The Guardian newspaper in the UK has today launched its open API which will carry all the content the newspaper produces in print and online. That’s over a million articles which go back to 1999. The “Open Platform” will allow allow partners to reuse Guardian.co.uk content and data for free, in a clear move to try and make the The Guardian an all pervasive part of the Web. In contrast with many newspaper groups, The Guardian is effectively letting control of its content go in order to maximise its reach - and therefore the number of eyeballs that see its brand/content - across the Web. It helps that the paper is owned and run by a charitable trust which does not have shareholders who would normally have a heart attack at such a move.
The Open Platform launches with two services, both of which carry advertising. Web developers will use the API to build applications and services using Guardian content. And a Data Store will “contain datasets curated by Guardian editors and open for others to use.”
However the API does not prevent developers from running “commercial applications” using the API - but I’d read the fine detail first. They do say: “You can display your own ads and keep your own revenue. We will require that you join our ad network in the future.”
Emily Bell, the Guardian News & Media director of digital content, thinks the move will allow Guardian content “to be woven into the fabric of the internet”. And there’s a hell of a lot of it. The APIs feature ‘full fat’ feeds and other content including video, audio and photo galleries. You can combine free text search and combine tags to create feeds based on XML, JSON and Atom. API infrastructure company Mashery also helped build the platform.
The service is free but, Matt McAlister, head of the Guardian Developer Network, said, it is limited to 5000 queries a day, and the payback is that apps developers help build the advertising network, which is still in beta.
Some early examples include Zemanta’s Guardian topic research demo. It’s a simple app that searches the vast database of Guardian articles via its API and then uses Zemanta’s API to get links to related concepts.
There is also Content Tagger, an application to provide user-generated tagging on guardian.co.uk content. ApiMaps.org, built by Stamen Design, is designed to crowdsource geodata about Guardian articles. Cass Sculpture Foundation is using the Open Platform to insert lists of articles from the Guardian about its sculptors into their biography and home pages.
You can register for the API here. Here is what they say about the API:
The Open Platform currently includes two products, the Content API and the Data Store:
1. The Content API is a mechanism for getting Guardian content. You can query our content database for articles and get them back in formats that are geared toward integration with other internet applications.
The Content API is a free service. We have some limits and restrictions detailed in our terms and conditions, but we hope that you will use our service for whatever needs you have, including commercial applications.
2. The Data Store is a collection of important and high quality data sets curated by Guardian journalists. You can find useful data here, download it, and integrate it with other internet applications.
The Data Store has a range of different uses for different types of partners. We will include relevant terms and conditions along with each service.
Our aim is to make the Guardian Open Platform a useful environment for anyone who creates for the internet. We will offer more services in the future such as an ad network and an application platform.
This initial release is a beta trial that will help us identify the ways our partners want to work with us. Access will be granted on a limited basis.
Showing posts with label Gasta News : gasta domains. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gasta News : gasta domains. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Gasta News: The future of search & Blended Search
The future of search: 5 ways to prepare
By Kevin Ryan
The process of searching and finding on the internet is changing right before our eyes. Billions of pages have been indexed and organized into relevant results to match billions of queries. The first goal of search engines was to gather as many pages as they could into an index. The next goal of each search engine included ranking the queries while delivering results as fast as possible. Searching and finding was meant to be a fast, efficient experience.
The introduction and subsequent proliferation of blended search results have changed the way searchers think while they search. Searchers are now being programmed to spend more time on the search results page. Their search experience is being enriched with more visual candy, and the days of providing a link and exit from the search page as quickly as possible are over.
Marketers have to learn how to function in the new age of search. Every inch of a company's web presence has the potential to be included on the main search results page. Video, images, and local business information (including maps) are now being included on search results pages. Smart marketers who recognize and embrace these changes will move ahead of their competitors and gain more revenue, mindshare, and brand equity.
Are you ready for the new Gasta search?
1. Rethink your thinking
Search engine optimization used to mean garnering hundreds of back links into a website and then hoping that search engines would rank your site favorably. Prior to that, search engines only read text through robotic software applications called crawlers or bots, so optimizing was all about the text.
Search engine result pages predictably included miles and miles of text listings, along with sponsored listings that can be bought in an auction format. Thus, SEO was focused primarily on obtaining better rankings through popularity and clearly labeling your content to make sure listing results were accurate and timely.
Ah, what a grand time it was.
Today's search results are a complex labyrinth consisting of text listings and advertisements for websites, along with video, maps, images, news, and local information. Google's introduction of Universal Search, combined with moves by other major search engines like Yahoo and Microsoft to offer consistently "blended" search results, has changed the way results are offered to the consuming public.
Your thinking had better change with the results.
2. Understand what's in the blend
Your content must now be segmented and thought of as individual assets that can (and should) be optimized independently. In the past, getting someone to your website from a search engine meant healthy, vibrant content. Rarely did we think of ancillary content as a means of appearing in search results.
comScore's qSearch reports more than 30 percent of all search results contained at least one blended result in September 2008. That number has been steadily increasing over time, and I expect blended penetration to continue a steady upward climb over the next year. Also in September 2008, comScore observed that 85 percent of searchers saw some type of blended result.
So, if nearly one-third of results contain some type of blend, what do those blends look like? While your business category results should be scrutinized on their own, qSearch data suggest that video is the most popular segment of all blended results.
Other segments of blended results getting attention include: "news," "images," "shopping," "entertainment," and "travel."
The problem is this: A high-ranking website doesn't necessarily mean high rankings for, or inclusion of, other site assets. It also doesn't mean that your content will be featured in an associated search for your brand, products, or services. Therefore, challenges facing the search engine marketer going forward will include stiffer competition for getting assets included from competitors, amateurs, and related providers.
Understanding where engines place emphasis is mission-critical.
3. Know who's blending what
Google is blending everything from news, images, and shopping to maps, stocks, weather, and travel. Google stands alone in including "books," "blogs," and "groups" information in its blended results.
Microsoft's Live Search is including health information as well, but unlike Google, MSN is taking a pass on "multiple" types of blended results and the likes of "books" and "groups." Yahoo is not including "books," "blogs," "groups," or health information in its blended results.
Every search engine is including local information, news, and video in its blended results. Local business information is also included with maps and weather, so local ads and assets are becoming more important than ever. Are all of your local addresses and telephone numbers correct? Get on it.
Another interesting development is the inclusion of "answers" and "definitions" categories in blended results across the top three search sites. These are most often in response to information gathering, as opposed to immediate commerce-driven searches, but that doesn't mean people aren't searching for technically specific information in searches. Technical information about an electronics item or the national switch to digital television, for example, may be high in the purchase funnel, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't be there.
A searcher looking for information on "sarcoidosis" might be looking for information on diagnosis, but they could also be a potential medical drama audience member. Why shouldn't a 20-second clip from the television series "House" appear in a "sarcoidosis" search result alongside the mountain of pharma ads and "answers?"
A mid-tail search like "foam ear pads" for in-ear headphones might appear benign enough, but what about the commercial impact of images in results? If I am peddling $500 in-ear noise isolating headphones like the Shure SE530, I'd want to make sure my images (as opposed to only amateur images) appear in search results.
Any way you slice the blend, search is getting more personal.
4. Get personal with results
As search results become more personalized and relevant to the unique searcher, competition will increase for paid search market share. Searchers are either unaware or could care less about providing information to search engines about how they search.
My iGoogle page has local information news and fun gadgets. Yahoo and Microsoft also offer customized search solutions driven by the natural human desire to make everything one's own. Google even introduced an experimental project that allows users to rate search listings and suggest alternative sites. Yahoo's Search Monkey is another example of the search personalization phenomenon. Search Monkey is an open platform that Yahoo hopes will make search more useful and visually compelling.
Why would people invest time in helping Google make money? Why aren't people just searching and finding? The basic human need for recognition is a flame that has burned since the dawn of modern man. The internet and personalized search have poured napalm on that flame.
In the early stages of video's inclusion in blended results, one could watch the video on the results page. Watching video in results was quickly eliminated for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was the need for search engines to have searchers click off the page, as opposed to loitering on it.
While many of the projects search engines are engaged in to make search more efficient may be temporary, we will see components of these experiments incorporated on future search pages.
Information gathering is not a new phenomenon for search engines hoping to create a more relevant experience for searchers. The impact this information gathering has on the results page has never been more pronounced.
Personalization and customization will serve to facilitate increased blended search and thus serve to increase competitive activity in paid results. Recreating the search results page as a temporary destination, as opposed to a quick clicking-off point, will work against you if you do not shift your search engine marketing strategy to accommodate the change.
The search model has changed; how shall I begin to change with it?
5. Optimize everything
Now is the time to use every aspect of what you know about your existing and potential audience. You must apply that knowledge to your search strategy. You can't optimize everything out of the chute, so focus on the top-blended search categories initially.
Whether searching for "sushi" or "puppies" to the latest on "Beyonce" and "Britney," along with everything in between, the social components of the web are beginning to appear in search results. If you can't afford to start shooting video with your latest and greatest information, chances are your fans and detractors already have created brand love or hate content. Amping up social media marketing strategies with a search priority should be another driver for embracing the new search.
Video, local, news, and maps are among the highest categories represented in blended results, but niche interests are also represented. Consider the random and obscure search for a "coach gun scabbard." Embedded within the results page for coach gun scabbards was an amateur video reviewing scabbards made for -- you guessed it -- coach guns.
Make sure images, video, and local information are both accurate and included. Tagging video information is very important, but so are popularity rankings, so make sure you are putting your best foot forward.
From top-end search traffic to obscure mid- and long-tail searches, blended search has changed the way we find everything on the web. It is still early enough in the game to achieve some big and quick wins with modern audience optimization tactics -- so what are you waiting for?
Kevin Ryan is CMO of WebVisible Inc.
By Kevin Ryan
The process of searching and finding on the internet is changing right before our eyes. Billions of pages have been indexed and organized into relevant results to match billions of queries. The first goal of search engines was to gather as many pages as they could into an index. The next goal of each search engine included ranking the queries while delivering results as fast as possible. Searching and finding was meant to be a fast, efficient experience.
The introduction and subsequent proliferation of blended search results have changed the way searchers think while they search. Searchers are now being programmed to spend more time on the search results page. Their search experience is being enriched with more visual candy, and the days of providing a link and exit from the search page as quickly as possible are over.
Marketers have to learn how to function in the new age of search. Every inch of a company's web presence has the potential to be included on the main search results page. Video, images, and local business information (including maps) are now being included on search results pages. Smart marketers who recognize and embrace these changes will move ahead of their competitors and gain more revenue, mindshare, and brand equity.
Are you ready for the new Gasta search?
1. Rethink your thinking
Search engine optimization used to mean garnering hundreds of back links into a website and then hoping that search engines would rank your site favorably. Prior to that, search engines only read text through robotic software applications called crawlers or bots, so optimizing was all about the text.
Search engine result pages predictably included miles and miles of text listings, along with sponsored listings that can be bought in an auction format. Thus, SEO was focused primarily on obtaining better rankings through popularity and clearly labeling your content to make sure listing results were accurate and timely.
Ah, what a grand time it was.
Today's search results are a complex labyrinth consisting of text listings and advertisements for websites, along with video, maps, images, news, and local information. Google's introduction of Universal Search, combined with moves by other major search engines like Yahoo and Microsoft to offer consistently "blended" search results, has changed the way results are offered to the consuming public.
Your thinking had better change with the results.
2. Understand what's in the blend
Your content must now be segmented and thought of as individual assets that can (and should) be optimized independently. In the past, getting someone to your website from a search engine meant healthy, vibrant content. Rarely did we think of ancillary content as a means of appearing in search results.
comScore's qSearch reports more than 30 percent of all search results contained at least one blended result in September 2008. That number has been steadily increasing over time, and I expect blended penetration to continue a steady upward climb over the next year. Also in September 2008, comScore observed that 85 percent of searchers saw some type of blended result.
So, if nearly one-third of results contain some type of blend, what do those blends look like? While your business category results should be scrutinized on their own, qSearch data suggest that video is the most popular segment of all blended results.
Other segments of blended results getting attention include: "news," "images," "shopping," "entertainment," and "travel."
The problem is this: A high-ranking website doesn't necessarily mean high rankings for, or inclusion of, other site assets. It also doesn't mean that your content will be featured in an associated search for your brand, products, or services. Therefore, challenges facing the search engine marketer going forward will include stiffer competition for getting assets included from competitors, amateurs, and related providers.
Understanding where engines place emphasis is mission-critical.
3. Know who's blending what
Google is blending everything from news, images, and shopping to maps, stocks, weather, and travel. Google stands alone in including "books," "blogs," and "groups" information in its blended results.
Microsoft's Live Search is including health information as well, but unlike Google, MSN is taking a pass on "multiple" types of blended results and the likes of "books" and "groups." Yahoo is not including "books," "blogs," "groups," or health information in its blended results.
Every search engine is including local information, news, and video in its blended results. Local business information is also included with maps and weather, so local ads and assets are becoming more important than ever. Are all of your local addresses and telephone numbers correct? Get on it.
Another interesting development is the inclusion of "answers" and "definitions" categories in blended results across the top three search sites. These are most often in response to information gathering, as opposed to immediate commerce-driven searches, but that doesn't mean people aren't searching for technically specific information in searches. Technical information about an electronics item or the national switch to digital television, for example, may be high in the purchase funnel, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't be there.
A searcher looking for information on "sarcoidosis" might be looking for information on diagnosis, but they could also be a potential medical drama audience member. Why shouldn't a 20-second clip from the television series "House" appear in a "sarcoidosis" search result alongside the mountain of pharma ads and "answers?"
A mid-tail search like "foam ear pads" for in-ear headphones might appear benign enough, but what about the commercial impact of images in results? If I am peddling $500 in-ear noise isolating headphones like the Shure SE530, I'd want to make sure my images (as opposed to only amateur images) appear in search results.
Any way you slice the blend, search is getting more personal.
4. Get personal with results
As search results become more personalized and relevant to the unique searcher, competition will increase for paid search market share. Searchers are either unaware or could care less about providing information to search engines about how they search.
My iGoogle page has local information news and fun gadgets. Yahoo and Microsoft also offer customized search solutions driven by the natural human desire to make everything one's own. Google even introduced an experimental project that allows users to rate search listings and suggest alternative sites. Yahoo's Search Monkey is another example of the search personalization phenomenon. Search Monkey is an open platform that Yahoo hopes will make search more useful and visually compelling.
Why would people invest time in helping Google make money? Why aren't people just searching and finding? The basic human need for recognition is a flame that has burned since the dawn of modern man. The internet and personalized search have poured napalm on that flame.
In the early stages of video's inclusion in blended results, one could watch the video on the results page. Watching video in results was quickly eliminated for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was the need for search engines to have searchers click off the page, as opposed to loitering on it.
While many of the projects search engines are engaged in to make search more efficient may be temporary, we will see components of these experiments incorporated on future search pages.
Information gathering is not a new phenomenon for search engines hoping to create a more relevant experience for searchers. The impact this information gathering has on the results page has never been more pronounced.
Personalization and customization will serve to facilitate increased blended search and thus serve to increase competitive activity in paid results. Recreating the search results page as a temporary destination, as opposed to a quick clicking-off point, will work against you if you do not shift your search engine marketing strategy to accommodate the change.
The search model has changed; how shall I begin to change with it?
5. Optimize everything
Now is the time to use every aspect of what you know about your existing and potential audience. You must apply that knowledge to your search strategy. You can't optimize everything out of the chute, so focus on the top-blended search categories initially.
Whether searching for "sushi" or "puppies" to the latest on "Beyonce" and "Britney," along with everything in between, the social components of the web are beginning to appear in search results. If you can't afford to start shooting video with your latest and greatest information, chances are your fans and detractors already have created brand love or hate content. Amping up social media marketing strategies with a search priority should be another driver for embracing the new search.
Video, local, news, and maps are among the highest categories represented in blended results, but niche interests are also represented. Consider the random and obscure search for a "coach gun scabbard." Embedded within the results page for coach gun scabbards was an amateur video reviewing scabbards made for -- you guessed it -- coach guns.
Make sure images, video, and local information are both accurate and included. Tagging video information is very important, but so are popularity rankings, so make sure you are putting your best foot forward.
From top-end search traffic to obscure mid- and long-tail searches, blended search has changed the way we find everything on the web. It is still early enough in the game to achieve some big and quick wins with modern audience optimization tactics -- so what are you waiting for?
Kevin Ryan is CMO of WebVisible Inc.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Gasta News:Hibernia Atlantic to link Northern Ireland to an underwater transatlantic communications cable for the first time.
NI links up to underwater cable
Northern Ireland is to be linked to an underwater transatlantic communications cable for the first time.
The fibre optic cable, a telecommunications link which runs along the seabed, connects North America with Europe.
It will improve the speed and extent to which firms in NI can trade information with the rest of the world.
A new 22-mile extension will be built from an existing cable and will come ashore near Portrush.
Access to the new telecommunications will be available in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, according to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment.
Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster said the 30m euro investment (£28m) "would provide opportunities for Northern Ireland companies selling goods and services overseas and also improve our attractiveness to knowledge based inward investment".
"Northern Ireland businesses are competing more than ever for business in global markets," she said.
"This project will deliver the kind of international telecommunications, companies located in London, Amsterdam, Dublin and New York already depend on."
The department said Project Kelvin would involve connecting a new submarine cable to the Hibernia North Transatlantic cable located 22 miles off the north coast of Northern Ireland.
It said the new cable would come ashore in the Portrush area initially and then go onto a location where it could interconnect with Northern Ireland's existing telecoms infrastructure.
The department added that the new link could be interconnected at a number of different locations including Armagh, Ballymena, Belfast, Coleraine, Londonderry, Omagh, Portadown and Strabane.
The contract to construct the link to North America has been awarded to Hibernia Atlantic Limited.
The project is being funded by the European Union and the British and Irish governments.
Northern Ireland is to be linked to an underwater transatlantic communications cable for the first time.
The fibre optic cable, a telecommunications link which runs along the seabed, connects North America with Europe.
It will improve the speed and extent to which firms in NI can trade information with the rest of the world.
A new 22-mile extension will be built from an existing cable and will come ashore near Portrush.
Access to the new telecommunications will be available in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, according to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment.
Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster said the 30m euro investment (£28m) "would provide opportunities for Northern Ireland companies selling goods and services overseas and also improve our attractiveness to knowledge based inward investment".
"Northern Ireland businesses are competing more than ever for business in global markets," she said.
"This project will deliver the kind of international telecommunications, companies located in London, Amsterdam, Dublin and New York already depend on."
The department said Project Kelvin would involve connecting a new submarine cable to the Hibernia North Transatlantic cable located 22 miles off the north coast of Northern Ireland.
It said the new cable would come ashore in the Portrush area initially and then go onto a location where it could interconnect with Northern Ireland's existing telecoms infrastructure.
The department added that the new link could be interconnected at a number of different locations including Armagh, Ballymena, Belfast, Coleraine, Londonderry, Omagh, Portadown and Strabane.
The contract to construct the link to North America has been awarded to Hibernia Atlantic Limited.
The project is being funded by the European Union and the British and Irish governments.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Gasta News:Baidu news Ecommerce platform
Baidu news Ecommerce platform
Baidu has launched “Youa”, its own consumer to consumer e-commerce platform, which has up until now only been available to 50,000 people in a closed beta. The current market leader, Alibaba’s Taobao has a 57% market share and is reportedly investing around $700 million over the next five years to strengthen its position. However estimates suggest that Baidu’s offering will do well – and form 3-5% of its revenues in 2009.
Baidu has launched “Youa”, its own consumer to consumer e-commerce platform, which has up until now only been available to 50,000 people in a closed beta. The current market leader, Alibaba’s Taobao has a 57% market share and is reportedly investing around $700 million over the next five years to strengthen its position. However estimates suggest that Baidu’s offering will do well – and form 3-5% of its revenues in 2009.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Gasta News:Microsoft, Google and Yahoo
Microsoft, Google and Yahoo have signed a global code of conduct promising to offer better protection for online free speech and against official intrusion.
The Global Network Initiative follows criticism that companies were assisting governments in countries like China to censor the Internet.
The guidelines seek to limit what data should be shared with authorities, in cases where free speech is an issue.
"This is an important first step," said Mike Posner of Human Rights First.
He told the BBC "What this is is a recognition by all these tech companies, the human rights groups and social investors that there has to be a collective response to this growing problem.
"Companies need to step up to the plate and be more aggressive in challenging unwarranted government interference," he said.
The initiative states that privacy is "a human right and guarantor of human dignity," and the agreement commits the companies to try to resist overly broad demands for restrictions on freedom of speech and the privacy of users.
They will also assess the human rights climate in a country before concluding business deals and make sure their employees and partners follow suit.
"These principles are not going to be a silver bullet, but the most important point for me is to provide transparency," said Danny O'Brien of the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
"We have joined this initiative because we know that a wide range of groups working together can achieve much more than the company acting alone," said Andrew McLaughlin, Google's director of global public policy.
'Valuable roadmap'
The impetus for such an agreement follows years of criticism that a number of businesses, including Google, Yahoo and Microsoft have complicity built what has been dubbed the "Great Firewall of China".
Google has been accused of complying with Chinese government demands to filter internet searches to eliminate query results regarding topics such as democracy or Tiananmen Square.
Microsoft has come under attack for blocking the blog of a prominent Chinese Media researcher who posted articles critical of a management purge at the Beijing News Daily.
Canadian researchers uncovered that a Skype joint venture in China monitored users' communications.
And a Chinese reporter Shi Tao was jailed for 10 years after Yahoo China provided his personal information to the Chinese government.
Today Yahoo co-founder and CEO Jerry Yang welcomed the new code of conduct.
"These principles provide a valuable roadmap for companies like Yahoo operating in markets where freedom of expression and privacy are unfairly restricted.
"Yahoo was founded on the belief that promoting access to information can enrich people's lives and the principles we unveiled today reflect our determination that our actions match our values around the world," said Mr Yang.
While China has been painted as the worst abuser, Colin Maclay of the Berkman Centre for Internet and Society at Harvard University said there are other countries and governments all over the world at fault.
"The number of states actively seeking to censor online content and access personal information is growing.
"And the means employed - technical, social, legal, political - are increasingly sophisticated, often placing internet and telecommunications companies in difficult positions."
'Business case'
The Global Network Initiative was drawn up by the internet companies along with human rights groups, academics and investors.
Adam Kanzer who is the managing director and general counsel at Domini Social Investments said as well as being the right thing to do, it also makes good business sense.
He told BBC News "When you see the industry being caught up in the tactics of various regimes around the world, the business case is very clear. Freedom of expression and privacy is core to their business.
"They depend on a wide open, freely accessible and secure internet. That's what they are about. If people don't trust the internet and believe they are secure, then that is counterproductive to their business."
The effort is already being seen by some as not going far enough.
"After two years of effort, they have ended up with so little," said Morton Sklar executive director for the World Organisation for Human Rights USA.
"It is very little more than a broad statement of support for a general principle without any concrete backup mechanism to ensure that the guidelines will be followed."
Mr Posner of Human Rights First disputes that and said this agreement has not been set up as a "gotcha system" but as a way "to work with companies to get them to improve what they are doing, credit them when they do it and call them out if they fail."
While it is hoped many more companies will sign up, two European telecommunications firms, France Telecom and Vodafone, are already said to be considering adding their names.
The Global Network Initiative follows criticism that companies were assisting governments in countries like China to censor the Internet.
The guidelines seek to limit what data should be shared with authorities, in cases where free speech is an issue.
"This is an important first step," said Mike Posner of Human Rights First.
He told the BBC "What this is is a recognition by all these tech companies, the human rights groups and social investors that there has to be a collective response to this growing problem.
"Companies need to step up to the plate and be more aggressive in challenging unwarranted government interference," he said.
The initiative states that privacy is "a human right and guarantor of human dignity," and the agreement commits the companies to try to resist overly broad demands for restrictions on freedom of speech and the privacy of users.
They will also assess the human rights climate in a country before concluding business deals and make sure their employees and partners follow suit.
"These principles are not going to be a silver bullet, but the most important point for me is to provide transparency," said Danny O'Brien of the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
"We have joined this initiative because we know that a wide range of groups working together can achieve much more than the company acting alone," said Andrew McLaughlin, Google's director of global public policy.
'Valuable roadmap'
The impetus for such an agreement follows years of criticism that a number of businesses, including Google, Yahoo and Microsoft have complicity built what has been dubbed the "Great Firewall of China".
Google has been accused of complying with Chinese government demands to filter internet searches to eliminate query results regarding topics such as democracy or Tiananmen Square.
Microsoft has come under attack for blocking the blog of a prominent Chinese Media researcher who posted articles critical of a management purge at the Beijing News Daily.
Canadian researchers uncovered that a Skype joint venture in China monitored users' communications.
And a Chinese reporter Shi Tao was jailed for 10 years after Yahoo China provided his personal information to the Chinese government.
Today Yahoo co-founder and CEO Jerry Yang welcomed the new code of conduct.
"These principles provide a valuable roadmap for companies like Yahoo operating in markets where freedom of expression and privacy are unfairly restricted.
"Yahoo was founded on the belief that promoting access to information can enrich people's lives and the principles we unveiled today reflect our determination that our actions match our values around the world," said Mr Yang.
While China has been painted as the worst abuser, Colin Maclay of the Berkman Centre for Internet and Society at Harvard University said there are other countries and governments all over the world at fault.
"The number of states actively seeking to censor online content and access personal information is growing.
"And the means employed - technical, social, legal, political - are increasingly sophisticated, often placing internet and telecommunications companies in difficult positions."
'Business case'
The Global Network Initiative was drawn up by the internet companies along with human rights groups, academics and investors.
Adam Kanzer who is the managing director and general counsel at Domini Social Investments said as well as being the right thing to do, it also makes good business sense.
He told BBC News "When you see the industry being caught up in the tactics of various regimes around the world, the business case is very clear. Freedom of expression and privacy is core to their business.
"They depend on a wide open, freely accessible and secure internet. That's what they are about. If people don't trust the internet and believe they are secure, then that is counterproductive to their business."
The effort is already being seen by some as not going far enough.
"After two years of effort, they have ended up with so little," said Morton Sklar executive director for the World Organisation for Human Rights USA.
"It is very little more than a broad statement of support for a general principle without any concrete backup mechanism to ensure that the guidelines will be followed."
Mr Posner of Human Rights First disputes that and said this agreement has not been set up as a "gotcha system" but as a way "to work with companies to get them to improve what they are doing, credit them when they do it and call them out if they fail."
While it is hoped many more companies will sign up, two European telecommunications firms, France Telecom and Vodafone, are already said to be considering adding their names.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Gasta to team up with Russian Search Engine Yandex
Yandex operate Russia’s largest internet search engine and are a leading Russian internet and technology company. Our goal is to provide easy access to the wealth of information available online to answer any questions our Russian-speaking users may have. We rely on our in-depth understanding of the Russian language, culture and internet market to provide our users with sophisticated web search and information retrieval services. We also offer them a portal providing a range of other free services and extensive local, national and international information, including user-generated content, which we aggregate and structure in a neutral and user-friendly manner. We believe that putting the needs of our users first is the foundation for the success of our business.
Russian education has historically focused on science and technology, valuing strong applied mathematics and data analysis skills. From our start, we have benefited from this focus, drawing upon the considerable pool of technically proficient, local talent in Russia to create a leading technology company. For more than 15 years, our team has been developing and optimizing our web search and other technologies, earning the trust of our users and making Yandex one of the best known internet brands in Russia.
During the first quarter of 2008, our flagship internet search engine accounted for approximately 54% of all search traffic in Russia, according to Liveinternet.ru, and was one of the top 10 search engines in the world during that period, according to comScore. Over that same time period, our portal generated a monthly average of approximately 3.2 billion page views, including 900 million search results pages.
History of Yandex
The history of Yandex dates back to 1990, when Arcadia Inc., which later became CompTek, initially developed two informational search systems: the International Classifier of Inventions and the Goods and Services Classifier. These systems provided the foundation for Yandex’s technology.
In 1993, the founders of CompTek created Yandex as a search mechanism for the Russian language. Some of our portal’s users have speculated on the etymological origins of the word. One of the more imaginative theories suggested a correlation of “Yan” to the white and “sunny” half of the Yin-Yang symbol. To put the rumors to rest on the meaning of the name, the two founders, Arkady Volozh and Ilya Segalovich, coined the term “Yandex” as an acronym for the phrase “Yet Another Indexer.”
From 1993 to 1994, Yandex’s developers collaborated with the Russian Academy of Sciences to enhance the system’s linguistic capabilities, tailoring it to the Russian language. As an “inflective” language, Russian uses numerous word variations to reflect grammatical purpose and meaning. A key technological advantage of Yandex is that it automatically searches all possible forms of a given word, making each search more accurate.
Another important feature of Yandex’s search technology is morphology hypotheses building, that takes into account the distance between the searched words within sentences and paragraphs. Furthermore, Yandex.ru indexes and searches documents in the major Cyrillic languages — Russian, Ukrainian and Belorussian — as well as in English, French, and German that might be of interest to the Russian-speaking audience
Monday, July 14, 2008
Gasta ® Trademark process completes
Gasta ® international trademark application complete. Murgatroyd and Partners international Law Firm has completed the successful application of the word ‘Gasta’
As the world trademark of Applied Multimedia Innovations. Gasta ® will now be appearing as the legal protection of all Gasta owned domains and websites.
Francis Higgins CEO of AMI says “that he is delighted that this long process is now complete and that Gasta ® is now protected from cyber squatters and trade infringements” AMI has a number of proposals for Gasta music and licensing rights for the new trademark including a fashion label and branding company.
Gasta Property Domains: Gasta now reaching 450 Property sites
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Gasta Branding: Organic Search listings
Purchasing your keywords in InstantAds or SearchMatch on the Gasta and Europasearch network will significantly increase you web presence for the minimum price.
Google has unveiled its first major piece of research to prove search can have a big impact on a company brand . The move could help to drive significantly more brand budget online. The findings, from a pan-European research project commissioned by the search giant, showed coming top of organic listings raised purchase consideration of a brand 4%. It also found exposure to a listing in the top paid position, with no organic listing on the page, increased purchase consideration 20%. The new and (to the tech savvy generation) most important factor in branding your company is to get into search listings and Gasta.com is a really simple and inexpensive way of doing that.
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Gasta Search Branding and Direct Response
Gasta Search Branding and Direct Response,
We love it when a plan comes together1 The Gasta.com strategy of aquiring and hosting new domains to launch the gasta white label search is gathering momentum as more Brands recognise that Search is the key branding tool of the future web.
In this week's NMA Podcast, Microsoft's senior vice president of strategic partnerships, Yusuf Medhi, talks about the software giant's acquisition plans following the failure of its bid to buy Yahoo!. Plus Winston Binch of US hot-shop Crispon Porter + Bogusky explains how digital agencies are moving up the pecking order, and the NMA team discuss the role of search in brand-building.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Gasta News:Brand Identity
Tough economic times call for small businesses to get creative. Here is why you should consider implementing a multi-domain strategy for your business.
COST. A memorable, highly targeted and keyword-rich domain name, garners free organic search engine traffic. By acquiring a domain name from the secondary domain market, you are spending less money in traffic than by engaging in often costly keyword search buys or print advertising.
BRANDING. Acquiring domains related to your products and or services sends a strong and consistent message to your customers and builds brand equity while avoiding customer confusion and lost traffic. For example, a photographer's website would benefit from camera, weddings and portrait themed domains.
GLOBAL REACH. Although the "dot com" is the most common extension, you should cast your net wider by getting as many extensions possible, including country code specific extensions. Act locally, think globally!
CAPITAL INVESTMENT. Like fine wines, domain names appreciate in value as they get older, thanks to the navigation traffic they acquire from prominent search engine positioning. By acquiring multiple premium domain names you are building a valuable portfolio of assets.
Are you ready plan a multiple domain strategy for your business? BuyDomains has the largest inventory of premium domain names — let us help you find one that matches your business needs. Contact domains@buydomains.com.
COST. A memorable, highly targeted and keyword-rich domain name, garners free organic search engine traffic. By acquiring a domain name from the secondary domain market, you are spending less money in traffic than by engaging in often costly keyword search buys or print advertising.
BRANDING. Acquiring domains related to your products and or services sends a strong and consistent message to your customers and builds brand equity while avoiding customer confusion and lost traffic. For example, a photographer's website would benefit from camera, weddings and portrait themed domains.
GLOBAL REACH. Although the "dot com" is the most common extension, you should cast your net wider by getting as many extensions possible, including country code specific extensions. Act locally, think globally!
CAPITAL INVESTMENT. Like fine wines, domain names appreciate in value as they get older, thanks to the navigation traffic they acquire from prominent search engine positioning. By acquiring multiple premium domain names you are building a valuable portfolio of assets.
Are you ready plan a multiple domain strategy for your business? BuyDomains has the largest inventory of premium domain names — let us help you find one that matches your business needs. Contact domains@buydomains.com.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Gasta News:Brand Identity
Here at Gasta HQ we have noticed a pattern in our advertisers inluding the brand names of competitors in their advertising keywords, we have seen an upsurge of brand identity marketing of terms such as Louis Vuitton, 12th Sreet by Cynthia Vincent, Adidas, Alexander McQueen, Anya Hindmarch, Bottega Veneta, Chloé, Derek Lam, E-bags, Erva, Fendi, Gucci, Hoss, Intropia, Jimmy Choo, Kate Moss, Laccoste, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Miu Miu, Net-a -Porter, Nike, Orange, Oscar de la Renta, Puma, Ralph Lauren, Roberto Cavalli, Samsung, Sony, Stella McCartney, Toni&Guy, Valentino, VBH, Vivienne Westwood, Red, Zoe&Morgan.
This change is due to the new rules introduced by Google about brand keywords, and the savvy marketers are the ones using the Gasta search marketing keyword tools to capitalise, Big brands you have been warned. buy your brand keywords now!
This change is due to the new rules introduced by Google about brand keywords, and the savvy marketers are the ones using the Gasta search marketing keyword tools to capitalise, Big brands you have been warned. buy your brand keywords now!
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Gasta.com launches 150 new web Domians
Gasta has today launched 25 of the 150 new web domains to carry its expanding search networks to 172 search engines. The list includes much sought after domain names in Ireland such as http://www.westbelfast.com , http://www.lisburncity.net and http://www.dublincitylive.com
The Domains are for various regions throughout the UK and Europe expanding the gasta search network to 172 search engines across europe. The next set of domains are scheduled to be launched later this week all concentrate on the UK and European Property market, and include http://www.propertydublin.com http://www.propertyedinburg.com and http://www.dublinproperies.com
The Domains are for various regions throughout the UK and Europe expanding the gasta search network to 172 search engines across europe. The next set of domains are scheduled to be launched later this week all concentrate on the UK and European Property market, and include http://www.propertydublin.com http://www.propertyedinburg.com and http://www.dublinproperies.com
www.andersonstown.com
www.cathedralquarter.com
www.eastbelfast.net
www.ardglass.com
www.ballsbridge.net
www.glencolin.com
www.maloneroad.com
www.southbelfast.com
www.dublin4.net
www.dublincitylive.com
www.dublincityonline.com
www.jordanstown.com
www.westdublin.com
www.lisburncity.net
www.lisburnroad.com
www.southarmagh.com
www.stranmillis.com
www.westbelfast.com
www.westbelfast.net
www.westbelfast.org
www.westbelfastonline.com
www.derrycity.net
www.doire.com
www.glengormley.net
www.haroldscross.com
www.leopardstown.net
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