Donald Trump has routinely bragged about his nearly 12 million Twitter followers on the campaign trail.
But that number may actually be a bit misleading, according to a new study by digital ad firm eZanga, which looked at how much digital marketing money campaigns are wasting showing ads to automated bots that mimic human behavior.
The firm found that more than than one third of the Twitter accounts that follow the candidates of both major parties are not human — 39 percent, or 4.3 million, in the GOP nominee’s case and 37 percent, or 3.1 million of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton’s Twitter audience. Read more…
Palettes are a series of clean-looking dials, sliders and buttons that bring tactility to operations you’d normally perform on-screen. Here’s a quick example:
I’m mightily impressed at the thought that went into the UX. Take a look at how you set these up:
The design seems pretty great. The magnets are smart and I dig that the little OLED screen displays what app you’re in. And despite the fact that the modules appear to slide across the desk a bit too easily in the video, the company says that “Rubberized bases keep Palette firmly planted on your desktop as you slide, press and turn.”
The standard units are aluminum, but they’ve also got a handsome version done in solid cherry.
I’m putting this up as a “yea or nay” because despite how well-designed and clever these are, I’m not sure I’d sacrifice precious desk space to incorporate the system. I’d love the buttons for Photoshop, where I often have to hunt and peck through a series of commands, and the dial for editing videos in Premiere, although it’s hard to beat key taps for frame-by-frame accuracy. I don’t have any use for the sliders, though; I’ve always found sliders, as an interface, to be imprecise.
I work on a laptop, and in general I like to keep my hands on the keyboard and trackpad; I stopped using a mouse long ago because I don’t like reaching. I’ve also grown fond of keyboard shortcuts, but admittedly I can’t tell if it’s for efficiency’s sake or because I’ve developed Stockholm Syndrome.
What say you, would Palettes fit into your workflow? And would you be willing to spare the desktop real estate?
These are, by the way, just about the opposite of that Fidget Cube.
Adblock Plus, one of the web’s most popular ad-blocking services, will soon begin selling its own ads—and taking a little bit of the cut as well. Seems counterintuitive, huh?
The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) offers payments companies an opportunity to expand beyond mobile phones, cards, and point-of-sale devices, to a broad and diverse ecosystem of internet-connected devices.
We forecast that there will be 24 billion connected devices installed globally by 2020, up from nearly 7 billion today. And over 5 billion will be consumer connected devices by 2020, representing a massive expansion of touchpoints that could eventually offer payments functionality.
A recent report from BI Intelligence dives into the budding industry of connected device payments, providing a rundown of the stakeholders driving innovation in wearables, connected cars, and connected home devices. It also gauges the impact of new payment devices on different payments companies, along with how these devices could shift consumer purchasing behavior.
Here are some of the key takeaways:
The Internet of Things is ushering in a new era for payments companies and manufacturers.The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) offers an opportunity to facilitate payments beyond mobile phones, cards, and point-of-sale terminals, on a broad and diverse ecosystem of internet-connected devices.
More transactions could eventually pass through connected devices than smartphones. We estimate there will be 24 billion of these devices by 2020, with 5 billion of them being consumer-facing. This represents a massive expansion of touchpoints where payments could be enabled.
Card networks have developed a basic framework to enable commerce in everyday devices. Visa and MasterCard are creating the underlying infrastructure to support the standardization of payments integration and stake themselves out as the key connected payments gatekeepers. Their payment platforms are universal, allowing digital payments to grow without being tied to the success of a particular manufacturer.
Consumer-facing IoT companies have much to gain from enabling payments in their devices, including improving the value of the device, being able to cross-sell products through the device, and laying the groundwork for future opportunities to earn incremental revenue. For payments companies, connected payments offer a new revenue stream and an opportunity to gain market share ahead of competitors.
Wearables, connected cars, and smart home devices will be the top connected payments product categories.
In full, the report:
Frames the opportunity for embedding commerce capabilities in new devices.
Explains how a device becomes commerce-enabled.
Discusses the potential for payment-enabled wearables, connected cars, and smart home devices.
Examines the impact of connected payments on key stakeholders.
Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it:
Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you’ll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >> Learn More Now
Over the past year, there has been a significant uptick in the number of connected cars on the road. And as internet integration becomes more commonplace, the automobile as we know it will transform.
Over the next five to 10 years, this internet integration is expected to change the car ownership model, create a new platform for consumers to access content, lead to fully autonomous vehicles, and revolutionize the auto industry.
The market position of the car today is similar to where the smartphone was in 2010 — it’s just taken off and is ready to explode.
In a new report from BI Intelligence, we examine the transformation of the automobile. We examine all areas of the changing automotive market, including the market size for connected cars, automakers benefits and connection strategies, market leaders, consumer demand, and more.
Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:
Over 380 million connected cars will be on the road by 2021. The market has seen a significant increase in automakers plans to connect the majority of the vehicles they sell and as a result, we’ve increased our 2015 forecast.
Automakers are connecting the vehicles they sell because the connection offers clear business opportunities.
Consumers are adopting the connected car faster than expected. We identify the 3 factors that causing the increase in demand.
Tech companies will play a major role in the future of the automotive market. The big question is whether tech companies will eventually manufacture cars?
Fully autonomous cars are only a few years away. Technological, regulatory, and consumer adoption hurdles still remain, but there have been many strides towards a car that can drive itself from point A to point B with little to no human interaction.
In full the report:
Forecasts connected car shipments
Identifies automakers strategy for connection
Analyzes consumer interest in the connected car
Examines Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
Discusses the potential changing car ownership model
Describes the evolution of the self-driving car
Identifies top connected car and fully autonomous car barriers
Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it:
Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you’ll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >>Learn More Now
