The Zetas radio network
Radio Tecnico: How The Zetas Cartel Took Over Mexico With Walkie-Talkies | Popular Science – the scale and sophistication of this network was impressive. The Zetas was formed by a group of Mexican special forces operators who deserted who set up as a murder for hire for the Gulf Cartel in Mexico. Their numbers have been expanded from the civilian population. The Zetas broke away to form their own organisation in 2010.
Consumer behaviour
Kids still getting too much screen time, experts say – CBS News – we heard the same things about TV before I was born and all the way through my childhood
Resonance | The four archetypes of Chinese shoppers. – Checkout China research
How Working on Multiple Screens Can Actually Help You Focus | WIRED – contextual usage. More related content here.
Culture
Classic Song ‘Stems’ Inspire Remixes – WSJ – great to see Luxxury getting some respect. Previously this level of access was limited to DJ pools like DMC in the UK (paywall)
FMCG
Kantar: Chinese Consumer Goods Companies Take Share from Foreign Companies | China Internet Watch – interesting to see how western CPG companies like P&G and Unilever are losing ground in China
Ideas
Minds and Machines | Information Processing – the singularity is a long way off
Legal
CITIZEN EVIDENCE LAB | Turning Citizen Media Into Citizen Evidence: Authentication Techniques For Human Rights Researchers – interesting experience in media literacy and tips on spotting fake content that goes beyond Amnesty’s worthy if narrow purpose
Luxury
Juicy Couture Seeks Greener Pastures In Asia | Jing Daily – shuttering US stores and opening up mainland ones. Are Chinese tourists not buying mid-market luxury in the US?
Chow Tai Fook builds loyalty through electronic stamps | Marketing Interactive – kind of, but not Tesco Clubcard for jewellery
Marketing
Li & Fung spin-off Global Brands wants China brands to compete globally | SCMP – (paywall)
From the editor-in-chief: The death of PR agencies – as we know them | PR Week – no real surprises
Media
Tablet Magazine Ads Seen Garnering Recall Levels on Par With Print – but the reach of tablets is still lower
Disney Picks 11 Tech and Media Firms for Startup-Accelerator Program | Variety – following other consumer brands like Unilever, Mondelez and PepsiCo
MediaPost Publications Marketers Still Not Sold On Native Advertising 07/08/2014 – measurement and effectiveness
Can Social Media Spending Fit Into a Simple ROI Formula? | SearchEngineJournal – looking at this data social web marketing isn’t working that well anymore
Why the abysmal Transformers sequel is about to become China’s top grossing film of all time – Quartz – basically relevance
BBC Academy – Journalism – great set of resources from the BBC
Online
360 Search Gaining Over 28% Market Share | ChinaInternetWatch – interesting that 360 is putting up a credible challenge to Baidu
Technology
VIA’s new Isaiah x86/ARM hybrid CPU outperforms Intel in benchmarks – but will it ever come to market? | ExtremeTech – it reminds me of the hype around Transmeta back in the day
Metcalfe’s Law is Wrong – IEEE Spectrum – interesting essay
Backlash stirs in US against foreign worker visas – looks like the tech industry’s dirty little secret could come home to roost
Web of no web
Bits Blog: Intel, Qualcomm and Others Compete for ‘Internet of Things’ Standard | New York Times – the problem will be Qualcomm’s take on intellectual property would be incompatible with the price point of ‘internet of things’ things
Wireless
China operators form €1.2bn tower-sharing venture | TotalTelecom – smart move, though probably not as profitable for Huawei and ZTE as it could have been..
Ben Thompson: ‘Smartphone Truths and Samsung’s Inevitable Decline’ | Stratechery – whilst there is an obvious analogue with the PC which benefited only Microsoft and Intel respectively, Samsung’s scale puts it in a slightly different place
Huawei D3 could be the world’s first flagship clone! | Gizchina.com – interesting assertion, particularly as Huawei is positioning itself as innovative. Also interesting that it was copying HTC
Samsung Finds It Costly to Keep Up with China – Businessweek – Chinese firms treading on their turf