Intrusive ads are a topic I touched on earlier in the semester with my post about pop-up surveys. So when I read this article about the New York Times trying out screen take-over ads before users even enter their site, I had to comment!
Although many sites use these screen take-over ads, or interstitials, they are always annoying, and in my opinion, unacceptable as "welcome" ads. The Times argues that they are just complying to the needs of their advertising customers by providing this often-requested placement. But I think a newspaper as important as the New York Times should be focusing on its readers, not its advertisers.
The Times, however, has promised that they will be monitoring the prevalence of these interstitials and how they affect reader experience to determine how often they can run these "welcome ads".
Hopefully the readers will speak up and news sties will learn that these intrusive ads just aren't appropriate for their readers.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
Economic downturn may not be all bad news for digital promotion grads
Despite the apparent economic downturn over the past few years, an article I found on Foliomag.com yesterday gave me hope that my career choice may indeed allow me to be gainfully employed come December.
The article noted that business to business publishers in general saw a 2% decrease in ad revenue, but those that have been working on their transformation from print to digital are still doing well.
While many companies have imposed hiring freezes, one company CEO quoted in the article said this freeze would not apply to its New Media Group.
This CEO said that he considered that group's actions "critical to our revenue growth plans for both the near and long-term future."
For soon to be CMC graduates like myself, news like this means that there might be a multitude of job openings in online media, even as print media suffers.
Even so, the article did conclude that online is not the complete solution. The point is it's critical for any business to know their audience and how to fulfill their roles online and in print.
The article noted that business to business publishers in general saw a 2% decrease in ad revenue, but those that have been working on their transformation from print to digital are still doing well.
While many companies have imposed hiring freezes, one company CEO quoted in the article said this freeze would not apply to its New Media Group.
This CEO said that he considered that group's actions "critical to our revenue growth plans for both the near and long-term future."
For soon to be CMC graduates like myself, news like this means that there might be a multitude of job openings in online media, even as print media suffers.
Even so, the article did conclude that online is not the complete solution. The point is it's critical for any business to know their audience and how to fulfill their roles online and in print.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Flickr adds video features, attempts to compete with YouTube
Flickr, the successful photo-sharing site owned by Yahoo, launched its video features for its pro account holders on Tuesday.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the new features, which came in response to the increasingly video oriented tech world, are Yahoo's most recent attempt to compete with YouTube, Snapfish and other media sharing sites that already offer video capability.
Currently only Flickr's pro members (who pay $24.95/year) will be able to post videos, although all users will be able to view them. The size limit for clips is 150MB or about 90 seconds, which is far below YouTube's 10 minute maximum, but Flickr hopes this will attract homemade clips that fit in with the site's sense of community.
In another attempt to facilitate the site's community identity, all pirated Hollywood clips will be banned and the site will remain ad-free for paid users. Subscribers will also be able to keep their clips private or make them public.
While Flickr has a long way to go if they really intend to compete with YouTube's video market, these added video features will surely help them match-up against their photo-sharing counterparts.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that the new features, which came in response to the increasingly video oriented tech world, are Yahoo's most recent attempt to compete with YouTube, Snapfish and other media sharing sites that already offer video capability.
Currently only Flickr's pro members (who pay $24.95/year) will be able to post videos, although all users will be able to view them. The size limit for clips is 150MB or about 90 seconds, which is far below YouTube's 10 minute maximum, but Flickr hopes this will attract homemade clips that fit in with the site's sense of community.
In another attempt to facilitate the site's community identity, all pirated Hollywood clips will be banned and the site will remain ad-free for paid users. Subscribers will also be able to keep their clips private or make them public.
While Flickr has a long way to go if they really intend to compete with YouTube's video market, these added video features will surely help them match-up against their photo-sharing counterparts.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Editors may need to rethink guidelines for social media
The majority of major news organizations follow guidelines set by the Associated Press Stylebook, or create their own formal stylebook for editors to follow. While these guidelines are generally accepted in print media and as basic standards for journalism, some readers and online participants are suggesting more relaxed rules for online social media formats.
The main topics that came under scrutiny were anonymous remarks and journalist participation in online discussions.
The Associated Press reported that according to the Online Journalism Credibility Study released Tuesday by the Associated Press Managing Editors group and the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute at the University of Missouri, 70 percent of editors surveyed said requiring commenters to disclose their identities would support good journalism, while only 45 percent of the public did.
The study also reported that 58 percent of editors said letting journalists join online conversations and give personal views would harm journalism, but only 36 percent of the public agreed.
Topics the editors and readers did agree on included the need to ensure accuracy, fairness of coverage, labeling of commentary and the desirability of depth (such as links to outside more detailed content).
The study was created to gauge what kinds of changes newspapers should be making as they continue to blend print with web operations, but unfortunately raised more questions than it answered.
What became clear was that readers are looking for something more personal and interactive online, and editors will surely have to develop new guidelines to handle that.
The main topics that came under scrutiny were anonymous remarks and journalist participation in online discussions.
The Associated Press reported that according to the Online Journalism Credibility Study released Tuesday by the Associated Press Managing Editors group and the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute at the University of Missouri, 70 percent of editors surveyed said requiring commenters to disclose their identities would support good journalism, while only 45 percent of the public did.
The study also reported that 58 percent of editors said letting journalists join online conversations and give personal views would harm journalism, but only 36 percent of the public agreed.
Topics the editors and readers did agree on included the need to ensure accuracy, fairness of coverage, labeling of commentary and the desirability of depth (such as links to outside more detailed content).
The study was created to gauge what kinds of changes newspapers should be making as they continue to blend print with web operations, but unfortunately raised more questions than it answered.
What became clear was that readers are looking for something more personal and interactive online, and editors will surely have to develop new guidelines to handle that.
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