All the buzz over here amongst the digerati is about the upcoming launch of Microsoft's new/revamped search engine, “Bing,” that will be released June 3. It promises to deliver more than the customary list of results when called upon to do a search; it is "more of a decision engine," according to Microsoft SVP Yusuf Mehdi.
As usual, everyone will be trying to work out exactly what the meaning of the name is. (Perhaps “bling” would have had more of a cachet for those enamored of Rap. It's much better, of course, than Microsoft's boring "Live Search.") Plus, the sixty four million dollar question of the day is whether Bing can ever begin to make any inroads against Google's dominance.
And the other, really big question, is whether or not it will end the by now, very boring, Microsoft-Yahoo search on-again, off-again courtship?
By some accounts, Bing seems like it would be more useful than a Google or Yahoo search. If you're searching for something you'd like to buy, for example, Bing theoretically will serve up reviews, as well as places to buy the item and related accessories, laid out in a glitzier and more organized way than just a simple vertical list of links. Search for a movie star, and Bing shows you ways to refine your search by movie, images, or quotes, among other things. Below that, you get a list of related searches, such as searches for who that actor might be dating. Bing supposedly will add more features as it continues to try to provide more context with each search.
Who knows? For years, Microsoft has been hammered for always being a follower, rather than an innovator. But even you die-hard Apple freaks have to acknowledge, they still manage to come up with *** that 80% of the world’s population is prepared to shell out the bucks for!
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With the terrible financial situation and impending bankruptcy of both Chrysler and General Motors, all the talk in the Ad and Media trades is about how this is going to affect the agencies currently working for both these brands. What has been virtually ignored is that between them, GM and Chrysler have notified more than 3,000 local dealers they’re pulling the plug, and these companies will soon be out of business.
This will create havoc throughout the provincial advertising agency world as many smaller and mid sized agencies depend on car dealership accounts who require press ads, TV and radio, direct mailings, billboards, flyers… etc etc.. … Everything they need to get the word out in a local market. Plus, all kinds of local media, newspapers, TV and radio are going to be hit hard by the loss of billings from what has traditionally been a big spender. Unless they can replace those billings with other accounts – Which is more than doubtful in the current economy – Many of these agencies will disappear.
There is one small blessing to this fiasco, though… No more of those truly horrible ads with the local car dealer dressed as George Washington for their President’s day sale, or as Santa Claus at Christmas. Not to mention offering free hot dogs and donkey rides for the kids if you sign up for a $60,000 car.
Microsoft, and their agency, CP+B seem to think they hit a nerve by attacking Apple on price in the "Laptop Hunter" TV campaign currently running here in the US (maybe it’s over there as well, let me know) because they've now decided to employ the same tactic in a much tougher fight, Zune's underdog battle against the iPod. A new spot features Wes Moss — Certified Financial planner and unsuccessful contestant on that dreadful TV show "The Apprentice." In a spot reminiscent of a late night infomercial selling miracle stain removers, he explains that filling an empty 120GB iPod with songs from the iTunes Store at a dollar a track would run you about $30,000, whereas you can listen to all the music you want with a $15-a-month subscription to the Zune Pass streaming service.
So, you could maintain your Zune Pass membership for more than 166 years for that 30 thousand, if you can find a miracle drug that keeps you going that long. But, if you stop paying, you're left with nothing but memories (plus the 10 free songs a month that the Zune Pass allows you to keep). Strangely, the spot doesn't even mention the Zune itself; so a non-techie viewer could be forgiven for thinking that the Zune Pass was an alternative service for iPod users.
But going head to head on hardware probably isn't the best option for the Zune anyway. The first step is to try to introduce doubt about committing to the Apple ecosystem by arguing the benefits of subscription over ownership. It's a fair argument, depending on the users needs, but one that hasn't helped other subscription services like Real's Rhapsody slow down the explosion in iTunes sales.
Just like CP+B’s ever changing campaign for Windows, I don’t think this mediocre effort on behalf of the Zune will do much either. Watch for a new campaign shortly, and some bullshit about how this one is all part of some mysterious long term strategy.
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The rumors about Apple possibly buying Twitter, are flying thick and fast here in the States.. Apple is known for keeping a huge pile of cash in it’s numbered Swiss bank account (Well, GodJobs does). But right now it's particularly flush, with almost thirty billion dollars in cash. An amount that works out to more than $31 a share. At any other company, keeping that kind of money on hand would have investors howling for a dividend, a stock buyback, or a big acquisition.
Apple doesn’t do those kind of things, but keeps shareholders happy by keeping the stock price up and meeting forecasts. A lot of people would like to see a share buyback happen, but as long as the bottom line looks good, there won’t be too many complainers.
That’s why there are so many rumors about possible acquisitions. Various Silicon Valey blogs are quoting semi-credible sources that Apple is in late-stage negotiations to buy Twitter for $700 million in cash and would like to unveil the deal by the start of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in early June. I’ll believe it when I see it… It just doesn’t make sense… And that’s one thing GodJobs has plenty of.
George Parker
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