Sunday, September 27, 2015
Friday, September 25, 2015
Predicting the future - Unclouded vision
http://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21666098-forecasting-talent-luckily-it-can-be-learned-unclouded-vision
Prediction, like medicine in the early 20th century, is still mostly based on eminence rather than evidence. The most famous forecasters in the world are newspaper columnists and television pundits. Superforecasters make for bad media stars. Caution, nuance and healthy scepticism are less telegenic than big hair, a dazzling smile and simplistic, confident pronouncements. But even if the hoped-for revolution never arrives, the techniques and habits of mind set out in this book are a gift to anyone who has to think about what the future might bring. In other words, to everyone.
Prediction, like medicine in the early 20th century, is still mostly based on eminence rather than evidence. The most famous forecasters in the world are newspaper columnists and television pundits. Superforecasters make for bad media stars. Caution, nuance and healthy scepticism are less telegenic than big hair, a dazzling smile and simplistic, confident pronouncements. But even if the hoped-for revolution never arrives, the techniques and habits of mind set out in this book are a gift to anyone who has to think about what the future might bring. In other words, to everyone.
Saturday, September 19, 2015
Vogue goes viral
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/969bd98a-5ba4-11e5-9846-de406ccb37f2.html#slide0
Images from Vogue.com’s Instagram feed
Friday, September 18, 2015
Putin's Propaganda TV Lies About Its Popularity
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/09/17/putin-s-propaganda-tv-lies-about-ratings.html
Of all the YouTube clips watched over five years, 81 percent—344 million views—went to videos of natural disasters, accidents, crime, and natural phenomenon. RT’s political news videos, featuring the content by which it seeks to shape Western opinion and thus justify its existence, accounted for a mere 1 percent of its total YouTube exposure, with fewer than 4 million views.
Of all the YouTube clips watched over five years, 81 percent—344 million views—went to videos of natural disasters, accidents, crime, and natural phenomenon. RT’s political news videos, featuring the content by which it seeks to shape Western opinion and thus justify its existence, accounted for a mere 1 percent of its total YouTube exposure, with fewer than 4 million views.
Thursday, September 10, 2015
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
Friday, September 4, 2015
Advertisers put agency deals on the block in media ‘tsunami’
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/448648cc-50bb-11e5-8642-453585f2cfcd.html?siteedition=uk#axzz3kkl454kn
With contracts worth $30bn annually put out for tender since January, furious competition has broken out among the six companies that dominate the global advertising market: WPP, Omnicom, Publicis, IPG, Dentsu Aegis and Havas. Each faces an opportunity to steal market share from its rivals, but also the risk of having key clients lured away.
With contracts worth $30bn annually put out for tender since January, furious competition has broken out among the six companies that dominate the global advertising market: WPP, Omnicom, Publicis, IPG, Dentsu Aegis and Havas. Each faces an opportunity to steal market share from its rivals, but also the risk of having key clients lured away.
Thursday, September 3, 2015
Primark - Faster, cheaper fashion
http://www.economist.com/news/business/21663221-rapidly-rising-super-cheap-irish-clothes-retailer-prepares-conquer-america-rivals-should
“Consumers shop at Primark differently than they shop at a lot of retailers,” says Bernstein’s Jamie Merriman. “It’s almost like shopping at a Costco,”—which sells buckets of peanuts and vats of detergent—“where you’re thinking about it in terms of volume.” H&M sells an annual average of £3,400-worth of clothes per square metre in Britain, according to Bernstein. Primark sells £5,300-worth.
“Consumers shop at Primark differently than they shop at a lot of retailers,” says Bernstein’s Jamie Merriman. “It’s almost like shopping at a Costco,”—which sells buckets of peanuts and vats of detergent—“where you’re thinking about it in terms of volume.” H&M sells an annual average of £3,400-worth of clothes per square metre in Britain, according to Bernstein. Primark sells £5,300-worth.
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Do Sex & Violence Actually Sell?
http://theconversation.com/do-sex-and-violence-actually-sell-45138
From a practical standpoint, this suggests that advertisers may not get the best return on investment by advertising in violent or sexual contexts. Although such contexts may attract large audiences, the apparent advantages of more overall viewers may be offset by lower brand memory, less favorable attitudes and lower buying intentions.
Saturday, August 29, 2015
Television - Hunted: could you go on the run in Britain's extreme surveillance state?
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/aug/29/hunted-channel-4-surveillance-show-reality-hacking
During the longueurs while they were laying low – “There’s no Netflix when you’re on the run” – the pair spent a lot of time thinking about how profligate they were with their personal data. “My concern is that there’s always a wealth of knowledge out there, like your shopping habits,” says Harry. “And we have no consciousness of what’s happening with that information. It’s actually changed how I communicate online.”
During the longueurs while they were laying low – “There’s no Netflix when you’re on the run” – the pair spent a lot of time thinking about how profligate they were with their personal data. “My concern is that there’s always a wealth of knowledge out there, like your shopping habits,” says Harry. “And we have no consciousness of what’s happening with that information. It’s actually changed how I communicate online.”
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Virtual reality - Grand illusions
http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21662481-virtual-reality-flopped-1990s-time-its-differentapparently-grand
Each firm hopes that its headset will become next year’s big consumer product for geeky early-adopters. So far none has announced prices, but a few hundred dollars for a full rig seems a good bet. That is well within the means of many people of the sort likely to be attracted to VR, and has led some to suggest it will be the Next Big Thing in consumer electronics. Digi-Capital, a consultancy in San Francisco, reckons the market for virtual reality could be worth $30 billion a year by 2020—if, of course, people actually want to buy it.
Each firm hopes that its headset will become next year’s big consumer product for geeky early-adopters. So far none has announced prices, but a few hundred dollars for a full rig seems a good bet. That is well within the means of many people of the sort likely to be attracted to VR, and has led some to suggest it will be the Next Big Thing in consumer electronics. Digi-Capital, a consultancy in San Francisco, reckons the market for virtual reality could be worth $30 billion a year by 2020—if, of course, people actually want to buy it.
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