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April 2011

Friendster – From Social Network to Gaming

By Cheryl | Posted in Google, News, Social networking | April 28, 2011 – 4:49 pm

Friendster logoBefore MySpace and Facebook took over the world, there was another site that fed our need for social networking, Friendster.

Created in 2002, the site allowed users to connect with each other and share media and information.

The service was considered hot property, and in 2003 Google offered to buy the company for £30 million, which was turned down by founder Jonathan Abrams.

When other sites such as Facebook came along, Friendster started loosing their hold of North America and were forced to concentrate on the Asian market, were the product proved very popular. Even though they had continued success, the company wasn’t making any profit.

In 2009, the company was bought out by Malaysian internet firm MOL Global, with hopes of regaining their popularity in areas such as North America.

Unfortunately a change in direction couldn’t help the site, and even though they still managed to maintain over 115 million registered users, the end was near.

This week the company told their loyal users that all of their data would be deleted as they aim to take Friendster in a different direction. They explained that they would be turning Friendster in to a gaming site, hoping to work alongside Facebook, rather than being their competition.

http://www.friendster.com/

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Spotify announce changes to ‘free’ accounts

By Cheryl | Posted in News, Services, Twitter at 12 | April 21, 2011 – 2:39 pm

SpotifyIf you are like me, you logged in to your Spotify account this week, only to be met by a message explaining that the company would be cutting back on their free music service, with limits effectively being cut in half.

The new rules mean that users will now be restricted to 10 hours listening time a month, but it’s not the time limit users are going to have a problem with; it’s more the track restrictions. From now on, users will only be allowed to listen to a track 5 times in total, not a month.

These changes, especially the track limit, will hit users hard and many people have already accused the company of trying to turn the free service in to a paying one.

For new users, things are a little different. The service will stick to it’s current format and limits for up to six months, and after this time will be switched to their new rules.

The company will offer a free 30-day trial of Spotify Premium throughout May, but it’s likely more people will go for the ‘Unlimited’ package, should they decide to upgrade.

Packages

Unlimited –
No advertisements
Unlimited streaming of music
£4.99 per month
Premium -
No advertisements
Unlimited streaming of music
Spotify on your mobile
Offline mode for playlists
£9.99 per month

As the saying goes, you don’t get anything for free. Spotify is known to be a very good service, so maybe it’s time to reach in to your pockets.

Changes will take effect on 1st May.

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LinkedIn launches Android App

By Cheryl | Posted in Android, Application, Social networking, Twitter at 12 | April 15, 2011 – 12:08 pm

LinkedIn Android AppAlthough the LinkedIn app was already available on iPhone and Blackberry devices, the Android version has been stuck in Beta mode since December. The company finally announced on Tuesday that the app was now available on the Android market, which was welcomed by many of its loyal followers.

LinkedIn was launched in 2003 and has established itself as the number one business-oriented social networking site, covering more than 200 countries, with over 100 million users. The aim of the site is to allow professional people to keep in contact with each other.

Unlike many other social networking sites, you must know the person you would like to add as a ‘connection’. This enables you to maintain a list of people you have some kind of relationship with and reduces the amount of meaningless posts and messages.

Product Manager, Chad Whitney, explained that the company had decided to concentrate on the main features in it’s first release before undertaking those that were requested by beta testers. These features will include updates, search, connections, invitations, messages and reconnect.

This announcement means that Android users can now search the profiles of over 100 million professionals in real-time, while also using other key features from the website.

The app is available to download now from the Android App Store.

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Shop on the go with Debenhams

By Cheryl | Posted in Android, Apple, Application, Mobile, News | April 4, 2011 – 11:57 am

debenhams appMobile shopping has proved a successful venture for retailer Debenhams leading the company to announce that their app, once offered exclusively on the iPhone, will now be available on a number of smartphones.

In October 2010, the department store became the first retailer to offer the fully transactional app to iPhone handsets, allowing users to shop on the go. Since the success of the app and online sales increasing by 82%, the retailer are now offering the app to both Android and Nokia users.

Head of Digital Development, Harriet Williams, had the following to say on the development, “Our iPhone app has already seen 2.4 million shopping sessions with 110,000 customers using the app more than five times. Launching on the Android and Nokia platforms opens Debenhams mobile shopping to another millions more customers, bridging the gap between the high street and Debenhams.com.”

The app includes a ‘Barcode Scanner’, which uses the phone’s camera to take a picture of the barcode, enabling it to automatically check prices and reviews.

Customers can also take advantage of exclusive products and offers by looking out for the special codes in Debenhams advertising and store windows.

Currently there has been no announcement on when the application will be made available to Blackberry users, but if the retailer really wants cater to all shoppers, it would be best not to leave it for too long.

So, what are you waiting for? Download the app and get shopping!

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