Bit.ly, the URL shortening service, is planning to create a ‘real-time news service’ by building on its relationship with Twitter, where it is frequently used as a link shortener.
The service would track news trends not just the most used words circulated with bit.ly links, reports Wired.com.
This will involve looking at links shared by unlike people, which suggests topics with ‘universal appeal’, Andrew Cohen, bit.ly general manager, told Wired.
South Africa’s Mail & Guardian newspaper has substantially revamped its website, in the process introducing a series of new features to improve usability.
M&G Online’s general manager Matthew Buckland blogged recently about the use of Thompson Reuters Open Calais semantic tagging technology to organise and cross-reference all the site’s content for the relaunch.
In addition to this the revamp has introduced a number of key features:
Registration and dashboard
New features
Semantic tagging – a key new element
The US celebrity tabloid ‘news’ TV show and website TMZ has started using mobile phone technology to live stream video of celebrity goings-on.
And it’s all a great success Alan Citron, general manager of TMZ tells Beet TV.
And the real crowd pullers?
A courthouse appearance by Hulk Hogan’s son and a two hour stream of a car park where Britany was expected to arrive.
‘Hypnotic effect’ of the car park kept viewers interested says Citron.
Glam – this celeb business.
The Chicago Tribune‘s network of hyperlocal news sites, Triblocal.com, has launched 13 more websites and will launch print editions for these sites later in the year, according to a posting on Online News Squared.
This development boosts the total number of Triblocal.com sites to 21 since its launch at the beginning of 2007.
A further 14 sites are planned by the end of 2008 according to Triblocal’s general manager Jane Jansen, the site reports.