http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2015/10/08/google-says-mobile-searches-surpass-those-on-pcs/?mod=ST1

“Google searches on mobile devices outnumbered those on desktop computers in 10 countries, including the U.S. and Japan.”

Comments:
Google is currently one of the most successful search engines across the world. It is convenient to search and the results always match with what users are looking for. Now that google have successfully developed mobile friendly search engine, the frequency of search definitely increases. For myself, on average, I use my mobile to search on google about 3-5 times a day. Mobile friendly Apps and websites has become essential to companies because not everyone carries a laptop around or have a computer with them all the time, but they would always carry their smartphones with them. Therefore, it is more likely to catch people searching or browsing on their mobile phones in their spare time.

However, developing a successful mobile search engine has its tricks. For example Google indicates that “The smaller screens of mobile gadgets leave less room for keyword-based ads, which is why Google earlier this year rolled out a new crop of mobile-friendly ads that rely on data, such as images, product specs and prices, rather than keywords.” The sizes and placement of words and images are especially important for users to have a good experience.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/twitter-opens-pre-roll-video-ad-marketplace-1444338084

SUMMARY: Twitter introduces its new feature Thursday that enables marketers to place pre-roll advertisements as long as 6 seconds before videos that are professionally produced. Publishers are able to upload and post content through the new feature of Twitter’s video and collect revenue as soon as ads are automatically placed before it. As an agreement, Twitter takes 30% of the revenue generated from the ads and the content producer earns the 70%.

COMMENTS: Twitter’s new feature is very much like Youtube. As a youtube user for years, I have noticed the increase of the quality of advertisements and the frequency of ad occurence during videos as well. Youtube has done a good job on the ads because it certainly grabs a lot of attention from users. However most ads enable users to skip them after 3 seconds, and Twitter extends it to 6 seconds. Although this is a very smart way to generate revenue by cooperating with marketers, it may cause complaints from Twitter users.

Related to my last blog post, Here is a summary of a magazine article I read regarding the severe aging population in China.

A census over Chinese population shows that, by 2025, 25% of Chinese will be over 60. Chinese government and medical system is unprepared for the ageing citizens. The current medical care and pension systems are not adequate to meet the needs of the old. Rural areas lag far behind cities in terms of the provision of benefits.

Unlike their young counterparts, Chinese old people live alone not because of their choice, but because they have no choice. For the old, the physical condition is an important issue. Yet their psychological situation is also worrisome. Since female tend to outlive their husbands, and their children move to cities for employment, old Chinese female tend to live alone, and in many cases, TV or radio is their only companion. It’s a Chinese tradition to value filial piety and encourage families to live together. Old Chinese females, sometimes feel reluctant or ashamed to search for help from their neighbors or the society. This leads them to feel even lonelier; some of them avoid social activities.

Given this background of Chinese elderly, during 2009-2011, people over 65 constitutes to almost half of all suicides in China. China is rapidly changing its social structure; the problem of the elderly continues to be serious.