Google CEO Eric Schmidt: "The next big wave in advertising is the mobile internet"

Netzökonom: First: There is still a lot of revenue in search - as we get the technology better or as we can do more targeted ads. There is no limit for search marketing. People assume that there is a limit, but we have many more ideas about technology. Second: The most obvious large space of advertising is the mobile internet. Every German has a mobile phone. Just take the success of the iPhone: It has the first really powerful web browser on a mobile device - and many more are still coming. Nokia has one coming, Blackberry has one and Motorola has one. They are all supposed to be released this year. By these products, the advertising gets more targeted because phones are personal. So targeted ads are possible. And that means the value of the ads will grow. The next big wave in advertising is the mobile internet.

Google co-founder pushes TV white space plan

Reuters: "Page highlighted the benefits of making more spectrum available, while downplaying opposition from broadcasters, and makers and users of wireless microphones, who fear the wireless devices would cause interference.

'I think the debate's really been politicized,' Page said.

Page said making more spectrum available would benefit computer users, giving them Internet connections with greater range and speed."

Craigslist Tops U.S. Mobile Browsing

PC World: "U.S. users spent about 1 hour, 39 minutes per month on Craigslist, M:Metrics said. The site has two big factors in its favor as a mobile destination, Donovan said. It's text-based, so it's easier to load with a weak signal, and it emphasizes local information. Donovan believes mobile users are visiting local listings for events such as yard sales along with the site's popular personal ads."

Diller: Social nets are nice but where’s the money?

Reuters.com: "Barry Diller likes social networks. He says they function as telephones used to: they help us communicate with each other. But one thing they don’t do is make money."

Are social networks dragging down CPMs?

Calacanis.com: "Again, communication services are amazing for traffic, but they suck for advertising. High CPMs are going to be reserved for vertical content and search, where people are in the cognitive mindset to consume sponsor messages, which when correctly aligned are perceived as content."

Why Twitter Matters

BusinessWeek: "Businesses such as H&R Block (HRB) and Zappos are now using Twitter to respond to customer queries. Market researchers look to it to scope out minute-by-minute trends. Media groups are focusing on Twitterers as first-to-the-scene reporters. (They were on top of the May 12 China earthquake within minutes.) Loads of new applications and services are growing around the Twitter platform, leading some to suggest that the microblogging service could become a powerhouse in social media."

YouTube launches Buzz Targeting

MediaPost: "YouTube buzz targeting works on an algorithm that looks at a number of viewer activities, including how many times a video is chosen as a favorite, how favorably it's rated, and how quickly it picks up views, to determine which clips are about to 'go viral.'"

Google triumphant: Search wars look settled

FT.com: "It is a stunning victory that raises two overriding questions. Will Google be able to use the respite provided by the disarray at Microsoft and Yahoo to carry its dominance of search over into other areas of online – and broader digital – advertising? And should it now be a cause for alarm that one company is in a position to control so much of the lifeblood of the internet?"

MySpace Embraces DataPortability, Partners With Yahoo, Ebay And Twitter

TechCrunch: "MySpace is announcing a broad ranging embrace of data portability standards today, along with data sharing partnerships with Yahoo, Ebay, Twitter and their own Photobucket subsidiary. The new project is being called MySpace “Data Availability” and is an example, MySpace says, of their dedication to playing nice with the rest of the Internet."

Smaller Newspapers Still Thriving

MediaPost: "Amid all the dire talk of falling revenues at big newspaper publishers, some good news gets lost: Many smaller operations are doing quite nicely--even during an economic downturn. Above all, smaller newspapers are benefiting from their still-unchallenged ability to deliver local audiences for local advertisers."

Inside Microsoft's War Against Google

BusinessWeek: "For Ballmer, however, the game is far from over. Even before yanking the Yahoo offer, he had begun laying the groundwork for a strategy to compete with Google in online advertising. He's convinced that getting the online ad business right is essential to Microsoft's future. The reason: Consumers and businesses increasingly are switching from desktop software like Microsoft's to free online services that do the same things. 'We are absolutely committed to be the leading player in that endeavor,' Ballmer told employees at a recent gathering."

Google: Those TV Spots Better Be Good

Advertising Age: "Google is still a bit TV player -- its ads reach less than 15% of the total TV universe -- and to assume that it would be powerful enough to influence the entire TV marketplace would be misguided. But the premise is an intriguing one and echoes sentiments TV titans from ABC's Mike Shaw to CBS's David Poltrack, have made over the past few years."

The State of the Facebook Platform | 20bits

20bits: "It boils down to this: investing most of your man-hours into Facebook at this point in time is a mistake. The potential return on that investment, a year after launch, is a fraction of what it once was. And the fact that Facebook continues to change the rules and selectively break them for their own benefit means the risk is comparatively higher.

It is better to branch out into other social networks or to piggy-back on Facebook as a means to establish your own, more independent social network. This is what the top companies like Slide, RockYou, Zynga, and SGN are doing, and what many of the independent Facebook developers I've talked with want to do."

Fox to Reinforce That TV Is King

Mediaweek: "While many television networks, including NBC and CBS, are approaching the upfront marketplace with sales presentations that include hefty praise and pitches for their digital platforms, Fox is concentrating its efforts on selling television as the overwhelming choice for advertisers to get their best return on investment."

Web Start-Ups Seek New Ways to Click

WSJ.com: "Companies such as online-software venture Slide and video and social-networking site Bebo are trying to run ads that appeal to a younger audience -- one that often turns up its nose at old-fashioned online ads, such as traditional 'banners' trying to promote brands."

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Back from vacation ...

... had to take a hiatus, but back in the saddle and filtering the online media industry news noise.