UK commuters complaining!? look at how crammed Photos of the Day: Aug. 30 - Photo Journal - WSJ

Photos of the Day: Aug. 30 - Photo Journal - WSJ:

My comments re: THE APPLE INVESTOR: The Changing Of The Guard. What's Next?

my comments to the post above.

Acid test would be the next 3-5yrs..

gut feel is that no one (Tim included )cannot replace Steve.

Tim can sail for 1-2yrs max on tailwind of what Steve's put in place, remember, running a ship is very different from pioneering it to uncharted territories and managing (in some case squeezing/coercing) partner boats along the way by sharing the pioneer's vision AND Faith of where the destination is...

Industry dynamics dictates that it would also depends on whether the PC & mobile industries can get their act together AND collaborate and take down the beast of Apple (in some of their eyes, but for some Church of Apple) whilst during the transition..

One thing is for sure, it would be interesting to watch, hope Tim can still be the captain in 3 years time, good luck & god bless to both Steve & Tim indeed..

A still not yet Apple user (I did buy the at the time top of range 40G iPod, used few times as backup HD whilst travelling)..

@GarethWong

Future of gaming & media (converged entertainment) & social network (Facebook): @Guardian ITV signs gaming deals for Simon Cowell's Red or Black?

This is a very significant piece of news for the converging entertainment sector (media+gaming) for multiple reasons. Because if the show is a success, it will provide:

1.) Strategic incremental source of income:

Media & rights owners are all looking for sustainable incremental revenue in addition to creating & selling new AAA formats (given the state of media fragmentation & decreasing of traditional advertising revenue)

2.) opportunities to find /define the right business model(s) for the converged gaming entertainment category

(media sector has been looking for hits like "Deal or No Deal" for years.. what they need is something more fundamental, like a 'black box' that can be added to program to easily monetise and bring value= that can easily be replicated across international markets in terms of interactive engagement & business model.) Do note that even Facebook is now accepting gaming dollars this week!

3.) a bridge to bring "trust & confidence" between media & format owners AND the gaming gambling sector.

[i.e. Simon Cowell's Syco (production co.) and ITV Studios were looking to have partnership with Camelot (UK national lottery) but since that discussion broken down, they settled with Gamesys (who has long experiences of partnering with published newspaper and media brands already...]

ITV has its unique challenges... since the closure of ITV Play due to PRS (premium rate services) scandal (despite it earned reportedly £26m within six months of launch, on Guardian 5Mar07!), and after a then new chairman Michael Grade come & gone (with Adam Crozier in power, but despite"ITV turns the corner but still needs direction for the future (1Aug10)". ) Therefore, ITV is desperate to find the 'next big thing' in supplementing cash flow without jeopardising their brand/trust with consumers.

Given the above piece of news, no doubt the whole media & entertainment sector worldwide is watching with eagle eyes to see "Red & Black"'s launch & results with muted excitement (no doubt secretly hoping it will be successful, but not that successful.)

Acid test that Red & Black will prove itself in terms of combination of:

A.) ratings & big draw of audience AND interactive participations..

B.) technically resilient (as no doubt it will need to scale up)

C.) the revenue model and expectations of not only viewers (participants) are managed & met

D.) being done responsibly given the previous history of PRS...

E.) given early success of A-D, we will see a lot of copy cats from other production companies (maybe via other formats) or indeed coming out of brands and might even host the games on their corporate B2C website (note the news above or on excerpt below that it will not be on the ITV.com website as yet! arms length still)

F.) as & when likes of Virgin Games (existed since 2006) ramp up, the basis of competitions for the hearts & mind of the consumers will be very much different indeed (or indeed from other trusted brands in the local market, how about "Saks fifth avenue's Black & White weekend" or "BBC coin flips for charity"...

We might not need to wait too long to find out!! let the Big Boy's games begin!

===

"ITV strikes deal with gambling company Gamesys and social TV firm Monterosa for paid-for and free games based on show"

"ITV has signed deals with two companies to produce a range of free and paid-for games based on Simon Cowell's new big-budget primetime show Red or Black?.

The show, which will be fronted by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly, gives contestants the chance to win £1m on the spin of a wheel.

ITV has signed a deal with online gambling company Gamesys to produce a series of four pay-to-play games based on the branding of the gameshow.

The games – called Red or Black Slots, Red or Black Instant, Red or Black Hi Lo and Red or Black Stacks – will be available at www.jackpotjoy.com.

The games will be promoted with a TV ad campaign and will cost from 5p to 50p to play. They will not be made available through ITV.com." Please do refer to full story above link or here.

Convergence of On&offline, the only real opportunity! Google agrees to buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion - latimes.com

Google agrees to buy Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion - latimes.com

forget about the valuations etc.

key is future cash flow and how to protect it..

only way is to create/buy and protect IP .. more offline business (manufacturing, distribution/brands) the better.. yes, sometimes (short-term) it does not make sense from valuation and shareprice point of view.. but hey, it make perfect sense now to 'change the game'..

this is a brilliant start, and hopefully others will follow..

Now the next challenge is how best to do the post merger integration AND re-invent oneself... golden standard would be how to beat apple at its game..

Google may have a chance here .. but as offline tech.people might be able to remind google the buyer, MOT might not have been best in creating user friendly solution (despite technically very competent and one of the market's best!)..

It will prove to be interesting indeed. I for one want more choice vs. IOS/iPhone/iPad..

@GarethWong

old but applicable still! one should adopt "drip feed of non-linear selective programming" 4 future generations! on documentary Starsuckers - YouTube

Starsuckers - YouTube

Totally recommend for sure, still as applicable and timeless despite the latest development with the Murdoch empire!

It has not given direction as to a solution though! which is what can be done to protect our future generations!? drip feed of non-linear selective programming I would say..

and add 'tonnes of salt' on whatever one hear/listen/watch.. and try to educate oneself on whatever the issue.. may we live in interesting time!!

Must read! very insightful GroupM China and CIC identify ‘Luxury Voice’ in Chinese Social Media

GroupM China and CIC identify ‘Luxury Voice’ in Chinese Social Media:

this is fantastic insights..

click through above 4 more.

"Showing-off as Top Buzz Driver
A ‘Shai‘ culture has evolved with the development of the luxury market in the digital world, and is mentioned in 90% of the conversations on brands. Essentially, to ‘Shai‘ is to show-off your good taste and purchasing power.

Chinese Consumers are ‘in the Show’
Currently, Chinese netizens can be considered ’in the show‘ phase of enjoying luxury brands. That is to say, consumers are ready and willing to show off their purchasing power but they still lack the know-how to leverage brands to create a stylish and sophisticated lifestyle."