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Create a list of weekly events with Memo2050

Some of the best software takes simple tasks and finds a whole new and innovative way of dealing with them. On the other side of the coin, some of the worst software takes simple tasks and needlessly complicates them. Such is the case with Memo2050. This bare-bones program lets you create lists of weekly events, but there are so few features that we can't imagine why anyone would choose this program over a typical calendar.

The program's interface is plain, consisting of a gray square with a few buttons. The program displays dates in a list a week … Read more

How to ban the banner ads from Panasonic Smart TVs

When I reviewed the Panasonic TC-PVT50 series, I was annoyed to see that the latest software update caused a banner ad to appear for a few seconds whenever I turned on the TV. It disappeared quickly and only popped up upon power-on, but it was still obnoxious. The first thing I wondered was whether I could turn it off.

Happily, Panasonic built in a way to disable the advertising. It's a simple, albeit buried, menu command. Here it is in a nutshell.

Hit the main Menu button on the remote (not the "Internet" or "VieraCast" … Read more

Dish Network chief defends new ad-skipping feature

Dish's new ad-skipping feature has aroused anger among TV broadcasters, but the company's chairman sees it as a wake-up call to the industry.

In a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, Dish Chairman Charlie Ergen defended Ad Hop, the new feature that lets Dish viewers skip advertisements.

Cheap Web-based TV is a threat to pay TV, believes Ergen, a trend created in part by the networks themselves because of their failure to develop ads better targeted toward viewers. Ergen is hoping Ad Hop will convince TV networks to create "more meaningful" ads that people won'… Read more

Intel reportedly ponders a new interactive TV service

Intel reportedly wants to kick off a new interactive TV service this year, though media companies aren't yet sold on the idea, Reuters reports.

The new service would use a set-top box with embedded Intel technology and tap into facial recognition to figure out who's watching, according to the report, which cited "sources who have been negotiating with Intel." Reuters said such a feature could allow advertisers to better direct their ads to specific genders and age groups.

But Intel wants to unbundle and license specific networks and TV shows at a discount to what cable … Read more

Facebook ads are effective, says new study

Do Facebook ads influence members to buy stuff? A new ComScore study says yes.

In advance of the study's publication next week, ComScore analyst Andrew Lipsman discussed the impact of Facebook advertising, saying that "Facebook earned media is having a statistically significant positive lift on people's purchasing of a brand."

The conclusions reached by ComScore run counter to recent a Reuters/Ipsos survey claiming that most Facebook members aren't influenced to buy products and services that appear in ads or comments.

But ComScore questions the accuracy of such surveys, saying that people don't necessarily … Read more

At last! Video ads on public restroom mirrors

I refuse to bow to the inevitable.

Indeed, I look the inevitable in the eye, grab it by its lapels, slap it a little and say: "Hey, inevitable. How do you like that, then?"

And yet it seems that I may now have to face the inevitable somewhere that I hoped I wouldn't have to.

Yes, the public restroom.

I have become used to ads above the urinal. They remind me to drink beer and work out. However, now, I may have to watch video ads while I wash my hands and stare at my uneven eyebrows.… Read more

How to make money on mobile, in three easy steps

Earlier this week, I wrote about how Facebook is in danger from a new kind of social network, one that's born mobile and figures out how to make money on that mobile usage.

I figured, in response to many questions and comments, it was only fair to get a little wonky for a moment about who actually is making money on mobile, or how a site or startup might try a mix of potentially successful strategies in the future. Here are my guesses.

First, the only apps and companies making significant money on mobile right now are making most … Read more

Facebook settles 'sponsored stories' lawsuit

Facebook has settled a lawsuit over its "sponsored stories" feature, in which plaintiffs claimed the social network violated users' right to privacy by publicizing their "likes" in advertisements without asking them or compensating them.

Details of the settlement weren't released, Reuters reported. The judge in the case last year rejected a Facebook request to dismiss the lawsuit and had scheduled a hearing on class-action certification for Thursday.

Facebook's sponsored-stories ads essentially display a user's name, picture, and a tagline asserting that the person "likes" a particular advertiser. These particular ads initially … Read more

Discovery CEO warns Dish Network against skipping ads

BOSTON -- Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav warned Dish Network that it's playing with fire when it comes to a new commercial hopping DVR technology.

During a panel here at the National Cable and Telecommunications Association's annual tradeshow, Zaslav told CNN's Erin Burnett that the new feature Dish Network introduced recently on its Hopper DVR, which skips advertising during shows that are recorded from broadcast TV, could disrupt the industry in a negative way. He said the model is unsustainable since program owners need the advertising revenue to help cover the cost of their shows.

Dish co-founder … Read more