Facebook’s conundrum over Mobile ads

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One of the more eye-catching elements of Facebook’s obligatory rundown of “risk factors” in Wednesday’s IPO filing was the section on mobile.

Facebook has huge scale on mobile. Half of Facebook’s monthly active users – 425m people – use its mobile products, as of December.

Its iPhone app is the most downloaded in the App Store’s short history, according to Apple, and Facebook has optimised mobile sites for both smartphones and low-end feature phones, some of which can be accessed without incurring data charges thanks to deals with carriers.

“We believe that mobile usage is critical to maintaining user growth and engagement over the long term,” the company writes in its filing with the SEC, which mentions mobile over 120 times.

But Facebook today shows no advertisements on mobile, where any kind of commercial message is always seen as disproportionately intrusive on the small screen.

As Facebook points out in its S-1 filing, this poses a problem as more people start to use the social network solely on their mobile, where the company does not generate any “meaningful revenue”:

“Growth in use of Facebook through our mobile products, where we do not currently display ads, as a substitute for use on personal computers may negatively affect our revenue and financial results.”

As it expands into emerging markets where there are more smartphones than PCs, the proportion of mobile users is only going to get larger.

“We anticipate that the rate of growth in mobile users will continue to exceed the growth rate of our overall [monthly active users] for the foreseeable future, in part due to our focus on developing mobile products to encourage mobile usage of Facebook…. Accordingly, if users continue to increasingly access Facebook mobile products as a substitute for access through personal computers, and if we are unable to successfully implement monetization strategies for our mobile users, our revenue and financial results may be negatively affected.”

That strongly suggests ads are coming to Facebook mobile in the not-too-distant future, to grab a slice of what is forecast to be a $17.6bn market by 2015. The company itself flags this elsewhere in its S-1 document:

“…we believe that we may have potential future monetization opportunities such as the inclusion of sponsored stories in users’ mobile News Feeds.”

Pulling this off will require Facebook to manage another of its risk factors: its dependence on iOS and Android. Both Apple and Google have their own mobile advertising businesses to push. “Any changes in such systems that degrade our products’ functionality or give preferential treatment to competitive products could adversely affect Facebook usage on mobile devices,” Facebook writes, adding later:

“Certain competitors, including Google, could use strong or dominant positions in one or more markets to gain competitive advantage against us in areas where we operate including: by integrating competing social networking platforms or features into products they control such as search engines, web browsers, or mobile device operating systems; by making acquisitions; or by making access to Facebook more difficult.”

Facebook has already begun to integrate sponsored stories into the news feed on its desktop website, to only minor consternation from users. Will they baulk at more ads on mobiles?

For prospective investors, on the other hand, there may be a huge new revenue stream in mobile which Facebook has not even begun to tap. Source from ft.com

Make Money Online with these 28 Forums

Making money online actually is not as hard as it seems.The best place to start with is using forums.There are many kinds of forums and in fact,you can discuss anything from Money to Lego toys with forum.Now lets take a look at 28 of the best forums that allows you to make money online for bloggers and online investors alike.

Webmaster,Search Engine Optimization Forums

1. Digital Point
   Digital Point indeed the best forums for webmasters and bloggers.Many top webmasters in the world visits this site daily discussing on Search Engine Optimization, Link building, affiliate marketing, pay-per-click advertising, domain investing and blogging.It also allows webmasters to trade websites,domain and templates to pimp up and optimize all kind of websites.Alexa Ranked 161 is a pure indication on how much traffic jams into this site daily.A must visit site.
2. V7n forum
   V7N is a well known forum that focuses more on Search Engine Optimization but also focus on graphic designing,marketing and web directories to boost up new and seasoned websites alike.
3. Webmasterworld
   Similar to Digital Point but it has lesser members than Digital Point.But Alexa Ranked at 568 is not far behind and is certainly drawing a lot of traffic as well
4. SEO Chat
   Also similar to both Digital Point and Webmasterworld but it has a unique section in the forum whereby SEO Chat updates the forums with the latest technology news every hour.Great site if you are running a Technology
5. Earners Forum
   Part blog,part forum.It is the best of both world if you are too lazy to browse thru forums and look for vital informations.With the blog function,it highlights on the major and most useful information to facilitate even the laziest reader
6. High Ranking
   A good forum which focuses more on how to build your website and promote it.Plenty of helpful members!
7. Self Starter Weekly Tips
   This forum focuses more on the e-commerce and how to build a profitable business online.
8. Wicked Fire
   Vulgarish website,Black Search Engine Optimization tips,killer name.An indication not for the ethical webmaster.But you can learn a lot from it..the bad way!
9. Warrior Forum
   Another giant forum which offers good tips,great members and a section to download free ebooks.Not bad at all!
10. ABest Web A giant forum to discuss on Internet marketing,Commission Junction and Shareasale.More on affiliate marketing this forum offers.
11. 5 Star Affiliate Marketing Forums Blogging,Search Engine Optimization,Affiliate,Internet Marketing are the main section of this forum.
12. Affiliate Programs Forum This forum focuses more on Internet marketing and how to squeeze your affiliates earning to the maximum
13. Sitepoint Forum that focuses more on programming,buying and selling of websites
14. Ewealth An all affiliates program discussion forums which features the usual suspects such as Commission Junctions,Linkshare and Shareasale with a small portion of it dedicating to Pay per click and trading of domain name and services
15. Affiliates4U Part blog,part forum which focuses more on affiliates as its name suggest and also Search Engine Optimization,Programming.Very broad based.

High Yield Investment Program(HYIP),Autosurfs,Get Paid To Do Something

1. Get Paid Forum As its name suggest,get paid to do things.Get paid to do survey,get paid to click on things,get paid to try new services and get paid and paid!
2. Moneymakergroup The biggest HYIP forum with sub section that consists of LYIP (Low yield investment program),Autosurf,MLM,Network marketing,Stocks and even Forex!
3. Talkgold The second biggest HYIP section which is very similar to Moneymakergroup but lesser members
4. Dream Team Money Similar to Moneymakergroup but much smaller in terms of the members size
5. Whydowork.com Affiliate marketing,dropshipping,MLM are some of the sections this forum has
6. Goldage Get paid to discuss on HYIP,Forex and other business topics.You can even refer your friends to earn more money from their referral program

Work At Home Business Opportunity

1. Work at Home Forum This forum is more or less catered for non-webmasters and bloggers such as stay at home mums to help them make money online with Paid to programs,business opportunities.
2. WAHM.com Great forum whereby you make friends,share opinions and do traditional business like handicrafts and other kinds of business.
3. Talk Freelance Freelance arena whereby graphic designer and programmers can look for freelance jobs here.Also discusses on programming,buying and selling of domains and Search Engine Optimization

Domain Investing Forums

1. NamePros A forum which teaches you how to park your domain,how to make money by investing in domains names.
2. DN Forum Superb domain parking tutorial forum which is also similar to Namepros.

Other Kind of Forums

1. Scam.com Forum dedicated on discussing scams.
2. Blogger Forum Essential forum for all bloggers.That is where I always visit to learn more about blogging too!

Google is Banning Tampered Adsense Account made using Tamper Data Addon

For some countries especially for India, it has become difficult to get approval for new adsense account so, various illegal ways were used to get approved by Google. Tampering data on Adsense account is quite popular among them. But Google has started catching such users.
Tampering means to modify HTTP/HTTPS headers and post parameters. This is accomplished by Firefox Addon “Tamper data” which allows you to change Country inAdsense account details which is generally not possible to edit. This is a clear violation ofGoogle Adsense TOS so, they have started closing accounts made using this technique. Email received by such account holders reads as follows with subject Google AdSense Policy Enforcement-

During a recent review of your account, our specialists found that tamper data was used to modify the country listed in your account. Changing your address in this manner is a violation of our policy guidelines. As a result, your account has been disabled. Please keep in mind that Google reserves the right to disable AdSense accounts or ad serving to sites that do not comply with our program policies.

With the above statement, so called Google’s politeness, at last they say – Thank you for your understanding. 

My Take: The main cause behind creation of such accounts using innovative ideas isGoogle itself. Yes, if Google would have accepted Adsense application on the basis of Site content and quality, there would have no disappointment on applicant’s mind. I have personally experienced that Google prettily accepts Adsense application coming from other countries except India. So, Tampering was the option implemented to change Country in account.

Are you still hunting for Adsense account or You too are a victim of recent account disablement, you can try what to do if Adsense account is disabled.

P.S. Don’t try Tamper Data on your Account and Fortunately, It doesn’t work anymore. Tell us if you were successful executing Tampering Adsense Account.

Google skips “Adsense” referrals from Google products

Recently, I posted on “How you can double your income from Referrals” I received a good response from it and had one sign-up under my account but now (after 3 days), all sign-ups vanished. Also, when I tried to install another referral unit of Adsense, to my surprise- There was no Adsense inside Google product Referrals, shocked!

Why did Google do this?

I didn’t receive any email from Adsense team but I think that Google already have enough number of Adsense publishers and they are in way ready to pay somebody on referring to have publisher account, what do you think?

What about already placed referral units?

If you already have adsense referral code placed on your site, then that will link to the Adsense homepage but you are not going to get a penny from it hereafter. They are no longer in a mood to pay for Non-US publishers.

What’s next?

US publishers can still enjoy referral income but for others I would say- Only Adsense referrals have been removed, you can still enjoy other Google products such as : Firefox with google toolbar, Adwords and Google pack.

If you being outside US and your blog or website has good adsense publisher referral income, enjoy till last week of Jan month, meanwhile you would not be able to create new buttons for adsense referral now.

Isn’t it a discrimination against non-US publishers as this big change in adsense does not seem to be decided on where the traffic coming from but simply from publisher’s location.