Google launches Lively - a new social web virtual world (and I need help to decorate my room!)

Lively is the new Google virtual world and Google are aiming to use Lively to make the social web more interactive. The Lively project allows users to create their own 3D Lively area and then embed this area on their blog or other web presence. Friends and other Lively users can then visit and have conversations in an interactive way rather than in the traditional static fashion of comments on blogs etc.

Lively trailer from YouTube here:

Whilst Second Life isn't mentioned in any of the press releases, a lot of the functionality ideas behind Lively seem to be similar, however the crucial difference is that Second Life exists in a closed bubble whereas Google are aiming for Lively to be open and distributed wherever content allows.

Curiousity has prompted me to start to create my own profile. This is what I found:

The sign up is very straight forward. Go to http://www.lively.com/ download the simple software and you are ready to sign in using your Google / Gmail account username and password. You then pick your Avatar name and go straight to someone elses room or start to create your own.

Rather than read any instructions or look at any examples, I obviously decided to go straight in and create my own space. There are lots of customisable options for rooms and characters and I managed to get dressed, get a room layout, acquire a bed and some chairs and generally get things started - though I wasn't expecting to see myself represented as a little bald man at the start! (There is also an opportunity to 'catalogue shop' for further objects from fashion to furniture.)

Basic Lively set up all seemed very easy, though I'm sure it's harder to create anything that actually looks nice - though IKEA will launch virtual furniture here too. Lively also allows users to grab a bespoke URL for their room, get an embed code and customise with sound and video (apparently you can even get a TV that runs YouTube clips.)

My Lively room with newly acquired decor and furniture and me sitting in an armchair

The Google blog states that "if you enter a Lively room embedded on your favorite blog or website, you can immediately get a sense of the room creator's interests, just by looking at the furniture and environment they chose." Please ignore Google's advice to judge me on the basis of my Lively creation, but feel free to visit / contribute to my Lively room below - the decorating setting is on public so anyone can add / do anything. (Please leave comments here to let me know what you have done.)

Nick's Lively Room:

The Lively project could have great potential for Google to develop FriendConnect and beef up social media credentials. I don't think SecondLife will be particularly affected to start with as Second Life has a core, dedicated following with many users having spent considerable time creating things. However I do think that Lively has the potential to open up the concept of virtual worlds to a far wider audience and it will be interesting to see where this goes (and if it does take off I am hoping to be able to offer the world something slicker than my 5 minute creation from tonight.........)

Lively on the Google blog:
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2008/07/be-who-you-want-on-web-pages-you-visit.html

Tour de France launches Google Street View in Europe

Google are bringing the Tour de France to life online with the launch of Google Street View in Europe. Google Street View can be used to see the Tour de France route and also includes the latest Google Street View technology including higher definition imagery coupled with face and numberplate blurring.

Going to http://www.google.com/tourdefrance2008 drops users straight into a Tour de France Google Map:

Google Maps Tour de France (click for larger image)

Users can then click at any point on the Tour de France route to see Street View detail with high definition Google Street View photographs taken at street level. The arrows on the yellow line in the Street View photo can also be used to move forwards or backwards and using the navigational arrow buttons to the left of the screen allows users to pan to see a full 360 panorama.

Google Street View of the Tour de France route on the Champs Elysees, Paris (click for larger image)

There is a wide range of other online / social media around the Tour de France and http://www.tdfwiki.com/wiki/Main_Page seems to be a good reference point to find out which national broadcasters are covering the Tour de France on TV and online, as well as pointing users in the direction of blogs, Twitter accounts etc.

Google Street View has had negative PR in recent weeks in advance of its European launch (eg http://news.bbc.co.uk) but privacy issues to one side, the technology and experience is impressive.

This is referenced on the Google Blog and the Google LatLong blog here:
http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/2008/07/tour-tour-de-france-with-street-view.html

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2008/07/tour-tour-de-france-with-street-view.html

5 examples of Wimbledon using social media (and Andy Murray on Twitter!)

Wimbledon are using social media as the tournament continues to experiment with new technology to extend the championships reach.

There is extensive BBC interactive Wimbledon coverage and international audiences can buy an online video stream subscription through Wimbledon Live on the Wimbledon website.

However, whilst the Wimbledon website gains high traffic (8.6 million unique visitors viewing over 266 million pages in 2007), Wimbledon are also extending coverage by using social networks and social media. The aim is to create opportunities for deeper engagement with the tournament and allow Wimbledon fans to discuss and share Wimbledon content.

1) Wimbledon Facebook Fan Page

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Wimbledon/15690358731?ref=s

The Wimbledon Facebook Fan Page is a great example of how Facebook Fan Pages can be used.

The Wimbledon Facebook Fan Page acts as a hub for all the Wimbledon online activity and gives Facebook users insight to the tournament. A wide range of photos and videos have been posted, official Wimbledon bloggers leave Facebook notes and updates, an MP3 player broadcasts Radio Wimbledon and Wimbledon fans have the chance to vote in Wimbledon Polls and opportunities to upload their own Wimbledon content.

The Wimbledon Fan Page has over 9,000 fans.

UPDATE: Facebook have deleted this page because they classify Wimbledon as a 'corporation'........ http://tinyurl.com/5kgcb2

2) Wimbledon in Second Life

IBM provide the technology for Wimbledon and since 2006 IBM programmers have been bringing Wimbledon experiences into Second Life. For 2008 a mini-Wimbledon has been built with courts, various IBM behind the scenes info stands, links to live scores and free gifts / games.

I went to look and visited the Wimbledon Second Life shop where I was able to get free strawberries and cream, a Wimbledon towel (that also doubles up as a Magic Carpet), an umbrella, poncho, a tennis racket (to partcipate in games) and 'Wimbledon Eyes' (though I'm not quite sure what these are.)

I also got given a Second Life Wimbledon T-shirt (which I am wearing in the picture below), though I would recommend familiarising yourself with how to change clothes before trying to put the T-shirt on - I ended up naked on the court for a good few minutes while I worked out how to change clothes!

There are also supplemental areas such as the Wimbledon back office and a roof garden where you can drink free Pimms and eat more strawberries and cream.
During the day the Wimbledon area is staffed by super-helpful IBM employees who can answer questions and guide you around. This really adds something to this environment and I enjoyed being able to engage on a personal level.

Second Life Wimbledon is there until the end of the tournament, have a look before it goes!

Wimbledon Second Life address:
http://slurl.com/secondlife/IBM%207/133/167/23

3) Wimbledon YouTube

Wimbledon are uploading daily previews and interviews to YouTube and then presenting these video clips on the Wimbledon Facebook page

Here is the Day 9 Wimbledon YouTube preview:



4) Wimbledon blogs and Fanlog

Wimbledon are running a Fanlog through the Wimbledon website and publishing Facebook notes on the Wimbledon Facebook Page.

These posts aim to provide alternative viewpoints to the main media reporting by allowing both Fans and behind the scenes people to publish their thoughts.

5) Wimbledon Twitter

Wimbledon started using Twitter in 2007 (under the username Wimbledon2007) to publish scores and updates.

Twitter is again being used this year, but under the more generic
http://www.twitter.com/wimbledon.

The 2008 Wimbledon tournament is also represented on Twitter by Andy Murray! Thanks to Jemima Kiss we learn that Andy Murray is a Twitterer and has been updating his account as the build up and tournament has progressed. Since Andy Murray's Twitter use has been highlighted his following has grown significantly - join in at http://twitter.com/andy_murray

Wimbledon continue to experiment with technology and the social media initiatives that are running around the tournament are interesting. It presents an intriguing blend of tradition (white kits etc) and modernity, but seems to work and successfully brings Wimbledon to life online.

Euro 2008 promotions and media coverage in Sweden shows what we missed in England

Sweden were in Euro 2008 and the media and marketing activity around the tournament showed what we missed as a result of England not qualifying.

The Independent claimed that England not qualifying for Euro 2008 was 'expected to cost the economy between £1bn and £2bn, accounting for as much as half a percentage point off the UK gross domestic product.' The Independent also states that profits at retailers like Sports Direct and JJB Sports would be severely affected whilst advertising revenues would also be hit - especially at ITV where it could see ITV lose 'upwards of 10m in advertising revenue due to reduced audience interest.'

These are just figures on paper though. I have just spent the last 2 weeks in Sweden and seeing how much excitement there was around Euro 2008 makes me realise how flat it was in the UK.

1) Novelty Euro 2008 football songs

England not qualifying meant there were no England songs in the UK charts. Traditionally there are a plethora of tournament related musical offerings, but this time there was little public interest in a re-release of Three Lions etc. Sweden has served as a reminder of what we have been missing as the Swedish top 10 has been dominated by Euro 2008.

The number one album has been 'Absolute Football Anthems'

and the singles chart has had various football related entries from Swedish acts like Markoolio and Frans feat Elias. There has also been a return for Rednex (the group behind 'Cotton Eye Joe'). Rednex got to number one in Sweden with a song called 'Football is our religion.' The video is below - enjoy!

2) Player endorsement of products

During a major football tournament we are used to seeing the faces of English players like David Beckham and Michael Owen appearing in everything from ads for ASDA through to sports equipment and products like Pepsi - but with England not qualifying there were few (if any) topical football ads. Player endorsement was evident in Sweden over Euro 2008, however whilst Swedish media coverage of the Sweden team focussed on Zlatan Ibrahimovic, there is no doubt who the Swedish advertising poster boy is. Freddie Ljungberg has been on a wide range of products including using a variety of poses on Pepsi Max bottles as well as appearing on random cardboard cut outs.

3) Football related marketing

A number of Swedish products piggybacked Euro 2008 with their advertising and packaging. I was particularly impressed with Norrlands Guld lager. Norrlands Guld is literally translated as North Lands Gold. Originating from the North of Sweden, through various tongue in cheek, Swedish themed advertising Norrlands Guld has become one of the most popular beers in Sweden.

For Euro 2008 packaging was changed and an ad campaign was created around the theme of 'Nu Vi Tar Guuuld!' (now we take gold).

A typically over the top 3 minute TV ad was shown featuring traditional Swedish scenes, fighter planes, mountains, hordes of people and a rock song entitled 'Nu tar vi Guuuld'. This activity was then supported with a Euro 2008 themed blog, the song was made available for download and the video was uploaded to YouTube (receiving 86,000 views to date):

4) Swedish TV coverage

Sweden's largest commercial broadcaster TV4 covered Euro 2008 in Sweden. They showed matches every night, covered all the games and showed full repeats the following morning. TV4 also suffered the same loss of semi-final coverage as the UK (though it was little use to me when they went to a Swedish radio commentary whilst the picture was missing!)

TV4 also produced a discussion programme called 'EM Magasinet' after every match. Broadcast from an outdoor location every night in Stockholm, in my eyes it compared favourably to the UK coverage. A modern and stylish set plus a rotating panel of guests including ex-Man City Assistant Manager Hans Backe, current Swedish players like Rami Shaaban and Swedish legends like Martin Dahlin kept the programme fresh and different every night. TV4 also had female discussion participants like Anna Brolin - a massive (and refreshing) change to the English diet of regulars like Hansen and Alan Shearer!

5) Euro 2008 merchandise and collectables

Sweden has been full of football related merchandise. Everywhere you looked there were hats, flags, t-shirts, cups and even Sweden deckchairs for sale. There was also a full range of collectable memorabilia for sale on the 'Fotbollsfeber' (Football Fever) stand - stickers, trading cards, mini figures etc (I also never realised that the Panini sticker collections are the same all over Europe!)

There was an obvious contrast to the merchandise available in English shops especially after I saw this rather sad sign in our local Woolworths just before the tournament started:

I enjoyed watching the tournament in Sweden and it was great to be in a place where Euro 2008 was front page news every day, rather than in the UK where the semi-final reports only managed to make pages 8 and 9 of the Daily Telegraph sport section. And whilst much of the Swedish Euro 2008 marketing was generally as expected, but there were some interesting new ideas.

I thought Euro 2008 was a great tournament and I enjoyed watching it in Sweden, but I hope Fabio Capello can now sort things out and make sure England qualify for the World Cup - though after seeing this house in Hayes yesterday I guess for some people it doesn't matter whether England qualify or not!

Other posts I have written on Euro 2008:

- Seven Nation Army is the unofficial Euro 2008 theme:
http://www.nickburcher.com/2008/06/white-stripes-seven-nation-army-has.html

- Google add 3D Euro 2008 stadiums to Google Earth:
http://www.nickburcher.com/2008/06/euro-2008-3d-stadiums-added-to-google.html

- Euro 2008 - digital developments around the tournament:
http://www.nickburcher.com/2008/06/euro-2008-5-examples-of-online.html

Paul Oakenfold on Kiss FM to launch the Kiss in Ibiza season and a retrospective of 20 years of Electronica

Paul Oakenfold has joined Kiss FM this weekend to launch the Kiss in Ibiza season and start a series of shows looking at the evolution of dance music. Paul Oakenfold is presenting three shows across this weekend, Kiss Ibiza Classics (Fri 27th June 10pm), Kiss Ibiza Legends (Sat 28th June 11pm) and a documentary called Kiss Ibiza (Sun 29th June 7pm.)

Paul Oakenfold was one of the original Kiss 100 presenters in 1985 and his return to Kiss will see him present a series of shows charting the history of dance music over the last 20 years - Paul Oakenfold's Ibiza Review is the first in this series.

http://www.kissdoessummer.com/ibiza/2008/06/26/paul-oakenfold-on-kiss/

In conjunction with the radio shows, Paul Oakenfold and Kiss have produced a YouTube video where Paul Oakenfold gives a tour of his Hollywood studio and talks about career highlights and his favourite tracks:

I listened to the Kiss Ibiza Classics show tonight (Friday night) and really enjoyed it - lots of memories with various Perfecto tracks coupled with other Ibiza classics like Agnelli & Nelson 'Everyday', however there doesn't seem to be anywhere on the Kiss site that allows 'Listen Again' or Podcast / download.

UPDATE - the Paul Oakenfold shows are available on demand through the Kiss radio player at www.totalkiss.com but they have not been labelled as Paul Oakenfold. To hear Friday's Paul Oakenfold KissFM show you need to select 'EZ Fridays 10pm', this is actually the Paul Oakenfold Ibiza Classics show. To hear the Saturday night Ibiza Legends Paul Oakenfold show you will need to select '11pm Shortee Blitz Mixtape'. Strange that the shows haven't been re-labelled on the catch up player or on the online schedule...........

The Paul Oakenfold Kiss FM radio shows do not seem to have been extended online either. Given Paul Oakenfold's mastery of the internet (www.pauloakenfold.com and http://www.myspace.com/pauloakenfold) I was expecting to find the tracklistings and audio online after the show.

Getting Paul Oakenfold was a fantastic coup for Kiss and, whilst I enjoyed the show, it would be great to be able to listen again or download it. Dutch Radio 538 produce an excellent podcast for Tiesto's radio show (http://www.radio538.nl/clublife/podcast.xml) and a similar initiative could extend the reach of the Kiss FM Paul Oakenfold shows.

I think there is also an opportunity to create a deeper engagement with the Paul Oakenfold shows through a discussion forum / online space around the broadcast. A lot of people have dance music memories and memorablia tucked away. Aggregating this content around the Paul Oakenfold Kiss FM shows could create a hub of activity and really bring to life the retrospective that Paul Oakenfold will be presenting - it would also give me a use for some of the stuff that I have kept:

Muzik magazine celebrates the launch of Home nightclub in Leicester Square, London (October 1999 - who said magazines have a readership lag????)

Home launch line-up:

Introducing social elements to the Paul Oakenfold Kiss FM shows would create a deeper engagement with listeners and I think a 'Kisstory' gallery would be great! This is another example of an excellent 'traditional media' initiative that could be further enhanced by integrating the content with other channels and extending it using social media platforms.

Pitchero - new social network for sports clubs

Pitchero is a new social network for sports clubs and is about to launch a full platform (due in June 2008).

Pitchero "has been designed specifically for semi professional and amateur sports clubs". Pitchero provides every club (whatever size or structure) with a well designed website with facilities to easily incorporate photo galleries, video uploads, results, statistics and news. The idea is that this will then create a deeper involvement for both club players and supporters.

Screengrab of Pitchero homepage

The Football Association and Rugby Football Union are also interested as they have ambitious targets for sports participation and are looking for new ways to engage young people.

According to the Sunday Telegraph more than 60 football, rugby union and rugby league clubs have signed up from across the UK and using angel investor money the founders, Mark Fletcher and Jon Milsom, have big plans.

Great idea and follows the trend for social networking around a specific niche. This sort of site offers a more targeted way for brands to get involved with social media and I am interested to see what the full platform looks like in June.

Skype Nomad - promoting Skype through 33 days of 'perpetual motion'

Travel journalist, Rebecca Campbell, has assumed the role of 'Skype Nomad' and is aiming to spend 33 days travelling / blogging the world, demonstrating 'how mobile Skype can be.'

The Skype Nomad adventure has just started. She left Heathrow over the weekend and the Skype Nomad itinerary entails being permanently in motion for the duration of the 33 day trip (even sleeping whilst travelling!)

According to the Skype blog: "She'll be hopping from jet to rickshaw and bumboat in Singapore to a Fogg-esque hot-air balloon over the Alps in Austria, to gondola in Venice, a boat cruising the Yangtze River in China, cable car in San Francisco, dog sled in Alaska, the famed cross-continental Indian Pacific train between Sydney and Perth in her native Australia, and a boat ride across the Baltic from Sweden to Skype's supreme HQ in Tallinn, Estonia to finish up June 6, "D-Day.""

Unsurprisingly this journey has a large array of social media initiatives attached to it. From Skype users being able to connect to her in real time through Skype to the obligatory Facebook / MySpace pages as well as use of Flickr, Twitter and more niche sites like Dopplr.

Skype Nomad Flickr -http://www.flickr.com/photos/skypenomad

Skype Nomad Twitter - http://twitter.com/skype_nomad

Skype Nomad MySpace - http://www.myspace.com/skypenomad

The Skype Nomad itinerary can be seen on the Skype Nomad YouTube channel here:

There is also a Skype Nomad 'traditional' blog which contains links to all her social media and also a 3D globe that shows her progress.

The Skype Nomad blog

Everything is updated through Skype mobile internet and I assume these adventures will all be aggregated into a book once the trip has finished? The Skype Nomad project is another interesting way of promoting a product by going to extreme lengths to demonstrate its functionality, whilst using social media and PR to bring the whole thing to life. It is also commendable that this project is raising money for charity at the same time.

London Mayor election online - web strategy and internet developments

The London Mayor election was the first UK election where the internet had significant influence. I have written about various aspects of the online campaigns previously and thought I would summarise some of the key developments here.

Boris Johnson had the most developed online campaign. Much has been made of his election strategist, Lynton Crosby, employing a “doughnut strategy” of ruthlessly targeting Tory-leaning voters on the edge of the capital (see here for more), but below are 5 examples of online activity in the London Mayor election which are also notable:

1) London Mayor election - online hustings and questioning

Whilst there were a number of official broadcast debates, various online initiatives sought to question the candidates and engage them in a more intimate environment. YouTube was less influential than it has been in the US elections, but the principle of users posting questions online for candidates to respond to was seen in a number of places - from live webchats with the Sun (where Boris suggested he would re-look at the smoking ban) through to more structured online hustings seen on sites like Yoosk.

Yoosk London Mayor online forum (click for larger image)

2) YouGov's London Mayor election online polls proved to be more accurate than the traditional polling methods

The London Mayor election saw controversy around polls and polling methods with YouGov and IPSOS / MORI having a public debate about methodology and Ken Livingstone's campaign making an official complaint about the YouGov polls - SkyNews covered this here.

YouGov conducted six polls (using their online panels) and always showed Boris Johnson with a lead - ranging from 6% to 12%. This went against some of the other more traditional, telephone based polling of rival companies which showed a much smaller lead for Boris and at one point showed Ken Livingstone ahead by 4 points. The final YouGov poll published on Thursday morning (voting day) exactly predicted the actual result with Boris winning by 53-47%. This has prompted a press release entitled 'YouGov [online poll] gets it exactly right in Mayoral election' and offers to 'help the inquest into inaccurate telephone polls.' (full release can be seen on the Adam Boulton blog).

3) London Mayor candidates use of online media

All candidates used online extensively and social media was prominent. We saw London Mayor candidates using Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube and blogs. London Mayor candidates (with the exception of Boris) also had Google strategies (see here) and well developed campaign websites. (3 days after the election Ken Livingstone's 'Vote Ken' Google campaign is still running though...........)

The online activity supporting Boris Johnson was the most well thought out and I thought the emails sent on Wednesday and Thursday were a nice touch (even if they did get marked as 'spam' by my Gmail.)

Boris Johnson email with links to his profiles on Twitter, YouTube and Facebook
(click for larger image)

4) The LondonElects website was a great success

http://www.londonelects.org.uk/ was set up to encourage voter turn out and to provide a central, neutral, online focus point for the London Mayor election. From running an initiative to find (and part fund) an independent candidate through to offering consolidated results analysis once the election had finished, Londonelects.org.uk gained over 1 million visits and contributed to record voter turnout.

LondonElects website homepage (click for larger image)

5) London Mayor election Buzz tracking

A number of companies have tried to show case their products by applying Buzz Tracking to the London Mayor race. Systems like 'Opinion Tracker' or QDOS kept track of online buzz around the candidates and published their results. Other traffic analysis companies like Hitwise also published insight on respective candidates web traffic.

It was also possible to gain insightful information from sites like Google Trends that show you the volume of people searching for a particular candidates name:

Google Trends analysis of volume of searches for each candidate (click for larger image)

My first post about the London Mayor election predicted that it would see a new style on online campaigning in the UK
(http://www.nickburcher.com/2008/03/london-mayor-election-will-see-new.html) and I think the London Mayor candidates' online campaigns were comprehensive. I don't think it is any coincidence that the most well developed internet campaign belonged to Boris Johnson, the winning candidate.

In future UK elections I expect to see online activity further developed with increased use of behavioural targeting and opportunities such as Facebook messages targeted to users in line with their political preferences. The London Mayor campaign was a testing ground for a number of online strategies and I think the internet will be a major battleground in the next UK general election.

6 examples of Twitter use by advertisers, politicians, publishers, developers and users

This time last year there was a lot of hype around Twitter. It seemed to die down a bit, but it has recently felt like Twitter is getting a second wind and properly coming into the mainstream. Twitter do not publish official figures on number of users or regularity of updates, so there is no hard data to back up my opinion, however the Twitter Facts blog have looked at this recently and the stats they have found seem to agree.

[UPDATE: Hitwise have written about Twitter here and have noticed a significant increase in traffic in recent weeks]

Here are 6 examples that illustrate how Twitter is entering the mainstream:

1) News organisations using Twitter to extend reach

Twitter is a great way of generating feeds and a number of publishers are using it to connect with readers and highlight particular stories / discussions. US news organisations like CNN and the New York Times have used Twitter for a while, but more recently British publishers have started experimenting with Twitter. SkyNewsBoulton or GordonM (editor of Brand Republic) are good examples of how Twitter is being used to draw attention to particular articles, whilst creating a deeper engagement with viewers / readers.

Screengrab of the skynewsboulton Twitter

2) Politicians using Twitter to let voters keep track of them

The most followed Twitterer is Barack Obama with over 25,000 people following him on Twitter. In the UK London Mayor candidates Boris Johnson (http://www.twitter.com/backboris) and Brian Paddick (http://www.twitter.com/brianpaddick) have also been experimenting with Twitter to let voters know what they are doing and Downing Street (http://twitter.com/downingstreet) now have a Twitter account that they regularly update to show Gordon Brown's activity. The use of social media in politics is growing and micro-blogging politicians is an interesting development.

3) Advertisers using Twitter for engagement

In the UK the Open University are currently running a promotion with the Daily Telegraph and as part of this they are using Twitter to distribute interesting articles and insight - http://twitter.com/openuniversity

Screengrab of the OpenUniversity Twitter

Twitter.com has not accepted display advertising, but in Japan (where it has just launched a Japanese language version) Twitter.jp has decided to accept homepage advertising. "One of the first advertisers is Toyota which has a Twitter account where they talk about events and products. The [Toyota homepage display] ad directs people to a Toyota Twitter account where the users can follow the brand. Toyota can easily see who their fans are and follow what their fans are saying about them."
(http://joi.ito.com/)

Screengrab of the Toyota Japan Twitter display ad

4) Increase in Twitter spam

Twitter is now being used for spamming with a number of Twitter users starting to complain about Twitter spam. The default setting on Twitter allows anyone to start following you at any time. Twitter spam involves becoming a follower of a large number of Twitterers in a very short space of time (often thousands in a few hours.) The hope of the Twitter spammers is that users that they have added as followers will either reciprocate and start following them, or at least look at the website listed on their profile.

http://mashable.com/2008/04/14/twitter-spam-out-of-control/

The only way of preventing Twitter spam is to change the Twitter settings so that you have to personally approve each new follower, but this can be time consuming and feels against the spirit of an open community. However, the development of Twitter spam is a good indicator that Twitter is now properly established!

5) Twitter applications

There are now a large range of Twitter applications resulting from Twitter's opening of their API. Twitterers can update their Facebook status with their Tweets and various applications like Tweetscan (http://tweetscan.com/alerts.php) allow scanning of Tweets or Twitter tracking. Twitter is also popular component of Mashups and initiatives like Twittervision (http://twittervision.com) or Twittearth (http://twittearth.com) give interesting perspectives. There is even a desktop application called Twhirl (http://www.twhirl.org/) that allows Twitter to be updated from Twitterers desktops.

Screengrab of the TwittEarth application

The most talked about Twitter application currently though is Twistori, a beautifully designed application that allows people to follow Twitter updates around Love, Hate, Think, Believe, Feel and Wish.

Screengrab of the Twistori application

6) Twitter users creating Twitter projects

A number of Twitterers seem to be experimenting with Twitter projects. There doesn't seem to be any real objective to the majority of these other than curiosity and an interest in seeing what happens. A good example of this is Inwotr (http://www.twitter.com/inwotr / http://www.inwotr.com) where a Twitter user is trying to virtually travel the world through connections made through Twitter!

Twitter seems to be reaching critical mass and whilst commentators have long been predicting that Twitter will be the next big thing, I think the above examples are good indicators that Twitter will soon be properly established in the mainstream. Interested to hear of any other examples.

Virgin Radio new homepage - my review featured as Marketing 'Digital Choice'

Virgin Radio have redesigned their homepage and my review was featured in Marketing Magazine as this weeks 'Digital Choice.'

"Virgin Radio has carefully built a strong reputation for pushing the boundaries of radio, from gigs in hot-air balloons to April Fool's Day tricks on newspapers. With the launch of its latest homepage, the station is once again seeking to remain ahead of the competition.

Virgin has a strong internet heritage (having been the first European radio station to broadcast online) and this page aims to enhance the listener community by offering Facebook-style functionality. Traditional aspects such as DJ profiles and blogs, music features, reviews, videos and competitions remain prominent, but the site now also features drag-and-drop facilities and customised profiles for 'VIP users'.

A scrolling section that details users' activities such as blogging, chatting or posting gig reviews creates a sense of involvement in a community that is constantly changing.

The next phase of social networking development is widely predicted to give rise to communities centred on specific interests (such as music), so the prominence that Virgin is affording the community aspect of its website is a smart move.

The opportunities for users to interact with each other and the station will be appealing for the Virgin audience, and will encourage them to stay on the site longer and return more frequently - a positive thing for both listeners and advertisers."

http://www.brandrepublic.com/News/802502/Digital-choice-Virgin-Radio
www.virginradio.co.uk

Strategy Verdict - Ditto.net - my article featured in Media Week

I was recently asked by Media Week to write a 'strategy verdict' on the launch of ditto.net and they featured my piece in this weeks edition :

"Social networking is no longer restricted to mass-market sites such as MySpace and Facebook. Media players such as Bauer are also climbing over themselves to get a piece of the social networking pie.

Bauer is tapping into this trend by launching Ditto.net, a social network-ing site for film fans and music lovers. The decision to embrace social media and the opportunities it has to offer is a brave one.

Ditto.net certainly looks the part - it is well designed and easy to use. It combines elements of dating sites, community sites and the Amazon-like recommendation model to allow users to discover and share films and music with like-minded people.

However, the success of the site will depend on the number of users it attracts. Bauer is a dominant player in the music and film magazine market, but by entering the social media arena it will suddenly find itself surrounded by a large number of competitors. User numbers for NME.com, Yahoo Music and Radio 1 are huge, and while going niche may be an advantage for Bauer, advertisers will always prefer large user numbers.

I wonder, therefore, whether Bauer is better off launching Ditto.net within an existing social networking property where user numbers will be bigger. The iLike application on Facebook, for example, which lets users add music and videos to their profiles, started life as a stand-alone website struggling to attract significant numbers. When it was launched as an application on Facebook six months later, one million users signed up in the first week alone. If Ditto.net continues as a stand-alone social network, I would like to see Bauer extend advertising options beyond the site itself.

Advertising options that run across a range of channels, including Ditto.net, and Bauer's magazines and TV channels, for example, will deliver more value to both brands and Bauer. After all, the future of such niche social networking sites will depend on the return on investment they deliver to publishers.

Review by Nick Burcher, Board Director, Zed Media"

This was also featured on Brand Republic here:

http://www.brandrepublic.com/InDepth/Analysis/793872/Strategy-verdict---Dittonet/

London mayor election will see a new style of British political campaigning online

The power of crowds has been evident with a number of collaborative initiatives that have brought together likeminded online users. For example 30,000 people paid for a stake in www.myfootballclub.com which led to the group purchase of Ebbsfleet United football club and www.tribewanted.com created a combination of online community and real world sustainable tourism project on the Fijian island of Vorovoro.

To date the UK political establishment have not tapped into this trend though. In 'Politics, Policy and the Internet' (a recent publication for the Centre For Policy Studies) Telegraph journalist, Robert Colville, argues that British political parties have failed to embrace the new opportunities online (see here where you can download the pdf of his full study). Indeed the British National Party website has the same market share as all of the other UK major parties combined. He argues that the major UK political parties could reverse this by altering their mindset from “send” to “receive”, by learning the lessons of unofficial organisations such as bloggers, activists and campaign groups which have exploited the potential of the internet.

Whilst there are political blogs and sites like Webcameron, no party has truly engaged online communities in policy development. Downing St e-petitions have seen specific groups mobilised around particular issues (1 million people against roadpricing), but the UK has not seen anything similar to Estonia's 'today I decide' initiative that offered the Estonian public the chance to influence national policy and feedback on proposed new laws.

In the US Presidential elections Ron Paul and Barack Obama particularly have shown how effective the internet can be as a vehicle for raising funds and engaging supporters. Ron Paul is an interesting case because his campaign has used the internet to generate support far exceeding the original predictions for his campaign. The US electoral system means that he was always going to struggle against the more established candidates and campaign machines, however his online strategy has set the bar for online campaigning (see my previous post here: http://www.nickburcher.com/2008/02/no-other-presidential-candidate-can.html). Ron Paul and Barack Obama's online tactics could be particularly effective in a democracy with a more focussed electoral timeframe (weeks rather than months / years) and some of these strategies could be well suited to the forthcoming election for London's mayor.

The London mayoral election is the first really significant British election in a Web 2.0 world and over the next few weeks London is set to see some online political campaigning that has not been previously seen in the UK. Whilst things like Ken Livingstone's Search campaign are already running, the really interesting moves are around some of the independent candidates.

The socially progressive website www.londonelectsyou.co.uk is offering to award £50,000 to the campaign of an independent candidate. This will be awarded to the winner of a sort of online primary that www.londonelectsyou.co.uk are running, with the candidate gaining the most online votes by 18 March qualifying for the financial support.

Time Out magazine have entered their own independent candidate (Michael Hodges) into this competition and have flagged it, under the strapline of 'Vote Hodges', on the front cover of their magazine this week.

Michael Hodges is offering readers the chance to participate in the collaborative production of his London manifesto. More details can be found here: http://www.helphodges2008.com

Using public domain, online voter suggestions and feedback to influence an election manifesto is a clever idea and I'm sure the main UK political parties will start seriously investigating this sort of model for testing their own policy ideas. It is also a useful mechanism for bringing MPs closer to their constituents.

Alternatively if the UK political parties do not adopt practices of this nature, it may not be long before www.mypoliticalparty.co.uk actually becomes a reality?

FOOTNOTE:

I have also written about the Google strategies of the respective candidates here: http://www.nickburcher.com/2008/04/are-london-mayor-candidates-making-most.html

Tribewanted is a unique social experiment in the South Pacific brought to life through tribewanted.com and social media

Tribewanted is a unique community tourism project that is simultaneously based on Vorovoro Island, Fiji and online. Starting in 2006 and running for 3 years, Tribewanted is living alongside the small indigenous Mali community on Vorovoro to build a simple, sustainable village.

The project has been brought to life using social media. People from around the world were then encouraged to get involved through www.tribewanted.com and intrepid travellers could register through the website and if approved could visit for two to twelve weeks (though some stayed even longer!) The elected chiefs, Tribewanted team and visiting members all met on-line before beginning their journey to Vorovoro and as of January 2008 four hundred members aged 4 to 67, had visited Vorovoro.

Over 1300 members from 35 countries have now joined Tribewanted.com online network. Members have debated and voted on how the on-line and on-island communities should be structured. Each month a tribe member is elected to be the online tribe's chief on Vorovoro. The chief works alongside the team on Vorovoro to make sure the project progresses.

Tribewanted.com is a great example of the new breed of social networks that are coming through - social networks with a purpose. Rather than being a communication utility like Facebook where the social network is the 'end', for sites like tribewanted.com (and newer launches like Dopplr) social networking technology is the means.

Tribewanted has been followed by media from around the world and a 5-part BBC observational documentary called “Paradise or Bust” starts on 21st January 2008 on BBC2 at 9pm . Newspapers are also covering Tribewanted with features in Guardian Weekend, the Sunday Times and Daily Express appearing soon. Online there is a Tribewanted Facebook group and a large number of Tribewanted photos on Flickr.

Tribewanted and www.tribewanted.com were also featured in the UK edition of Metro on 15th Jan:



Tribewanted / 'Paradise or Bust' BBC video trailer on You Tube:

Molson pulls 'Canadian Nation' student Facebook Group competition after accusations of promoting excess drinking

Canadian lager brand Molson have recently been running a 'Molson Canadian Nation' campaign, but this has become the latest big name social media campaign to run into difficulties. The campaign ran as a Facebook Group under the banner of 'Molson Canadian Nation', but has been cancelled after accusations that it promoted irresponsible drinking.

'Canadian Nation' university and college students were encouraged to post pictures of themselves partying on their campus, with the best photo winning an $8000 trip for 5 to Cancun. Various 'university administators' condemned Molson for promoting excess drinking and irresponsible behaviour. People have also pointed out the danger to future career prospects of posting drunken party photos to the internet.

The Canadian Nation campaign did not run outside Canada, but has been pulled in the face of the criticism it received. Molson still view social media as an important media channel though and say they will continue to experiment with blogs and user generated content.

Nick Burcher writes: "Molson's Canadian Nation Facebook campaign is an good example of how social media campaigns can engage the target audience but upset the wider population. This is a difficult area for brands, but the rewards from getting it right will (in most cases) offset the risks of getting it wrong."

Facebook on the front page - the Independent newspaper runs a story about electronic footprints and Facebook privacy

Today's Independent newspaper has Facebook on it's front page as part of a big feature on internet privacy and data protection.

"Millions of young people have made themselves vulnerable to identity theft as well as putting their future academic and professional prospects at risk by recklessly posting personal information on the internet, Britain's privacy watchdog warns in a report published today.

The report's findings will add to increasing fears about the unchecked growth of personal information held in Britain and the way it is protected after a security blunder at HM Revenue & Customs in which highly sensitive details belonging to 25 million people were lost in the post. Now, in a far-reaching study of the internet behaviour of young people, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) says that 4.5 million web users aged between 14 and 21 could be vulnerable to identity fraud because of the carefree way they give up information on the internet, especially when visiting social networking sites.

A similar number are damaging their future education and employment prospects by leaving an "electronic footprint" which could compromise their chances of winning places at colleges and companies."

Full story is here: http://news.independent.co.uk/sci_tech/article3187110.ece

Is the Independent trying to sensationalise this or should we all be concerned about our online data?