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Google Chromecast now available in Canada, UK and 9 other European countries

Mar19
by on March 19, 2014 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Around the Web, Gadgets, Google, Product Updates

Google has finally launched its Chromecast streaming dongle — which allows for ’casting’ of content from a smartphone, tablet or laptop to any HDMI-equipped TV — outside the US for the first time since it launched in July last year. From today, Chromecast is available to buy in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland, in addition to the US. In the UK, it costs £30 and is available from Google Play, Amazon, Currys and PC World – those latter two got a bit ahead of themselves and actually put it up for sale ahead of launch….

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Airbnb founder on branching out into other services, promoting the local economy… and THAT orgy

Mar18
by on March 18, 2014 at 9:32 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider, Profiles and Interviews

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A lot has been written about the so-called sharing economy in recent times. Some of it has been negative, some reports have questioned the rising tide of legislation that may hamper its growth, while others have merely analyzed the staggering rise of this peer-to-peer product of the Internet age. At the Guardian’s Changing Media Summit in London today, Nathan Blecharczyk, co-founder and CTO of Airbnb, was in the house to discuss all-things, well, Airbnb. He covered familiar ground, including the history of the company and lessons learned in those first years, but he also touched on the issue of what could be…

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Pandora raises One price to $4.99 per month for new subscribers and scraps annual option, blames royalty rates

Mar18
by on March 18, 2014 at 9:18 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider

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Pandora today announced changes to its Pandora One subscription plan, which charges users to listen without advertising. The company is keeping the same pricing for existing monthly subscribers, but new subscribers and annual subscribers have to pay more. Here is how the changes are broken down: Existing Pandora One monthly subscribers that remain active will not experience a price increase “at this time” and will continue to pay $3.99 per month. For new subscribers, the subscription price will change to $4.99 per month starting in May. Existing annual subscribers that remain active will migrate to a discounted loyalty price of…

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Start small: 5 tips for building a successful niche marketplace

Mar18
by on March 18, 2014 at 9:04 pm
Posted In: Analysis and Opinion, Around the Web, Entrepreneur, How-To's

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Leigh Middleton is the CEO and Co-Founder Six3. A lot has been written about digital marketplaces – virtual spaces in which a market operates – and, similarly, about niches – narrow target markets. However, the two are rarely contemplated together. Niche marketplaces have already proven to be a successful model for the likes of Airbnb, Etsy, Hotel Tonight, Uber, and Yplan by offering a focused user experience that is synergetic with the delineated audience requirements. But how do you keep this audience engaged and returning while building out both sides of the marketplace simultaneously? A niche marketplace with a two-sided interest…

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8 of the best iOS apps for shooting and sharing video—beyond Vine and Instagram

Mar18
by on March 18, 2014 at 7:41 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Roundups

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Let’s imagine you’re not toting a dedicated video camera or DSLR, but rather are using the the ever-present smartphone camera in your pocket. While you can always call on Instagram or Vine for shooting and sharing video, there are so many other cool video apps out there—some free, some costing a few dollars—that it’s worth broadening your field of view to include these eight innovative selections. One major, and somewhat non-obvious, obstacle that stumps many filmmaking novices when recording on a smartphone is, ironically, too much volume. That’s right. Each second of unnecessary video is time wasted. That footage may be…

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