Alert Blog Reviews

It looks like Twitter is gearing up for a big year as they announce several (as in around 10) new hires to start the new year. While official numbers of total employees are tough to come by (last I saw put it in the range of 150 but I will not stand by the accuracy of that number) it is obvious that Twitter is looking to have a big year. Let’s call it Twitter’s “Year of Revenue”. That’s usually what we talk about when it comes to the service anyway right? Louis Gray tells about these hires and specifically of one that is very strategic. Anytime Twitter brings on a former Google lawyer then you know they are up to something. Twitter’s pedigree is getting increasingly rich at the expense of Google and other Silicon Valley tech titans. With the holidays behind us, the microblogging powerhouse is starting the new year with more new faces at its San Francisco headquarters. Among them is Bakari Brock, most recently an in house lawyer for YouTube and Google focused on music, video and syndication. Brock, whose LinkedIn profile shows him as corporate counsel at Google, starting in 2007, was heavily quoted in late 2008 when the video service introduced e-commerce capabilities enabling customers to purchase from partners including iTunes and Amazon, and his comments were included in publications such as the New York Times and GigaOM site NewTeeVee. Last year Google was the ‘victim’ of Twitter’s need for legal expertise as well . While probably flattered one would think that losing high profile, likely high dollar and highly visible legal talent is not how Google would like to get the new year started. Some of the background of new hires on the Twitter team include another former Googler, a ex-ning staffer and folks from Cloudera, TiVo, Bebo and VMWare. Add this to an expansion of the Twitter family tree following the acquisition of MixerLabs before Christmas and one would think that “It’s beginning to look a lot like business” (sing that to the tune of “It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas” for those wishing the holidays were still here). So let’s go a step further on this one and see what the bold prognosticators among MP readers are predicting for Twitter in 2010. What does the need for more legal firepower say about what might be next?

Link:
Twitter Adds to Its Ranks

While most of us in the Internet marketing “industry” were all aghast at the Facebook privacy problem of ’09 , the rest of the world could have cared less. You know those people, right? The ones who don’t live and breathe this stuff to the point that all perspective is lost? These are the ‘everyday’ Facebook users who don’t give a rip about Mark Zuckerberg and the continued search for 7,000 people who care enough to impact any policy changes with the social media giant. So those regular folks pushed Facebook to a point where it had never been before: the number one site during the Christmas holiday. ReadWriteWeb tells us Christmas is a holiday that brings people together, so perhaps it should be no surprise that Facebook has become a part of millions of peoples’ Christmas experiences. For the first time in its history, Facebook was the #1 most visited website in the United States on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day this year, according to traffic analyst firm Hitwise today. Makes sense doesn’t it? Personally I was more prone to using Skype rather than updating everyone but that is certainly a personal preference. So while the site finished third for the year behind Google and Yahoo Mail it was certainly a milestone to be seen as the Christmas site of choice. Last year Facebook finished second in this contest to Google but was able to flip positions this year. See what a year of gigantic growth can do for you? Wonder if Santa will be as nice to Facebook next year after the rest of the world catches on that their “goings on” at Facebook aren’t as private as they used to be?

Original post:
Facebook Receives News of A Merry Christmas Indeed

I’d like to be among the first to wish you a very Merry Christmas. I’m not sure what Christmas means to you, but here’s what it means to me. Thanks Linus, I couldn’t have said it any better!

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Merry Christmas!

Darren and I would like to wish all who celebrate, a Very Merry Christmas! We’ll return to our regular posts next week. © 2008 TwiTip Twitter Tips . Merry Christmas from TwiTip!

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Merry Christmas from TwiTip!

As we’ve done for many years, it’s time to forget about marketing and focus on the whereabouts of Santa Claus (aka Father Christmas). Fortunately, NORAD and Google make it easy to track Santa Claus each year , and this Christmas is no exception. What to do next? Head over to the official Santa Tracking site , test out the new mobile Santa tracker , or just go play in the snow with your kids! Merry Christmas!

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Tracking Santa Claus for Christmas 2009

I know you’ve been waiting with bated breath all holiday season to find out which of the made-up online shopping holidays would be the winner—Cyber Monday for the first time ever? Green Monday again? Brown Monday? Purplish-Blue-Like-a-Bruise Monday? Sadly, none of the above. Nope, it was some no name: Tuesday, December 15 . Coming from behind, that all-but-forgotten day of the week topped the online revenue charts for the first time with $913M in sales. That’s right, nearly one billion dollars in revenue online in one day—and yes, that would be the record for the most online spending in a single day, ever. 2009 Holiday Season To Date vs. Corresponding Days* in 2008 Non-Travel (Retail) Spending Excludes Auctions and Large Corporate Purchases Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations Source: comScore, Inc

Here’s a fun Christmas game for you to play. How many different types of lawsuits can you think of that include Google AdWords? Put your party creative hats on and see what you can come up. OK, Sellify, you go first! Sue Amazon over defamatory statements posted in Google AdWords by one of its affiliates? Wow! That is creative! And, it’s actually true! Writes Techdirt : The two main complaints are over trademark violations of buying keywords, and then defamation. Defamation? Yes, because apparently when people do searches on Sellify or some of its related trademarked names, like OneQuality, some of the ads that come up say things like: Beware of the SCAM Artist Camcorders at the Best Price From the Trusted Source amazon.com As Mike Masnick points out, this lawsuit is unlikely to go anywhere. Not only is Amazon not actually the appropriate party to sue, but trademark infringements in search ads tend to get bogged down in the courts anyway. Still, you have to admire the creativity of Sellify. If we were really playing the above game, it would have a good chance of claiming the top prize.

Originally posted here:
Amazon Sued Over Defamatory Google AdWords Ads