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Bhopu / Tags /
Microsoft
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Posted On
Nov 02, 2007
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 I may be the only one or maybe one of you caught wind of this last few weeks or have thought it reasonable given the Facebook and Microsoft developments of late. Well Google, out-bidded by Microsoft, is out to seek a share of the social networking profit.
But wait?
I thought Google already had its own social networking site Orkut, is it? Though the Times is reporting that all of these smaller social networks are trying to take down Facebook (or at least cut away at its fast growth rate), it seems that what has been created is just a market of social networks. The ones that are more user-friendly, visually-enticing or gathered a large audience during start up and early promotional phases are the ones that will dominate the market. The other, small networks are available but seem to fill the void of niche markets. Unless you belong to a certain subset or want to identify yourself in a way that Facebook or MySpace don't allow (or both of these lose their coolness factor), then why have 2, 3, or more social networking memberships?
So what is the entire buzz about?
Microsoft enters the splash by acquiring stake in Facebook?
Microsoft paid US $240 million for a 1.6% stake in Facebook that values the hugely popular social networking site at $15 billion. Facebook allows users to set up personal web pages and communicate with each other, turned down an offer from Microsoft's rival Google, which was also keen to invest the site.
Microsoft will also sell Internet ads for Facebook outside the United States as part of the deal. Microsoft already provides banner advertising and links on the US site.
Facebook soon hopes to become an advertising magnet by substantially increasing its current audience of nearly 50 million active users. Facebook. The company expects to make a profit of $30 million this year, so on conventional valuations a $15 billion price tag looks expensive.
Why Microsoft Needed Facebook & Google Didn’t
After weeks of speculation , finally Microsoft won the battle over Facebook, with Google second, and Yahoo nowhere to be seen. While it may seem that Google’s lost momentum–by not partnering with Facebook, I see it more as a sign that Microsoft knew Facebook was its only hope.
Let me explain that to you in detail.
Social networks are hot, right now. It doesn’t really matter which one you prefer–MySpace, Bebo, Facebook, or Dogster–social networks are the next evolutionary step in the growth of the internet. Now that we’ve all learned to check our email, order online, research restaurants, and read news, we’re starting to use the web to connect with each other. We’ve realized that we enjoy making connections, sharing our random thoughts with our mates. Social networking is the second generation Internet.
Unfortunately for Microsoft, social networks have to be perceived as cool, exciting, trendy places to hang out at. But, just like the rich kid in school, Microsoft has enough money to buy itself some friends–or in this case, a network of friends. For Microsoft, the only choice was to buy a piece of a popular social network.
Then there’s Google. Along with Apple, Google has one of the best brands in the world. A brand that can make us all dribble and pander after their every announcement.
If Google really wants to build a popular social network, it can. A social network that already has all of the pieces in place: email, instant messaging, blogs, image and video sharing. If Google really wanted to own a social network, it could take the $240M it just saved and put that towards building a most excellent one. A few rumors, closed beta invites, and denials of competing with MySpace later, and the whole world’s going crazy over Google Connect.
So I think, Microsoft had no hope other than to buy into an existing social network that was popular enough that even the “Windows Live” couldn’t slow it down. Google, on the other hand, knew it didn’t have to partner with Facebook at any cost, they could bide their time and decide whether they want to build their own social network.
How will Microsoft make use of Facebook network?
Microsoft is building and acquiring technologies and expertise to challenge Google for a pot of online advertising revenue that Johnson pegged at $40 billion and growing. Earlier this year, it paid $6 billion for Seattle digital-advertising shop aQuantive, which came with technology to better serve and track online advertisements.
More than just an expanding stream of online-advertising revenue, the Facebook deal represents a chance for Microsoft to tightly bind itself and its technology to the en vogue world of social networking.
Social networks, including Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, Google’s Orkut and many more, have skyrocketed in popularity. People spend hours building and updating personal Web pages with photos, videos, links. They stay in touch with friends, classmates and co-workers by visiting pages, which include all manner of add-on Web applications for sharing musical tastes, sending instant messages and virtually anything else.
A new Microsoft tool for making hybrid Web applications will allow programs to be published directly to Facebook pages. Facebook supports Microsoft’s new Web video platform, Silverlight, which competes with Adobe Flash. And Microsoft and Facebook have worked on other tools for software developers. Microsoft is building its own technologies, such as mapping and advertising systems, and letting third-parties use them. Facebook, on the other hand, invites developers to build applications and provides a venue for distribution to its users.
The future looks bright for Microsoft as we all know that Facebook is one of the most premium properties online today from a social-networking standpoint. This deal represents a major advertising syndication win for Microsoft.
Some Related Articles:
Microsoft acquires equit stake in Facebook
Facebook sells $250m stake to Microsoft
Microsoft acquires minority stake in Facebook
Microsoft expands advertising partnership
Microsoft contracts an agreement with Facebook
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Posted On
Sep 15, 2007
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 To many people today Web 2.0 may just seem the latest in the never-ending succession of Internet trend, but just like the Internet I can see Web 2.0 staying for long. It mat be or may not be a bubble of sorts, but after reading on so many social networks and search engines I can say that sites like MySpace and Digg place a perfect lesson to teach corporate establishments.
As per me Web 2.0 is a package of both threats and opportunities, the time to take your head out of the sand is now and realize if we can make use of it or let it fade away.
I would like to discuss Web 2.0 in detail, to start with let me define it for you
What is Web 2.0?
Let’s start by examining what exactly we mean by Web 2.0. In its most basic sense, Web 2.0 refers to any tool or application that's delivered over the Internet and allows people to interact—by contributing, editing and sharing content.
Most of the people conceive Web 2.0 as rise of bloggers, the growth of social networking, but as per me Web 2.0 goes beyond even that. It means freedom to connect and share with your friends. If your company uses any kind of software as a service that’s Web 2.0. If you designing a service oriented architecture that also Web 2.0. It has evolved as a complete medium now.
The above figure shows the sum of ideas that radiate out from the Web 2.0 core.
Web 2.0- Evolution of Business Online
The biggest change brought by Web 2.0 was the way companies communicated and gathered information. Web 2.0 streamlined communications.
RSS is a radical step forward. Podcasting, though in its infancy, is coming on strong having caught the attention of advertisers as a new means to reach the cutting edge public. In fact, just as anyone can set up and maintain a blog, today the technology exists to set up your own broadcast network complete with specialized shows for niche markets like pregnant parents or home schoolers.
I would like to place some examples here
One of the most popular site Digg.com is a perfect example as it combines many of the Web 2.0 components. Unlike any traditional news publication, end user writes the news that appears on the site. News they write and like is further linked to their profile. Their profile is linked to their friend’s profile allowing a whole social group checking out recommendations. There’s some programming and blogging included with it .
Another fine example is MySpace, one of the best social networking site. Users share music, pictures, videos, thoughts and meet new people with similar interests through their online links. If your friend likes a super hero, than you might start to look for it as well.
Web 2.0 is simply about evolution of online businesses. Google is changing from a search engine to an advertising company. Email is Email is being sidelined into a business niche by instant messaging. Outlook and Office are becoming increasingly redundant as PIM applications are being Ajax’d.
Getting everything online has never seemed so important.
Web 2.0 benefits
As the Web 2.0 grows, the more web evolves further benefiting end users.
Digg has taken a cut to traditional publishing, with users proving pretty good at finding stories that satisfy their own demographic - and its popularity is a testament to that.
Flickr has provided free photo hosting for millions. Thanks to some great coding, sharing photos with other people has never been easier. Web 2.0 sites provide some of the best functionality and fun on the web. Isn't that pretty neat?
Lets take a look at some success stories associated with Web 2.0
Intel assembled a Web 2.0 Suite Of Their Own
Intel few months back announced their endorsement of the Web 2.0 era with SuiteTwo (fundamental shift toward open, flexible, and participatory computing models), a combination of several Web 2.0 applications designed to operate on PC-based hardware. It was designed for small to medium-sized business customers and costs between $175 and $200 per user per year.
Web 2.0 helped them provide an advantage of logging to a single page, and access all of the functions of RSS feed, a wiki company and Newsfator, as if they were one holistic service. Remarkable!
Their three core capabilities are RSS, wikis, and blogging, Business 2.0 has been a core function for Intel as they tried giving a huge advantage of these platforms to the next generation of solutions.
Netscape embraced Web 2.0 for their new Site
Netscape, owned by AOL, was given a makeover some time back. Though Netscape had 11.4 million users it still trailed in the browser and portal market behind Microsoft , Mozilla, Yahoo and Google. The new site was built with an idea of taking advantage of social bookmarking and social media where people submit the content and it moves up to the top. But they realized that something was missing there as well.
Finally, they came up with a site that was a hybrid of a news portal and a tagging.
It had 30 different categories to choose news and ranked stories from. The site was managed by a team of editors, or "meta-journalists," who kept strict watch on posted content and either fact-check stories or augmented them with their own interviews and/or commentary. The editors also moved up stories that are more timely or newsworthy.
Web 2.0 content rules
There has been a huge transformation of the old media companies into new media companies. After several years of science, technology and medical publishing, there was a digital platform that included a healthy dose of Web 2.0 technologies. There has been a marked transition from process to content.
So its time for us to ask ourselves “What modifications have we seen between your old environment and the new one”?
Today some companies seem a little apprehensive to Web 2.0 as they think they not ready for it.
This is for all those companies who want to put the idea forward, but needs conviction.
Web 2.0 is not that new anymore. It's infusing every business, so it's becoming less about the technology per se and more about its application.
Today we lead through content, not process. It's not good enough to be just a competent business manager; you have to add to your skill set a fairly sophisticated and deep understanding of how to manage technology-based business, even if your business is not based on technology. Because if you don't know how something like a Web 2.0 technology will add value to your business, you'll miss it. Every company has to raise its overall technical insight.
So. if you want to be a technology leader today, you have to get energy from Web 2.0, you have to dig it.
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Posted On
Sep 08, 2007
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 I’m quite fond of the Really Simple Syndication (RSS), but it hasn't always been this way. Over the last year or so, while i slowly built a list of RSS feeds for the BBC Web site, I continually scratched my head and wondered, "What's the point?"RSS technology is a result of the growth of XML and its ease of use. It allows Webmasters to produce XML news feeds for their sites easily. Those who run reader software can subscribe to and read the feeds. I understood how RSS worked. What I didn't get was who would see the feeds, why they would read them, and what they would do with the links.
RSS is not a new concept, but many people I know have been very apprehensive of online tools such as this one. People make so many efforts to browse through the bookmarked sites to check which ones have been updated. But anybody using RSS can quickly see the new content. The combination of alert mechanism and information filter is very useful especially where people like me wasted a lot of time opening some slow- loading, graphic-heavy pages. RSS feeds definitely saves a lot of time and money.
What is RSS?
We can call RSS as a family of Web feed formats that are used to publish frequently updated content such as blogs, podcasts or news headlines.
People all over the world have discovered the value of using news aggregators to subscribe to news feeds and updated content from from blogs, newspapers, journals and other Web sites.
I think RSS are not just useful for keeping up to date professionally, but one can also make use of the same to make your library sites timelier and more interesting for their visitors. Information experts are taking advantage of this information in an RSS format to create some new content.
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