Bebo has welcomed the cross Web site application trend and has become the first to adopt the Facebook Platform Standards. They’re also planning to support OpenSocial in 2008. I really like their attitude, the idea of opening up APIs is semantically brilliant. The Semantic Web is about ‘common formats for integration and combination of data drawn from diverse sources’. Of course the facebook model and that of all social networking sites relies on advertising, advertising largely based on the valuable information gathered from each sites’ members, so the information becomes a commodity. Wherever there’s a potential commodity there will be competing forces trying to get their share of it.

Profit will always win over semantic interest, but, well done to Bebo for the move!

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According to Technorati

Over the holiday break we found and fixed a bug that inflated authority counts for certain blogs. The blogs affected were those on domains that also have linked-to sub-domains. The links to the sub-domains were erroneously counting toward the blog authority of the blog on the parent domain. Since Technorati Authority is a calculation of how much attention is being paid to a blog and the posts beneath it, we do not include sub-domains. Sub-domains are treated as separate entitities and often are references to tools, utilities, features, and other non-blog resources.

Examples:

http://chinese.engadget.com

http://desktops.engadget.com

http://hdtv.engadget.com

http://storage.engadget.com

Well, we fixed the bug yesterday. The impact of this change is mostly limited to the Top 100 and the overwhelming majority of the blogosphere is unaffected. Thanks for bearing with us while the Top 100 experiences some turbulence.

We’re always thinking about how to improve and develop new meaningful metrics for the blogosphere and we welcome your feedback on these issues.

I’ve never had faith in Technorati. I’ve certainly never paid any attention to its ranking. That’s not to say that the top 100 don’t deserve to be there. They probably do.

Take Segala’s blog for example (trust me, I don’t keep an eye on figures, I don’t even know how many RSS subscribers we have). Our entire Web site, including this blog, is based on WordPress. When a blogger references me, or a post that I’ve managed to slapped together, they tend to link to Segala.com, my profile page, or this blog. Technorati sees these as three separate ‘blogs’ and as such, doesn’t rank ‘the blog’ properly.

I don’t really care much for rating a blog based on inbound links alone anyway. Different types of blogs attract different types of people. For example, a blog which attracts a large non-blogging audience, will not rank as highly as a blog which attracts an early adopter type audience, of which many blog and link back.

Shouldn’t Technorati be intelligent enough to recognise everything after segala.com/ as one blog? I’m not entirely sure they’ve fixed a bug as many blog networks will have entirely different blogs on subdomains. One of the main benefits of a subdomain is to create separate sites.

Read what TechCrunch has to say.

Technorati blog.

Thanks to Chris Brogan for the link via Twitter.

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Do you read both blogs and if so, do you mind the duplication of stories covered on both? Are there specific topics you’d rather I covered, or didn’t cover on either of them? Any feedback you provide will be greatly appreciated. Until I received feedback, I’ll continue to post what I think is relevant, to both blogs. Thanks to Dennis Howlett for advice regarding this matter.

Now onto the article you came here for…

I picked up from TechCrunch this morning that Robert Scoble, one of the most influential bloggers in the world, has been banned from Facebook for breaking its terms and conditions.

Apparently, Robert tried to run a script over Facebook to export all of his contacts in one go. Those of us who know Facebook rather well, know that this will break their terms of use. He would have known that this was likely to end in tears. That said, perhaps Robert was pulling a PR stunt knowing that everyone would end up not only talking about it, but rallying behind him.

I must point out that I like Robert, a lot. I think what he does is brilliant and his contribution to industry is nothing short of fantastic. So, my post isn’t directed at Robert, but the Facebook conversation that’s taking place in the social arena that is Twitter.

If you break the rules, you should expect to be treated like everyone else. Just because Robert has thousands of connections and is very well known to millions, it doesn’t mean he should be treated any differently to anyone else. I have a friend who sent me a text message whilst I was on holiday as her account had been disabled. I just happen to know the VP of PR & Marketing and the VP of Sales so she thought I could exercise my connections in her favour. Her account was probably canned due to the number of event requests she sent out each week – there was a lot, but people signed up to her notifications. I must add that they were very exclusive events too.

Everyone who considers themselves as a ’social media’ guru should know that Facebook is closed and that you’re not permitted to use scripts to remove contacts. So, you should either join the club and abide by the rules, or leave. Right?

Well, yes and no. You shouldn’t break the rules and not expect to be punished. But, we should try to persuade Facebook that being closed isn’t good for industry as a whole. We should be able to retain ownership of our data. If you’re still unsure about what I’m talking about, try to export your friends’ email addresses. You’ll notice that it’s impossible because email addresses are made up of images. To comply with basic industry best practices, email addresses like everything else, should at least be text. To take this a step further, they should come in the form of a Microformat. You’d then be able to download email addresses automatically to a client such as Outlook.

Oh wait, making it easy for people to export hundreds, possibly thousands of email addresses… wouldn’t that make it easy for unscrupulous companies to harvest and then SPAM? You could argue that Facebook is helping to protect the vast majority whilst upsetting the minority. Personally, I think it’s just a matter of time. Facebook only opened it’s doors to non-universities a year ago. The business community has only started to flirt with it since the summer with London boasting the largest geographical network in the world.

What Facebook does well, is very small iterative changes to improve the user experience. You’ll notice that it’s not inclined to make huge changes to the platform – that’s probably because they’ll upset a lot of people if they get it wrong. Given that it’s still early days, getting major changes wrong is more likely. So, perhaps opening up email addresses is on the long ‘to-do’ list and will only be executed when they’ve figured out how to protect users from themselves.

I was one of the first employed by AOL in Europe in 1995, when it was a small startup, so I get the whole ‘walled garden’ thing. I don’t think it’s healthy for industry in the long term. But it is a necessary evil at the beginning to ensure users have a positive user experience within an environment where they are protected.

However, there comes a point in time when you need to knock down the walls. I’m not sure when that time should be for Facebook but one thing is for sure, their decision is not going to be influenced by early adopters. They’ll most likely listen to audiences which include influencers with a lot of connections, who would follow them to a competitor.

I believe it’s a little harsh to automatically ban users from Facebook. This should be done manually after humans have first given a warning and second, made sure that they’re making the right decision. If AOL could do it more than 10 years ago with millions of users, I’m sure Facebook can today given the technology available to staff.

Read some interesting article on this topic

Hear what Robert Scoble has to say

Hear what CentreNetworks has to say

My source: TechCrunch

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Damien, a name that would appear on the list if it was for the fact that it’s his list, was recently awarded ‘Technology Journalist’ of the year and is Ireland’s number 1 blogger. So, he holds a very qualified opinion given that his finger is firmly on the digital pulse. More so, than any newspaper or magazine. I was tipped as ‘One to watch out for in 2007′ by Revolution Magazine, but truth be told, I’m more flattered to have appeared on Damien’s list.

I’m so flattered about making the list myself that I decided to write a post to draw your attention to it. I didn’t write a post when Revolution Magazine listed me, probably because I knew that most of last year was going to be about laying foundations, for both Segala and BIMA, the two organisations with which I can be measured.

I’m looking forward to 2008 because it’s the year for us to open our doors to show the world exactly what we’ve been working on for the past couple of years. If you’re interested in seeing more trust enabled in search results then watch this space.

Well done to the rest of the guys on the list, make sure to show your mothers

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This the best version I’ve read to date. My favourite quote is ‘think Hollywood for geeks’.

Why is anybody comparing an entire continent to a specific metropolitan area?

Silicon Valley is a geographically proximate group of related tech industries, and the institutions that support them. It includes a large pool of entrepreneurs and engineers with many different technical and business skills, along with investors, law firms, accounting firms. Also, big tech companies who buy startups.

Silicon Valley works because everyone is so close together, and because everyone shares the core sense of entrepreneurialism. The place feeds on itself. Think: Hollywood for geeks.

Europe is a continent. It is comparable to “the US” or “North America.”

If you want to compare something to Silicon Valley, you need to compare a city or region.

That said, I don’t think Europe is comparable with North America as Eirc suggests. Europe also has borders, language barriers and of course, cultural differences. Oh and different laws and taxation systems for different countries.

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According to Jason

Web 3.0 is defined as the creation of high-quality content and services produced by gifted individuals using Web 2.0 technology as an enabling platform.

I remember saying something very similar quite some time ago, but I’ve since changed my mind. There must be more to it than that. Before getting straight into Web 3.0, I’ll start by providing my brief definition of Web 2.0.

From a technology perspective

Web 2.0 can be described as technology which enables end users to create content on the Web more quickly, easily and cheaply. Examples of such technology include blogs, wikis and platforms such as flickr.

From a marketing perspective

Enabled by technology, Web 2.0 can be described as consumer behaviour influenced by consumers. We no longer live in an era where brand owners are in total control of their own marketing. Consumers now find it quicker, easier and cheaper to communicate their opinion about products and services, which in turn, influences other consumers.

What is Web 3.0?

One thing is for sure, it has got to be something more than the ability to do all of the above, better. Let’s call that Web 2.5 service pack x. Gifted individuals who deliver higher quality content is incremental and continuous in my opinion. So I don’t think we should draw a line in the sand to define a specific milestone for people’s ability to do something better.

Jeremiah Owyang thinks that Jason is right just because Google appear to have a similar opinion. He says

By chance Jason’s definition completely matches what Google (his competitor now) just launched. Because this is a Google product, could we expect search results to favor Google products that are correctly optimized to be found over Mahalo or Wikipedia?

Jeremiah’s first commentator responded by saying

To give something a label like web 3.0 there has to be some major innovation behind it. Minus Googles credibility this product is not bringing anything new. This is more like baby steps in that direction.

I agree.

According to Udi Manber on Google’s official blog to which Jeremiah refers

The web contains an enormous amount of information, and Google has helped to make that information more easily accessible by providing pretty good search facilities.

What a load of crap. Google doesn’t ‘make information any more accessible’ than Excite did during the 90’s. It certainly doesn’t provide ‘pretty good search results’.

The only thing that Google has done for search is turn it into a mass of untrustworthiness. What they do well is mix organic search results with those that have been paid for. What’s worse, is that Google gives precedence to the highest bigger.

Don’t get me started on Web sites that are created specifically to market products they don’t sell, but instead, redirect you to Web sites that do sell them.

Google could just as easily provide more information about Web sites to allow users make better-informed decisions based on the suitability of content on each Web site. The only information it provides (admittedly the only information that any search engine provides today) is the title and description. How do you know which ones to trust? The answer is, you don’t!

My definition of Web 3.0

There is a philosophy enabled by a technology that’s not yet understood or utilized properly and I think the realization of that, should be referred to as Web 3.0. That philosophy is called the Semantic Web. The technology can be described as ‘interoperable metadata that lies beneath each Web page’ (for the techies it’s called Resource Description Framework). It’s not all about RDF, but it is pretty central to the conversation.

By reading additional metadata about Web sites, Google could provide end users with more information from the search results. Wouldn’t it be useful to know which Web sites are appropriate for minors, accessible to disabled users or mobile friendly? Wouldn’t you also like to know at times, which Web sites adopt advertising and marketing best practices, adopt privacy best practices, or have been independently verified by a medical authority?

This is all possible with the aid of metadata. That’s what I call better content discover based on trusted search results. The problem is, search engines such as Google choose not to read it.

That’s what I call Web 3.0

[Update: 00:50] I forgot to mention that Jason and I have discussed a possible collaboration. I believe there’s a place for Mahalo. I also think there’s a need to improve all major search engines (including Mahalo) based on open standards.

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Actually Sam didn’t attend Le Web this year. I used his name badge instead, which many thought was quite creative, providing a lot of people with a giggle. It was actually a good conversational point.

Thanks to Pat Phelan for the picture. Dan Applequist amongst others uploaded theirs to flickr. Pictures of my badge seem to be making its way around a few blogs too.

It has been a great conference, definitely worth the time and effort. It was great to catch up with people like Mike Arrington, Jason Calacanis, Tyler Crowley and Amanda Lorenzani amongst the many others who unfortunately I don’t have time to name right now.

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I heard the Google mobile being touted around the time we were providing mobile test consultants to Disney, to help it setup a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) last year. Unfortunately for Disney (and Segala for loosing the contract), it decided to can the project. I say unfortunately because it has the content to deliver a compelling family mobile, but it just didn’t get it technically or commercially in my opinion.

Google however, has the money and entrepreneurship to make it in mobile, especially if it’s goal is anything to do with building the ecosystem and platform to help implement real mobile Web applications.

So, what’s the type about the Google phone?

Google has unveiled the software that will power future mobile phones by acting as the new cost effective operating system that’s likely to trigger a price war. In the US mobile networks such as Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile will carry the Google-powered phones.

China Mobile, Telefonica in Spain and Telecom Italia are among the operators that have signed on to provide services outside the US. So, does this mean that O2 will reap the benefits of Telefonica’s buying power in the UK and Ireland? That would surely provide O2 with an unprecedented head start in the Mobile Web market given that it already has an exclusive deal with Apple to sell the iPhone.

According to Eric Schmidt, Google’s chief executive and chairman

This partnership will help unleash the potential of mobile technology for billions of users around the world.

As I’ve been saying since the first W3C Mobile Web Initiative (MWI) face to face meeting two years ago when we really started talking about the Web coming to mobile, there are more people in the world who don’t have access to the Web than there are people with access. The vast majority of these people live in developing countries where mobile networks is cheaper to role out than fixed line. This means mobile will be the primary access device to the Web for most people around the world in the (not too distant) future.

In a call to reporters, Schmidt said:

We want to create a whole new mobile experience for users. “Mobile users want the same applications on the phone as they use on the internet. There have been many reports of a so-called Google phone in recent months.

Again I can’t help but feel I’ll be saying ‘I told you so’ to my WAP colleagues in the industry. WAP is good but it’s not the future. I’m confident that if Nokia, Apple and Google all believe that users should and will have a full browsing experience on mobile, then my bet is safe. Although I did articulate my opinion at the first ever European W3C MWI event at BAFTA more than 2 years ago when my bet wasn’t so safe.

Our vision is that the powerful platform we’re unveiling will power thousands of different phone models.

I’m hoping Google’s new operating system upon which developers can create interoperable applications that will see the end to the crap that is currently being churned out. I mean, why the hell can’t the manufacturers get simple things such as picture messaging right, let alone anything difficult like the Web? Device profiles, I hope, won’t be needed in the future but only time will tell.

Source

BBC via Roam4free on Twitter.

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What’s worse, is that most developers force you to install their application just for someone else to use it with you. For example, if you want to add me to your best friends, I need to install the application, even if I have no intention of adding anyone. This is down to poor insight to human behaviour and a huge assumption that this approach will guarantee mass adoption.

Could the new Google approach attract more developers to build more compelling applications which in turn, will encourage more users to join their networks. One thing is for sure in my mind, we’re likely to see some good vertical social networks come out of the Google camp.

Source TechCrunch

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If you’re a brand guardian, have you ever wondered how to respond to bloggers who make negative comments about your products or services? Have you wondered whether to react at all? If you’re an agency, have you thought about how to answer this question when your clients start to ask?

Well, one thing is for sure, you should never tell bloggers that they should remove comments about your brand or you’ll take them to court. This will only encourage them and other bloggers to highlight your silliness on their blogs. This results in a pyramid marketing campaign of bad publicity which can easily spiral out of (your) control.
The only way to influence a conversation about your brand is to get involved in that conversation. You do this by listening to what others have to say and then do one of three things. Let’s call it AED for short.

1. Apologise and explain how you will make change
2. Explain your position and solicit their feedback on your explanation
3. Defend yourself, providing constructive feedback

Damien Mulley, who’s flying in from Ireland to speak at our next Breakfast Bite and who I’ve invited to be a guest writer on this blog, was on one end of this conversation today. Take a look at Damien’s natural reaction to a marketing agency ripping off his content and their reaction to his blog post.

You don’t learn when talking, you only learn when listening.

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