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A Simple Idea for 411

I’m sure that the 411 business has taken a hit since the adoption of the internet in consumer’s homes came along and enabled a self-service model for free. Since then there’s been an advance in 411 – enhanced 411, which gives interested parties more information (for a greater fee of course) for things like directions, movie times and even in some case restaurant reservations.

Today, it occurred to me that there is a pretty simple advance that could be made for all callers, especially now that mobile phone penetration is so high, as well as the continuing growth of smarter (not necessarily smart) phones which allow for richer messaging services. I think this idea could work for people whether they were calling from a mobile or landline and could be quick to rollout if the carriers felt they were interested in making a bit more money from something we already use.

Here it is — yours for the taking telecom industry!

Instead of just offering an option to have the number dialed, why not send the information as an SMS or even an email with vcard so you could save it for future calling from your phone/device. Landline calling would require a simple registration to identify where you want the information sent. I’d pay the additional fee (probably 25 to 50 cents) so I could have the information for future reference.

Just think of the number of times you’ve called for a number more than once. You probably didn’t have a pen which is why you called again… you do have your mobile, if that’s how you called and you can certainly grab the email later on if not.

From a carrier perspective, it should be a simple add-on. You know who we are, what number we are calling from and what the capabilities of our devices are to best send the information. Landline operators (most if not all offer wireless) and should be able to just pump more messages through the existing gateway. Receiving an SMS usually gets you paid… whether a number of messages are included with a plan, or on a per message basis.

That’s about it. Bring it on!

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Ready for the 4th?

Planning on doing more than just watching the fireworks this weekend? If you’d like to try and photograph some of the action, you might want to check out the links at PhotographyBlog first… It might not be a simple point and shoot exercise, but can certainly be done well if you are careful with your camera settings.

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mNews

MotionApps recently released mNews, a new RSS reader for Palm – actually Treo Only – devices. It seems to be quite nice, keeps things simple and is well integrated with the system (5-way and Blazer browser). The main missing feature at the moment is import of OPML – either from an online source or your SD card.

Optimized for Treo 600 devices from PalmOne, mNews will leverage full power of your phone. You will be able to read news in variety of formats, including Web browser view for content rich items. When you find a topic you want to know more about, just a single tap or key press will take you to the publisher’s site where you can find all the details you need. [MotionApps]

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GooGa 1.0 – A Multi-Google Search Gadget

Tiger might be a year away, but here’s a new “Gadget” for Dashboard I’ll be looking forward to playing with when does…Main feature? Searches Google, Google Images, Google Groups, Google News, Froogle, and even gmail.

Having a decent HTML and CSS background, and some antiquated recollection of Javascript, I decided to code what is the obligatory gadget, a Google search gadget named “GooGa”. The API is not difficult, and only working between the holes in my Javascript memory and some poor debugging info in Tiger. [Dan Dickinson: The Primary Vivid Weblog]

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What’s TV Good For?

A report from Information Resources and Deutsche Bank claims television advertising doesn’t work for most mature CPG brands. Will the Internet? [eMarketer]

A new report released by Deutsche Bank, which examined 23 major household, personal-care, food and beverage brands, found only 18% of the brands studied generated a positive return on investment (ROI) from TV advertising for periods of one year or less, and less than one-half, 45%, saw their ROI pay off in the long term.

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Sony Debuts 20 Gigabyte Walkman to Silence iPod

I’ll give Sony credit for the industrial design on this one before saying that once again Sony decides to seriously limit their own potential. This beauty only plays ATRAC3, so you can bet no one will buy it other than good little Sony Employees. I guess if Sony could stop their own internal conflicts (no easy task) they might be able to succeed as a content creator and distributor with some very nice players.

The Japanese consumer electronics maker said the 20-gigabyte device, which is its second hard-disk drive gadget aimed at unseating Apple and can store 13,000 songs, will be launched on July 10 in Japan, by mid-August in the United States and in September in Europe.

Dubbed the Network Walkman NW-HD1, it marks a major upgrade to the legendary Walkman brand and the announcement comes on the 25th anniversary of the introduction of Sony’s groundbreaking portable music player — July 1, 1979.

It is expected to sell for around 53,000 yen ($487) in Japan and less than $400 in the United States, Sony said, undercutting Apple’s 40-gigabyte device, which sells for $499 and can hold up to 10,000 songs. [Yahoo! News]

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Target Aims at Times Square

From Today’s New York Times…

Target is taking more than 23,000 square feet of ad space on nine signs on the exterior of the lower floors of the skyscraper at 7 Times Square, also known as Times Square Tower, which opened in April.

The deal, to be formally announced today, is estimated to be costing Target $750,000 to $1 million in rent alone, in addition to production and maintenance expenses.

…

“Manhattan is a very important market for us, and we’re always looking for real estate opportunities,” Ms. Thornton-Greear said, adding that “a number of factors have to come together” before a Target could open there.

Ms. Liebmann, the retail consultant, said she did not believe Manhattan shoppers would be annoyed at seeing so many signs for a chain where they cannot readily shop.

“It will have meaning to consumers whether Target is around the corner or they have to jump on a train to get there,” she said. “For people who do shop Target,” like the many tourists who frequent Times Square, “it’s reinforcement,” Ms. Liebmann added. “And for people who have only heard about Target, it will make them salivate even more at the prospect of an occasional ‘treat trip.’ “

I can’t imagine what would be standing in their way to open, if Target feels that spending close to a Million bucks a month in Ad Rent is a good idea with no store to shop in the area. Speaking only for myself, I know there is nothing I like better than the prospect of train travel to bulk shop for treats. It’s so nice to go completely out of my way to buy things I really did not need, but thought were kinda cool because the price was low.

Are they taking crazy pills or what??