Real Estate News

There are a lot of exciting things coming out in the next few weeks – here are my top 3:

1. Like it? Hate it? The iPad which drew a ton of rumors and speculation is ready to make it’s debut. The 1st commercial aired during the Academy Awards (which explains why Steve Jobs was on the red carpet) and is officially going mainstream. The iPad will be on sale on April 3, 2010 and pre-orders begin March 12, 2010.

Here’s the commercial in case you missed it:

2. Better than the iPhone?! The Google Nexus One phone – the phone that had a lot of buzz when it first came out, is a phone that critics are still wondering if it can compete with the iPhone and other touch-pad type smartphones. Google has never made it a secret that they plan to release it to multiple carriers – just WHEN is the question. This phone is rumored to be coming to Verizon on March 23, 2010.

3. Wonder if I could sneak into this? f8 – The Facebook Developer Conference is slated for April 21-22, 2010.

According to the Facebook blog,

“f8 has always been about empowering a community of developers to hack, to build and to delight users. We’re looking forward to continuing this tradition at our third f8 in San Francisco on April 21-22, 2010. Please save the date!”

BONUS: One more thing to add to your calendar this month. Planning on coming to Real Estate Connect SF (#icsf) – Early Bird Registration ends in 11 days! Sign up by 3/19/10 and save over $300!

Would love your comments – please leave feedback below!

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Yesterday, the “IE6 funeral” took place in Denver. This is what appeared on the funeral site:

Internet Explorer Six, resident of the interwebs for over 8 years, died the morning of March 1, 2010 in Mountain View, California, as a result of a workplace injury sustained at the headquarters of Google, Inc. Internet Explorer Six, known to friends and family as “IE6,” is survived by son Internet Explorer Seven, and grand-daughter Internet Explorer Eight.

Those mourning the Web browser, but unable to attend, were asked to send flowers. So, Microsoft sent a big bouquet!

In the photo above, a funeral guest is showing off the card that arrived with Microsoft’s bouquet. Microsoft confirmed the test and also that it sent the flowers (according to SeattlePI.com.)

The card reads:

Thanks for the good times IE6, see you all @ MIX when we show a little piece of IE Heaven.

The Internet Explorer Team @ Microsoft

Internet Explorer 8 has been in existence for over 8 years and Microsoft plans to continue support until 2014, but many in the tech world are happily ready to move on and ‘kill’ IE6 – especially with all the problems and bugs it has caused users.

Still using IE6? Please, either upgrade or I recommend switching to Firefox or Chrome!

What’s your browser of choice? Would love your feedback, leave me a comment below!

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Fun Friday: Microsoft sends flowers to the IE6 funeral

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Yesterday I was pleasantly surprised to find an email newsletter from – TWITTER! I guess it shouldn’t suprise me – but at first I was a bit surprised that the company that made “140 characters” a household name, decided to get a message out to their members via email.

Good reminder to all of us that email is still a great way to get a message out – especially to your loyal fans (or followers!)

Here is the body of the email in it’s original form – lots of great new things coming down the pipeline from Twitter!

Hi there,

In the early days of Twitter, I used to send out short updates just to keep everyone in the loop since so much was happening. It’s been a while, but you signed up for short, monthly updates from Twitter so we thought it was time to start sharing more information. We’ve had quite a year. If you haven’t visited in a while, we’d like to invite you to come have a look at http://twitter.com — we’ve been busy!

Growing Up
In the course of a year, registered Twitter accounts have grown more than 1,500% and our team has grown 500%. Recently, we hired our 140th employee! His name is Aaron and he’s an engineer focused on building internal tools to help promote productivity, communication, and support within our company. We celebrated with a little dance party.

Features of Note
Some features of note that we released over the course of a year include the ability to create lists, quickly spread information with a retweet button, and an easier way to activate your mobile phone to work with Twitter over SMS. We also built a new mobile web site that looks and works much better on smart phones.

Feeling Inspired
By working together during critical times when others needed help, sharing important information that otherwise might not make the news, and inventing new and interesting ways to use Twitter, you’ve shown us that Twitter is more than a triumph of technology — it is a triumph of humanity. Projects like Fledgling and Hope140 were inspired by you.

Chirp!
While there may only be 140 full-time employees working at the Twitter offices, there are thousands of dedicated platform developers who have now created more than 70,000 registered Twitter applications creating variety and utility for all of us. We’ll be gathering this spring at Chirp, our first ever official Twitter developer conference.

Thanks,
Biz Stone, Co-founder (@Biz)
Twitter, Inc.

Would love your thoughts on email newsletters. I am a big believer in them myself – especially to drive traffic to your web site or blog. I also think they are a fantastic way to keep your ‘raving fans’ updated on the latest and greatest that you are promoting.Leave me a comment below!

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Since I came to Inman News – one of my big goals was to hit the coveted “10,000 follower mark” on Twitter. As we came closer and closer, we thought it would be fun to have a contest. We decided that the Inman News 10,000th follower would win a free Connect SF ticket.

DRUM ROLL PLEASE…

So yesterday. We hit our goal and we are pleased to announce our 10,000th Twitter follower is: @Rofo_SF

These guys have a great company concept; and having a soft spot in my heart for companies that help small businesses, I was thrilled to be able to present Alan with his free ticket!

Rofo.com, which stands for “Right of First Offer”, is an office space search engine for small businesses and entrepreneurs. Rofo aggregates commercial real estate listings from top national brokerage firms to local building owners and everything in between.  In addition to browsing available real estate listings, businesses can put Rofo to work by posting their specific real estate requirements and receive competitive proposals from local landlords and brokers.

Alan Bernier, CEO for Rofo.com says, “The idea for Rofo and our unique focus on smaller commercial space (less than 5,000 sqft) came from first hand experience as brokers.  Entrepreneurs and smaller businesses who represent the majority of real estate transactions do not have the same access to resources and professionals as larger companies.  The goal at Rofo is to empower smaller tenants in their search for space and create an environment where those looking for space are easily matched with those who have it.  As a growing startup who has moved 3 times in 2 years we’re eating our own dog food.  And we now have an even greater appreciation for the platform we’ve created.”

Congrats again @Rofo_SF!

If you aren’t following Inman News yet on Twitter, I invite you to join us to get the latest in real estate news, marketing and technology!

Now onto 100,000

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Congrats to our 10,000th Twitter Follower!

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In the last few weeks or so, I have noticed an incredible amount of GOOD content coming down the pipeline. Like you, I subscribe to blogs, RSS feeds, Twitter lists, etc. But what has grabbed my attention lately has been my Facebook feed. Anyone who know me, knows that I am a huge fan of having a Facebook Fan Page. I think it is still one of the best ways that a brand, company, or individual can ’speak’ to it’s audience.

So today, I wanted to share with FOREM fans, a ’snippit’ of my Facebook feed and the articles that jumped out to me. You’ll notice that these articles are all across the board – not just real estate. 

When talking to FOREM founder Joel Burslem awhile back – he reminded me of something so powerful and gave me some great advice:  “Read blogs and news sources from outside your industry – we can learn so much by seeing what other successful companies and brands are doing – that aren’t necessarily in real estate.”

Here are the 10 stories I enjoyed from my Facebook feed today – in no particular order:

Starbucks Gets Its Business Brewing Again With Social Media

How the Resort Industry is Using Social Media

VIDEO: Posted by Fans of CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS

VIDEO: Facebook is the ‘Ultimate” Viral Video Tool, Ethan Beard

Realtor Mag Marketing Makeover Challenge

RPR revamps MLS licensing agreement

Want More Twitter Followers? Tweetmeme Has A Button For That.

10 Must Have Facebook Plugins For Wordpress

To Tweet or Not to Tweet: Expert Tips about Using Social Media

How to Make Money on Foursquare

Shameless plug: If you’re not following the Inman Fan Page, I encourage you to check it out! Get all the top news headlines delivered right to your Facebook news feed. Plus, be the 1st to know about contest, promos, and more.

So what are your favorite posts from your Facebook feed today? Have a great tip? Leave me a comment here!

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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This Tuesday I am talking about one of my favorite subjects: Facebook. With an audience of over 350M people – Facebook is the top social media source that Realtors must be engaged in.

5 Things Every Realtor Must do to Be Successful on Facebook:

1.    Post good content daily. This is the #1 one thing that I see agents NOT doing. They spend time calling or emailing clients, but they drop the ball on their Facebook page. You should be posting 2-3 times a day. A good formula for Realtors on Facebook is: 2 parts personal and 1 part business. Corcoran does a great job of this – they post interesting real estate and market data but also sprinkle in really cool and unique links to New York city, little known facts, places to eat, etc.

2.    Have a plan and stick to it. Make a list of the top 10 sites you like to visit – include news sites (i.e. Inman News, NY Times, etc), recreational sites (gardening, travel, etc), and of course your website or blog. Visit this list daily. This makes it very easy for you to link to interesting stories and post good and relevant content daily.

3.    Do it yourself. As a Realtor you can’t hire out someone to manage your Facebook account for you. You have to make time – every morning and every evening to manage your account. You can however hire someone to enhance your page and make custom tabs with HTML. Mike Mueller is a great resource for this.

4.    Comment on what others post. This is KEY! It is not all about YOU!   Take 5 minutes out of your Facebook time each day to comment on what some of your friends or fans have said.

5.    Be engaging. Ask questions, post photos, be a part of the conversation. Remember Facebook is like the ultimate dinner party. At a dinner party you wouldn’t sit in the corner and not talk to anyone right? Nor would you JUST talk about real estate.

Here are some great examples of Realtors doing many of the right things on Facebook:
Sue Adler
The GoodLife Team
Julie Ziemelis

Do you have a great Facebook page you’d like to share? Leave me a comment here!

Check out the Inman Facebook Page here!

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Tip Tuesday: 5 Things Every Realtor Must do to Be Successful on Facebook

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This week every major tech blog has been buzzing about the iPad. Thank you to all the FOREM members who posted comments here as well as on our Facebook page. It was really exciting to see all the online chatter going on across the nation, as people waited to hear about ‘the big announcement.’ Whether the iPad will be a ‘game changer’ or not – especially for the real estate industry – is still up in the air.

In the meantime, I thought I’d add a little humor to the conversation. Enjoy!

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Tune in Wed. January 13th! Ask questions live via Twitter and Facebook to some of the very best leaders in the industry.

Brand NEW for Connect NYC 2010: Live Streaming and Interactive Video – “Spinnio” – courtesy of Dustin Luther. We will be LIVE on Wed. Jan. 13th from 11 am (EST) – 2:45 pm (EST) and then 5-6 pm (EST). During that time you can watch Inman News Columnist and Broker/Owner, Kris Berg interview some of the best of the best in the industry. You will be able to ask questions via Twitter and Facebook!

If you are going to be at Real Estate Connect NYC make sure to stop by the Inman booth (#904).

Click HERE to see the Inman Spinnio page and make sure to check back Wednesday to see all the action!

Scheduled so far are:

• Brad Inman, publisher Inman News (Wed. 1/13 at 1 pm EST/10 am PST)
• Craig Newmark, founder of craigslist.com (Wed. 1/13 at 2:30 pm EST/11:30 am PST).

This will be a great opportunity to “turn the tables” on these guys and ask hard-hitting questions.

Not yet registered? Very limited seating still available – click here to register.

View the complete conference program.

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Wishing you were at Connect NYC? Join us virtually!

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You can get 5,000 Twitter followers with no measurable benefit. You can blog until your fingers hurt with no readers.  Learn how to get measurable results from social media and increase your business for 2010!

FOREM members: you are invited to a BRAND NEW session at Real Estate Connect:

LIVE LABS: Building Brand and Influence Through Social Media: Selling Technology Solutions in Real Estate.

Thursday, January 14th 3-4pm

Register today and SAVE $100 off!! (use code “forem”)

Led by business development guru Paul Chaney, author of The Digital Handshake, you will learn how to get results, move beyond participation to engagement on the social Web, and measure your success.

During live labs you will get the opportunity to “roll up your sleeves” and mix it up with your fellow attendees at Real Estate Connect. Each Connect Lab starts with a presentation by an expert  leader aimed at giving you practical takeaways you can implement back at home. The second half of each Lab will focus on audience-generated discussion and debate facilitated by your leader. These sessions will deliver an intensive 90 minutes on the issue that matters most to you.

Get the social media “secret sauce” to reach potential clients and leads!

See you at Connect! 8 days left!

Register today and SAVE $100 off!! (use code “forem”)

Questions about registration?  Please contact us at registration@inman.com or by calling 800.775.4662 ext 143

View the complete conference program

p.s. Have you downloaded the ConnectNYC app yet? It is available for use on any smartphone. Go to http://connectnyc.boopsie.com on your mobile browser or for iPhone users, go to the iTunes App Store and search for ‘ConnectNYC’

posted by Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Google announced today they have invited the press to an “Android press gathering” on Jan. 5. This date is very strategic on Google’s part – as the Consumer Electronics Show is in Las Vegas later in the week. Google representatives declined to provide any further details about the event, but most likely this will be the unveiling of the Nexus One. This will be Google’s first phone sold directly to consumers. The rumors are, that if purchased directly from Google, consumers could pay up to $500, or considerably less if they sign a multi-year contract with T-Mobile.

Google employees began tweeting about the Nexus One after Google handed out these new phones to employees. Then, on December 12, Google posted a somewhat odd blog post where it said that the devices were intended to test new mobile technologies. “We recently came up with the concept of a mobile lab, which is a device that combines innovative hardware from a partner with software that runs on Android to experiment with new mobile features and capabilities, and we shared this device with Google employees across the globe,” Mario Queiroz, vice president of product management.

Also there are rumors that at this press conference, Google will address the questions that have risen about the Android strategy. Many are wondering if Google will sell the Android directly from its website.

I’m curious to see what this all will mean for the real estate professionals. As referenced in my last post about smartphones, the iPhone is still the top seller,  followed by the Blackberry and Razr. Will the Google Nexus One surpass what the iPhone has successfully accomplished? For real estate agents, ease of use is their top priority – followed by superior phone and data service. This topic will certainly be discussed at Connect NYC.

What is the future of mobile technology for 2010?

Find out at Connect! (FOREM members receive $100 off , use promo code “forem”)

by Katie Lance

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Google’s Nexus One – Launch Date: January 5th?

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Sign up for Real Estate Connect by between Monday, December 28th and Tuesday, December 29^th at midnight (PST) and you will be entered into a drawing to stay in Brad Inman’s suite at the Marriott Marquis Times Square! Brad will not be staying in the room

The winner will receive 3 nights free in Brad’s suite (January 12-14). The winner will be picked at random, and announced on Wednesday, December 30^th.

Register NOW! Use promo code “freesuite” to win!

Also, everyone who registers with this promo code “freesuite” will receive $100 off the current registration price.

DEADLINE: TUESDAY, DECEMBER 29^TH AT MIDNIGHT (PST)!

View the full conference program

Questions? Contact Katie Lance at katie@inman.com

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WIN A FREE SUITE AT REAL ESTATE CONNECT NYC!

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I realize I’m a little biased in the world of smartphones. In the interest of full disclosure, I am a proud iPhone user. I love the apps, the ease of use, the large screen and the ‘bells and whistles.’

In real estate, having a smartphone is not just an option but a necessity. Everyone wants a response right now, not later today.

So the question remains, can the leader, the iPhone still hold their lead in 2010 as the top smartphone in the United States?

According to Nielsen…
According to Nielsen, The iPhone is still the most popular smartphone, followed by the BlackBerry 8300 series, but despite all the new smartphones flooding the market, Motorola’s trusty Razr (yep, the RAZR!) flip-phone was the third most-popular phone of the year.

What about Andriod?
Comascore.com, a leader in measuring the digital world, announced a few days ago the release of its latest report on the mobile market, ‘Android: Crashing the Smartphone Party.‘ The report provided an overview of the current U.S. mobile environment and offered an in-depth look at the Android OS. Among the report’s key findings is that consumer awareness of Google’s Android is growing rapidly, due in large part to the Verizon Droid ad campaign.

Here comes Google!
Coming to the smartphone party (possibly) next month is Google’s Nexus One. Nexus One puts Google in business against other providers of Android-based phones. Google is the major force behind Android. Will this create a backlash against the company, or did other providers get into the Android game aware that Google eventually would make this move?

A major shift happened…
A new survey of smartphone users by PC World and Macworld found that 85% of smartphone owners were extremely or very satisfied with their handsets, and the same percentage said they rely heavily on them. On a typical day, people use their phones two-thirds of the time for personal use and the balance for business. This highlights the HUGE shift that happened with smartphones from being primarily a corporate use to gaining a wider consumer customer base, courtesy of the iPhone.

So what is it about the iPhone?
I think one of the biggest reasons consumers, especially real estate professionals, love the iPhone is because of how easily they work – not the mention the incredible branding campaign that Apple has done to make you “feel” extra cool when you own an Apple product!

Did you know?
Did you know, Apple didn’t even launch the iTunes App Store until a year after the first iPhone became available? Over 2-billion-apps-sold have been sold as of late September 2009.When the iPhone was first launched in June 2007, Steve Jobs tried to sell developers on just making Web apps. When Web-based apps couldn’t match the performance or capabilities of native apps, developers asked for more. Apple announced that they were changing course in October, but didn’t launch the App Store until July 2008—just as Apple released the second generation iPhone hardware

So, in the spirit of the holidays, and because I do love the iPhone, I wanted to share with FOREM readers 7 FREE new iPhone apps just released within the last few days:

1. Ribbit Mobile
This app has already gotten quite a bit of buzz. You have to sign up and request to be invited to their beta trial. Ribbit Mobile will read your voicemail and then text or email it to you, it will save your messages forever, you can dictate memos on your phone, and answer calls on any phone.

2. CallRec.me
Pretty cool app especially for real estate agents –record your phone calls and voice notes with the push of a button. I could see this being especially helpful for agents to keep track of conversation records.

3.  HWA, Inc. – Home Warranty of America
Videos, sales tools, what’s news, and much more. Great app for title/escrow officers, mortgage lenders, real estate attorneys and agents. I’d love a Realtor’s first-hand experience using this app.

4. iParked
Ok this app was made for me – it helps you remember where you parked your car! If you dare to go shopping in the next couple days, I recommend using this app!

5. San Francisco Tweets
Search by categories or by SF districts. I like that it is a live Tweet stream so you could theoretically be walking down the street toward a restaurant and see if there is anyone inside the restaurant tweeting about the food, service, etc.

6.  New York App
Look up shows/events, places to eat, bars/clubs, tourist attractions, Yelp reviews and much more. Cool factor: there are links to some of the best lifestyle blogs in NYC built right in and a NYC Twitter stream. Not bad! Can’t wait to check this one out in person next month.

7.   ConnectNYC
Saved the best for last! This app is specifically designed for Real Estate Connect NYC  Jan.13-15th (#ICNY) includes live Twitter feeds, conference schedule, what sessions are starting within the next hour, exhibitor and sponsor booth info, as well as NYC hot spot info.

So how do you feel about this smartphone debate? Are you loyal to your iPhone, Blackberry, Andriod, or Razr? Are you holding out for something else?

Leave me a comment or send me a tweet here or here!

Written by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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If you have never experienced Real Estate Connect, I highly recommend you check it out!

Connect brings something no other conference does – the ‘best of the best’ in the real estate technology world. The group of journalists, bloggers, CEO’s and top executives is unbelievable.

Before I worked for Inman News, I attended two Connect conferences, and I can say from first-hand experience – it changed the way I did business.  I remember being at Connect and feeling so blown away by the content, the learning, and the people I met.

Connect is truly like no other conference. It is worth every dime! FOREM members, save $100 off the registration price – use promo code “FOREM”

If you are an agent, broker, owner, marketing person, tech geek, or all of the above – you can not miss Connect. (Check out the complete program!)

Here are the details: Marriott Marquis Hotel – in the heart of Times Square! Jan.13-15, 2010
Book your room by this Monday 12/21 to get the group rate!

FOREM members, save $100 off the registration price – use promo code “FOREM”

posted by: Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Greetings FOREM readers!

I am really excited to be a featured writer on FOREM’s blog. I have been a reader and admirer of this blog for some time and am thrilled with the opportunity to contribute!  It is an honor to write along side Joel Burslem. I am equally as excited about my new position as marketing manager with Inman News. I look forward to bringing a fresh and new perspective to our readers and fans!

To read more about me click here!

So for my 1st blog post, I am going to talk about one of my favorite subjects – Google.

Let’s face it, we are living in a Google world. But, as you all know Google has become so much more than just a search engine.

There are tons of experiments going on with Google – but I thought I’d take this opportunity to give you the 3 latest (and in my opinion most exciting) things happening with Google that will impact you and your business.

1. Google Living Stories – This looks like it could be the next “big thing” for Google and potentially down the line for real estate. Google Living Stories takes newspaper reading to the next level.

Newspapers?  Yes. Stick with me here. This is where it gets good.

It’s not surprising to anyone that the newspaper industry is dying but breaking news and the hunger for news continues to grow at an exponential rate.

Google Living Stories is in beta form right now, and is very “Wikipedia” looking.  So far, Google Living Stories has partnered with The New York Times and The Washington Post. When you go to Google Living Stories and click on a story, you are brought to a page with 1-2 paragraphs of text, photos, graphs, timelines, related links, and related stories.

I love this.

If Living Stories takes off this could be HUGE for the real estate world. Imagine a client searching for “New York Real Estate” – when they click ‘search’ they then may come to a page with listings, photos, neighborhood info, school info, timelines, video, and so much more.

Living Stories still has a ways to come but it has a lot of potential!

News organizations produce a wealth of information that we all value; access to this information should be as great as the online medium allows.

2. Google Chrome – This free web browser is literally taking the web world by storm. Just 2 days ago, at the Googelplex in Mountain View, over 500 new Google Chrome Extensions were unveiled.

Why Chrome? Speed, simplicity and style – but the best part is the speed. It is lightening fast! Already  have Chrome? Check out these experiments from Google to play around with! Also announced today on Google’s blog is the launch of Mac and Linux extensions for Chrome.

3 . Google Goggles – Take a picture of a book, a store, a landmark and that picture translates into a search for that object. It is still in its infancy and only available on the Android (but the rumor is that it will available soon on Google Chrome) but think about the possibilities for real estate search. What if this worked with homes on the market? You could snap a photo and instantly see how long it had been on the market, details about the home, listing agent, virtual tours, and more.  I think there are lots of possibilities for this – plus I love the “cool” factor.

What’s next for Google? Stay tuned – the possibilities are wide open!

Posted by Katie Lance, Marketing Manager, Inman News

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Top 3 Latest & Greatest Products from Google

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On the iPhone at least. Android and other smartphone platforms have had livestreaming video apps for a while now. But the tide has finally turned in the favor of iPhone users too – as Ustream has finally had its app approved for distribution in iTunes (app store link).

For me, this release culminates three of the biggest technological trends of 2009; Lifestreaming, Location, and Video.

First up – Lifestreaming. Twitter. Facebook. You’ve probably heard of these sites. It’s now easier than ever to instantly share events to a large distributed audience online – what you’re doing. By sharing information via these networks you are building connections and, by extension, reach.

Location. GPS is nearly omniprescent in most modern smartphones. Your devices now know in an instant where you are in the world. Apps like Google Latitude, Foursquare and my new fav – Gowalla, all exist because they know where you are. So too do augmented reality apps like Layar (see Layar Technology Now Available for iPhone). Location awareness is a true technological paradigm shift.

And finally video. I’ve been on this soapbox long enough. But the web is rapidly becoming about video and video content — witness Comcast’s bid to acquire NBC/Universal; a traditional “pipe” getting into the video content game. Or U2’s massive live concert on Youtube that generated over 10 million streams across 7 continents.

So what does all this mean? The Ustream app has magnificent repercussions for citizen journalism, family ties and yes, even real estate (think of working with a relo client remotely to show them properties, for example). The power to broadcast live, each of us from the palms of our hands, will certainly change the way some of us communicate.

Time to go fire up my phone.

You’ll be able to find me here. Live.

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