Ad Blocking: Containment or Rollback?

Posted by on Aug 2, 2016 In US foreign policy, a classic debate has been over whether to force change in or simply prevent the expansion of an enemy state. The choice is between “rollback” or “containment.” A similar debate is surfacing in the ongoing ad blocking “wars” between advertisers and consumers. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), an online media and marketing industry group, thinks you can do both. In a...
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The Third Wave and Steve Case’s Apple Disconnect

Posted by on Jun 24, 2016 Former AOL CEO and Chairman Steve Case has been snagging headlines and interviews. A year after Verizon bought AOL for $4.4 billion and 16 years after AOL peaked with a market cap of $163 billion (when it bought Time Warner) Case has been talking up ideas contained in a book released last month, The Third Wave: An Entrepreneur’s Vision of the Future. The book is a mixed bag. Case himself calls...
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Boston INTX – Less Turbulence, More Focus

Posted by on May 27, 2016 Last year in Chicago, change was in the air. The NCTA had just unveiled INTX, the Internet & TV Expo, as the new brand for the Cable Show. The proposed Time Warner Cable-Comcast merger had flopped, but industry dealmakers were not done yet. Only a few weeks later, Charter announced its intention to acquire Time Warner Cable. At this year’s event in Boston, attendees were more comfortable...
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The Wired in Wireless

Posted by on Apr 15, 2016 It was once common to think that cellular communications were entirely wireless. If the public were polled, a large number would have thought that calls hopped back and forth from tower to tower until they reached their destination. The truth, of course, is otherwise. The all-wireless misunderstanding is less common today. All it takes is one look at a cell tower. While festooned with antennas...
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Richmond VA vs. Silicon Valley?

Posted by on Mar 31, 2016 Richmond VA-based Lighthouse Labs hosted a “Startup Journey” forum last week, featuring medical services innovator Iggbo. It also touched the sensitive issue of Silicon Valley. Lighthouse Labs Talks with Iggbo Lighthouse Director Todd Nuckols moderated the event at the University of Richmond. Headlining the evening were two of the Richmond-based founders of Iggbo, whose mission is to...
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Mobile World Congress 2016 – Too Big to Ignore

Posted by on Mar 8, 2016 This year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC) broke 100,000 attendees. That’s up from 94,000 in 2015. The Barcelona-based event is too big to ignore, and too big for vendors to skip. Meanwhile, the event’s organizer, the GSMA, appears to be sitting pretty. According to Light Reading (LR), two years ago it generated $164 million, when attendees numbered only 85,000. Vendor angst is a reality, as the...
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