Digital Intelligence
Daily digital marketing research and news
Daily digital marketing research
- Today's news
- Email edition
- Mobile edition
- RSS edition
- Send us your news
- About Digital Intelligence
- Select your stories
- Research partnerships
- Our research team
Special sector reports
- FMCG
- Foods
- Online video
- Social media marketing
- Mobile marketing
- Ecommerce and eretailing
- Search engine marketing
- Marketing through gaming
- Digital marketing regulation
- Content marketing
Special country reports
Digital Intelligence archives
Consultancy
- Get in touch
- Press centre
- About us
- Digital Knowledge
- Insight Reports
- Today's news
- Case studies
- Help
- Site map
Training
<< Monthly archives: May 2013
Latest news
Google lets users send money via Gmail
Google has introduced a new dollar-sign icon for Gmail attachments, letting users transfer money via its Google Wallet service.
17/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing ecommerce email Google Google Mail Google Wallet PayPal retail
Smartphone wars: Android has shipped 4 times more than Apple in 2013 (so far)
Android continued its dominance of the global smartphone market in the first quarter of 2013, accounting for 3 out of 4 smartphones sold, according to new data.
17/05/2013 | Full story...
Top 20 sites in Russia by visitors and time spent
Mail.ru is the largest free email service in Russia and leads in terms of visits and average time spent on the site. Vk.com is a popular social network in Russia and has the second highest average time spent on the site (343.2). Vk.com reported higher vists and time spent than popular social network Facebook, whose 13,114,000 Russian users spent less than 30 minutes on average on the site during February 2013.

17/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies digital data Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends email Europe Facebook Google internet use Mail.ru Russia social media and social networking time spent online video VKontakte Wikimedia Foundation Yandex
UK digital publishing ad revenues rise 16%- video fuels growth
UK digital publisher advertising revenues were up 16.2% in Q1 2013, versus the same period of the previous year, according to new research.
17/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: AOP automotive digital marketing digital trends FMCG mobile marketing publishing strategy retail social media and social networking UK video
Is Google doing 'evil' over UK tax? (video)
Google has been accused of ignoring its own mantra and doing "evil in using smoke and mirrors to avoid paying tax" by UK MPs this week.
Watch a video from Channel 4 showing Google Vice President Matt Brittin being questioned by the committee here:
17/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends Google government regulation UK
Warm weather boosts April ecommerce sales 16% as shoppers flock to travel sites
Latest figures from the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index, reveal the impact the short spell of warm weather had on shoppers’ purse strings in April, recording a 16% rise on the same time last year. The Travel sector in particular saw a solid performance, increasing 16% year-on-year.
17/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends ecommerce IMRG IMRG-Capgemini mobile marketing retail Travel UK
Google woos local advertisers with Map ad icons
Google has overhauled its popular Maps web service with more personalisation features and icons highlighting businesses running ads and promotions.
Watch a Google video explaining how the service works below:
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: advertising AdWords digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Google local Maps search
The Sun ‘£2 a week’ paywall coming in August?
The Sun is to become the latest national newspaper to charge for online content, with plans to charge readers £2 a week to read content online with access to Premier League football highlights, according to a news report.
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing News Corp. newspapers paid content sport UK
Google rivals WhatsApp with ‘Hangouts’ cross platform chat app
Google has launched a cross-platform messaging app, letting users to have video chats, send text messages and swap pictures between Android and iOS devices as well its Chrome web browser.
Watch the app in action below:
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: applications (apps) digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Facebook Google Google Plus mobile and tablets mobile internet mobile marketing Skype social media and social networking whatsapp
Google takes on Spotify with $10 music streaming service
Google has launched a streaming music subscription service, taking on the likes of Spotify and Pandora.
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Android digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Google media music paid content Pandora Rdio Spotify USA
Recent stories
Facebook extends ‘structured updates’ to mobiles to boost targeting
Facebook is expanding its ‘structured status updates’ to its mobile service, letting people add emotions and actions to their posts while on the move.
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: advertising applications (apps) behavioural targeting digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Facebook local mobile marketing social media and social networking user generated content
Video viral of the week: Evian's dancing babies return to get 45m YouTube views
Evian has refreshed its hugely successful ‘Evian babies’ campaign, with a new viral video that matches dancing adults to their toddler counterparts. Supported by baby face-changing app, the ad has notched up over 45 million views on YouTube. See why it’s our video viral of the week below…
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: advertising agencies digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing FMCG food and beverages video viral marketing YouTube
France mulls ‘culture tax’ on Google and Apple
France is preparing to impose taxes on Apple and Google to finance the production of art, films and music in the country.
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Android Apple digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing France Google government iPhone, iPod and iTunes mobile and tablets regulation retail viral marketing
UK marketers survey: 95% to increase digital spend in 2013 (infographic)
95% of UK marketers will increase digital marketing spend in 2013, with 71% using digital for building brand awareness, according to new research.
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: adspend agencies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends marketing social media and social networking UK
Thomson challenges internet users to take a ‘One-Minute Holiday’
Travel retailer Thomson has launched a new campaign encouraging Britain’s weary workforce to take an exotic break without leaving their desks.
16/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: advertising agencies digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Travel
Blackberry extends free BBM chat app to Android and iOS
BlackBerry’s popular chat app BBM is to launch on rival platforms for the first time, as the phone maker looks to capitalise on the growing demand for wi-fi alternatives to text messages.
Watch this video explaining how BBM works on the Blackberry platform;
15/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Android Apple applications (apps) BlackBerry digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Google IM iPhone, iPod and iTunes mobile and tablets mobile internet mobile marketing
UK ‘new global technology hub’ second only to the US
The UK is now the second most attractive location in the world, after the United States, for high-flying professionals to relocate to, says a new report.
15/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends Europe marketing recuitment technology UK USA
Camden first London borough to get ‘free’ public wi-fi
Camden is to become the first of 17 London boroughs to offer residents and visitors with free public wi-fi, but only for 30 minutes a day.
15/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Arquiva broadband digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing internet internet use telecoms time spent online UK wi-fi
Google axes SMS search portal
Google has shut down its SMS search tool for mobile users without a data plan.
15/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Google mobile and tablets mobile internet mobile marketing search smartphones
A snapshot of digital Brazil: Portals and social media reap biggest ad revenues
Brazilian web users spend 27 hours online per month, with social media and portals getting the most ad revenue, according to a new report.
15/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: advertising Brazil comScore demographics digital marketing digital trends ecommerce Latin America mobile marketing portal search social media and social networking South America video
Hilton teams with Google for YouTube travel community
Hilton has launched a user-generated travel community ‘DTour’ on YouTube, as the hotel chain looks to expand its digital reach.
15/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: brands digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Google social media and social networking Travel YouTube
Roll over 4G? Samsung makes 5G mobile broadband breakthrough
Samsung has claimed to have made a breakthrough in 5G, a mobile broadband service that would let users download films in a second with 100 times faster smartphones.
14/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: 4G broadband digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing internet media mobile and tablets mobile internet Samsung smartphones South Korea technology wi-fi
Creating a successful mobile app- an infographic guide
More than 60% of apps are ‘never downloaded’ from Apple’s app store, and of those that are, one in four is abandoned after its initial use. This infographic from New Relic offers a step-by-step guide to creating an app that matching customer and business goals.
14/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: applications (apps) digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing games infographic mobile and tablets mobile marketing smartphones
Can Wikipedia predict the stock market?
Wikipedia could have been used as early warning signs of stock market movements, according to a new study published this month in Scientific Reports.
14/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends financial services search Wikimedia Foundation
Direct marketing trends: What Obama 2012 can teach us (video)
The Obama 2012 presidential campaign produced one of the most sophisticated direct marketing systems ever seen, pinpointing potential voters with the right messages delivered in the right format at crucial moments (helping to win the US election as a result). At last month’s DMA Technololgy Summit in London, Harper Reed, the campaign’s chief architect, revealed how modern direct marketing trends such as 'micro-listening' can have wider applications for marketers.
Watch Reed's presentation below:
14/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: behavioural targeting blogging Channel 4 digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends direct marketing DMA email email publishing Facebook government media newspapers Privacy social media and social networking technology USA user generated content WPP
Yahoo mulling Hulu bid?
Yahoo is considering another bid for video streaming service Hulu, after negotiations with rival Dailymotion failed, according to reports.
14/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Bloomberg Daily Motion digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Hulu paid content video Yahoo
European mobile traffic trends: UK, Ireland and Russia lead the way
In Europe, the computer is no longer the only access point for digital content. New data from comScore indicates that the UK, Ireland and Russia lead Europe for mobile traffic.
14/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Austria Belgium comScore Denmark Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends Europe Finland France Germany internet use Ireland Italy mobile and tablets mobile internet mobile marketing Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Russia smartphones Sweden Switzerland time spent online Turkey UK
UK social media trends: Half of Brits use social for purchase decisions
Nearly half (46%) of UK consumers use social media for online purchasing decisions and over a third (35%) use it to vent about bad customer service, according to new research.
14/05/2013 | Full story...
Bebo files for bankruptcy as shareholder battle continues
Social networking site Bebo has filed a voluntary petition for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in California, following an ongoing battle between shareholders.
13/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: AOL Bebo digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing social media and social networking USA
BitTorrent ‘Bundle’ offers legal downloads for customer contacts
BitTorrent is launching a new online media format letting content creators offer downloads in exchange for ‘additional steps’ such as providing an email or a cash donation, as the firm looks to distance itself from piracy and provide an alternative distribution model for the creative industry.
13/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing media music paid content piracy US
Social mums: Online ‘thumbs up’ crucial to parent purchasing decisions (infographic)
Almost a third of UK mums have decided against purchasing a product after reading a post, comment or review on online, according to a new report and infographic from Diffusion.
13/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: blogging demographics digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends Facebook infographic marketing media newspapers search social media and social networking Twitter video
World of Warcraft ‘lost a million users’ in 2013 so far
World of Warcraft has lost more than one million subscribers in the first three months of 2013, as gamers leave for free to play alternatives.
13/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends games paid content World of Warcraft
Top 20 sites in Russia
Mail.Ru, Yandex, Google and VK are the most visited sites in Russia, but it’s the social networks that get most screen time, according to new data from ComScore.
13/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: comScore digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends Europe Google internet use Mail.ru Russia time spent online VKontakte Yandex
Facebook to buy mobile mapping firm Waze for $1bn?
Facebook is in talks to buy Israeli mobile satellite navigation start-up Waze for $800m to $1bn, according to a news report.
Watch this video report from Bloomberg discussing the rumoured deal:
10/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: applications (apps) digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Facebook local Maps mobile marketing social media and social networking
UK adspend hits £17bn- first time since 2007
Total advertising spend in the UK reached £17.172bn in 2012, up 2.3% on 2011 according to figures released this week in the AA/Warc Expenditure Report.
10/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: adspend advertising Advertising Association digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends newspapers UK World Advertising Research Centre (WARC)
YouTube takes on Amazon and Netflix with paid TV channels
YouTube is testing paid channels on its website, charging user from $0.99 a month to watch select content such as full Sesame Street episodes or the National Geographic Kids channel.
10/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Amazon digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Google Hulu LOVEFiLM media Netflix paid content video YouTube
BT takes on Sky with Sports channel
BT has secured rights to 38 live Premier League matches, British rugby union and the women's tennis tour, with plans to offer its new sports channels "as good as free" to existing customers.
10/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: broadband BT digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Entertainment paid content Sky Sky Sports sport video
Huggies ‘TweetPee’ app tells parents to change baby’s diaper
Diaper manufacturer Huggies has teamed up with creative agency Ogilvy Brazil to create ‘Huggies TweetPee’; a gadget and app that lets parents know when their baby needs a change in diaper.
The Brazilian TV advert for TweetPee (in Portugese) is below:
10/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: applications (apps) brands Brazil digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing FMCG Latin America mobile marketing South America technology
Facebook planning video ads to rival YouTube?
Facebook is planning to put video ads in newsfeeds from July, as the social network looks to rival Google’s YouTube.
09/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: advertising digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Facebook social media and social networking video YouTube
YouTube ‘to charge from $1.99’ for subscription channels
Google will charge from $1.99 per month (£1.28) for each YouTube channel on its new premium selection, according to a new report.
09/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: content digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing Google paid content video YouTube
Digital Marketing in Russia: Yandex, VK and Mail.RU lead the way (Infographic)
Russia is the sixth largest country in the world in terms of internet users, overtaking the UK, Indonesia and Germany in recent years. Despite this, there remains huge scope for growth. This infographic looks at the key digital players in the country, across social, mobile, email, search and video sectors.
The infographic below is an open source project from IAB Russia, inviting comments for further additions. The map describes the key sectors, processes and players in the field of digital marketing in Russia.

09/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: advertising digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends email Europe infographic Mail.ru mobile marketing Russia search social media and social networking video VKontakte Yandex
AccuWeather debuts 30-day forecasts
Weather app AccuWeather has extended its forecasts to 30-days, helping people plan events up to a month ahead of time.
09/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: applications (apps) content digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing local Maps mobile marketing
Third of Brits ‘expect to be victims of online ID fraud in future’
Over a third (36%) of Britons believe that online identity fraud or information theft is unavoidable in the future, according to a new study.
09/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends financial services games mobile marketing Privacy regulation security
93% of consumer magazines lack full cross platform support
Most consumer magazines surveyed in the UK, US and Germany have yet to offer brands complete cross-platform digital experiences, according to a new report.
09/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing digital trends Germany mobile and tablets mobile marketing paid content publishing strategy UK US
Video case study: IKEA tells ‘kitchen stories’ with multiple viewpoints
This campaign from IKEA Russia allowed consumers to take part in a ‘kitchen story’ and experience their kitchens. At any point, users could switch between the viewpoints of any of the characters featured while the story is being played out. The campaign was a success as over 540,000 kitchen solutions were discovered during the first three months of going live.
More on this case study…
Brand: Ikea | Sector: Housewares, FMCG | Country: Russia | Objective: Build brand engagement, drive sales | Agency/partner; Instinct/BBDO | Format: Social Media, Video
08/05/2013 | Full story...
Case study: Persil 'Garden of Freshness' game drives brand engagement
Is the internet the right medium to advertise a low involvement product like laundry detergent? This slide presentation case study from Alexandra Zadoya from OMD Russia looks at how a Persil campaign in Russia used social gaming in innovative ways to drive brand engagement and sales.
More on this case study…
Brand: Persil | Sector: FMCG, Household goods | Country: Russia | Objective: Build brand engagement, drive sales | Agency/partner; OMD Russia | Format: Social Media, Gaming, Display
08/05/2013 | Full story...
Video case study: M&M's 'Love Triangle' social story gets 2 millions fans
Back in 2011, confectionary brand Mars ran a three month social media campaign in Russia, centred around a love triangle between their iconic M&M’s characters. This video case study looks at how the campaign attracted millions of fans and sales support.
Watch a video case study of the campaign here:
More on this case study…
Brand: Mars M&M's | Sector: FMCG, Food | Country: Russia | Objective: Build brand engagement, drive sales | Agency/partner; BBDO | Format: Social Media, Video
08/05/2013 | Full story...
Charity case study: Torrent Your Blood Campaign
The Blood Transfusion Service in Russia wanted a digital project that could connect with people in a different kind of way, and what agency SmartNewSolutions came up with was a “Torrent” project, with a twist. In this campaign, the act of torrenting is in some ways similar to the sharing of blood, sometimes you give, sometimes you get. The Torrent Your Blood Campaign launched as a short film, complete with microsite, trailers and social to promote it, the catch was, you could only get it via a torrent.
Watch the video case study below:
More on this case study…
Brand: Blood Transfusion Service | Sector: Charity | Country: Russia | Objective: Build brand engagement, drive donations | Agency/partner; SmartNewSolutions | Format: Social, Display advertising, Video
08/05/2013
Dawn of ‘wiki weapons’? First 3D printable gun hits internet
As 3D printers go mainstream, one Texas law student has created the schematics for a 3D printable single-use gun, making them freely available online.
Watch a BBC video looking into the controversy surrounding the device here:
08/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: Digital Intelligence digital trends regulation technology USA video
Pfizer to sell Viagra online to compete with fraudsters
Pfizer is to sell its patented Viagra drug online for the first time, as the drugs maker looks to counter the trade in counterfeit pills.
08/05/2013 | Full story... | More about: digital companies Digital Intelligence digital marketing ecommerce global Pfizer Pharmaceutical and healthcare regulation retail US
Recent archives
Kids warned off Google Glass for health reasons - 08/05/2013
Microsoft revamps Windows 8 after user complaints - 08/05/2013
Brazilians turn to web for travel plans - 08/05/2013
Amazon sells apps in China for first time - 07/05/2013
75% of Argos sales to come from web by 2016 - 07/05/2013
Google Glass gets first video user guide - 03/05/2013
Survey finds 4G will accelerate mobile shopping - 03/05/2013
Digital Intelligence April 2013 - 03/05/2013
Nielsen tests online TV tracking tool - 02/05/2013
Experian launches cross-channel marketing platform - 02/05/2013
Chat apps ‘now more popular than texting’ - 01/05/2013
Twitter’s Google Glass app leaked online? - 01/05/2013
Siri rival Google Now comes to iPad and iPhone users - 01/05/2013
UK Outlook users get Skype tool - 01/05/2013
Global online ad spend ‘to overtake print by 2015’ - 30/04/2013
Twitter debuts keyword targeting - 30/04/2013
Alibaba buys 18% stake in ‘Chinese Twitter’ Weibo - 30/04/2013
Google buys news streaming firm Wavii - 30/04/2013
Google axes Meebo social toolbar to focus on Google+ - 30/04/2013
Big questions on Big Data ‘remain unanswered’ - KPMG - 30/04/2013
Apple’s iTunes turns 10- Can it keep its lead? - 29/04/2013
Facebook buys mobile app start-up Parse - 29/04/2013
Top 6 US sites by display revenue ad growth - 26/04/2013
Top 5 sites by digital display ad revenue - 26/04/2013
Samsung hits record sales- smartphones lead growth - 26/04/2013
Baidu to buy Chinese video site for $400m? - 26/04/2013
Nintendo gets social with Miiverse online - 25/04/2013
Nokia adds Whatsapp button for $72 Asha mobile - 25/04/2013
Shazam offers interactive cinema ads for brands - 25/04/2013
Archived Digital Intelligence
Archive 2001-2005
For access to earlier editions of Digital Intelligence you will need your client passwords. Digests and thematic reports are also available along with our market sector analysis on topics such as online advertising spend.
Sign me up!
Sign up here if you or your colleagues would like to get Digital Intelligence delivered straight to your desktop.
We normally get new subscribers up and running within two weeks.
Send us your news
In the Digital Intelligence publication we focus on research data, industry trends and key steps in the development of the digital networked society.
If your company is generating news that could contribute to this then why not get in touch? Email Research@DigitalStrategyConsulting.com.