Niki Scevak

The week that was in the Australian Internet industry – No.Tel, conclusions from the iMode experience, selling gourmet dinners through the Internet, the budget from a technology perspective and Dr David Skellern. The speed and ease in which One.Tel fell from grace is nothing short of disturbing. Bullish statements heralding claims of positive cash flow […]

It would be all too easy to write the success of Japan’s iMode off to cultural eccentricity. Savvy marketing and positioning, coupled with solid technical infrastructure highlight several valuable lessons that others would do well to take note of. A key component of iMode’s success has been the positioning of the service. NTT DoCoMo was […]

The dominance of DoubleClick in the ad serving technology market following its acquisition of Sabela did not go unnoticed — indeed even the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) took a brief look. However, a string of sales from Engage sees the trappings of competition beginning to emerge. Last week, the newly restructured Engage Australia […]

SYDNEY — A verbal war between Microsoft Senior VP, Craig Mundie and Operating System impresario Linus Torvalds has erupted over the validity of Open Source software. Just how much of the argument has merit? The icy exchange began when Mundie labeled Open Source software a by product of the failed dotcom era – where companies […]

SYDNEY — Apple computer announced yesterday that it would open its first retail store on May 19. Clearly the strategy is more to do with marketing than sales, however the move raises an important question: just what is the right mix of retail stores and resellers for PC manufacturers? Apple’s first step into the world […]

SYDNEY — To date, online media has tried to replicate the structure and processes of the major dailies. The harsh reality is however, that many publishers more closely resemble low cost, free weekly niche newsletters. That said, just what are the keys to profitable online publishing? Like many of the other sectors of the Internet […]

SYDNEY — The shift from dotcom advertisers to traditional advertisers in the online advertising industry reached a significant milestone recently. As the trend gains momentum, so does the confidence in the medium. According to Nielsen//NetRatings’ AdSpectrum service, traditional companies occupied more than half of the top 100 advertisers for the month of March. Moreover, for […]

SYDNEY — With the wildfire-like adoption of instant messaging on the web as a relevant precedent, will the extension of the concept to wireless devices create a similar market? Recognition from companies such as Hotmail and Yahoo that the web is primarily a communications medium has been absolutely fundamental to their success. Thus far, communication […]

SYDNEY — The week that was in the Australian Internet industry – virtual communities searching for a merger partner, how to sell $200,000 worth of Chilli, the pornography economy, Compaq changes its reseller strategy and is Big Brother iTV in disguise? The thin and weightless predictions for Interactive Television (iTV) are akin to the hoopla […]

The restructuring of Jupiter Media Metrix’s operations in Australia has brought further attention to the blood thirsty, cut throat market for Web measurement in Australia. Under the restructure, Jupiter Media Metrix will no longer operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of the US parent, but rather will license the brand and methodology to local research […]

The challenges of online advertising are heightened by a broader slowing in the economy. It would be fair to say then, that the struggles of advertising are not strictly related to the online medium – as Australia’s media moguls are finding out. The most frail of all sectors in a brittle economy is media. Advertising […]

Should traditional media giants like News Corp and Fairfax have separate Online divisions? What makes sense in the climate of today? At the height of their optimism, the moguls lined up at the doors of investment banks – eagerly waiting to roll up their Online interests and float it off onto the stock exchange. The […]