Are virtual worlds old news? TechCrunch begs to differ

A lot of people have been dissing virtual worlds lately, but that hasn’t stopped the inflow of investment. TechCrunch surveys the scene and says that $345 million have been invested in new virtual properties this year – a record. The blog has a list of who’s getting funded and with how much. There are also links to a few of the players.

tags: daily_reading, virtual_worlds

Has social media lost its luster?

The inevitable disillusionment is setting in with social networks, which has proven to be poor outlets for banner advertising. But anyone who is relying on these outlets to deliver banners is missing the point. As this story states, “The premium inventory on social networks isn’t a highly trafficked page, it’s an individual user.”

tags: daily_reading, social_networks, advertising

Did the “Enron of Norway” Pull a Fast One On Microsoft? More Details About the Mess at Fast Search & Transfer

I used to share a building with this company. How “fast” the mighty can fall.

tags: daily_reading