Topic: Near-field communication

SearchCap: WordPress AMP & Google fake reviews issue

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Dear Google: 4 suggestions for fixing your massive problem with fake reviewsJun 15, 2017 by Joy Hawkins Columnist and local search expert Joy Hawkins notes that unless Google My Business gets […]

SearchCap: The Day In Search, February 21, 2013

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the Web. From Search Engine Land: How Account Quality Score Can Guide AdWords Optimization Last month, I covered four ways to use AdWords Scripts to improve AdWords account management. I didn’t share any actual code for fear […]

Apple Demos Local Search (Maps) And Siri Enhancements For iPhone 5

Today at the iPhone 5 launch event Apple announced a thinner, taller and faster iPhone. (See Danny’s hands-on first impressions.) Apple also reminded people of some of the software announcements made in June at its WWDC conference when it discussed the new iOS 6 extensively. Among the earlier software-related announcements that were showcased again today […]

First Impressions: Galaxy Nexus Android 4.0 Smartphone

It is potentially the smartphone I’ve been waiting for since last year: the latest Android version, a “pure” Google experience and the ability to use what I consider the only real “4G” out there — Verizon. The Galaxy Nexus has arrived, at least with reviewers. There’s still no sale date announced for the US. I’m a […]

SearchCap: The Day In Search, October 3, 2011

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Hot At Sphinn: Digg’s Irrelevance, Facebook’s Timeline, Marketing Diversity & More One thing’s for certain in the online marketing industry: change. That was the frame for our “Discussion of the Week” […]

Google Wallet Surprisingly Easy To Use

When Google Wallet launched last month I wrote that it was important but mostly symbolic because of its limited availability. Wallet is only available on the Nexus S (from Sprint) and relies on the availability of NFC-enabled credit card terminals. The NFC technology on which Google Wallet is based requires a physical chip in the phone, effectively […]

Google Wallet Now Live, But In Very Limited Availability

As expected, Google has formally announced the first rollout of Google Wallet — the company’s first official entry into the growing mobile payments space. But Wallet is only taking a baby step today. Google says the app is only being made available to Sprint Nexus S 4G phones, and users will be able to pay […]

Google Wallet Launch Largely Symbolic But Important

According to documents seen by TechCrunch, Google Wallet is launching later today a bit behind schedule. As we discussed when the announcement was initially made in May, only a small number of people will initially have access to Google Wallet. There are only a handful of merchant and retail partners and only one handset currently […]

SEO

QR Code Scanners (Searchers) Are Affluent, 18-34 Males: comScore

A question that has not yet been answered is whether 2-D barcodes, also known as “QR codes,” are here to stay or whether they’re an interesting experiment on the way to something else, such as NFC-based marketing. In Japan and elsewhere around the world QR codes are more well established and have been in use […]

Google Promoting “Free” Nexus S On Homepage

Hurry, supplies are limited. If you’ve been to Google.com today (from a US IP address) then you’ve already seen the Nexus S “free today only” offer. Users can obtain the phone from US retailer Best Buy and must sign up for a two-year contract. Three out of the four major US carriers offer the phone: […]

Live From D: It’s Google No-Longer-The-CEO Eric Schmidt

I’m at the D Conference in here beautiful Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt is to be interviewed by our fearless host Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. Let’s see what he has to say. Postscript: See The Top 10 Things Eric Schmidt Revealed At D9 if you want the less stream-of-consciousness view […]

With Google Wallet Mobile Payments Era Is Finally Here

For more than a decade people have prophesied the end of cash and credit cards. And for the past two years the drumbeat around mobile payments has grown steadily louder with the adoption of smartphones. Now numerous companies are jockeying to participate in what expected to be a huge market that will eventually generate billions […]

Live Blogging The Google Wallet Launch Press Conference

Google’s Commerce VP Stephanie Tilenius took the stage this morning in New York to announce what everyone was expecting: Google Wallet. She said that Google wants to create “tomorrow’s best shopping experience” and “bring online and offline together” through an open payments platform. Google aspires to bring offers, payments and loyalty together at the point […]

Google To Unveil Mobile Payments Trial: Report

Bloomberg is reporting that Google will formally announce a mobile payments service later this week. The service will reportedly be offered initially through US carrier Sprint. The service will be initially available in five US cities: New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, D.C. according to Bloomberg. Interestingly Sprint has its own recently launched stored-credit card payments […]

Live Blogging The Google I/O 2011 Day 1 Keynote

Are you ready! We’ve got Google Music coming! Maybe. Certainly some Android or Chrome announcements to come, here at the first day of the Google I/O developers conference. The keynote begins at 9am PT. So does my live blogging. Seriously, there is some expectation that Google Music 3.0, a cloud-based music system, will get aired […]

SearchCap: The Day In Search, March 31, 2011

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Google Launches Page Speed Analyzer In Labs Google’s fixation on page speed continues with today’s addition of Page Speed, a new analysis tool in Google Labs. The tool analyzes any URL, […]

SearchCap: The Day In Search, March 28, 2011

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Hot At Sphinn: DIY Link Building, ‘Sexier’ Google Analytics & More Is it possible — and smart — for anyone outside of link building consultants/agencies to successfully scale a link building […]

Google Joins Forces With MasterCard On NFC To Test The Future Of Digital Marketing, Analytics

Google’s Gingerbread (Android 2.3) offers near field communication (NFC) support, which can be used for both “contactless payments” and marketing purposes. People tend to think about and discuss NFC in the context of “mobile wallets” and payments exclusively but there’s a great deal more it can do. For example, Google has been testing NFC-based marketing […]

SearchCap: The Day In Search, March 15, 2011

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Google Tries to Reassure Brand Owners With New Anti-Counterfeiting Measures Counterfeiters seem to love Google AdWords — the company shut down 50,000 AdWords accounts selling counterfeit goods in the last six […]

Google To Test Mobile Payments In NY And SF

While Apple has reportedly decided to forgo NFC-related hardware/software in iPhone 5 because of a lack of standards, Google is to begin testing NFC-based mobile payments at selected stores in New York and San Francisco according to an article in Bloomberg: The company will pay for installation of thousands of special cash-register systems from VeriFone […]

Google Promotes Hotpot, Places In Austin In Advance of SXSW

When the digirati descend on Austin for the SXSW interactive conference next month, Google is hoping their smartphones will brim with local listings and reviews on Places and Hotpot. To that end, the company today began a promotion to get local businesses, along with Austin visitors and residents, on board with the search giant’s local […]

Google’s Eric Schmidt: “2011 All About Mobile”

Google CEO Eric Schmidt, writing in the Harvard Business Review (via RWW), says that Google’s 2011 initiatives are “all about mobile.” In his short piece he explains that geolocation on smartphones enables contexual personalization and a range of new possibilities and user experiences. But to realize that vision there are three infrastructure elements that must […]

Google Working On NFC-Based Mobile Payment Service: Report

Google has its eyes on a mobile payment service that would allow users to pay for common goods and services by waving or tapping their mobile phones. That’s according to a BusinessWeek report that cites “two people familiar with the plans.” BusinessWeek’s sources say the payment service could debut this year. It would be based […]

SearchCap: The Day In Search, December 16, 2010

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. From Search Engine Land: Confirmed: Yahoo Closing Buzz, Traffic APIs – Maybe Delicious & AltaVista News is traveling fast about a leaked slide from a Yahoo “all hands” meeting earlier this week that listed several […]

New Android Flagship Nexus S Comes Out Of Hiding

The Google Nexus S is out today. It was previewed incognito by Google CEO Eric Schmidt at Web 2.0 a few weeks ago. A Samsung Galaxy S-based handset running Android 2.3, it’s the new Android Flagship phone and reputedly best Android device out there — according to early reviews. We’ll get our proverbial mitts on […]

Live Blogging Google CEO Eric Schmidt At Web 2.0 Summit

Google CEO Eric Schmidt will be speaking today at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco. I’m here and will be live blogging his remarks, when the session begins. Schmidt is set to speak at 2:35pm Pacific, and he’ll be interviewed on stage by John Battelle and Tim O’Reilly. Live blogging to start shortly. There’s […]