Social Networking - A boon or a curse

Social Networking Taking Market Share from Dating

2009-12-13T17:21:00.000-05:00

SOURCE - http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/080916-093442

Social networks are projected to generate $7.3 billion in advertising revenues by 2013. That will amount to a steady rise in revenues over 2008's projected $1.1 billion.
According to report author Dr. Windsor Holden, "It's clear that we have seen an industry wide shift regarding the implementation of business models in this area. Whereas initially there was a perception that users would pay a small mobility premium to access social networks on their handsets, it rapidly became clear that to achieve truly mass adoption, it would be necessary to offer free membership and then to augment that with advertising and the sale of premium content."

Meanwhile, Hitwise general manager of global research, Bill Tancer, is saying that searches for pornography are down about 50% due to increase in searches for social networking.

"My theory is that young users spend so much time on social networks that they don't have time to look at adult sites," Tancer told Reuters.

Tancer analyzes search behavior and its reflection on society in his new book, Click: What Millions of People are Doing Online and Why It Matters.

What do you think of the rise in social networking? Is it changing societal behavior? Give us your thoughts in the comments.

Web users 'fear media intrusion'

2009-11-24T22:41:00.000-05:00

Almost 80% of social networking site users would be more careful about the details they put online if they knew the media might use them, a poll says.

The Press Complaints Commission said 89% of the 1,000 people polled wanted guidelines on what the media could use.

And 42% of 16 to 24-year-old who used such websites said they knew someone who had been embarrassed by material which was posted without consent.

The PCC is opening talks on how it should respond to the issue.

'Unprecedented'

The chairman of the PCC, the publishing industry's self-regulating watchdog, Sir Christopher Meyer, said personal information was being put into the public domain on an unprecedented scale and that this had serious ramifications for the regulation of media outlets.

"This clearly has implications for the PCC, which has always had the task of deciding where to draw the boundaries between what newspapers and magazines may legitimately publish and what can rightly be considered private," he said.

"The challenge remains the same for online editorial content, including material taken from social networking sites.

There are wider cultural and other issues going beyond the PCC

Sir Christopher Meyer, PCC

"In the digital age, self-regulation, with its sound principles and speed of operation, has never been more relevant."

The poll, which was conducted for the PCC by Ipsos-Mori, also found that 89% of internet users polled said there should be clear guidelines about what types of information could be used by the media.

They said that this would allow people to complain if the information published about them was wrong or intrusive.

Consent

The poll also found 49% of respondents said it was wrong for the media to use information they had posted on line without asking the consent of the person concerned.

And 58% were fairly or very concerned about the lack of control about how they were depicted on websites.

And of social networking site members, 55% considered whether personal details such as photos might be used by someone else without their consent, before posting them online.

Sir Christopher said the PCC's current code of practice would be able to handle complaints about media outlets using material skimmed from networking sites.

But he added: "There are wider cultural and other issues going beyond the PCC to be debated, which is why we have taken the initiative of conducting the survey."

Online Dating vs Social Networking

2009-11-23T17:49:00.000-05:00

The online dating sites are now finding themselves in competition with the influx of social networking sites. Social networking sites are on the rise. With so many social networking sites, and MySpace being so popular, online dating sites are worrying that their clients may go somewhere else.

Online dating services have something special though. Try finding a date on MySpace. I think you would have a hard time finding the right person for you. There are so many people and so many of them are there just to find friends, not dates, that you would have to read through all the profiles to find the other people who are looking for dates too. With an online dating service you wouldn't have to do that, all the people are there to look for dates.

Online dating services have started allowing clients on their site to link to theirmyspace profiles, or whatever social networking site they have profiles on. This is their way of keeping their clients on their service while still letting them see what other things their potential dates may have to offer and letting them learn more about each other at the same time.

Bid to block paedophiles from Facebook fails

2009-11-21T20:38:00.000-05:00

The Observer, Sunday 8 November 2009
Article history

Government plans to block paedophiles from using social networkingsites such as Facebook and MySpace have been shelved because of fears that such a move would breach human rights laws.

The Home Office announced in April that it was taking steps to restrict registered sex offenders from accessing the internet sites used by millions of children every day. The new law would have applied to more than 30,000 sex offenders on the register. Failure to comply would have carried up to five years' imprisonment.

But it has now emerged that the Home Office has been forced to climb down amid concerns that the plan is incompatible with the right to privacy. There are fears that any move by the police to share the personal details and email addresses of registered sex offenders with the social networking sites would be open to legal challenges. The decision to shelve the new law followed a ruling by the Court of Appeal earlier this year. "We're seeking leave to appeal this decision to the Supreme Court," a Home Office spokesman said.

Concerns about paedophiles using networking sites to approach children are growing. In its annual report, the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre noted there had been a marked increase in the use of webcams linked to instant messaging technology to incite a child to perform or to witness a sexual act.

The CEOP report states: "Cases in the past 12 months range from instances where offenders have infiltrated social networking and other online environments to collect pictures of young children to examples of sustained grooming and blackmail with offenders seeking to meet a child offline for abduction and sexual abuse. The online and offline worlds are truly converged: the 'virtual' environment is simply an extension of the real, physical world and that is as true for young people as it is for offenders."

Sex offenders are banned from accessing personal networking sites in the US, where the personal details of paedophiles are made public

Amazing trick on facebook :it works

2009-11-20T08:50:00.002-05:00

The facebook trick: press up, up,down,down, left,right,left,right,b,a,enter key then right click. Then press up then down & magic circles will appear! The only way to stop it is to log off or reload the page...put this as your status if it worked for you!...........

2009-11-19T14:26:00.000-05:00

Should sex offenders be banned from social networking sites?

Thursday, August 13th, 2009 | Child safety

By Larry Magid
The just-signed Illinois law banning sex offenders from social-networking sites might seem like a good idea to protect children, but it will have virtually no impact on their safety and could wind up making things worse.
The law, which was signed Thursday by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn, would prevent registered sex offenders in Illinois from using a social-networking service defined as an “Internet Web site containing profile Web pages…that include the names or nicknames of such members, photographs…or any other personal or personally identifying information.”

The definition also includes “the ability to leave messages or comments on the profile Web page that are visible to all or some visitors to the profile Web page,” which might be interpreted to include news sites, including CNET News, that allow visitors to register and leave comments.
But let’s start with the problem the law is trying to solve. It’s aimed at adults who troll the Web in search of children to sexually exploit. While such people do exist, they are rarely successful in harming youth whom they meet through the Internet. Every peer-reviewed study conducted by the Crimes Against Children Research Center and other scholarly organizations, as well as the report of Internet Safety Technical Task Force, has concluded that the risk of online predators is greatly exaggerated.
I’m not aware of any cases of a predator harming a prepubescent child whom he met on the Internet, and there are very few publicly known cases of sexual contact between a teenager and an adult they met online. In those few cases where contact has occurred, it is often because the teenager was aggressively seeking the contact and where the teen was also engaged in offline risky behavior. These cases are typically between a teenage girl and young adult male between 18 and 25.
Law enforcement officials and politicians will point to plenty of Internet predator cases, but the overwhelming majority are either sting operations, in which no child was harmed, or child pornography cases which, while horrendous, are not addressed by this law.
A January 2009 analysis of Pennsylvania cases by the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use found, during a four-year period, that “only eight incidents involved actual teen victims with whom the Internet was used to form a relationship,” compared to 9,934 children who were sexually abused in a single year in that state.
If the law had no negative consequences, I would give it a pass. After all, who cares about the rights of people who have been convicted of sex offenses? Well, I do. Not because I think they’re wonderful people but because it’s in all of our interest that, if they’re not in prison, they be integrated into society to the extent that they can function and be able to find and hold appropriate jobs. Keeping these individuals away from the very types of sites that can help them in their careers is counterproductive to the goal of rehabilitating them.
The other issue is how we classify sex offenders. Not everyone on every state sex offender list is a danger to children. A recent article in The Economist, entitled “Unjust and Ineffective, observes that “Many people assume that anyone listed on a sex offender registry must be a rapist or a child molester. But most states spread the net much more widely.”
Citing a report from Human Rights Watch, the article says “at least five states required men to register if they were caught visiting prostitutes. At least 13 required it for urinating in public (in two of those states, only if a child was present). No fewer than 29 states required registration for teenagers who had consensual sex with another teenager. And 32 states registered flashers and streakers.”
The article describes the plight of a young woman who, in 1996 at age 17, was charged with having oral sex with a 16-year-old boy. She was given jail time and probation, and wound up on a sex offender list. Should she be banned from having a Facebook account or the ability to publicly comment on posts like this one? I think not.
I’ll leave it up to others to debate our sex offender registry policy. Adam Thiererand Robin Sax have just written thoughtful responses to The Economist’s article, taking differing points of view, but I do think that we need to be careful about not indiscriminately shutting down social-networking access to all registered sex offenders. Some probably yes, but not every one of them.
Another reason to question this law is that it can lead to more than one false sense of security. To begin with, the most dangerous sex offenders aren’t necessarily the ones who are registered but the many who haven’t yet been caught and convicted. And if we focus exclusively on predation, we’re likely to lose track of the most dangerous aspects of youth online behavior, which are mostly either kid on kid–such as bullying, harassment, and impersonation–or self-imposed risks such as sexting or posting information that could be embarrassing later in life.

Facebook information should be regulated, survey says

2009-11-17T22:10:00.000-05:00

Nine out of 10 people think there should be tighter regulation of information on social networking websites, according to new research.

A survey found that most Britons believe sites such as Facebook and MySpace should be covered by rules that would help ordinary people complain about intrusive material posted online.

Currently each of the major social networking sites operates under its own set of terms and conditions. However, 89% of those surveyed by the Press Complaints Commission said there should be a set of widely accepted rules to help prevent personal information - such as private photographs - being abused.

Sir Christopher Meyer, the chairman of the PCC, said there was an "unprecedented scale" of information being put on to social networks, and suggested members of the public needed help to deal with problems that arise as a result. "There is a need for public awareness about what can happen to information once it is voluntarily put into the public domain," he said.

Although just 8% of those surveyed said they had been embarrassed by information about them published on a social network, many more were more concerned about the implications: 78% said they would change the information they put online if they thought it would be reproduced by mainstream media.

The potential for abuse of private information online has become an increasing concern, not only among those worried about criminal activity, but also because such data is increasingly used by the media. Last year, in the wake of the Virginia Tech shooting spree which left 33 dead, a number of media organisations were criticised for "digital doorstepping" of victims and their families using Facebook.

Spokesmen for the major social networks did not respond to requests for comment yesterday, but in the past they have rejected the idea that they should police their sites beyond the boundaries already covered by the law.

The survey comes as the PCC seeks to expand its role as the lines between different forms of media continue to blur. The organisation already oversees internet and video content produced by newspaper organisations, though the commission's director, Tim Toulmin, has stated that he is not in favour of internet regulation.

Suggestions that the PCC would be the best body to oversee a social networking code of conduct are likely to cause controversy, particularly since it has been accused of caving in to the interests of the newspaper industry. It recently came in for criticism for retaining Daily Express editor Peter Hill as a board member, despite his newspaper being forced to pay £560,000 to the family of Madeleine McCann over a series of false allegations. Hill finally left the commission in May.

Some experts suggested it would prove beneficial to bring some form of light self-regulation to the internet, but questioned whether there was a real consensus on what "intrusive" really meant. "If you take pictures and put them on Facebook, you've deliberately surrendered your privacy," said Charlie Beckett, the director of Polis, a journalism thinktank at the London School of Economics.

The survey, conducted by Ipsos Mori, was compiled from the answers of 1,000 British people aged 16 to 64.

Ethics in social networking

2009-11-15T00:10:00.000-05:00

Issues with specific social networks
Linking or bookmarking networks. Sites such as Digg, Delicious and Reddit are valuable for showcasing your own stories and blogs or for linking to valuable resources related to your beat or for other stories or resources that can add depth to your own stories. However, consider whether you have responsibility for material that you highlight through these sites. If you highlight partisan sites or commentary expressing strong opinions, could your Diggs or your bookmarks compromise your neutrality on your beat? Do balance and fairness come into play here? If you link to competing partisan sites, does the balance make it acceptable where linking to one side’s site would be unfair? What about linking to a site making some allegations about a person or company? Is that OK? If not, would it be acceptable if you also link to sites where the person or company presents its position? What responsibility, if any, do you bear for the accuracy of sites that you link to? Do you need to verify the information if you might be sending people to that site, just as you would verify the information in a story? If you don’t have to verify, do you need to point out any inaccuracies that you know of? What guidelines should you follow in comments you make about your links?
Photo or video networks. Social-networking platforms such as Flickr and YouTube are popular and fun. And they can provide timely content for your news site. But you need to consider lots of issues: You can link to content anywhere on the Internet, but if you want to embed photos or videos on your site, be sure to request and receive permission first. Keep in mind also that you don’t know the context of the photos or videos you find on sharing sites. Consider whether something might have been staged or re-created in a way that would not be acceptable for your staff. Might someone have altered digital content in a way that would be unethical for a photojournalist? How can you know whether the people sharing the photos or videos follow your standards for identifying people pictured or for verification of facts? How can you know whether the people sharing the photos or videos have any conflicts of interests that raise questions about the legitimacy of the images they present? How do you know (and does it matter?) that the people sharing photos or videos are identifying themselves accurately?
Facebook or MySpace. Facebook and MySpace can be valuable reporting tools. They also can present ethical dilemmas for journalists. Many users proclaim their opinions and affiliations on these social-networking sites, but journalists should be sure to check with their editors before doing so. Reporters might want to join some groups that deal with topics or issues on your beat, but be sure to check with your editor first because joining some particularly partisan groups could present a conflict of interests. And be careful when you use Facebook for reporting. You want to verify identity and information independently where you can. And be sure to attribute appropriately when you use something from Facebook, especially if you haven’t been able to verify. Because Facebook and MySpace offer blogging, linking and photo-sharing opportunities, they present all the same issues described above and in a separate Upholding and Updating Ethical Standards handout on blogging.
Twitter. If you mix professional and personal communication on Twitter, check with your editor to make sure that is OK at your organization. If your editor is not comfortable, discuss whether separate personal or professional Twitter accounts would be acceptable. Also discuss whether expressions of opinion about events you cover are acceptable (if you might be inclined to state opinions). Consider what your choice of people you follow might tell readers or sources about your interests and opinions. (Editors should discuss these issues with their staffs and know how staff members are using Twitter.)

Should Social Networks Be Regulated?

2009-11-14T20:06:00.000-05:00

A recent study in the UK showed that most Britons have a strong desire for the regulation of social network sites like MySpace and Facebook. In fact, 9 out of 10 people said there should be tighter regulation and, according to today'sThe Guardian, 89% said there should be a set of widely accepted rules to help prevent personal information from being abused.

The survey was performed by the Press Complaints Commission (PCC), a British regulatory body for printed newspapers and magazines that consists of representatives from all the major publishers. Since the PCC has been expanding their role, now monitoring internet and video content produced by newspapers, one wonders if they now want to dip their fingers into social network regulation as well.

Sir Christopher Meyer, the PCC chairman, warned of the dangers of posting content online to these sites, saying, "there is a need for public awareness about what can happen to information once it is voluntarily put into the public domain." In other words, people are posting content without thinking about the consequences and permanence of their actions.

Possible Consequences of Regulation

Despite what may be good intentions on the part of legislators, having government and/or regulatory bodies get involved with how social networks operate could be a very slippery slope, both in the U.S. and worldwide. Once you start demanding social networks comply with certain rules and restrictions instead of just being governed by their own TOS, you're literally impacting an entire industry. There's more to social networks than just MySpace and Facebook. What about smaller networks like those provided by Ning, for example? What about social networks that are used in business like CollectiveX? And if legislation is crafted to control this particular industry, when does that stop?

Another side effect of regulation and "raised awareness" could also be a change in behavior. In the PCC survey, 78% said they would change the information they put online if they thought it would be reproduced by mainstream media. Another recent survey of Germans shows the social effects of surveillance - since the beginning of 2008, communication providers are required to record electronic communication - who communicated with whom, but not what was said. This data is stored for six months so that it could be made available to law enforcement in case of a crime. The problem with this is that the knowledge that communication is recorded has begun to change behavior - 11% of the people surveyed have already abstained from using phones, cell phones or email in certain occasions, especially in private matters like when contacting drug counselors, psychotherapists, or marriage counselors because of this data retention.

This psychological effect could easily impact today's social networks as well if users truly understood how their content could be accessed, stored, saved, and shared with others. Many people believe they have control over the items they post online, but, yesterday, we were all reminded yet again that "your privacy is an illusion," when a Yahoo hack opened up Paris and Lindsey's MySpace photos to the world. If all social networkers became educated as to what it means to post content online, would the social networks suffer a drought of content?

Do you agree that social networks in your country should be regulated? Let us know in the comments.

Social networking sites challenge journalism ethics

2009-11-12T14:06:00.000-05:00

The UK’s newspaper watchdog, the PCC, has released the findings of its research into attitudes towards social networking.

It found that 78% would change information they publish about themselves online if they thought the material would later bereproduced in the mainstream media. This is a new ethical issue for journalists, as Facebook and other social networking sites become sources for journalists.

Social networking sites are used by more than 80% of youngsters in the UK. Yet it appears that few think about the personal details they publish online.

The PCC found that only 55% of people think before posting information that it might later be used by journalists or employers without their consent.

The research showed that most web users think there should be clear guidelines about the type of personal information that can be published online. But the press watchdog has shied away from new regulations, preferring instead to rely on self-regulation.

In the words of Christopher Meyer, chairman of the PCC:

In the digital age, self-regulation, with its sound principles and speed of operation, has never been more relevant. That is why I expect our current Code of Practice to be able to handle complaints in this area; and in the process to enable the Commission over the coming months and years to define through its decisions the boundary between the private and the public.

So no new rules, despite concern from the public. However, journalists would have resisted any new regulations and these could have been difficult to enforce.

And the PCC might not be the best body to do this as it has been accused ofcaving in to the interests of the newspaper industry.

But clearly there is a need to reassess journalism ethics in a digital age. The meaning of private and public is increasingly blurred online. Journalists have a responsibility to behave ethically but the challenge is agreeing how this applies to personal data published online but not intended for the mass media.

Posting Pics Online? What Your Photos Say About You

2009-11-09T23:40:00.002-05:00

Those photos you post on Facebook could paint an accurate picture of your personality, new research on first impressions suggests.

And perhaps as expected, the more candid a shot the more nuances of your personality show through.

"In an age dominated by social media where personal photographs are ubiquitous, it becomes important to understand the ways personality is communicated via our appearance," said study researcher Laura Naumann of Sonoma State University. "The appearance one portrays in his or her photographs has important implications for their professional and social life."

With this information, there's always the option of tweaking your image, and thus your personality to the outside world. "If you want potential employers or romantic suitors to see you as a warm and friendly individual, you should post pictures where you smile or are standing in a relaxed pose," Naumann said.

Scientists have known physical appearance is important for first impressions and that such initial impressions can be hard to undo, particularly negative ones. Studies have shown judgments made at first glance of a CEO can predict his or her success. But until now little was known about how well people judged personality based on appearance and what physical factors are most important.

In the new study, 12 observers looked at full-body photos of 123 undergraduate students who they had never met before. Six observers viewed the students in a neutral pose and six saw the same students in a spontaneous pose.

The participants rated each photo on 10 personality traits: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, openness (open to experience), likability, self-esteem, loneliness, religiosity and political orientation.

To figure out accuracy of the judgments, the researchers compared the results with the posers' self-ratings and ratings from three close friends.

For the controlled poses, the observers accurately judged extraversion and self-esteem. When participants looked at the naturally expressive shots, which revealed dynamic non-verbal cues, they were nearly spot-on, getting nine out of the 10 traits correct (everything but political orientation).

For instance, both the neutral and expressive photos garnered about a 70 percent success rate.

"Extraversion is one of those things that's probably the easiest trait to judge," Naumann told LiveScience. "Even without seeing whether someone is smiling or not people can pick that up."

But when judging likeability, observers got it right on average for 55 percent of the photos with neutral poses and 64 percent of the expressive photos. Similar results were found for agreeableness, with participants judging correctly 45 percent of the time for neutral poses compared with 60 percent in the expressive images.

Beyond pure science, the researchers say the results, which will be detailed in the December issue of the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, have practical implications.

For example, if you want to come off as an extravert, try to smile more, stand in energetic and less tense ways, and gear your overall appearance to look healthy (as opposed to sickly), neat and stylish, the study found. For those interested in seeming open to new experiences, it'd be best to show off a distinctive style of dressing rather than a healthy, neat appearance.

Social Networking Generates Leads, Closes Sales for Marketers

2009-11-09T09:12:00.002-05:00

According to a social media study by Michael Stelzner for the Social Media Success Summit 2009, 88% of marketers in a recent survey say they are now using some form of social media to market their business, though 72% of those using it say they have only been at it a few months or less.

Marketer's Use of Social Media Tools
*Social Media*	*% Respondents Using*
Twitter	86%
Blogs	79
Linkedin	78
Facebook	77
YouTube or other video	41
Social bookmark sites	38
Forums	38
StumbleUpon	28
Digg, Reddit or similar	26
FriendFeed	18
Source: Social Media Marketing Industry Report, March 2009

Key survey findings about specific application show that:

Small-business owners are more likely to use LinkedIn than employees working for a corporation
Men are significantly more likely to use YouTube or other video marketing than women (52.4% of all men compared with 31.7% of women)
For those just getting under way with social media marketing, LinkedIn is ranked as their number-two choice, pushing blogging down one notch
Among those who have been using social media for a few months, Facebook is in second place. This group also has more Twitter use
Twitter is used by 94% of marketers who have been using social media for years, followed closely by blogs. This group also endorses online video significantly more than the other groups

72% of marketers say they have either just started or have been using social media for only a few months.

Duration of Social Media Use by Marketers (% of Respondents)
*Duration*	*% of Respondents*
Just getting started	28%
A few months	44
A few years	23
No experience, plan to use	4
No experience, don't plan to use	1
Source: Social Media Marketing Industry Report, March 2009

The largest group just getting under way with social media marketing is sole proprietors, with 30.2% reporting just getting started, the survey found. Owners of businesses with 2-100 employees were the most experienced, with 29.3% reporting doing social media marketing for years.
64% of marketers are using social media for five hours or more each week, with 39% using it 10 or more hours weekly and 9.6% spending more than 20 hours each week with social media.

Those working for a company are twice as likely as business owners to be committing 20+ hours a week to social media
44.8% of those ages 30-39 old spendi 10+ hours weekly using social media marketing
40.3% of 20-to-29 year-olds spend 10+ hours weekly
38.7% of 50-to-59 year-olds spend 10+ hours weekly

According to the survey, 81% of all marketers indicate that their social media efforts have generated exposure for their businesses. At least two in three participants found that increased traffic occurred with as little as 6 hours a week invested in social media marketing. Owners of small businesses with 2 - 100 employees are more likely than others to report benefits.
Half of participants reported that a major benefit of social media marketing is the resultant rise in search engine rankings that often comes with increased efforts. Improved search engine rankings were most prevalent among those who've been using social media for years, with nearly 80% reporting a rise.

Benefits of Social Media Marketing (% of Respondents, multiple response OK)
*Benefit*	*% Responding*
Generated exposure	81%
Increased traffic, subscribers, list	61
New business partners	56
Increased position in search rankings	52
Generated qualified leads	48
Reduced overall marketing expenses	45
Helped close sales	35
Source: Social Media Marketing Industry Report, March 2009

Fanlly profits for Youtube

2009-11-06T08:56:00.002-05:00

YouTube is on the path to profitability in the “not-too-distant future,” Google reiterated today during its third quarter earnings call. And while that may sounds all well and good, they actually had some more specific impressive numbers to back it up.

One is that YouTube is now monetizing over a billion video views a week. Last week, YouTube announced that it was serving over 1 billion video views a day, so if you do the math there, it means that YouTube is monetizing one every seven video views.

The company also noted that 90% of the top 50 advertisers according to AdAge have now run ads on YouTube. And of its homepage ad inventory, 90% of it sold out for the quarter in the U.S., with lower, but still impressive sale rates for the rest of the world. Google also noted that YouTube was just starting to unleash its pre-roll inventory and let its salesforce have a go at selling that to advertisers, which should bring in more money.

And with Warner Music Group back in the mix, they now have the four major music labels playing ball again. As a one-stop shop for many music videos, YouTube will also be able to sell ads against those, as well as make some money off of affiliate sales from iTunes and Amazon’s MP3 store.

Earlier this month, CNET uncovered that Google CEO Eric Schmidt admitted under oath that the company paid a $1 billion premium when it bought YouTube in 2006 (for $1.65 billion). The thought was always that the site was growing so quickly that they would scoop it up and figure out how to monetize it later. It would appear that they’re getting close to doing just that — albeit three years later.

SOCIAL NETWORKING MARKETING AND ETHICS

2009-11-01T01:38:00.000-04:00

Unethical marketing practices on social media websites has backfired...badly. As in all marketing situations, it pays to have integrity. While much of social networking is out of your hands, there are many factors that you can control that will keep you out of the hot seat.

The first thing that you must always keep in mind when you embark on a social network marketing campaign is that you are joining a community. As with any community, business has its rightful place, but it does not have the right to invade people's privacy. In your face, non-targeted, spam marketing will get you nowhere in a hurry.

Most social network marketers use websites like FaceBook and MySpace to try to drive traffic to another website. While it's perfectly ethical to use social networking websites to spread a message to people who are genuinely interested, many people game the system with auto-friend adding programs and spam messages and bulletins. Again, anything non-targeted and spammy will not help your reputation.

Thankfully, social networking websites are becoming wise to these practices and are effectively weeding out and banning offenders.

As mentioned earlier, to use such websites as a marketing tool with integrity you need to participate as a member of the community. Get involved in groups that are related to your area, contribute, communicate and make friends that are genuinely interested in what you have to say and what you have to sell.

As you begin to publish more content on these websites, try to avoid direct marketing platitudes. For success, your content will need to be of genuine value and interest to other users. Also, never mislead potential clients. Don't overdue your titles to try and lure clicks from visitors.

For example, instead of leaving a post on a blog pretending to be a consumer recommending your website or product, be up front about it. Explain that the product or website is yours and how it is relevant to the discussion. People will eventually see through dishonest marketing methods, even if they don't right away. And one mistake could cost your reputation.

Also, when contributing in social networking websites, never use it as an opportunity to unfairly criticize competitors or their products. Don't point out shortfalls. Point out what makes you different.

Since social network marketing can be seen as a form of publishing, be aware of online copyright issues. Read up on the basics of media law and know the potential dangers when it comes to defamation, invasion of privacy and intellectual property, and copyright infringement.

There are no hard and fast rules governing ethical behavior in social network marketing. Most communities are self regulated. So, be on your best behavior and you shouldn't have any problems.

Social Networking Sites Carry Ethics Traps and Reminders

2009-10-29T00:00:00.000-04:00

Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and MySpace are among the top social media websites that have transformed electronic communications and social interactions culturally. Inevitably, these communication techniques have also affected litigation practice and are brimming with ethical traps.

A recent advisory ethics opinion in Pennsylvania is a reminder to litigators that rules of professional responsibility apply when accessing social networks. The opinion concludes that using a third party to contact a witness through a “friend request” on Facebook and using the information found in a Facebook profile in litigation is deceptive and in violation of Pennsylvania Rule of Professional Conduct 8.4.

The communication “omits a highly material fact . . . [and] would purposely conceal that fact from the witness for the purpose of inducing the witness to allow access, when she [might] not do so if she knew the third person was associated with the inquirer and the true purpose of the access was to obtain information for the purpose of impeaching her testimony,” the opinion reasons.

The Pennsylvania ethics committee further opines that the deceptive conduct would also constitute the making of a false statement of material fact to a witness, in violation of its Rule 4.1.

While the opinion acknowledges that information in Facebook profiles is discoverable, the committee drew a distinction where elusive conduct was employed to access a Facebook page through deception, drawing an analogy to a videographer obtaining entry into a home by misrepresenting himself as a utility worker and installing a hidden camera.

Lessons Learned from PA
The Pennsylvania opinion reminds attorneys that although social networking may be prolific, attorney ethical obligations remain fundamental to avoiding deceit and/or misrepresentation.

Despite the technology, the basic iterations remain the same—attorneys should avoid using third parties to access private space on the web for use in litigation that they have either not been granted permission to access themselves or is not generally available to the public.

More and more litigators are routinely using the Internet as a discovery tool and are not opposed to using social networking sites. “Social media has become a powerful tool, but lawyers need to be aware of the ethical pitfalls that can arise by communicating in this manner and that user rules can transcend the casual, personal use that young lawyers are often used to,” says Elizabeth Acee, New Haven, CT, immediate past chair of the ABA Young Lawyers Division and current member of the ABA Section of Litigation Young Lawyers Leadership program.

“Young lawyers should be responsible with utilizing social networking and the worldwide web as litigation tools. Drawing the line starts with knowing your objective and coupling that with basic forthrightness,” reminds Keathan B. Frink, Fort Lauderdale, FL, cochair of the Section’s Solo & Small Firm Practice Committee.

“Although deception should not be used to obtain witness or party information, information on the world wide web intuitively should not enjoy the same privacy protection as information maintained in someone’s private home,” Frink cautions.

In practice, experienced and young attorneys all seemed to draw the line at using third parties as a deceptive or covert method of gaining access to party or witness information without disclosure of the third party’s association with the attorney.

Lawyers must “maintain the highest ethical standards in engaging third parties to act on their behalf, particularly in dealing with social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace,” advises Michele D. Hangley, Philadelphia, cochair of the Section of Litigation’s Ethics and Professionalism Committee.

“I think the applicable ethical rules are pretty cut and dry; you shouldn’t be deceptive or misrepresent your motives as an attorney to gain access to information to use in the context of litigation,” says Hangley.

Ethical traps in this area are not just limited to attorneys. The bar and bench alike should be aware. Recently, a judge in North Carolina was reprimanded [PDF] for “friending” counsel on Facebook and discussing an active litigation matter. See North Carolina Judicial Standards Committee, Inquiry No. 08-234 (April 1, 2009).

Tips for the Technology Savvy
Some basic reminders to guide an attorney’s use of social networking sites for litigation include:

Avoid using third parties to contact counsel, parties, or witnesses without expressly disclosing that the communication is on behalf of the attorney, law firm, or client.
Never use deception or misrepresentation in communications—including use of aliases and screen names that do not clearly identify you.
Always identify yourself and the purpose of your communications.
Understand and follow user rules associated with sites.
Check with your state and local ethics boards for recent decisions to stay updated.

Perhaps the savviest advice comes from Damien Thomas, Miami, member of the Section’s Young Lawyer Leadership Program. “My motto in using online technology is ‘If it feels wrong, don’t do it!’”

Social Media Marketing Spend to Hit $3.1 Billion by 2014

2009-10-27T22:11:00.002-04:00

We already knew that social media marketing budgets were on the rise, but now we know by how much. Forrester Research is out with their Interactive Marketing Forecast for the next five years, and estimates social media marketing to grow at an annual rate of 34 percent – faster than any other form of online marketing and double the average growth rate of 17 percent for all online mediums.

Of course, social media is starting from a smaller base. Forrester estimates that $716 million will be spent on the medium this year, growing to $3.1 billion in 2014. At that point, social media will be a bigger marketing channel than both email and mobile, but still just a fraction of the size of search or display advertising ($31.6B and $16.9B, respectively).

Not surprisingly, some of this growth comes at the expense of offline advertising. Forrester estimates that online advertising will grow from 12 percent of total marketing spend this year to 21 percent by 2014, meaning that offline ad spend will fall. In fact, Forrester concludes that “overall advertising budgets will decline,” meaning efficiencies are being had by shifting money to the Web.

Online Marketing Ethics And Social Network Marketing

2009-10-26T19:24:00.000-04:00

As a business website owner, you must contain integrity. Many of the social networking websites are utilized for unethical behavior exhibited by business website owners and this seriously backfires when trying to market your products and services. There are many ways, which you as a responsible website owner online marketer, can control the behavior performed on your business website.

Respect online users privacy

You must keep in mind that while using social networking marketing as your marketing tool for your products and services that you are joining an actual community of internet users. With any community, your business has its particular place in the scheme of things but this is not room for you to invade people’s privacy within the online community. Do not spam market your friends on your friends list.There are many social networking websites to choose from for your social networking strategies.Many social network marketers utilize online websites such as MySpace and FaceBook with the hopes of driving internet traffic to their business websites.

Do not spam people with marketing ads for your business website!

Social networking websites are currently more knowledgeable of spamming practices, which have proved unethical while eliminating people who habitually perform such tactics within their marketing strategies. Jack practices what he teaches and you can learn from the best regarding blogging and social marketing by checking out Blogging Success. You can also download his free ebook on social marketing and blogging called Authority Blackbook.

Be professional and honest with the online communities

To successfully utilize social networking websites as tools with integrity you need to honestly participate within the online communities as a member. Becoming a member of the online community means you will have to register with that particular community. Become involved within the online groups, which are related to your area of expertise or products and services, which your business offers. You want to make friends within this online community while proving yourself an expert within the particular field, which you are offering products and services.

Publish quality content on the social networking website

You will need to publish quality content upon these particular social networking websites. Avoid shoving your products and services down the throats of the online community. Never mislead or give incorrect information referencing your products and services.

Examples of unethical social networking practices

A great example of such unethical practices is leaving a blog or post within the online community while pretending to be a customer recommending your products and services. You need to be honest with the online community, which you belong to explaining your products and services. Leave the decision up to the online community to view your products and services as compared to spamming them with your company information.

Do not criticize your competitors. Do not point out shortcomings of your competitors. You can however, specify what makes your products and services different from the competition.

There are no set guidelines on ethical practices with online social network marketing however; you will need to educate yourself with media law while knowing the potential dangers of defamation as well as invading people’s privacy. Conduct yourself professionally as well as intellectually. If you follow these guidelines of what not to perform, you should fare well in your goal of becoming a success.

Executives spend an extra 11 hours a month online

2009-10-25T23:12:00.000-04:00

A study run by online business networking service www.MeettheBoss.com shows that executives are spending an extra 11 hours a month online sharing their professional experiences and learning from their peers.

MeettheBoss surveyed 15,000 of its 200,000 executive members to understand more about what effect Web 2.0 has had on the business world.

The survey asked its executive users what direct value they gained from spending time running blogs, writing tweets and connecting with other executives on sites such as Linked-In, Xing, MeettheBoss, Ryze, Facebook and Twitter.

The answers revealed that executives proficient with online activities are spending an average of 11 hours more per month online than this time last year – and over 90% of respondents said they felt their time online was ‘very valuable’ to their daily role.

Professionals are rushing to the Web for immediate answers to their most pressing questions. “I find online business networking very useful,” says MeettheBoss member Oliver Bruns, Head of Polyurethanes at Bayer Material Sciences. “It allows me to create or join a discussion and get immediate answers and experiences from like-minded professionals on issues such as regulation or technology.”

Finding answers for your business is one thing, but most executives have spotted more ‘individual’ advantages to this new phenomenon.

“Everyone knows that building contacts in the industry can strengthen your career prospects, but sharing your knowledge with the world is a very effective personal branding exercise,” says Adam Burns, Editor-in-Chief of online business channel, MeettheBoss.TV.

Many thought leaders agree with him. Manfred Fitzgerald, Director of Brand & Design at Lamborghini, Vinton Cerf, Chief Internet Evangelist at Google, Werner Vogels, CTO, Amazon and Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos, have all shared their expertise on the site.

“Sites like MeettheBoss are a great help as they aggregate all the information I need to start my day. It is a new, modern, convenient networking and information platform,” says MeettheBoss member, Detlef Guenther, CISO at Volkswagen.

Though most experts agree there is no substitute for face-to-face networking, using social media tools correctly can bring substantial return on your time investment. You can become a thought leader in your niche environment overnight and even pull business to your door. The challenge is finding the best one for you.

E Business ethics ?? What are they??

2009-10-23T08:49:00.000-04:00

“Orkut has become famous primarily as a relationship site, but it is undeniable that such goal has often been distorted. With the practice of preserving user anonymity, the Orkut site provides a fertile space for the practice of crimes, putting in risk the right of third parties, who for sure will have to be compensated.”

- Henrique Eduardo Duarte Saad, Lawyer, Brazil, in September 2006

There are the controversies associated with Orkut.com (Orkut), a social networking site of the US-based search engine company Google Inc. (Google). Orkut became very popular in non-American countries like Brazil and India with 72% of the users being Brazilians and 18% being Indians.

Through this site, the members could search for and contact their old friends (who were also members at Orkut), make new friends and form forums (called communities) and discuss on varied topics. However, several events in Brazil and India tarnished the image of the website and these events also led to a growing debate on the safety of the members using such networking sites.

Orkut was being seen as a medium of promoting hatred toward some religions and communities, illegal drug dealings and child pornography. It also witnessed growing incidents of fake profiles to demean the character of the victims. There were a few cases of kidnappings and murders which were allegedly planned out on Orkut. As a result of all these incidents, there were several litigations that were filed against Orkut and Google in India and Brazil.

The Brazilian Fiasco
On May 17, 2006, Bloomberg reported that Google might face a criminal probe in Brazil as it was reported that some of the users of Orkut were involved in distributing child pornography and racist material. Google was asked to release information on where this illegal material had come from. Google Brazil then wrote back to the prosecutors saying that the content on Orkut was not its responsibility

Orkuts Problems in India
In October 2006, in connection with a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) , a court in

India issued a notice to Google. The PIL was filed by an advocate Yugant R.

Marlapalle (Marlapalle). The PIL was against the ‘We Hate India'community

being operated on Orkut. The community showed a picture of the Indian flag

burning and posted several anti-India messages and slogans.

Corporate Use of Social Networking Still an Executive Concern

2009-10-22T00:53:00.000-04:00

According to a study by Russell Herder and Ethos Business Law, senior US marketing, management and HR executives are concerned about the risks of increased use of social networks within their companies. 51% percent of these executives fear social media could be detrimental to employee productivity, while 49% assert that using social media could damage company reputation.
Despite these apprehensions, says the study, social networking is being accepted as a key communications strategy. According to survey results:

81% believe social media can enhance relationships with customers/clients
81% agree it can build brand reputation
69% feel such networking can be valuable in recruitment
64% see it as a customer service tool
46% think it can be used to enhance employee morale
The most popular vehicles being used include:

Facebook (80%)
Twitter (66%)
YouTube (55%)
LinkedIn (49%)
Blogs (43%)
Much of senior management's direct experience with social media appears to be reactive versus proactive, concludes the report. 72% of executives say that they, personally, visit social media sites at least weekly:

52% to read what customers may be saying about their company
47% to routinely monitor a competitors' use of social networking
36% to see what their employees are sharing
25% check the background of a prospective employee
The national survey, which assessed social media workplace trends and adoption of policies governing social media, found that fewer than one in three respondents say their organization has a policy in place to govern social media use and only 10% of companies have conducted employee training on it.

Social Media Vehicles Being Used (Multiple responses allowed)

Social Media

% of Respondents Using

Facebook -80%

Twitter -66%

YouTube -55%

LinkedIn -49%

Blogs -43%

Flickr -16%

Wikipedia -24%

Yammer -11%

MySpace -8%

Digg -3%

Delicious -7%

Second Life -1%

Other -9%

Source: Russell Herder And Ethos Business Law, August 2009

Executives believe social media can potentially be detrimental to employee effectiveness and company reputation, sys the report. Those surveyed who are not using social media on a corporate basis say non-implementation is primarily due to concern about confidentiality or security issues (40%), employee productivity (37%) or simply not knowing enough about it (51%).

This may be why many organizations continue to prohibit workplace access to social networking sites. The study found that 40 percent of companies technically block their employees from accessing social media while at work. At the same time, 26% of companies use social media to further corporate objectives and 70% said they plan to increase the use of these new opportunities.

Even though social media communication is growing, only one in 10 executives say they have staff who spend more than 50% of their time on such efforts, and only 13% have included social media in their organizations' crisis communications plans.

Carol Russell, CEO of Russell Herder, says "Ignoring the need for responsible guidelines can leave an organization open to unnecessary risk and can impede efforts to use social media proactively and competitively in the marketplace... "

And, according to Ethos President David Baer, good social media policies are organization-specific, taking into consideration the philosophy and culture of the organization. Good policies should include, he says, "the need to respect confidential and proprietary information, as well as the sensitivity of potential conflicts of interest."

Russians Spend More Time On Social Networks Than The Rest Of World

2009-10-19T00:17:00.000-04:00

comScore has aggregated some data based on its World Metrix audience measurement service and put together a study on social networking worldwide. Surprisingly, it appears that the Russians are more engaged with social networking than the rest of the planet (or the biggest slackers at the office, depends on how you look at it). The study found visitors in Russia to spend 6.6 hours and viewing 1,307 pages per visitor per month on average, at the same time – once again – confirming Vkontakte.ru’s leadership in terms of popularity with 14+ million monthly visitors.

To put that level of ‘engagement’ in perspective: the average world-wide is 3.7 hours and 525 pages per visitor. Among the 40 individual countries reported by comScore, Brazil ranked closest to Russia at 6.3 hours, followed by Canada (5.6 hours), Puerto Rico (5.3 hours) and Spain (5.3 hours). The United States is ranked number 9, with 4.2 hours and 477 pages per visitor per month.

According to comScore, 65 percent of the worldwide Internet audience engages in social networking activities. More precisely, of the 1.1 billion people age 15 and older worldwide who accessed the Internet from a home or work location in May 2009, 734.2 million visited at least one social networking site during the month.

Also noteworthy: local social networks are much more popular with Russians than international websites. The most popular of these sites was Vkontakte.ru with 14.3 million visitors, followed by Odnoklassniki.ru (7.8 million visitors), Mail.ru – My World (6.3 million visitors) and Fotostrana.ru (1.6 million visitors). Facebook is the first international service to be ranked in the list of most popular social networks – it attracted 616,000 Russian visitors in May 2009 (up 277 percent compared to May 2008).

One caveat, though: the comScore study does not count traffic from public computers (e.g. Internet cafes) nor does it measure traffic coming from mobile devices.

Gays and Lesbians Love Social Networks

2009-10-18T11:21:00.000-04:00

US gays and lesbians are using social media in fabulous numbers.

According to a May 2009 Harris Interactive poll, gay and lesbian Internet users were more likely to be social network members than straights—55% of them were on Facebook, versus 46% of heterosexuals, and the differences were similar for MySpace and LinkedIn, too.

Despite a fondness for being social online, 63% of homosexuals were apathetic toward advertising on social networking sites and a mere 6% had a positive attitude.

In addition, 55% of homosexual Internet users reported reading blogs.

News was the most widely read blog topic (34%) followed by personal (32%), political (28%) and entertainment (25%) information.

Only 38% of heterosexuals said they read blogs.

One-fifth of gays and lesbians were Twitter users, compared with 12% of straights.

“Blogs and social networking sites are powerful opportunities for companies to reach out to the gay market,” said Bob Witeck ofWiteck-Combs Communications.

Just don’t expect them to love your ads.

PEI teen in hot water over Facebook threats

2009-10-17T22:45:00.000-04:00

A Charlottetown youth is expected to face charges after a threat was allegedly made over Facebook about a possible shooting at a city high school.

Deputy Chief Gary McGuigan said Friday an unnamed male was questioned about the threat against Charlottetown Rural High School and charges will likely be laid.

“We are going to be looking at charges to see what charges are available, what punishments are available so that people realize that there are consequences for this type of behaviour,” he said.

“You're not always anonymous behind your computer. There are ways to identify people who use Internet chat rooms or social networks.”

Mr. McGuigan said a computer was seized during the investigation and was being examined.

Authorities were notified Tuesday night about a threat posted on Facebook that warned there would be a shooting at the school on Wednesday and that people should hide.

Police treated the threat seriously and were at the school early Wednesday before students started to arrive. They stayed there throughout the day and access was allowed only through the building's main entrance.

Police also called on two external agencies to assist them in determining the source of the threatening Facebook post, including another police agency and a technology firm.

But Mr. McGuigan said it was interviews with people connected to the Facebook page and others in the community that led to police identifying the culprit.

After identifying and interviewing the young man, police said they are satisfied he never truly intended to shoot anyone.

“We can confirm that it was a hoax and there was no real intent to carry through with the threat that was made,” Mr. McGuigan said.

Social Networks War Shows Facebook Dominant, Twitter Gaining

2009-10-15T06:25:00.000-04:00

TWITTER Inc., the social networking website used for posting short messages, was sued by natural gas distributor Oneok Inc. over claims it’s wrongfully letting a customer use the Oneok name in Tweets.

Twitter, based in San Francisco, allegedly infringed Oneok’s trademark by letting an unnamed user choose “Oneok” as a user name and Tweet about the energy trader without permission, according to a complaint filed today in federal court in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where Oneok is based.

Facebook is leaping ahead of MySpace to turn into the most popular social networking site in the U.S. Yet although Facebook nailed down 58.6 percent of all U.S visits to social networking sites in September -- for an increase of 194 percent -- use of Twitter surged even more astoundingly, according to Experian Hitwise.

Only a year ago, MySpace held a commanding lead of 66.8 percent among the 155 social networking sites studied. But since then, U.S. users' visits to MySpace have plummeted by 55 percent to a total of just 30.2 percent, leaving Facebook the new winner in the social networking sweepstakes, say statistics released by the number cruncher last week.

Other networking sites, including Twitter, still lag way behind the two lead runners. But Twitter, a site that got only 0.15 percent of all U.S. visits in September of last year, ended in fourth place overall last month with a 1.8 percent share of U.S. visits and a stellar growth rate of 1170 percent.

Tagged came in third last month, with 2.3 percent of the pie and a year-over-year percent rise of 47 percent. Meanwhile, myYearbook dropped 40 percent, finishing last month in fifth place among the 155 at 1.0 percent.

The new stats from Experian Hitwise corroborate earlier signs that MySpace is slipping against Facebook which showed up in a June study by ComScore.

Apparently, the exit of co-founder Chris DeWolfe from the company in April hasn'tdone much in terms of helping MySpace to eitherreinvent itself or regain market share.

At the same time, Facebook has been adding new features such as Facebook Connect, to let users easily translate other sites and apps across the Web in other human languages.

Facebook's booming popularity seems to be bearing financial fruit, too. Also in September, Facebook grabbed its 300 millionth user while claiming that it had become "cash flow positive" months ahead of expectations

Top Application on Facebook

2009-10-14T00:21:00.000-04:00

	Name	Developer	MAU	Daily Growth Rate
1.	FarmVille	Zynga	57,913,250	3.19
2.	Causes	Causes	31,377,501	-0.10
3.	Mafia Wars	Zynga	25,872,867	-0.33
4.	We're Related	Familylink.com	20,949,145	1.15
5.	Pet Society	Playfish	19,839,749	1.68
6.	Birthday Cards	RockYou!	19,796,878	-6.88
7.	YoVille	Zynga	19,320,019	2.13
8.	Farm Town	SlashKey	18,702,106	-0.05
9.	Texas HoldEm Poker	Zynga	18,211,211	0.66
10.	LivingSocial	LivingSocial	17,208,737	-1.67