A letter posted on Apple's home page to customers from Tim Cook regarding the company's new maps app serves up a dose of humility. The Apple CEO apologizes for any frustration caused to customers when using iOS 6 Maps. He explains Apple's decision to create Maps from the ground up, but never addresses why. Could recommendations from Cook to try Bing, as well as other maps products, change the dynamics of Web advertising?

Marketers allocated 16.3% of total search budgets to U.S. mobile search campaigns in Q3 2012 -- up from 14% in the year-ago quarter, according to a report released Thursday.

I recently received an interesting perspective on Google's self-driving cars from someone who has been in law enforcement for more than 25 years. On Tuesday, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill that would allow driverless cars to operate on the state's roads.

Targeting men in Facebook and getting them to make a purchase or complete an action may cost brands less compared with women when it comes to social advertising, according to a study released Tuesday.

Sloppy paid-search ads, Web site speed load times, and content optimization are several factors leading to higher landing-page bounce rates, according to a white paper that San Diego-based search agency Covario will release this week.

C-level executives have become increasingly interested in seeing the tangible metrics tied to business objectives and returns for both paid search and search engine optimization -- but especially SEO, agrees Rob Griffin, Havas Digital director of product development.

Adobe, IBM and Hewlett-Packard have stepped up efforts to support smaller companies, but Doug Schumacker, digital director of marketing at BraunAbility, seemed a bit surprised when a search expert from HP-owned Autonomy took on the task of improving paid-search campaign results for the manufacturer of wheelchair-accessible vans, ramps, and wheelchair lifts.

Experian Hitwise and comScore data identify a decline in year-on-year searches on engines and related sites. Forrester provides supporting evidence of the shift in market research reports.

Marketers at mid-priced retailers and brands will miss a great opportunity to market products to affluent consumers during the holidays if they don't get off their duff and do a little research. Google Consumer Surveys and Harris Poll have partnered to develop a product that allows businesses to compare themselves to industry benchmarks before tweaking campaigns. I'll explain.

Some 98% of small and medium-sized businesses are not equipped to handle mobile and desktop commerce transactions through their Web site, according to a study released Monday. And I can vouch for at least one large retailer that's not quite prepared, either.