Entries in the '' Category

YouTube and Broadcast.com: Learning from Mark Cuban

Posted on September 29th, 2006

The Quote:

Only a ‘moron’ would buy YouTube
–Mark Cuban (CNET reported)

The Lesson: Mark Cuban has started, supported and owned many wonderful things. There’s a lot to admire and emulate. (No, really. Click that link to Long Tail blog’s list from last year.) I do think particularly highly of his willingness to say things, know full well the obvious linking that will be done, and not care one bit.

The Obvious Wikipedia Link:

Broadcast.com was a web radio company founded as “AudioNet” in 1995 by Mark Cuban…

In April 1999, Broadcast.com was acquired by Yahoo! for $5.7 billion in stock and became Yahoo! Broadcast Solutions. Over the next few years Yahoo! split the services previously offered by Broadcast.com into separate services, Yahoo! Launchcast for music and Yahoo! Platinum for video entertainment. Yahoo! Platinum has since been discontinued, its functionality being offered as part of two pay services, AT&T Yahoo! High Speed Internet and Yahoo! Plus.

As of 2006, neither broadcast.com nor broadcast.yahoo.com are distinct web addresses; both simply redirect to yahoo.com.

Filed under: webnotes, yahoo by Goff - No Comments →

You can try to find love for free! (Canceling) Match.com sucks no more!

Posted on September 27th, 2006

match.com policy before

Before

Ah, I remember my close call with Match.com and their 72-hour Memorial Day promotion as if it were yesterday. I almost signed up, but at the last minute noticed the small print saying the only way to get out of the “free” trial with the “free” intact would be to send a telegram or “mail or deliver a signed, dated notice” to some Plano, Texas before midnight of the third day (a holiday, of course). Unlikely, even if you could find a telegram.

After

The change came clearly in response to the broad reach and active readership of Gawker’s Consumerist which blogged my little SEO experiment of a post. Labor Day’s promo from Match.com was virtually identical, but for the changes in the small print allowing online cancellations and leaving off any mention of telegrams.

Net loss: A summer romance.
Oh, and a Fall one too. I didn’t sign up. And i should have done this update sooner. Sorry. Others on the way.

(Addendum: Although Google search listings indicate Western Union still sends telegrams, as does a still-posted Staff Report at Straight Dope from 2001, The Western Union site notes, “ffective January 31, 2006, Western Union discontinued all Telegram and Commercial Messaging services. We regret any inconvenience this may cause you, and we thank you for your loyal patronage.” Not surprisingly, one can send a telegram at ITelegram.com, SendATelegram.com, and SendTelegram.com.)

Filed under: BS, Match.com, love, webnotes by Goff - No Comments →