Monthly Archive for October, 2010

Game Changers: Sergey Brin & Larry Page

Published on October 31, 2010 in Global Strategy. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

As part of highlighting Game Changers, Bloomberg has reported with an insightful video on on Google’s founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page. The video follows Sergey Brin and Larry Page from their first meeting at Stanford to the new media mega-company on a collision course with old media businesses of newspapers, books, movies and television. Along the way to its astounding success, the co-founders have redefined advertising, created a chain of products such as Google Maps, News, Gmail and have taken on rival giants like Apple and Microsoft [Check out the video here].

Real-Time Measurement of Public Opinion

Published on October 26, 2010 in Real-Time Web. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Harvard-Developed Tool Measures Real-Time Public Opinion on Social Media.

Crimson Hexagon analyses online conversations about a given subject using its unique “statistical human-assisted approach.” Developed at Harvard’s Institute for Quantitative Social Science, the technology originally began as the “hyper-accurate estimation, classification, and quantification of unstructured data,” says company CEO Scott Centurino, which, in non-science speak, just means the measurement of public opinion from unsolicited data.

The company uses sophisticated algorithms and dynamic dashboards to dig through and track massive amounts of information in real-time [Source].

“There’s a real value in tapping into these millions or billions of conversations online, where people are talking openly and honestly about what’s important to them,” says Centurino. “Our real kick comes from being able to understand the underlying themes from those conversations, so you can actually act on them. If all I know is that negative things are being said, what can I possibly do with that information?”

The New Faces of Social Media

Published on October 25, 2010 in Social Media. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

From YouTube celebrities to chief social-media officers, these unexpected players exert outsize impact and power online — offering new channels of communication that businesses can’t afford to ignore.

For businesses, the definition of influence is less important than its impact. And there is a new, emerging generation of web personalities whose activities are having impact, online and off. FastCompany has taken a snapshot of this universe, highlighting six categories, including YouTube celebrities such as iJustine; chief social-media officers at major corporations; and specialist bloggers in key industries. Few of these new influentials are household names — yet. Unless your home happens to be one of those that are absolutely devoted to them.

2010 Young Innovators Under 35

Published on October 24, 2010 in High Tech & Media. 0 Comments Tags: , .

MIT Technology Review’s annual selection of the world’s top innovators under the age of 35.

Since 1999, the editors of Technology Review have honored the young innovators whose inventions and research we find most exciting; today that collection is the TR35, a list of technologists and scientists, all under the age of 35. Their work–spanning medicine, computing, communications, electronics, nanotechnology, and more–is changing our world.

Find the entire list of ideas and detailed profiles here.
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US$250 Million sFund

Published on October 23, 2010 in Global Strategy and Social Media. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Companies developing social-media applications for Facebook have a new place to look to for funding: one of Silicon Valley’s most powerful venture-capital firms: Kleiner Perkins is teaming with social and traditional media companies to back a $250 million fund aimed at fostering social-technology innovation.

The firm, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, announced it was creating an “sFund” devoted to putting money on the table for companies developing social-media applications—particularly those that could be integrated with Facebook and the social network’s 500 million users [Source 1] [Source 2] [Source 3].

“Think of it as a quarter-billion-dollar party,” said John Doerr, a partner at Kleiner Perkins. He called social media the next great wave of disruptive technology to come from Silicon Valley, after the development of personal computing and then the Web browser. Doerr, one of the most important venture capitalists and thinkers on the Silicon Valley scene.

Solar Power Business Heats Up: Enter GE

Published on October 13, 2010 in Greentech, High Tech & Media and International Business. 0 Comments Tags: .

Years spent honing manufacturing techniques under Jack Welch will come in handy as Tom Tiller boosts output at Abound Solar.

Watch out, solar manufacturers: GE may be about to take over your turf. The corporate giant, which has already carved out a spot as one of the world’s leading wind turbine suppliers, announced this week that it is moving into the thin film solar business.

GE is manufacturing cadmium telluride thin film panels, which puts it in direct competition with First Solar, the only other major company to focus on the material. It will be a fierce battle. First Solar is the world’s largest thin-film solar manufacturer, and one of the biggest solar manufacturers overall.

Most solar panels convert sunlight into electricity using silicon-based photovoltaic cells. Abound Solar, formerly known as AVA Solar, uses a less costly cadmium-telluride thin-film process developed by W. S. Sampath, one of its founders, while teaching at Colorado State University [Source 1] [Source 2] [Source 3].

Private Equity Thrives Again

Published on October 6, 2010 in International Finance. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

The private equity industry has emerged from a treacherous two years on relatively solid footing. Default rates among the companies they control have dropped sharply and many have tapped into robust debt markets to push back the huge amounts of debt coming due in the next couple of years.

And private equity’s deal-making machine is revving up again. Last month, 3G Capital struck a deal to take Burger King private in a $3.3 billion leveraged buyout. Other firms are prep-ping holdings for initial public offerings so they can return capital to their investors, who have seen little in the way of profits in recent years.

Private equity, however, may soon be facing its gravest challenge yet. Its most important constituents — the large public pension funds that provide it with more than half its capital — are weighing whether or not to stick with private equity in the coming years [Source].

7 Trends to Watch

Published on October 5, 2010 in High Tech & Media and Social Media. 0 Comments Tags: .

7 Trends to Watch, In An Age of Info Overload. Information is now the most abundant commodity on earth. These are strange times — not just for us citizens, but for all the corporate citizens that employ us, feed us, and work the engine that makes the world go round. So here are seven home truths to help keep things in perspective [Source].

1. People Crave Certainty
2. “Branded Content” Is a Dangerous Road — Drive Responsibly
3. Bet on Humans over Technology
4. If You Have Nothing to Say, Don’t. No, Really
5. Privacy Is Becoming Pivotal — Take a Stand
6. Information Works for You, Not the Other Way Round
7. Empower Your Intrapreneurs