Mediaboss Marketing

LONDON, Oct. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Online publishing pioneer YUDU Media today announced the launch of its new YUDU Education, the first digital textbook publishing platform that enables educational publishers to seamlessly digitize, optimize and deliver multimedia textbooks for ubiquitous access on tablet, laptop and desktop computer.

With YUDU Education, publishers can quickly and easily create rich, engaging digital textbooks that students can access on iPad, Android and Windows tablets, or any Mac or Windows PC, inside and outside the classroom. In addition, YUDU Education also allows students and instructors to annotate, bookmark and take clippings of content, and even integrate supplemental materials, all of which are instantly synchronized to the YUDU cloud for access on any device.

"YUDU Education solves the biggest challenge of the Bring-Your-Own-Device era for both publishers and studentscross-platform access," said YUDU CEO Richard Stephenson. "Students may need to read and take notes on a Windows PC in the classroom, but then want to pick up where they left off on their iPad at home. Or, perhaps the school provides iPads for classroom use, but the student has an Android tablet, or maybe a laptop, at home. With most publishing platforms, this is impossible. YUDU makes it possible."

YUDU Puts Publishers in ControlYUDU is the first system that puts the needs of publishers and students first, providing access to content from anywhere on any device and enabling publishers to sell directly to a broader audience.

Amazon, iBooks and other platform-specific systems lock publishers into a singular OS, forcing them to recreate content in order to offer it on multiple devices. Plus, these systems put the platform operator in control of the customer relationship, preventing publishers from accessing valuable consumer data.

In addition to providing ubiquitous access, YUDU Education puts publishers in control of their own content without having to build their own high-end digital publishing platform. And, unlike other digital textbook platforms, YUDU allows publishers to maintain a direct relationship with the customer.

"In Ireland, around 10% of all new middle school students are using a device to read textbooks," Conor O'Sullivan, Education Technology Manager at Folens, said. "While a majority of students are using iPads, there are a number of Android devices and there are also schools running with Windows netbooks. YUDU has been able to provide us with a system, which caters for all three. As a mainstream publisher, it is important that we can provideour educational content on every type of devicefor all students, it would cost us a fortune to build this type of platform ourselves."

Digital Publishing Made Easy, AffordableYUDU's self-service web-based portal makes it easy for publishers to publish rich interactive books in a matter of minutes. First, simply upload an existing textbook in PDF format. Once YUDU digitizes the content, publishers can add animations, videos, hyperlinks and more. Once complete, just click "Publish" and the digital textbook immediately appears in the publishers' YUDU digital store. Edits, revisions and updates can be made at any time and published immediatelyno more waiting for the platform provider to make the changes and published the revised edition.

"YUDU Education makes it easy and affordable for publishers, school districts and students to keep up with the rapid pace of technology and protect their investment with a future-proof solution," Stephenson said. "With YUDU, you don't have to worry about committing to a specific device or operating system that might be gone tomorrow."

Rather than a per-book sales fee that penalizes publishers for being successful, YUDU Education pricing is based upon the number of pages published, making administration simple and maximizing revenue. An annual maintenance fee ensures continuously updated technology to accommodate the latest OS upgrades on every platform.

Read this article:
YUDU Media Launches YUDU Education: The First OS-Agnostic Digital Textbook Publishing Platform

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) is issuing its full support for the Digital Advertising Alliances (DAA) position against machine-driven do-not-track (DNT) browser standards, because they restrict consumer control and freedom of choice. The announcement comes on the heels of a just-released DAA statement opposing the DNT settings automatically imposed on consumers by the Microsoft Internet Explorer version 10 (IE10) browser.

The DAAs statement addresses publishers concerns about what will happen if they do not honor IE10-imposed DNT flags. DAA, the digital advertising industrys self-regulatory body, does not require companies to honor DNT signals fixed by browser manufacturers and set by them in browsers. Specifically, it is not a DAA principle or in any way a requirement under the DAA standards to honor a DNT signal that is automatically set in IE10 or any other browser. The Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB) will not sanction or penalize companies that ignore the default settings on IE10 or other browsers and intermediaries. In contrast, the DAA and CBBB will continue to impose disciplinary measures on companies that violate legitimate consumer choices under the AdChoices self-regulation program.

In a report issued last week, researchers from the Harvard Business School determined that the ad-supported internet ecosystem was responsible for 5.1 million jobs and contributed $530 billion to the U.S. economy in 2011 alone.

About the IAB

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) is comprised of more than 500 leading media and technology companies that are responsible for selling 86% of online advertising in the United States. On behalf of its members, the IAB is dedicated to the growth of the interactive advertising marketplace, of interactives share of total marketing spend, and of its members share of total marketing spend. The IAB educates marketers, agencies, media companies and the wider business community about the value of interactive advertising. Working with its member companies, the IAB evaluates and recommends standards and practices and fields critical research on interactive advertising. Founded in 1996, the IAB is headquartered in New York City with a Public Policy office in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit http://www.iab.net.

View original post here:
IAB Supports Consumer Control Over Internet Ad Experiences, Says Machine-Driven ‘Do-Not-Track’ Systems Limit Users ...

TAMPA A Los Angeles-based private equity investment group has bought the Tampa Tribune from longtime parent Media General for $9.5 million, promising to improve the daily newspaper as it took control Monday morning.

Revolution Capital Group, a 3-year-old firm, is making its first foray into newspapers. The move marks a new chapter in the long-standing newspaper war between the Tribune and its larger rival, the Tampa Bay Times.

The acquisition, meanwhile, ends Media General's 150-plus-year involvement in the newspaper business.

"It's a bittersweet day for Media General to complete the sale of its last remaining newspaper group," Marshall N. Morton, company president and chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement. "The Tampa Tribune was our largest and second oldest newspaper. Many Tribune employees have decades of service.''

Revolution Capital Group works with corporate sellers to buy their smaller, noncore assets that often have not been able to attract buyers, according to the company's website. So far, it has bought businesses in telecommunications, manufacturing and software.

Under the deal, the Tribune, its affiliated newspapers and website, tbo.com, will be operated by the Tampa Media Group, a locally based company created by Revolution Capital.

Revolution did not directly address whether there would be layoffs among the 618 employees of the new Tampa Media Group.

"Today is a big day; it's a celebration. We have new owners," Tribune publisher William Barker said in introducing top Revolution Capital executives to Tribune staffers Monday morning. Video of the announcement quickly surfaced on YouTube.

Revolution founder and managing partner Robert Loring and co-founding partner Cyrus Nikou said they wanted to grow the business and promised to support the staff. "You guys are really the experts and know the business better than anyone else," Nikou said.

Asked by a staffer whether they would add employees, Revolution managing director Aman Bajaj said: "It's not always that hiring more people is the best way to grow a newspaper. We are in the process of analyzing that."

Visit link:
Tampa Tribune sold to Revolution Capital Group

China Labor Watch is reporting that another Foxconn strike broke out on Friday at the Zhengzhou factory in China. The report says 3,000 to 4,000 Foxconn(2038) are complaining about Apples (AAPL) demanding quality standards for the iPhone 5. China Labor Watch further reports that workers are under immense pressure to deliver iPhone 5s without receiving adequate training on how to improve yield rates.

It was reported that factory management and Apple, despite design defects, raised strict quality demands on workers, including indentations standards of 0.02mm and demands related to scratches on frames and back covers, notes China Labor Watch. With such demands, employees could not even turn out iPhones that met the standard.

iPhone 5 production lines are currently in a state of paralysis for the entire day. A brawl between production line workers and quality control inspectors also resulted in the latter getting beaten up. Factory management is reportedly turning their back on the issue.China Labor Watchs press release follows below.

Large-scale Strike of iPhone 5 Production Lines at Foxconns Zhengzhou Factory

China Labor Watch

October 5, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

(New York) China Labor Watch (CLW) announced that at 1:00PM on October 5 (Beijing time), a strike occurred at Foxconns Zhengzhou factory that, according to workers, involved three to four thousand production workers. In addition to demanding that workers work during the holiday, Foxconn raised overly strict demands on product quality without providing worker training for the corresponding skills. This led to workers turning out products that did not meet standards and ultimately put a tremendous amount of pressure on workers. Additionally, quality control inspectors fell into to conflicts with workers and were beat up multiple times by workers. Factory management turned a deaf ear to complaints about these conflicts and took no corrective measures. The result of both of these circumstances was a widespread work stoppage on the factory floor among workers and inspectors.

The majority of workers who participated in this strike were workers from the OQC (onsite quality control) line. According to workers, multiple iPhone 5 production lines from various factory buildings were in a state of paralysis for the entire day. It was reported that factory management and Apple, despite design defects, raised strict quality demands on workers, including indentations standards of 0.02mm and demands related to scratches on frames and back covers. With such demands, employees could not even turn out iPhones that met the standard. This led to a tremendous amount of pressure on workers. On top of this, they were not permitted to have a vacation during the holiday. This combination of factors led to the strike.

That quality control inspectors would also strike is of no surprise. According to workers, there was a fight between workers and quality control inspectors in area K that led to the damage in inspection room CA, the injury of some people, and the hospitalization of others. After this, another similar incident occurred in area K, once again leading to quality control inspectors getting beat up. Yesterday, inspectors in area L received physical threats. When inspectors reported these issues to factory management, the management simply ignored and turned their back on the issue. For these reasons, all day and night shift inspectors carried out a work stoppage today that paralyzed the production lines.

View post:
4,000 Foxconn workers on strike over iPhone 5 quality control measures, inadequate training

BEIJING (AP) Foxconn Technology Group denied on Saturday that production was affected at a Chinese factory that makes Apple's iPhones, although both state media and an overseas labor watch group said some workers halted production lines on Friday, apparently over higher quality control standards.

New York-based China Labor Watch reported that 3,000 to 4,000 workers at the Foxconn plant in the central China's Zhengzhou city went on strike Friday over increased quality control demands and having to work during an extended national holiday.

The official Xinhua News Agency, quoting a spokesman for the management committee of the Xinzheng Comprehensive Bonded Area where the plant is located, said some production lines were halted Friday when workers persuaded quality inspectors to skip work to show their dissatisfaction over higher quality standards.

In a written statement issued Saturday, the Taiwan-based electronic manufacturer Foxconn said production at the Zhengzhou plant continued without interruption. It denied any strike or work stoppage.

Foxconn said there were two isolated, small-scale disputes between production line workers and quality assurance personnel on Monday and Tuesday, but it added that they were quickly addressed. It did not specify what issues had caused the disputes but said immediate measures were taken to resolve the problems, including adding production line workers.

Xinhua said some workers were unhappy when Apple strengthened quality inspections of the iPhone 5 following consumer complaints regarding aesthetic flaws in the phone. In the Xinhua report, the spokesman who was not named characterized the incident as a worker-management dispute instead of a strike and was unable to provide a specific number of workers involved.

China Labor Watch said several iPhone 5 production lines at the factory were paralyzed after the workers found the new quality control demands difficult to meet and went on strike. The group said the workers also were angry about being forced to work through China's National Day Golden Week holiday, which ends Sunday.

The iPhone 5, the latest in the line of the smartphones, debuted in September.

Foxconn said its employees in China who worked during the holiday did so voluntarily and were being paid three times their normal pay, in accordance with Chinese labor law.

China Labor Watch said workers also beat quality control inspectors, who carried out their own work stoppage after management ignored their complaints.

Read the original post:
Foxconn workers halt production at iPhone plant