Everybody loves Google or so the saying goes. A few years ago if you wore a Google T shirt you would be greeted by smiles as you walked down the street. But that was a couple of years ago. The market place has changed with Google now controlling at least 75 percent of the search engine market and respectively the same amount of advertising and they now hold a very secure position. Fundamentally Google has not done anything wrong. It is just that you have no choice when it comes to advertising. Small and big e-commerce sites all use Google advertising. For example Tech crunch , Digg etc.
Effectively there is no competition which means that Google can dictate terms and conditions and have a very big say over who does what in the market. If a website owner was to say the wrong thing they could find themselves on the other side of the fence with no advertisers. Now the much talked about takeover of Yahoo by Microsoft is the first step in readdressing this problem. I am still not comfortable though. Both of these companies have such a large influence and control of the most dynamic communication medium. Is it time that we should start to worry?
Maybe not just yet, but the signs are there. While we have all become Google search converts. What would it take for some of us to start using another search engine? The array of products that Google provides are truly amazing. From Gmail to Youtube all for no cost to the user and paid for by advertising. But as the old saying goes Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely. Is Google too powerful?
I just came across this on the Tech Crunch blog, It was predicted and now it is happening. Instead of watching the elections on TV or reading it in the Newspapers. A lot of Americans will be getting their election news through blogs in Particular Ustream.TV.
Excerpt from blog:
“For those of you without C-SPAN, the Republican National Convention will be streamed live over the Web, and Ustream.TV has been chosen to be the official provider of live video streaming technology. (No doubt, other live streaming services such as Justin.TV,, Blog.tv, or Mogulus will be used by journalists and bloggers covering the event as well). The announcement is being made right now on Ustream.TV“
The IOD convention 2008 will be carbon neutral. Very interesting stuff,
This is a key part of a general drive by the IoD to champion the reduction of energy consumption throughout the organisation and it is fitting that our flagship event should lead the way in this cause. The IoD has partnered with The CarbonNeutral Company to make this happen. Activities such as travel, transportation of equipment, lighting and temperature control all produce C02 emissions. To make the event CarbonNeutral® all the C02 generated by the event will be measured and balanced out with verified, carbon-saving projects. The result is a net-zero carbon footprint.
http://www.annualconvention.iod.com/
New Media, there has been some discussion about this on the internet and it is clear that Newspapers, music, film, magazine are all changing. The changes that begun in the nineties are now coming to fruition. Media will never be the same again. Read Seth’s blog post here about what he predicted. http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/12/how-long-has-it.html . If you tie this in with mobile phones it is going to be a very different world. Maybe even more exciting than the Roman Empire.
The institute of directors is celebrating its 60 year anniversary this month. For any organisation to be making a valid contribution for that amount time is no mean feat. Of course the institute has been playing a very important role in business over the last 60 years. Many people dream of having their own business and being independent.
In the Isle of Man the success rate is very high. (eight out of every ten businesses is judged to be a success by the DTI. In comparison with the UK where it is the reverse of these figures. Of course setting up ones business always works on two levels . It is easy enough to have your trade or skill that you are good at. A very different matter when it comes to selling your business and taking a risk. It is not surprising a lot of people struggle with making that transition. The IOD can provide training knowledge and support in these matters, not just for big businesses but for all people that manage the risk of business. Take a look at the website: http://www.iod.com
The world wide investment community is now a vociferous participant in the climate change debate-not least because it is predicted that this is where big profits will come from in the future.
A recent report in the in IOD talks about the impacts that climate change is having on business. There is no denying that it is big business now. The enthusiasm of the city for sustainable development is more than matched by the retail sector as it bows to pressure from the green consumer.
Marks & Spencer’s latest 100 point manifesto includes a pledge to reduce packaging by a quarter achieving carbon-neutral status by 2012 and use fair-trade cotton for even its cheapest items. For a company with the power to affect 2,000 factories and 10,000 farms, this is dramatic development. Chief executive Stuart Rose has pledged that the £200m cost will not be passed on to the consumer so he’s taking the gamble that that shareholders will be ”paid back” through increased sales.
Which only leaves me to ask what is the future for motorsport (Isle of man TT) Where a carbon neutral footprint has not been considered much less talked about. But if that is where the profits are they better get thinking….
