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Barbarian Strategy Exec Splits for Droga5
Just 18 months after joining the Barbarian Group in what was then the newly created role of group director of strategy, Chet Gulland is heading back to his old stomping grounds at Droga5. During his quick stay with the Barbarian brood, Gulland led the agency’s planning group on accounts including Google, GE, Samsung and Quaker. Here’s a statement from TBG below:
“Yes, our friend Chet is leaving for Droga.
When he came here, it was the start of TBG taking strategic planning super seriously as a discipline and has resulted in a pretty stellar team of folks. It has also meant bigger mandates from bigger clients. With his departure, we’re doubling down on the planning department and are currently talking to some of the sharpest thinkers in the market. We’ll get you next time Droga, next time.”Prior to his first stint at Droga5, Gulland held a senior strategist post at Anomaly.
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You're the Pundit: Could Apple introduce iBooks Author print-on-demand?
When it comes to evaluating the next big thing, we turn to our secret weapon: the TUAW braintrust. We put the question to you and let you have your go at it. Today's topic is print-on-demand.
Everybody's doing it. Amazon does it. Lulu does it. Even Apple does it -- so long as what you're printing is a photo book.
So why haven't we heard a peep about iBooks Author (iBA) print-on-demand? Wouldn't it be nearly as easy to produce an iBA project as a photo one? So what's the hold up?
We think that iBooks Author offers a perfect opportunity for Apple to extend its already excellent POD services to a new group of customers. They could easily extend their current meant-for-iBooks templates to a variety of more printer-friendly options.
Sure they'd have to change the pricing model, add more pages, allow black & white printing, and implement other changes that reflected the difference between heirloom photo collections and a standard print book. We get that, along with the big set-up overhead that would be involved. But think of how awesome it might be.
So why have we heard not a whispered rumor? Is this a no-go area for Apple?
You tell us. Place your vote in this poll and then join in the comments with all your analysis.
You're the Pundit: Could Apple introduce iBooks Author print-on-demand? originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Apple's "1944" filmmaker describes the production
Last week, footage of an internal Apple sales video, titled 1944, landed on YouTube. The most notable part of the production was a cameo by Steve Jobs, who was impersonating FDR in the mock war film. One of the creative talents behind the video, Michael Markman, tells the back story about how the film came to be.
It's an interesting tale about a moment of brilliance that started off as a routine meeting with Apple's Marketing Director, Mike Murray, and quickly turned into a face-to-face with Steve Jobs. You can read all the details on Markman's blog and watch the video on YouTube.
Apple's "1944" filmmaker describes the production originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
China Telecom launches iPhone promo to boost corporate sales
China Telecom posted disappointing quarterly earnings for Q1 2012 and is turning to the iPhone to help it turn things around. According to Hong Kong's The Standard, the wireless carrier is launching an iPhone promotion to encourage businesses to sign up with China Telecom. Any business that buys 10 iPhone 4S handsets together with a wireless service plan will get a free iPhone. According to a company spokesperson, the carrier is targeting enterprise customers who are outfitting their employees with the latest technology.
China Telecom launches iPhone promo to boost corporate sales originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Tuesday Odds and Ends
-Ad folks including Lori Senecal and Jimmy Smith do a fashion shoot for Forbes. link
-Expedia offers its own “Vacation Deprivation” study. Coincidence? link
-Organic picked up digital AOR duties for Quaker Oats brands including Quaker Oats, Quaker Chewy Granola, and Quaker Rice Cakes.
-AKQA CEO Tom Bedecarre has some folks up in arms with a tweet (above). link
-L.A.-based prodco Boxer Films added director Kevin Fitzgerald to its roster.
-The “ad contrarian” himself, Bob Hoffman, takes on the new Pepsi campaign. link
-Pittsburgh-based MARC USA hired Chris Heitmann and Chris Pointon as EVP/chief innovation officer and SVP/marketing technology, respectively.
-Panera Bread tapped Cramer-Krasselt as its new creative AOR. link
-Starcom alum Amy Bickers joined Austin-based firm Umbel as director of agency solutions. link
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Personal Capital announces iPhone app, Universal Checkbook
One of the major issues with financial services apps these days is that there are way too many of them. Every different bank or investment firm seems to have at least one app; many have multiple apps required to access different accounts thanks to the outdated systems behind those accounts. Today, Personal Capital announced a free iPhone app that brings together all of those accounts into one app, and also lets users move money easily or pay bills from any account.
Yesterday, I had the privilege of watching a demo of the Personal Capital app presented by Bill Harris (CEO of Personal Capital, ex-CEO of Intuit and PayPal) and Jim Del Favero, VP of Software Product Management and also a veteran of Intuit. It's obvious that Personal Capital had looked at all of the personal finance applications on the market at this time, because its new app manages to avoid all of the pitfalls inherent in the others.
Harris noted that when most people launch a personal finance app, they want to see their balances. However, most other apps require you to navigate to another screen to look at balances. Not so with Personal Capital; the first screen you see after logging in (shown above right) lists the current balances for all of your accounts, whether savings, checking, credit or debit cards, or investments.
Gallery: Personal Capital iPhone App
Navigating the app is also a pleasant surprise. While most personal finance apps I've used are a nightmare to move within, Personal Capital made it possible to dive deeper into each account with a single tap. Harris mentioned that most of the app can be navigated by just using a thumb -- something that's unheard of in most iPhone apps.
For each account, there's a ring-like feature with segments marking off the relative amount of money assigned to different categories. Within that ring is a small line graph indicating the balance of the account over time. Tap the graph, and you see individual transactions. It's an intuitive and quick way to navigate through the history of transactions for an account.
Personal Capital also announced a new feature in the iPhone app that is not part of their iPad app -- the Universal Checkbook. This feature makes it simple to pay literally anyone from any account with a few taps. Adding a checking account to Personal Capital is also quite simple -- you just take a picture of a blank check and the account is added. That's it. No typing of account numbers required.
If you wish to try Personal Capital, the service is free for the basic functions. If you decide that you'd like personalized portfolio management, they charge less than a 1 percent fee for the privilege. That's one other amazing feature of the app, by the way. If you want to contact your finance advisor at Personal Capital, you can tap a button and send them a message, make a direct call, schedule a time for a call, or call them via FaceTime.
Expect to see a more complete review of the app in the near future.
Show full PR text Remote Control for Your MoneyPersonal Capital Launches Free iPhone App
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - May 8, 2012. How can you manage your money when you're not at home? Personal Capital's new iPhone app gives you complete control across all your accounts at all your financial institutions:
o. Check Balances - Check current balances and recent transactions on all of your bank, credit card and brokerage accounts.
o. Monitor Cash Flow - Monitor your total income and spending, with quick comparisons to prior months.
o. Track Investments - Track and understand your entire investment portfolio across all your accounts - including IRAs, 401(k)s and 529s.
o. Move Money - Move money anywhere - from any account to any person, any biller or any other account.
"You've got a remote control for your television. You need a remote control for your money!" said Bill Harris, CEO of Personal Capital.
"There are good reasons to put your money in many different accounts - most people do. But to take control of your money, you want to view everything in one place, and do everything in one place. View and do."
o. View - See everything - from your total net worth to your most recent credit card purchase - on your iPhone.
o. Do - Move your money from anywhere to anywhere. It's remarkably easy, with just three taps on your iPhone:
1. FROM
2. TO
3. AMOUNT
It's like having instant electronic access to the checkbooks for every one of your accounts. You tell us "from, to, amount", and we take care of the rest.
###
About Personal Capital
Developed by a team of high-tech and finance veterans, Personal Capital combines technology with personal service to create an entirely new way to manage your money - all of your money, at all your banks and brokers. Our free service effortlessly gathers all your financial data in one place, and helps you take control of your financial life. To learn more, please call 855-855-8005 or visit PersonalCapital.com.
Personal Capital announces iPhone app, Universal Checkbook originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
creativebitsorg: New StockLogos contest — Sanierung transaktion partner (you need to be logged in to see it) http://t.co/jhi309Rk
TwitPic launches app, way too late
TwitPic, which was the first photo sharing service for Twitter (and probably the most popular for a while, at least until competing services like Instagram stepped up) has finally released an iPhone app. It's ill-timed to say the least, considering that Twitter now has an official service (built into the official app and Apple's iOS), and several third-party apps hook into TwitPic.
But if you remain a big TwitPic user, the free app is probably worth grabbing. You can manage and upload your own photos and videos, and browse others' content as well. It may be a little late, but for those still making use of TwitPic's service, this app should come in handy.
TwitPic launches app, way too late originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Op-Ed: What’s Wrong with Digital Awards
Now that he’s done pontificating about Pinterest for the time being, our regular contributor and HUGE senior marketing strategist Josh Seifert returns in time for awards season. As the headline suggests, our scribe points out how digital has evolved, but digital awards-eh, maybe another story.
With this year’s marketing awards season in full swing, I recently took a closer look at what’s winning awards in digital these days. With full credit to everyone who recently took home a CLIO or a Webby, I have to admit that digital awards have become a bit of a head-scratcher for me. If awards are meant to recognize excellence in the medium, I’m not sure what’s going on.
The Webbys are possibly the highest profile digital awards and, honestly, have done a great job of raising the profile of digital in websites, online film, interactive advertising and mobile, in too many subcategories to count. Each year, I log in to vote in the People’s Voice Awards (usually at someone else’s behest) and, after arbitrarily casting a few votes, quickly become bored and abandon the site. The field is simply too broad, maximizing the number of winners (and entries), at the expense of the overall relevance of the awards.
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T-Mobile CEO: network getting ready for iPhone
During a CTIA event and in a press release, T-Mobile outlined the plan for its 4G LTE network, which will be available nationwide by the end of 2013. Buried in the press release is a tidbit of information about T-Mobile's 1900 MHz spectrum that'll interest iPhone owners.
T-Mobile confirmed that it will launch 4G HSPA+ service in the same 1900 MHz band that's supported by the iPhone. Current iPhone owners who defected from AT&T must use the iPhone on T-Mobile's excruciatingly slow 2G EDGE network. This change from EDGE to HSPA+ will let iPhone owners cruse along at 4G speeds that meet or even exceed that of AT&T. The wireless carrier hopes these changes will be in full swing by the end of the year.
According to AllThingsD, T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray said a marketing push targeting out-of-contract iPhone owners on AT&T "would make sense", but added that T-Mobile is "not there yet."
[Via AllThingsD]
T-Mobile CEO: network getting ready for iPhone originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Remove scrolling elasticity in Xcode
Copy this Xcode plugin to the following directory:
~/Library/Application Support/Developer/Shared/Xcode/Plug-ins/
You should create the directories if needed.
Enjoy!
Avengers also wins big on mobile sales with Fandango
The Avengers movie did quite well last weekend, hitting number one at the US box office easily, and picking up the biggest domestic opening weekend ever. But it also hit another important record. Fandango reports that The Avengers beat its record for tickets sold via a mobile device.
That's an important figure for Fandango, Marvel, and even Apple, or anyone making mobile devices or apps. It shows, according to Fandango general manager Rick Butler, that "mobile has clearly transitioned from just an alternative way to buy tickets to a primary choice for many weekend moviegoers." On Sunday, mobile represented a whopping 42% of total ticket sales for Fandango overall, so a very large amount of people are looking up movies on their mobile devices, and then buying them right then and there.
Which creates a very large (and growing) market for ticket sales on mobile devices. The last film to hold this record was The Hunger Games, so I don't think this is the last we'll hear about higher mobile ticket sales. Fandango's sales on mobile will probably continue growing, and we'll probably see even more movie marketing users of mobile devices like the iPhone.
Avengers also wins big on mobile sales with Fandango originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Last Chance to Save with AllFacebook Marketing Conference Early Bird Rates
The early bird rates for this year’s AllFacebook Marketing Conference end tomorrow, May 9. Sign up now and save over $200 on passes that give you access to two full days of panels, discussions, presentations, and networking.
The conference features over 40 social media and digital marketing experts who will teach you proven solutions for building your brand and engaging prospective customers on Facebook. This year’s program will focus on Facebook’s latest tools, apps, research, and marketing opportunities, and will take an in depth look at Facebook ads, pages, credits, pages, social video, search history, social data, ROI, and F-Commerce.
Check out the full program here.
Tickets are only $579 when you register by tomorrow ($799 at the door). Sign up now!
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Microsoft wants Mac SkyDrive users
The competition between Microsoft and Apple is moving gradually from the desktop to the cloud. As noted by The Next Web, a recent marketing push by Microsoft tries to woo Mac users away from iCloud and into Microsoft's cloud-based SkyDrive service. The webpage and video highlights the advantages of SkyDrive by pointing out that Microsoft's service gives you access to every file, everywhere, even across platforms and, unlike iCloud, it integrates well with Microsoft Office.
These features of SkyDrive may not entice Mac users to abandon iCloud, but it could get those Office users to consider using the service along with iCloud. You potentially could use iCloud for your music and photos and push your productivity stuff into Office and SkyDrive. I personally wouldn't do it because iCloud and DropBox works just fine for my needs, but heavy Office users might want to take a closer look at Microsoft's service. SkyDrive includes 7 GB of free storage and has an app for the iPhone and iPad.
[Via The Next Web]
Microsoft wants Mac SkyDrive users originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Alioscopy Extends 3D Display Capabilities of Imagery Created with Photoshop CS6
Chiat LA Alum Takes on GCD Role at Deutsch
The snark welleth runneth dry for a moment so let’s just say Brett Craig has now joined the Dr. Pepper group at Deutsch L.A. as GCD following a similar stint at TBWA\Chiat\Day, where he played a senior creative role on the then-existing Call of Duty biz (remember this?) as well as Tostitos and Pepsi. Craig, in fact, spent most of his career at Chiat, initially joining in 2000 and moving up the ladder from copywriter to ACD to group creative director, spearheading creative work for other accounts including Sirius XM, Energizer, Ballpark Franks and Nissan in the process.
You might remember Craig from his contributions to Pepsi’s “Refresh Everything” campaign as well as this peculiar Will.I.Am./Bob Dylan Super Bowl ad mashup for the soft drink giant.
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Another title from Tiny Wings creator coming this month
We haven't heard much (anything, really) from Tiny Wings creator Andreas Illiger since he released his amazing little iOS game Tiny Wings, featuring a cute bird flying through a series of random hills. Illiger was a little intimidated (not surprisingly) after his game got so big so fast, and he disappeared from the public eye, even as his title sold millions and millions of copies on the App Store. But he didn't stop working, apparently. He intends to release another game very soon.
In this (very rare) interview, he says that he was shocked by all the attention Tiny Wings received. Despite making plenty of money, the only extravagance he's gone for was a new computer. He's still working alone, not with a big studio, and while he says the new game will be for iOS, everything else about the game is "a big secret."
It should be out in just a few weeks. It's good to see Illiger is managing to keep his head through all of this. It'll be very interesting to see what he's working on next.
[via Joystiq]
Another title from Tiny Wings creator coming this month originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 08 May 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Photomatix Pro Photoshop Plugin Updated for HDR Image Creation
AMC’s ‘The Pitch’ Recap: FKM Fights The Hive for Clockwork Home Services
Compared to last week’s battle for the Waste Management account, episode three of AMC’s The Pitch was quite tame. We didn’t get any office in-fighting, nor any neglected children, nor anyone fitting the villainous depiction of SK+G’s ruthless creative director, Ray Johnson. But, we did find comfort in the fact that sometimes, even if it’s only once in a great while, the client picks the better concept at the end of the day.
And we still got to see people cry. Oh man, did we ever get to see people cry. (SPOILERS AHEAD!)
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RKCR/Y&R Alums Need Help Naming Their Startup
For those who don’t know, Richard Exon and Damon Collins, who served as CEO and ECD, respectively, at London’s Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe/Y&R, left said agency last fall to launch their own startup. The only problem is that they still haven’t come up with a name for their new venture, so now the dynamic duo is asking for the public’s help via a new site they’re dubbing appropriately enough the “Startup Name Chooser.” Though they’ve already come up with 100+ names with ready-to-go logos, Exon and Collins are still soliciting feedback from users, whether they tweet the pair their favorites or come up with suggestions of their own. Let the crowdsourcing commence.
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