Google's Chrome OS slips to 2011 "consumer launch"

Google originally said that its Chrome OS would debut for free in Autumn. Reports now suggest that the OS will not arrive until 2011.

Google originally announced the operating system back in July, eventually making a beta available for testing, and will release it free for all users. The new OS is designed to compete directly with Microsoft's Windows software. Google is ditching Windows machines for Mac and Linux based operating systems. The company has allowed employees to purchase new machines running Mac or Linux without approval, but requires authority from CIO's for new Windows-based machines.

Engadget reports that Acer's Jim Wong confirmed that the company would not be launching a Chrome OS netbook until 2011. Wong said this would be in parallel with the "consumer launch" of the OS next year. The comments come after a report earlier this month by Digitimes that claimed Google was on target to push its new OS to the masses. At least one device was expected by the end of November. It was originally believed that both Acer and HP would launch Chrome OS smartbooks in December but it appears this is no longer the case.

Google's operating system will be based on the browser, Google Chrome, and will work with web-based applications. Google's cloud offerings will be the main focus of the new OS.
Tom Warren

The New Drawing On The Right Side Of The Brain

Maximizing your brain untapped potential

Mind mapping

View more presentations from Stefano de Rossi.

What is Gamestorming?

Check this post What is Gamestorming? from Communication Nation:

For more Gamestorming goodness, check out the Gamestorming blog.

Top Management Forum 2010

Check this post Top Management Forum 2010 from MyMarketing.Net:

Il 17 e 18 novembre scorsi si � svolto a Milano, su iniziativa di Knowit�, il Top Management Forum incentrato sul tema ?Eseguire l?innovazione. Come. Le leve per realizzare il cambiamento e competere?. Come spiegato da Alessandro Saviotti, Amministratore di Knowit�, ?in uno scenario in cui spesso prevalgono dati negativi sull?andamento del nostro Paese, le imprese non possono esimersi da una profonda riflessione sui requisiti indispensabili per dominare il futuro nei prossimi anni e non esserne invece travolte.

L?innovazione rappresenta la vera sfida per cogliere le opportunit� future, il motore della crescita industriale e la principale risorsa per la competizione globale. L?obiettivo del grande evento annuale dedicato al Top Management � quello di presentare alle imprese italiane opportunit� d?innovazione e spunti di riflessione per rilanciare la competitivit�, sviluppare nuovi prodotti o servizi, gestire relazioni complesse, creare strategie per posizionarsi sui mercati nazionali e internazionali, promuovere e cavalcare la ripresa sostenibile?. Nell?ambito del Forum si � svolta anche un?interessante tavola rotonda moderata da Nicola Saldutti, giornalista del Corriere della Sera, e focalizzata sul tema centrale dell?evento: l?innovazione. La riflessione d?apertura, proposta da Marina Salamon, Presidente del Gruppo Alchimia, � stata dichiaratamente ma realisticamente amara: ?ci troviamo tutti a dover gestire un Paese in declino dal punto di vista demografico, culturale, della ?voglia d?intraprendere?. Un Paese in cui c?� un fortissimo bisogno d?innovazione (che non deve essere limitata alla sola tecnologia) e in cui si afferma spesso un ?capitalismo familiare? che va a scapito della meritocrazia?. Paolo Perino, a.d. di BTicino, ha ricordato che un tempo ?l?innovazione veniva concepita esclusivamente a livello di progettazione, con competenze aziendali molto specifiche e per certi versi tenute ?chiuse?: oggi sarebbe rischioso limitarsi al processo ?ereditario?, rispetto al quale deve invece imporsi un interscambio d?informazioni su tutto ci� che riguarda il sistema prodotto. Nessun ?segreto?: mettiamo tutto a disposizione e creiamo un circolo virtuoso che acceleri il processo innovativo?. Fiorenzo Bellelli, Presidente di Warrant Group, si � dichiarato concorde sul fatto ? messo in risalto anche da Marina Salamon - che l?innovazione � direttamente insita gi� nel modo di porsi sul mercato e ha sottolineato quanto sia importante ?fare ci� che il mercato stesso chiede, non quello che riteniamo possa chiedere?. Massimo Marotta, a.d. di  Black & Decker Italia, ha ricordato che si deve andare oltre il semplice rapporto cliente/fornitore e ha rimarcato l?importanza del territorio, ?luogo di scambio di conoscenze e di generazione d?idee?. Massimiliano Magrini, Fondatore e Managing Partner di Annapurna Ventures, ha giustamente valorizzato anche l?individuo, precisando che si tende a porre sempre l?accento sull?idea, mentre ?a contare ancora di pi� sono le persone che le idee le hanno: � su di esse che vogliamo investire?. La tavola rotonda � stata chiusa da Olivier F�cherolle, Directeur G�n�ral France & CMO di Viadeo, che si � soffermato ?sull?esperienza francese nell?ambito dell?innovazione e su quello che ne pu� derivare come insegnamento?.

Mauro Murero

 

 

 

Strategic Self-Promotion: 8 Rules for Marketing Yourself

Check this post Strategic Self-Promotion: 8 Rules for Marketing Yourself from THEsmallCOMPANYBLOG:

On occasion, the workplace can be a confusing and frustrating place for a small company manager. Have you ever volunteered to lead an upcoming high-profile initiative, only to see someone else be selected for no apparent reason? Have you ever interviewed for an internal position higher on the organizational chart, then not been selected even though you meet 100% of the requirements? Have you ever added a big number to the company�s bottom line and not received any credit for your efforts�even though it was YOUR hard work and innovative thought process that made it happen? When these situations arise it is easy to assume that your work is not appreciated, or that something (or someone) internally is working against you. But more often than not, the answer is much simpler: small company owners and CEOs are notoriously bad at saying �Thank You� and giving outward credit to people who work hard for them.

So exactly what does marketing yourself and your accomplishments entail? Should you openly brag about yourself to your co-workers, point out every good thing you�ve ever done to your boss, and hand the owner or CEO of your small company an up-to-date resume? Not exactly. But I am hoping you understand that a little periodic self-promotion�done in a subtle way�can help you get where you want to be from a career standpoint. With that in mind, I have assembled a few of my most valuable ruls for marketing yourself and your accomplishments within your organization; no matter what you happen to do for a living.

Rule #1: Understand Your Audience. Whether you manage a marketing department, a product development department, the Accounting function or the entire operation, there is a principle for marketing yourself that is more valuable than the rest: know who you�re speaking to. Does your boss prefer to communicate via e-mail or verbally? Does she respond better to statistics or written reports? Does he get more excited to know that the company has saved money or made money? What time of day is your boss most open to a quick note or conversation? Knowing this information can do nothing but help you in the long run.

Rule #2: Establish a Regular Pattern for Your Communication. Instead of surprising your boss with a positive report when she least expects it�and is most likely to forget�establish a regular pattern of positive communication. Early afternoon on Friday is typically a good time to send a positive report, because your boss might actually have time to read and absorb it. But whatever time you choose, be consistent from week to week. In time, your supervisor will not only come to expect your �Friday Good News,� she will actually look forward to it.

Rule #3: Paint Only the Big Picture. When you finally decide to approach your manager with some positive news, be careful to not inundate him with details. Statements like �our most recent product was released 3 months early� or �employee turnover in my departments has been cut in half over the last two years� are about as detailed as you should get when it comes to your personal accomplishments. You can always offer to provide your manager with more information at a later time if requested. And there�s one more advantage to leaving out the details�it gives your boss an excuse to stop by your office for a POSITIVE conversation about your performance, which of course we all need more of these days.

Rule #4: Present the Good, but Resist the Temptation to Embellish. Once you become comfortable communicating your accomplishments to your boss on a regular basis, it actually becomes fun. But at the same time, it can be tempting to push the boundaries and blur the line between what is expected in your role and what is considered an extraordinary accomplishment. Resist the temptation to point out that you met your revenue goal for the year, or that you completed a major project on time, or that a planning document you have been working on for several months is now complete. As difficult as these activities can be, do not forget they are an expected part of your job.

Rule #5: If You Can�t Back it Up or Don�t Believe it 100%, Don�t Report It. I can�t explain why, but it has been my experience that small company owners and CEOs are inherently suspicious of good news. Maybe it�s because they�ve been burned so many times in the past. Or maybe it�s because managing by exception (only communicating with employees when there�s a problem) is a more comfortable style of management. Either way, you can be 100 percent certain that the receiver of your positive report will, from time to time, question you about it�extensively. If you�re not comfortable walking through your report step-by-step with the person who signs your paychecks, don�t bother.

Rule #6: Use Charts and Graphs�In Color. If you actually want your boss to read what you�re making available to her, try to avoid lengthy written reports, documents with paragraphs, and even reports with long sentences. Wherever possible, presenting information in a succinct, graphical-based format makes your news easy to review, understand and absorb. And in the absence of charts and graphs, don�t discount the value of a quick e-mail with a handful of short bullets. We all have a person in our lives who sends e-mail that we immediately delete or archive, because the message is usually too long to read. Don�t become that person! And using a splash of color once in awhile in your charts and graphs (don�t push it) immediately indicates to your boss that your information is important, and that you put some time and effort into assembling it.

Rule #7: Take the Opportunity to Make Your Boss Look Good. Are you looking for a sure-fire way to make your boss excited to receive your regular positive updates? Focus on providing timely, succinct and well-formatted reports she can use to enhance her reputation with HER boss or peers. As you create your reports, ask yourself this question: �Based on the content and format of this report, could my boss pass this on to the owner of my company, or to an executive from another small company?� If the answer is no, spend a little more time working on it. A good manager can obviously complete his job at a high level . . . but a good employee figures out ways to make his boss look good in the process.

Rule #8: Market Beyond Your Own Department. Here is a fact that might surprise you: your direct supervisor is not the only person you should be marketing yourself to. Although formal and written communication to anyone but your direct supervisor could land you in hot water, there is no rule against mentioning you and your departments� successes to people outside of the department. Today�s peers could be tomorrow�s employees, managers, or even company owners�and the more people who know you�re extremely good at what you do, the better.

As a small company manager there are literally dozens of reports you are expected to maintain and turn in at any given time. But today I need you to add one more report to your regular routine�the one that highlights YOU as a great manager. If you regularly go the extra mile or continually find innovative ways to bring revenue into the company, you have the right�and the obligation�to let someone know about it. If you do something great for your company, don�t be afraid to tell someone!

Also, Social Bookmarks are currency here at THEsmallCOMPANYBLOG, so a Retweet (button provided above), Stumble or Digg (below) would be greatly appreciated.� And if you�re looking for a quick and easy backlink to you own site or blog, comments on this post are open as well.

Related Articles You Might Enjoy:

• 5 Secret Resume Killers Every Hiring Manager Looks For


• 5 Job-Related Lies You Might Be Telling Yourself (Guest Post)


• 15 Signs You Might Lose Your Small Company Job


• 3 Tips for Finding (and Getting) a Small Company Job


• 5 Survival Tips from Successful Small Company Managers

Vuoi conquistare il palco e l�attenzione per 5 minuti?

Check this post Vuoi conquistare il palco e l�attenzione per 5 minuti? from Marketing Non Convenzionale - Ninja Marketing:

Quello che stai per leggere ti sembrer� molto interessante, specialmente se sei giovane. Ad Arezzo il 3 dicembre, presso la Sala delle Muse, si svolger� #Generazioni 2.0, un�edizione speciale di ToscanaLab dedicata ai giovani.

achieving, without goals

Check this post achieving, without goals from zen habits:

Post written by Leo Babauta.

It was only a couple years ago that I was completely focused on goals � and I accomplished a lot by setting and working on goals.

I ran several marathons, lost a lot of weight, got out of debt, started a fairly successful blog � the list of goals I achieved is long. These days, for more than a year now, I�ve pretty much given up on goals, though I�m still learning how that works.

The question most people have is: how do you achieve anything without goals? And the short answer is: the same way as you always did � get excited about something and do it!

how we really achieve

Goals take credit for our accomplishments, like a bad boss does in the company�s annual report. But we all know who did the work to get those accomplishments � the workers. The boss just acted as a taskmaster but mostly got in the way with a lot of pressure and asking for time-consuming reports.

Goals are the same: we give them a lot of credit for our accomplishments, but they didn�t do the work. They might have given us a direction, but in the end, the work is done on a daily basis. Goals also require that we do a lot of admin work � assess and report on how we�re doing with our goals, etc.

But remove goals from the picture and look at the gritty details of how work gets done and accomplishments happen:

• You get excited about something. Sometimes that�s through setting goals, but it could be other ways: inspiration from someone else doing something, setting a challenge for yourself, joining a group doing something exciting, or just waking up and wanting to do something great. Or you put on �Hey Mama� by Black Eyed Peas and start shaking your booty and want to get moving.


• You take action.


• Maybe you report your new thing to others � on your blog or Twitter or Facebook or an online forum, or just telling your friends.


• You might make it a part of your life for a little while.


• You take more action.


• You tell people about how you�re doing.


• Pretty soon you�ve done something amazing.

Notice that goals are only one way to do this.

with or without goals

A minimalist blogging friend, whom I respect, said in a little discussion on this yesterday that he accomplished a lot with goals � and that�s true. But I believe he would have accomplished great things even without goals � they just might not have been what he expected.

He also said, without goals, a lot of people wouldn�t do anything � which I don�t believe is true. Freed of goals, I highly doubt that most of us would just sit around doing nothing. That would bore us � interesting, talented people want to do something. So we would � we�d get excited and create. Sure, there would be a few people who sit around doing nothing � but those people are setting goals for themselves and are sitting around not achieving those goals, and feeling guilty about it.

That�s the thing: even with goals, some people aren�t going to achieve anything, because they haven�t figured out how to motivate themselves. Goals don�t do that for you � they just make you feel guilty that you haven�t gotten them done. And even without goals, people who are motivated are people who will get excited and do stuff. They�ll accomplish something great, no matter what.

I�ve done just as much without goals as I did with: I�ve self-published my latest book, moved to a city, given up my car, created bootcamps for bloggers, gotten in better shape than I�ve ever been in, read a ton of books, created another blog, eliminated ads on Zen Habits while making it more profitable than ever, and countless other things I won�t even mention.

life purpose

A few years ago, I did a post talking about your life�s purpose: The Key to Dying Happy.

It�s still a good method, but I don�t do it anymore. That doesn�t mean the things I set out as my purpose aren�t important to me anymore � I just go about doing them differently. Let�s take a quick look at how I do that. From the post:

Leo�s Mission

• He was an amazing dad.


• He made his wife happy.


• He was a good, compassionate person.


• He made the lives others better (especially those in need).


• He was a great writer.


• He was happy.

Here�s the remarkable thing � you could say those things about me right now. I mean, whether I�m a great writer or whether I make the lives of others better � those are debatable, sure. But I definitely try: I�m happy, and I do my best every day to be a good father, husband, writer and compassionate person.

So I�m not so focused on the end of my life � but on right now. Instead of setting these goals for the end of my life (which I did several years ago), I get excited about all these things, right now, and do them every day because I�m excited about them. I love being a dad, a husband, a writer, a friend. I absolutely get up excited about these things every day, and am grateful I have the chance to do them.

get excited and do things

You don�t need goals to tell you what to do. You know what to do (if you don�t, read this). You�re excited about doing it already � you just need to focus, and get to it.

Goals keep you focused on something in the future, instead of being present and enjoying what you�re doing right now. Goals keep you fixed on one path, which might not be the best path in a week or a month or a year. They keep you fixated on one thing, rather than being open to new opportunities, being flexible as the landscape changes, being free to pursue something you�re newly passionate about rather than sticking to something you�re tired of.

Being liberated from goals means you will always be excited about what you�re doing. And yes, you�ll accomplish things. You�ll get somewhere great � you just might not have known you�d ever end up there when you started.

Get excited, and do stuff.

Also: shake yo bambama.

�

de Tweet

5 Reasons Facebook Will Be the 2012 Marketing Requisite

Check this post 5 Reasons Facebook Will Be the 2012 Marketing Requisite from Social Media Today:

Resistance to happiness

Check this post Resistance to happiness from Mind Map Inspiration:

Often unhappiness is created through analysis or resistance. Primary resistance is non-acceptance of the past, the future or the present moment.

Analysis � having to enquire if and why you are happy encourages the search for reasons or conditions. The search for the �right� set of conditions creates infinite seeking. Expecting the outside to fix and fulfil the inside.

The alternative is �happy for no reason�. Acceptance of and surrender to the past, the present and the future. Acceptance of what you can and can�t change. Embracing impermanence and practicing positive and unconditional daily living.

�If only� is a detour away from reality � if only the sun would come out, if only I weighed less, if only I could stop aging! Through surrender you can change the things you can change and accept the things you can�t change. Through surrender you can acknowledge the self-created reasons for your resistance to happiness. Acknowledge the choices you are making that cover up your happiness. It takes total surrender to sense the happiness that already exists within and beneath your resistance to happiness.

There is no magic switch; it takes daily and moment by moment peaceful surrender and acknowledgment of your choice making both in thoughts and actions. It also takes acknowledgment of your wrong choice making thoughts and actions.

Resistance to the happiness that already exists within you is created by choice of thoughts and actions.

What might happen if you stopped having to analyse if and why you are happy?

I hope you enjoy viewing my Mind Maps � there are hundreds more planned here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog plus ongoing creativity and drawing tips. If you are not already subscribed, why not do so now via RSS or Email

Also available: E-Books designed to help you create stylish and artistic mind maps of your own.

If you know someone who could benefit from this post and others here at the Mind Map Inspiration Blog please share with them.

Follow me on Twitter @mindmapdrawer

Share and Enjoy:

Related Posts:

• There you are


• How might our buildings combine with nature?


• How to enjoy washing the dishes


• Why attach to a thought?


• Imagine

on line reputation management

Social Media - Online Reputation Management

View more presentations from LBi Belgium.

The Influence of Mobile on Social Marketing�s Future

Check this post The Influence of Mobile on Social Marketing�s Future from Social Media Today:

Mobile platforms and location-based networks could take social marketing to the next level.  As the increase in smart device ownership helps put the mobile web in the pocket of more and more Americans, mobile will play a greater role in all forms of content consumption�including social media.

Consigli SEO per le aziende B2B: bassi investimenti, alta resa

Check this post Consigli SEO per le aziende B2B: bassi investimenti, alta resa from Search Advertising Blog, di Andrea Cappello:

Per le aziende B2B il SEO� � pi� che mai una grande incredibile opportunit� per acquisire nuovi clienti. Perch�?

Essenzialmente perch� normalmente non devono competere per il posizionamento delle parole chiave spesso di nicchia con centinaia di migliaia di pagine generate da contenuti degli utenti (UGC), tipico invece del settore B2C.

Questo comporta per le aziende investimenti contenuti per ottenere alta visibilit�. Soprattutto perch� i fondamentali del SEO (ottimizzazione del sito) sono ancora un elemento di maggiore importanza rispetto ai fattori off site (link).

L�analisi delle parole chiave che realmente portano �utenti che si convertono in clienti� (passando per una lead) � probabilmente il momento critico pi� delicato ma anche pi� trascurato sia dai clienti che dalle tradizionali SEO agency che vendono il SEO un tanto al kilo. Mettendo poca attenzione nell�analisi delle parole chiave (basata su tools appositi, expertise, test, web analytics) si correre il rischio di vedersi posizionati al primo posto con termini che servono tipicamente all�agenzia SEO a far vedere che bei risultati hanno ottenuto (un p� come i creativi che fanno siti in flash, bellissimi a vedersi ma poco usabili dagli utenti e inadatti a generare business, che normalmente era l�obbiettivo per cui erano stati commissionati).

Gia: i risultati. Anche per chi investe nel SEO non sono e non possono essere i posizionamento ottenuti, ne tantomeno il traffico di utenti, ma le azioni obbiettivo che gli stesi realizzano, come la richiesta di un preventivo.

E di fatto, un settaggio ben fatto di Google Analytics (o software affine) che misuri gli obbiettivi (lead, invio email preventivo, registrazione al sito, newslttter, etc�)� raggiunti su SEO ma anche PPC e altre fonti di promozione online, � l�unico strumento utile su cui basare l�analisi del lavoro svolto e il rientro sugli investimenti.

Se non lo propongono DIFFIDATE, per due essenziali motivi:

1. Probabilmente non vogliono farvi (ma pi� spesso non lo sanno proprio fare) comparare i risultati ottenuti con le parole chiave che vi hanno posizionato al primo posto ma che non generano obbiettivi (non giustificandosi su quelle non posizionate che invece potrebbero generarne ma che non lo saprete mai finch� non siete visibili, magari con campagne test pay per click)


2. Vogliono tenervi nell�ignoranza per vendere sulla �fiducia� (tattica tipica purtroppo di chi vende promozione e pubblicit�).

Condividi:

The 4 Marketing Metrics Mandates

Check this post The 4 Marketing Metrics Mandates from Social Media Today:

There are four mandates that companies are adopting when they are examining and analyzing the success of their online marketing and social media programs. I recently gave a presentation to the Measured Marketing Roundtable at Techpoint, Indiana�s technology and economic development association, that outlines these new metric must-dos.

Make Your Business Better with Social Media

Check this post Make Your Business Better with Social Media from Social Media Today:

Dollars. Cash. Money. That�s how our society, by and large, judges the success of an enterprise, a business, an organization or a company. But, are we truly successful simply because we�ve made a lot of money? I don�t think so.

Googlish Google's secret code language - wdyt?

Check this post Googlish Google's secret code language - wdyt? from Don Dodge on The Next Big Thing:

Googlish is the language used to communicate via Instant Messaging. Any high school kid understands it instantly. It is not unique to Google, or any company. Mark Zuckerberg at Facebook has been studying it too. The way we communicate in this Twitter / SMS world, and the tools we use to do it, is rapidly changing. A Googler sent this message recently. I will add translation.

Googlish. (n). A recently discovered language spoken 1,000,000 solar years ago by a civilization on the former planet Earth. Evidence indicates it was a gutural and unpronounceable language, a conclusion drawn from the one surviving fragment:

- yt? vc? � � � � � � � � � � � [You there? Video conference?]


- on 3G, sry, no vc. � [I'm on 3G network, sorry, no video conference possible]


- ooo? � � � � � � � � � � � � �[Are you Out Of Office?]


- wfh � � � � � � � � � � � � � �[Yes, I am Working From Home]


- k, sync by im? � � � � [OK, can we sync by Instant Message?]


- np. � � � � � � � � � � � � � � [Sure, no problem]


- qq wrt new okr. � � �[Quick question. With regard to the new OKR (Objectives, Key Results)]


- imho ok by q4/11. �[In my humble opinion, it is OK by the 4th quarter of 2011]


- wdyt q2/11? � � � � � � [What do you think? Maybe by 2nd quarter of 2011?]�


- w/ hc, np��� � � � � � [With some headcount, sure no problem]


- afaik hc tbd. if no hc, q3/11 ok? �[As far as I know, headcount is TBD. If no headcount is Q3 OK?]


- ..sry, gtg (mtg). � � � [Sorry.. I have got to go to a meeting]


- k, lmk asap. i'm ooo til eod but pls ping. �[OK, let me know as soon as possible. I am out of office until the end of the day, but please ping me when you can]


- sgtm. ty. � � � � � � � � �[Sounds good to me. Thank you.]


- yw, ttyl � � � � � � � � � � [You are welcome. I will talk to you later]





[Archeological encyclopedia, 1,002,010 A.D.]

This is the way people communicate via IM, text message, and even email. Our communication tools need to adapt. Our search technology must be able to search across all our communication modes to find and link all relevant conversations.

Mark Zuckerberg is right. Email will not be killed by a better email system. The market will move to a very different, real time, communication mode that works across all our devices; laptops, cell phones, ipads, etc. It will stay in sync so that a message read on your phone shows as read on your laptop too.

Personally, I like the old English and the elegance of a well constructed line of thinking. Twitter and SMS are great for quick bursts, but totally inadequate for deeper thought. The trick is how to embrace both modes at the right times.

Subscribe�- To get an automatic feed of all future posts�subscribe here, or to receive them via email�go here and enter your email address�in the box in the right column. You can also follow me on Twitter�@dondodge

Bill Gates & Steve Jobs

Vodafone, addio al flat per l'Internet mobile

L'annuncio del Ceo Europe Michel Combes: "Le telecom devono far fronte al rischio congestione reti". Anche France Telecom adotterà la stessa strategia Vodafone è pronta a dare l’addio definitivo alle tariffe flat per l’Internet mobile. Lo ha annunciato Michel Combes, chief executive officer di Vodafone Europe, in occasione della conferenza DigiWorld Summit di Idate: l’operatore mobile britannico, numero uno al mondo per giro d’affari, si appresta a estendere a tutti i Paesi in cui è attivo la tariffazione differenziata per volume di dati e, in alcuni casi, anche per qualità del servizio.

Per esempio, in Spagna, i clienti business potranno ottenere priorità in caso di congestione sulla rete. Vodafone ha anche intenzione di introdurre “delle formule a più livelli di prezzo che permettono ai clienti di pagare in base al consumo e di scegliere la velocità e il volume di cui hanno bisogno”, ha affermato Combes.

Secondo il quotidiano francese La Tribune, la strada tracciata da Vodafone, e di cui la britannica O2 e l’americana At&t sono state pioniere, verrà presto seguita anche da France Telecom. “Sulle reti mobili, dobbiamo adattare i nostri modelli di tariffazione all’esplosione del traffico dati”, ha dichiarato Stephane Richard, ceo di Ft, alla stessa conferenza DigiWorld Summit. “Potremmo proporre delle offerte dati segmentate in base all’uso, permettendo ai clienti di usufruire dei servizi preferiti in modo ragionevole ma dissuadendoli dall’utilizzo intensivo di video che penalizzano gli altri utenti”. Orange ha già avviato una strategia del genere con il pacchetto Origami Style lanciato a fine ottobre: costa 29 euro al mese ma fissa un tetto alla navigazione.

Questa politica tariffaria che introduce un Internet mobile a due velocità permette agli operatori “di proporre tariffe di ingresso più abbordabili e prezzi più alti ai clienti che chiedono di più”, ribadisce Combes di Vodafone. Un modo per rispondere al rischio di congestione della rete, ma soprattutto “una delle tattiche migliori per guadagnare dal boom della domanda d’accesso”, commenta Steve Mather, analista di iSuppli.

Intanto il gruppo Vodafone sembra vicino a risolvere un grattacapo ancora più pressante della congestione delle reti: i dividendi di Verizon Wireless. Il Ceo Vittorio Colao ha dichiarato la scorsa settimana alla Morgan Stanley Technology, media and telecoms conference di Barcellona che si aspetta che “qualcosa accadrà” alla fine del 2011, proprio riferendosi a una ripresa del pagamento dei dividendi.
 Verizon Wireless, come noto, è di proprietà al 45% di Vodafone (il resto appartiene a Verizon Communications) e non paga i dividendi dal 2005. All’inizio del mese, il Cfo del gruppo britannico Andy Halford aveva dichiarato di aspettarsi che Verizon Wireless riprenderà a dare i dividendi nel 2012.

The Best Movie You Haven't Heard Of: Inside Job

Check this post The Best Movie You Haven't Heard Of: Inside Job from Trust Matters:

Here are the ratings (% who liked) from Flixster for some of the movies playing this weekend:

90%            The Social Network

88%            Inside Job

81%            Unstoppable           

78%            MegaMind

78%            Jackass 3-D

77%            Red           

75%            Skyline

65%            Due Date

65%            Morning Glory

64%            The Next Three Days           

54%            Saw 3D

You know The Social Network. But how about the #2 movie, Inside Job? Ever hear of it?

96% of the critics liked it. Rotten Tomatoes rated it 96%.  It�s narrated by Matt Damon. Feeling out of the loop yet? Why haven�t you heard of this movie?

More on obscurity later, but here�s the official synopsis:

'Inside Job' is the first film to provide a comprehensive analysis of the global financial crisis of 2008, which at a cost over $20 trillion, caused... 'Inside Job' is the first film to provide a comprehensive analysis of the global financial crisis of 2008, which at a cost over $20 trillion, caused millions of people to lose their jobs and homes in the worst recession since the Great Depression, and nearly resulted in a global financial collapse.

Through exhaustive research and extensive interviews with key financial insiders, politicians, journalists, and academics, the film traces the rise of a rogue industry which has corrupted politics, regulation, and academia. It was made on location in the United States, Iceland, England, France, Singapore, and China.

There has been no shortage of books and articles about the meltdown. But most of those have had a reporter�s flavor to them�here�s what happened, then here�s what happened next.  I felt that no one had really pulled it together with a narrative theme and the data to back it up. Until this weekend, that is.  

The theme is now clear. Bad things happened. They were not an accident. They were the results of bad people behaving badly. They knew what they were doing. They did them anyway. And to this day, they refuse to acknowledge responsibility.  The issues of trust that became so manifest were not just about systems and markets; they were inescapably about people as well.  It's one thing not to trust a system; it's yet another to not trust those who inhabit it.

Think of this movie as what Michael Moore would produce if he had a PhD in economics and a career as a Federal Prosecutor. It�s the project of Charles Ferguson, who in fact does have a PhD in political science from MIT (he has also consulted to the White House and the Department of Defense, was a Senior Fellow at Brookings, and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations).

You may know Ferguson as the director of No End in Sight, a powerful documentary about the Iraq war. He�s confident enough to interrupt an economist and say, �You can�t be serious about that. If you would have looked, you would have found things.� Or to tell a former Bush administration under-secretary of the Treasury, �Forgive me, but that�s clearly not true.�

Here is a review by A.O. Scott, in the New York Times.

Boston.com calls it �a masterpiece of investigative nonfiction moviemaking � a scathing, outrageous, depressing, comical, horrifying report on what and who brought on the crisis.

Here�s Kenneth Turan�s review in the LA Times.

Go see for yourself; see the trailer here.  

The Role of Ideology in the Meltdown

There�s much to say about this documentary; I�ll limit my thoughts to just one�the role of ideas in the meltdown. 

In this day and age of neuro-explanations and insistence that only measurable behavior is relevant for management, the role of ideas gets pooh-poohed. Big mistake. 

I�ve written before about the power of strategic doctrine taught in business schools to negatively influence our general business thinking. But after seeing this documentary, I�m newly persuaded. Ideas have huge power: especially when those ideas happen to greatly serve the economic interests of patrons.  

In the pharmaceutical industry, it�s become well accepted that a researcher or writer who takes money from a drug company is at the very least subject to rules of disclosure. Failure to do so constitutes an immediate presumption of conflict of interest.

Yet somehow, we have never held our nation�s leading economists and business school faculty to the same standards. One of the most eye-opening aspects of Inside Job for me was to put this issue front and center. 

Some of Fergusons� hardest-hitting interviews are with the elite heads of academic institutions: Frederic Mishkin, a former Fed governor, now at Columbia Business School; his boss Glenn Hubbard, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under George W. Bush; John Campbell, Harvard�s economics department chairman; and fellow Harvard economist Martin Feldstein. 

They come off, respectively, as incompetent, blustering, inarticulate, and smug. None of them seem to have noticed a disconnect between their laissez-faire ideas and the disasters engineered by those who quoted them; much less any sense of impropriety at the comfortable financial relationships they shared with those very firms. 

Somewhere there is a researcher at Harvard Medical School screaming at the injustice of his not being published in NEJM because of some disclosure requirements, while his academic counterparts in business and economics were happily and openly opining on the health of the Icelandic banking system and the liquidity of the US subprime mortgage market, all the while getting very well paid. (Note: b-school profs provide functional consulting services to companies all the time; I don�t see that as an issue. This is vastly different; more another time). 

Results of the Meltdown

Ferguson touches clearly, albeit briefly, on one enduring outcome of this decades-long debacle--the increased gap in the US between the haves and the have-nots. 

In 1976, the richest 1% of Americans had 9% of the income. Now they have 24%. From 1980 to 2005, 80% of the gain in income went to the top 1%. Guess what industry disproportionately accounts for that gain?

But the most significant casualty, I think, is a great old American belief: the belief that you can make it here in the good old USA, land of opportunity, where anyone can be what they want. You don�t have to be limited by the circumstances of your birth, like in all those Old World countries.

Sorry: no longer true. By one study, it is harder for someone to get ahead now in the US than it is in Denmark, Australia, Norway, Finland, Canada, Sweden, Germany, Spain, and even France. Only Italy and the UK are more class-bound, and I�ve seen other studies where even the Brits are less class-bound than we are. That decline in opportunity is another result of greater income disparity. Again, one of the legacies of the financial industry. One trust expert states very clearly that a key driver of low trust is high income inequality.  And here's a good explanation of just why that is true.

You may disagree with a lot of what I�ve said here. You may think this movie won�t change your mind; and since it�s extremely hard to change people�s minds, you may be right. But if so, may I suggest you owe it to yourself to see it�if only to write back and point out the flaws in the movie.

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