We're building the open mesh

PeopleAggregator will become an intrinsic platform for enabling the open mesh. The idea is that social networks, blogging tools, search engines, widgets, eCommerce, traditional legacy systems, Intranets, private networks, school,office, mobile and wireless devices will all inter-connect together - in the future.

Please read Marc's series of blog posts on the issue of "How to build the Open Mesh".

Once you've read that, then you'll see why it's been so important for us to build PeopleAggregator as an open platform.

And while we're at it - here's a mural I'm building in my back yard of how the open mesh looks.

Welcome Jack Gottsman

We think service is a fine business - and even better when you're utilzing your own platform.

And when we close this round of funding, we'll have a new tool platform - which will radically change how the world thinks of the distributed mesh - that Ray Ozzie talks about.

Marc Canter's leadership, vision and experience will make sure thaqt BBM is successful.

I agree

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welcome

Welcome this is the first blog post.

NBC gets the WORST TV Ratings in History since the entire Nielsen ratings system was invented. [NBC Universal, now headed by Jeff Zucker, Ben Silverman, Scifi channel now headed by Dave Howe, Mark Stern, Bonnie Hammer]

NBC'S WORST WEEK EVER?

NBC's ratings plunged to their lowest level since the current Nielsen ratings system was invented

NBC lost one entertainment chief [fired], one was arrested recently, and NBC's ratings plunged to their lowest level since the current ratings system was inaugurated.

"It's likely you'd have to go back to the days of black-and-white sets to find a smaller number," commented AP television writer David Bauder.

dramatization of NBC Executives In the year 2007 toast their low ratings achievement.

Fox's House, previously outshone by its usual lead-in, American Idol, got a chance to sparkle on its own last week as the season finale put it at the top of the Nielsen list with 17.23 million viewers, well ahead of its closest competitor, CBS's CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, which drew 12.09 million viewers. Nevertheless, CBS's programs in general captured the largest share of the viewing audience as it wound up the week with an average 5.2 rating and a 9 share. Fox followed with a 4.1. ABC placed third with a 3.6.

NBC trailed with a lowly 3.3

The top ten shows of the week according to Nielsen Research:
1. House, Fox, 10.1;
2. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CBS, 8.0;
3. CSI: NY, CBS, 7.1;
4. Two and a Half Men, CBS, 6.8;
5. Boston Legal, ABC, 6.7;
6. NCIS, CBS, 6.7;
7. So You Think Can Dance (Thursday), Fox, 6.5;
8. Shark, CBS, 6.4;
9. CSI: Miami, CBS, 6.3;
10. Cold Case, CBS, 6.2.

(Notice NBC did not even make it onto the list. And this was way before the writer's strike.)

http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/nbcs%20worst%20week%20ever_1033335

HOW THE SCI FI CHANNEL WRECKED MY BOOKS - Ursula K. Leguin - Re NBC, SciFi & Robert Halmi, Mark A. Stern, RHI Productions

"HOW THE SCI FI CHANNEL WRECKED MY BOOKS"
by Ursula K. Leguin

Here is something you might not be aware of...

This is an Article written by URSULA K. LEGUIN herself on what the SCI FI CHANNEL and scifi.com did to her books...

(For those of you who may not know, Ursula K. Leguin is one of the greatest science fiction writers of all time. Multiple award winning novelist. She is up there with Arthur C. Clarke who wrote 2001: A Space Odyssey, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov who wrote I, Robot and others, Gene Roddenberry of Star Trek, Tolkein of Lord of the Rings, etc. Ursula K. Leguin wrote such things as EarthSea and The Lathe of Heaven, and this is what She had to say about Mark Stern, Bonnie Hammer, Dave Howe, and the rest at the Sci Fi channel.)

Sci Fi channel turned her story into a shameful embarassment. She felt so disconcerted by this, that she felt compelled to make people aware of it by publishing this in her own personal blog.

"How the Sci Fi Channel wrecked my books."
A whitewashed Earthsea!
By Ursula K. Le Guin

Posted Thursday, Dec. 16, at 9:14 AM ET

On Tuesday night, the Sci Fi Channel aired its final installment of my Legend of Earthsea, the miniseries based—*LOOSLEY, AS IT TURNS OUT*—on MY Earthsea books.

The books, [called] "A Wizard of Earthsea" and "The Tombs of Atuan", which were published more than 30 years ago, are about two young people finding out what their power, their freedom, and their responsibilities are.

I don't know what [SCI FI CHANNEL'S] film is about!

It's full of... scenes from the story, arranged differently, in an *entirely* different plot, so that they make NO sense.

My protagonist Ged, is a boy with red-brown skin.

In [SCI FI CHANNEL'S] film, he's a petulant WHITE kid.

Readers may find some answers here who've been wondering why I [supposedly] "let them change [my] story"

When I sold the rights to Earthsea a few years ago, my contract gave me the standard status of "consultant"—which means whatever the producers want it to mean, almost always little or nothing. My agency could not improve this clause. But the purchasers talked as though they genuinely meant to respect the books and to ask for my input when planning the film. They said they had already secured Philippa Boyens (who co-wrote the scripts for The Lord of the Rings) as principal script writer. The script was, to me, all-important, so Boyens' presence was the key factor in my decision to sell this group the option to the film rights.

Months went by. By the time the producers got backing from the SCI FI Channel for a miniseries—and another producer, Robert Halmi Sr., had come aboard — THEY HAD LOST BOYENS. That was a blow.

But I had just seen Halmi's miniseries DreamKeeper, which had a stunning Native American cast, and I hoped that Halmi might include some of those great actors in Earthsea.

At this point, things began to move very fast. Early on, the filmmakers contacted me in a friendly fashion, and I responded in kind; I asked if they'd like to have a list of name pronunciations; and I said that although I knew that a film must differ greatly from a book, I hoped they were making NO unnecessary changes in the plot or to the characters—a DANGEROUS thing to do, since the books have been known to MILLIONS of people for decades. They replied that the TV audience is much larger, and entirely different, and [you] would be "unlikely to care" about changes to the books' story and characters.

They then sent me several versions of the script—and told me that shooting had already begun. [!]

I HAD BEEN CUT OUT OF THE PROCESS.

And just as quickly, RACE, which had been a crucial element, had been cut out of my stories.

In the miniseries, Danny Glover is the only man of color among the main characters (although there are a few others among the spear-carriers).

A far cry from the Earthsea I envisioned.

When I looked over the script, I realized the producers had NO UNDERSTANDING of what the books are about and NO INTEREST in finding out.

ALL [SCI FI CHANNEL] intended was to use the name Earthsea, and some of the scenes from the books, in a generic McMagic movie with a MEANINGLESS plot based on SEX and VIOLENCE.

...

That is an excerpt from URSULA K. LEGUIN herself about what SCI FI CHANNEL did to her books.

Not only did they mess up the scenes, but all they wanted was to make some cheap knockoff using the name. And not only did they fail to care, they audaciously and arrogantly judged all of you (the viewing audience) to be people who don't care about anything either. And just made some 'mcdonalds' movie using the name EarthSea as bait to get viewers to watch based on the fact that many people knew the books and are familiar with the name. Ursula had envisioned a realm (and a film) which would include and employ multiple people of many races, colors, and cultures, white, black, native american, and more, and instead, the SCIFI CHANNEL completely undermined this and took out nearly all of them.

You can read her feelings on what they did to this day, in Ursula's own blog.

And in case you are wondering, Robert Halmi of RHI films is a favorite crony of Mark Stern, the guy who has cancelled nearly all of Your favorite shows and buys those B-movies like MAN-THING, and FrankenFish. Robert Halmi Jr. & Sr are the same people that did the flop called Flash Gordon. And Mark Stern keeps using Sci Fi channel money and paying this bunch to create these remakes, again, and again, and again.

NBC Universal SciFi Channel admits to using blog spamming, fake infomercials, posts, & misleading google adwords to hijack web surfers

A marketing PRESS RELEASE by NBC corporation admits to NBCU/SciFi CHANNEL using fake blog posts, viral techniques, and intentionally buying up misleading Google Adwords to get viewers. NBC brags about tricking viewers in a memo on its website meant to be seen by their commercial marketing advertisers. NBC calls misleading and hijacking viewers their idea of an 'inventive' promotional campaign.


Published: August 15, 2006
NBC Universal Sci Fi Channel:

"SCI FI'S NEW SERIES, 'EUREKA,' SUPPORTED BY "INVENTIVE" PROMOTIONAL CAMPAIGN"



PRESS RELEASE ISSUED BY:
Granados, Maureen, Coordinator - SCI FI Publicity - Division: SCI FI
Phone: (212) 664-4143 , Fax: (212) 703-8533
Email: maureen.granados@nbcuni.com

For Release:
"Faux Infomercials; Search Engine and "Blog" Viral Marketing; Image and Tune-In Promos Cleverly Combine For A Distinctively Innovative Promotion"

[NOTE: "Faux" is SciFi's way of saying FAKE. They figure if they say it in French, it will sound better and you won't know what it means.]

NEW YORK -- August 15, 2006 -– SCI FI Channel's newest scripted series, 'Eureka,' airing Tuesdays @ 9pm ET/PT, is supported by an array of innovative marketing tactics designed to capitalize on the uniqueness of this one-of-a-kind series. 'Eureka' is a remote Pacific Northwest hamlet whose inhabitants just happen to be geniuses with a penchant for wild and sometimes dangerous inventions. For years, the government has been relocating the world's geniuses to the picturesque town, where the nation's greatest thinkers secretly usher in the next generation of scientific breakthroughs. But 'Eureka' is more than just a destination. Along side cast members Colin Ferguson ('The Opposite of Sex'), Salli Richardson-Whitfield ('Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid'), and Debrah Farentino ('CSI: Miami'), the town of 'Eureka' holds its own as a "character" in this unique show, where inventions play supporting roles that drive the plot of each weekly episode.

"With its fresh, smart and modern spin on the whole sci-fi fantasy genre, 'Eureka''s fun-filled community of quirky characters are the perfect vehicle to entice a broader and more mainstream audience to sample the network for the first time," said Dave Howe, Executive Vice President and General Manager, SCI FI.

"The 'Made in Eureka' campaign leverages today's multimedia technologies to introduce an even broader audience to the creative innovations that distinguish this exciting new series," comments Adam Stotsky, Senior Vice President, Marketing, SCI FI. "By imagining a wild range of genius-inspired innovations, we created a fully integrated campaign designed to give viewers a declassified glimpse into what's so special about 'Eureka.'"

Off-air spoof "info-mercials" starring real-life QVC Queen of the Info-mercial, Pat Murphy Stark, showcase various products developed in 'Eureka.' The spots throw to 1-866-40EUREKA and to www.MadeinEureka.com where shoppers acquaint themselves with an array of cutting edge, future-forward inventions such as the Cryo Kennel, for quick -freezing pets during extended vacations, and custom-made Plasma Screen Interior Walls, for that drive-in experience at home.

Attempts to purchase any of the 'Eureka' engineered products result in being entered into a national consumer sweepstakes to win the real-life next generation of HD/DVD players, the Sony HDTV and Blue-ray player. The ads air on Comedy Central, Spike, E! Entertainment Television and The History Channel, and in some cases, are strategically scheduled in between other info-mercials. Radio spots also reinforce the "Made in Eureka" campaign.

In collaboration with search engines Google and Yahoo, the [NBC Sci Fi ]network purchased [search engine] key words such as "flat screen" and "HD DVD" to literally highjack web surfers, delivering them directly to www.MadeinEureka.com, where shoppers soon realize they've entered a new dimension in online shopping.

Faux [FALSE] info-mercials and related-banner ads with "Made in Eureka" product descriptions also run within a host of blog sites, popular among tech enthusiasts, such as medagadget and The Daily WTF. The ads also appear within highly trafficked technology blogs, like Engadget and Gizmodo, which concurrently runs a "Made in Eureka" contest where contestants submit invention ideas to rival those of the citizens of 'Eureka.'

In addition to on-air tune-in spots, specially designed "concept promos" drive tune-in while skillfully introducing viewers to this extraordinary town of intellectually curious inventors where literally anything can happen. Steven Diller of MJZ productions directed the spots with special effects by a52 productions.

--"Cloud"-- A beautiful day is spoiled by the antics of a devious child with a weather-altering remote control.
--"A New Home in Eureka"-- A ball rolled onto a field suddenly opens up into a fully finished pre-fab home.
--"Boat"-- When an urgent phone call cuts short a day on the seas the boat simply lifts out of the water to reveal an elaborate mechanism of walking legs that quickly deliver the fisherman to shore.
--"Skateboards and Basketball"-- Moody teenagers jealously eye a basketball court until a series of skateboard ramps emerges from the asphalt.

Print and on-air creative executions utilize carefully placed "keyholes" and over-the-white-picket-fence "framing" to evoke a feeling of eavesdropping on the strange inhabitants of this bizarre town.

Advertising efforts entail the full range of media including TV, radio, print, and online buys. But even traditional marketing comes with a SCI FI twist as 150 lenticular (or hologram) Bus Shelters across New York and Los Angeles enable people to experience 'Eureka''s Main Street in 3-D.

SCI FI Channel is a television network where "what if" is what's on. SCI FI fuels the imagination of viewers with original series and events, blockbuster movies and classic science fiction and fantasy programming, as well as a dynamic Web site (www.scifi.com) and magazine. Launched in 1992, and currently in 85 million homes, SCI FI Channel is a network of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies. "

[NBC Universal SciFi Employees Responsible: ]

Sallie Schoneboom
(212) 664-3467
sallie.schoneboom@nbcuni.com

Rachel Cruz
(212) 664-6407
Rachel.Cruz@nbcuni.com

© 2006 NBC Universal, Inc.

--------------------------------

ORIGINAL RELEASE OF THIS MEMO BY SCIFI CHANNEL IS HERE:

http://www.nbcumv.com/scifi/release_detail.nbc/scifi-20060815000000-scifi039snewse.html


END NBC UNIVERSAL SCIFI CHANNEL PRESS RELEASE.

.... Essentially what this means, is that NBC Universal Sci Fi channel went and paid money to buy up a whole bunch of keywords, and laced them on search engines, such as Google, Yahoo, etc. 

Then they took them and linked them back to a website that said it had products for sale. So if you needed a DVD player or something, one day, and typed that into the web, trying to get information on it, or to buy it, it would come up with their site. The site was made up to appear like it sold products.

They went and salted links on a whole bunch of blog sites and put banner ads on places where people go to shop for tech gadgets, like Gizmodo and Engadget, etc.

But in reality, all the products were fake, and it was surreptitiously owned by NBC Sci Fi. It was all made up to look like an online store site, until you clicked and found out the jokes on YOU.  A trick to try to get themselves more viewers. And if you tried to purchase any of the items they would sign you up for stuff.
 

[By the way, another one to watch out for is www.DVICE.com, the owner of that DVICE.com sci-fi channel advertises turns out to be NBC Sci Fi channel. Watch out.]