Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends 2011 - Always a must study.
This fact-packed presentation compiled by KPCB partner Mary Meeker explores and examines the significant trends shaping the Internet today. Backed by hard data and decades of technology analysis, Mary posits that the mobile revolution is still in its infancy and poised for tremendous growth. Her presentation also zeroes in on the newest breakout trends driving e-commerce, including the rejuvenating effects of local commerce, the global race to adopt mobile devices and apps, and the latest innovations in online payments. The evolving social space comes under Mary’s scrutiny as well. She observes that social networking is proving to be not just a powerful engagement model, but also a pervasive new wave of opportunity that spans the online experience. View the full presentation for a look at the digital trends that surround us in today’s increasingly mobile, social world.
Source: kpcb.com
Ash Maurya does a great job peeling the layers off of the lean startup. Check out his preso!
I’ve seen the future of online fundraising for non-profits:
It’s a whuffie wrapped inside a game wrapped inside a startup.
The Future of Online Fundraising | Jonas Lamis | Venture Junkie
Great blog post by my partner in crime at piryx, Jonas Lamis. Must read article on the long tail, game mechanics, and alternate currencies relating to giving.
Source: jonaslamis.com
The “Mother-in-Law” effect on mainstream entertainment
Check out The End of Moore’s Law: A Love Story by Bing Gordon. It’s an excellent summary of what’s happening in the gaming industry. Social experiences and active participation are intrinsic to gaming more than other forms of entertainment, so the current state of gaming makes sense. I do wish that he had come up with a better term than “Mother-in-Law”… that’s not going to stick, but I’ll use it here. Very much worth a read.
The most fascinating part for me was the quote by Gordon Moore from 2005. When discussing Moore’s Law with Bing Gordon, he said “I never actually thought of it as a law, more as an observation to bet on.”
With Apple’s iTV and Google TV, perhaps “Mother-in-Law” is going to start applying quickly to other forms of mainstream entertainment as well (within the content, not just around the content). For example, when you are watching movies or TV shows through those devices, you will be prompted to add your own assets which interact with the on-screen experience… Apple and Google are certainly are betting on this big time. Of course, the billion dollar question around this has always been - will it get massive adoption (like it has in the gaming word), or do people simply want certain activities to remain passive? We’ll find out in 2011 :-)
Facebook surpassed Yahoo! in ads served accounting for 16% of all ad served to US users.
But what is the quality of the ads? I bet the largest bulk of ads are like above, generally irrelevant (there are more relevant ads Facebook can serve me) and end up reducing my faith in Facebook (I’m learning to totally ignore the ad boxes on the right).
If I wasn’t marked as single on Facebook, would I see less or none of these types of ads? Doubtful… If I never click on these ads, shouldn’t Facebook stop displaying them to me? Facebook needs better behavioral targeting. I know behavioral targeting is so 2000s, but it seems to be a problem that still needs a lot of work.
Facebook ads result in some of the worst click rates in the industry. What kinds of things do you think Facebook can do to drive up their click-through and generally make the ads they serve more credible? Does having an “ad bar” on Facebook even make sense? Should it strictly be part of my browsing experience (e.g. ads in notifications or in-game advertising)?
Daily deal service Groupon, hot off a new funding that valued the company at $1.35 billion, may not love all those clones of its service out there. But they’re certainly being realistic about things – tomorrow they’ll announce the acquisition of German startup Citydeal, CEO Andrew Mason just called to tell me.
Source: TechCrunch
