Google wants election ads on all of your devices

The folks behind Google’s advertising initiatives have released a program called “Four Screens to Victory” encouraging political campaigns to work with all devices, not just the television. The outline of this program includes statistics such as 14.7 sources of information being used per voter to get all manner of voting knowledge. With Google’s push here, you’ll soon not be wanting for an advertisement for President on not just your TV, but your tablet, smartphone, and laptop as well.

With Google’s Four Screen ad campaign initiative here, they’re saying that they’ve driven 48% more effectiveness than TV only campaigns. In addition, this Four Screen campaign situation is being shown as 77% more effective in driving campaign engagement. With numbers like that, it’ll be difficult not to turn back ad managers for all major parties looking to push for this election season.

“Voters use an average of 14.7 sources of information to help make their candidate selection and are connected to multiple devices throughout the day (Google/Shopper Sciences, 2011). Whether your goal is a seat on the town council, building up support for your chosen issue, or the White House, integrated marketing efforts must engage voters across four screens: television, computers, tablets and mobile phones.” – Google

Google’s collected statistics include a researched 28 percent of adults across the USA using YouTube and similar sites daily. Also included in this lovely set of factoids is 68 percent of voters using the Internet as their primary source of information on issues and candidates in an election season.

In other words, expect to see quite a few more political advertisements on all screens over the next few months – quite a few more indeed.

Screen_Shot_2012-07-24_at_8.50


Google wants election ads on all of your devices is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 appears in 30-second commercial (video)

Samsung Galaxy Note 101 appears in 30second commercial video

If — for some outlandish reason — you were still doubting the imminent release of the Galaxy Note 10.1, let us invite you to have a peek at the video just after the break. Sure enough, it’s an official Samsung teaser showcasing some of the more seductive features of its forthcoming Android slate — the slate that appeared for but a moment on Amazon. If you’re looking for a brief update on how we got here, you may recall us first touching the 10.1-inch Note back at Mobile World Congress in February, with the device caught on camera elsewhere as recently as last month. There’s still no definitive ship date to grab hold of, but it’s probably time you asked yourself: is okay to yearn after something that an honorable judge has deemed “not as cool” as some other tablet? Decision 2012 — we report, you decide.

Update: This post originally and erroneously made a connection between the Note 10.1 and the Judge Koh ruling on the Galaxy Tab 10.1. It has been updated.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 appears in 30-second commercial (video)

Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 appears in 30-second commercial (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Jul 2012 10:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google Q2 2012: “mobile is where search was in 1999″

During Google’s quarterly earnings call this week for their financial second quarter, the company’s Senior Vice President and Chief Business Officer Nikesh Arora spoke up on how big the mobile environment is in 2012. Responding to a question on mobile advertising trends and their very near future, Arora noted that Google has been seeing no less than “phenomenal” growth in both the tablet and the smartphone space for advertising and beyond. He also noted that in terms of accelerating their plans for working with users for content acquisition on mobile device, they’ve made “tremendous” headway with the Nexus 7.

Arora noted that Google is “working closely with music studios [and] given that there are models out there, it is becoming standard that you have the ability to offer content to the end user.”

And it’s not just the tablet that’s driving Google’s continued giant investment in mobile:

“As I said, mobile is where search was in 1999. We were working with advertisers to understand truly the opportunities. We are seeing mobile CPCs [costs per click] are healthy and we expect in the long term that they will continue to be healthy.” – Arora

And it’s the end users who matter most to Google, explained Arora, noting that they remain committed not only to Android, but to making sure the hardware that runs Android that’s approved by them is top-notch all the way.

“Mobile is very important. I think it’s important to look at what’s happening in the marketplace, it’s evident in our commitment to Android. We believe mobile is critical to the future, and I know it seems a little complicated, we simplify that by focusing how we provide the best experience for the user.

So we work with Andy Rubin’s team – and in that process he works with the best OEMs in the marketplace to make sure the combination of software and hardware is the best. It’s important to get that experience delivered. We work with OEMs to make sure we get the best of breed experience.” – Arora

Sound like Google is ready to continue their Android wave into the future? Stay tuned as SlashGear continues to smooth the curl and make it all plain to see for you, the reader! Also don’t forget to check out other recent bits from this past week on the Nexus 7 and how it’s grown to be a radically popular piece of Google history already in the very short time it’s been on the market!


Google Q2 2012: “mobile is where search was in 1999″ is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Microsoft shows first public loss ever in financial Q4 2012

It’s a bittersweet day for Microsoft as their financial fourth quarter is being announced today as having both a $192 million dollar operating income before taxes and a loss of $492 million after a company writedown. This writedown is being attributed to a failed investment in the advertisement company aQuantive, purchased by Microsoft in 2007 and since eclipsed by the likes of Google’s adsense online. For the first time ever in its history as a public company, Microsoft is reporting a loss per share.

This loss per share is tiny, just $0.06, but given the fact that it’s a stock price and can add up real, real quick for those heavily vested in the company. And of course this being the very FIRST loss for Microsoft since it first had a stock on the market, things are about to get real analytical real quick.

Other than that, though, Microsoft seems to be doing pretty OK. Revenue for the quarter was $18.06 billion USD, this up from $17.41 billion the quarter before this one and from $17.37 billion one year ago at this time. Windows and Windows live accounted for $4.15 billion in revenue for the quarter while Microsoft’s business division accounted for $6.29 billion.

Online services for Microsoft made up $0.74 billion in revenue for the company this quarter, while their server and tools division brought in a massive $5.09 billion in revenue. Finally Microsoft’s entertainment and devices division brought in $1.79 billion in revenue for the quarter as well.

Take a peek at our Microsoft hub for more information on how the company got to where it is today, and stick around here on SlashGear as Windows 8 hits the market inside this next quarter – big time profits on the way!


Microsoft shows first public loss ever in financial Q4 2012 is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Procter & Gamble Promotes Mobile Shopping with Virtual QR Store

It’s no secret that companies who come up with the most creative ads are the ones that get the most attention, therefore, achieving their goal. Procter & Gamble decided to go the unusual route recently, and drummed up a lot of publicity when they launched their QR truck store on the road.

Procter Gamble Mobile TruckIt’s basically a regular old truck that invites people to buy some of P&G’s basic household stuff simply by pointing their smartphones at the QR codes beside the pictured goods. No details on how the P&G will deliver the items to the customer, although it’ll probably be shipped over to their home. While a fairly novel idea, we’ve seen something like this before with the virtual grocery store over in Korea.

Procter Gamble Mobile Truck1

The downside is that it’s probably not the greatest thing for the environment, with all the gas it’ll consume while making the rounds in the city.

P&G’s trucks were only deployed until June 27th as part of a promotional campaign. There’s no word on whether this is something they’ll be doing on a regular basis.


Facebook partners with Yahoo in surprise exit from patent battle

Earlier today it was leaked that the end of the legal war between Facebook and Yahoo was at hand – this afternoon it’s been announced that Yahoo and Facebook will officially be tying the knot, so to speak, with portfolio cross-licensing, event cross-branding, and more. This update certainly takes the cake as far as businesses finding ways out of legal damages – and what better way to do it, after all, than with a good ol’ cup of tea and a dash of patent sharing?

The battle going on between these two beasts of companies has been going on since earlier this year when one sued the other with the other responding with a suit of their own. Patents were tossed, punches were thrown, and here we are now with sharp words forgotten and both Yahoo and Facebook seeming to come out just as much ahead as the other. The official statement reads as follows, in part:

“Under the agreements, which include a patent portfolio cross-license, the parties will work together to bring consumers and advertisers premium media experiences promoted and distributed across both Yahoo! and Facebook. Yahoo! and Facebook will also work together to bring Yahoo!’s large media event coverage to Facebook users by collaborating on social integrations on the Yahoo! site.”

After Ross Levinsohn, interim CEO of Yahoo and Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer at Facebook share some kind words in writing, the statement goes on to explain that this deal is an extension of a partnership the two companies worked in previously. This new deal will have the two entering into “definitive agreements” as well as a new advertising partnership.

“Since the launch of the original multi-year partnership between Yahoo! and Facebook that allows users to discover and connect news and information on Yahoo! sites and share them with their Facebook friends, Yahoo! has integrated the feature called “Social Bar” on more than 100 of its properties globally, and more than 90 million users have implemented it. As a result, Yahoo! has the largest active user base among all news sites that have integrated with Facebook’s Open Graph platform, making Social Bar the world’s leading social news application.”

Facebook and Yahoo have decided together to work on a series of collaborative tent-pole and anchor activities that will be annual, each of them set to provide “unparalleled experiences for consumers and world-class sponsorship opportunities for advertisers.”

Advertising incoming!


Facebook partners with Yahoo in surprise exit from patent battle is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Samba launches free ad-supported 3G data

We’ve seen schemes from the likes of FreedomPop which offer “free” mobile internet access, but a company in the UK called Samba is taking the idea one step further. It’s partnering with Three UK to provide 517MB of free internet access on iPads if users agree to watch two and a half minutes of commercials. It also requires a app to be installed on the iPad to keep track of internet usage and serve up the ads.

Anyone using Samba can also build up credit by purchasing items that have been referred to them via the adverts, and there’s the more traditional route of simply buying credit too. The service isn’t just restricted to iPads, as users can buy a SIM card for £2.99 (~$4.67) to insert into a USB stick that will allow laptop owners to get in on the action as well, although a browser plug-in needs to be installed before the service will work. Samba will be offering its own dongle in the future.

Still, for that 500MB a month you’ve giving up some privacy. Samba say that cookies will be installed on your device that track your internet usage. That includes “traffic data, location data, weblogs, URLs, search terms and other communication data.” Certain material will also be restricted, like pornorgraphy and copyrighted/offensive material.

[via Gizmodo UK]


Samba launches free ad-supported 3G data is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


GM and Facebook said to be rekindling advertising flame

Back in May, General Motors suddenly ceased advertising on Facebook. No specific details were given, although it was believed that the advertising campaign had little impact. Now the Wall Street Journal reports that GM and Facebook are in talks to resume advertising on the social network. Senior executives have confirmed that both companies are currently in talks.

GM’s global marketing chief, Joel Ewanick, and Carolyn Everson, Facebook’s worldwide head of sales, met at an event in Cannes sometime in June. According to sources familiar with the matter, Facebook is trying to bring GM back as an advertiser, promising to provide better data on how it can turn commercials into cash. It won’t give GM preferential treatment over other advertisers, though.

According to sources, GM hasn’t decided to return to Facebook just yet as it has yet to see any form of advertising effectiveness from the platform. GM has also reportedly been meeting with digital advertising firms in order to gain a better idea of how to market its products for Facebook. GM is said to have spent $10 million on advertising with Facebook, a fraction of its $1.8 billion US ad spending, and also a very small part of Facebook’s $3.7 billion revenue in 2011.


GM and Facebook said to be rekindling advertising flame is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.


Microsoft takes $6.2 billion of lumps on fizzled aQuantive online ad acquisition

microsoft-takes-6-2-billion-writeoff-on-aQuantive

Among all the Windows 8, WP8 and Surface excitement of late, Redmond has also dropped a chunk of less shiny happy news: its online services division is taking a goodwill writeoff of $6.2 billion as a result of its ill-fated aQuantive acquisition in 2007. Not coincidentally, that’s almost exactly what it paid for the company, which it brought in to create pre-Bing online ad revenue — back when Mountain View was eating even more of its lunch in search. The software giant said that aQuantive didn’t “accelerate growth” as much as intended, although it added that it still provides assets for its internet advertising activities. With the advent of tablets and smartphones since then, it seems unlikely we’ll see any of its now-quaint tech — like shopping cart-mounted computers — again.

Microsoft takes $6.2 billion of lumps on fizzled aQuantive online ad acquisition originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 07:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony kicks off an Xperia Ion TV ad campaign for the US, meets your daily explosion quota (video)

Sony kicks off an Xperia Ion TV ad campaign for the US, meets your daily explosion quota

Sony isn’t known for rolling out the red carpet when one of its phones arrives Stateside, although that’s partly because US carrier-endorsed versions are few and far between. It clearly sees the Xperia Ion as worth the five-star treatment it’s giving the rest of the 2012 Xperia line: the company is starting a rare TV ad campaign to pitch its 720p wunderkind to an American audience that might not have noticed the Ericsson badge going away. As you’d expect, the pseudo single-take spot ends up being as much a vehicle for pushing other Sony projects as it does for the Android phone in question; we hope you don’t mind getting a brand overdose. With that in mind, there’s more action and explosions per square capita than in any other smartphone ad in recent memory, so if you’re upset that other smartphone ads are just too… peaceful, click Play and get your fill of danger.

Sony kicks off an Xperia Ion TV ad campaign for the US, meets your daily explosion quota (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 13:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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