Joan E. Solsman

Seeing more ads on your phone? Mobile ad revenue spikes

Mobile advertising surged 76 percent in 2014. Slidejoy Internet advertising revenue climbed 16 percent to $49.5 billion in 2014, as a spike in sales for mobile spots pushed it above banner ads for the first time, according to a study from the Interactive Advertising Bureau. “Marketers clearly recognize that consumers are leading mobile-first lives,” IAB …

Read More »

​Generation YouTube: Today’s fastest

Smosh’s Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox were ranked No. 1 in a Variety survey asking teens to rate influential celebrities. YouTube Hanging out on a graffiti-coated movie set in Los Angeles in October, Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox laugh as they recall the first time they were recognized in public. It was 2005, and the two were visiting a Subway …

Read More »

YouTube turns 10: The video site that went viral

YouTube now attracts more than 1 billion users a month. James Martin/CNET Ten years ago today, a startup called YouTube uploaded its first video. Co-founder Jawed Karim, in a private test of the fledgling service’s capabilities, posted a short video of himself at the San Diego Zoo. The 18-second clip shows Karim unenthusiastically noting how elephants have “really really really …

Read More »

Pandora earnings return to the same old song

Pandora’s stock has slid by nearly one-quarter in the last year. Joan E. Solsman/CNET Growth in the number of people listening to Pandora Media’s online radio service continued to peter down in the latest quarter, the company reported Thursday. Its loss in the first quarter was slimmer than predicted, and Pandora’s revenue beat expectations. Shares declined $1.01, or 5.7 percent, …

Read More »

You can thank millennials for HBO Now

Millennial habits, such as preferring streaming to regular TV, spurred programmers to loosen the reins on online television options. Getty Images/Blend Images All of you who pined for HBO to launch an online subscription service, like its new HBO Now, can thank millennials for making that happen. The younger viewers are, the more likely it is that they will prefer …

Read More »

Google’s Project Loon balloons can beam signals to iPhones, too

Google X chief Astro Teller, speaking at the Tribeca Film Festival, said his lab’s Project Loon is capable of steering Internet-connectivity balloons to within a couple hundred yards of a target. Joan E. Solsman/CNET NEW YORK — Google may be able to pinpoint the location of its stratospheric Internet balloons with military precision, but it won’t be combative about the …

Read More »

George Lucas: Don’t look at me for ‘Star Wars’ spoilers

George Lucas said he hopes the new “Star Wars” films take the story in a new direction. Joan E. Solsman/CNET NEW YORK — George Lucas may have created the universe of Han Solo and R2-D2, but he has no clue what comes next in their story. Lucas, the creator of “Star Wars,” said Friday that he has “no idea” what …

Read More »

Netflix signs up new members like crazy in record

Netflix’s international expansion is key to its growth ambitions, as the rate of US subscriber increases is cooling. Paul Sakuma/Netflix Kimmy Schmidt may be unbreakable, but Netflix’s membership milestones surely aren’t. Netflix touted a record number of people signing up for its streaming-video service in a report Wednesday on its first-quarter financial performance. And investors took heart, pushing shares to …

Read More »

HBO Now stares down ‘Game of Thrones,’ its first trial by combat

HBO will face a mountain of demand for the “Game of Thrones” season premiere Sunday, just five days after launching HBO Now. HBO While millions of “Game of Thrones” fans are glued to their screens Sunday night, HBO will probably be fixated on another drama: Will its new service HBO Now slay or be slain in the first surge of …

Read More »

Apple asking for exclusive tunes to amp up Beats Music, report says

Led by CEO Tim Cook and executive Eddy Cue, Apple acquired a subscription service when it bought Beats, founded by Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine. Exclusive tracks would give the latecomer service an edge. Apple Apple is reportedly courting top musicians to score exclusive tunes for its Beats Music subscription-streaming service. The computer maker has asked Florence and the Machine, …

Read More »