Social Media

EA Spurns Social Game Wallflowers
April 16, 2013

Electronic Arts will shut down three of its less popular games on Facebook, citing waning interest in some of the company's social network offerings. Starting June 14, The Sims Social, SimCity Social and Pet Society will not be available to Facebook users. It was a difficult decision to kill the games, EA said, but user interest had plunged despite an initial positive response after the games launched.

What We Think We Know About Twitter Music: Presumably Uncondensed
April 15, 2013

Twitter has officially announced its forthcoming push into the digital music space. After weeks of rumors, including one that promised such a service would officially launch over the weekend, Twitter has announced that something, indeed, is coming. On Friday, Twitter made public its music website. Then it slightly revised the wording over the weekend to say "coming soon." There is a link inviting users to sign in.

Google, EU Reach Meeting of the Minds
April 15, 2013

In an effort to appease European regulators, Google for the first time has agreed to make legally binding changes to its search results. The changes stem from a two-year investigation into whether Google abused its online search dominance in Europe. The changes will not force Google to amend its algorithm, but instead will require it to clearly label search results from its own properties.

VCs Throw Foursquare a Hail Mary Pass
April 13, 2013

Foursquare, the poster child for check-in tech when the trend was hot, announced this week that it has raised $41 million in a new financing round. The funding was provided by private-equity firm Silver Lake and existing investors Andreessen Horowitz, O'Reilly AlphaTech Ventures, Spark Capital, and Union Square Ventures. What is striking about this transaction is that the funding was debt -- specifically convertible debt -- rather than equity.

LinkedIn's Mobile Strategy Gets a Pulse
April 12, 2013

LinkedIn on Thursday announced the $90 million acquisition of newsreader app Pulse, as the professional social networking site looks to add to its content and mobile strategies. Pulse, launched in 2010 by two Stanford University students, allows users to browse multiple media sources, including social networks, to choose the content they want to read.

Facebook Slices, Dices Consumers to Refine Ad Targeting
April 11, 2013

Facebook added another level of targeting to its advertising strategy Wednesday with the introduction of partner categories, a self-service feature that uses data collected from other channels to deliver ads on the social network. Partner categories will let advertisers target Facebook users based on browsing and purchase history, occupation, a wide range of specific interests, and location.

Who Gets LinkedIn When an Employee Is Kicked Out?
April 10, 2013

After almost two years of litigation, a federal judge has ruled on a dispute between an employer and former employee over control of a LinkedIn account. The case turned on a specific Pennsylvania law about using the likeness of another individual, so the impact may be limited, but since there is so little litigation concerning LinkedIn or other social media sites, it is important to understand the issues and implications.

Boom Goes the Social Media Marketing Dynamite
April 09, 2013

Two-way social-media channels, like Twitter and Facebook, have changed forever the methods businesses use to communicate with their customers. Fading into the distance are the days of the one-sided official dispatch. Social media marketing has been welcomed with open arms into the fold, with corporations determined to make it an effective tool.

Facebook Home: Brilliant Stroke or Desperate Measure?
April 08, 2013

Political and economic news from around the globe may bombard us with annoying regularity here in the tech community, and as most of us know, the news is almost always bad. That, of course, is why it's such a good thing we have Facebook to filter out what we don't want to hear. It's also why we all waited in rapt attention for the Facebook Home announcement.

Tweets Added to Bloomberg's Financial News Portfolio
April 06, 2013

The Bloomberg business and financial news service has begun streaming Twitter feeds to the 310,000 subscribers to its Bloomberg Professional service, including many who work in front of the media company's terminals that are widely used on Wall Street and in the finance industry. Bloomberg classifies tweets by company, asset class, person and topic. Its Twitter filter lets users control and specify what they want to monitor.

Facebook Home Will Roll Out the Welcome Mat for Ads
April 05, 2013

Facebook fans will get the chance to have the social network take over their lock and home screens on certain Android phones as of April 12, thanks to the introduction of the company's Home apps. That prime mobile phone real estate will also serve as comfortable surroundings for advertisements when ads start cycling through Home's Cover Feed.

Facebook Stretches Out on Android's Couch
April 04, 2013

Facebook on Thursday announced a family of Android-based smartphone apps called Facebook Home, which can be downloaded from Google Play. "We're going to talk about how you can transform your Android phone into a great social phone," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said at a company event. He added that the company doesn't want to build "a phone or operating system that only some people are going to use."

Marketo Winds Up for Risky IPO
April 03, 2013

Marketing automation company Marketo filed paperwork with the SEC on Tuesday to launch an initial public offering valued at $75 million. The company has not yet proposed a stock price. It does say in the filing that it is considered an "emerging growth company," and it plans to list on Nasdaq under the symbol "MKTO." The most telling portion of the filing was the company's description of risks.

SEC Lets Companies Go Social With Market-Moving News
April 03, 2013

The Securities and Exchange Commission released a new set of disclosure rules Tuesday that allow executives to use social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to update investors about significant corporate announcements that fall under Regulation Fair Disclosure mandates. As long as executives alert their investors about which blog or social networking sites will be used to post announcements, CEOs can fill those online venues with news about their companies.

Russian Clampdown on Web Content Raises Red Flags
April 01, 2013

The Russian government is using a law passed last year to restrict online content, and three major social networks have removed content authorities deemed objectionable. The Russian law created a blacklist of sites containing child pornography, drug-related and extremist material, and other illegal content.

Facebook's Android-Themed Event Invite Redials Phone Chatter
March 29, 2013

Facebook is inviting the media to "come see our new home on Android" during an April 4 event, sparking speculation that the social network may indeed be getting ready to introduce a branded smartphone. There is also speculation that Facebook will unveil a modified version of the Android operating system with added social functionality.

Amazon Adds Goodreads to Its Library of Social Networks
March 29, 2013

Amazon announced Thursday that it had acquired Goodreads, the social networking site for bibliophiles. Goodreads will join Amazon's other online book communities, Shelfari and LibraryThing, as the retailer looks to expand its social insight into what book lovers are buying and sharing. Since its launch seven years ago, Goodreads has grown to include more than 16 million worldwide users.

Facebook to Slap Targeted Ads on News Feed Billboards
March 27, 2013

Facebook announced this week that it will test a new feature that allows select advertisers to run additional targeted ads in user's News Feeds. The test is an expansion of Facebook Exchange, one of the social network's most profitable advertising initiatives. The service allows marketers to check users' online viewing habits via a cookie-based system.

LinkedIn Lets Users Cast Wider Search Net
March 26, 2013

LinkedIn revealed revamped search features this week, making it easier for professionals to identify and engage with possible contacts on the networking site. The company added auto-complete and suggested search functions designed to give LinkedIn users a more complete set of results.

Zynga and Facebook's Chill Turns Icy
March 22, 2013

Zynga announced Thursday that it will be rolling out the full version of Zynga.com next week as part of the gaming company's ongoing process of decreasing its dependence on Facebook's social platform. Currently, gamers looking to play Zynga offerings such as Farmville have to sign in with their Facebook login.