It’s no secret that an overwhelming piece of the current media landscape is found online. As PR professionals, it is part of our job to keep a close watch on the media and react accordingly to changes they might undergo. This week, we discuss several new developments with online media companies, and consider what it might mean for public relations.
Facebook at Work, a professional version of the popular social media website, is projected to go live early next year. The platform, which has been in beta mode since January, will look nearly identical to its social counterpart, including a scrolling “feed”, “likes” and a messaging “chat” service. However, the new website will also include specialized products and services, including security tools. “I would say 95 percent of what we developed for Facebook is also adopted for Facebook at Work,” said Julien Codorniou, director of global platform partnerships at Facebook. Facebook at Work profiles will be separate from existing Facebook accounts. Premium services, including analytics and customer support, will be available for “a few dollars per month per user,” according to a company spokeswoman.
LinkedIn Corp. says it is starting to see positive results from investments it made in growing its mobile presence. Analysts say that LinkedIn mobile is used significantly less than other mobile social media apps. Trying to capitalize on advertising and “overhaul” its mobile presence, LinkedIn has spent heavily this year on its mobile application, nicknamed Project Voyager. The company is seeing “rapid growth” in international areas, and plans to develop tailored approaches to countries with larger markets, like India. Chitu, a professional networking app, has already been released in China. In addition, LinkedIn has announced a partnership with UK-based professional service firm EY, formerly Ernst & Young. The partners plan to help other companies with customer relationships by providing social analytics.
On Wednesday, Yahoo announced a “spin off” of its main business, transitioning to an independent, publicly traded company. In doing this, Yahoo hopes to make its Web properties more attractive to buyers. The California-based company has struggled to find a successful strategy to market its audience in a way understood by advertisers, investors or the public, despite having an online reach comparable to Facebook and Google. “‘Fire sale’ sounds a little too negative,” said analyst Shar VanBoskirk with Forrester Research. “But it’s probably a case of individual pieces sold off to different buyers until there’s no longer a Yahoo.” Company officials are calling this new plan a “reverse spin-off” of substantial Web properties, including search, email, media and advertising units. By creating a separate company, the value of its Web properties becomes more apparent to investors. Industry analysts have suggested Yahoo sell to media giants, the most vocal of which has been Verizon, though a Verizon spokesperson declined to comment.
Do you use LinkedIn? How about LinkedIn Premium? Would you sign up for Facebook at Work? Will you miss Yahoo when its spin-off is complete? Tell us what you think in the comments below.
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Brian Mulligan is an Intern at WordWrite Communications. He can be reached at brian.mulligan@wordwritepr.com or on Twitter, @brian_mulligan1.
