Kristen Nicole
Latest from Kristen Nicole
MasterCard Acquires DataCash for $520M. Mobile, Virtual Economy Going Global
Credit card services provider MasterCard has revealed another piece of its e-commerce plan, with the acquisition of DataCash for about $520 million. The European payment service provider has a central accounting tool for consumers seeking a global payments interface, electronic payment solutions and alternative payment options. Incorporating DataCash into MasterCard’s larger goals will align the ...
Intel Acquires McAfee for $7.7 Billion, Will Expand Mobile Security
More security acquisitions today, with Intel announcing its plans to buy McAfee for about $7.7 billion in cash. The chip maker is looking to expand its own security service offerings, and this acquisition marks its biggest move towards that goal. Intel will pay $48 a share for McAfee, a 60 percent premium for the antivirus ...
African iPad Clone Helping the Education Sector?
When the story of the 7” iPad clone first appeared in my inbox, I was thinking of doing a story on current tablet trends. It seems everyone is out to get their iPad clones on the market, especially as the back-to-school season gets under way, and the holiday season approaches. But after thinking more about ...
Love Lost for Dell CEO: Result of Another Hidden Agenda?
There’s no sexual harassment scandal floating above Michael Dell’s head, but the CEO is still feeling the wrath of displeased investors, as a quarter of his reelection votes withholding support. Dell revealed in a regulatory filing this week that 377.8 million of 1.5 billion votes were against Dell’s reelection, indicating a growing disappointment with his ...
Mobile Ads, Not Just for Phones Anymore. July Mobile Mix Report
Diversity is key for mobile advertisers, as operating systems and devices become more attuned to consumer needs. The July 2010 Mobile Mix report from Millennial Media notes this trend, witnessing a widening sea of advertisements, applications and verticals across a number of mobile operating systems. Android Takeover The days of Apple iPhone domination have ended ...
Zynga Powers Up with Localized China Launch, Conduit Labs Acquisition
Zynga powers ahead, expanding its social gaming front on a global scale. Today alone brought announcements of the social game developer’s acquisition of Boston-based Conduit Labs, as well as the launch of its first localized version of popular title Zynga Poker in China. The acquisition and extended portal launch further establishes Zynga in its social ...
The Real Value of Facebook Geo-Location: Contextualizing Ads around Social, Mobile Gaming
With expectations of Facebook’s geo-location launch to go down this week, the question around hyper-localized consumer tools moves even further down the path of monetization, usefulness and appeal. Geo-location is something we’ve anticipated from Facebook for months, and given the ripeness of mobile marketing as a current trend, it was only a matter of time ...
Spain Demands Google Hand Over Street Views Hard Drives, Too
Spain’s jumped on the Google-suing bandwagon, launching an investigation around the search engine’s Street Views mapping service. Judge Raquel Fernandino has ordered a Google representative to appear in court early October, in regards to a suit filed by The Spanish association of Internet users (Apedanica). The suit accuses Google of unlawfully collecting Wi-Fi payload data, ...
HP Acquires Fortify, Great Time to Beef Up Security
Mark Hurd may still be in the hot seat, but it’s business as usual over at HP. The company has announced its acquisition of securities company Fortify Software, for an undisclosed amount. The privately held security assurance company, based in San Mateo, California, will enable HP to extend more tools for businesses to identify vulnerabilities ...
Apple iAds Fumble Not Reflective of Mobile Marketing Industry
After the promise of Apple’s iAds helped to soften the potential blow of Google’s growing Android influence, it looks like iAds hasn’t been able to follow through on all the hype. Apple’s mobile advertising platform is suffering from some control issues on Apple’s end, which is apparently stifling some creativity from the marketers’ perspectives. Reports ...