Month: August 2013

Apple is fading from the “I have to have it!” category. They are looking for more incentives to get people to stick with them.

Apple’s iPhone trade-in program to add consumer choice

CNBC – “Apple is poised to start offering an in-store trade-in program, but consumers already have plenty of options to turn their old iPhone into cash—enough, in some cases, to get their next one for free.

The company launched the new program on Friday, offering a credit for returned iPhones that can be used toward the purchase of a new one. That’s just in time for Apple’s Sept. 10 event where analysts expect the company to announce a new iPhone.

It’s not surprising that Apple—which already has an online recycling program that lets consumers trade their iPhone for credit on an Apple gift card—would expand into store trades, said Todd Day, senior industry analyst for Frost & Sullivan. ‘If you look at Apple’s overall business model, it’s not just about the devices but the overall universe,’ he said. Offering a competitive trade-in program helps ensure those customers stick around, particularly if they receive a gift card instead of cash, as is the case with Apple’s existing online program.

There’s plenty of competition in the field. ‘Trade-in programs for smartphones have probably become the biggest, hottest area of smartphone transactions this year,’ said Eddie Hold, vice president of connected intelligence for research firm NPD Group.”

So, Google gives Apple folk some love!

Google releases a Chromecast app for iOS to help users set up and manage their $35 TV dongle

“Google released an official Chromecast app for iOS devices today, making it easier for users to set up the new $35 TV dongle, switch between multiple Chromecasts and change common network settings.

The app can be used to pair a new Chromecast with a nearby Wi-Fi network, as well as change the name assigned to the device and the network it connects to by default.

For users that own multiple Chromecasts and have them set up on the same Wi-Fi network, the app is also useful for managing which devices stream to which dongle. An area at the bottom of the screen also displays a list of supported Chromecast apps – which for now only features Netflix and YouTube.”

A new major version of PowerPress, with great new features!

RawVoice launches PowerPress 5.0

“Podcasting powerhouse RawVoice announced the release of PowerPress 5.0, a platform that provides content creators everything they need to podcast with a WordPress website or blog. The latest version includes Taxonomy Podcasting and Post Type Podcasting, which expands on the ability to podcast with blog posts and categories.

‘Taxonomy Podcasting and Post Type Podcasting add additional control for content creators to organize and display podcast content,’ RawVoice CIO Angelo Mandato said. Custom Post Types allow users to organize content into specific types, while custom taxonomies help users to classify content. Taxonomy Podcasting, co-sponsored by AfterBuzzTV.com, can be used to add podcast to a custom taxonomy-built website, navigation system or search mechanism.

‘Before PowerPress 5.0, we were limited to organizing our podcasts by category or custom channels,’ RawVoice CEO Todd Cochrane said. ‘Now we can separate and organize our websites into silo’s of podcast content, organized with category navigation separate from our blog categories.’

PowerPress 5.0 also introduces podcasters to the latest in Web-based media playback by including the MediaElement.js HTML5 Media Player.

‘Playing media on your podcast website just got better by utilizing the MediaElement.js media player library,’ Mandato said. ‘This open source HTML5-based player provides Flash and Silverlight fallback for older browsers and supports iPhone, iPad and Android.’

PowerPress 5.0 continues to make podcasting easier with its new Advanced and Default Modes that will help new podcasters get setup within minutes of installation.

‘With Advanced Mode, all of the settings and features are available,’ Mandato explained. ‘In Default mode, only the essential settings are provided, these two setting give both the novice and the professional the right amount of tools to syndicate their podcast.’

RawVoice, parent company to Blubrry and Tech Podcast Network, has provided content creators the power to expand their audiences, make money through advertising, receive detailed audience measurements and host their audio and video since 2005.”