UK Gov Shifts To Open Data, Broadband – But We Could Use Some Detail
The British Governement, faced with an upcoming general election in which policy toward the internet, digital inclusion of the masses and how government IT interfaces with the private sector will all come into play, has rolled out the big guns in the shape of the Prime Minister and a clutch of ministers and advisers today. In a speech in London, billed as "Building Britain's Digital Future", Gordon Brown ranged over a wide range of topics. Here are the highlights:
ChaCha Launches ChaCha.me For Social FAQs. Businesses And Celebrities Welcome.
I like recent products that let users created personal FAQs one step at a time based on questions from others. You put up a box that invites people to ask you anything. People then ask questions. You answer the ones you want to and publish them. In no time you've got an interesting profile of your personality, likes and dislikes. We wrote about Formspring in January, and Tumblr launched Ask Me a few days later. Now comes ChaCha.me, a new product from ChaCha, where people and businesses can ask and answer questions. ChaCha.me has good integration with Facebook and Twitter right off the bat, and they'll allow question asking and answering through their mobile apps and SMS (something ChaCha does well already). But ChaCha is also partnering with celebrities to get them to use the service right away. ChaCha thinks the product is a perfect way for celebrities to talk to fans.
Help Us Google, You’re Our Only Broadband Hope. (The Government Has No Spine.)
For the future of innovation in the United States, few things seem as important access to broadband Internet connections. The FCC seems to realize this, which is why they've set up the National Broadband Plan. And yet, we're screwed. As Harvard Law professor Yochai Benkler lays out in an excellent op-ed today in the New York Times, this new broadband plan may sound great, but it won't go nearly far enough. The reason is that there is simply nowhere near enough competition in almost all of the markets in this country. In fact, under the new plan, some 85% of homes covered would have no choice when it comes to a provider. So while it's great that just about everyone will potentially have broadband access in 2020, plenty likely won't be able to afford it.
TRUSTe Places Privacy Seal Of Approval On Virtual Currency Platform gWallet
Virtual currency platform gWallet is announcing a partnership with online privacy certification company TRUSTe to reinforce gWallet ethical guidelines in the virtual currency space. gWallet partners with both brands and game developers to bring users virtual currency offers on games within social networks. Following the Scamville controversy in the virtual offers space, the startups which provide these offers on games have been working to rid their platforms of misleading offers. In fact, Offerpal CEO George Garrick promised to take a leadership position in cleaning up scammy ads. Competitor Gwallet has also promised to never offer these type of ads, and is now partnering with TRUSTe to certify gWallet's privacy practices. TRUSTe will also monitor offers submitted by gWallet‘s advertisers to ensure they aren't misleading. For example, previously fake quizzes would be tied to long term mobile subscriptions, malware-laden toolbar downloads and and other scams. And Gwallet is betting on TRUSTe to keep these offers at bay.
NSFW: Jimmy Wales Wants Me Dead (The Neutrality Of This Article Is Disputed)
Some weeks, writing this column is easy. All it takes is for an influential person - a politician, a business person, perhaps even a fellow columnist - to say something dumb and I get to spend a thousand words or so explaining precisely why they're wrong. The "why x is wrong about y" construction is the columnist's best friend: it's as old as the hills and even easier to build a house on. Some weeks though, it's even easier than that. Someone will say something so breathtakingly wrong - so tracheotomy-cravingly moronic - that I don't need to explain anything. Simply quoting their words back at them is sufficient to make the point. Step forward, Jimmy Wales.
Amazon Shows Off Kindle for iPad
Amazon announces Kindle Apps for Tablet Computers (including Kindle for iPad), a rather polished e-reader application that both makes the Kindle itself look rather old-fashioned and explains why last week’s Mac version was so unfinished: The Amazon developers have clearly been spending all their time on this instead.
Comic Artist James Kochalka Heads to Mars and Beyond
SXSW is a Bands' Social Network Like No Other
AUSTIN, Texas - Don’t expect the bands and labels gathered at the SXSW to forsake MySpace, Twitter and Facebook anytime soon. Most industry players find that none of those tools replace the need to shake hands, look one another in the eye or bond over a couple of Lone Star beers — all the ways people traditionally networked socially before the internet enabled what we now call 'social networking.'
Channeling Earth: Rivers Seen From Space
March 22, 1995: Longest Human Space Adventure Ends