Tuesday, July 31, 2007
New Feature!
Blogger/Google introduced a fancy new feature that allows me to mark RSS feeds in Google Reader as "shared". It then puts them on woah patrol as it is tied to my Google account....FANCY. Seems pretty neat though, so keep your eyes open and toward the top right of the woah patrol page to view postings I find interesting for various reasons on other blogs.
Monday, July 23, 2007
RIP Amp'd Mobile
Somewhat sad news for flashy startup company Amp'd Mobile....on July 24th they are indefinitely suspending service....I have mixed feelings.
The "blingy" commercials that insulted our intelligence as the startup company attempted to market to its main demographic were obviously quite effective.
In my opinion, here was their main flaw: They were obviously pushing to obtain young customers in the 14-27 or so year old market, mainly in urban areas, and suburban kids who wish they were from urban areas. Forcing kids in this demographic to be cellphone users has a plus and a minus. The plus: they know about the phones, and they will use the heck out of them. The minus: they don't pay! The company declared BANKRUPTCY quite quickly when half of its 175,000 customers failed to pay their bills. Oh yeah, they also owe Verizon $56+mil.
A cell phone is a huge responsibility. Making sure you don't lose it, and also to paying the bill! The target audience of Amp'd Mobile were obviously not so great at living up to these responsibilities. If you think about it, many national and regional carriers have accepted the burden of customers who need a little help with their priorities....however most have learned the hard way and now have measures in place to minimize costs in maintaining these customers, yet still getting paid. These protective and procedural measures are those that have been in place and constantly revised for years and years.
I'm a huge fan of smaller start up companies that do things better and offer better service - I'm all for getting behind an invention or service or product that might take one of the big 3 mobile carriers down a notch. However Amp'd Mobile just seemed to have the same mindset most Americans in $8k plus of debt have....
The "blingy" commercials that insulted our intelligence as the startup company attempted to market to its main demographic were obviously quite effective.
In my opinion, here was their main flaw: They were obviously pushing to obtain young customers in the 14-27 or so year old market, mainly in urban areas, and suburban kids who wish they were from urban areas. Forcing kids in this demographic to be cellphone users has a plus and a minus. The plus: they know about the phones, and they will use the heck out of them. The minus: they don't pay! The company declared BANKRUPTCY quite quickly when half of its 175,000 customers failed to pay their bills. Oh yeah, they also owe Verizon $56+mil.
A cell phone is a huge responsibility. Making sure you don't lose it, and also to paying the bill! The target audience of Amp'd Mobile were obviously not so great at living up to these responsibilities. If you think about it, many national and regional carriers have accepted the burden of customers who need a little help with their priorities....however most have learned the hard way and now have measures in place to minimize costs in maintaining these customers, yet still getting paid. These protective and procedural measures are those that have been in place and constantly revised for years and years.
I'm a huge fan of smaller start up companies that do things better and offer better service - I'm all for getting behind an invention or service or product that might take one of the big 3 mobile carriers down a notch. However Amp'd Mobile just seemed to have the same mindset most Americans in $8k plus of debt have....
Thursday, July 19, 2007
m83 Thoughts
A couple days later, I received communication in the form of English:
M83, "Digital Shades Volume 1" - OUT SEPT 03 2007 in France & USA
Release date in UK & other countries... will be announced shortly !
Just after the « Before the Dawn Heals Us » US tour, Anthony Gonzalez decided to develop a musical direction already heard on some earlier M83 tracks and he started to write and record a collection of ambient works. Having long been a Krautrock and Eno fan this was a kind of music that Anthony has always been familiar with. Recorded primarily at his home studio with the assistance of Antoine Gaillet, who had previously worked on “Before the Dawn Heals Us” , Anthony was able to work without pressure, knowing he could work on the record at his own time and pace. The idea of digital, relevant during all the process (from creating the music to sharing it), gave him the idea to call the project "Digital Shades vol.1", and to make the album part of an ongoing series.
Originally recorded in 2006, “Digital Shades vol 1” marks the beginning of a new period of activity for M83, since Anthony is already back in the studio working on a brand new album which will be released in January 2008.
This first volume of the Digital Shades series shares many qualities of previous M83 records but also follows its own individual elegiac, lunar and dream-like path. In keeping with the creative thinking behind the album, “Digital Shades Volume 1” will naturally be released on all digital download formats worldwide, as well as on more traditional formats such as vinyl and CD in France.
Now, this is pretty much very exciting. Though I don't know about this whole Digital Shades business...I don't really enjoy ambient albums, but I'm convinced that if I ever DO enjoy one, m83 will produce it. Whatever happens with 'Digital Shades' and the upcoming album in Jan 2008, I am definitely very much looking forward to them both.
m83 myspace (link)
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