As an increasingly robust aggregator of local reviews, Google Places is turning into a formidable opponent. Several years ago, Google paid Yelp for access to their huge database of reviews; however, eventually Yelp terminated the deal. All was well until Google started crawling Yelp’s pages for unlicensed content to populate Google Places. Adding insult to injury, Google often pushes Yelp’s data to the bottom of its review areas, favoring instead licensed partners like Zagat. Oh, what a tangled web of reviews we weave.

Beyond the professional veneer, there’s no question that Stoppelman feels burned.

The recent developments, he says, were unexpected:

“Well I think we were surprised because we hadn’t participated in Place Pages over the years. Like we were in sort of the precursor to Place Pages back in something like 2006 and then we left because we weren’t really happy in the direction it was going and we thought OK we’ll just show up in organic results and everybody is still happy. And then yeah, we found our content was showing up there and it is ranked dead last right now. I don’t think that’s sort of a permanent situation from what we gather from talking to Google, they are sort of  headed in a new direction that which hopefully will be more positive.”

Yelp, of course, is not always the victim. The site has been criticized for ripping Foursquare’s techniques, with this year’s introduction of check-ins, leader boards, badges and the not-so-subtle “dukedom” honor. Now, Yelp is tiptoeing near Groupon’s turf, as it tests limited deals in cities like Sacramento. During our post-panel video interview, we got a chance to talk to Stoppelman about Google Places and Yelp’s budding rivalries with Foursquare and Groupon. See full video above— below are a couple key highlights:

On Check-Ins
-Android has been a particularly strong platform— the number of Yelp downloads grew 40% week over week for about a month. Now, its growing 15% week over week.

On Limited Sales
-Yelp will eventually roll out a product that will capitalize on its strength as a destination for time sensitive searches. “We have all this traffic, we have 35 million monthly visiting the site and so what could we do for people that are actually looking for a massage right now versus you know alerting them hey there’s this deal is available. So are there some interesting twists on just the Groupon model that we can apply because we’re Yelp.”

The most recent discussions were prompted, in part, by Y Combinator’s AngelConf, held on Thursday. Billed as a “how-to” for prospective angels, the event featured a number of prominent investors as speakers, including Paul Graham, Ron Conway, and Mike Arrington. You can watch the archives at Justin.tv.

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Conway’s assertion that any “entrepreneur who has the guts to start a company should be funded” was an optimistic opening salvo for the day. But Arrington might have walked away with the “most quotable” award for the day, with his contention that VCs fear angel investors are training a generation of entrepreneurs who are “building dipshit companies” to sell to Google for $25 million.

But one good expletive deserves another, and on Friday, Dave McClure laid out his investment thesis: “MoneyBall for Startups: Invest BEFORE Product/Market Fit, Double-Down AFTER.”

Tech Investment: A Thesis

McClure analyzes the changing landscape for tech startups, arguing that it’s much cheaper to start a company, develop a product and win customers. “Invest BEFORE product/market fit, measure/test to see if the team is finding it, and if so, then exercise your pro-rata follow-on investment opportunity AFTER they have achieved product/market fit. It’s sort of like counting cards at the blackjack table while betting low, then when you’re more than halfway thru the deck and you see it’s loaded with face cards & ten, then you start increasing your betting & doubling-down.”

McClure believes that the VC investment model hasn’t been responsive to this shift nor can it be responsive to the innovation and agility of tech startups, in part because they simply do not understand the market. “Hurry up & die already, u friggin’ pathetic dinosaurs,” says McClure (in multicolored caps-locks). McClure’s investment thesis serves as an accompaniment to his investment fund 500 Startups, whose website launched yesterday.

Tech Investment: History & Analysis

While the Y Combinator event and McClure’s announcement has sparked some good discussion about investment opportunities and practices, we’ve seen a number of solid analyses throughout the entire month. Weighing in earlier this month, for example, were Mark Suster with his post, “What’s Really Going on in the VC Industry? What Does It Mean for Startups?” and Steve Blank with his post, titled “Welcome to the Lost Decade (for Entrepreneurs, IPOs, and VCs).

If you want to get a handle on what some of the thought-leaders in the investment community are saying, all these posts are well-worth reading in their entirety.

Photo credits: Flickr user zzzack

Discuss

Well this is interesting. One of the key points at Apple’s recent press conference to discuss the iPhone 4′s antenna, was that the problem (called “attenuation”) is not unique to the iPhone. To highlight this, Apple showed videos of the problem on smartphones by rival companies. Those videos were then posted to a special antenna page on Apple’s website. Those videos are now gone.

As you can see on this page, the videos are nowhere to be found. Instead, the page now only shows the overview of the antenna design and test labs. A search of Apple’s website brings up a few of the landing pages where the videos used to be — here’s the Droid X one, for example — but now those just redirect to the antenna design page as well. Odd.

Here’s what else is interesting: the original page with these videos still does reside on the Canadian version of Apple’s website. Here’s you’ll find the videos for the BlackBerry Bold 9700, the HTC Droid Eris, the Motorola Droid X, the Nokia N97 Mini, the Samsung Omnia II, the iPhone 3GS, and the iPhone 4. However, the Asian version of Apple’s site has the videos removed as well.

The videos are still up on Apple’s official YouTube channel, but they are no longer featured, and are a little bit trickier to find.

We’ve reached out to Apple for an official response as to why they removed them from the website. Obviously, they caused quite a bit of controversy – with some rivals, like RIM (makers of the BlackBerry), even responding. Has the threat of lawsuits from rivals forced Apple to take them down? Or did they take them down due to some of the negative backlash they were receiving? Or perhaps Apple is simply trying to move on from the situation — but again, the antenna design and test lab page is still there (though it doesn’t call out rivals specifically).

At the top of this post, find what the /antenna site currently looks like in the U.S. Below, find what it used to look like — and still does for the Canadian version of the site.

[thanks Noah]

Let’s call this a single source rumor. But the source is Paul Carr’s camera, so we feel pretty good about it. The picture was taken last night at the TechCrunch summer party at August Capital.

Tello, says our source, has raised $100,000 from angel investor Dave McClure, who’s checks appear to have an imprint of the Twitter fail whale in the background. This is one of his first investments from his shiny new 500 Startups fund.

What’s Tello? We don’t actually know. Founder and CEO Joe Beninato was previously the CEO of Presto. We had a lot of fun with that one. Cofounder and CTO John Cwikla has experience at GameLayers, Doostang, Xoom and other startups.

The total size of this round is around $1 million, we hear. More details as they come in.

When we first heard about Fiverr — the service which asks, “What are you willing to do for $5?” — we were seriously skeptical. Who would actually advertise to do anything for the cost of an overpriced coffee?

Checking back in a few weeks after launch, we were amazed to see that the site appears to be flooded with offers from people prepared to do many, many things — good and bad, funny and not — for a price. So, we decided to put the service to the test and find out what we could get for five greenbacks.

Do we think the service is exploitative? Potentially. Is it a fascinating social experiment? Despite our mixed feelings on the topic, undoubtedly. Have a browse below of the various and varied tasks our fellow netizens carried out for us for $5, and have your say in the comments below.

1. I will plant a tree in my garden for $5

It may not be the best shovel work we’ve ever seen, but there is a nice feeling in knowing that there’s a tree planted just for you in some far flung part of the globe.

2. I will sing any song for you for $5

If you’re a little low and want an ego boost, how about getting a talented singer to serenade you with your favorite song? This acoustic rendition of Ray LaMontagne’s “You Are The Best Thing” by Joe Marson is definitely worth $5 in our book.

3. I will let you rent 3 inch by 3 inch property for an entire year for $5

Thanks to Fiverr, there’s now a 3-inch by 3-inch patch of land (or as we like to tell others, holiday home) with our name on it in Chesterfield, Michigan. Can you imagine the look on the face of the landlord if we actually turned up to visit?

4. I will make a puppet show from your suggestions for $5

The WonderSpark Puppet company offers a novel way to advertise for grown-ups. Their personalized puppetry also makes a great gift for little ones.

5. I will have my cartoon cat sing you a song or say anything for $5

Who wouldn’t want a cute cartoon cat singing them a silly song? Whether you want your own feline footage or are looking for an unusual greeting for a friend, it’s yours for, you know it, $5!

More Social Media Resources from Mashable

– 10 Cool Facebook Status Tips and Tricks
– 13 Internet Slangs with Unexpected Alternate Meanings
– 5 Ways Social Media Helps Promote Good Health
– 6 Crucial Social Media Tips for Traditional Media

More About: fiverr, humor, social media, video, web, web video, youtube

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In comparison, the SaaS market grew at a compound annual growth rate of 20% during those same five years.

This seems hardly a surprise if you look at the landscape for what really is working out there. Hint: It’s not Excel spreadsheets. What is emerging is a social supply chain that can leverage the best technology available.

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Outsourcing Supply Chain Management says many companies run Excel or QuickBooks which require manual updating. Others run sophisticated businesses through legacy systems that are difficult to update, much less move data around.

According to ARC, the overall SCM market includes “execution, production, warehouse, and transportation management — as well as Supply Chain Planning — strategic, manufacturing, and inventory planning.”

ARC says SaaS services have enjoyed a presence in the transportation markets but only in recent years has that really become apparent. On-premise software, as in most sectors, has traditionally dominated this part of the market.

Why? The existing supply chain is really a post-war phenomena. It grew out of the shift in demographics that happened after World War II. Highways, bridges and big trucks all have a significant place in our economy and our culture. They are directly related to the distribution centers, those hubs like Swan Island here in North Portland which fills up with trucks every night before heading back out on I-5 to destinations all over the United States.

As the supply chain evolved, advancements in IT provided efficiencies that allowed for management of huge amounts of goods being delivered to increasingly sophisticated retail establishments.

The trucks themselves have become pretty sophisticated. They can be tracked by satellite. But the costs to run software that tracks these trucks is as expensive as any enterprise technology in any sector of the market.

SaaS allows for affordable transportation systems.

From the XCD Logistics blog:

“Not only can customer orders be converted instantly into optimized shipments, but the system stores and retrieves costs for all modes and types of movements, performing carrier selection, best rate, and most efficient routing based on shipment size and destination.”

.

The companies in the SaaS space for supply chain management face the hurdles that any SaaS provider does across any sector of the market.

Jim Burleigh is the CEO of SmartTurn. He is a a former Salesforce.com executive.

His company provides on-demand inventory and warehouse management services. The biggest problem he faces is the skepticism from companies across the supply chain who believe the costs will be prohibitive. These are people who are conditioned to paying $50,000 or more for enterprise systems.

From Outsourcing Supply Chain Management:

” ‘A good warehouse management system (WMS) is prohibitive for these businesses. It would cost $40,000-$50,000 in license fees and another $40,000 for implementation and infrastructure. “So they have locked in their mind that the entry-level price to solve their problem is $50,000-$150,000,” Burleigh says. “They don’t know that they can solve their problems for $500 a month. ‘ “

Discuss

Some people are born with rhythm and simply know how to move. Others aren’t so lucky. While our mothers may have toted us to childhood ballet classes, some were only in it for the tutu.

But if you’re yearning to learn some of that fancy footwork again, have no fear, because, well — there’s an app for that. With a little help from the iPhone and these five downloads, your feet will be moving in no time. And who knows? You may even be on on your way to preparing for a role in Swan Lake.

If you’ve achieved Dancing Queen (or King) status with iPhone assistance, let us know which apps helped get your groove back in the comments below.

1. Tap App

Personally, I’ve wanted to learn to tap dance since first seeing “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile” from Annie, but I just couldn’t get the timing right. Tap dancing is not as easy as it looks… scratch that, it doesn’t look easy at all. If you don’t have natural rhythm, this type of dance is going to be tough, but as with anything, practice makes perfect.

This app offers 12 basic tap dancing steps to get you started. YouTube videos offer very short instructions on how to move your feet and the tempo to use. The instructor takes you through the steps slowly and is really clear on how to move. Once you know how to “Shuffle,” move on to the “Ball Change,” and you’re on your way to tapping your heart out.

Cost: $1.99

2. Salsa

Because you have to salsa with a partner, this isn’t the easiest dance to learn via an iPhone application, but it definitely helps. By watching the videos, you’ll learn the follower and leader positions and steps, as they are different. You can also virtually practice with a male or female “partner,” and hey, why not learn how to do both parts? You never know when you’ll have to lead.

Cost: Free

3. Ballet For Beginners

If you’ve always wanted to take ballet classes but never had the chance, Ballet For Beginners is a good place to start. And if you’re taking an adult beginners ballet class, this is a handy companion to help you practice what you’ve learned.

The app offers 20 instructional YouTube videos that take you step-by-step through the five classical ballet positions, as well as basic moves from different angles, all taken at a slow pace so you can keep up. The videos are divided up and relatively short so you can watch them repeatedly until you commit the moves to memory. The videos include increasingly more difficult moves and steps, and as ballet is far from easy, you’ll probably find yourself needing a lot of practice.

Cost: $4.99

4. Pole Dancing

Are you ready for a “life changing journey of discovery” that will make you more “feminine, sensual, elegant and spicy?” Do you have a secure eight-foot pole you can swing around on? If so, you’re ready to pole dance.

Edith Aboul-Hosn has over 15 years of experience dancing, teaching and choreographing, and has been dancing professionally for the last seven years. She’ll teach you the art of pole dancing with GoLearn’s Pole Dancing app.

Edith is a great instructor, as she’s studied everything from classical ballet to modern dance to belly dancing. The app offers some good tips to know before starting out. For example, you should always point your toes, focus on your core, and remember to arch your back.

The YouTube video demos are completely respectful, but could be considered a little racy; but if you want to learn pole dancing, it’s to be expected. The videos teach basic moves, proper technique, spins, inversions, combinations, and how to put it all together. It all actually looks like a lot of fun… like an adult version of swinging around on the jungle gym.

Cost: $2.99

5. Learn Dance

This is app is ideal for beginners who want to learn to dance so that when they hit the clubs they can do more than just stand there and bob their heads. You know who you are, and it’s time to learn how to get down.

This app offers some very basic tips, like listening to the rhythm, shifting your weight properly, keeping loose, and when and why you should throw your hands in the air. There is also a video wall that connects you to YouTube and offers 20 guides to some of the hottest moves from today’s best dancers and musicians, as well as a break dance tutorial. Just try not to hurt yourself… or anyone else.

Cost: $0.99

More iPhone Resources from Mashable

– 10 Free iPhone Apps To Learn A New Skill In 10 Minutes
– 5 Handy iPhone Apps for Home Improvement
– 5 Awesome Arcade Games for the iPhone
– 10 iPhone Apps for a Better Night’s Sleep
– Top 10 Free iPhone Word Games

[img credit: Łukasz Strachanowski]

More About: ballet, dance, dancing, iphone app, iphone application, iphone applications, iphone apps, learn to dance, pole dancing, salsa, tap dancing

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The next generation of input is already here; chances are you have it in your pocket. Yet, advanced as it is, there are fundamental shortcomings that will prevent it from completely supplanting the interfaces we’ve grown up with.

Continue reading…

You can import individual events in the Events Guide into Google Calendar using the link beside each entry, or download the entire thing as an iCal file (which is importable into Google Calendar, Outlook, Windows Live Calendar, etc.) or even view it as a world map.

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31 July 2010: San Francisco

Tomorrow’s Web San Francisco

Tomorrow’s Web aims to bring young people together to learn from each other and provide unique real life networking opportunities. Each conference has a strong lineup of keynote speakers, as well as expert panels and workshops.

Tomorrow’s Web San Francisco is being held at Kicklabs, 250 Brannan Street, San Francisco. Kicklabs is San Francisco’s home to the best and the brightest startups in the business; a perfect venue to hold the first US Tomorrow’s Web Conference. Key speakers at Tomorrow’s Web 2010 San Francisco include Abby Laporte (Abby’s Road), Daniel Brusilovsky (Teens in Tech), Brian Wong (Follow Formation) and Chris Leydon (TinyGrab).

Tickets for attendance for both Tomorrow’s Web 2010 San Francisco and London, are now available for purchase and booking.

7 August 2010: London

Tomorrow’s Web London

Tomorrow’s Web aims to bring young people together to learn from each other and provide unique real life networking opportunities. Each conference has a strong lineup of keynote speakers, as well as expert panels and workshops.

Tomorrow’s Web London will take place on August 7th 2010 and is being held at the Park Crescent Conference Centre, 229 Great Portland Street, London, W1W 5PN. Park Crescent Conference Centre is located right in the heart of London’s buzzing tech scene, overlooking the magnificent Regents Park; an easily accessible venue. Key speakers at Tomorrow’s Web 2010 London include Christian Owens (Branchr), James Gill (GoSquared), Josh Buckley (MiniMonsters) and Jonathan Grubin (MiniG Media Ltd).

Tickets for attendance for both Tomorrow’s Web 2010 San Francisco and London, are now available for purchase and booking.

24 August 2010: New York City

FundingPost Summer Venture and Angel Event

FundingPost has hosted 165-plus sold-out venture events in 19 cities over the past 9 years. At our next NY event, the panel of investors will focus on Early-Stage Venture Investing: How to meet investors, pitch them, and what it really takes to get them to write you a check!

We will be discussing trends in Early-Stage Investing, hot sectors, sectors that these Angels and VCs look at, things that are most important to them when they are considering an Investment, the best and worst things an entrepreneur can do to get their attention, additional advice for entrepreneurs, and, of course, the best ways to reach these and other Investors. There will be plenty of time for networking with the Investor panelists, both before the panel & after the panel at the Cocktail Party! Register here.

31 August 2010: Sydney, Australia

Real World Mobile

AIMIA and VentureOne are delighted to announce the Real World Mobile event to be held in Sydney on Tuesday 31st August. And on Day Two, we present a series of case studies – extended in length and coverage. Key topics will be covered with the emphasis on how mobile transforms:
location and commerce; social networking; TV/video and games; customer experience – real world voice of the consumer; advertising and marketing including search & measurement; apps and augmented reality

Included in the program is a live panel of consumers, facilitated by Oliver Weidlich, Mobile Experience. Don’t miss the opportunity to question them: What is their experience of their mobile/s – how do they interact with content, apps, advertising and brands on mobile? What do they like and dislike? What are the real issues they have? What will they respond to in the future? Register here.

13 – 14 September 2010: Sydney, Australia

Open Source Software Pacific-Asia Conference

OSSPAC is focused on helping enterprises of all sizes – businesses and government – learn how open source software can be used to reduce costs and increase efficiency in a scalable, reliable, and cost-effective way. Even though it provides plenty of technical sessions, the main audience for OSSPAC is IT managers, project leads, and executive management who are looking at leveraging open source in their organizations. We’re offering over 30 sessions on
topics ranging from Cloud Computing to the Economics of Open Source. For more information, please visit www.osspac.com.

16 – 17 September 2010: Boston

Security Forum Forum 2010

As the global economy recovers in 2010, Security & Risk professionals must continue to balance tactical and technical responsibilities with the long-term strategic objectives of the business. To achieve this goal, you must aspire to transform your security organization from a reactive silo of technical security expertise to a proactive information risk management team. You must also adopt the same objectives and measures of success as the business.
This year’s Security Forum Forum 2010 will focus on: 1) evaluating the maturity and effectiveness of the security organization; 2) laying out a road map for architectural optimization and innovation; and 3) ensuring that the right skills, incentives, and metrics are in place for the long-term success of the security program.
Key questions that this forum will answer:

• How do you measure the maturity and the effectiveness of the security and risk management practice and build a road map for the future?
• How do you build a data security architecture to protect information no matter who has it and where it rests?
• How can you apply enterprise risk management disciplines to information security?
• How do you embed security throughout the network, not just on the perimeter?

Register here.

22 – 23 September 2010: Singapore

Social Media World Forum Asia

Social Media World Forum Asia is back for 2010. The event will be taking place at the larger venue – The Suntec Conference Centre – before the F1 Singapore night race. Two days of interactive and engaging conference featuring leading key figure keynotes, brand case studies, topical Q&A and debates, exhibition hall, workshops and networking. Speakers include:

23 September, 2010: San Francisco, California

Think Mobile

Think Mobile, produced by Mediabistro, SocialTimes, and AllFacebook, is a one-day conference that explores the broadening mobile ecosystem, marketing opportunities, and the innovation that drives the industry. Mobile business leaders will discuss monetizing content, apps, advertising, and more, as well as best practices for developing and monetizing location services, targeted content, and augmented reality. Speakers include Starbucks CIO Stephen GIllett, Heart Magazines Digital Media Executive Director Kimberly Lau, Microsoft Sr. Product Manager Anand Iyer, Evernote CEO Phil Libin, Nielsen Global SVP of Mobile Media & Marketing Kanishka Agarwal, and more. Save 15% with discount code TMRWW.

24 September, 2010: San Francisco

Smartphone Games Summit

The Smartphone Games Summit is a single day conference produced by Charles Hudson and mediabistro.com, focused on the emerging smartphone games space. As new developments emerge such as the iPhone Game Center, is it game over for a number of gaming companies, or does it open an even larger opportunity? How do newer technologies like the iPad change the game? The conference will bring together leading developers, investors, and executives from around the globe to share their collective wisdom on what’s working today and where this exciting industry is heading. The Smartphone Games Summit will touch on a number of key trends, including international trends in smartphone games, engaging smartphone game design, lessons from leaders, mobile social games, keys to successful monetization, and building and executing a successful distribution strategy. Save 15% with discount code SPRWW.

29 – 30 September 2010: New York City

Location-Based Marketing Summit

Location-Based Marketing Summit is the leading event for Fortune 1000 companies seeking to maximize marketing, commerce and business strategies using location-based services. Attendees receive focused, practical and valuable industry insight that can be immediately utilized in developing a location-based strategy.
We give you an inside look at the location based marketing activities of major brands. Hear from companies who’ve made the journey and learn from their experiments and activities. Location-Based Marketing Summit helps you cut through the hype and separate buzz from success. Speakers include VaynerMedia, New Jersey Nets, Tasti D-lite, Deep Focus, Adweek, Where.com, Yelp, SimpleGeo, Geodelic, and more.
Use our special ReadWriteWeb promo code RWWVIP to save an extra $100 off registration.

5 October 2010: New York City

FinovateFall

FinovateFall will return to Manhattan on Tuesday, October 5 to showcase dozens of the biggest and most innovative new ideas in financial and banking technology from established leaders and hot young companies. The Fall event is the original and largest Finovate and features a single day packed with our special blend of short, fast-paced onstage demos (no slides are allowed) and intimate networking time with top executives from the innovative demoing companies.

FinovateFall is a unique chance to see the future of finance and banking before your competition and find the edge you need in today’s market. Early bird registration rates are available.

7 – 8 October 2010: Washington, D.C.

Business Process And Application Delivery Forum 2010

As an Application Development & Delivery or Business Process professional, your efforts not only serve the business but also empower your business to succeed despite rapid change. But every day brings faster-changing business dynamics. Business Process And Application Delivery Forum 2010 will arm you with the knowledge, insight, and practices you need to meet demanding expectations from your CEOs, COOs, CxOs, agency heads, and directors and deliver the kind of breakthrough and sustainable business value you know your organization must achieve.
Application Development & Delivery professionals will learn to:

• Transform delivery organizations. See how organizations apply Lean and Agile to rethink how they align with and deliver against current and anticipated business strategies and demands.
• Drive innovation. Learn how to improve delivery flow and drive software innovation to bring greater business differentiation and higher customer and constituent satisfaction.
• Thrive in a dynamic business and technology world. Identify new practices and technologies that organizations use to design, deliver, and measure breakthrough and sustainable business value.

Business Process professionals will learn to:

• Drive business process management into the organization. See how organizations embrace business process management (BPM) to deliver sustainable business value.
• Empower employees to make change. Learn what skills, disciplines, and technologies organizations utilize to accelerate innovation and change.
• Differentiate customer and constituent service experiences. Discover how organizations put the customer first to design and deliver breakthrough customer service and support processes.

Register here.

7 – 8 October 2010: Washington, D.C.

Content & Collaboration Forum 2010

Today, the people in your organization have unprecedented expectations for driving better, faster business outcomes using content and collaboration technologies. Harnessing the trends that underlie those expectations in order to drive real business outcomes — like revenue growth, reduced operating expense, and improved return on assets — requires IT to assume a new leadership position. On top of building engaging Web experiences to drive revenue and reduce service costs, Content & Collaboration (CC) Professionals must optimize portal, search, collaboration, and eDiscovery strategies that enhance employee productivity while mitigating risks. CC professionals require a new set of skills to address the culture, process, and technology changes amid this groundswell of business technology expectations.
To capitalize on these changes, CC professionals at the Content & Collaboration Forum 2010 will learn to:

• Engage customers across emerging channels. Learn how empowered employees can better serve customers using social, cloud, mobile, and video technologies.
• Innovate by harnessing the power of collaboration. See how leading organizations are using organizational models, tool sets, and new skills to accelerate innovation with collaboration platforms and tools like social networks.
• Accelerate your strategy while balancing risk and return. Learn to optimize processes and tools like enterprise content management, eDiscovery, search, and intranet portals to mitigate risks and maximize information discovery, use, and re-use.

Register here.

18 October 2010: Washington D.C.

Digital East 2010

DE10 will feature over 50 leading industry speakers addressing best practices on topics including Social Media, Online Advertising, E-commerce, Cloud Computing, Web Analytics, Search, Email and more. When registering, use the code RWW50m for 20% off.

25 – 27 October 2010: Beijing

The China Mega-Forum for Entrepreneurship & Innovation

China Entrepreneurs presents The China Mega-Forum for Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Gathering more than 1000 professionals over the course of three days, this forum will place attendees at the heart of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in China. Joined by more than 400 elite high growth ventures, 200 prominent investment firms, and 60 premier-level speakers, attendees will be immersed into a full schedule of high-level content and unparalleled networking. Highlights include:

• High-level Panel Sessions on important topics encompassing China’s Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
• The Morning Market, giving firms the opportunity to showcase their businesses
• Over 20 unique entrepreneurship workshops
• Gala Dinner and Award Ceremony for the CE Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Awards
• Over 45 investor presentations and one-on-one meetings with VC’s, PE’s and Angel Investors

For further information, visit www.chinamegaforum.com.

28 – 29 October 2010: Chicago

Consumer Forum 2010

More than 10 years ago, just a few industries scrambled to cope with new Web-based, consumer-empowering tools like comparison shopping engines and direct banks. Now it’s Twitter, YouTube, and foursquare. These tools have put more power in the hands of individuals than ever before.
Whether you are running an online-only firm or one business unit of a global firm, Forrester’s Consumer Forum 2010 will provide specific answers to the critical issues of consumer change and empowerment that are confronting all consumer-facing companies today. The time to unleash your employees and transform your company is now, and this event will showcase ideas, best practices, and case studies to help you do it. As an exciting addition to this year’s Consumer Forum, we’ll be featuring content and ideas from Forrester’s new book, Empowered: Unleash Your Employees, Energize Your Customers, and Transform Your Business, by Josh Bernoff and Ted Schadler, slated for release just weeks before the event.
Key questions this forum will answer:

• How has the rise of empowered consumers changed customer relationships with B2C firms?
• What kinds of leaders do you need at your firm that can help unleash employees to solve customer problems?
• Which firms have best tapped into the creativity of employees to serve empowered consumers?
• How are consumers using their mobile devices for product research and decisions?
• What is the role of social media in engaging customers across channels?
• What impact will pervasive video and connectivity have on customers?
• What new opportunities exist for firms to connect with empowered consumers?
• How do firms create metrics and incentives that measure and promote employee empowerment?
• What new organizational models best empower employees to serve customers?

Register here.

2 November: London

Mobile Cloud Computing World Forum

Mobile Cloud Computing World Forum will provide a full perspective of mobile cloud computing and SaaS from business value through integration and implementation and to the emergent trends in the industry. Get the scoop on the latest products, meet with clients and drum up new business with valuable leads. Meet some of the best known mobile cloud computing and SaaS professionals in person and exchange your experiences.

Show Highlights include:

• 1 day conference and exhibition on Enterprise Mobile Cloud Computing and Enterprise Apps
• Hear from leading case studies on how they have integrated mobile into their working practices
• Learn from the key players offering Mobile products and services
• Benefit from our pre-show online meeting planner
• Network in our combined exhibition and catering area
• Evening networking party for all attendees

To book now or for more information visit www.mobilecloudcomputingforum.com.

9 – 10 November, 2010: Chicago

Forrester’s Sourcing & Vendor Management Forum

Unprecedented changes are under way in how business identifies, sources, and manages the technologies that drive innovation, growth, and competitive advantage. SVM pros must embrace a new set of skills and commit to getting ahead of technology and market innovations to ensure that their organizations achieve business value from these changes. This Forum will arm you with the knowledge, insight, and practices that you need to:

• Empower the business. Learn how to empower employees and embrace self-provisioned technologies like SaaS and social media.
• Drive innovation. Explore how to take your firm to the next level of innovation through next-generation vendor governance models like multisourcing.
• Sustain competitive advantage. See how leading organizations continue to drive increased value from their suppliers through new service delivery models.

For additional details please see: http://www.forrester.com/sourcingforum

17-18 November 2010: Lausanne & Geneva, Switzerland

Cloud and ICT 2.0 Summit

The European Tech Tour Association is launching its newest vertical event with its inaugural Cloud & ICT 2.0 Summit, the Catalyst of the Cloud Computing Industry in Europe. Its focus is on celebrating entrepreneurship and innovation in Europe and on raising global awareness for the top 25+ European start-up companies in the cloud computing field that are making their mark in the industry.

The Cloud ICT & 2.0 Summit is interested in European Cloud Computing companies with the potential to become global leaders in their market. The deadline for company applications is September 3, 2010. Register here now.

29 – 30 March 2011: London

Social Media World Forum Europe

Social Media World Forum Europe: Two days of interactive & engaging conference featuring leading key figure keynotes, brand case studies, topical Q&A and debates, exhibition hall, workshops and networking.

Social Media World Forum Europe is continuing to evolve and deliver an event which is second to none, ensuring our audience receive the maximum potential from attending our shows. New for 2011 we have introduced interactive panel discussions, live streamed debate sessions, collaborative learning, break-out group discussions, open Q&A portions in every session, open workshops, with group discussions and interactive zones within the exhibition hall. We have introduced the Online Marketing Toolbox Workshops, educating in all elements of the online marketing mix, such as SEO, Paid Search, Affiliate, Mobile & Apps. The perfect toolbox to complete your online marketing strategy.

Download this entire events calendar in iCal format.

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