Thursday, May 17, 2012
Will Vending Machines Be Your Phone's Next Tandem Screen? by Steve Smith, Staff Writer

Vending machines are about to become smart and connected. They could be the next opportunity for mobile devices to activate, interact with and pay for physical world services and products. ...Read the whole story

  • The Cure For Boring Teachers: Why Mobile Gamers Play by Steve Smith

    the lure of mobile gaming may tell us a bit about why people engage with their phones generally. Yeah -- games are fun, but they also underscore how desperately many of us rely on our phones for habitual distraction. ...Read the whole story

  • ESPN, Twitter Co-Create Ad Programs For Sports Eventsby Gavin O'Malley

    Starting with the NBA Finals, ESPN is teaming with Twitter to create new ad programs around major sporting events. These new programs will be promoted online and on-air across Twitter, ESPN and ABC and ESPN's digital properties. ...Read the whole story

  • Trad TV Competes With Mobile For Video Viewingby Wayne Friedman

    Worldwide video usage on computers is now as common as watching it on traditional television among online consumers. The growth is helped by the rise of video usage of mobile devices. Looking at 56 countries, Nielsen says 84% of viewers watch video on computers at least once a month. ...Read the whole story

  • Google+ No Rival To Facebook On Androidby Mark Walsh

    Facebook's app and Web site were used by nearly three-quarters of U.S. Android smartphone users in March, making it the most popular social-networking property on the Google platform. New data from NPD Group also finds that Facebook has maintained its dominance on Android over the last six months. ...Read the whole story

  • Socialcam Beefs Up Privacy Featuresby Wendy Davis

    As with other social apps on Facebook, Socialcam spreads news about the videos people watch to their social networking friends. Socialcam revised its program so that it no longer automatically resumes sharing users' information with friends. Socialcam will keep sharing turned off until users affirmatively reactivate the feature. ...Read the whole story

    Around The Net

    • Verizon Promotes Tablets With New Data PlanReuters

      Encouraging the spread of connected (and ad friendly) tablets, Verizon Wireless said it soon plans to offer shared data plans so customers can share their data allowance among different devices. Currently, customers have to sign up for a separate data plan for every device connected to the wireless operator's network. At an investor conference this week, Verizon Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said he expects the new offering to encourage more customers to connect more devices to its network. “One area where carriers like Verizon have been missing out is tablet computers, as consumers have been hesitant to pay the ... ...Read the whole story

    • Flipboard Keeps Edge With AudioBBC

      Fighting for its title as a top tablet application, Flipboard debuted several new features, this week, including audio. Regarding multimedia-enabling capability, BBC News notes: “The move makes it the first mobile reader of its kind to do so.” Other social reading apps, including Google Currents, Pulse and CNN-owned Zite feature audio elements, but mainly through video links and YouTube clips tied to news stories.  The Daily, the paid social reading app from News Corp., offers spoken audio versions of select news stories, but Flipboard is the first to make sound ubiquitous. Flipboard readers will now be able to "flip" through content, while listening to ... ...Read the whole story

    Smartphones Are First Choice For Second Screen by Steve Smith, Staff Writer

    According to IAB-sponsored research, people juggling multiple screens in the living room may actually be more attentive to ads. Interestingly, smartphone and tablet owners appear to be using their second screens for different things. ...More

    • Is Social TV a Gimmick or a Must-Have? by Daisy Whitney, Op-Ed Contributor

      There's no question that social video, social media and social TV are hot. Nearly every network has some sort of social media tie-in for a show, be it USA Network's recent work with Viggle for "To ...More