Software Turns Sony PSP Into Expensive Remote Control For iTunes Music

Remote control your iTunes music from a Sony PSP using PlayerPal version 4
 
Press Release by: PlayerPal 

 

(openPR) - London, 28th April 2006 - PlayerPal today officially announced PlayerPal Version 4, which adds support for controlling iTunes from a Sony PSP as well as from other browsers like Pocket IE, Firefox and Internet Explorer. PlayerPal is a companion product for iTunes and Windows Media Player. Install it once on your music PC and it will connect to your music player and display your music collection in any web browser. You can search, browse and control your music from anywhere in your home or office, using any device with a web browser.

 

Ben Taylor, Managing Director of PlayerPal said “Using PlayerPal people can have easy access and full control of their digital music, without having to stop what they are doing and sit down in front of a PC. Whether you’re out in the garden or curled up in bed, you can now stop James Blunt and start The Gorillaz at the click of a button.”

 

Previous versions of PlayerPal supported the control of Windows Media Player. Version 4 brings all the same PlayerPal features to iTunes and Sony PSP users. Rather than scroll through a big list of tracks in your player, PlayerPal presents a list of album covers for you to browse. You can then filter and navigate your music collection by artist, year or genre and add individual tracks or whole albums to your playlist.

 

PlayerPal has several different skins each designed to work well on a certain type of browser. You can select a different skin on each device you use (e.g. PDA, PSP, laptop etc). As well as the new PSP skin, version 4 also has a new skin called BigBrowser. This skin is optimised for use from a desktop browser such as IE, Safari or Firefox. The original PlayerPal skin was designed for use on a PDA like the Dell Axim or HP iPaq.

 

PlayerPal 4 was launched without publicity on the PlayerPal website in March. This allowed time for existing customers and trial users to provide feedback on the major addition of iTunes support. This feedback has been rolled into a point release of PlayerPal (version 4.2) which is now available on the PlayerPal site.

 

You can download a free trial of PlayerPal from www.playerpal.com The free trial has no time limit, but will mask 50% of your albums. PlayerPal is $19.95 to register and is available to purchase online at www.playerpal.com

 

About PlayerPal
PlayerPal create products designed to enhance and extend your digital music experience. PlayerPal is a Microsoft partner and was founded in 2003.

 

See what people say about PlayerPal. Comments from your average Joe to top blogger Robert Scoble:
www.playerpal.com/PermaLink,guid,2357f1bc-3802-4488-bc7e-7a34be113a7c.aspx
See photos of PlayerPal on real devices:
www.playerpal.com/PermaLink,guid,2357f1bc-3802-4488-bc7e-7a34be113a7c.aspx

 

Press contacts
Ben Taylor, PlayerPal
T: +44 (0) 777 578 7277
E: info@playerpal.com
W: www.playerpal.com

GamePro Magazine Subscriptions Sold in Best Buy Stores - Yawn...

Special Edition GamePro Magazine Subscriptions Sold in Best Buy Stores Nationwide; GamePro reviews available at BestBuy.com

 

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 25, 2006--Best Buy today announced an agreement with IDG Entertainment (IDGE), the world's leading interactive entertainment information provider, to offer customers a special edition GamePro(R) magazine subscription in all U.S. Best Buy stores.

 

"Our customers want the latest information about their games, their hardware and how to get the most out of their gameplay," said Jill Hamburger, vice president of video games at Best Buy. "With the exclusive GamePro magazine edition and great deals on products and services, this offer will appeal to everyone who loves to play games."

 

In addition to the magazine subscription, participants will receive special offers with hundreds of dollars in savings annually on video games, PC games, gaming hardware and peripherals at Best Buy stores. GamePro reviews on the latest game titles will be available at BestBuy.com.

 

The special edition of GamePro magazine is currently available as a one-year subscription offer for $19.99 per year including a free Reward Zone program membership. Participants can pick up their first issue immediately upon subscribing in Best Buy stores.

 

About Best Buy Co., Inc.

 

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) is an innovative Fortune 100 growth company that continually strives to create superior customer experiences. Through more than 930 retail stores across the United States and in Canada, our employees connect customers with technology and entertainment products and services that make life easier and more fun. We sell consumer electronics, home-office products, entertainment software, appliances and related services. A Minneapolis-based company, our operations include: Best Buy (BestBuy.com and BestBuyCanada.ca), Future Shop (FutureShop.ca), Geek Squad (GeekSquad.com and GeekSquad.ca) and Magnolia Audio Video (Magnoliaav.com). We support our communities through employee volunteerism and grants from The Best Buy Children's Foundation.

 

Contacts
Best Buy Co., Inc., Minneapolis
Media Contact:
Jay Musolf, 612-291-6124
jay.musolf@bestbuy.com

 

Best Buy Co., Inc.
Source: via Business Wire
Updated  04/20/2006  by company 
Headquarters: Richfield, Minnesota
Website: http://www.bestbuy.com
CEO: Brad Anderson
Employees: 125,000
Ticker: BBY  (NYSE) 

---

[Editor's comments: Funny, but I was just in Best Buy this past weekend. I had a holiday gift card that had some value left over and I wanted to find something to use it up on. I decided on a 256MB Flash Memory thingy, because I had just bought a computer for $19 and it had no floppy drive, no hard drive, and no CDROM. I figured I would put some kind of OS on the Flash Fob and use that.

 

Anyway, I was struck by the subtle changes that I saw at the Big Best Buy in Richfield, Minnesota, about a BB gunshot away from the Best Buy coporate headquarters. The first thing I noticed is that everytime I moved into a different area and there was a sales person there, they came up to me and asked me if I needed help. I started to wish that there was a thing like "human cookies" so the staff could read wetheror not I had been asked this already. I was in about four areas and was asked each time. I though about going around to all the different areas so I would have more to write about, but didn't have the time. Note to Best Buy: Look for sustained eye contact before approaching customers unless they have one of those white canes...! I'm considering a button or t-shirt that says, "Are you really going to ask me if I need help when it should be clear I'm JUST LOOKING!!??!!"

 

The second thing is that all the computer books are gone. Well, almost all. Guess they were not a money-maker? Gee, what a surprise. I love computer books, but who can afford $20-50 to buy all the things you love (not need)? I love the clearance book racks and they did not even have that. Note to Best Buy: Sell electronic versions. You can charge just a little and make very good margin. People can read them on their computer or print them out if they want. This will also drive sales of DUPLEX laser printers.

 

And the third thing was that the product lines seemed to be much more refined and boring. There's much less difference between them and Circuit City, which I used to dislike quite a bit. It's less "computer store" and more "consumer electronics" these days. Which I think I warned Schultz about many, many years ago... oh well, I still have CompUSA and Midwest Electronics. THEY know how to treat a geek!!! (hris ]

More Long Arms Of HD Digital Radio Unfulrled By Clear Channel Radio

Clear Channel Radio Adds HD Digital Multicasts to 20 More Markets

 

SAN ANTONIO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 25, 2006--Clear Channel Communications Inc. (NYSE:CCU):

 

-- Brings Total to 48 Markets and 196 Stations

 

Clear Channel Radio today announced that a full 196 of its radio stations in 48 markets are set to air HD digital multicasts. The additions are part of a larger launch begun in January. The new channels will also be made available at the company's HD2 streaming site www.clearchannelmusic.com/hdradio/ as they go live.

 

In each local market, Clear Channel Radio's HD2 multicasts either complement existing on-air programming or bring entirely new music or spoken-word genres to local listeners. In some cases, local programmers will draw from programming created by the Format Lab within the company's Content Research & Development Group. In other cases, the channels are programmed fully locally, as is the case with New York station Z100.

 

Clear Channel Radio mounted a massive, expanded programming effort 18 months ago to underpin the company's growth as an information and entertainment content provider. Programming talent from within and outside the company has been tapped, including veteran innovative programmers and fresh voices new to radio.

 

Clear Channel Radio already has more than 210 stations offering their primary broadcasts in HD digital quality. The company is also a founding member of the HD Digital Radio Alliance -- a joint initiative of leading radio companies to accelerate the roll-out of HD digital radio -- and is devoting on-air promotion time as part of an industry-wide marketing effort that will exceed $200 million.

 

The following is a list of the HD2 multicast formats that will be available from Clear Channel Radio stations in each local market:

 

Market              Station  Current Format  HD2 Channel
------------------  -------- --------------  -------------------------
Phoenix, AZ
                    KESZ-FM  AC              All Love Songs
                    KMXP-FM  Hot AC          Variety
                    KNIX-FM  Country         All New Country
                    KYOY-FM  Smooth Jazz     Adult Alternative (AAA)
                    KZZP-FM  CHR/Rhythmic    Spanish Oldies

 

Minneapolis, MN
                    KDWB-FM  CHR/Pop         Dance
                    KEEY-FM  Country         All New Country
                    KQQL-FM  Oldies          All 80's
                    KTCZ-FM  Triple A        All Acoustic
                    KTLK-FM  Talk            Classic Country

 

San Diego, CA
                    KGB-FM   Classic Rock    All Morning Shows
                    KHTS-FM  CHR/Pop         Spanish CHR
                    KIOZ-FM  Active Rock     All New Rock
                    KMYI-FM  Hot AC          All 80's
                    KUSS-FM  Country         All New Country!

 

Nassau-Suffolk, NY
                    WALK-FM  AC              Country

 

Saint Louis, MO
                    KATZ-FM  Urban           Classic Hip-Hop
                    KLOU-FM  Oldies          50's and 60's
                    KMJM-FM  Urban AC        Urban -- Gospel
                    KSD-FM   Country         Country Classics
                    KSLZ-FM  CHR/Pop         All New Hits

 

Tampa, FL
                    WBTP-FM  Urban           Urban AC
                    WFLZ-FM  CHR/Pop         All New Hit Music
                    WFUS-FM  Country         Country Variety
                    WMTX-FM  AC              Soft AC
                    WXTB-FM  Active Rock     All New Rock

 

Denver, CO
                    KBCO-FM  Triple A        All Live
                    KBPI-FM  Active Rock     All New Rock
                    KMGG-FM  Latin Urban     Spanish Oldies
                    KRFX-FM  Classic Rock    Classic Rock That Rocks
                    KTCL-FM  Alternative     Classic Alternative

 

Pittsburgh, PA
                    WDVE-FM  Classic Rock    Blues
                    WKST-FM  CHR/Pop         Dance
                    WPGB-FM  Talk            Smooth Jazz
                    WWSW-FM  Oldies          Jammin Oldies
                    WXDX-FM  Alternative     Adult Alternative (AAA)

 

Cleveland, OH
                    WAKS-FM  CHR/Pop         All New Hits
                    WGAR-FM  Country         Classic Country
                    WMJI-FM  Oldies          50's and 60's Oldies
                    WMMS-FM  Rock            Classic Alternative
                    WMVX-FM  Hot AC          Adult Alternative (AAA)

 

Sacramento, CA
                    KHYL-FM  Rhythmic Oldies Urban Ballads and
                                              Love Songs
                    KGBY-FM  AC              All 80's

 

Riverside, CA
                    KGGI-FM  CHR/Rhythmic    Jammin Oldies

 

San Antonio, TX
                    KAJA-FM  Country         Country -- Texas Country
                    KQXT-FM  AC              Smooth Jazz
                    KXXM-FM  CHR/Pop         Mix

 

Salt Lake City, UT
                    KJMY-FM  Alternative     Classic Alternative
                    KODJ-FM  Oldies          All 80's
                    KOSY-FM  AC              LDS Specialty Programming
                    KXRV-FM  Classic Hits    All Acoustic
                    KZHT-FM  CHP/Pop         Rhythmic Hits

 

Milwaukee, WI
                    WKKV-FM  Urban           Gospel
                    WMIL-FM  Country         Classic Country
                    WQBW-FM  Classic Rock    Classic Alternative
                    WRIT-FM  Oldies          Disco & Dance

 

Providence, RI
                    WHJY-FM  Rock            New Alternative Rock
                    WSNE-FM  Hot AC          Disco & Dance
                    WWBB-FM  Oldies          Comedy

 

Columbus, OH
                    WBWR-FM  80's            Rock -- Metal
                    WCOL-FM  Country         All News Country
                    WLZT-FM  AC              Love Songs
                    WNCI-FM  CHR/Pop         All New Hits

 

Charlotte, NC
                    WEND-FM  Alternative     Comedy
                    WIBT-FM  CHR/Rhythmic    All New Hits
                    WKKT-FM  Country         Classic Country
                    WLYT-FM  AC              Hot AC
                    WRFX-FM  Classic Rock    Deep Rock Tracks

 

Las Vegas, NV
                    KSNE-FM  AC              Urban -- Classic Soul
                    KWNR-FM  Country         Classic Country
                    KWID-FM  Spanish Oldies  Spanish Tejano
                    KQOL-FM  Oldies          70's 80's 90's Party Mix

 

Orlando, FL
                    WJRR-FM  Alternative     Rock -- Metal
                    WMGF-FM  AC              60's and 70's
                    WRUM-FM  Tropical        Spanish Oldies
                    WTKS-FM  Talk            Classic Alternative
                    WXXL-FM  CHR/Pop         All New Hits

 

Norfolk, VA
                    WCDG-FM  AC              Standards / Big Bands
                    WJCD-FM  AC              Country Variety
                    WKUS-FM  Urban AC        Smooth Jazz
                    WOWI-FM  Urban           Urban -- Street Music

 

About Clear Channel Radio

 

Clear Channel Radio is a leading radio company focused on serving local communities across the U.S. with more than 110 million listeners choosing Clear Channel Radio programming each week. The company's content can be heard on AM/FM stations, HD digital radio channels, on the Internet, via iPods, through Motorola's iRadio cell-phone service, and via mobile-navigation devices from Cobra, Garmin, Kenwood and others. The company's operations include radio broadcasting, syndication and independent media representation. Clear Channel Radio is a division of Clear Channel Communications Inc. (NYSE:CCU), a leading global media and entertainment company. More information on the company can be found at www.clearchannel.com.

 

Certain statements in this release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

 

Contacts
Clear Channel Radio, San Antonio
Sanda Coyle, 210-822-2828
sandacoyle@clearchannel.com
or
Brainerd Communicators
Jennifer Gery or Michelle Radvansky, 212-986-6667
gery@braincomm.com or radvansky@braincomm.com

Directory Offers New Audio And Video Media Services

 

Free Business National Directory, Off site Data Storage, Sex Offender Listings

Searching has never been easier. Clicksus.com offers audio and video media services, anyone can place a 30 second to a 10-minute video clip about their business to clicksus. Clicksus.com offers on line encrypted data storage.

(PRWEB) April 20, 2006 -- Searching has never been easier. No typing necessary. Just point and click on a state, then county. Select what category of business to search for and click again. Clicksus.com provides free basic publication listing to most businesses.

Clicksus.com was designed keeping the end user in mind for simpler direct searching. Question? How many pages of garbage have to be searched through to locate the correct target? It takes valuable time to locate the correct Web site. With clicksus.com just click on the state, then click on the county, and then click on the business category. Clicksus.com invites all businesses within the Untied States to list their business for free.

At this time, most school districts, County / State police agencies and hospitals within the United States are published in the clicksus directory. In addition, clicksus went beyond the call of duty and listed all sex offenders within the U.S. This service has been linked to every law enforcement agency that provides up to date information of those offenders. Clicksus.com provides valuable information and is structured to draw the attention of the consumer in many different areas. Clicksus.com offers educational facts of each County & State. Search neighborhoods for sex offenders. Even more intriguing, clicksus.com offers precise easier searching.

In addition, Clicksus.com offers an audio and video media service, anyone can place a 30 second to a 10-minute video clip about their business to clicksus.com. By placing an existing video clip or commercial to clicksus media platform, the video can be seen from just about anyone at anytime. By creating an audio video clip about a business, it will provide a strong visual presence to an audience.

Some businesses may want to provide a demonstration of their products or even give a presentation. Demonstrate a new piece of equipment. Provide a video installation or trouble shooting guide about their products. Eliminate user guides or unnecessary phone calls. The possibilities are endless. A hyper link can be issued. This link can be applied to an out going e-mail or a Web site. This link will be directed back to the video clip at Clicksus.com when activated. End users are able to review video at normal DSL & Cable speeds with out interruption to Internet services.
    
Off site data storage:
On a daily basis valuable personal data is either stolen or loss due to hardware failure. Clicksus.com offers on line encrypted data storage. Your data can be stored to Clicksus on line servers for easy access anytime anywhere. Never worry again about loss or stolen files.
Clicksus.com is constantly reviewing new ideas to make the experience with the Internet simpler.    

CEO
Kim Diemer

Software Engineer
Matt Lintz

###

Press Contact: Kim Diemer
Company Name: SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS INC.
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 5038844866
Website: http://www.clicksus.com

Las Vegas Real Estate Video Podcast Via Paid Subscription

 

Steve Bottfeld Teams with SubscribeCast to Release 'Bottfeld Report' Video Podcast Via Paid Subscription

Renowned speaker Steve Bottfeld will deliver his weekly real estate insights and perspectives "Podcast Style" using SubscribeCast's paid podcast application.

Tucson, AZ (PRWEB) April 19, 2006 -- Steve Bottfeld has announced an agreement with SubscribeCast Technologies to distribute the "Bottfeld Report" Video Podcast using SubscribeCast's patent pending subscription podcast application.

"Bottfeld Report" offers Mr. Bottfeld's highly acclaimed and unique insight into the Las Vegas real estate world. With nearly two decades of being a top analyst and trend spotter in the dynamic Las Vegas real estate market, renowned speaker Steve Bottfeld will deliver his weekly real estate insights and perspectives "Podcast Style" for the real estate professional, investor, or novice.

"It is fitting that SubscribeCast and I team on this ground breaking project. I've made the right calls for the last two decades on the Las Vegas real estate market and can now better communicate my analysis for the next decade using this fantastic service. Who would think I'd have my own subscription TV show? SubscribeCast and I are where cable was a decade ago! Talk about ground floor . . . or should I say hi-rise?"

"Bottfeld Report" is an essential tool in keeping up with important market events and rumors in the booming Las Vegas real estate market to hone your competitive edge. Unlike traditional round table broadcasts, "Bottfeld Report" will deliver current video footage reflecting the topics covered in each podcast. It will be made available to subscribers for $49 per 3-month subscription via SubscribeCast's innovative web application, delivering feeds to any podcatching program, such as Apple's iTunes free software. Each 3-month subscription will comprise of current topics, spread out over 6 episodes. Users can sign up at www.bottfeldreport.com and every week they will automatically receive a new episode of approximately 12-15 minutes in length.

SubscribeCast Technologies is a software development firm based out of Tucson, AZ. The company recently developed a web application that allows media content providers to deliver their products via paid subscription to standard RSS reading software such as iTunes. Up until the advent of this application, there had not been a way to regulate and charge access to serialized RSS delivered content (called "Podcasts").

With SubscribeCast's application, content providers can break free of the current technology, which only allows customers to buy media on a pay per file basis. This new web application eliminates that need and hassle, replacing it with readily accessible RSS technology. Also, SubscribeCast's application provides the ability to track downloads and prevent subscribers from sharing their RSS feeds to unauthorized, nonpaying, users.

"SubscribeCast's hope is to have an impact on the emerging industry that has developed from the release of the video iPod and other portable media players … and we are succeeding," says SubscribeCast's Director of Client Relations, Stephen Gladish.

SubscribeCast's application allows content providers the flexibility to host and maintain subscriptions and content from their own servers. Subscribers pay for their subscription at the provider's web page and then receive their RSS feed right away. The subscriber only has to enter in a username and password once to receive their RSS feed address. From then on, the subscription acts like a normal, free podcast, until the user cancels their subscription, or the subscription term expires.

For further information visit:
www.bottfeldreport.com
www.subscribecast.com

# # #

Press Contact: Jaz Garewal
Company Name: SUBSCRIBECAST
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 520-906-5667
Website: http://www.subscribecast.com

Launch of New Online Music Channel

 

NewBandTV.com Announces World Wide Launch of Online Music Channel

NewBandTV.com annouces world wide launch of new online music channel. Streaming high quality Music Videos and related entertainment 24 hours a day from new bands like Hawthorne Heights, Morisson Poe, and the Vacancies.

Los Angeles, CA  - April 18, 2006 -- NewBandTV (newbandtv.com) announced today that their global internet broadcast network, NewBandTV.com will launch with it’s initial broadcast on April 28, 2006. They will have a sneak preview of the broadcast going out over the internet to a select group of bands, fans, and record companies on April 21, 2006. NewBandTV.com is a revolutionary kind of music channel designed to feed the hunger of new music fans 24 hours a day with high resolution video and a very unique website filled with talented Independent Artists like Hawthorne Heights, Morrison Poe, The Vacancies combined with the latest videos from top Indie Labels like Epitaph, Victory Records, Drive Thru Records, Nitro, and many others. The ability for any band in the world to upload their own video and create a full profile to promote their band, play their music videos and even sell their MP3’s and Videos online is finally a reality.

Since NewBandTV.com will be streaming a larger video image than any other online music network, it has been designed for broadband users only and requires Internet Explorer, Flash 8, and Windows Media Player 9 for the experience to be complete. “It’s like a cross between MySpace, iTunes, American Idol and MTV. NewBandTV Rocks,” says one local Indie Record Company Owner.

NewBandTV’s founder H. Eugene Fouchia believes that many of the best bands and artists in the world are over-looked by the major record labels and wants to change the way new music is brought to the music fans of the world. “98% of the best talent in the world remains undiscovered and it’s my goal to bring the best new music in the world to the masses without having it watered down by the big corporate music machine.”

NewBandTV is a multi-channel media company that promotes new bands and artists around the world via NewBandTV.com and it’s syndicated television shows like Noise Link, and NewBandTV Rocks, which premier in June and August 2006 in the US and abroad.

NewBandTV.com has a unique feature that allows Fans to Vote on their favorite bands music video while its playing, and if their bands video is not playing, they can request the video on demand and then vote on it. Fans can even purchase music videos and mp3’s for their computer or IPOD. NewBandTV.com has changed everything. Thousands of fans and bands from all around the world can’t be wrong. NewBandTV.com Rocks.

Contact Gary Christmas at 714-966-9760 or email protected from spam bots for more information.

Press Contact: Gary Christmas
Company Name: NEWBANDTV
Phone: 714-966-9760
Website: www.newbandtv.com

Book News Video Podcast Assults Users

 

Book News Video Podcast Hits Niche Market

CleverMedia TV uses new medium to reach book lovers.

ENGLEWOOD, CO (PRWEB) April 17, 2006 -- A television program on the Internet might seem like the most unlikely place to find book news. But that is where you will find Book Stories, a weekly video podcast about all things literary.

Book Stories is a weekly five-minute show featuring book news, trivia and interviews with authors and publishers. It is free for anyone to watch on the Internet by visiting http://bookstories.org.

Video podcasting is a new emerging medium that allows small video programs for target markets to reach anyone. Book Stories is produced by Colorado-based CleverMedia, which is also known for its Web-based game sites. CleverMedia is launching its own TV network of over-the-Internet programs. Book Stories is the first of these programs and has been produced weekly since January.

"While we plan to produce a variety of programs, Book Stories is our first because all of us here share a great interest in books," said Gary Rosenzweig, executive producer for CleverMedia TV. "We think that book news is a good niche subject for video podcasting."

Each episode of Book Stories starts off with news, focusing on the latest legal, censorship and promotional issues in the publishing industry.

At the heart of each show is an interview or special feature. Featured author interviews have included Kevin Baker, Giles Carwyn, Todd Fahnestock, and Kathy Brandt. Book Stories has introduced viewers to newly published books of a variety of genres, ranging from historical fiction to fantasy.

In addition to the Book Stories Web site at http://bookstories.org, one can receive Book Stories by subscribing to its video podcast through the site, or from Apple's iTunes Music Store. From there, owners of the latest video iPod can download the program to their iPod to watch on the go. Thousands of audio podcasts and hundreds of video podcasts are now available from various sources and on various topics.

Press Contact: Gary Rosenzweig
Company Name: CLEVERMEDIA
Phone: 303-534-0550
Website: http://bookstories.org

Death Of Search: Sorry, No Results Found...

Socially Searching For The Watercooler

 

by David Berkowitz, Tuesday, April 11, 2006
LONG LIVE PERSONALIZED SEARCH; PERSONALIZED search is dead. The same can be said of social search and vertical search. All three are melding, and a search giant has an opportunity to bring this hybrid technology to the masses.

 

Let's start with the personalization corner of the triangle. I use all the major portals' personalization services, and I'm toying around with some new entrants into the space, such as Findory for personalized news, Windows Live, and Claria's PersonalWeb. These sites almost always direct me to content I would not have found otherwise. Personalization is thus an always-on complement to word of mouth marketing. The technology becomes a more efficient and perhaps even smarter version of that friend or nephew of yours who keeps sending you all the best links.

 

All of this makes me wonder about the prospects for social search. Here, that nephew and a number of your peers are connected through some network, and all of your search results are affected by what others in the network search for. Thus, networks of fishing buddies, jazz musicians, beer aficionados, and shoe lovers will all find different search results coming up for the query "bass."

 

Yahoo has integrated social search components into its My Web 2.0, a tagging and bookmarking tool. My Web users conducting searches will often find links atop the natural results to relevant pages that other My Web users bookmarked. While this may allow some lower-ranking pages to rise to the top, the results aren't necessarily more relevant this way. The people who are doing all this tagging don't necessarily have anything to do with you and your interests.

 

Eurekster has refined its version of social search into the concept of "swickis," in which a blogger or site owner can offer a topic-specific search engine that matches its results to the site content and other searches. The value proposition, however, is strongest for the publisher, as consumers, in the short term, are still conditioned to turn to actual search engines for their searches.

 

To share one final example, Friendster, powered by Eurekster and Yahoo Search, allows users to see what people in their networks are searching for. Yet this is confined to searches within Friendster, and Friendster isn't a search engine. At most, you use Friendster to search for your friends. As for my friends, they're desperate. Three of the top four searches in my network are "true love quiz," "handsome men," and "how to win an ex back." The other one? "Halloween costume." Either my friends really hate paying retail, or Friendster gave up on updating this six months ago. So who's in the best position to do social search right? Social search will go mainstream when it's incorporated into a top-tier search engine's main results. Consider how it would play out with Google, as an example.

 

For Google, social search would involve tying a few pieces together of what it's already doing. Google already personalizes results for registered users based on their previous searches. It could further personalize search results based on groups of registered users-- namely, those on a user's Google Talk list. Now, following this line of logic, assume that this group of registered users is clustered largely around one or two common themes, such as technologists in the Pacific Northwest or Bible Belt NASCAR fans or Binghamton University college students. With personalized search results based on a presumably like-minded community of users, it all starts to resemble vertical search, a concept Eurekster acknowledges about its swickis.

 

To recap, personalized search becomes social search. Social search becomes vertical search. All of this with the goal of making search results more relevant.

 

Yet how much relevance will users be able to stomach? How much will users crave hyper-targeted media at the expense of the communal experience? As personal as the technology gets, the watercooler effect isn't going away. However, people may redefine the watercooler. Instead of caring what 30 million people are reading or watching or listening to, people will start caring about, say, the 150 people in their first degree and the few thousand others one degree further out.

 

If this environment takes hold, with the watercooler evolving into the nexus of who you're in contact with and are likely to come in contact with, then the stage is set perfectly for the emergence of personal-social-vertical search. The biggest question that remains is whether the technology will arise to support the cultural shift, or whether the shift will occur thanks entirely to the technology making it possible.

 

David Berkowitz is director of strategic planning at 360i. You can reach him at dberkowitz@360i.com.

 

Search Insider for Tuesday, April 11, 2006: http://publications.mediapost.com/

 

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Internet Watch Foundation And Mydeo To Fight Illegal Net Content

 

Mydeo Joins Forces With Internet Watch Foundation to Fight Illegal Net Content

Mydeo.com, the UK consumer video streaming company, has reinforced its commitment to “fostering trust and confidence in the internet” by joining the BBC, Tiscali, MSN, Lycos, Wanadoo, Three, O2, Cable and Wireless in becoming a Member of the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF).

London, UK (PRWEB) April 11, 2006 -- Mydeo.com, the UK consumer video streaming company, has reinforced its commitment to “fostering trust and confidence in the internet” by joining the BBC, Tiscali, MSN, Lycos, Wanadoo, Three, O2, Cable and Wireless in becoming a Member of the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF).

The IWF provides the UK’s only authorized internet hotline, allowing the public to report instances of illegal content online. Mydeo is happy to demonstrate its zero tolerance of illegal internet content by joining those companies who partner the IWF in combating the availability of illegal material, such as child abuse images.

Cary Marsh, Mydeo’s Co-Founder and Managing Director comments, “We are committed to helping all our customers enjoy and benefit from sharing their videos securely and safely. Working closely with partners such as the Internet Watch Foundation is an essential ingredient in building trust and confidence amongst our customers”

Peter Robbins, CEO at IWF, adds, “IWF’s partnerships with key players in the industry reflect the support from a diverse range of organisations which are all keen to play their part in combating potentially illegal online material. We embrace our new partnership with Mydeo and look forward to working with the company to help protect their services and ensure a safer online environment for their customers. Without the financial support of our members the IWF’s work could not continue and develop and Mydeo are a very welcome addition.”

With help from its partners, the IWF has reduced the amount of illegal content hosted in the UK from 18 per cent in 1997 to 0.4 per cent in 2005. Its ‘Hotline’ reporting system provides a facility for members of the public to report their exposure to illegal content online. The IWF alerts ISPs whose services are being used to host this content and passes on relevant details to Law Enforcement Agencies.

About Mydeo

Founded in 2004 by Cary Marsh and Iain Millar, Mydeo won the Research & Development Grant for Technical Innovation from the UK Department of Trade and Industry. Mydeo provides quality global streaming video hosting for home and business users. The site provides simple online tools that help users upload, pay for, and distribute videos to friends, family, customers and prospects, as well as live statistics to track how popular videos have been.

Real Business Magazine, who highlighted Mydeo as a ‘Start-up to watch in 2006’, has draw parallels with the huge success of Flickr, suggesting Mydeo is poised to do for video what Flickr has done for images.

About the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF)

The IWF is the only authorized organisation in the UK which provides an internet 'hotline' for the public to report their inadvertent exposure to illegal content online. The IWF aims to minimize the availability of potentially illegal internet content, specifically; child abuse images hosted anywhere in the world, criminally obscene content hosted in the UK, criminally racist content hosted in the UK. For more information or to report a suspect website, visit www.iwf.org.uk.

The IWF works in partnership with UK Government Departments such as the Home Office and the Department of Trade and Industry to influence initiatives and programmes developed to combat online abuse.

     Notes to Press

For previous press releases: http://www.mydeo.com/press

For further information please contact email protected from spam bots
+44(0) 7979 592 252

Mydeo uses the Limelight Networks for global storage and delivery together with secure streaming to guarantee security for Mydeo users’ content. This means that the humble home video maker can enjoy the quality and reliability of a world-leading streaming network, something they would never have been able to purchase as an individual.

Mydeo Ltd
3 Kingsmill Business Park
Kingston upon Thames
Surrey
KT1 3GZ
www.mydeo.com

The names of other companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

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PRI To Expand, Tighten Grip On Media

New PRI(R) Leadership and Vision Propel Expanded Reach, Reorganization; Network Intensifies Focus on Strategic Marketing, Digital Distribution, Talent Cultivation

 

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 11, 2006--Public Radio International (PRI) announces the expansion of its precedent-setting role in public media. Under the leadership of newly appointed President and CEO Alisa Miller, the network plans to use its leadership position in digital technologies to build and strengthen cross-platform capacity on behalf of its stations, producers, partners and listeners. Meeting the strategic and operational demands of this ambitious new direction has required realigning key functions in the organization, a restructuring that is well underway with PRI management enhancements. In the new structure, PRI's mission -- to serve audiences with distinctive programming that provides information, insights and cultural experiences essential to understanding a diverse, interdependent world -- remains unchanged, as does its commitment to traditional broadcast media. What will be enhanced is PRI's focus on developing cross-platform opportunities for its affiliate stations, producers and partners to fully serve the public at the myriad intersections where consumers and content now meet.

 

"These are exciting times at PRI," says Miller. "We've always been very successful at taking risks and leading the industry in new directions; our agility and forward-looking approach have served us well. Today, given the dramatic changes that are taking place in the way people access and consume content, it's more important than ever that we stay ahead of the game. Our new direction and focus will help ensure that public media continue to grow as vibrant, essential resources for our users and that PRI's considerable assets in technology are fully leveraged."

 

Two new staff appointments will help guide the new direction. Cindy Shuman, formerly CFO of PRI subsidiary Public Interactive(R), public broadcasting's leading Web services provider, is now senior vice president of PRI Distribution and Business Development. In this role, Shuman will focus on cross platform station services and sales, new media partnerships and identifying opportunities to bring PRI's distribution and programming scale to benefit its partners. This new position capitalizes on Shuman's considerable station management and operations expertise from her tenure at Vermont Public Radio and her consulting experience at Public Radio Capitol, as well as her understanding of the strategic use of online and on-demand technology in relation to broadcast success.

 

Julia Mears, formerly director of PRI Brand Strategies and Sponsor Alliances, is now vice president of PRI Brand Management and Marketing Strategy. In this capacity, Mears will create novel, content-driven branding strategies and will manage corporate marketing activity, including marketing communications, public relations and advertising. She will also lead important strategic marketing initiatives on behalf of PRI's programming and services portfolio. She will continue to lead PRI's corporate sponsorship team with a focus on broadcast, online and new media packages, all driven by PRI's partnership-based approach to corporate underwriting and the company's abilities to leverage new technologies to benefit public media.

 

Melinda Ward is now senior vice president of PRI Content, the department that supports the work of all PRI producers.

 

Ward, Mears and Shuman assumed their new responsibilities in early April. Two additional senior management positions have been created, a controller and an executive vice president, and interviews are in progress. The reorganization will be complete in July.

 

About Public Radio International(R)
PRI is public radio's leading source for innovative programming and audio content. The Minneapolis-based network provides over 400 hours of programming each week, content that is broadcast and streamed online by its 748 public radio station affiliates nationwide, which reach 32 million listeners each week. PRI owns Public Interactive LLC, public broadcasting's leading Web services company. PRI is also the managing partner of the satellite radio company American Public Radio LLC, established with Chicago Public Radio(R), WGBH Radio Boston and WNYC, New York Public Radio(R). PRI's cultural programming is available via XM Public Radio. Its news and information programming is available via Sirius Satellite Radio.

 

PRI is known for driving innovation in public radio through partnerships with stations, independent producers, and other organizations, and for working collaboratively to pool resources and share risk, cultivate new talent and bring diverse voices and perspectives to the public airwaves. Its best known offerings include The Tavis Smiley Show, produced by Smiley Radio Properties Inc.; Open Source from PRI, produced by Open Source Media; This American Life, produced by Chicago Public Radio(R); PRI's The World, a co-production of BBC World Service, PRI, and WGBH Radio Boston; Michael Feldman's Whad'Ya Know?(R), produced by Wisconsin Public Radio; and PRI's Studio 360 with Kurt Andersen, produced by PRI and WNYC, New York Public Radio(R); as well as 24-hour program services -- Classical 24(R), produced by American Public Media(TM); and BBC World Service, produced by the British Broadcasting Corporation. For more information on PRI and its programs, visit the PRI website, pri.org.

 

Contacts
PRI, Minneapolis
Dan Jensen, 612-330-9212
djensen@pri.orgAt A Glance
Public Radio International
Source: via Business Wire
Updated  01/03/2006  by company 
Headquarters: Minneapolis, MN
Website: http://www.pri.org
CEO: Alisa Miller
Employees: 60
Organization: Non-profit

Trend Hunter Tries To Trap Todays Trends

 

Trend Hunter Launches Trend Candy - Free Trend Newsletter, TrendHunter.com

TREND HUNTER™ is pleased to announce the launch of its free trend newsletter, at: www.TrendHunter.com. The newsletter features a weekly update of all the hottest new trends in Gadgets, Electronics, Pop Culture, Marketing Strategy, Modern Art, Design, and Fashion. Sign-up FREE at www.TrendHunter.com.

TORONTO, Canada – TREND HUNTER™ is pleased to announce the launch of its free trend newsletter, at: www.TrendHunter.com. The newsletter features a weekly update of all the hottest new trends in Gadgets, Electronics, Pop Culture, Marketing Strategy, Modern Art, Design, and Fashion. Sign-up FREE at www.TrendHunter.com.

Innovation and strategic advantage hinge on the ability to anticipate trends. By tracking the evolution of cool, Trend Hunters generate ideas, stimulate creativity, and ultimately shape our cultural context. Trend Hunter is a multi channel explosion of cool that caters to social leaders, industry professionals, and insatiably curious individuals.

Trend Candy is a delicious free trend newsletter with all the hottest new trends, gadgets, innovation, pop culture and marketing strategy. Trend Candy is the official newsletter of Trend Hunter Magazine (www.trendhunter.com). Visit Trend Hunter for more hot new trends

Categories include: Gadgets, Electronics, Pop Culture, Marketing Strategy, Modern Art, Design, and Fashion. Recent specials include: Ultra Luxury, Robots and Celebrity Products.

Do you crave cool? Is your curiosity insatiable? Read. Contribute. Think.

TREND HUNTER™ Magazine is a free online magazine and trend network dedicated to the obsession of trend spotting, cool hunting and innovation. The organization was founded in 2004 by Chief Trend Hunter, Jeremy Gutsche. The archives and galleries of trends represent the combined efforts of the site’s global network of Trend Hunters. Find out more by visiting Trend Hunter Magazine online at: www.TrendHunter.com.

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Companies Empty Pockets For Blog, Podcast, RSS Advertising

 

New PQ Media Research: Blog, Podcast, RSS Advertising Grow Fastest Among Alternative Media, Surging 198% in 2005, and Forecast to Grow 145% in 2006 Study Finds Podcast Advertising Will Be Larger Than Blog Market by 2010

Combined U.S. spending on blog, podcast and RSS advertising bolted 198.4% to $20.4 million in 2005, and is expected to grow another 144.9% to $49.8 million in 2006, according to exclusive research released today by PQ Media, a custom media research firm.

Stamford, Conn., April 11, 2006 – Combined spending on blog, podcast and RSS advertising bolted 198.4% to $20.4 million in 2005, and is expected to grow another 144.9% to $49.8 million in 2006, according to exclusive research released today by PQ Media, a custom media research firm. But podcast advertising, nonexistent until 2004, is expected to be a larger market than blog advertising by 2010, according to Blog, Podcast and RSS Advertising Outlook, the first of five installments in PQ Media’s Alternative Media Research series. This groundbreaking series, the culmination of more than six months of primary research, is the first source to define, size and structure the burgeoning alternative media sector.

Blog advertising accounted for 81.4%, or $16.6 million, of total 2005 spending on blog, podcast and RSS advertising, collectively known as user-generated online media. But the blog segment will comprise only 39.7%, or $300.4 million, of overall expenditures in 2010. Podcast advertising, meanwhile, reached $3.1 million in 2005, and is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 154.4% to $327.0 million in 2010, when it will be a larger market than blog advertising. RSS advertising, non-existent until mid-2005, generated $650,000 in 2005.

“Blog, podcast and RSS advertising are being driven by some of the same factors boosting the growth of the overall alternative media sector: continued audience fragmentation, the perceived ineffectiveness of traditional advertising, and the elusive but coveted 18-to-34-year-old demographic,” said Patrick Quinn, president of PQ Media. “Blog, podcast and RSS advertising have demonstrated an ability to reach younger demographics as well as influentials, and the media tend to be highly engaging. These are attractive trends to brand marketers that are focused on return on investment.”

The relatively small size of these markets is an indication of the newness of the media, the lack of standard metrics and various technology issues, Quinn added. “As advertising networks become more effective, user engagement escalates, and the industry works through its technology and measurement challenges, we expect user-generated media to grow at triple-digit rates over the next five years,” said Quinn.

Technology, auto and media brands are the most active in user-generated media advertising, accounting for more than half of total advertising spending in 2005, with the food & beverage and apparel categories rounding out the top five. The technology, auto and media categories will continue to generate more than half of all advertising in 2010.

Total spending on user-generated online media is forecast to grow at a compound annual rate of 106.1% from 2005 to 2010, reaching $757.0 million in 2010, according to Blog, Podcast and RSS Advertising Outlook. By comparison, the overall alternative media industry including, among others, markets such as branded entertainment, digital out-of-home advertising, mobile marketing and video-on-demand marketing, is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 14.8% in the five-year period to $253.7 billion in 2010.

PQ Media’s Alternative Media Research Series will also include reports covering the overall alternative advertising and marketing industry, including all 22 alternative media segments, and the first report to size and forecast the global market for branded entertainment, among others. These publications are available solely through PQ Media’s website at www.pqmedia.com. An executive summary of Blog, Podcast and RSS Advertising Outlook is available online at http://www.pqmedia.com/blog-podcast-rss-advertising.html.

PQ Media is the world’s leading provider of alternative advertising and marketing research. The firm also delivers exclusive data and information on traditional media, including advertising, marketing services, consumer and business media, and media usage. Founded in 2002, PQ Media has two major practice areas through which we provide custom and syndicated research to brand marketers, media buyers, media companies and financial institutions. PQ Media is located at Two Stamford Landing, Suite 100, Stamford, CT 06902. Phone is 203-921-0368; Fax, 203- 921-0367; E-mail, email protected from spam bots.

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MySpace Web Sites Offered At Insane Prices

 

MySpace Editor Surge: Rich Young Webmasters

The MySpace phenomenon has allowed Webmasters to net over $1,000,000 per year in less than four months.

(PRWEB) April 7, 2006 -- MySpace, a social networking phenomenon, has opened up many opportunities for Webmasters as young as 18 years old. Alexa, a Web site traffic analyzer has consistently ranked MySpace in the top ten worldwide ranking. This volume has caused the demand for MySpace profile editor Web sites to explode.

Young Webmasters have taken this opportunity to monetize that traffic and open up revenue channels on a whole new level. Zobbler.com, a Web site of only three months of age, is up for sale on BuySellWebsite.com for $785,000. MySpaceSupport.com, six months old, was previously listed for over $1,000,000. These Web sites earn money through advertising mediums such as Google Adsense and Yahoo Publisher Network each time a user clicks on an ad.

While it seems like these sites are popping up left and right, the amount of users seeking such resources is much greater and can yield high traffic and revenue income for Web masters. "I had my site up for just a few days and I was already receiving thousands of hits. It's simply a way for me to make some extra cash, but the money coming in is much more than I expected" says MySpaceGrill.com owner - 21 years old.

Todays young Webmasters are tomorrow's innovators. Something as simple as a profile editor Web site has allowed these youngsters a solid income flow that can be used for future Web sites and ventures, but how long will this last? It is only time before MySpace itself offers such a service which could cause the ultimate demise to the hundreds of MySpace profile editor sites.

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Smash: Tennis Magazine Not Broken

Smash

 

by Larry Dobrow, Friday, April 7, 2006
TENNIS DEMANDS OF ITS players etiquette usually associated with finishing school. It imposes attire requirements more stringent than those of Vegas nightclubs. It includes the word "love" in its scoring. Tennis: it's EXTREME.

 

Or so the folks behind Smash would have you believe. Announcing on its cover the onset of a "tennis revolution," the mag takes more of its cues from MTV than from the sport's traditionally understated publications. Readers get a "Cribs"-like visit to the trophy-strewn home of the Bryan brothers, a "House of Style"-ish Miami fashion spread, and fresh-from-the-red-carpet snapshots of players intermingling with "Total Request Live" mainstays like Lindsay Lohan. But for the puzzling absence of Downtown Julie Brown playing air guitar on a vintage ceramic-graphite Donnay, you'd wonder what kind of sport/celebrity miasma you've wandered into.

 

This may be a spectacularly misguided approach in theory, but it works considerably better in execution. For all its dopiness (a bottom-of-the-page crawl detailing Andy Roddick's Starbucks faves) and force-fed attitude ("Editor's Babble," rather than "From the Editor's Desk" or something similarly harmless), Smash attempts to do something different--a laudable goal in itself, given the by-the-numbers construction of most sports titles targeting younger athletes.

 

In places, the Spring 2006 issue succeeds independent of its attitude and approach. Especially on the design front, Smash aces the competition ("aces"... get it? get it? whoo! tennis! yeah!). Pop-arty illustrations inject personality into the didactic "Into the Zone" section, while a coat-of-arms motif adds graphic luster to the profile on Scot next-big-thing Andy Murray. The mag also pushes the envelope a bit with its photo selections, including one that would appear to feature Murray puking forth a veritable river of Gatorade.

 

Despite a title more commonly associated with Wayne's World and street hockey, the front-of-book "Game On" section offers a lively fusion of celebrity-magazine staples and jockish blather. An item on supposed "punk tennis" practitioner name-drops Johnny Ramone; Olympic dud Bode Miller checks in with a few out-of-character respectful nods to Pete Sampras. One of the section's few straight-faced items, however, proves its sharpest: a savvy "How to Get Sponsored" primer for young players.

 

Elsewhere, the Spring 2006 issue's quirky content choices alternately surprise and entertain. As an old-school twerp weaned on Lendl and Wilander, I dig the circa-1972 "Back in the Day" shot of Ilie Nastase (didn't he have a quaint nickname, like "Nasty" or "Batshit Insane Ill-Mannered Romanian Guy" or something?) surrounded by a gaggle of female fans. The "Five on the Verge" mini-profiles offer similar color, striving for more than the usual coach/publicist-approved fluff.

 

Smash doesn't work quite as well when it downshifts into more traditional fare. "Marat Safin Uncensored" comes across as considerably less edgy and amusing than its title implies, plus a few well-chosen sidebars (scholarship stats, a quickie piece on the lost post-Katrina season of Tulane's tennis teams) can't enliven the otherwise plodding guide to college tennis.

 

The occasional attempts at lad-mag humor, especially in the "Smash 15" collection of pleasantries and potshots, arrive stillborn ("05: Sorry, we don't have a No. 5. We're taking an injury timeout--writer's cramp, or something."). Devoting fewer pages to actual tennis gear than to fashion/technology chaff would appear to compromise the mag's ostensible tennis-first mission. And a note to sports editors of the world: nobody cares what happens to be blaring from players' iPods--or from anybody's iPod, really, save for Elvis Costello's.

 

Finally, while everybody sure likes to ogle blonde-n-purty Maria Sharapova, Smash really needs to get a grip on its Maria fixation. The "Maria's Pages" collection of photos and observations ("elephants are amazing and friendly") elicits little more than unintended giggles. Speaking of which, I'll give ten bucks to the first person who can come up with a clever G-rated caption for the "Photo Ops" shot of Sharapova with Uma Thurman. Myself, I couldn't even get down into PG-13 territory.

 

When I grabbed Smash off the newsstand, I figured that its daffy extreme-tennis blueprint would provide easy fodder for a Magazine Rack bludgeoning. As it turns out, the mag's backers may be onto something with the youth/sport/celebrity mix. I suppose we'll know for sure if a host of similarly punchy hockey and golf titles make their way onto newsstands in the months ahead.

 

Larry Dobrow is a Contributing Writer.

 

Magazine Rack for Friday, April 7, 2006:
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Complex Magazine

Complex

by Tobi Elkin

Wednesday, April 5, 2006 - AT A TIME WHEN magazines and the entire print world are supposedly dying a slow, painful death, Complex magazine, a jam-packed, visually-laden affair, appears to be thriving and having fun doing so.

The magazine, four years old as of the April/May 2006 issue, is basically a style/lifestyle guide for urban and definitely hip 18-to-34-year-old males who appreciate the hip-hop/rap ethos and everything that goes along with it. The magazine, founded by designer/mogul Marc Ecko, is built on the flip book model--on one side, there is a celebrity-driven cover; on the other side, there's, typically, airbrushed sex kittens in various poses inviting readers into the mag's shopping guide.

Overall, the design-driven pub features tons of quick-hit Q&A-style interviews, edgy and imaginative fashion shoots filled with the high-fashion t-shirts, jackets, and other apparel, recommendations on how to pull it all together, and all the latest and greatest consumer technologies, cars, accessories, and, oh yeah, sneakers.

Sneakers is the operative word here; sneaks are elevated to a rare art form in Complex. Yes, sneakers are curated to near flawless perfection categorized by brand, history, personality, and style,as if they were human, which leads us to wonder, are they? Go, sneakers!

Complex was the first U.S. magazine to create a shopping guide for men, says Richard A. Martin, the magazine's editor-in-chief. Martin joined the title at launch in 2002. The idea of positioning the book as a shopping guide for men was Ecko's, says Martin: "Guys like to shop, they need to shop, but they don't like to admit it, so we designed the magazine to have a shopping element to it to lure the guys in."

The shopping guide portion of the mag's April/May issue features, surprise, more sneakers: sneaker ads, sneaker spreads, and a great section titled "Addicted," with all kinds of style reconnaissance ranging from Japanese tailored jackets, handknotted rugs, style Q&As, and compilations of key looks.

The April/May issue also features a section dubbed "Complex Individuals" with profiles, or rather Q&As, with such iconoclasts as Hiroshi Fujiwara, designer of Japanese footwear (he's 40, by the way); Houston rap legend Pimp C; DJ A-Trak; SoCal boutique owner Andrew Lee; "Alpha Dog" star Emile Hirsch; the comic book duo Joshua and Jonathan Luna; and Baltimore-based rapper Travis "Bossman" Holifield.

The April/May feature well boasts an interview with a post-rehab, rather beefy Eminem, as one of my colleagues noted. But the crowning glory of the issue is, you guessed it, "101 Things You Didn't Know About Sneakers," an all-important, all-knowing guide to sneaker culture. The guide is filled with all kinds of arcane trivia. Take bits like No. 1: The earliest reference to "sneaks" appeared in 1873 in the book In Strange Company; No 25: Sneakers took a starring role in the 1961 film "The Absent-Minded Professor;" No. 45: Graphic design student Carolyn Davidson designed the Nike Swoosh in 1971; and No. 85: Etnies made the first pro-model skate shoe. The only possible conclusion I can draw: I seriously need to bone up on sneaker trivia.

The pub's Web site is also "new and improved," according to a house ad for complex.com in the April/May issue. The site is touted as a destination for the latest news and information about new brands and product launches, offering behind-the-scenes footage from magazine photo shoots and cover stories (an excellent idea that we've seen elsewhere, for example on Vogue's Style.com), special promotions and giveaways, blogs from designers, artists, and "style icons," and a music jukebox with the magazine's top picks.

The current issue also features an interview with actress Olivia Wilde, who played Mischa Barton's lesbian love interest on "The O.C." for about two seconds. She apparently has a hot sex scene in the forthcoming "Alpha Dog" with, who else, Emile Hirsch, who also appears in the mag.

Referring to GQ and Details, Martin says: "They're still great for their audience but there isn't something for this new class of guys who are in a style evolution." Martin says this new breed goes to college dreaming up clothing companies. "Style is part of their American dream," he adds.

Of Complex readers, Martin says: "We really reflect American culture in terms of its generational lines, rather than class or race lines. This generation of guys grew up with friends that were Latin, black, Asian, and white. They accept race better than any generation before us."

While the mag's readers also check out Mass Appeal, The Fader, The Source, and DoubleXL, Martin sees these as primarily downtown, young trendsetter pubs that might not exist without a New York and Los Angeles reader base. Complex, on the other hand, has a more national--even international--appeal.

"Guys care about what they wear. Whether they're on a farm in Iowa, in a hip-hop group in San Francisco, or are dentists in Dallas, they want to know what's cool," Martin observes.

The magazine boasts a rate base of 330,000, its fifth increase since launching at 275,000. A redesign, which Martin spearheaded, has been ongoing for the last few months. When the April/May issue hits streets on April 11, readers hopefully will find a cleaner, easier-to-access look and feel, with graphic/type treatments now more prevalent than icons.


Tobi Elkin is Executive Editor, MediaPost.

Magazine Rack for Wednesday, April 5, 2006: http://publications.mediapost.com/
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Overnight Repair Service for Sony PSP Game and Media Players

 

TechRestore, Inc. Launches Overnight Repair Service for Sony PSP Game and Media Players

TechRestore, Inc. announced today that they have begun offering overnight repairs and upgrades for Sony PSP portable gaming systems and media players. The PSP-Restore service expands on the success of TechRestore's wildly popular overnight services for PowerBooks, iBooks, PC Laptops and iPods.

Concord, CA (PRWEB) April 5, 2006 -- TechRestore, Inc. announced today that they have begun offering overnight repairs and upgrades for Sony PSP portable gaming systems and media players. The PSP-Restore service expands on the success of TechRestore's wildly popular overnight services for PowerBooks, iBooks, PC Laptops and iPods.

“Sony PSP owners now have access to the fastest and most reliable repair service on the planet,” said Shannon Jean, Founder and President of TechRestore. “PSP-Restore brings a much needed and trusted resource to the PSP community.”

The new PSP-Restore service offers worldwide service with local pickup from locations throughout the Continental United States. Customers who elect local pickup have their PSP picked up at their door via overnight courier and brought back to TechRestore where repairs are completed within 24-hours. Repaired PSP systems carry TechRestore's exclusive 6-month warranty against defects.

PSP-Restore services start at just $29 and our menu includes LCD screen replacement, repairs of optical drives, motherboards, game controllers, power ports, joysticks, case parts and more.

“The PSP is an incredible device for gaming, videos, photos and music,” said Jean. “PSP-Restore has been very well received by our customers and we are excited about adding the new service to our core business of overnight mobile product repairs.”

Learn more about the PSP-Restore PSP repair service here:
http://techrestore.com/psp

About TechRestore:
Created out of a passion for the products we sell and service, TechRestore brings together an unmatched repair and product expertise team to provide sales and support for portable electronics devices such as PowerBook and iBook computers, PC Laptops, iPods, Sony PSP and more. With more than 20-years of experience providing solutions for our customers, we’ve still kept our sense of wonder about how fortunate we are to work with these fantastic products and people each day. TechRestore customers can rest assured that while their products may fail them, TechRestore never will.

Contact Information
Shannon Jean
TechRestore, Inc.
925-689-9488
http://techrestore.com

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Press Contact: Shannon Jean
Company Name: TECHRESTORE, INC.
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 925-689-9488
Website: http://techrestore.com/psp

First European Poker Championship

Everest Poker Launches Its First European Poker Championship

 

The international poker site is launching a series of free live and online poker tournaments throughout Europe open to all skill levels

 

[ClickPress, Mon Apr 03 2006] Everestpoker.com, a site dedicated to the international poker playing community, announces the launch of the Everest Poker European Championship, a series of free roll live and online poker tournaments run locally throughout Europe open to all levels of players.

 

Since its inception, Everest Poker has taken an active role in the European poker community by creating the first online poker room to be fully localised in 11 languages with 24/7 customer support in 15 languages. Following the increase in popularity of live and online poker, and the success of Everest Poker’s partnership with local European tournaments such as the German Poker Tour 2005 and the French Poker Tour 2005/2006, the site has decided to go a step further in bringing poker to the European community by organising a Europe-wide championship.

 

The Everest Poker European Championship (EPEC) will take place in 8 countries including France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Holland, and Scandinavia from March to September 2006. The event will consist of a series of free poker tournaments both live and online and run locally throughout Europe. Through these events, 100 players will qualify to represent their country in a European Championship finale which will take place at the world famous Casino de Barcelona in Spain in September 2006.

 

“We have tailored the local events of the Everest Poker European Championship to the needs and poker level of each market”, comments Ken Berman, European product manager for Everest Poker. “Everest Poker is dedicated to making poker a fun and easy to learn game, accessible to all. Our European championship is therefore open to all types of players and all skill levels, and we hope to demonstrate that poker popularity will increase through tournaments such as the EPEC that encourage all types of players to participate.”

 

The winner of the Everest Poker European Championship will win a 50 000 euro prize po