1. Monthly archive
  2. December 2013

December 2013

Web Companies Embrace TV Ads

Television's appeal is tough to resist -- even for many website owners.

TV ad spending continues to rise, even as marketers have shifted money to the Web from other traditional media, such as newspapers and magazines. Ad spending on TV in the US is expected to rise 2.8% this year to $66.3 billion, according to eMarketer, or 38% of total ad spending on all media. Web brands spent $959.5 million on TV ads in the US during the first eight months of this year, up 2.6% from a year earlier, according to ad-tracking firm Kantar Media.

(Dec 1)

Out of Print, Maybe, but Not Out of Mind

Even as the universe of printed matter continues to shrivel, the book -- or at least some of its best-known features -- is showing remarkable staying power online.

The idea is apparently embedded so deeply in the collective unconsciousness that no one can bear to leave it behind. Some functions of physical books that seem to have no digital place are nevertheless being retained. An author’s autograph on a cherished title looked as if it would become a relic. But Apple just applied for a patent to embed autographs in electronic titles. Publishers still commission covers for e-books even though their function — to catch the roving eye in a crowded store — no longer exists. What makes all this activity particularly striking is what is not happening. Some features may be getting a second life online, but efforts to reimagine the core experience of the book have stumbled. Dozens of publishing start-ups tried harnessing social reading apps or multimedia, but few caught on.

(Dec 1)

Longtime TV Consultant and Recruiter Is Stepping Aside, Not Down

Stuart F. Sucherman shuns interviews and is not widely known outside the clubby world of the television industry. Yet for several decades, he has had a deep influence on what viewers have seen on their television screens.

Both recruiter and consultant, Sucherman -- and his company, the Sucherman Consulting Group -- has helped networks like ABC and NBC navigate some of their most vexing problems. Sucherman is preparing to become chairman of Sucherman Consulting on Jan. 1 and turn the chief executive post over to Erik Sorenson, the chief operating officer. Sorenson is the former executive producer of the “CBS Evening News” and former president of MSNBC.

(Dec 1)

Paul F. Crouch, 79, Evangelical Broadcaster

Paul F. Crouch, a television evangelist who founded the Trinity Broadcasting Network with his wife and turned it into the world’s largest Christian television network, died. He was 79.

Crouch served as the face of Trinity Broadcasting, along with his wife, Janice, expanding it from one station in Southern California to thousands of stations across the world. He often appeared on camera, microphone in hand, quoting from the Bible and delivering his upbeat brand of Christianity. But he also faced criticism over lavish spending of the millions of dollars in donations collected through the network. TBN now runs on 84 satellite channels and more than 18,000 television and cable affiliates. The network also owns the Holy Land Experience theme park in Orlando (FL). The network runs sermons from prominent preachers.

(Dec 1)

New America Foundation
Thursday, December 05, 2013
9:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

In the spring of 2013, the U.S. government authorized the sale of hardware, software, and services to Iran-a bold move aimed at increasing access to information, free expression, and the ability of Iranian civilians to participate in uncensored political dialogue. The free flow of information and the ability to communicate online is a human right that needs protecting, even in the most repressive countries. But U.S. sanctions that ban the export of goods and services to countries like Iran, Syria, Sudan, and Cuba remain outdated in recognizing the impact of communications technology on both civilian and American foreign policy goals. Instead, comprehensive sanctions can actually have negative consequences population, effectively aiding the repressive regimes that seek to control access to information within their borders.

The New America Foundation's Open Technology Institute will host experts to discuss the impact of communications technology in sanctioned countries and developments in U.S. policy. In particular, panelists will focus on how the recent authorization for Iran could influence U.S. policy toward Sudan and other sanctioned countries.

The event coincides with the release of a new policy paper by the Open Technology Institute, "Translating Norms to the Digital Age: Enabling the Free Flow of Information via Technology under U.S. Sanctions." The paper offers a comprehensive analysis of the evolving treatment of communications tools under U.S. sanctions and a framework for institutionalizing this new norm and harmonizing it across all sanctioned countries.

To RSVP for the event:
http://www.newamerica.net/events/2013/information_in_sanctioned_countries

For questions, contact Kirsten Holtz at New America at (202) 735-2806 or holtz@newamerica.org


Tuesday, December 10, 2013
5:30 PM to 8:00 PM (EST)

RSVP by December 4, 2013 at http://www.eventbrite.com/e/washingtech-holiday-celebration-tickets-8905...

Join us for a holiday party for a cause!

African Americans and Latino students are disproportionately underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Comparing African American and Latino STEM college graduation rates to those of white and Asian American students, this disparity has resulted in an estimated 140,000 fewer college graduates with degrees in STEM entering the workforce each year (http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/wmpd/2013/). This has serious implications for American competitiveness and national security.

The minimum donation for this event is $20.00. All proceeds will benefit the Howard University Middle School for Mathematics and Science.

Your donation will go directly to support the Howard University Middle School for Mathematics and Science.

The Howard University Middle School of Mathematics and Science (MS)² is a public charter school committed to academic excellence, with a specific focus on mathematics and science. It is located at 405 Howard Place, NW, on the main campus of Howard University.

More information about the middle school can be found at http://www.howard.edu/ms2/about/default.htm


Healthcare.gov now works for 80 percent of users after 400 fixes, administration says

Healthcare.gov, the error-riddled website where uninsured Americans are supposed to shop for health insurance, now works for "in the zone of 80 percent" of users, a White House official said. That's up from just 30 percent of users who were able to navigate through the entire site five weeks ago.

Officials say the site can now support its original goal of 50,000 concurrent users. "While we still have work to do, we have made significant progress with Healthcare.gov working for the vast majority of users," said Jeff Zients, who is leading the effort to repair Healthcare.gov. The improvement is the result of more than 400 software fixes and hardware upgrades, including a significant hardware upgrade on Nov 29 that roughly doubled the site's capacity. The error rate, which the government defines as system timeouts or failures, is now around .75 percent, down from more than 6 percent. Response times have been under a second for the last three weeks, down from eight seconds. It's all good news for users who have been trying to buy insurance through the site but were stopped by bugs and long wait times. But new data released by the White House also shows just how underprepared Healthcare.gov was when it launched.

(Dec 1)

Pressure builds on Speaker Boehner for NSA vote

House Republican leaders are under pressure to allow a vote on legislation that would curb the National Security Agency (NSA).

Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) has defended the NSA's spying programs, but a growing bloc of his conference is signing on to a bill that would end the NSA's practice of collecting records on virtually all US phone calls, which was revealed in leaks by Edward Snowden. One House Democratic aide argued that the Republican leaders are boxed in. If they don't allow a vote on standalone NSA reform legislation, the aide said, members will demand NSA-related amendments to must-pass legislation like the defense and intelligence authorization bills. "Leadership is working to ensure that there is a well-coordinated process with all interested parties going forward," a GOP leadership aide said.

(Nov 30)

You Spent $1.2 Billion Shopping Online on Black Friday

According to comScore, consumers shopping online spent $1.2 billion buying stuff on Black Friday. It was, the firm says, the first billion-dollar-plus day of the holiday season so far.

On Thanksgiving Day, consumers spent about $766 million online, up 21 percent from 2012. Compared to last year, it’s a 15 percent improvement, or $156 million higher than the Black Friday 2012 total of $1.04 billion. Now, that’s a tricky comparison, owing to the fact that Thanksgiving fell rather late on the calendar this year versus last year. Overall, comScore reckons that 66 million people visited online retail sites on Nov 29, which sounds impressive until you do the math. Assuming that each of them bought something that works out to an average transaction amount of about $18 and change. Amazon was the king of the online retailers as the most-visited shopping site, followed by eBay, Walmart, Best Buy and Target. The top category was apparel and accessories, accounting for 28 percent of purchases, followed by computer hardware, consumer electronics, packaged goods, and shipping services.

(Dec 1)

Traditional phone lines may go away

State regulators and a seniors group are trying to hang up on a move to speed the drop of traditional land-line phone service in Michigan, a proposal the state’s largest telephone company says would ease adoption of new technology and improve its competitiveness.

A bill affecting all phone companies, but clearly linked to a technology changeover by phone giant AT&T, would let a telecommunications firm end traditional land-line phone service with 90 days’ notice, effective in three years. The proposal under debate in a Senate committee would cut in half the time for the state approval process, but opponents want safeguards built into the legislation to ensure families aren’t stripped of land-line service and left vulnerable. “Many seniors and families rely on the safety net” of traditional phone lines, said Melissa Seifert, government affairs director for AARP in Michigan. In addition, “Our concern is whether they’re leaving behind people who rely on services like a dialysis machines or Lifeline (Medical Alert) that require land lines.” AT&T Michigan public affairs director Matt Resch said the company believes the Federal Communications Commission should oversee its nationwide build-out of new technology called Voice Over Internet Protocols or VOIP phone service. The technology is an improvement that meets new consumer needs in the digital age, he said. “It’s really more for a streamlining of the process, a bureaucratic streamlining,” Resch said. The legislative debate is occurring as traditional land-line customers in Michigan have declined more than 60 percent to 2.6 million in 2012 from 6.6 million in 2000, according to FCC statistics.

(Nov 30)

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