Friday, April 29, 2005

500 Channels On Your Cell Phone?

From CableWorld.com 500 Channels on your cell phone? .

The Weather Channel's mobile content experiment has ended. Now it's a mobile content business.

"We went from thinking that wireless is a secondary and somewhat experimental platform, to a primary platform for us," says Louis Gump, VP, mobile products and services, for The Weather Channel Interactive.

The growing number of handset devices capable of delivering data and video has convinced the network that it could generate substantial returns on what Gump calls a "major investment

The "lightbulb moment" for Burgess was the realization that there are a billion cell phone users around the world. "To me, that's a confirmation of the significance of the mobile phenomenon," he says

I Want My IPTV

It's another technology to watch.

No, it doesn't involve the cell phone directly, but it will have a HUGE impact on advertising.
I have been doing my homework on this technology and am uncovering all of the players associated with this.


From CzechBusiness Weekly IPTV is not a nursery-school joke .

IPTV is television that uses the Internet as its data-distribution system. The Internet can connect directly to a set-top box, or STB for those of us in the business, and then out to your television. Accessing what you want to watch is as simple as using a remote control.

IPTV will offer On Demand Programming (video on demand), and ad skipping. You can pause, rewind and fast-forward. Consequently IPTV helps you avoid traditional advertising, which in turn means that marketers will have to rethink their approaches. (Think of TIVO, I have done plenty of pondering on these problems/solutions already).

Due to the interactive nature of IPTV, when you watch a program and see a placed product that interests you, you can opt to find out more information or even buy the product immediately. See the advertising possibilities, I do.

Reuters On Your Cell

From NetImperative.com Reuters expands mobile news .

Reuters has launched a mobile news service offering global news stories to mobile users in the UK and the US, as the news service aims expand its mobile audience.

The free service delivers the top ten news stories written by Reuters correspondents in 200 bureaux around the world

The service can be downloaded by typing in mobile.reuters.co.uk on to the phone’s Internet browser.

TV On The Phone Set To Reach Masses

I don't see it, but I wasn't surveyed.


From Yahoo News Survey: TV for mobile phones set to reach masses .

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - About 125 million consumers will be watching television on their mobile phone in five years from now, a new survey found on Thursday

Mobile television is not yet commercially available, but trials are carried out around the world, and consumers are expected to be able to pick up the first TV phones by the end of the year

The difference between TV and streaming video services will be that the TV signals are broadcast to all users at the same time, while streaming video will be delivered on demand by mobile operators

Thursday, April 28, 2005

Will That Be Cash Or Cell Pt 2.

It's coming. NTT DoCoMo 30% plus stake in a credit card company is making more and more sense. The cell phone is becoming the remote control for your life.

In a sign that the cell phone is now turning into a credit card. from CR80 News.com MasterCard's OnsSmart Paypass technology links with Moneta in South Korea .

MasterCard's expansion in South Korea with its OneSMART PayPass signifies the credit card giant's roll out of not only its new payment technology, but also a new role in cell phone payment processes

Moneta is a smart chip-installed mobile payment service that allows customers to make payments with smart chip-inserted cellular phones. According to SK Telecom, Moneta is a "wired and wireless integrated service" that lets its customers "access a variety of financial services" via their cell phones. Some of these services include stock trading, financing, investments, insurance financing, and financial consultation among others.

To get a better of idea of what country to watch, John Battelle has a great story on it.

Wednesday, April 27, 2005

Desktop Search For The Cell Phone?

After pondering over two big stories today, Sprint introduces location based services and Nokia and Yahoo team up to offer search , I realized there's a bigger story here.

I can't see how any service provider will allow Yahoo to control search/info request on the phone. Service providers are already in a tizzy about having users go to other portals to get info. So that got me to thinking.

The two things service providers have that can be used. They have the GPS data of their users at all times and they tell the phone manufacturers what software/platform to put on the phones they will be selling.

Why can't SP's put their own mobile search window on the cell phone? Why can't they basically introduce a desktop search for the cell phone?

You won't need to go to the web to find your mobile info. Type in Starbucks or pizza and be directed to Sprint's mobile services. Remember, this is a MOBILE NAVIGATION PLATFORM, not search. If you want search go to www.google.com.

By sending a keyword query into Sprint's server, is it quicker than surfing the Net? Is that an advantage in itself?

The next question is who's in charge of the mobile keywords? Sprint, Verizon aren't in the business of selling keywords. Will they license a mobile keyword directory?

Who will be in charge of this mobile keyword directory? I already gave my idea how big this will be HERE .

Typing in Starbucks or pizza gives the same info based on your location, and it doesn't matter what SP you are using. What it does though is give the SP a tremendous amount of data they call sell for mobile marketing campaigns.

This cuts the SMS info request companies off at the knees. I would rather type in Starbucks in the "window" than go thru the effort of sending a SMS to Google or 4INFO.

Sprint loses out on the $1.25 411 calls, but they can charge more overall for this data package.

With Sprint introducing a commercial tool (GPS) as a consumer application, the playing field really changes. Not only do service providers have the ability to think outside the box, they can at the same time, keep you in theirs.

Out of nowhere I can see how the service providers present a serious threat to the search engines and could own the mobile search space.

Would love comments on this one.

Hey Google, did you ever think a pin dropping could sound so loud??

Sprint Offers Location Based Services

Ahhh the pieces are coming together now and the story is taking shape.

This is big.

From MobileMag.com Sprint launches location-based roadside rescue service .

Sprint today introduced two new location-based services for mobile phone users. The service will allow customers to access driving directions and roadside assistance through a simple wireless voice call at $4.00 per month plus airtime.

When dialing in, depending on the Sprint PCS phone you have, an operator will locate your coordinates and can then provide turn-by-turn directions to set you back on track.

Sprint plans to offer additional opt-in location-based voice services and location-based data services in the near future.

Possible scenarios would allow for mapping services to provide location specific weather information, detailed maps, traffic information and points of interest such as nearby ATMs, gas stations and restaurants.

Remember that Google Makes A Googol story? Another piece of the puzzle found.

The Camera Phone Gets A Major Upgrade

Great find Alan Carl Zeiss to produce lenses for Nokia camera phones .

This is important news: The world famous lens maker, Carl Zeiss, will produce optics for Nokia camera phones, the Nokia press release says.

The N90 is slated to be commercially available in the second quarter of this year. Nokia says the Nseries features large color displays, HTML browsing and streaming video and is based upon Nokia's Series 60 platform

Wireless Web Analytics

From Business 2.0.com How MMetrics is making mobile count .

Great issue this month guys.

The Seattle startup, MMetrics aims to do for mobile content what Nielsen Media Research did for television. Using a combination of 12,000 monthly online interviews and monitoring software that users opt to have installed on their phones, MMetrics will give content providers, wireless carriers, and advertisers reams of data about consumers of mobile media, a market expected to top $1 billion by year's end.

I don't know how well the idea of users opting-in this service will be. There's a better way of doing this. Follow the early adopters. If you want to see trends, and where traffic will go, follow the people that adopt a new service/device early.

The 20-person startup could face stiff competition if Nielsen moves ahead with plans to form its own mobile division.

It doesn't have to be Nielsen, think Google, 4INFO for just a couple right now.

Think about all those SMS info requests and the database Google is compiling with it. SMS info requests are early adopters. Directions, phone numbers, sports scores, weather. In my opinion, this data keeps Google ahead of Microsoft because they offer applications that people WANT and USE.

I can see Google creating another revenue stream for advertisers from this info.

The kicker of them all though. Physical world hyperlinks. I explained a couple days ago how Google Makes A "Googol" .

Think of the data that gets created when a user keys in "Starbucks" on the mobile phone in the 11034 zip-code. Or when a user clicks on a barcode of an Elton John CD to download songs or see upcoming tour info.

The data that gets created from all of this physical world hyperlinking will be invaluable. If there's a company that has the data on this server, THEY WILL BE BIGGER THAN NIELSEN.

Think of what advertisers could do with this data. That is another billion dollar industry in itself.

Hot-Spotting

From Business 2.0 online video ads get ready to grab you .

Another great article by Matthew Maier.

The thing to watch will be the Web commercials touting the pictures -- banners and trailers that promise to showcase the most advanced Web video advertising ever.

You'll be able to stop, rewind, or fast-forward the trailers and e-mail them to friends. But the real bleeding-edge technology set to take off this summer is called "hotspotting".

The ads -- designed by upstart interactive agencies such as Deep Focus ,eLine Technologies, Klipmart, and MovieBanners -- will embed hyperlinks and pop-up windows in the frames of the movie trailers, turning each character or object into a virtual library of information

Imagine what happens when hyperlinks are embedded into TV shows.Will this ability through IPTV be able to save the TV advertising industry?
I have plenty of ideas on and about that.


Full-motion online ads are quickly emerging as one of the Web's next big moneymakers. Big-name brands will spend $198 million on the medium this year -- a 70 percent jump over 2004, according to Jupiter Research. And that's expected to surge to $657 million by 2009 as broadband stretches everywhere and compression technologies evolve

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Good Reading

A couple great stories from Matthew Maier at Business 2.0.com.

What happens when GPS meets your cell phone.

This is the future of location-based services. Long heralded as one of the wireless industry's next big things, GPS-based mobile services are only now becoming useful and attracting the interest of carriers and consumers alike

Also How your cell phone will become an ad machine .

Mobile marketing will require more than repurposing existing content to fit a small screen. Smart marketers who take into account the personal aspect of the mobile handset -- and understand the opportunities and challenges presented by a device that travels with folks anywhere -- will have access to a highly responsive group of consumers.

The Ad Dollar Shifts To The Mobile

From World Peace Herald Wireless World: Mobile-phone ads growing .

CHICAGO -- Advertising to mobile phone users may be a brand new marketing medium, but it already represents a significant threat to commercial television, industry experts told UPI's Wireless World

That means before the decade is over, advertising to mobile phone customers eventually may surpass TV as the most potent media for marketers.

$26 Billion By 2010

From PR Newswire Worldwide directory assistance revenues to reach $26.2 billion by 2010 .

The need for mobile information has never been greater. The opportunity for a Google mobile directory has never been greater either.

According to The Pierz Group forecast, Americans looked for phone numbers
over 43 billion times in 2004. Six and a half billion of those phone number
look-ups in the U.S. were calls to directory assistance.

When adding other sources of telephone number look-ups (such as print
directories, Internet Yellow Pages and search engines like Google and Yahoo!),
no other country looks up more phone numbers than the United States

Wireless carriers routinely provide directions, movie
start times and locations, search by Yellow Pages category or by location, and
weather reports for any city in the country

I see a Google mobile directory service around the corner. No more giving Sprint $1.25 for something Google can give me for free.

Mary Meeker Speaks

Before you think this is the year 2000 and the Internet bubble all over again, listen to a couple comments she had to say at AdTech conference.

From ClickZ news Nowhere to go but up for Internet marketing .

Describing the Internet as "the most underutilized advertising medium that's out there," Morgan Stanley managing director Mary Meeker said broadband adoption, mobile device usage and international growth are opening up a variety of opportunities for marketers, entrepreneurs and investors

The adoption of mobile devices, especially across international markets, will also have a big impact, according to Meeker. She noted that 900 million people around the world were accessing the same platform with the same information at the same time

Advertisers' propensity to follow users online, she said, is dependent on publishers' and search engines' development of tools that enable targeting, ease-of-use, and compelling ROI.

Internet Yellow Pages

From Adage.com Online yellow pages users buy quicker and spend more.

SAN FRANCISCO (AdAge.com) -- In the battle for local online consumers, Internet yellow pages (IYP) attract a customer more prepared to buy -- and spend more money -- than the local search services of Google and Yahoo, according to a new study by ComScore Networks.

Google means "search" to consumers online.

But the yellow pages companies have 100 years of data to draw on, an army of sales people and the ingrained habit of the small-business person who may not have a Web site but automatically places an ad in the yellow pages each year, and for whom it's not a big leap to extend that ad buy online

Monday, April 25, 2005

How Google Makes A "Googol"

This is something I have been offering to the guys at Google, Yahoo and Microsoft. If there are any other companies you feel need to see this, feel free to let me know. The post is lengthy, but worth the time. When a new technology is on the cusp of adoption, it takes more than a few sentences to explain it. I see a few multi-billion dollar applications in this.

Google announced earnings last week. The amount of money Google generated in revenues by selling keywords was astounding. This is just for PC search. I know mobile search advertising will be much bigger than PC advertising, so that leads to this question.

How much will Google make when they sell keywords for mobile search and how will they do it?

Will Google start a keyword division solely for mobile search?

How much more will Google make when advertisers know that search results will be determined on location not keyword algorithms? A LOT

There are 3 reasons mobile search will generate more revenues than PC search.

1. there will be more internet traffic with the phone that the PC soon
2. click fraud won’t be an issue
3. website owners will pay MUCH MORE for keywords when they have “control” of them.

Google sells keywords to websites and the website owner hopes the search user guesses the right words in his search query to find his site. The website owner also hopes that his website comes up in the top 10 results (first page). Studies have shown that search results 11- 10,000 (from page 2 on) are never read. Nobody looks past the first page of search results. The results generated from any search query are overwhelming. You think the result number 345 guy is happy with his keyword purchase?

Do a search for anything, and you’ll see what I mean. There are thousands of websites that will never get seen and they spent money buying those keywords. It’s the equivalent of advertising on PBS at 2 am.

What Google is doing for local search, is targeting search results based on the searcher’s location by looking at the user’s IP address. They match this up w/ the search terms. This is good but it could be better. While Google is trying to determine the users location by the address of the PC, GPS automatically solves this for mobile.

So if Google will use a GPS coordinate for mobile search, and mobile search will be bigger than PC search, wouldn’t the technology that matches a GPS coordinate with a search query be invaluable?

Matching a search query with a GPS coordinate is THE solution for mobile search.

Wouldn’t this be imperative for ANY mobile search?

You won’t have to type in your zip code, street, city to find relevant searches. The less typing on your cell, the more likely it will be used.

If every PC and laptop had a GPS chip in it, local search would be complete.


The reason local search stinks is because Google cant exactly tell where you’re searching from and the data for local businesses is inadequate. Open up your Yellow Pages and ask yourself how many of these small businesses even have websites.

The roadblock for local search right now is determining your location and a database of every small business. Google is resolving these now. This inefficiency is also holding back advertising for local search. The “database” you really need is the Yellow Pages. In order for local search to work Google needs the Yellow Pages from EVERY CITY, EVERYWHERE.

Google, in creating their own universal Yellow Pages, is asking all businesses to submit their info (name , address, phone number, relevant biz, website info. VERY SMART. Google is getting data for their local search, and small businesses get placed in Googles database (free advertising). If a small business doesn’t have a website, I’m sure Google will offer them a domain, web-hosting and advertising ( 1st billion dollar opportunity).



HERE’S GOOGLE’S NEXT BILLION DOLLAR APPLICATION

Would Google be able to command more dollars if advertisers knew their site would come up based on location versus guessing the “correct” keywords? YES.

Will Google create a few billion dollar revenue streams from this? YES

Here’s how they do it.

Google unveils a Mobile Words division and mobile search takes off. All generic words are available for sale, except trademarks and brand names. That is another problem that can be resolved with Google’s Mobile Words. They sell, not auction/bid for keywords for a mobile search.

Remember mobile search is really navigation.

How can Google re-sell the same keywords again?

The search for “pizza” on a PC versus “pizza” on a cell phone is completely different. It also is done from a completely different device, and Google can determine this. Google can tell from the server info that a search query was coming from a cell phone.

So a cell phone search query accesses a completely different database, the Google Mobile Words.

Any website/company can buy keywords in the “zone” they are based on their location. Location is this case is a (zip code, GPS coordinate, phone number prefix, city). Google can determine this data with a user’s GPS coordinate. The company/website have purchased this word BUT ONLY IN THE DESIGNATED ZONE.

An example: Joe’s Pizza in the Bronx can buy the words “pizza, Italian, subs” based on the “quadrant his store is located in. (zip code, phone number prefix). Mario’s Pizza in Manhattan can buy those same words.

Domino’s buys the word “Dominos” from Google because they will want to advertise on the cell too. They will be the only one that can buy Dominos because it’s trademarked. Keying in Dominos versus pizza is navigating, keying in pizza is search. But if you’re in zip code 11034, and you key in “pizza” the websites that bought the word pizza in zip code 11034 will have their pizzerias listed. If Dominos had a store in 11304, they could buy the word pizza and be included in this search.

The owners of the keyword “pizza” in that zip code will get their pizzeria listed in mobile searches. The mobile user only has to type in “pizza”, instead of the city/zip code/pizza (think of that tiny keyboard). The user also gets pizzerias in his immediate area.

He won’t get a search result linking to a page on how to make a pizza, or the origin of pizza. He will get useful results.

Will the small business owner pay Google more for a keyword knowing he reaches mobile queries in 11034, and they will get directed to his site or address? I THINK SO

Some major things will happen.

Every small pizzeria/ small business (with or without a website) can get listed in the largest Internet Yellow Pages directory and makes the database complete . The mobile user gets a relevant search result. Click fraud is eliminated. If there’s a call center in India with a bunch of cell phones typing in “pizza”, my guess is Apu’s Pizzeria will get a ton of traffic.

In addition, the small business paid a set amount for those keywords, fraudulent clicking wont change his cost.

The search results will be determined by the MOBILE PHONE’S LOCATION.

HERE'S WHERE THE NUMBERS GET MINDBOGGLING

Imagine how many times Google can sell the same keyword in the same zip code, city, state. I’ll give you an idea. Let’s say there are 10,000 zip codes (heavily discounted) that would be good candidates for mobile search in the US.
If I was Google I think I could sell a keyword for $5000.00 per year. This $5K gets you in Google’s Yellow Pages, (how much do small businesses PAY to be in the local Yellow Pages) and it will get your business listed in any mobile queries made in your zip code for this keyword.

A guaranteed search result in a Google mobile search..

Google might be able to charge more for certain words, but this is just a round number I came up with. With 10,000 zip codes (very heavily discounted) at $5k per word, the numbers get mind-boggling. If 2 pizzerias bought the keyword “pizza” in these 10,000 zip codes at $5k per word, that’s $100m.

Now think about the demand for these words (sushi, Italian, Chinese, Thai, massage, drycleaners, salon, bank, gym, deli, golf, hospital, doctor, movie, mall). With a little thinking you can come up with dozens. You must always ask yourself, “what info would I want when I’m out away from my cell phone”. These queries are COMPLETELY different than the PC ones. These queries want navigational use.

Let’s throw in some trademarks/brand names. Let’s charge Starbucks $1k per store location to be included. McDonald’s, TCBY, Marriott, BankAmerica, PFChang, Chrysler are some others that would be of use. Would Starbucks pay $1k to have every store included in a GPS mobile search of Google’s?… I have no doubt. The revenue numbers start to get unfathomable.


Why so much per word though?

Well if Google determines what keywords are in a specific zone, and deliver relevant results based on the mobile users location, the keyword owner KNOWS that anytime a query is done for his words, in his zone, his site WILL ALWAYS come up for results.

Will these companies do this? I have no doubt they will. This is a nominal fixed cost to be included in Google Yellow Pages. Anytime a cell phone user keyed in Starbucks on their phone, they would be directed to the closest Starbucks near them. You might make nice with Google and the trademark suits in the process.

WHAT’S ANOTHER BILLION ?

Every time a mobile user keys in a search query, this is what they could get on their cell screen.
-the website/address of the search query
-map (driving directions)
-click to call feature
-GPS tracking
-coupons

Now here’s what Google gets.

-a world wide Yellow Pages that provides a great local search database.
-another revenue stream from selling mobile keywords.
-the data from every cell phone and their queries (phone number, location, keyword) a mobile marketing dream, that can be sold to advertisers. I am thinking Nielsen ratings for the phone

I would think any company doing a mobile marketing campaign would pay for this info.

The two things mobile search needs are location and relevant data. The GPS chip solves the first and a Google Mobile Words solves the other.

This is how Google makes a googol.

Google Uses Location For Ad Targeting

From Click Z news Google focuses local ad targeting .

I know this story is a little dated, but there's a reason I bring this story up. It plays a key role in my upcoming story on the many multi-billion dollar apps Google can implement.

Search giant Google will offer its advertisers the chance to more tightly target the geographical areas where their ads will be seen

The Kelsey Group expects that local paid search will amount to $2.5 billion in the United States by 2008

The new features also let advertisers around the world create "customized targeting." In this case, an advertiser indicates where his business is located -- either with an address or with latitude and longitude information -- and can then specify a radius in miles

Google infers the searcher's location by looking at the user's IP address, and also by looking at the user's search terms. If someone types in "sushi 10016," the technology surmises the person wants raw fish joints in that ZIP code -- whether or not the person is using a computer in that location. Previously, Google used only IP address data to deliver regionally targeted ads.

Now think about what Google can do with a GPS coordinate for mobile search. Stay tuned I have the answers.

Googling On The Go

I will have a post that offers a better way for all of this.

From DM News.com Googling on the go: Is the future of search in your pocket? .

It shouldn’t be that hard to find a pizza place, especially in New York City. A stroll down any West Side street should reveal at least five Original Ray’s Pizzerias, among many other chains and small establishments.

Mobile and SMS search providers, however, namely Google and Yahoo, make it seem like a chore. And they have a simple solution

Mobile search is the natural outgrowth of the search culture built by Google and Yahoo

You can use Google SMS to conduct local searches (text the category or business name and the ZIP code or location to GOOGL); to look up residential phone book listings; to get driving directions; find movie show times; get weather forecasts; check flight times; and see instant stock quotes

You also can text a question to GOOGL and get a response using Google’s Q&A.

Sunday, April 24, 2005

Targeted Ads On TV

Leave it to FOX to think outside the box. The next trend will be interactive TV ads. I know who the players are in that space.

From Kentucky.com Fox set to launch 'adjustable' TV ads .

The unfashionable 30-second television ad is about to get a makeover.

In a move that could help redefine broadcast-TV advertising, News Corp.'s Fox plans to offer marketers tweakable ads -- spots that can be digitally altered to contain elements relevant to particular viewers at the time they are seen.

A beer company, for instance, could have actors refer to the particular teams in a sporting event. Or a soup marketer's ads could cite cold temperatures outside in an effort to sell more of its product

The 30 second TV ad may be on life support, but it isn't dead yet. Finally some thinking "outside the Box".

Saturday, April 23, 2005

Yahoo And Google Goin Mobile

From SFGate.com Yahoo, Google look to new outlets .

Blockbuster quarters reported by Yahoo and Google this week illustrate the evolution of online advertising into a major economic engine

But that future won't be limited to the Web page ads that Internet users are accustomed to seeing today, according to some analysts. Yahoo and Google probably will expand their ad networks to television and mobile phones as online and offline media increasingly converge, the analysts said.

Extending online advertising beyond its traditional boundaries will be a major topic at Ad:Tech, an Internet advertising conference in San Francisco next week

I have a blog post coming this Monday that outlines a few multi-billion dollar ideas for Google.