Google teams up with Hallmark Channel for TV ads link

GE stops producing incandescent bulbs link

Should we watch oil stocks to determine economic recovery? (correlation of oil to economy)
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RFID boarding passes..EZPass comes to airline industry link

Apple to sell $99 iPhone at WalMart? link

In-store price comparison using mobile phone and barcode comes to a halt at Target.
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Will this lead to a boom in sales of cell phone jammers?

Facebook offers a universal ID (signon resource) and similar to OpenID. Facebook users will be able to log onto other sites connected with the service. When you view a TV show on Hulu, or read something on the Chronicle, it can show up in your Facebook News Feed, alerting your friends as to what you're watching and reading. Then they can click on it, too. Public cookies?
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New fabric resists water like no other link

Power line networking
Power line networking chips (and the algorithms that go with them) essentially allow communication signals to travel on the same wires that go to the lights. As a result, rapid, finely tuned commands can be shuttled from a utility without worries that other radios or environmental disturbances will hamper it. link

New players in accelerometer space (the chip that detects motion in remote devices)
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Keeping DNA samples from people with no criminal convictions is a breach of their human rights a European Court ruled. link

Several major cities will be without a daily newspaper by 2010 link

Google uses 16.5% of US consumer Internet capacity, expected to rise to 37% by 2010
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YouTube launches high definition link

NBC to cut back number of hours it airs programming. link

Treasury Bills trade at negative rates for first time. link
Government can finance the stimulus packages with cheap debt.

Cancer to overtake heart disease as leading killer by 2010 link

Google wants preferential treatment for Internet traffic link

Obesity tax on non-diet soda link

New York State unveils new taxes ..including iTune downloads
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Facebook the new lawsuit delivery service? link

YouTube accounts for 25% of all Google searches and now is the 2nd largest search engine. More searches done through YouTube than Yahoo.
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Google’s $1.65B acquisition pays off.

Coupon websites fastest growing online properties

VHS era is winding down. The last big supplier of the tapes is ditching the format, ending the long fade-out of a product that ushered in the home theater. link

Airline passengers can buy carbon offsets link

Internet surpasses newspapers as main source for national and international news.
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Websites to get cinema-style ratings. link