The internet turns 15

So, it was only 1993, when I was finishing high school, that the internet really began as a medium. 15 years ago to the month, the web started. I remember some guys I went to school with heading off into this new world I didnt understand (dont worry, I'm not one of those people who competes on when I got into the web - what does it matter anyway, its changed a bit since then), and of course these guys are now flithy rich, but still in the industry and passionate about what they do. Would question their personal hygiene and fashion sense though, not that I'm one to talk.

And now the web is the vocation and source of livelihood for so many of us, in jobs that didnt exist even 2 years ago, let alone 10. The image above is the distribution of those readers of this blog - its weird for me to see readers are located in far flung locations (from where I'm sitting here in Melbourne) such as Brazil, Scandinavia, Siberia, etc. The power of the web is truly apparent in this image. The key now is to make those red blobs interactive and 2-way connections.

Choice talks about their views on recent merger activity

From The Age:

"It's clear that competition in the banking sector is not working as well as it should. In fact, competition is getting worse, not better.

Indeed, what's not clear is how a merger between one of the Big Four and the fifth biggest bank in Australia (with a particularly strong position in NSW and South Australia) will increase competition. Even if the cost of funds decreases as promised, there is no guarantee that any benefit will be passed on to customers. This is precisely why competition needs to have priority over other considerations."

...

"How many bank customers who were thrown into a rage because of poor service or high fees have had to back down on their threats to leave the miscreant bank because it is just all too hard? While 25% to 40% of bank customers express dissatisfaction with their current institution, only 3% actually switch accounts.

As things stand, customers are not able to drive competition by easily choosing a better deal, and that means incentives to offer better products are undermined. A competitive market will encourage banks to innovate — to offer attractive differences in price or service to draw new customers — but this can't work where it's too difficult for consumers to switch."

Article continues...

NAB gets busy with SMS banking and Online Statements now live

NAB has launched its SMS banking service, where regsitered users can check account balances, request mini statements, and transfer funds between their accounts. This will add the the convenience SMS already brings to our lives... and looking forward to browser based banking on the mobile!

I've also noticed the arrival of online statements in internet banking - all you nab customers log in, click 'view statements' and have a look! Lots of activity at NAB (not quite as much as Westpac and StG obviously!). Read about all the new nab internet and mobile features here.

eMarketer tracks the growth in mobile

eMarketer again has some interesting stats on the future of mobile - note the gains in mobile broadcast tv (20 times), games (2 times), video (3 times) and gambling (2 times). Decline for streaming tv is also interesting. Jump on board broadcast tv and vidoe for mobile!!!!

Westpac & St George in merger talk

The Age this morning reveals Westpacs approach to St George for a merger, creating the largest bank in the country. The obvious link between the 2 is Gail Kelly, former StG CEO and current Westpac CEO, who revealed the plans with the following comments - ''It would create Australia's leading financial institution with regard to meeting customer needs, distribution, strong brands, scale, financial strength and the best products,'' Mrs Kelly said. ''For customers, it would make it more convenient to access customer touchpoints, including the largest distribution network with over 1,200 branches and in-stores as well as more than 2,700 ATMs. It would also provide greater diversity and choice of products from both organisations.'' Interesting times ahead, given the volatility of the financial sector in recent times - it shows the apparent strength in these 2 businesses to be talking merger - I guess Ms Kelly knows them better than most.

May 13 update - it seems its all go, with the 2 banks to make a joint announcement. Interesting analysis by Robert Gottliebson in BusinessSpectator on the new customer experience focus Gail Kelly is pushing:

"To bring out the change Kelly plans to implement at Westpac I have changed the order of some of her radical Westpac strategic aims:

• "Significantly improve the (Westpac) customer experience; Drive a strong customer culture; develop and implement compelling customer segment strategies, integrating banking and wealth;
• "Focus on being easier to deal with; transform service delivery, redesigning processes end to end"

Even her more conventional aims for Westpac are couched in customer terms. Remember that the whole focus of the Kelly strategy at St George bank was to build a better relationship with its customers than the big four banks and she attacked them with incredible vigour. Those aims show that Kelly has not changed her spots despite being in a different cage."

This renewed focus on the customer (when and why did it ever go away?) is great for our industry especially in the context of this merger - this merger must benefit customers to align with the strategic planning Kelly has brought on board.

Hear the bells-a-ringing

The unstoppable wave of change is reaching some critical milestones - According to AC Nielsen and the Internet Advertising Bureau, March 2008 was the first time Australians spent more time on the net than watching TV. Online is fast becoming the biggest media investment (accuracy and ROI are questionable) for many companies - search, display, targeted. The days when people were watching TV with the laptop on their laps are here to stay, with the TV even being turned off. I know I do, given the way free to air treats us. Even pay tv will suffer when internet tv begins to deliver global content in any order, format, volume we want.

Speech Recognition becoming a part of customers lives

Australian customer satisfaction with speech recognition systems, and their technical capabilities systems have increased significantly over the past years, according to callcentres.net research.

The report, commissioned by Nuance Communications, found 58% of respondents were either "very" or "extremely satisfied" using a speech recognition system - an 11% increase on the findings of a similar survey in 2005.

The study concluded that the ability and acceptance of speech recognition in Australia is maturing and catching up to the rest of the world. "In the US, speech recognition is promoted as a extra service channel that gives convenience, 24 hour access, speed and has always been positioned by the market as something that is very positive," said callcentres.net director Dr Catriona Wallace. "Australia is definitely lagging in its uptake of speech compared to the US and Europe, however we're seeing it coming of age now," Wallace said. Peter Chidiac, ANZ managing director for Nuance Communications said advancements in the capabilities of speech recognition systems, particularly open dialogue systems, was one of the reasons behind their burgeoning acceptance.

Student lending latest segment for peer-to-peer

I've talked before about peer-to-peer lending starting quite wide (Zopa, Prosper) and moving towards segments, specific communities - e.g. those with common interests or even passions (harley motorcycle fanatics lending to other fanatics to purchase their harley, or yankee fanatics lending to other fanatics for their yankee season pass). Student loans is the first segment to come along, logical given the small amounts available and the attractive rates for students.

Fynanz.com is a lending site where like the others you can choose to lend or borrow. The new site allows borrowers to create an online listing with their educational profile, along with a loan and rate request. Students can request unsecured loans from $2500 to $20,000, to be repaid over 10-20 years. Lenders then place bids on the listed loans based on the student's academic record and background, as well as credit ratings. This is a terrific addition to the peer-to-peer model, adding to the honesty system pioneered by eBay - the quality of the participants determines the quality of the site. It may however deny those students with apparent potential but without the marks to prove it, but it rewards those with good grades - like much else in life I guess...

I'm waiting for eBay/PayPal to add Money or Lending as a new category on their site, where you can bid by interest rate, deposit or length of loan...

Innovation round-up - April 08

WELCOME BACK SPRING - From a large hardware chain - look at the spend on this campaign!

GET OUT AND PLAY - Nokia launches this site showing a stop animation film - pretty nice.

HEY NIELSEN - Voice your opinion about ... anything! Nielsen research brings you this interesting site/concept.

WATCH MARISSA MAYER FROM GOOGLE SPEAK ON INNOVATION - Watch Marissa Mayer speak on Innovation, Design & Simplicity.



Also watch her colleague Jonathon Rosenburg.

FAIRFAX LAUNCHES NEW 'YOUTH PORTAL' - Fairfax's answer to Citysearch - its not bad!!

COMMBANK RELEASES PODCASTS ON MORTGAGE TOPICS - Listen to 5 step-by-step episodes of Home Buying Know How.

BOQ LETS YOU BANK YOUR WAY - A potentially cryptic and confusing nav reveals an interesting site appealing to life events and stages.

Microsoft, somehow, tells us how to be human in the year 2020

'Computer technologies are not neutral – they are laden with human, cultural and social values. We need to define a new agenda for human-computer interaction in the 21st century – one that anticipates and shapes the impact of technology rather than simply reacts to it.' Download this interesting presentation here.

Monocle asks the worlds media on how to survive the digital age

Watch this video from The Digital News Affairs conference in Brussels. The conference featured more than 50 speakers from the media world's leading editorial, marketing and business teams. The subject of this year's event was 'How to survive the digital news age' - a discussion of how news organisations need to change the way they work in order to maintain market share and influence in a rapidly changing media landscape.

Virgin Money to launch Personal Loans in Australia

In typical Virgin 'language lingo' an eDM has been sent to 'pre-registered' parties notifying that Virgin Money Australia will soon launch a Personal Loan product.

No details on rates, terms, fees and all the product specifics as yet, however for those who like the Virgin brand, this one could be for you!

What does seem of interest is that Virgin Money have progressed a consumer lending product ahead of deposits... Maybe 'head in sand', but apparently there is a liquidity and credit issue at the moment - Why lend more when banks like Macquarie (who power Virgin Home Loans) have stopped?...

Here is the copy from the eDM:

We promised you'd be the first to know about our brand new Virgin Money Personal Loans. Well guess what? You are.

We've been working hard to bring you the very best range of personal loans that are easy to apply for (from application to getting the dosh, it's all online) and easy to live with (flexibility, no hidden charges, no early repayment fees).

So how do we know how to get it right here at Virgin Money? We worked out exactly what the banks were doing wrong! Look at our little friends at the top of this page to see what people have to put up with when they apply for a personal loan with the big banks and you'll understand what we mean. You may have experienced some of this agony yourself at some time.

In a few weeks we'll be ready to roll out the red carpet and send you an invitation to apply for a Virgin Money Personal Loan. And our promise is this: It won't hurt a bit. In fact, we'll make it so easy it's sure to put a smile on your face.

Until then, may your world be as pain-free as possible.

Lots of love

Google announces some interesting new stuff

Google announces a new Google Finance page layout - "we have launched a newly redesigned home page for all our Google Finance sites (U.S., Canada, U.K., China). It's now easier to follow the latest news affecting the market as well as those that are relevant to your portfolio. We hope you enjoy this new look. The simultaneous launch of the new homepage across countries is just one of the new features and updates to come."

As well as a Google Finance for China - After adding Shanghai/Shenzhen market data into Google Finance and launching the Chinese finance onebox last year, we are excited to announce the launch of Google Finance China. Now it's easier to get Chinese stock and mutual fund data through our easy-to-use and familiar interface in Chinese.

Theres also an interesting list of what makes a design Googley - Googley Design Principles:

1. Focus on people—their lives, their work, their dreams.
2. Every millisecond counts.
3. Simplicity is powerful.
4. Engage beginners and attract experts.
5. Dare to innovate.
6. Design for the world.
7. Plan for today's and tomorrow's business.
8. Delight the eye without distracting the mind.
9. Be worthy of people's trust.
10. Add a human touch.

These are powerful in any channel. Note Googles UX aspiration distilled from the list above - "The Google User Experience team aims to create designs that are useful, fast, simple, engaging, innovative, universal, profitable, beautiful, trustworthy, and personable. Achieving a harmonious balance of these ten principles is a constant challenge. A product that gets the balance right is "Googley" – and will satisfy and delight people all over the world."