TheWarp has the exclusive on YouTube getting ready to launch their own movies on-demand service. The service will allow users to stream key Hollywood movies.
The key Hollywood studios have been searching for a competitor to iTunes that they can push and it seems as though YouTube is that key competitor.
It is expected that the new movies on-demand service could launch as soon as this week, but I would expect it in a few weeks time. Studios that have already signed include Sony Pictures, Warner Brothers and Universal. So far only Paramount, Fox and Disney havent joined the service, but Im sure after a while they will follow (except Disney, who has Steve Jobs as the major shareholder).
You can check out the full details over at TheWarp.
Google has released the Google Toolbar 7 for Internet Explorer. Google comments that the toolbar bring the best elements of Chrome to Internet Explorer 9.
According to the official Google blog post on the launch, Google Toolbar 7 has the following features:
Instant Search (must be enabled in toolbar options)
Highlight ability to show where key terms appear on a web page
Quick Scroll, to suggest what part of a web page might be the most relevant
For those who actually care about the royal wedding (doesnt seem like anyone here in the UK cares, they are just happy its a public holiday!) you will now be able to watch it live on YouTube from anywhere in the world.
The Royal Household has just announced that footage of the entire ceremony will be live-streamed on their official YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/theroyalchannel.
The live stream will begin at 10:00a BST (9:00a GMT, 2:00a PT, 5:00a ET) on Friday, April 29, and will follow the wedding procession, marriage ceremony at Westminster Abbey and balcony kiss. Alongside the live stream, The Royal Channel will also feature live blog commentary of the event to give timely updates and insights as the day unfolds. For those of you in different time zones, the footage will be reshown in its entirety directly following the event and will be available in full on the site to view afterwards.
In amongst all the tomfoolery and confusion generated last week around April fools, it was perhaps surprising that Google’s announcement of its latest foray into the world of social media was the only big story that was actually true. Considering the search giant’s track record in social media, it would have been reasonable to dismiss the +1 announcement alongside almost-believable tales about Facebook microchips and movement-sensing email, but it transpires that the revelation is a reality.
Google plus one is a rating system whereby, when logged in, users will be able rate results that they see as relevant or useful but clicking a ‘plus one’ button featured to the right of the results. This will influence the order of future searches, since Google will prioritise results that have received the most endorsements.
For the user, this will mean more relevant search results and a reduction of spammy, low quality links appearing in the SERPs. Users will also be able to determine which results their friends deem to be useful. So what exactly does this mean for SEO practitioners? Will years of work be undermined when sites with tonnes of links are subsumed by seemingly lesser competitors, just because users ‘like’ them more?
The answer is possibly, but there is no reason for SEO experts to panic, Google concede that +1 will be just an addition to the hundreds of other signals it uses to rank sites. What +1 does indicate though is an ever increasing reliance on social signals to rank sites. Google and Bing already use Twitter and Facebook mentions to influence results but +1 represents Google’s commitment to a user-centric search model.
So how will this change the way SEO’s operate? Will SEO come down to simply ‘plus-oneing’ a result endless amounts of times? Or even paying people to plus one? This is also doubtful, such a transparent method is unsustainable and while it may be used as part of a wider strategy, Google will surely have measures in place to penalise individuals who abuse the system.
The introduction of +1 is in fact part of Google’s wider remit to improve its offering. The Panda update was the first indication that Google is serious about removing spammed or ‘gamed’ results from its SERPs, enhancing the overall user experience, most likely in response to competition from new search engines like Bing.
As Dave Naylor once said “so long as there is still a search button SEOs will still have jobs”. This raft of changes simply means that the spammers and the Black-hats will have to up their game and start producing decent content that real users really want if they are stay afloat.
Guest post by: Joe is a blogger who is of the belief that credit cards should be removed from the equation of obtaining links!
HP has just launched a new range of printers that are compatible with Google’s Cloud Print. Google Cloud Print has been available for a while now and also available on other printers, but HP’s range of printers requires no configuration or setup.
The full details of which printers are compatible can be found over on the HP website.
With HP ePrint-enabled printers and Google Cloud Print, it just got easier to print from your mobile device. All you need is the cloud—no drivers, no PC connection, no additional software. Google Cloud Print is supported by HP’s ePrint mobile printing portfolio, enabling you to print where life and business happens.
If you don’t have a HP ePrint printer but still want some of the benefits of cloud printing, visit the Google page for Cloud Printing and follow the instructions on how you can get it to work with your current system.
Google has announced an investment of 3.5 million euros into German solar power photovoltaic powerplant. Google isn’t investing in the plant on its own – it has sided with German private equity company Capital Stage. This investment has given Google a 49% ownership of the company.
The powerplant is located on 47 hectares (116 acres) in Brandenburg an der Havel, near Germany’s capital of Berlin. Google says the power plant has a peak capacity of 18.65MWp, which puts it among the largest in the country.
Its great to see that Google and other are starting to invest in solar companies, as it is going to be the future of power around world.
Ex-Engadget’s Josh Topolsky and PC Mag’s Lance Ulanoff going head-to-head over Apple vs. Android in the latest installment of The Webby Debates on CNNMoney.com. We have just embedded the video below. Let us know what you think!
Pingdom has put together a great article that outlines how big Google actually is. Most people dont actually understand how large Google is online, but here is a quick list of the Google owned sites that are inside the top 100 worldwide according to Alexa.
It seems like Google has just started a very interesting experiment. Google is pushing a new feature called “+1″. +1 works in the same way as the Facebook “Like” button. If you find search results that you like then you can click +1 and it will let everyone know that you like that search result.
Previously, with the last search algorithm update Google added a remove button, which helped to weed out the terrible content on the web. Its great to see that Google are offering more customisable results to the world.
Starting Wednesday, users who opt into the +1 button experiment in Google Labs will start seeing a +1 icon next to each link in Google search results.
Beyond showing up in search results, Google plans to offer to publishers a +1 button that lets readers +1 something without leaving the publisher’s site. Facebook has a big head start here with its Like button — some 2 million sites and counting have it installed — but Google’s button will instantly have a lot of appeal, given the company says +1 data will directly influence its market share dominating search rankings.
Google Alerts is an amazing tool by Google that seems most of us dont even know exists. Google Alerts helps users monitor the web for interesting new content. In other words, when Google finds new content based upon your specific keywords, then they will let you know via an RSS feed.
Here is an article that everyone should read, as it helps you get the most out of Google Alerts.
TheWarp has the exclusive on YouTube getting ready to launch their own movies on-demand service. The service will allow users to stream key Hollywood movies.
In amongst all the tomfoolery and confusion generated last week around April fools, it was perhaps surprising that Google’s announcement of its latest foray into the world of social media was the only big story that was actually true. Considering the search giant’s track record in social media, it would have been reasonable to dismiss the +1 announcement alongside almost-believable tales about Facebook microchips and movement-sensing email, but it transpires that the revelation is a reality.
