Archive for May 14th, 2008

You may not know what “FiOS” stands for, but communications provider Verizon is running an online promotion that should take care of that. They dearly hope so, because FiOS is an important key to the company’s future.

The acronym refers to Verizon’s “Fiber Operating System”, the fiber-optic network the carrier is building that allows it to bundle television and high-speed Internet services with digital phone services. The service lets Verizon compete with cable companies’ bundled offerings, and Verizon is so far the first large U.S. carrier to sell it. more

Sometimes it seems as if mobile marketing has been waiting for its moment in the spotlight about as long as the Chicago Cubs have been waiting for a World Series win. And like the Cubbies, mobile too often seems poised for a winning streak, only to wind up in the cellar for another year. more

The mantra in the early days of the Internet was that “content wants to be free.” The last decade has added some important qualifiers to that, leading YouTube to pull copyrighted material and some big media providers like The New York Times to swing pendulum-like between paid subscriptions and complete availability.

But HarperCollins Publishers says it has seen strong results from a pilot program that follows that Web-pioneer dictum by throwing selected titles up onto the Internet cover to cover, permitting readers to consume them in toto on their PCs. more

Scion, Toyota’s youth-oriented brand within a brand, does marketing differently, to say the least. The car maker has opted for the road less traveled in most of its online promotion, favoring independent film and music festivals, presence in virtual worlds, and hip-hop-flavored video as ways to promote its vehicles. more