iPad makes women cringe?

Seems women were not in the focus group when Apple named its newest product.

“Are there any women in Apple marketing?” asked Brooke Hammerling, founder of Brew Media Relations, a technology public relations firm. “The first impression of every single woman I’ve spoken to is that it’s cringe-inducing. It indicates to me that there wasn’t a lot of testing or feedback.”

Full story here.

Restaurants and iPads

How long is it before you are pushing a touch screen on your table or the bar to order food/drinks as well as to play games, chat with others, etc, etc…It’s coming that’s for sure.

Apple unveils $499 tablet

via news.yahoo.com

Apple announced its tablet-style iPad starting at $499. The iPad looks like an iPhone, but larger. Apple will sell iPad models with data plans from AT&T, with no contract required.

Apple will have to convince consumers, many of whom already have Internet-connected phones, computers and TVs, that they’ll want to pay that much for such a device, when many small, lightweight “netbooks” cost less than $400.

The initial price is likely to drop. Apple sold the first iPhone for $599 but slashed the price to $399 after a few months, upsetting early buyers.

Facebook Fans

Just hit 300 fans on Biz411 page! Not bad but just getting started.

Coffee Break II: Mafia Wars Parody

via mediabistro.com

Ok so I do know a few people that play Mafia Wars. I’ve never understood the appeal but then again I like Mahjong…anyway this is pretty funny.

This and That

We’re working on a few things here at InSequent…
this week we announce of a couple new partners…we have “re-imagined” (I’ve always liked that word since Tim Burton came on the scene) our site/model to go live this week and next…Our FaceBook Fan page is taking off. We’ve added a couple hundred Fans in just a couple days. Our goal is 100,000 in short order so hop on over and Fan us…We’re using that as one way to promote our customers and the Fans love to find out what is happening and everyone loves savings…comments always welcome on anything and everything.

New cell phone etiquette

New Cell Phone Rules of Etiquette from Mike Elgan of ComputerWorld. Cell phones need their own rules of etiquette, or we’ll descend into social barbarism.

• 1. Lower your voice when taking calls in public.
• 2. Avoid personal topics when others can hear you.
• 3. Avoid taking calls when you’re already engaged in a face-to-face conversation.
• 4. If you do take a call, ask permission of the people with you.
• 5. Avoid texting during a face-to-face conversations.
• 6. Put your phone’s ringer on “silent” in theaters and restaurants.
• 7. Don’t light up your phone’s screen in a dark theater.
• 8. Hang up and drive.

Full article here.

Mobile Tech Developer Motricity Files For $250 Million IPO

Motricity, a Washington-based company that develops a software platform for mobile phones, has filed for an IPO of up to $250 million.

Motricity’s core product is the ‘mCore Platform’, which offers a mobile search engine, storefront, and channels that allow carriers to deliver content to their customers. The company often acts as “the brand behind the brand” as it builds mobile software. Motricity’s carrier clients include AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Virgin Mobile. Enterprise clients include TBS, Showtime, Vogue, and Yahoo.

I’ve heard mixed things on this company but don’t know enough to comment. The comments on the article are pretty tough though you never know when someone has a grudge. Read full article here and judge for yourself.

Profiting from Text Donations (follow-up)

In an earlier post I questioned whether the mobile operators were waiving their normal fees and payment periods in the name of the disaster in Haiti. Well, it looks like they are, mostly.

MGive (the company hired by the government to process the transactions) “waived the fees it would normally charge the Red Cross for processing texted donations. Some mobile carriers are similarly waiving their fees and pledging to forward the money donated right away, rather than waiting until customers pay their bills.”

This is from an article in today’s NYT. I have a problem with the word “most.” ALL carriers should waive their fees and lead times. This should not be used as an opportunity for any carrier to boost revenue.

Read the complete article here.

Profiting from Haiti Text Donations?

Has anyone checked to see that the mobile operators are not making a fortune on the text donations being solicited almost everywhere from the news channels to the football playoffs. I notice there are still disclaimers saying “standard text rates apply.” Since operators have arguably zero cost in sending a text message, and since presumably they too want to help Haiti, and since it would be pretty slimy to profit from this, my question is: are they?

In the normal messaging world if a company wants to run a campaign where the customer can accept and pay for an offer and have it added to their phone bill a number of things happen:

1. The operators take anywhere from 40-60% of the gross.
2. The operator pays the company in 90+ days after they have collected and it has filtered through their accounting etc.
3. Standard message rates apply.

This would be very bad, disingenuous and creepy if this were happening with this humanitarian campaign. Bad because the money would be less going to the victims in need. Disingenuous because the average consumer has no idea this is happening. And creepy, because anyone that seeks to profit off someone else’s misfortune is creepy.

I should think the operators would want to mention (subtly) on all those Public Service Announcements that they have waived all such charges in the name of humanitarianism. That would be the opposite of creepy.