Happy Halloween, with
love from Big Brother!

Ad Networks and Analytics:

• Contextual analysis and content matching firm Inform Technologies laid off 20 employees. 59% of its employee base, or 29 employees, will be retained.
• Google made two changes to its AdWords Quality Score, intended to improve the likelihood of useful text ads rising to the top of sponsored search results.

Agencies and Marketing Execs:

• Publicis has managed to remain solvent in a time when other agencies and companies have begun to flounder. Organic revenue rose nearly 4% in Q3.

Biz Buzz:

• JetBlue partnered with IdeaCast to offer advertising on in-flight seatback video screens.
• Google joins Yahoo and Microsoft in providing OpenID. But the move looks hasty; John Battelle admonishes speculators to prepare for war.

Gaming:

• Despite progress with its in-game advertising model (even Obama's using it), Electronic Arts (EA) lowered its profit forecast for this year — and also plans to cut 6% of its workforce. Many jobs will move overseas.
• MTV Networks inked a licensing agreement that may enable it to bring Beatles tracks to Rock Band.

Legal, Government and Regulation:

• Google won the legal right to digitize out-of-print versions of books, as well as provide previews to in-print books. In partnership with publishers and authors, it is also preparing a means by which everyone can profit from the deal: when users run a search for something found in a book, they can preview the page and possibly purchase the work. View the settlement agreement.

Mobile:

• Publishing house Simon & Schuster is availing 500 of its classic titles — including Nancy Drew and Hemingway books — for download on mobile phones.
• Motorola announced plans to cut 3000 jobs — 5% of its workforce — and delay the planned spinoff of its mobile unit.
• BMW — yes, the car maker — plans to launch a discount mobile phone service.

Overseas:

• Hard times for behavioral advertising are far from over. British ISP Orange has just denounced Phorm, arguing the "privacy issue" it presented "was too strong." "It is our policy to be clear and transparent on how [customer] data can be used, without compromising privacy," a spokesperson said.

Search:

• Google may unveil a SearchWiki, which currently enables select users to manipulate the order of their search results.
• Rumor has it Google and Yahoo may just abandon their sponsored search ad deal.
• Bloomberg observes Yahoo's gaining search share.

Social Networks:

• Facebook — the warm, pulpy foundation upon which other people's fortunes are made — purportedly helped register over 50,000 voters.
• PeopleJar, a social network targeted to self-promoters from all walks of life, proffers a new way to connect with friends: via search.
• MelsLife, a social network for "Echo Boomers" (also known as "Millennials"), enables social activism and healthy lifestyle tip-swapping.

User Experience:

• This year's Presidential election may be the most-polled election in history — leading to the creation of more data aggregating websites.
• Speaking of elections, November 4 of this year may also be the most closely-watched and recorded voting period ever.