Hasta La Gadget!

Facebook has revealed its next TV ad for Facebook Home, and this time, CEO Mark Zuckerberg is featured in it. In the video, Zuckerberg is making an announcement about the launch of Facebook Home, and how the app centers around the people, not the apps, and yadda yadda yadda. While he drones on and on, to the boredom of the employees, one employee takes to his HTC First, and scrolls around his Facebook Home interface.

This Facebook ad borrows the same concept as Facebook Home’s first television ad. As Joey, the other guy featured in the ad, flips through the contents of his Facebook, the news stories come to life. First, we have a goat that screams in Zuckerberg’s face while he’s giving his speech, followed by Joey’s friend asking him to play a game of racketball with him. The scene ends with the entire office transformed into a swimming pool, and Joey being submerged in water in real life.

Facebook Home launched yesterday, both through the AT&T exclusive HTC First, as well as through an Android app available only for select devices. Unfortunately, the app saw some pretty mediocre reviews on the Google Play store, but things are starting to look up for it. Right now, it’s at a 2.5 star rating in Google Play, with a total of 2,681 votes. However, the more recent reviews are much more accepting of the app. Along with Facebook Home, Facebook also updated its other Android app, as well as its Messenger app.

Facebook Home is a launcher that is supposed to center around people, rather than just apps. It has features like Cover Feed, which brings status updates from your favorite Facebook friends to your lockscreen, and Chat Heads, which shows a pop-up bubble on you screen when a friend messages you, that brings your friends at the forefront of your Android device. Be sure to check out our review of Facebook Home here.

New Facebook Home ad features Mark Zuckerberg and a screaming goat is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

You know how it goes — “rules” are only “rules” if someone bothers to enforce them. And enforce Google has. While programs such as AdBlock, AdAway, AdFree and the like have been running unabated for quite some time now, Google has evidently buckled down and yanked the lot of ’em overnight. Of course, the company’s Play Store developer agreement already makes clear that apps designed specifically to hinder the natural course of advertising won’t be allowed, but it’s certainly interesting to see the company finally making good on its words. Specifically, the agreement states:

“You agree that you will not engage in any activity with the Market, including the development or distribution of Products, that interferes with, disrupts, damages, or accesses in an unauthorized manner the devices, servers, networks, or other properties or services of any third party including, but not limited to, Android users, Google or any mobile network operator.”

See that bit about third-party clients’ services? We’re guessing that it’s in reference to implementations of advertising code. Looks like the wild, wild west has a sheriff in town.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Google

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Via: ZDNet, CNET

Source: Google, Phandroid

The saying, “It takes money to make money” most certainly applies to Samsung. It turns out that the leader of Android spent about $401 million on advertising last year, which is even more than the $333 million that Apple spent on its campaigns. Researchers say that the huge increase in spending is necessary as it’s competing with Apple for the top spot in the smartphone market place.

In 2011, Samsung only spent $78 million on its advertisements, a number that was completely overshadowed by the $253 million spent by Apple. 2012, Samsung realized that it needed to step up its marketing efforts greatly in order to dominate the market place, so it went on a spending frenzy. It went all out with ads on TVs, billboards in major cities, and massive online advertisements. A good amount of its advertising money was also budgeted to create smear campaigns towards Apple.

2013, there is no doubt that Samsung will go even farther in its marketing efforts in order to make its Samsung Galaxy S IV device, as well its other line-up of smartphones, THE smartphones to buy. It purchased a highly coveted, and highly expensive ad slot during the Superbowl this year in order to appeal to the 114 million people watching the game. It’s set to announce the S IV tomorrow at Radio City Music Hall in New York, and you can expect the company to give the device 110% when it comes to marketing. Not that the S IV needs it because it’s already the most highly anticipated phone of the season, if not the year.

The amount of money Samsung and Apple spent on advertisement is enough to embarrass the other phone companies out there. HTC came in 3rd place, spending only a measly $46 million. Blackberry followed behind with only $35 million spent (but what were they really going to advertise?), and Nokia spent a laughable $13 million. HTC’s CEO Peter Chou has stated on numerous occasions that marketing was the reason why its brand did so terrible last year. This year, Chou plans on stepping up HTC’s marketing game, and the company will be going all in on its flagship device, the HTC One.

[via Wall Street Journal]

2012: Samsung spent a fortune on ad/smear campaigns is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Tumblr is looking to implement advertisement on its mobile apps. The online-blogging service has seen its number of mobile users skyrocket in the past six months, and it plans on using that success as a monetizing tool. The Tumblr mobile-ads won’t be like those annoying pop-up ads featured in various free apps and games. Tumblr will instead just have “featured posts” for companies that join in on its program.

By monetizing its mobile app, Tumblr hopes that it will make its first annual profit. The service will let companies pay to promote their posts through Tumblr’s app. Lee Brown, head of sales for Tumblr, stated that the average advertising purchase on Tumblr is a little under six figures. By implementing mobile ads, Brown says, “We expect that the monetization will lead us to profitability this year.”

Though the “promoted posts” advertisement seems a bit unconventional, Tumblr is trying to keep its user-experience pleasant for everyone. Brown said, “We’re not really selling ads, we’re just promoting their content.” The promoted posts is a perfect medium to get companies more exposure to their products while also preserving the Tumblr experience. Brown says that the marketers will have to provide their campaign that, like any other Tumblr user post, will be circulated throughout the network. He says, “Marketers have become accustomed to buying scale as opposed to earning it.”

Tumblr gets over 16 billion monthly views spread around hundreds of blogs. The company can see a huge increase in revenue by implementing its new mobile ads feature. It’s very thoughtful of them to take its users consideration in mind when thinking of how they can generate revenue from ads. Brown stated that Tumblr, “is not going to get into the regular ad network.” It has found a win-win-win situation for itself, companies, and its users.

[via Bloomberg]

Mobile Ads are heading to Tumblr is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

When you find out that AT&T put out an attack ad about a competing carrier, you’re first guess is that they’re probably going after Verizon, which is AT&T’s biggest competition right now. However, it turns out that Ma Bell is going after the little guys in a new full-page newspaper ad that appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today.

The advertisement goes after T-Mobile, and it explains “the truth about T-Mobile’s network.” AT&T claims that T-Mobile customers experience double the dropped calls, double the number of failed calls, and 50% slower download speeds compared to AT&T’s own network. As a response to the ad, T-Mobile Chief Marketing Officer Mike Sievert said, “Wow. Looks like we struck a chord.”

Of course, T-Mobile has gone after AT&T before, so this could be regarded as a fair fight, since AT&T seems to just merely be dishing it right back. T-Mobile CEO John Legere shared some fighting words at CES back in January about AT&T, and it just seems that AT&T is glad to return the favor to the Deutsche Telekom-owned company.

However, it seems that T-Mobile is taking the attack ad very lightly, as it should. Sievert said that “AT&T doth protest too much. Glad they’re spending their money to print our name.” Of course, whether or not AT&T’s claims about T-Mobile’s network are true, I’m sure T-Mobile users are pretty excited about the cheaper bill they get every month, but everyone has their preferences, of course.

[via Bloomberg]

AT&T attacks T-Mobile in full-page newspaper ad is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.