“Discover, shop, and express your style” is the slogan for Polyvore, an online global community that has created over 80 million collage-like “sets,” designed to give everyone a voice in shaping trends and influencing purchases. While it may not be a household name yet, the social network drives disproportionate amounts of social revenue. At 20 percent, it drives more social traffic than Pinterest (15 percent) and four times that of Twitter (5 percent). Continue reading Polyvore Drives More Social Traffic Than Pinterest and Twitter

Bravo is one of the first networks to make use of Facebook’s new Keyword Insights API. Scanning private posts of the social networking site’s 100 million-plus users, Bravo is taking advantage of the feature — introduced in September — by running keyword searches during new episodes of the “Real Housewives” TV shows and using the data for social engagement during reruns. The reruns are referred to as the “social edition” versions, which include tweets and comments from the stars. Continue reading Bravo Uses New Facebook API to Enhance User Engagement

Twitter estimates the percentage of its accounts that are fake is less than 5 percent, but some independent researchers think that number is closer to 9 percent. Fake accounts are a big market for those looking to boost their popularity and influence on Twitter, despite efforts by the social networking site to weed out the imposters. One man who manages 10,000 robot accounts for roughly 50 clients offers a glimpse into the market. Continue reading Fake Twitter Accounts Boost Individuals and Trending Topics

The “mind-reading” keyboard app SwiftKey is what some tech writers say is part of a growing movement of devices and apps that will predict users’ needs and deliver them without having to be asked. Between the decline of computing costs and the ease of collecting data through apps, calendar appointments and more, companies like Google and Apple are rushing to deliver the best technology to anticipate what information or reminders users need. Continue reading New Internet Era: Devices Emerging That Predict User Needs

Twitter is intent on becoming like a social TV guide for its users, and the newest phase of that strategy can be seen in the platform’s latest app update. Now, in the corner of the screen, Twitter promotes television shows to users based on how active those users are. The idea is to drive traffic to TV programs. Down the line this kind of marketing will likely be monetized, but it needs to be done in a way that current and new users understand and do not find annoying. Continue reading Twitter Providing TV Suggestions Based on its User Activity

Snapchat users are sending approximately 400 million ‘snaps’ per day, whereas Facebook users are uploading about 350 million photos each day and Instagram users are uploading roughly 55 million photos daily. Snapchat’s 400 million snaps account for both video and photo messages, but it is likely that Snapchat surpasses Facebook on photo volume alone. While some question the validity of Snapchat’s numbers, the company reported 350 million snaps daily in September, up from 200 million in June. Continue reading Rivalry Between Facebook and Newcomer Snapchat Heats Up

Vint Cerf, chief Internet evangelist for Google and co-creator of the Internet’s key networking technology, delivered the keynote address at the Federal Trade Commission’s Internet of Things workshop this week in Washington, DC. Cerf suggested that privacy is a relatively new development that may not be sustainable. “Privacy may actually be an anomaly,” he said while taking questions, noting that privacy was not even guaranteed just a few decades ago. Continue reading Vint Cerf at FTC Event: “Privacy May Actually Be an Anomaly”

Hshtags is a new search engine from developer Kim Goulbourne that is designed to help users easily navigate the mass onslaught of hashtags, which have become a nearly ubiquitous utility of the social Web. The universal hashtag search client, launched in September, provides access to all the content posted with a specific hashtag from an array of social platforms including Facebook, Flickr, Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter, Vimeo and YouTube (support for Vine and Google+ is expected soon). Continue reading Hshtags Search Engine: The Google Search of Social Media

Spotify and Bravo have announced a collaboration that will make the cable network Spotify’s first U.S. television partner to develop custom playlists for shows. The first playlists will be available on the day of the premieres of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta,” “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” “Vanderpump Rules” and “Thicker Than Water.” Playlists will then be updated during the season with songs that reflect the characters and each show’s developments. Continue reading Spotify Joins Facebook and Twitter in Social TV Conversation

When Snapchat turned down Facebook’s acquisition offer of nearly $3 billion last week, it spoke to the changing social media landscape in which Facebook’s role seems to be different than what it once was. Although it is still the biggest social media service on the Web, and continues to attract a number of startups, “Facebook fatigue” has become more widespread among its users in recent years, and it is likely affecting the corporation’s image. Continue reading Is Facebook Losing Its Edge in Evolving Social Media Market?

Sony sold more than one million units of the new PlayStation 4 on the first day of the highly anticipated video game console’s availability. Fans lined up outside retailers such as GameStop Friday evening, while Best Buy and Amazon reported on their websites that initial inventory had sold out. Some stores had only enough supplies to fill pre-orders, which left a number of consumers empty-handed. Sony projects it will sell five million units by March. Continue reading Sony Sells One Million PlayStation 4 Consoles on First Day

TV networks and advertisers are teaming together to create a new kind of Twitter ad campaign. Fox and American Express have partnered to attach the credit card company’s ads to clips of Fox TV shows, like “New Girl,” that are shared on Twitter. It is American Express’ way of interacting with consumers online in a more informal setting, and it may be the first partnership in which sponsors attach themselves to TV clips spreading on Twitter. Continue reading Fox and American Express Partner for Twitter Ad Campaign

Google is in the early stages of developing its own alternative to cookies, which have a few limitations when it comes to tracking users. The company is working on universal IDs, which will track users from device to device. Whereas cookies can be erased and sometimes lead to ineffective ad targeting, universal IDs would provide more accurate user data. But it could also create a Google-owned monopoly of data. However, Google isn’t the only company working on cookie alternatives.  Continue reading Google Envisions a Web Beyond Cookie-Based Data Tracking

At the Business Insider’s Ignition conference in New York this week, Facebook revealed more of its plans to develop social TV advertising products. Justin Osofsky, Facebook vice president of media partnerships, discussed deals with broadcast networks, which were initially announced along with hashtags and verified accounts back in September. The social platform is trying to prove it is just as valuable as Twitter in real-time TV discussions, if not more so. Continue reading Facebook Plans to Compete with Twitter for TV Ad Business

Netflix has launched a visually richer interface with rotating images for subscribers who access the streaming service via television. The new interface is designed to improve discovery and playback, in an effort to increase the amount of time subscribers watch Netflix content on their TVs. Three automatically rotating images will appear for each selected title, featuring a short synopsis for each TV show or movie, and easy access to recommendation tools. Continue reading New Netflix Interface Improves Video Discovery and Playback