Another music service? More Apple vs. Samsung legal action? Facebook rolls out video chat? OK the latter was kind of obvious. Let's get to the news!
TOTAL AND COMPLETE MUST READ: Bob Lefsetz analyzes the music industry and what it needs to do today, and a lot of these rules apply to any media business. A fantastic read.
Economics/Geekonomics:
A lovely flowchart on the Debt Ceiling's probable outcomes. I find it a tad optimistic, but it's pretty interesting.
Apple tries to block imports of Samsung devices as part of its lawsuits. This is getting vicious – though are we surprised at this point? I keep watch on these legal issues since they can produce unexpected repercussions – and I still think it can get crazy with international law and boundaries.
Music:
Spotify music service to launch in US. Really. More streaming and music services? At some point there's going to have to be consolidation. If you work in any music service, it just can't be that predictable.
Social Media:
Surprising no one, it appears Google+ will also roll out to paid Google App users. That suggests to me that Google has a few more features we haven't seen for the paid users, and shows one way they'll get and maintain mindshare – by making it part of people's business.
Facebook rolls out Skype-powered video chat. It doesn't sound as powerful as Hangouts, but still it shows Facebook is trying to keep up. That may suggest future hiring at Facebook for chat development, or future hiring at Skype depending on how it reorgs under Microsoft. And, yes, Facebook's video chat is powered by a company recently purchased by Microsoft, if that doesn't give you a headache.
Video:
Hulu is definitely being sold. OK, so 1) don't send them a resume, 2) see who gets them because someone is going to. If Wal-Mart or Amazon get them? Bet on ecosystem integration.
Video Games:
Civilization World goes Beta on Facebook – basically Civilization in Social Gaming. Curious to see how this goes, as it's got brand loyalty behind it. Mostly worth seeing for what happens as success or failure will affect similar efforts.
Duke Nukem? Not a winner for Take-Two.
QUESTION OF THE DAY: Did MTV and CDs really create an anomoly in the music market?