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  • The Next 5 Years in Social Media

    In honor of Mashable’s five-year anniversary, this series is supported by IDG . Matt York, President of IDG’s Strategic Marketing Services explains why now is the time for marketers to conduct social experiments. Read more here . Over the last five years , social media has evolved from a handful of communities that existed solely in a web browser to a multi-billion dollar industry that’s quickly expanding to mobile devices, driving major changes in content consumption habits and providing users with an identity and social graph that follows them across the web. With that framework in place, the next five years are going to see even more dramatic change. Fueled by advancements in underlying technology – the wires, wireless networks and hardware that make social media possible – a world where everything is connected awaits us. The result will be both significant shifts in our everyday lives and a changing of the guard in several industries that are only now starting to feel the impact of social media. The Technology The growth of social media in the past five years was fueled not just by innovation from Internet entrepreneurs and developers, but by several key advancements behind the scenes. The rise of YouTube – which I called the most important social media innovation of the past decade – would not have been possible without the wide availability of broadband and the advent of Flash 7. Similarly, the rapid rise of mobile apps in the last few years would not have been possible without major advances in smartphone capabilities (jump started by iPhone ) and higher speed mobile networks. Jumping ahead to today, consider for a moment that the first smartphone to run on 4G (the successor to 3G mobile broad and capable of significantly faster mobile broadband speeds) – the Sprint HTC EVO – hit the U.S. only this past June. Sprint’s 4G network, however, only covers about 40 million people. Similarly, wireless broadband ISP Clearwire reported in May that its network – which is also used to offer service to Sprint, Verizon, and Time Warner cable subscribers – only reaches 41 million people. At the same time, mobile broadband subscriptions are expected to surpass 1 billion worldwide by 2013. Add to that a surge in public and private investment in wireline broadband that will give 90% of homes in the U.S. the option to have 50 mbps downstream broadband within the next few years, and the bottom line becomes clear: There’s currently an enormous supply and demand gap to be filled, and when that happens, it will enable a whole new wave of social media innovation. The Strong Get Stronger While the relatively short history of social media dictates that a new site emerges as the “home of you and your friends” every few years ( Friendster , then MySpace , then Facebook , for example), it seems unlikely we’ll see the current pantheon of social media services – Facebook, Twitter , and YouTube – fall from prominence in the next five years. Facebook has a far larger user base and more diverse demographics than any social network before it, and is becoming a de facto login service around the web. YouTube continues to maintain an enormous lead in online video viewership and through aggressive deal-making, looks likely to fend off competition from upstarts with deeper pro-content libraries. Twitter has also become a formidable force with a 300,000+ app ecosystem and a distribution platform for virtually every media company large and small. Most new outfits we see today — whether working to make television more interactive , make reading more social, or make listening to music a shared experience – are thinking about how to leverage the likes of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube as opposed to how to build the next mega social network. The Next Frontiers for Social Media Given the dynamics of a faster, ubiquitous Internet, a social media landscape defined by apps built on top of a few key services, and billions of connected devices , the next five years will see shifts in certain areas of media – like television and radio – that will be as dramatic as those seen in print over the past decade. The Internet has already enabled anyone to be a publisher. But now, with Internet-connected television, anyone is going to be able to gain access to the living room. Blip.tv, a company that bet on this trend early, recently reported that its shows – which air solely online and on connected devices – are being viewed nearly 100 million times per month — or, put another way, 10% as much as what’s viewed on ABC, NBC, and FOX combined . And while this trend was previously relegated to early adopters and startup set-top box makers like Boxee and Roku , recent months have seen the likes of Google jump on board with Google TV and Apple revamp its Apple TV offering. At the same time, so-called “second screen” providers are building a social experience – leveraging Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube – on mobiles and tablets around video content. The result of this trend is going to be the type of broad consumer choice in the realm of video and television that we currently know on the web with printed news. Radio is likely to see a similar shift. Late last year, we saw the LTE Connected Car concept unveiled – an idea that will become increasingly close to reality with expanded 4G coverage. Already, we’ve seen Ford make a play in this arena, letting you stream music from Pandora over your car stereo . While the transformation in radio might not come as soon as that in TV, it’s equally inevitable, and there are hundreds of content providers – from Pandora to Last.fm to BlogTalkRadio – ready to unseat the status quo. Beyond Social Media The connected devices theme extends beyond the media though — everything from scales that track your weight and body fat to alarm clocks that sync with your calendar — is quickly becoming the reality. We’re also starting to see behavioral shifts take place as a result of this trend, as evident with the growing acceptance of location sharing apps and even apps that share your credit card purchases. Invariably, there will be products, people, and trends that further dictate where the next five years of social media take us. But the overarching themes of connectivity, portable identity, and the continued democratization of media will drive much of it, making the social media landscape we inhabit five years from now a much expanded but in fact markedly similar one to that we know today. Series supported by IDG In honor of Mashable’s five-year anniversary, this series is supported by IDG . Social media is calling all marketers. Among all U.S. companies, a recent report said 87% have a social presence. As Facebook passes 500 million users and Foursquare surpasses 1.3 million users, it is clear social media is here to stay. Matt York, President of IDG’s Strategic Marketing Services explains why now is the time for marketers to conduct social experiments. Read more here . More About: broadband , facebook , Mobile 2.0 , social media , social-media-retrospective-series , tech , technology , trends , twitter , Wireless , youtube For more Social Media coverage: Follow Mashable Social Media on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Social Media channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

    Sep, 07 2010 0 Comments Full Story

  • HP Has a Big Problem with Former CEO Mark Hurd Joining Oracle

    That didn’t take long. Less than a day after former HP CEO Mark Hurd announced his intentions to join Oracle as co-president , his former employer has filed a civil complaint suggesting the move is not at all in line with signed agreements. Part of that complaint, as posted on HP’s official corporate blog, reads: “In his new positions, Hurd will be in a situation in which he cannot perform his duties for Oracle without necessarily using and disclosing HP’s trade secrets and confidential information to others.” HP also notes that they paid Hurd a severance package worth tens of millions of dollars following his abrupt resignation last month in the wake of a sexual harassment allegation. Now, the company is seeking “immediate injunctive relief” in the California Superior Court to prevent Hurd from assuming his new position at Oracle. No word yet from Oracle or Hurd as to how they plan to address the issues put forth by HP and keep their arrangement on track; we’ll update here when we hear something. In the meantime, here’s the full complaint: More About: HP , mark hurd , oracle For more Business coverage: Follow Mashable Business on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Business channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

    Sep, 07 2010 0 Comments Full Story

  • 10 Free WordPress Themes for Small Businesses

    This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum , where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business. There are a lot of WordPress themes out there. Whether you’re looking for a souped up, paid premium template or a free alternative, it seems everyone and their grandma has created a tweak on the basic two-column or three-column WordPress model. While it can be a little daunting to sort through the many options, the explosion of available templates is a healthy sign of a vibrant, sometimes prolific, design community. This is good news, of course, if you’re a designer. This is not such good news if you’re a small business looking for a simple, free, and adequately outfitted theme for your company. Picking a theme for your blog can be much like picking the right pair of shoes. It’s a personal choice as much guided by the needs of your company as your own aesthetic ideals and personality. With that in mind, we tried to do some of the heavy-lifting by picking out 10 of the best all-around, free WordPress themes for small business. We’ve included some points on how each theme could be maximized, but feel free to experiment, modify, and select for yourself. After all, you are wearing the shoes. Have a look through our picks, and do let us know if there are any personal favorites we missed in the comments. Don’t forget to let us know why you picked your site’s theme. 1. Notepad Think of this as small business 101. Notepad is a simple theme with a clean, clear landing page. The theme is best for showing off your product, slogan or any other branding you’ve developed. 2. Colourise Colourise is a nice choice for edgier, more graphics-based companies. And no, not just because it’s black. The theme comes with a huge header image (shown here in the muted rainbow) that enables you to showcase your business’s logo or other design features in a variety of ways. This is balanced with all the standard navigation features and a prominent display for your company blog. 3. Makisig Makisig is a little more corporate with cleaner lines and more conventional design choices. One of its best features is an expertly designed sidebar with plenty of room for prominently placed ads and easy navigation through your previous posts based on several criteria. 4. The Unstandard While it initially looks suited for photogs, this WordPress theme is a great way to feature a set of hot-selling products. Each thumbnail on the homepage can be based around your products; the flashy design is a great way to draw readers in. Warning: Top-notch photography is a must with this scene as it dominates the user experience. 5. LaunchPad This is the only theme on the list that isn’t really a “theme.” LaunchPad is meant to be an effective placeholder when you’re developing your real website. Rather than offering a blank page to pre-launch visitors, you can add a short message and have potential customers sign up to your RSS feed or mailing list. Consider it a necessary tool as you develop your homepage. 6. The Morning After The Morning After is a classic for magazine style WordPress themes. Don’t let the moniker fool you, this theme comes packed with sleek navigation features and tons of space for brand headers, featured products, and thumbnails. If you’re looking for a sharp theme with lots of multimedia, this might be your cup of tea. 7. Charred This stream-lined theme is something a little simpler for companies wanting to focus on product info or news. The dark design means this probably isn’t the best bet for your organic farm blog, but for simplicity, this theme is still a good starting place for smaller businesses. 8. TheSevenFive This theme is best for small businesses looking to build communities and share information with its users. Posts can be organized in a variety of formats including collected photos, tweets, and straight-up news posts. The lack of a huge header image or brand-focused landing page, however, makes this theme less useful for showcasing products. 9. Snapshot Snapshot is another photo-heavy theme best used for showcasing your products. This theme provides an elegant solution to giving a product overview if you don’t feel like downloading a marketplace widget. There is ample room in each photo box for a detailed description but not enough for substantial news posts. 10. Bueno Much like The Morning After, this theme’s bold, clean, graphics-heavy design is perfect for balancing news, brand, and product highlights. This is a great choice if you’re looking for a site design that can help you build community with enough features and flexibility to promote yourself and your goods. More Business Resources from Mashable: – 15 Excellent Corporate Blogs to Learn From – 7 Perfect Posterous Themes for Multimedia Blogs – 10 Beautiful and Free WordPress 3.0-Ready Themes – How Small Businesses Will Use Social Media in the Future – HOW TO: Add Multimedia to Your Blog Image courtesy of iStockphoto , MandarineTree More About: bueno , business , charred , colourise , LaunchPad , makisig , notepad , snapshot , template , the morning after , the unstandard , theme , themes , thesevenfive , Wordpress For more Business coverage: Follow Mashable Business on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Business channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

    Sep, 07 2010 0 Comments Full Story

  • Announcing the 4th Annual Mashable Awards [Help Shape the Categories]

    Mashable is proud to present the fourth annual Mashable Awards (formerly known as Open Web Awards). The Mashable Awards celebrate major innovations and achievements in the digital and social media landscape by companies, people and projects via an open, multilingual, international, community-nominated voting platform. Millions of votes will be cast in 25 categories ranging from “Best New Gadget” to “Best Music Discovery Service” to “Must-Follow Brand.” Following three months of competition, the Mashable Awards Gala will kick off the 2011 International CES convention week on January 6, 2011 at Cirque du Soleil’s Zumanity stage in Las Vegas. The venue capacity is 1,200+ and the event will be streamed live. Tickets are now on sale exclusively through Eventbrite. For sponsorship opportunities, please contact sponsorships at Mashable . The website launch and nominations period will officially begin on September 27 , but before we get started we want you, our readers, to have a say in the categories. Based on ideas and suggestions from our editorial team and previous comments from you over the years, we’ve come up with the following 18 categories. However, these categories are not set in stone and we want your opinions. Suggestions, praise, ideas, complaints and conversations are all welcome! The Current Categories 1. Best New Gadget 2. Best Mobile Device 3. Best Music Discovery Service 4. Best Location-Based Service 5. Best Web Video 6. Must Follow 7. Most Creative Social Media Campaign 8. Best Social Media Management Tool 9. Must-Follow Brand 10. Best Use of an API 11. Best Website User Experience 12. Best Mobile User Experience 13. Most Innovative Mobile App 14. Best Mobile Platform 15. Best Mobile Game 16. Most Creative Social Media for Social Good Campaign 17. Most Promising New Company 18. Best Online Game Online Timeline: Nominations: September 27 to November 29 Final 5 Voting Round: December 1 to December 15 Winners will be announced at the Mashable Awards Gala The Mashable Awards Gala at Cirque du Soleil Zumanity (Vegas) In partnership with Cirque du Soleil, The Mashable Awards Gala event will bring together the winners and nominees, the Mashable community, partners, media, the marketing community, consumer electronics and technology brands, and attendees from the 2011 International CES Convention to Las Vegas on Thursday, January 6, 2011. Together, we will celebrate the winners and the community of the Mashable Awards at the Cirque du Soleil Zumanity stage in the beautiful New York New York Hotel. The event will include acts and performances from our partner Cirque du Soleil Zumanity. In addition, there will be special guest presenters and appearances. Date: Thursday, January 6, 2011 (during International CES Convention week) Time: 7:00 – 10:00 p.m. PT Location: Cirque du Soleil Zumanity, New York New York Hotel, Las Vegas Agenda: Networking, Open Bars, Acts, Surprises and the Mashable Awards Gala presentations Tickets On Sale Now: General Admission and VIP Tickets Available through Eventbrite Socialize: Facebook , Plancast , Foursquare , Meetup , Using #MashableAwards on Twitter We look forward to your feedback and stay tuned to Mashable for more details, the launch of the Mashable Awards platform and website and please feel free to ask any questions below. More About: mashable awards , open web awards For more Social Media coverage: Follow Mashable Social Media on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Social Media channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

    Sep, 07 2010 0 Comments Full Story

  • Social Good Summit: Tackling Global Challenges with Social Media

    Mashable is proud to be partnering with the UN Foundation, 92Y, Livestream.com, CNN and a host of teams and organizations to produce a unique opportunity to make UN Week accessible to the public — both online and offline. Today the organizations behind the Mashable & 92Y Social Good Summit and the UN Week Digital Media Lounge are making a joint announcement communicating our shared goals. We’ve published the full announcement below, and our partner Weber Shandwick has also made the release available via the wires this morning. Additionally, the announcement is available for download on PressLift . We hope you’ll join our shared vision: To leverage social media for social good. Mashable, 92nd Street Y and UN Foundation to Showcase Power of Social Media in Fighting Global Challenges First-of-its-kind Social Good Summit opens up UN Week and brings the dialogue online for the first time NEW YORK CITY (September 7, 2010) — On September 20, as global leaders head to New York for United Nations Week – including a historic summit on global issues known as the “Millennium Development Goals” (MDGs) and the annual General Assembly – Mashable, 92nd Street Y and UN Foundation will bring together leaders from the digital industry, policy and media worlds for a groundbreaking Social Good Summit focused on how technology and social networks can play a leading role in addressing the world’s most intractable problems. Speakers will participate in person and via Skype video calls. As a media partner, CNN.com will be live-streaming select parts of the event. Participants include: • Chris Hughes , co-founder of Facebook and founder of Jumo, an innovative startup that aims to link millions of individuals to organizations working to change the world beginning this fall. Hughes also directed online organizing for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. • Howard W. Buffett , Policy Advisor in the Executive Office of the President of the United States under President Barack Obama. • Jessica Jackley , Co-founder of Kiva, the world’s first peer-to-peer online microlending website and one of the fastest-growing social benefit websites in history. • Judy McGrath , CEO of MTV networks, overseeing MTV, MTV2, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon among other media properties. • Pete Cashmore , CEO/Founder of Mashable and one of the Huffington Posts’ Top 10 Game Changers in 2009. • Ray Chambers , the United Nations’ Special Envoy for Malaria, and founder of “Malaria No More.” • Susan Smith Ellis , CEO of (RED), who has partnered with iconic brands like Apple and Nike to leverage the collective power of consumers and raise funds for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. • Ted Turner , the Chairman of Turner Enterprises, Inc. and former Vice Chairman of Time Warner Inc., the world’s leading media company. He is the founder of CNN, an environmentalist and a philanthropist. Turner created the UN Foundation 1998 with his historic gift in support of the United Nations. In contrast with official events that week, which will largely be invitation-only affairs for government leaders and official representatives, the Mashable and 92nd Street Y Social Good Summit is open to the public and will enable millions to join the conversation in person or via livestreaming. “The Social Good Summit is a watershed moment for harnessing the potential of social media for the social good,” said Sol Adler, Executive Director of 92nd Street Y. “This Summit will bring together leaders of new media and of global development for the kind of exchange that can spark collaborations of unforeseen potential.” Mashable, the Social Good Summit’s lead organizer, is the top source for news in social and digital media, and 92 Street Y is the renowned nonprofit cultural and community center recognized for its commitment to the open exchange of ideas and perspectives. Digital Media Lounge Following the Summit, the United Nations Foundation, which advocates for the UN by providing a platform for connecting people, ideas and resources, is sponsoring the week’s Digital Media Lounge from September 21-24. Hosted at 92Y, the fully wired Digital Media Lounge will provide the on-line community exclusive access to high-level UN officials and international leaders. Newsmakers and experts in global issues and social media will talk with bloggers and journalists both in person and through a Skype video calling facility. Parts of the event will be also streamed online with Livestream.com. There is no fee required to access the Digital Media Lounge but accreditation is necessary for access and can be obtained at http://mash.to/2hRQL . “Digital media are driving the involvement of millions of citizens, and delivering invaluable information and knowledge for development efforts,” said Kathy Calvin, CEO of the United Nations Foundation. “Through the UN Week Digital Media Lounge, we are helping make conversation about the world’s biggest challenges a truly global dialogue, driven by a digital pulse.” The week’s conversations will be all tied to the Millennium Development Goals . These goals set by world leaders and adopted by the United Nations in 2000, focus on massive reductions in poverty and hunger; promotion of universal primary education; gender equality; reduction in child deaths and the deaths of women in childbirth; the fight against HIV/AIDS and other diseases, and environmental sustainability. “Every American and every world citizen has a stake in advancing the MDGs,” said Kathy Calvin of the United Nations Foundation. “Yet many people are still looking for ways to have a positive impact. By coming together in partnership, we can make this happen. And when we do, the world will be a better place.” *** About the UN Foundation: The UN Foundation connects people, ideas and resources to help the United Nations solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 with entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner’s historic $1 billion gift to support UN causes and activities. We are an advocate for the UN and help the UN take its best work and ideas to scale—through advocacy, partnerships, constituency building and fund-raising. About Mashable: Founded in 2005, Mashable is the top source for news in social and digital media, technology and web culture. With more than 30 million monthly page views, Mashable is the most prolific news site reporting breaking web news, providing analysis of trends, reviewing new Web sites and services, and offering social media resources and guides. Mashable’s audience includes early adopters, social media enthusiasts, entrepreneurs, influencers, brands and corporations, marketing, PR and advertising agencies, Web 2.0 aficionados and technology journalists. Mashable is also popular with bloggers, Twitter and Facebook users — an increasingly influential demographic. About 92nd Street Y: 92nd Street Y’s unique fusion of community and culture makes it the only place of its kind in the world. 92Y is a community center, performance stage and lecture hall; a literary salon and home for artists; a school, outreach organization and summer camp; a gym, a residence and more. 92nd Street Y, a proudly Jewish institution since its inception in 1874, has become a community of communities, welcoming people of all ages, races, faiths and backgrounds. Now serving more than 300,000 people each year in its New York facilities, 92Y also reaches millions of “virtual” guests around the world through its website, satellite broadcasts and other electronic media. Committed to making its programs available to everyone, 92nd Street Y awards nearly $1 million in scholarships annually and reaches about 7500 public school children through subsidized arts and science education programs. For more information, please visit www.92Y.org . For more information on Social Good Summit, please contact: Press Contact: Sarah Morton Email: smorton@92y.org For more information on Digital Media Lounge, please contact: Press Contact: Aaron H. Sherinian Email: asherinian@unfoundation.org Mashable & 92Y Social Good Summit: Date: Monday, September 20, 2010 Time: 1:00 to 6:00 p.m. ET Location: 92nd Street Y, New York City Tickets: On sale through Eventbrite Reviews: Facebook , Mashable , Skype , Twitter More About: social good , social good summit , UN week , un week digital media lounge For more Social Media coverage: Follow Mashable Social Media on Twitter Become a Fan on Facebook Subscribe to the Social Media channel Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

    Sep, 07 2010 0 Comments Full Story
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