February, 2012
Show your love for someone this Valentine’s Day with an augmented reality created with a simple Starbucks cup. The creation of this mobile application shows Starbucks’s continued dedication to becoming digital. This campaign allows people to photograph the Valentine’s Day cup and make hearts move from on the cup around the screen, and then send this augmented reality to friends. To learn more about Starbucks’s mobile growth visit Mashable.
February, 2012
According to a study, about half of the individuals watching the Super Bowl XLVI will check their mobile phone up to 10 times during the game. It was also proven, that almost one-third of viewers under the age of 45 will be watching with their mobile phone in their hand. People are using their phones to reach beyond the individuals that they are watching the game with through social media. A lot of the commentary will be about the anticipated commercials happening throughout the game. To learn more visit Mashable.
January, 2012
Facial recognition company Face.com has released “Klick” a new App for iOS 4.3+ that links to Facebook and automatically identifies your friends names when taking photos. Immediately sharing with your friends is optional, but to use the app you must configure it with your Facebook account. Klick supports some Instagram-like photo filters that can make photos more artistic. It also offers feeds from nearby photos and friend’s photos with the option to tag from the camera roll to Twitter, email, Facebook and publically on Klick. For more information, please see TechCrunch.com.
January, 2012
Clio, a cloud-based management service is pioneering a movement in the legal industry of storing information on the cloud. The cloud-based management service will help lawyers manage their practice by organizing time, client information, upcoming court dates and deadlines. Clio is using $6 million in new funding to push product and feature development around its technology, add support for its growing customer base, and expand internationally. For more information, please see TechCrunch.com.
January, 2012
According to a CNET report Facebook is looking to exclusively host Vevo- YouTube’s top streaming channel. This adoption would put Facebook in direct competition with Google’s YouTube, and give Facebook users the ability to simultaneously listen to music, upload pictures, comment on walls and message friends. Vevo is currently the top national entertainment music web platform with projected 3.7 billion videos viewed globally each month. For more information, please see Mashable.com.
January, 2012
Toshiba is releasing an ultra thin new tablet based on comments from consumers on social media sites. Toshiba uses Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to listen to what consumers really want and make them happen. Mark Simmons, CEO of Toshiba America confirms this during an exclusive interview. He discusses that a lot of what consumers want is determined with surveys by current customers, but even more importantly than that, the customers true wants and needs are displayed on social media. Watch the entire interview with Mark Simmons on Mashable.
January, 2012
Apple is expected to make an announcement with a focus on education this Thursday. A rumor claims that Apple plans to launch a “GarageBand” style software that allows anyone with an Apple device tools to create interactive textbooks. According to Steve Jobs biography, he had a much bigger idea in mind. He believed that the $8 billion a year industry was ready for a digital makeover. To learn more, visit Mashable.
January, 2012
Hulu is in final preparations to launch its first original scripted series, Battleground, online next month. The show will be available on Hulu.com to its paid ‘premium’ subscribers as well as its free service subscribers. The show covers a fictional senate candidate in Wisconsin as he battles from third place the upcoming election. Hulu announced the plans for the original series as other online services such as Netflix, Youtube, and Yahoo have discussed or announced adding original programming to their offerings. Hulu offers subscribers the ability to watch episodes of many popular TV shows online with limited commercial interruptions. The company hopes that the addition of original web programming such as Battleground will bolster its already growing profits after the company saw 60% growth from 2010-2011. For more information see TechCrunch.
December, 2011
British wireless carrier O2 has just finished its holiday promotion that crosses between YouTube and Twitter. Consumers were encouraged to tweet their personal message to Santa using #O2Santa during a 3 day period from December 12-December 15. “Santa” will then personally record a response to each tweet and post the video to the O2 Santa YouTube channel. As of the second day of the campaign, Santa had already responded to 400 tweets garnering over 12,000 views. Santa will continue responding to all of the tweets posted during the 3 day period with a guarantee of having all responses up by Christmas. Consumers can share the videos via social media or email the link to friends and family to view. For more information, see The Real Time Report.
December, 2011
Sincerely, the company behind the photo-printing app Postagram, has released a new mobile photo app called Dotti. The app is designed to look and feel like an old-school disposable camera. Users get 12 photos to shoot that can be sent off and made into high-quality 4×6 prints for $4.99. Photographs are returned to their owners by mail in less than a week. For more information, please see TechCrunch.
December, 2011
Spotify, the music download service, is now available for the Blackberry market according to Spotify’s blog. However, the app will only work on select models; the Bold 9780, the Bold 9700, the Curve 9300, the Bold 9000, and the Curve 8520. The newest of these models is over a year old! Spotify has not released an official statement as to whether newer Blackberry versions will be able to download the app. For more information, please see TechCrunch.
December 2011
DDR Corp., a retail real estate company, is using geo-fencing technology in its open-air shopping malls nation-wide. Deals are texted from retailers to consumers upon entering the mall’s borders. While such technology has been used by individual retailers before, DDR Corp. is using ValuText for small businesses within their malls. Since these businesses don’t typically have the marketing budget of larger retailers, this service gives them the opportunity to better compete during the holidays, free of charge. For more information, please see Mashable.
December, 2011
Miso, social TV start-up, has come out with a new feature called SlideShow which allows users to view relevant content along side their favorite TV shows. For example, if a user were watching the MTV series Awkward and a new song began to play, Miso would pull up a card with the artist’s name, song name, and link to Spotify. Miso is currently an app that can be linked with DirecTV, U-Verse, and Roku. For more information, please see AdWeek.
November 2011
Kiehl’s, the high-end skincare brand, uses geo-fencing technology to drive holiday traffic in-stores. Opt-in mobile users receive location-based SMS texts when they are within range of a store with a special holiday promotion. SMS texts have also included in-store and online discount codes. For more information about this and other location-based mobile tactics, please see Luxury Daily.
November 2011
Square launches Card Case, the mobile app allowing users to pay hands-free by creating tabs with the merchant. Within 100 meters of the retailer location, geo-fencing capabilities allow the app to detect the user’s presence. Once users walk into the merchant’s location they are abe to automatically open a tab, charging to the credit or debit account tied to the app. For more information, please see gigaom.com.
November 2011,
Online retailer Amazon launches iPhone app combining augmented reality and e-commerce, similar to the Google Goggles concept. The app allows the iPhone camera to recognize tens of millions of products to then drive purchase through Amazon.com. Amazon is among the first to bring the physically tangible and digital worlds of shopping together, and it seems this will only be the beginning for augmented reality experiences. For more information, please see Mashable.
November, 2011
P&G is now selling products to on-the-go consumers at busy subway stations in Prague – the products, though, are virtual. When users scan a QR code underneath the image of a product, they can purchase the item through the company Mall.cz, which will then deliver the products to their home. The company plans to add more children’s products during the holiday season to assist in holiday shopping. To learn more about this new shopping experience, please visit AdAge.com.
October, 2011
Aurasma, the augmented reality start-up, is currently building a different, arguably better, QR code. Although these new codes will functionally perform the same, acting as triggers for virtual content, they will differ in their appearance. No longer will the QR code be a black and white Rorschach test, now companies will be able to use ads or brand logos to attract smart phone owners. For more information, please see Aurasma QR.
August, 2011
Google has now made Gmail accessible when you are offline, and within the next week will also make Google Calendars and Google Docs accessible offline too. The new offline Gmail is available as a Google Web app. However this app will only be effective for Chrome’s web browser. None Chrome users fear not, Google promises to make the app available in other browsers soon. For more information, please see Gmail Offline.
August, 2011
Jumbio, the new technology that turns your webcam into a credit card reader, is now available for all WordPress websites. Jumbio is set up like any other plug-in, publishers just need to download, install and activate. Then all of their users can purchase and make charitable donation by just turning on their webcam and flashing there cards. To read more visit Jumbio for WordPress.
August, 2011
Edge is Adobe’s new web motion and interactive design tool. It allows its users to animate content using HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript. It does not use Flash at all. This tool has never been developed before and is currently being offered for free. Edge is intended to coexist with current Flash tools such as Dreamweaver, not extinguish them. For more information, please see Adobe Edge.
July 2011
Shazam, the app known for tagging and identifying music selections, now offers tagging for TV commercials and networks. When the Shazam logo pops up in commercials, the user can tag it with the app, which then brings them links to the brand’s website, coupons and offers. While this has been used by brands such as Proctor and Gamble, Old Navy, and Honda, network TV is getting in on the app, too. Bravo and Syfy are networks that have used Shazam to link users to their lineups and contest offers. With this new technology, brands can have a better measure of engagement as well as increased traffic to their website and Facebook pages by sending the user directly there. For more information, please see AdAge.
July 2011
Yoav Medan used a QR code on his mother Judith’s tombstone to create a unique and lasting memory of her. The QR code links to a tribute website, where stories and photos of Judith are shared. Medan believes this will help others in future generations to come remember his mother. The QR code was laser engraved and placed behind a glass protection on the tombstone. For more information, please see Mashable.
July, 2011
Extent and GameTanium team up to launch an “all-you-can-eat” system for mobile Android games. GameTanium will charge its users a monthly fee for unlimited download of its Android games. This system is similar to Netflix, but for the mobile gaming world. For more information, please see GameTanium.
July, 2011
Scribd has released a new iPhone application called Float, which makes reading on smartphones much easier. The application does this by striping external links, ads, and other types of clutter to improve the users reading ability. The users then can zoom in to their liking and the text will automatically adjust to fit the screen. One huge benefit is how the application lets you link to over 150 publications including social media websites for easy, on the go reading. For now the application is free but in the future Scribd will charge users for premium content. For more information, please visit Mashable.
July, 2011
Adobe has recently acquired the cloud-based digital signature service, EchoSign. The VP of Acrobat Solutions said that with this new software, “we will be … significantly reducing the time, cost and complexity associated with having a document signed.” With this new acquisition Adobe will be abandoning eSignatures Service, which was released last May. For more information, please see EchoSign.
July, 2011
A tech savvy start up, Visual.ly, now lets users take web-based data information to create their own information graphics. Mashable describes Visual.ly as being broken down into three main parts. “First, it’s a search engine for web-based infographics. Second, it’s a silo of data from government agencies, non-profits and other research- and data-focused entities. Third, Visual.ly is a web-based platform for creating infographics of your own — no graphic design experience or software required.” With 60,000 members, Visual.ly hopes to live as a marketplace for researchers, publishers, everyday users and designers. For more information, please see Mashable.
July, 2011
Senseg, a technology company out of Sweden, is perfecting the ability to actually feel displays on touch screen devices. This E-Sense system uses “tixels” (tactile pixels) to imitate a variety of different textures on a screen. An electric field is created millimeters above the screens surface generating precisely tuned feelings upon the skin. The user does not even have to place their finger directly on the screen to feel them either. With Toshiba already on board and in the market for more prospective partners, Senseg says the technology is cheap and simple to implement. Be looking out for this new technology in the near future. For more information, please see The Next Web.
July. 2011
Google has launched its newest version of Maps for the Android. Voted “App of the Day” by Gizmodo, Google Maps 5.7 offers a new ‘Labs’ feature. This allows you to download any map of a 10-mile radius and save it to your phone. This means that you can bring that saved map up at anytime, without needing a data connection. This new feature is perfect for subways, rural areas and foreign country travel. For more information, please see Google Maps 5.7.
July 2011
Intel creates an engaging and interactive YouTube video, The Escape. The video allows the consumer to become a part of the story, with the capability to connect to their Facebook account, further personalizing the experience. With the power to fight villains, and unlock doors and content, the video is like no other for YouTube viewers. The Escape gaming experience is a part of a campaign for Intel’s 2nd Generation Core processors. For more information, please see TNW.
