Internet goes international, finally

By the middle of 2010, URLs will begin appearing in Arabic, Chinese, Hindu, Japanese, Russian Cyrillic and other languages not based on Latin letters.

ICANN, which is the Internet's primary governing body, announced this change just yesterday.

The president of ICANN, quoted in the Guardian, says:

"Of the 1.6 billion users today worldwide, more than half use languages that have scripts that are not Latin-based."

IMHO, this is a great idea because it really opens up the Internet to the international community. Not everyone thinks this is a good idea, however. PC World columnist David Coursey complains, in a headline, that "ICANN approves domain names we can't type." Actually, ICANN's action will allow billions of people to type domain names in their native languages.

What next for Nintendo's Wii?

For three consecutive Christmas seasons, the Nintendo Wii was the holiday gift for many families. Chronic shortages only heightened interest in the Wii and boosted word of mouth about the game console with the innovative motion-sensing controller. From toddlers to grannies, the Wii had many enthusiastic fans swinging golf clubs or moving Mario across the screen. Nintendo's profits soared as the Wii worked its magic.

NHS has, in fact, endorsed the Wii Fit, allowing the product's adverts to bear the logo of the Change4Life healthy-living programme.

Now sales of Nintendo's game consoles have slowed, due in part to poor economic conditions and to competitive pressure from Microsoft and Sony. The firm also notes that game sales are down, despite the built-in market of so many Wii consoles in households worldwide. Nintendo just reduced its sales forecast and cut the Wii's base price to stimulate purchasing during the all-important yearend holiday season.

Another factor in console sales is that game enthusiasts have numerous mobile options these days--not just Nintendo's own ds but also games downloaded for the iPhone and other smart phones. Can the Wii recapture its popularity and boost Nintendo's profits during the upcoming holiday season?

McDonald's caters to the budget-conscious

Iceland's financial difficulties have caused McDonald's to close its three restaurants there at the end of this week. The company is unlikely to reenter the market for some time because high costs have pushed profit margins to unacceptably low levels.

Yet overall, turnover at the company's European and Asian restaurants is increasing, largely because of the popularity of specially-priced menu items.

Cash-strapped consumers are still eating out on a budget. The Times Online reports that sales of McDonald's Extra Value Meals during the past three months increased by 8.6 per cent compared with the same period in 2008.

Discussing the positive results, the Chief Executive of McDonald's UK tells the Telegraph:

What was encouraging was about three-quarters of this increase was down to more customer visits, not higher prices. The reality is that consumers are still finding life tough, and they are unforgiving of price rises.

More European customers are trying breakfast at McDonald's and visiting McCafes for gourmet coffee, boosting market share, revenue and profits. Clearly, the company's strategy of growth by increasing sales per customer and restaurant -- rather than by opening new restaurants -- is a cost-effective approach to today's financial climate.

Win 7 Outsells Harry Potter

Microsoft introduces its new Windows 7 operating system tomorrow. And according to an Amazon.com official quoted in The Telegraph, the software has already become a runaway best-seller:

"The launch of Windows 7 has exceeded everyone's expectations, storming ahead of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as the biggest grossing pre-order product of all time at Amazon.co.uk."

According to the BBC, the future of Microsoft is riding on the success of this software introduction. Although that sounds rather dramatic, it's true that Microsoft stands to profit handsomely if businesses and consumers decide to upgrade to Windows 7 or take the next step and buy new PCs (preloaded with Win 7) to take advantage of the new software.

How much marketing magic can Microsoft make for Windows 7? A quick search shows that the company is putting a big PR and sales push behind its new system. But will this production introduction translate into the kind of profits that Microsoft expects?

New Media Age Top 100 agencies

New Media Age ranks agencies every year according to the income they earn from digital media activities in the UK. The Top 100 listing is interesting because each agency is differentiated according to its expertise of marketing, technical or design and build, in addition to the year founded, digital revenues and number of employees.

The magazine also prepares a listing of most respected agencies and most influential people in the industry. This year, like last, Poke was named the most respected agency; its partner, Iain Tait, was this year's most influential person.

The Poke site home page displays news and links/videos from recent campaigns and Poke's portfolio is worth a look. Iain Tait's blog also includes links to Flickr photos of his tiny twins. Living digital!

Taking steps towards sustainability

Tesco, Coca-Cola and Unilever are among the many marketers taking steps towards sustainability and speaking out in favour of businesses protecting the planet. The Guardian reported the following comments at today's London climate-change conference, in advance of a major Copenhagen meeting in December.

Tesco wants to be carbon-neutral by 2050; the chief executive says: 'Survival is the issue, not just for our business, but the entire planet'.

Coca-Cola's president says his firm's surveys show that consumers now put ecological concerns at the top of their priorities. 'I think it is a fallacy to think growth and a sustainable world are mutually exclusive', he told the conference.

Sustainability is a long-term goal . . . as a Unilever official observes: 'We need a whole new business model, but it takes time'.

Today's customers expect progress towards sustainability; thanks to the Internet and social media, they can quickly find out what companies are actually doing and what people are saying about the issues.

Sustainability is not a marketing gimmick, and transparency is essential to earning the trust of customers and other publics. By declaring their commitment to greener business activities in a very public way, Unilever, Coke and Tesco are letting the world know where they stand and inviting scrutiny of their sustainability efforts. That's transparency.

Byte Night 2009

On 2 October, 700 IT professionals -- plus celebrities and business leaders-- slept rough under the stars to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds for the children's charity Action for Children.

The one-night fundraising goal was 500,000 pounds. At this point, the pledges and promises received add up to nearly that amount, but more money is expected to be donated before the final tally.

Byte Night started 11 years ago when 30 members of the IT industry slept rough to raise 35,000 pounds for the charity then known as NCH (which rebranded itself as Action for Children in 2008).

This year, many IT groups promoted their participation through blogs, websites, Twitter and in other ways. Just enter Byte Night into your favourite search engine and check the results. Wouldn't you say the event boosted awareness of the charity and its good works as well as raising money?

Marketing Halloween

Boo! Halloween is becoming increasingly popular in the UK, mirroring its popularity across the pond.

Here are a few examples of marketing activities connected to the traditions of the 31st of October:

• Derry City Council sponsors 'Banks of the Foyle Halloween Carnival' on Halloween weekend, a fun way to attract visitors.
• The London Canal Museum sells tickets to Halloween boat trips through Islington Tunnel, with costumed staffers and fun-fright doings.
• The Alton Towers Halloween Scarefest, which runs for two weeks, provides a 'chilling combination' of indoor and outdoor theme-park scares for all ages.
• The Food Standards Agency gets into the spirit of the holiday with recipes and craft ideas.
• ASDA aims to increase Halloween sales for the third year in a row by creating an in-store party atmosphere for adults and children alike.
• John Lewis sells stylish Halloween-themed accessories for the home online and in its shops.
• For a bit of history about Halloween plus holiday recipes, see the BBC site.

Media watchdogs

'The ASA is here to make sure all advertising, wherever it appears, meets the high standards laid down in the advertising codes.'

The Advertising Standards Authority announces its decisions about ad campaigns every week. This week, the ASA announced adjudications about these advertisers: Abbey National, AD Associates, CashEuroNet UK (t/a QuickQuid), Coca-Cola Great Britain (t/a Beverage Services), Community Trade Marks & Designs, Filta Group (t/a FiltaFry), Life Line Screening UK, Microsoft, Park Wholesale Beds, Peugeot Motor Co, Rockwool Insulation, Tesco Stores, Thane Direct UK, TopSpec Equine,UlsterTrader.com, VistaPrint, We Buy Any Car (t/a webuyanycar.com), West Coast Energy, and William Hill Organisation.

The Guardian covers the ASA's weekly announcements also. To see the codes that govern UK advertising, click through here. Also check the Ofcom website for regulatory actions and advisories about TV and radio, telecoms and mobiles, plus the wireless airwaves.

Asda installs webcams for transparency

Asda is installing webcams in stores and production facilities as a transparency measure.

The Guardian quotes the chief executive as saying the retailer should be run 'by the consumer for the consumer', and 'there is no "behind the scenes"'. A new Asda store in South Wales will have glass walls to allow shoppers 'a unique window into areas normally out of view'.

The Times says the Asda chief sees retail webcams serving a similar transparency function as open kitchens in restaurants, reassuring customers of quality and cleanliness.

Privacy advocates have expressed concern; how will consumers react? Is this a move toward greater transparency? Or is it too much information?