16-02-2012 09:35 Many find the social networking site creates a smoother path toward adoption. For more on this story, click here: abcnews.go.com
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Facebook Adoptions on Rise as Social Networking Site Clears Path for Easier Experience - Video
16-02-2012 11:12 Amateur footage showing a collapsing building, purported shelling and firing and heavy security presence in the Syrian cities of Homs and Daraa emerged on an activist social network site on Thursday. (Feb 16)
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House Collapses, Heavy Shelling in Syria - Video
KNOXVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Gina L. Bianchini, a social networking pioneer and entrepreneur, has been elected to serve on the board of directors of Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. (NYSE: SNI - News).
Bianchini, 39, is the founder of Mighty Software Inc., a company based in Palo Alto, Calif., that creates social software solutions. Bianchini and her team at Mighty Software are currently beta testing a social network website called Mightybell (www.mightybell.com) where users share experiences as they engage in a wide range of special interests, hobbies or activities.
“Gina Bianchini’s expertise, vision and creativity in the rapidly evolving world of social networking make her uniquely qualified to serve on the Scripps Networks Interactive board,” said Kenneth W. Lowe, the company’s chairman, president and chief executive officer. “The company and its shareholders are certain to benefit from her valuable insight and guidance as we develop new interactive businesses and explore opportunities to create and deliver our brand of lifestyle content on innovative digital platforms.”
Prior to founding Mighty Software, Bianchini was chief executive officer of Ning, a social platform she co-founded in 2004 that enables users to create unique social experiences online. Bianchini guided Ning through March 2010 to its status as one of the fastest growing early social platforms and top 100 global websites.
Bianchini created Ning after co-founding and serving as president of Harmonic Communications, an advertising tracking, measurement and optimization company that was acquired by Dentsu. Earlier in her career, she oversaw acquisitions, equity investments and new business development for CKS Group, a marketing software company. She began her career at Goldman Sachs & Co. as a financial analyst in its high technology group.
“The marketing power of Scripps Networks Interactive brands and the remarkably high level of engagement the company’s networks and websites achieve with media consumers create a multitude of intriguing opportunities in a world that becomes more interactive every day,” Bianchini said. “I’m looking forward to working with the management team as a member of the company’s board as they guide the business into a very promising and exciting future.”
Bianchini graduated with honors from Stanford University and earned her master’s degree in business administration from the Stanford Graduate School of Business in 2000.
About Scripps Networks Interactive
Scripps Networks Interactive is one of the leading developers of lifestyle-oriented content for television and the Internet, where on-air programming is complemented with online video, social media areas and e-commerce components on companion websites and broadband vertical channels. The company’s media portfolio includes popular lifestyle television and Internet brands HGTV, Food Network, Travel Channel, DIY Network, Cooking Channel and country music network Great American Country.
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Bianchini Elected to Scripps Networks Interactive Board of Directors
Former Sun CEO Jonathan Schwartz has launched a social network for caregivers that places privacy front and center. For a modest fee, users can have all the advantages of sharing on their own terms, without worrying about the site using their personal data to lure advertisers. CareZone isn't a "niche" site, said Schwartz. Caregiving is "what the vast, vast majority of people on Earth do every day."
Former Sun Microsystems CEO Jonathan Schwartz is offering caregivers a social networking service designed to be free of confusing privacy policies and invasive advertising.
Social networking is far older than Facebook, MySpace or even Friendster, according to Schwartz, CareZone founder and CEO. Family is actually the world's oldest social network, and whether by birth or by choice everyone is pretty much part of it.
However, this original social network doesn't always make for a good fit with today's online social media, he maintained -- especially when it comes to privacy.
For many social media sites, the user isn't the customer but the rather the product. The goal of CareZone is to change this so that productivity and privacy don't have to be mutually exclusive.
"The network's goals are to serve the needs of those that care for their parents, their children or the loved ones we consider part of our family," Schwartz told TechNewsWorld.
"We believe with life expectancies extending nearly everywhere on Earth, and with the burdens falling increasingly on those already challenged with kids, our service is timely and high value," he added.
Entirely Private
The concept behind CareZone is to provide an online account that can be opened on behalf of a loved one, and which remains entirely private and available by default only to the person who opened it. The service, which launched this week, offers subscriptions ranging from US$5 a month to $48 a year per individual.
Accessible online, the CareZone could be used to provide a permanent reference for key information including names and addresses, blood type and allergies. It also provides a way to manage medications and therapies, including dosage, frequency and reactions.
General purpose social networks have played a huge role in encouraging people to share more, but as the online social world evolves, participants will look for networks that offer more value for their personal and professional interests. But will Schwartz's background bring the attention that CareZone might need to succeed?
"It may mean something in Silicon Valley VC circles, but consumers in virtually all markets don't know who he is," said Josh Crandall, cofounder of Netpop Research. "They won't take it into consideration when evaluating the service."
This service is thus a significant departure from the Facebook-type social networking sites that provide the usual "what you're doing right now" type of social commentary, but for this reason it could offer something unique as well.
"Launching a social network for a niche audience requires deep expertise and passion for the subject," Crandall told TechNewsWorld.
The challenge is to differentiate itself through specialization from general purpose social networks, he said. "By focusing on a particular niche, the product team must focus on building features that general purpose social networks don't have time and bandwidth to tackle."
Not a Niche
However, Schwartz doesn't even believe that there is such a selective market.
"We don't view taking care of an older parent or a child as niche: It's what the vast, vast majority of people on Earth do every day," he said.
Technology will not be a barrier, in his view. "We're focused on those that are responsible for care -- not necessarily the objects of their caring attention -- and those that are already connected via smartphones, tablets and PCs. That's 4 billion and counting. It doesn't matter to us whether your Mom has access to the network, it's whether you and your sisters do -- you're the ones whose challenges we can lighten with the smart application of basic technologies."
The fastest-growing segment on popular social networking sites such as Facebook is comprised of those 50 and older, noted Lynne A. Dunbrack, program director, connected health IT strategies, at IDC Health Insights.
"There are already plenty of people who want to share health issues, good or bad," she told TechNewsWorld, "and this could be a good extension of that."
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New Social Network for Caregivers Bucks 'User as Product' Model
ZURICH, Switzerland, Feb. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Myriad Group AG (SIX: MYRN.SW - News), the company powering billions of rich mobile social and web experiences on any connected device, today announces Myriad Updates is being deployed with leading carriers Vodafone, Orange and Mobinil.
Gaining significant commercial momentum, Myriad Updates has been selected by Orange to deliver Facebook to Africa. With only one in every 32 phones being a smartphone in the region, Myriad is opening up new markets and creating huge revenue opportunities for carriers. For instance, in the first week of launch one carrier signed over 50,000 paying subscribers to their social networking service. Being one of the few companies to successfully monetize social experiences on the mobile devices, Myriad has attracted very strong interest from carriers in both developed and emerging markets. With such a strong pipeline, Myriad is on track to deliver social networking services to over 1 billion mobile users by end of 2012.
See Myriad Updates at this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, where it is shortlisted for "Best Consumer Mobile Service" at the GSMA Global Mobile Awards or view the demo before MWC on Myriad's YouTube Channel.
Available on nearly any mobile phone, subscribers who have limited or no access to data can connect to their favorite social networks, such as Facebook, Twitter and Flickr via Myriad Updates. Powered by Myriad's mobile social networking platform, Xumii, Myriad Updates presents a person's social network activity on the screen as text using the USSD bearer, thus enabling users to stay connected without having to install an app or requiring a data plan.
Myriad's deep heritage in embedded software and unique ability to deliver end-to-end solutions, including the integration of social networking into mass-market phones, enables carriers to rapidly deliver cutting edge services while creating new revenue opportunities, even in emerging markets where many consumers own lower-end mobile devices.
"Myriad Updates is bringing Facebook and Twitter to the millions of users in emerging markets without data plans, driving monetization of mobile social experiences and putting carriers back into the social networking game," said Simon Wilkinson, CEO of Myriad Group. "Myriad is opening up new markets and creating huge revenue opportunities. Signing up over 50,000 subscribers in just one week indicates the powerful demand for these services and clearly positions Myriad as the leading provider and innovator of social networking solutions for mobile carriers."
Myriad Updates has also been recently recognized as a Finalist in the 2012 GSMA Global Mobile Awards for the Best Consumer Mobile Service. "We are delighted to be recognized by one of the most coveted awards in the industry. We believe that Myriad Updates has the potential to be a major driver for social networking as growth in markets with low PC penetration quickly plateaus," added Wilkinson.
Myriad will be attending this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and will be located at Hospitality Suite AV 102. Myriad will also be hosting workshops dedicated to Social Mobile on Wednesday, Feb. 29, from 10am to 12pm CET and Analytics Intelligence Hub from 2pm to 4pm CET in Hall Q Sala B. To register, please visit http://www.myriadgroup.com/mwc12workshop
About Myriad
Myriad is chosen by leading OEMs and network service providers to power rich mobile social and web experiences – from the most basic to the smartest connected device through a single, scalable platform.
Today, over 2.5 billion mobile users rely on Myriad software. Myriad apps often provide users with their first taste of the Internet, and with our proven technology embedded in every Android device we are on target to help our partners power the next billion users.
We operate worldwide, with offices in Switzerland, France, UK, USA, Mexico, India, UAE, China, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan and Australia. Headquartered in Zurich Switzerland, Myriad is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (SIX Symbol: MYRN).
For more information please visit our website: http://www.myriadgroup.com. You can also follow us on twitter@MyriadGroup and view our YouTube Channel - YouTube.com/myriadgroupmarketing
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Myriad Updates on Track to Deliver Mobile Social Networking to Over 1 Billion Mobile Users by End of 2012