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Tumblr user numbers in massive freefall
Posted by Ariel Levin-Waldman Categories: News, Social Media, Social Networks,
Over a year ago, Yahoo purchased the blog host Tumblr for $1.1 billion. Today their investment is not looking so good. Rather than seeing growth, in the past six months Tumblr had lost over 7 million users.
Back in December, Tumblr boasted 49 million regular users. As of yesterday, consumer reports showed only 42 million. That's a 15 percent drop in traffic, presenting a problem for Yahoo, which has been trying to attract advertisers for the blogging service in order to monetize it.
When Yahoo first made the purchase, they stated that they would not make changes, and true to their word, Tumblr has remained more or less the same as it has been for years. No overhead policy change can really explain the loss of users (and consequently revenue.)
Click to continue reading Tumblr user numbers in massive freefall
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Twitter finally allows you to mute your friends
Posted by Ariel Levin-Waldman Categories: Corporate News, Social Media, Social Networks,
It's pretty hard to get a message across in 140 characters or less. I know, I'm a journalist and I've had to do it professionally. But maybe you feel you are still getting too much information that you might not want. Maybe you just have a friend who has tweeted you to save the whales twenty times too many.
Well, now you can mute them.
Twitter has just unveiled its newest feature, the mute option. With the press of a button the you can select users in your feed that you just don't want to hear any more. You will no longer see their tweets, retweets, SMS or push notifications
It's not a full block feature. The biggest difference is that they can still follow you. They can still see your feed, share and retweet your posts and reply to you. You just won't see it in your timeline. They can also send you a direct tweet. The muted user does not receive any notification that you have shut them up.
You won't have to listen to them and they won't be upset with you. Now I can get back to seeing what trending without having to save any of those darned whales.
Valentine’s Day Giveaway: Jawbone Mini Jambox & Pair of iPhone cases!
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Accessories, Announcements, Apple, Smartphones, Features, Videos,
Yes - we're giving away a Jawbone Mini Jambox, Otterbox Defender for iPhone 5 and 5s, and a Sonix Heart to Heart Inlay for iPhone 5c for Valentine's Day! Seriously, February is the month of red, and we've got the perfect smartphone accessories for you to match, thanks to our friends at AT&T.
So, how do you enter to win the Mini Jambox giveaway package? Simply use the widget below to keep track of your entries! We've got a lot of ways for you to enter, but don't check off any that you don't actually perform. If you do, you'll be eliminated:
By the way, if you wanna pick up any of these items on your own, you can find them all at AT&T:
The Problem with Facebook [Video]
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Revenue, Social Media, Social Networks,
The problem is the only way Facebook has found to make money is by treating all entities on the site as advertisers and charging them to share their content.
This business plan backfires because 1) not all entities ARE advertisers and 2) it was the content from these people, specifically friends, family, and creators that made the site worth visiting in the first place.
Now the incentives are misaligned:
- Individuals want to see great content, but they are now seeing more paid content and organically shared content which appeals to the lowest common denominator (babies, weddings, and banal memes)
- Creators want to reach fans but their posts are being throttled to force them to pay to be seen
- Brands and advertisers have to pay once to advertise their page on Facebook, and then pay again to reach the people who have already liked their page. Plus Facebook is not a place where people generally go to buy things.
Facebook stands in contrast to other social media like Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram where all content is shared with all followers.
Mother’s Day Giveaway: LG Optimus G Pro
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Announcements, Smartphones, Features,
That's right, we are giving away a brand new LG Optimus G Pro for Mother's Day! After all, it's time to thank the moms in your life for their hard work, and the LG Optimus G Pro is just the phone to do that with. In fact, here are a few reasons why we think she'll love it:
- The LG Optimus G Pro sports a 13 megapixel camera, letting mom capture all those important and impromptu family moments, and includes features like VR Panorama, Cheese Shutter, and Time Catch Shot.
- It's got a 5.5-inch display. That puts it almost in tablet territory. Mini tablet, if you will. So watching videos, reading books, and surfing the web are done without having to suffer through tiny fonts.
- The device has almost no bezel. That keeps it thin and easy to hold, despite the larger display size. Very comfortable in the hand.
The LG Optimus G Pro can be had for $199.99 with two-year contract from AT&T, but we are giving you the opportunity to win one right here from Gear Live, courtesy of AT&T. So, how do you enter to win? Simply use the widget below to keep track of your entries! We've got a lot of ways for you to enter, but don't check off any that you don't actually perform. If you do, you'll be eliminated:
By the way, if you wanna pick up an Optimus G Pro on your own, AT&T is currently selling them for $199.99 with two-year contract.
See also: LG Optimus G review
Giveaway: Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Announcements, Features, Music, Portable Audio / Video,
Aww yeah! That's right--we're giving away a pair of the brand new Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones, which just hit stores this today! No need for you to drop a couple hundred bucks on 'em though, because we've got your hook-up right here (provided you win, of course!) In case you missed it, we've put out a ton of into on the Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones over the past couple of days. Here's a refresher on what you're trying to win:
- Monster DNA headphones review
- Bleeding Edge TV 473: Monster DNA headphones review
- Unboxing Live 111: Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones
- Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones unboxing gallery
- Stars sign Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones for Jewelry for a Cause charity auction
- Monster debuts White Tuxedo DNA headphones at 2013 MTV Movie Awards
Pretty exciting stuff, right? So, how do you enter to win the Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones? Simply use the widget below to keep track of your entries! We've got a lot of ways for you to enter, but don't check off any that you don't actually perform. If you do, you'll be eliminated. Also, note that one of the options grants you ten entries. Might wanna give that one a look:
By the way, if you wanna pick up a pair of Monster DNA White Tuxedo headphones on your own, they're available now!
Facebook’s new News Feed focuses on multimedia [Video]
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, Design, Social Media, Social Networks,
Facebook has announced a greatly revamped News Feed that hopes to beautify all the content that you consume on the social network. The new News Feed separates the different categories of content, making it easier to get to, say, just photo updates, or music updates, or groups, for example. Mark Zuckerberg says the new design is akin to a "personalized newspaper." The thought behind the changes are that people are sharing more and more multimedia--images, videos, links with previews…so why not take advantage of the screen space and optimize it?
Click to continue reading Facebook’s new News Feed focuses on multimedia [Video]
Groupon CEO Andrew Mason fired due to poor quarterly results
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Corporate News, News, Revenue,
Yesterday, Groupon hit us with a massively disappointing first-quarter earnings report, which saw its stock tumble by over 25% after hours, and now CEO Andrew Mason is out. Someone had to take the fall, and the burden came on the shoulders of Mason, who'll be replaced in the interim by Ted Leonsis and Eric Lefkofsky while the board finds a new CEO. Mason released a letter to employees, and also made it public, admitting that he knew it would leak anyway--give it a read after the break.
Click to continue reading Groupon CEO Andrew Mason fired due to poor quarterly results
Read More 
| Groupon
Giveaway: Win a pair of UFC Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey’s favorite headphones!
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Announcements, Features, Music, Portable Audio / Video,
Three nights ago, Ronda Rousey used her signature armbar to become the first UFC Women's Champion--but did you notice her headphones? The Ronda Rousey headphones were mentioned time and again on Twitter and other social media channels, and if you've paid any attention to Gear Live and our CES coverage, you probably can guess what they were. In fact, if you can, you may just walk away with a pair of your own...and we've made it super-easy, as you can tell.
Here's a hint: They're Monster branded, and Rousey's win was truly INSPIRATIONal. We can't make it easier than that.
That's right! All you need to do is let us know the brand and model of the headphones. If you get it right, you are entered to win one of three pairs that we are giving away! Here's how you enter--simply use the widget below to keep track of your entries! We've got a lot of ways for you to enter, but don't check off any that you don't actually perform. If you do, you'll be eliminated. If you choose to tweet, include the headphone brand and name. If you choose to follow us on YouTube, leave a comment there with the same. Or leave a comment right here on this Gear Live post. Or do all of the above. You get multiple entries. On to the widget:
App.net introduces free accounts with an invitation system
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Revenue, Social Media, Social Networks, Startups,
App.net has decided to remove the cost of entry for some users, as it now allows those with paid accounts to invite up to three people to the service for free. If you're unfamiliar with App.net, it's a Twitter-like service that is free of advertising, instead allowing members to pay a $36 annual fee to be a part of it. Members own the data they put into it and don't need to give up any rights, and that includes the 10 GB cloud storage that tied to the App.net File API. Free users will have some limitation, though. For one, you'll only be able to follow a maximum of 40 other users, and instead of the aforementioned 10 GB of cloud storage, you get 500 MB instead. Lastly, paid accounts are allowed to upload files up to 100 MB in size, while free accounts have a 10 MB size restriction.
If you want to get in on App.net and don't feel like paying, hit up your paid user brethren and beg for an invite.
Read More | App.net
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