Richmond-based MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates was awarded a $40 millon contract today from the Canadian Space Agency to design and build the Radarsat Constellation Mission. The set of three Constellation satellites will provide, for the first time, continuous complete weather coverage for all of Canada, and will have a resolution of 3m, able to spot small fishing vessels. They will replace the current Radarsat-2 satellite, launched in December 2007, that MDA also built.
This comes after a government intervention last spring to block a $1.3 billion sale of MDA's satellite and robotics division to a US defence contractor.
The proposed $1.3-billion sale sparked national outrage over the loss of taxpayer-funded technology, especially Radarsat-2, which is designed to protect Canada's sovereignty.
Prentice blocked the sale in April after determining the deal was not "of net benefit to Canada."
Radarsat-2, launched in December of 2007, became an issue not only because of its importance to sovereignty, but also because under the previous contract, MDA — and not the Canadian government — actually owned the satellite.
This was the first time in 33 years that an industry minister blocked a foreign takeover. Under this new contract, which has been 2 years in the making, the Canadian government will own the new satellites.
MDA provides advanced information solutions that capture and process vast amounts of data, produce essential information, and improve the decision... [more]
It caught me off guard the other day when a couple spam messages slipped into my Gmail inbox. Gmail's spam filter so rarely lets them slip by nowadays, I hadn't recalled seeing one for months.
Via TechRadar, a study from the University of California, Berkeley, and UC San Diego (PDF link) has revealed some interesting statistics about the success rate of spam. Researchers sent out 350 million fake spam messages, linking to a fake pharmacy site. Of all those messages, only 28 sales resulted, a response rate of less than 0.00001%, or 1 in 12.5 million. However, this still results in potentially USD$100 revenue per day.
Especially interesting is how they conducted this study: they hijacked control of 75,869 zombie PCs that were already part of an active botnet under malicious control. The Storm botnet started in January 2007 through a trojan horse distributed by email spam. Despite having been targeted in Microsoft's monthly Malicious Software Removal Tool, the botnet flourished, peaking at up to 50 million systems, and maintaining numbers in the hundreds of thousands up until October 2008, when three of the four major control servers were shut down. The botnet appears to have been run "for rent" as a black market enterprise, with the primary function of sending out spam email. Based on the study results, the researchers estimate that the controllers of the botnet are making more than USD$2M per year. Revenues are likely higher if the botnet is also being used as hosts for bank phishing scams, "pump and dump" penny stock manipulation or performing distributed denial of service attacks. Infrastructure costs are low when most of the work is done by compromised zombie Windows PCs.
TechRader's post on this story, ironically, had four blog spam comments on it.
A survey released today by the University of Toronto shows that nuclear families are among the most common users of communication technology such as mobile phones and the Internet. 89% of these married-with-children households own multiple cell phones and 66% have broadband internet.
“Some analysts have worried that new technologies hurt family togetherness, but we see that technology allows for new kinds of connectedness built around cell phones and the internet,” noted Tracy Kennedy, author the report. “Family members touch base with each frequently with their cell phones and they use those phones to coordinate family life on the fly during their busy lives.”
As a teenager, my parents offerred to split the cost of a cell phone with me; they were pleased to be able to keep tabs on me at any place or time. The study says that 42% of parents use a cell phone to contact their children on a daily basis, 70% of couples do the same.
Another finding of the report is that 52% of these families say they use the internet with another person at least a few times a week. This says that Internet usage need not be thought of as an anti-social activity. Indeed, the study goes on to say that Internet users socialize just as frequently as non-users.
Though 74% of adults still watch the god box...er, television almost every day, the younger generation is cutting back. Only 58% of 18-29 year olds said they watched TV almost every day, and 29% say they watch less TV because of the Internet.
Toronto-based online invoicing up-start FreshBooks announced today the release of quarterly industry benchmarks based on anonymized aggregate data of all FreshBooks users. And with over 500,000 users to date, this data is going to have real value for small business people.
We’re releasing these benchmarks because the professionals that FreshBooks serves do not have access to the kind of performance information most other industries take for granted. The service oriented professionals that FreshBooks serves - web designers, copy writers, dog walkers, management consultants, magicians, interior designers, ISPs, computer technicians - can’t go to places like Dun and Bradstreet and buy a report about their industry. Even if they did, they’d find the metrics covered to be mostly useless to their way of evaluating the day to day performance of their business, so I’m hopeful that business owners will use this data to steer their business in the right direction in any kind of weather.
Freshbooks customers or fans are likely familiar with their report card service that gives FreshBooks account holders a quarterly snapshot of their business based on a handful of useful metrics (average time to collect payment, etc). These new industry benchmarks are similiar to the report card service however Freshbooks account holders will have access to far richer data - for example, at the profession level rather than just industry level.
Sounds like a great idea, especially when CEO Mike McDerment explains it:
Our mission is to deliver fast and simple invoicing and time tracking services that help you manage your business. We call these Unaccounting™... [more]
I should have googled the Commonwealth Hall and Conference Centre on 52nd Ave NE in Calgary before I went downtown to find it ... anyway ... I took in the latter part of the AVAC 10 year anniversary today at the Commonwealth Hall and Conference Centre. There were several hundred people in attendance, with a good broad representation of entrepreneurs, investors, political types and public service ... good energy. And, a nice autumn day, I might add.
While I'm as happy as the next guy to celebrate milestones (and congratulations!), it's not the 10th year anniversary of AVAC that was of interest. I went to see the Mini-Trade Show of 20 AVAC-supported companies, networking and refreshments.
It was an odd mixture for me. I'm immersed in the high-tech sector, so agriculture companies (like Sinoveda that uses pharmaceutical techniques to realize the full potential of herbal supplements) and medical companies (like BioLipids that commercializes therapeutics that treat and prevent intestinal disease) are usually outside my scope. Facsinating deep science going on here in Calgary. And, of course, there were technology companies (like Intelliview who provides Video Analytics products and solutions, and Userful who provides green computing to large enterprises).
It was neat to talk to some of the agriculture guys. I asked one guy "how long have you been receiving funding?" "8 years." "What has AVAC contributed to your company besides money?" "They keep me honest."
While money has been flowing into Agriculture technology for awhile (the "A" in AVAC), the IVAC ("I"nnovation) arm of AVAC is the recent distributor of a large chunk of the $100M technology fund that Premier Stelmach setup in the most recent provincial election.
It was EXTREMELY refreshing to meet the great innovators that founded the companies which employ thousands of people in the Alberta technology sector. People doing great things is what it's all about after all!
Shown in the picture is Derek Ball from Tynt (In the background, Michael Raymont, former President and VP of NRC, speaks about "Energy, Environment and Innovation.").
(see some of you next week at the Banff Venture Forum!)
The BCTIA provides an important voice to the tech industry in BC. Among their various initiatives are the most comprehensive studies on BC tech industry salaries, demographics, and needs. They're asking for your help in their 2008 BC Tech Industry Study. It's a quick, five minute survey. The survey runs until October 17. I would especially encourage independent contractors and basement entrepreneurs to take the survey, and let the association know how numerous you are.
As the largest and most influential association representing BC's technology industry, BC TIA is dedicated to fostering growth and development in... [more]
The Canadian Internet Project (CIP) released a report today from the second phase of their study on Canadian Internet habits. The research project offers insight into changing Internet habits, media consumption, and family interactions. According to the study, Canadian Internet users are multi-tasking more and spending more time online while not dramatically changing their other media habits. Multi-tasking more - way to go Canada!
Three in four Canadians Internet users (76 percent) say they engage in another activity while online. Multi-tasking is most common among youth (89 percent) and those aged 18-29 (91 percent). Talking on the telephone or cell phone was selected by 44 percent as the most popular activity while using the Internet followed by listening to music or the radio (35 percent) or watching television (32 percent).
The comprehensive survey of more than 3,100 Canadians (12 years and older), examined their use of the Internet, conventional media and emerging technologies. This second installment offers insight into both new and conventional media use in Canada, as well as the socio-economic and cultural impact the Internet is having on Canadians. CIP conducted its first national survey in 2004 and published a baseline report, Canada Online!
Via the CBC, a study from the Oxford Business School in London comparing global Internet speeds and response times claims that Canada is lagging behind and woefully prepared for future demand. This is strange news to me as I use the Canadian Internets to research and write this post with no unacceptable delays. Canada ranked 27th out of 42 nations, with the United States in 16th. Their standard of acceptable speed is 3.75 Mb download, 1 Mb upload, and latency less than 95 ms. This defined standard may be slightly above the average Canadian broadband connection, but likely only in upload speed, which is usually restricted more on home connections.
I find two faults with the results of this study. First, they say to have used results collected from speedtest.net. Speedtest is a reliable site for what it does, but people most often run speed tests when their connection is acting abnormally, so there's a fair chance that such results would be lower than a true average. Second, the top ranking "broadband quality" countries on the list were Japan, Sweden, Netherlands, Latvia, Korea, and Switzerland. These countries have between 10-100x higher population density than Canada. The vast size of the great white north introduces challenges for our internet service providers in deploying infrastructure. Ranking below Canada were countries like India and China that, while have high population density, have to deal with aged infrastructure and a much larger population to service.
What's that last line? Ohh, the study was sponsored by Cisco, the world's leading provider of networking hardware, the company with the most to gain from the expansion of Internet infrastructure.
It's a fact that Canada's broadband speeds lag behind other developed countries, but are we being held back because it isn't fast enough? I don't see how. I agree that Canada's ISPs will have to step up upgrading infrastructure to keep up with future demand and expand access to rural communities, but I think they'll manage. After all, their wireless divisions are the most profitable in the developed world. The spread of broadband has opened competition for television and phone service, and these previously entrenched monopolies have found themselves in a much more competitive space. The time for resting on their laurels has passed.
Sound bite: Mobile advertising is going to be a huge market. The "stats" and common sense converge...
It’s practically old news to say that Gartner believes the mobile advertising market is worth some $2.7 billion today and growing to $12 billion by 2012. For comparison, studies generated by the Kelsey Group say the online advertising industry is estimated to be about $30-40 billion today, and growing to some $140+ billion in the same period. As with much statistical research, not all of it is completely accurate – if any at all. Yet, it is always useful for corporate navigation and promotional strategy.
Being a staunch believer in the future of the mobile advertising industry, I do see merit in Gartner’s estimates. There is considerable data to support this trend. Already, the mobile market is three times that of the fixed Internet one, yet online ad spending is nearly 20 times the size. Clearly, the “mob ad “ world is in a nascent stage, with space for massive growth. This is especially true when you consider that online advertising, on its own, accounts for a mere 7% of total global ad spend.
Looking at sheer numbers of subscribers isn’t a useful enough indicator. What matters is if consumers notice mobile ads. Studies show that yes, they do…they really do. According to Dynamic Logic, mobile advertising increases consumer awareness by close to 24% and augments intent to purchase by nearly 5%. Not bad. Studies say agencies big and small are rushing to offer clients mobile-based promoting tools. Being a principal of a newly founded mobile ad company, we are witnessing this first hand.
Since we have already admitted that stats are usually wrong, let’s examine the situation empirically. Mobile phones are typically always on and with their owner. We text, we call, we surf – we do everything on our trusty device. We leave our laptop at home. Our overzealous usage is even playing a hand at our evolutionary path. Our thumbs will become more angular so that texting can be more efficient. There is only so much content (advertisements) that can be served up on a phone. Therefore, advertising realty is limited and we become a captive audience to unique marketers’ messages.
Given all this, it's safe to say that if marketers really want to reach consumers, they will inevitably need to establish a savvy way to speak to them on their mobiles. Don’t believe me? Ask yourself what would be more inconvenient: no phone or no laptop?
I had breakfast again yesterday at Inglewood's Eat Eat's in Calgary with my friend, Derek Ball, CEO and Founder of Tynt. Tynt's been mentioned in the Calgary Techvibes blog for some time as the newest, latest, greatest and kewlest technology up and coming, but "we can't talk about it yet." Until today.
Derek was kind enough to give me first blogging dibs on Tynt's public unveiling, so without further ado, announcing www.Tynt.com.
So, what is it? Tynt allows you to draw on web pages, graffiti style... on a layer laid on top of a web page. Kind of like old school Hockey Night in Canada when the guy draws on the screen in the video replay's between periods. Anybody you've shared your Tynt with will (optionally) see what you've drawn on the web page.
Example:
www.opticfrog.com as seen normally.
www.opticfrog.com as seen with a Tynt layer I put on it. "Tynt'd" as they say.
(yah, that's my music site... self-promotion never goes out of style!).
Back to the Tynt story. In essence, Tynt allows you to share your thoughts/perceptions/highlights with your closest friends.
And, in that thought, lies the power of Tynt. In this wired world of expanding and limitless information, we rely more and more on people we know and trust to give us the straight dope. We pay attention to recommendations and thoughts from our friends. For those that have read "The Tipping Point," Tynt is evangelism on steroids.
For example, Guy Kawasaki, noted technology evangelist, Twitters to 18,000 followers. Guy is going to start using Tynt to put some thoughts on a web page and then send out a tweet with a link to his Tynt. That's part of Tynt's release yesterday; Tynt for Twitter ... Tynt gives Twitter context. Another big name that's going to start using Tynt for Twitter is Mark Silva from Realbranding.com.
Think of the power of Tynt for social networks, where you already connect with many of your friends ... being able to give each other context with your surfing would be, like, way awesome (Or, maybe you just want to put funny glasses and a bowtie on your buddy's Facebook page picture for giggles). Tynt for bloggers (yes, you'll see Tynt's in my future blogs). For people doing market and industry research. Digg users could really use Tynt. Google's new Chrome browser's weak bookmarking could adopt Tynt for contextual bookmarks.
Communication from a corporate website to a surfer is usually controlled and one-way. You read the words that the marketer or the public relations person want you to read. Now all that stuff you find in blogs, forums and communities about a company can be read directly on the website, in the context it's meant to be in. Click here to see what I think of the Canon FS 100 Camcorder:
(if that doesn't make CMO's shake in their boots, I don't know what will!)
Tynt is officially in public Beta as Derek and his team continue to press forward on this ground breaking technology. There's still some glitches, for sure (especially on my Mac Firefox browser), and I can imagine they're going to have some scaling issues as they become more popular, but it's already a great "Wow" experience. Tynt comes as a browser plug-in, or as a web browser app ... to find out more, check out their blog: http://tynt.wordpress.com/.
Or, better yet ... try it for yourself. Go to www.tynt.com, Tynt a website and share it with your friends. And tell them about your experience.
Share the web as YOU see it! You can add notes, drop speech bubbles, place stickers and more on top of any web page and share your Tynt with... [more]
