Archive for April, 2009
NYTimes: One Internet Village, Divided
The “One Internet Village, Divided” article in today’s NYTimes is about the problems that poplular internet sites (YouTube, Facebook, MySpace) are facing with creating revenue from traffic in emerging markets.
The video site Veho has gone so far as to block users from Africa, Latin America, Asia, and Eastern Europe. MySpace is creating a default low bandwidth profile for users in India, and Facebook is focusing on member acquisition before worrying about monetizing. YouTube had been developing localized versions of its service in Brazil, India, and Poland but has now switched to trying to make money with reports that it may lose around $470 million this year.
This news confirms my instinct that I should be exploring a business model for Pigeon that is not ad supported. How can Internet companies balance the obviously huge demand for content and a need to monetize? How can web-like services tap into the demand for content and be sustainable?
Parsons MFA Design and Technology 2009 Symposium, May 2-3, MFADT09
Next weekend, I’ll be presenting Pigeon at the Parsons MFA Design and Technology 2009 Symposium being held in New York City. The event will have I’m on a panel with the theme of “Take It With You: The Mobile Movement” on May 2 from 5-6:30pm.
All of my friends and classmates will also be screening their short films, exhibiting their installations, and playing on their instruments.
Pigeon now available Spanish!
Pigeon is now available in Spanish. I’m not exactly a Spanish expert, so if you hear any problems let me know.
The translation and recording wouldn’t have been possible without the help of Kevin and Venessa!
callpigeon.com
Pigeon now has an official online home: callpigeon.com. There’s general information about the system, and you can also sign up for an account.
Check it out and let me know if you have any thoughts.