Facebook Reveals Government Requests For User Data – US, India, UK, Germany, Italy & others top the list

Since the NSA revelations, many US tech companies have published transparency reports, revealing how often they have been approached by the Govt officials for information. Google, twitter & others have published such reports. Facebook has now joined this bandwagon by publishing the Govt requests for information in the first 6 months of the year. US, India & UK are the top 3 countries for requesting data.

Governments make requests to Facebook and many other companies seeking account information in its official investigations. These usually relate to criminal cases, such as robberies or kidnappings. They may also seek IP address logs or actual account content. This includes both criminal and national security requests.The number of requests from US is between 11K to 12K, India 3,245 & UK at 1,975. Germany, Italy, France & Brazil are some of the other countries in the list.

You will find more statistics at Statista

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The New Google Analytics Metadata API

Core Reporting API can be used to build dashboards & automating complex reports. This Core Reporting API has 250 data points (dimensions & metrics). To make building dashboards easier, Google has launched Google Analytics Metadata API now. The Metadata API contains all the query able dimensions and metrics included in the Core Reporting API. Attributes for each dimension and metric, such as the web or app name, full text description, grouping, metric calculations, deprecation status, and whether the data is query-able in segments have also been included as part of the Metadata API.

The new Metadata API saves a lot of time and gives users direct access to all the great new data the instant it’s available. Data Deprecation Policy for Google Analytics APIs for dimensions & metrics has also been published. More information about the The New Google Analytics Metadata API is available at Google Analytics Blog

The New Google Analytics Metadata API

Core Reporting API can be used to build dashboards & automating complex reports. This Core Reporting API has 250 data points (dimensions & metrics). To make building dashboards easier, Google has launched Google Analytics Metadata API now. The Metadata API contains all the query able dimensions and metrics included in the Core Reporting API. Attributes for each dimension and metric, such as the web or app name, full text description, grouping, metric calculations, deprecation status, and whether the data is query-able in segments have also been included as part of the Metadata API.

The new Metadata API saves a lot of time and gives users direct access to all the great new data the instant it’s available. Data Deprecation Policy for Google Analytics APIs for dimensions & metrics has also been published. More information about the The New Google Analytics Metadata API is available at Google Analytics Blog

Audi #onemillionreasons – 3D Microsite Using Fan Messages for Audi R8

Social media has become an important part for any brand in its marketing activities. Audi Germany has launched a user generated Real time 3D microsite using user generated content from Facebook, twitter, Google+ & Instagram to create Audi R8. Razorfish Germany and the creative production company Minivegas are the brains behind this great campaign. When a Audi fan uses the hashtag #onemillionreasons in his tweet, image & text on why they love Audi, it is gathered and becomes a spherical particle in a 3D model of the Audi R8.

Fans also stand chance to win Audi R8 driving experience. One can zoom in the 3D Model Audi R8 in the microsite & will be presented with the corresponding hashtag related information. Both 2D & 3D models are available on the #onemillionreasons microsite. This creative uses real time social data to create the model in the website. #onemillionreasons Facebook app is also available.

Internet.org – Facebook, Ericsson, Nokia, Samsung, Opera, MediaTek and Qualcomm plan to bring Internet access to Everyone

internet.org, a Non Profit initiative by Facebook, Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia, Opera, Qualcomm and Samsung plan to bring internet access to everyone. Two thirds of the world is not yet online & this initiative plans to bring it online. Recently Google launched helium ballons to bring internet access to the world. Internet.org partners will join forces to develop technology that decreases the cost of delivering data to people worldwide, and helps expand internet access in underserved communities. Developers, mobile operators and device manufacturers will work together to introduce business models that give people more ways to go online.

Internet.org is focused on enabling the next 5 billion people to come online. Building better networks, cloud computing, building systems to cache data efficiently, simpler mobile apps & others are some of the ways to reduce the cost of data delivery. Many tech companies, univ research projects & govt agencies are already working on bringing cheaper internet to the Masses. Partners will invest in tools and software to improve data compression capabilities and make data networks and services run more efficiently.

Future of Advertising, Tech, Mobile, Gaming & others : A to Z of Future

Analytics, Wearable computing, crowd funding, driver-less cars, Nano technology & others are some of the technologies which will bring a sea of changes in the way we live, communicate, travel & others. Apple, Google, Amazon & Facebook are some of the great tech companies working on the next generation of technology. Social media, Social business & e-commerce are bringing in new ways companies interact with the customers.

Smartphones have revolutionized the way one communicates & browses on the mobile. Computing power which was available on desktop earlier is now available on mobile devices & apps have made it possible for greater interaction. Social Listening is providing fresh insights to the way consumers interact with brands. Here is a great presentation on everything from A-Z happening in the technology.

26 Reasons You'll Love the Future – From A to Z from David Berkowitz

Top Smartphone Brands in the U.S. – Apple, Samsung, HTC, Motorola, LG, BlackBerry, Nokia, Huawei & others

Apple remains the top Smartphone brand in the US. This is followed by Samsung, HTC, Motorola, LG, BlackBerry, Nokia, Huawei & others. Samsung has recently introduced Galaxy S4. Several brands are coming up with new android based smartphones in the coming months.

You will find more statistics at Statista

“2013 India Digital Future in Focus” Report by comScore

comScore has released the 2013 India Digital Future in Focus report. This report provides an overview of the Indian web usage, online videos, social networking in India & other India related Internet & Digital information. It also provides trends in Indian Retail, Travel, Entertainment & other sectors.

Internet Usage in India is growing rapidly & this has led to a boom in the Indian eCommerce sector. Advertising, Social Network & others are some of the other areas growing rapidly. E commerce which was limited to Metro & tier 1 cities is expanding beyond this now. VC funding for the online shopping sites is a great example of this Indian growth story.

Some of the highlights from 2013 India Digital Future in Focus are:

1) 73.9 million home and work internet users in India. China & US are in the top 2 positions & India is at 3rd.

2) Women between the ages of 35-44 form the heaviest internet users in India

3) Blogging audience stands at 36 Million visitors with 485 growth in the last year

4) 54 million internet users in India watch Online videos

5) India has overtaken Japan to become the world’s third biggest Internet population.

6) Apparel is the fastest growth category in India with 13.4 million unique visitors.

Top Brands on Tumblr – Sprite, MTV, Disney, Tiffany & Co, Ralph Lauren, Coco-Cola, Adidas, Gap & others.

With the rapid growth of social media, brands are hopping on to many social networks to connect with the customers. Ever since Yahoo bought Tumblr, all the eyes are on tumblr on how big brands will use it. Simply measured’s study on top 100 brands on Tumblr from July 5th to August 4th 2013. This study explores how brands are using tumblr in engagaing with the fans, how they are distributing the content & others. 31% of the Interbrand Top 100 Brands have Tumblr accounts. Of the 31 brands, 27 also have Pinterest or Instagram accounts. Many of these brands on tumblr are also using Facebook & twitter for engagement.

Compared to Facebook, twitter & Instagram, brands using Tumblr is still less & needs to catch up with other social networks. Six brands are posting more than ten times a week. Brands average less than one post per day on Tumblr. tumblr is a social network for images & these images get re-blogged resulting in fans’ engagement. Top brands on Tumblr by reblogs are Sprite, MTV, Disney, Tiffany & Co, Adidas, Gap, Coco-Cola & others.

Browser Wars – Google Chrome Vs Mozilla Firefox Vs Microsoft IE Vs Apple Safari Vs Others

Browser wars refers to the user share of the browsers among IE, Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera & others. First browser war was between Microsoft IE & netscape navigator. IE succesfully crushed the navigator in the first browser war & became the dominant browser. In the last few years the market share of IE has gone down drastically with the new browsers coming to the market like Firefox, Opera, Chrome & others. Apple devices have a strong share of Safari. Google’s chrome has become the dominant browser now. Chrome, which is celebrating 5th birthday, is now responsible for 43% of the world’s desktop traffic.

Mosaic was the first browser which combined both the words & image together. Now with the rise of mobile & tablet devices, browser war has taken on a new dimension. Nokia, Blackberry, Samsung, Apple, HTC, LG, Sony & others are some of the top mobile devices.

You will find more statistics at Statista