Gone

There was a flower blowing
and a hand plucked it.

There was a stream flowing
and a body smirched it.

There was a pure mirror
of water and a face came

and looked in it. There were words
and wars and treaties, and feet trampled

the earth and the wheels
seared it; and an explosion

followed. There was dust
and silence; and out of the dust

a plant grew, and the dew formed
upon it; and a stream seeped

from the dew to construct
a mirror, and the mirror was empty.

R.S. Thomas (1913-2000)

It's all about the data...

A surprising conclusion from a conference centered around TV production, perhaps, but a vital one, given that broadcast content is increasingly being delivered via the Internet - a platform that, since its inception, has enabled the accurate measurement of content consumption.

And that's a key point. Performance data, statistics, analytics, reporting are not new, unrefined sciences; as a content editor for more than 10 years, before moving into Product Development, these tools have always been vital in setting the agenda and informing the editorial process.

Similarly - and this is an area that fascinates us at The Press Association - data can be used to build new products, services and stories. We're in an enviable position where we collect an enormous amount of data across a range of sectors and we're working hard behind the scenes to organise and structure that data so that it can become a part of the creative process - not just a hygiene factor.

Examples? We've turned our TV listings data into a set of TV discovery products under the FindMeTV banner (on web, iPhone and iPad) - with help from Vizimo, our technical partner - and we're already talking to our traditional customers and even brands about the exciting content possibilities (games, tools, etc) with our sports data.

For more on how the TV industry is taking a fresh look at data, see Jonathan Webdale's roundup of the C21 Future Media event at BAFTA - and follow him @webdaley on Twitter, he's always a good read.

Blogging for change

This time last year, more than 13,000 bloggers from 152 countries participated in Blog Action Day, in a collective posting on global warming.

This year, the focus has shifted to water. Or more specifically, access to clean, safe drinking water - something that almost a billion people on the planet don’t have access to. That's one in eight of us.
 
Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of diseases and kill more people every year than all forms of violence. Children are especially vulnerable, as their bodies aren't strong enough to fight diarrhea, dysentery and other illnesses. The UN predicts that one tenth of the global disease burden can be prevented simply by improving water supply and sanitation.

So, even if you regurgitate these simple, compelling facts from the Blog Action Day Website or from Safe Drinking Water is Essential - like I have - take some time to post. Let's beat last year's number.

Will Apple's rejection of Flash undermine the apps market?

Criticism of Apple’s controlled approach to its mobile operating system and its backing of HTML 5 over Flash has led certain commentators to question the viability of the apps market. 

But drawing a line of conflict between HTML5 and apps is, I think, slightly diverting – and it’s an argument that fails to consider important differences between apps on a mobile phone, and apps on tablet devices – and how those devices connect to the Internet.

Browsing the ‘web’ on a mobile phone remains, largely, a frustrating experience. Apps on mobile phones have done an excellent job in packaging and optimising a web-like experience for devices which are forced to connect to the internet through these still-sluggish cellular connections.

Tablet devices on the other hand – and early research shows that this is how they are being used – are quickly finding their use as a second, or even third device in the home and therefore largely connected to the internet via wi-fi.

It’s a vital distinction – and one which should lead publishers or developers to ask themselves a fundamental question before committing to development: “Will this application deliver a superior experience compared to a rich website application on a device that’s largely connected to the web on wi-fi and has an excellent browser?”

Finally, what this debate rarely considers is the fragmentation of the app market - it’s not just about Apple and iTunes. Delivering a proposition with real scale will mean developing for many different platforms – Apple, Android, Ovi, Bada, etc – and this adds cost and complexity.

So could HTML5, a universal standard which makes app-like functionality available on any browser, undermine Apps in that scenario? Absolutely.

An oldie, but a goody

Are you apped to the max, man?

Best email of the week

The perils of placing your email address on a recruitment advertisement...

I love the informal formality: "Hi Davies..."

Snap happy....

I've been playing around with the splendid Hipstamatic app for the iPhone over the past week - and have managed to get some pretty lovely results - including this saucy little number...

I'm slowly developiong a little collection of my own and the 'craze' - if I can call it that - has already spurned a number of Flickr groups including Hipstamatic U.K. and LONDON - Hipstamatic.

If you're a keen photographer with an iPhone, it's definitely worth a couple of quid for the download

A friend of mine - mentioning no names - has already borrowed one of the pictures for his Twitter profile. Well, they say that flattery is the most sincere form...

Happy to oblige...

It's always a privilege to be asked to contribute to any project or endeavour, but when that project is dedicated to empowering and educating journalists in developing countries, such requests take on added meaning.

Media Helping Media was set up by a former colleague to "provide free training resources and a voice for those involved in the media in transition states, post-conflict countries and areas where freedom of expression and media freedom is under threat."

My input is a very simple guide to effective homepage management, but the site provides a terrific wealth of shared, expert knowledge - covering a range of key topics including journalistic techniques, ethics, the use of social networks, strategy and online and multimedia delivery.

It's a wonderful resource for anybody involved in the production and distribution of content - to check it out, simply click here...

R.I.P. Louise Bourgeois

Louise Bourgeois spider installation outside the Guggenheim, Bilbao
Originally uploaded by Ian LDN

"Louise Bourgeois, who died on Monday aged 98, was a Franco-American sculptor whose organic, often sexually suggestive, works made her a feminist icon and influenced a generation of artists."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/art-obituaries/7794878/Louise-Bourgeois.html

 

Why TV discovery is vital for VOD

Interesting to see Google beginning to focus on TV discovery in the US, just as UK VOD discovery/listings service FindMeTV has rolled out as a public beta at www.findmetv.com

As Agit8or (@Agit8or) points out in an excellent blog post today, "the VOD market is very fragmented at the moment – SeeSaw, Canvas, iPlayer, SkyPlayer, ITVPlayer, 4OD, Demand five – and that is just in the UK and just the major broadcasters! How do you know which service to go to, which do you choose?"

This is exactly the problem that FindMeTV - a collaboration between the Press Association and technical partner Vizimo - seeks to solve. By bringing together traditional TV schedules with listings and links to VOD content from the major UK broadcasters in one place, the site aims to guide TV fans to the content they want to watch – but leaves the viewing experience firmly in the hands of the broadcasters.

A week in the life of a FindMeTV

With multi-million pound content and technology acquisitions generating plenty of coverage in VOD circles, we knew it would be a difficult ask to propel coverage of our FindMeTV products to the top of the media pages and sites- particularly in view of that BBC story this week.

But from small acorns... we've actually done OK. We've had really positive feedback on Twitter (@FindMeTV) and we've picked up fans on our Facebook group too. This isn't a one-way conversation, we'll be tweaking the functionality to make things a bit more obvious, effective and easier to use in the coming weeks.

It's been a very deliberate decision to make FindMeTV distinct from other propositions that are being heavily promoted at the moment; it's not a content aggregator in the traditional sense, so we don't have stories about money for content or sales of advertising to shout about, but we can be justifiably proud of its simple purpose.

FindMeTV makes finding TV easy - whether you want to watch it now, or tonight and - particularly with respect to VOD - whether you want to search multiple broadcaster platforms from one place. Whisper it... a bit like an EPG on your telly. Whisper it even more quietly. People watch TV from more than one channel.

Our revenue model too, is multi-faceted. We sell display ads on findmetv.com, we'll sell the complementary iPhone app, we can offer a versioned iPhone app for brands on a sponsored/ad-funded basis, we'll be exploring other platforms for distribution (internet-enabled TVs, more mobile platforms, etc) and we can make the solution bespoke for online publishers - with true integration options that can add real value.

Some people have 'got it', of course. C21's Editor Jonathan Webdale described it simply in a piece on the C21 media website. That description is ideal, as it's a simple proposition. Perhaps more pertinently, Richard Davidson-Houston, Channel 4's Head of Online Products and a positive supporter of our plans, wrote us a very positive message of support on his personal blog.

Coming from somebody at the broadcaster which had the vision to begin placing programmes online before anybody else, I think we can conclude that we're on to something here...

FindMeTV makes finding TV easy

After months of hard work - chance meetings with clever technical people, contractual negotiations, scoping, requirements, design, build, review and the late addition of new functionality - FindMeTV (www.findmetv.com) is finally making its first tentative steps into a wider world today as a public beta.

Put simply, FindMeTV - we think - is a natural next step for TV listings. Traditional listings are combined with video-on-demand listings and links to the UK's major broadcasters' on-demand services, so it's easy to find something to watch tonight on the telly, or straight way online.

On top of that, smart search and recommendations technology is applied to suggest other relevant programmes you might like to watch. And - being all web 2.0 and stuff - there's the ability to tell your friends what you're watching with Twitter and Facebook integration.

Press Association has worked closely with technology partner Vizimo to put FindMeTV together. Huge credit to Simon Steward's team for swiftly delivering on a tricky brief.

The site was designed by creative agency Feed - which has also delivered a range of advertising creative to support the launch. Watch this lovely little video clip to get a feel for their clear approach to branding and design.

In the coming weeks we'll be rolling a version of the solution out to more than 400 regional newspaper websites and we'll be lauching an iPhone app.

Want to know more? Read the press release on the Press Association website, become a fan of FindMeTV on Facebook, or follow the twitter stream

The cat's out of the bag...

After a good few months of hard work, with teams from Press Association, Vizimo and Feed all playing their parts, FindMeTV - an innovative new TV listings/VOD discovery service with powerful search and recommendations functionality - is gearing up for rollout as a public beta this week.

But what is it? You'll get the gist with the help of this lovely creative from those clever designers at Feed.



See the high-res video on YouTube here

Follow the Twitter feed @FindMeTV for the latest updates, or become a friend of FindMeTV on Facebook

Apple to bring back Newton moniker for tablet

Will they? Won't they? Who knows what they'll do or what they'll call it, but I bet tomorrow's eagerly awaited announcement won't lead to lengthy queues in the next few days outside Apple's stores...

I've got a feeling this is going to be another iPhone "we've done it and you can get it in six months" moment.

Trying to spot the opportunity

More than 11 years ago, I submitted my university dissertation which posed the question 'what would happen to public service broadcasting, given the threat posed to traditional media by the convergence of television, computer and telecoms technologies'.

With that notion of convergence looking set to become a reality in 2010 (reports are suggesting 20% of new televisions will have some form of Internet connectivity), the key debate won't be about PSB, but about the nature of platforms.


Will platforms be open, or closed? Will we simply see sets with web browsers, or are we set for another battle of proprietary Internet-enabled platforms (Canvas, Freesat, ConnectedTV, A.N. Other) which will echo previous platform scraps like VHS v Betamax or Blu-Ray v HD-DVD?

I'm hoping the lessons have been learned. We seem to have a suitable way of delivering video content already - and we've developed a certain fondness for the way the web works, so why reinvent it?


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

PS...

That this should warrant an independent blog post is quite ludicrous, but I'm quite delighted that I've reached the landmark figure of 100 followers on Twitter. Statistically, it seems that I've amassed one Twitter follower for every three tweets.

And what a cross-section of  the 'scape those followers are. As well as some people with faces and brains, London's Southbank Centre (@southbankcentre) follows me, a coffee shop called Butty Boys (@buttyboys) on Gray's Inn Road follows me and I was also being followed by Manchester's landmark Beetham Tower (@BeethamTower) - a real building made of steel and glass - until I decided to block it because it was being used as a disgraceful marketing tool. If it decides to follow you, make sure you block it too.

Well on track to be a Twillionaire by 7th April 2024, I estimate.

Looking forward to having something to say

I'm looking forward to being able to announce the portfolio of combined TV listings/VOD discovery products across web and mobile (yes, we'll have an iPhone App) - that we've been working on in collaboration with technical partner Vizimo and design agency Feed.

We're at that tricky stage of mopping up loose ends, talking to our friends in the Brodcast industry, applying real-world functionality to ideal-world designs and finalising our proposition.

We're also working hard on coordinating marketing and sales activity to support the products.

Heads are down... not long to go.