October 6, 2008
09:07 am | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Learning a new language as an adult is never an easy task. While there hundreds of language-learning software products on the market, it’s often difficult to differentiate between any of them. One product trying to stand out from the crowd is Tell Me More, produced by Auralog. Geared towards individuals with 10 levels of vocal and grammatical instruction, developers guarantee that students can reach a level of fluentness where they can hold normal conversations with native speakers.
“[W]e are a truly immersive product,” says David DeCouto, a language solutions consultant at Auralog, adding that the software contains hundreds of hours of language learning and dozens of programs. Premium-level software starts at 850 hours and performance-level shoots up to 2,000. Along with voice-recognition software as well as cultural and grammatical components, Tell Me More has a unique feature in which a student can see the soundwaves of his/her voice in comparison with a native speaker’s voice intonations to determine how much they match up.
In comparison with other language-learning programs like Rosetta Stone, DeCouto says Auralog’s product is superior because “its all inclusive in one box,” and it can take someone from “absolute beginner to advanced.” Developers have found that with every 50 hours of language learning, 95% of students move up at least one level (there are 10 total). “It’s a matter of being diligent and keeping at it,” DeCouto emphasizes.
Tell Me More software is available in nine languages including Spanish, Chinese and Arabic. While the software is only available for Windows-compatible computers at the moment, developers are planning for a Mac version in the future.
Interested consumers can find the language aides at Tell Me More’s online store. Performance-level software lists for $499, and the premium-level lists at $295. The online store routinely runs promotions, however, so keep an eye out. It’s recommended you buy the software through the company to be eligible for the money back guarantee, which gives the customer 90 days to open the box, review it, and if he/she doesn’t like it, one can return all content with a sales receipt for a refund or replacement.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
October 3, 2008
05:32 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
The pop princess has returned to her throne and it’s about time. Fans (including myself, and I am not afraid to admit it) have been waiting for four long years, through the many, MANY trials and tribulations of Britney Spears, but it looks like America’s fallen sweetheart is finally back on top and building up her brand again.
Fresh off three wins at the MTV Video Music Awards, Spears has been touring New York City this week, from debuting her new single, “Womanizer” (Wonder who that could be about?), to even visiting school kids at the Bronx Zoo. The songstress also announced plans for a new world tour this past Monday on New York’s Z100 radio station. Ms. Spears’ longtime label, Jive Records, launched a brand new site this week in preparation for her seventh album, Circus, to be released on December 2, the singer’s 27th birthday. Full of song clips from past albums, new releases and an enormous amount of media and forums to choose from, fans will be entertained for hours.
BritneySpears.com, sporting a big “beta” stamp on the top of the homepage, recognizes a revamped webpage, and probably, a revamped star. Judging by her cleaned-up act and look, its hard to believe that less than a year ago, Spears was in and out of hospitals and having every mishap photographed for the world to see. While the paparazzi still follows her every move, at least now she's taking charge of her career again.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
October 1, 2008
01:49 pm | 2 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Breaking into the media publishing industry without a portfolio is extremely difficult, if not impossible. However, one citizen journalism site is looking to make portfolio-building easier and more lucrative. Helium.com, is a competition-based model in which writers can post articles they’ve written, and publishers can buy them all in one spot.
“The internet has always offered this promise of connecting everyone,” says Mark Ranalli, CEO of Helium.com, “Unfortunately, in practice that hasn’t happened. 70 million people blogging is just people screaming. No one is hearing anything.” Coming up on its two-year anniversary this October, Helium has grown to 130,000 community members since 2006. It boasts 100,000 unique topics and over 800,000 articles are published on the site. Writers’ backgrounds range from university students trying to get first clips to stay-at-home parents looking to break into the industry.
Helium’s rating structure and payment model sets it apart from other citizen journalism sites. Using a combination of peer review (Helium writers in the same expertise) and a relative-ranking system set up by developers allowing good content to rise and bad content to sink. Publishers can also submit queries directly to Helium. The site will post the query, and in a few days there will be 6-12 responses. The end result is a publishing platform that rewards participants and builds partnerships as well, Ranalli says.
“It creates a dynamic where good writers find Helium valuable to them platform for recognition and reward that they’re looking for,” Ranalli says. “Ultimately as a publishing platform, we are enabling people who do not have an established position in the industry.”
3
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
September 24, 2008
02:43 pm | 2 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Paper resumes are things of the past. If you want to get stand out and get ahead, you have to get online. At least that's the idea behind FutureResume.com, the new job board that let's job seekers use video resumes and videoconferencing and lets employers view a candidate's personality and professionalism before the interview.
FutureResume.com launched in July for job seekers and candidates, who can now post resumes and video resume introductions on the site. Speaking via another one of their online tools, GreenJobInterview.com, co-founders and brothers, Greg and Theo Rokos, insist the site is not a job board, but an aide to the hiring process in a competitive market and puts candidates "in a different stack than a paper resume."
"Basically what I saw was an opportunity for companies to do a better job of assessing candidates on front end before flying them across the country," says Greg who has worked for the past 17 years in helping partner executives with companies, "Video was an efficient solution to do that."
The online utility is not industry-specific, but the CEOs acknowledge that certain industries would find a video tool more advantageous in determining candidates' articulation and presence. "It may sound grandiose, we really have the ability and technology to change the way companies interview and hire people," Greg says.
Job seekers who want to produce a professional video made can do so at the FutureResume.com offices in Newport Beach, Calif. for free, versus the original $99.95 fee. Any company can post openings for $299.00 per month. Companies will also be featured in short video profiles to allow them to communicate their brand and background to job seekers.
The database has grown to a few hundred job seekers since the launch, and the execs hope to have approximately 5,000 by the end of the year, as well as 200 companies looking for candidates. In 2009, the goals are anywhere from 10,000 to 15,000 job seeker profiles and 1,000 companies. The execs say that FutureResume has a much different game plan from other large job sites, like Monster. "We want a smaller resume base that a company can come in and find five people," Theo adds, "We want a 100 percent match to deliver a better resume to the company."
FutureResume.com execs announced August 6 that they would be expanding from their Southern California location and using their own technology to hire a national sales team, along with a few additional positions. Interested candidates can go to the website for further details.
3
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
September 24, 2008
02:34 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
As the music biz starts tossing out jewel cases by the busload as they try to jump on the green bandwagon, a Canadian enterprise is also looking to clean up the music industry. Yangaroo, a Toronto-based venture, is innovating the way labels sell their products to radio stations with a digital alternative.
Launched in 2003 in Canada and 2005 in the United States, Yangaroo's Digital Media Distribution Service (DMDS) works as the middleman between music labels and radio stations, delivering music and promotional information the green way: via e-mail to radio stations. "I saw the change coming with Napster, people starting to move music around on the Internet," says Cliff Hunt, COO of Yangaroo, who worked in the music industry for 25 years. "I knew there had to be use for a technology like this that was efficient broadcast quality and secure."
Security is a three-part process. The first part is keystroke recognition, then identifying and sending to a specific individual -- not a machine. Second, files are mailed in encrypted form, should someone hack into the system. Finally, developers incorporated watermarking, so if the file is leaked after being received, it can be traced back to the source.
Standard industry practice is producing and packaging CDs and promo materials, and sending it off to radio station contacts. Yangaroo estimates that the entire process consumes about 0.7 pounds of fossil fuel per CD.
Currently, over 600 Canadian radio stations are receiving promo packets from such major labels as EMI, BMG Canada, Universal Music Canada, and Warner Music Canada via DMDS. In 2007, Yangaroo distributed 2.3 million songs to DJs and programmers at radio stations across Canada, and 1.3 million in the United States.
Canada's entire music distribution system is digital now, Hunt said, and now Yangaroo is trying to do the same in America. "This just helps them to be more efficient in every way," Hunt says, "Its much less expensive, much faster, and the time saving is enormous. Plus, it's so much more environmentally friendly." The company already has a patent in Canada and is pending one in the United States, which Yangaroo execs expect to receive by the end of September.
As for global expansion, Yangaroo already has a partnership set up in the United Kingdom with the London-based advertisement firm, Adstream, and hopes to expand to the rest of Europe following the near future.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
September 19, 2008
04:36 pm | 1 recommendation | Be the first to comment
One of Britain's top furniture companies has arrived stateside this week, as Mark Wilkinson opened his first American showroom in New York on Thursday.
Located at 7 Hanover Square in the Financial District, the luxury furniture store includes several sample kitchen layouts, ranging from modern to an English country house. Who would have known you could have a kitchen drawer just for cakes? Wilkinson says he settled on New York because it "is the most vibrant, wildest town. We found some people we trust and get along with it. Its as simple as that." One of those people was Mary Brouder Murphy, a high-end interior designer who got started at high-end design companies in Ireland, before starting her own business in Ridgeway, New Jersey about 10 years ago. Murphy said they approached Wilkinson last year because of the fine detail in his work. She also shared a love of Lower Manhattan as it has become more residential in recent years, making it a good spot for a furniture showroom.
Wilkinson commenced his furniture business in 1981, and the brand has grown to 14 exclusive showrooms in the United Kingdom and locations in Paris and Moscow. And beyond that, his clientele has expanded to Britain's top celebrities and members of the British monarchy.
The high-end collections span across a spectrum of different styles, including "Mai," which is influenced by the Japanese Third Sung Dynasty, the 15th Century Gothic and 18th Century fine English furniture. However, one constant is that the styles remain timeless. "We don’t produce fashion," he says, "We produce real living styles of furniture."
The company also places a strong emphasis on social responsibility. For instance, they exclusively use hard wood with World Wildlife Fund certification, including American White Oak and Maple. Most timber used is bought from North America, imported to Britain where the furniture is made, and then sold back into the United States. As Wilkinson's clientele base has grown enormously in the last few decades, reducing their carbon footprint has become a priority. "The more we clients we have, the more timber we use, the more we take on the responsibility of planting," the British designer says. The company plants two trees for every order.
While Wilkinson's work is in luxury furniture stores in several major American cities, plans for additional exclusive showrooms are still in the works. "We haven’t got plans to do any more openings at the moment, but we have discussed the possibility," he concludes with a chuckle.
Photo Courtesy: Mark Wilkinson Furniture
3
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
September 18, 2008
12:56 pm | 1 recommendation | Be the first to comment
With the economy sinking, clothing is just one of the many luxuries Americans are cutting from their budgets. But one web biz is trying to keep luxury clothing affordable.
Founded in January, Regent's Secret is based on a new e-commerce business model originating from France. The online outlet is invitation-only, and prices on high-end designers are between 50 to 70 percent off retail prices. How are the prices so low? Designer overstock is privately sold online via Regent's Secret before being sent to outlets. CEO Rich Cusick argues that the recession doesn’t dampen people's interest in buying high-end goods, but simply forces consumers to find better deals. "If you look at general retail, the low-price stores like Loehmann's and TJ Maxx are doing really well," he says, "People want luxury upscale brands but they don’t want to pay full price."
Since January, Regent's Secret's membership has grown to 60,000 members and the Los Angeles-based site holds three sales per week. "I think this will be a huge trend …it fits with consumer appetites for luxury brands," says Cusick. Keeping the business invite-only ensures the audience is fashion-forward. Members are allowed to invite friends to join, and as an incentive, for each referral, the member receives five percent of their friends' purchases in cash back.
Featured designers have included Dolce & Gabbana and Roberto Cavalli. "The more exclusive the brand, the better it does," Cusick says. As for products, denim and accessories have attracted the most interest, possibly reflecting what consumers are most comfortable purchasing online.
The company's next steps include a website re-launch in November, with a lighter and more contemporary look. Developers also want to expand the viral nature of the site, including special rewards to frequent buyers, and creating consumer media, with features about what's hot and what's not.
Photo Courtesy: Regent's Secret
3
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
September 5, 2008
10:55 am | 1 recommendation | Be the first to comment
New York Fashion Week for Spring 2009 collections kicks off today, but the crew at the Shelly Steffee boutique in Manhattan's Meatpacking District got the party started early yesterday evening. With a champagne party featuring DJ MSG on the turntable, guests got a look at the new fall collection, titled "Couture Warrior."
Inspired by Queen Elizabeth I of England, the idea behind the new line is that everyday is a battle and full of new challenges, says Scarlett Baily, an in-house PR representative for Steffee. "This is the outfit to bring you day to night, weekday to weekend," she specifies. All items are intended to be reversible and able to be used in multiple outfits. Elizabeth inspired Steffee, Baily notes, because she was one of the first queens to go into battle with her men. And the couture part, she adds, was because Elizabeth always needed to be the best. (And in case one didn't pick up on the Tudor queen-inspired theme, Elizabeth: The Golden Age was being projected on to the wall.)
A few items from the collection include a leather-looking black, bonded cotton military short pea coat ($1380). There's also a silk charmeuse convertible top, which can be worn forwards or backwards, with ivory enamel beads reminiscent of armor ($690). To top it off, there's a woolly neck warmer inspired by chainmail.
As for the brand, Steffee plans to keep her boutique small as she prefers to keep a tactile feel with clients and the space. The designer often refers to the store as a "cultural salon," as they host their runway shows in-house, along with performances from time-to-time featuring different DJs and even poetry. While this event is definitely low-key compared to most of the events going on at the Bryant Park tents in the past, it was definitely more intimate, which is probably what the designer was shooting for.
3
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
August 28, 2008
03:11 pm | 1 recommendation | 1 comment
To my amazement while flipping the pages of People yesterday, I saw that the youthful, high fashion label, Alice + Olivia, now has a collection at Payless. Has everyone gone to the cheap side? Not that I'm complaining in the slightest. As the tagline of Sarah Jessica Parker's low-cost label, Bitten, says: "Fashion is not a luxury." If the fashion industry's royalty dubs it a right, shouldn't we all be able to look as good as we want?
Target just premiered longtime guest designer, Isaac Mizrahi's fall women's collection (newsflash: vintage is in…again). On August 3, Fashion Avenue's rising star, Richard Chai, debuted his Target collection to rave reviews (personally, I had to have his purple plaid trench coat, and it was an absolute steal at $44.99). Target isn't alone in its quest to spread haute fashion to the masses. Swedish clothing giant, H&M, has brought countless prominent designers to their racks, including Stella McCartney, Roberto Cavalli, and Karl Lagerfeld. On Monday, the discount department store announced they would launch a new line with Comme des Garçons this November.
But why has this development become the it-trend of the fashion business? You could say the economy is helping it. Many young people can't afford to dish out $60 for a t-shirt at Urban Outfitters anymore. But now they can buy an equally fashionable (if not more so, thanks to the designer label sewn inside) product at a fraction of the price. Plus, it’s great exposure for these designers and for building a customer base that could stay loyal to a particular designer as it gets older (and richer). Thanks to Target, Mizrahi has really become a household name, and he has recently been courted and signed with Liz Claiborne as the fashion house's new creative director.
More and more top designers are spreading their brands to the middle class. I think this is one trend that will not be going out of style anytime soon.
3
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
August 19, 2008
04:34 pm | 1 recommendation | Be the first to comment
You know that show, with the four ladies who are always dressed fabulously and talking about their relationships? Yes, it's The Hills, which returned last night on MTV for its fourth season. The reality show (its "reality" is debatable) has become the music network's biggest ratings hit in years, but more so, the show's lovely ladies have become more recognizable based on their off-screen lives and brands.
First there's Lauren Conrad, the Hollywood Hills resident and aspiring fashion designer. After becoming a spokeswoman and face for Avon's mark. brand, a fun, summery low-priced cosmetics line in 2006, Lauren launched her own designer label, Lauren Conrad, last year. Sales have been less than satisfactory, however, as the label's designs are simple and over-priced. ($200 for a plain, white cotton dress you could get at H&M? No.) The line has been since thrown into the sale bin at hot Hollywood boutiques such as Kitsch earlier this summer. This hasn't deterred the media mogul, who not only has launched a new fall line that is getting some critical praise, but she is also designing a line of handbags for Linea Pelle.
Then there is Team Heidi Montag. "Speidi" (a combo name for Heidi and her boyfriend, Spencer Pratt) could be a brand by itself just for turning their everyday lives into a publicity stunt for the paparazzi. Unless you have been living in a jungle for the last two years, you might be aware that there was a falling-out between Lauren and Heidi (even Obama and McCain have gotten into it). Thus, Heidi has launched her own clothing line, Heidiwood for Anchor Blue. While Heidi's clothes are a fraction of the cost of Lauren's, they still lack any real pizzazz or originality. Heidi, with the help of her conspiring boyfriend, has also been trying to launch a music career. She might want to stick with fashion.
Don't forget about The Hills other two starlets, Whitney Port and Audrina Patridge. Whitney, who probably got into that Teen Vogue internship and onto the show through her own hard work (she did intern at W for two years prior) is in talks with MTV for getting her own reality spin-off on her career with the fashion PR firm, People's Revolution, in New York. And, of course, she launched a fashion line of her own in March, titled Eve & A. Audrina isn't letting her fifteen minutes go to waste either, with a budding acting career, and she is currently in talks to star in a new Fox sitcom with Jerry O'Connell.
While The Hills is currently MTV's spotlight show, it is uncertain how much longer the show will last. Lauren recently told Entertainment Weekly, that at the beginning of every season, she assumes it will be the last. While many of the show's avid followers (myself included), hope that the show will go on forever, let's savor the much vapid drama on Monday nights while we can.
3
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
