According to Piper Jaffray’s 26th semi-annual teen market research report, Twitter is now a more important social network than Facebook for many teens. The report suggests that 26 percent of teenagers call Twitter their most significant social media site, while 23 percent claim their most important site to be Facebook, down from a high of 42 percent. However, Twitter is not without competition; the photo-sharing site Instagram, for example, is also doing well amongst teens. Continue reading Twitter Now More Popular Than Facebook Amongst Teenagers

A materials research team at Vanderbilt University has designed a new supercapacitor that is made of silicon and has the potential to power many types of devices, from solar cells to mobile devices. The supercapacitor may be made from excess silicon and can provide significant savings in manufacturing costs. The technology cannot store energy the same as lithium-ion batteries, but supercapacitors have promise in consumer devices.

Continue reading New Supercapacitor Can Store Electricity on Silicon Chips

At yesterday’s product launch event in San Francisco, Apple announced the fifth generation of its market-leading tablet, promising a “thinner, lighter, faster” device — and introducing a new name. The new iPad Air will feature the same 9.7-inch screen as the fourth-gen iPad and the same A7 processing chip that is in the new iPhone 5S, making it 72 times faster than the original iPad. The new 1-pound tablet is 20 percent thinner and 28 percent lighter than the current model. Continue reading Thinner, Lighter, Faster: Apple Unveils New iPad Air Tablet

According to new figures released by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, the number of Americans 16 and older who now own a tablet or e-book reader currently stands at 43 percent. The number of tablet owners has grown to 35 percent, while the share of e-reader devices has grown to 24 percent. Pew Research notes that device owners tend to live in upper-income households and have relatively high levels of education. The numbers also indicate that women are more likely to own e-readers. Continue reading Pew Research: Tablets and E-Readers See Significant Increase

Juniper Research predicts that sales of wearable connected devices, including smart watches and glasses, will hit $19 billion by 2018, up from the $1.4 billion the industry is expected to generate this year. While issues concerning privacy are emerging, wearable devices are expected to become more popular as a result of advances in wireless connectivity and mobile computing. Juniper also cites consumer demand and the rise of related subscription services as key factors. Continue reading Sales of Wearable Devices to Reach $19 Billion by 2018

An article in MIT Technology Review this week looks at the history and trends involving content distribution and suggests that Hollywood should consider adopting methods that are similar to those related to media piracy. While efforts to combat piracy continue, some question the perceived impact of file-sharing and other techniques, suggesting the film industry might be better served by adopting new ways to distribute its content and gain potential exposure. Continue reading Should the Film Industry Embrace Piracy-Related Technologies?

A study by Nanigans, one of the largest buyers of Facebook ads, indicates that mobile ads on Apple’s iPhones generate 1,790 percent more ROI than mobile ads on Android devices. The study, which looked at more than 200 billion ads on Facebook with a focus on retailers, suggests that mobile advertising on Android actually costs more than it returns. The study also notes that Facebook’s desktop ads over the past year experienced a 375 percent increase in click-throughs and 152 percent jump in overall ROI. Continue reading New Study: Facebook Ad Profit Higher with iOS than Android

Facebook and Pinterest are the clear standouts when it comes to referral traffic from social networks. While Facebook leads the pack, accounting for more than 10 percent of traffic to publishers in September, Pinterest holds second place, driving more traffic than Twitter, LinkedIn and Reddit combined. According to data from social plugin service Shareaholic, collected from 200,000 publishers, Pinterest drove 3.68 percent of traffic to publishers in September, about three times as much as third-ranked Twitter. Continue reading Social: Facebook, Pinterest Drive Most Traffic to Publishers

A new website is building a dataset to help determine whether consumers are increasingly turning to piracy when movies are not made available legally via streaming, digital rental or digital purchase. The site — PiracyData.org — lists the top 10 most pirated movies on BitTorrent as reported by TorrentFreak each week, and researches the Can I Stream It? service to determine whether each title is available legally. The authors suggest that shorter windows would help counter piracy. Continue reading Do Movie Fans Turn to Piracy Due to a Lack of Legal Options?

Automated advertisement buying is used by marketers where computerized systems focus on specific users based on their consumer data and Web browser histories. Machines and automation are handling more of the process of purchasing online advertising. These new methods of ad buying are expected to increase by more than 50 percent, and are becoming a more popular trend among advertisers to target their ads with more efficiency. Continue reading Study: Automated Ad Buying to Grow by 56 Percent This Year

Kantar Media announced its plans to launch a TV audience measurement service based on data it will collect from more than one million set-top boxes. The syndicated Kantar Media Audience Advisor service, which will compete with industry leader Nielsen and other data firms such as Rentrak, intends to provide insights into viewer behavior, including program engagement and commercial ratings. Initial clients will include GroupM and Saatchi & Saatchi. Continue reading Kantar Media to Measure TV Audiences from Set-Top Boxes

A group of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania conducted a study through which they carefully analyzed the Facebook statuses of 75,000 volunteers. The volunteers all took a personality questionnaire and made their Facebook posts available to researchers who searched for linguistic patterns. In analyzing the Facebook posts, researchers were able to determine a surprising amount of information about each individual. Continue reading Study of Facebook Language Leads to Groundbreaking Results

Facebook announced a new ad service this week that addresses the problem of neglected mobile apps. The service enables companies and developers to distribute targeted ads that remind consumers to open apps on smartphones that have been downloaded, but are rarely used. Facebook hopes to generate new revenue by targeting mobile app neglect. The company has already built a business to help companies get their apps discovered and downloaded; its app discovery ads have 145 million downloads. Continue reading Facebook Targets Neglected Mobile Apps with New Ad Service

A new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, based on interviews conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates, indicates that 15 percent of American adults ages 18 and older say they are not using the Internet or email. Survey participants cite issues related to relevance, problems with ease-of-use, security, expense and availability as primary reasons. Additionally, another 9 percent of U.S. adults note that they use the Internet, but not while they are at home. Continue reading 15 Percent of American Adults Not Using the Internet or Email

Readers no longer have the ability to comment on Popular Science articles. The magazine announced it has banned all online comments, suggesting that negative comments can be detrimental to the understanding of science. The ban has stirred a controversial debate about the ramifications of online comments, and has prompted discussion about how online comments impact people’s comprehension of and appreciation for science. Continue reading Popular Science Magazine Decides to Ban All User Comments