Friday 7 May 2010

First past the post

As the final result in the UK General Election 2010 (or should I say the first General Election of 2010?) has been announced, there has been one clear winner in terms of data-feeds. As frustrated news addicts were wondering what was taking Devon West and Torridge so long to declare, news was already spreading. Where? On the newest news-feed on the block – Twitter.

The Labour candidate was Tweeting-As-He-Waited and announced the news that that Tories had held the seat. It didn’t take longer before the official Conservative Tweeter announced their victory. It took other news providers 30 minutes or so to catch up and update their web pages. Of course it would – it takes longer to update and check a web page with comprehensive information than it does to Tweet 140 characters of news.

Does any of this matter? Well, perhaps not very much, but it’s interesting that when people are eager for news, they turn to whoever can provide the information the fastest. During the Eurostar train problems back in February, the company was criticized for using Twitter to promote its services, rather than update passengers with the latest news.

For those who don’t see the point of Twitter, or wonder whether it’s just a fad (you know who you are), today was an interesting example of how relevant data will be valued in whatever format is available.

18 comments:

  1. A good medium is surely one which establishes a niche, broad or narrow, and defends it successfully in cost and convenience.

    But the niche Twitter occupies today is merely an inferior substitute for a primitive medium of more than a century ago: Ticker Tape.

    How inconvenient for the lucky UK PM candidate that he can no longer be garlanded and strewn in a parade of "Twitter" - as were US presidents in "Ticker" of yesteryear?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nyallpurposepaving.com offers Paving Contractor, Parking Lot Repairs, sealing, striping, Oil and Stone Driveways at Riverhead NY, Quogue NY, Hamptons NY, Southampton NY, Sag Harbor NY, Green point NY, Wading River NY, East Moriches NY, Center Moriches NY, Mannorville NY, Miller Place NY , Mt. Sinai NY,Greenport NY

    ReplyDelete
  3. Diskdatadestruction.net offers hard drive destruction, Paper shredding at Hauppauge NY, Suffolk County NY, Long Island NY, Ronkonkoma NY, Melville NY, Huntington NY, Garden City NY, Farmingdale NY, Westbury NY, Bohemia NY, Stony Brook NY,
    and Nassau County NY

    ReplyDelete
  4. Diskdatadestruction.net offers hard drive destruction, Paper shredding at Hauppauge NY, Suffolk County NY, Long Island NY, Ronkonkoma NY, Melville NY, Huntington NY, Garden City NY, Farmingdale NY, Westbury NY, Bohemia NY, Stony Brook NY,
    and Nassau County NY

    ReplyDelete
  5. Atopcommercialpaving.com offers Commercial Paving, Asphalt Contractor, and Parking Lot Resurfacing at Queens NY, Nassau County, Bayside NY, Jamaica NY, Middle Village NY, Ozone Park NY, Howard Beach NY, Little Neck NY

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jettonsgrading.com offers Grading, Excavation and Paving Contractor, Land Clearing Services, Septic Systems, Retaining Walls and Driveways, Drainage Systems, Construction Site Clean-Up, Demolition Contractor at Walhalla SC, Seneca SC

    ReplyDelete
  7. Bedbugprocpc.com offers Bed Bug Exterminator, Bed Bug Inspections, Bed Bug Elimination, Bed Bug Inspection for Hotels and Residential and Commercial Bed Bug at Palo Alto CA, San Mateo CA, San Jose CA, Belmont CA, San francisco CA, Redwood City CA, Sunnyvale CA

    ReplyDelete
  8. Landscape , Outdoor, Landscape Lighting Installation, Lawn Sprinkler Design, Repairs, Installation, Lawn Irrigation Service, Sprinkler System Backflow Testing at Long Island, Nassau County, Suffolk County, Dix Hills NY, Huntington NY, Syosset NY, Smithtown NY and Happauge NY

    ReplyDelete
  9. reliablecommercialpaving.com offers Parking lot paving, walk way construction, Commercial paving, asphalt, Parking Lot Repairs, Parking Lot Striping, Commercial Blacktop, Parking Lot Repairs, Commercial Paving Contractor, Commercial Asphalt Contractor at New Jersey at Hanover NJ, East Orange NJ, Newark NJ, Morristown NJ, Summit NJ , Union NJ, Hackensack NJ, Patterson NJ

    ReplyDelete
  10. Complete-pest-control.com offers Pest Control, Exterminator, Rodent Control, Rodent Elimination, and Pest Elimination at Palo Alto CA, San Mateo CA, San Francisco CA, Redwood City CA, Sunnyvale CA, and Belmont CA

    ReplyDelete
  11. Davispestmanagement.com offers Pest Control, Exterminator, Bed Bug Removal, Inspections, Rodent, Pest Elimination, Commercial, Residential, Professional, Licensed Exterminator , Scorpion, Bee Hive, Hornet, Fire Ant Removal by Service Area, Las Vegas NV

    ReplyDelete
  12. Realestatebydavidschoelles.com offers David Schoelles Real Estate, Cash for Homes at Arizona, Scottsdale AZ, and Phoenix AZ

    ReplyDelete
  13. Viceroy Investigations and Consulting LLC is a member of the Chamber of Commerce of the Massapequa's offer security consulting, assessments and training to large and small businesses. Let us help you design and implement policies that aid in Safe hiring, Work Place security and Information Security. Call us: 516-694-0093

    ReplyDelete
  14. johnniescarwashonoak.com offer Best Car Wash on Long Island, Detailing Centre, Car Detailing, Brushless Car Wash, Full-Service Car Wash, Car Detailing, SUV Detailing, Best Car Wash, Auto Detailing, SUV Detailing, Lease Return Detailing at Copiague NY, Lindenhurst NY, Amityville NY

    ReplyDelete
  15. Carpet, upholstery cleaning, carpet stain, odor removal, carpet steam, ceramic tile, commercial carpet cleaning at mobile al

    ReplyDelete
  16. Kitchen cabinets and Custom kitchens, cabinet supplier, remodeling, Kitchen countertops

    ReplyDelete
  17. norwalkfloorsanding.com offers Wood Floor refinishing, Installation, Oak Floor Refinishing, Staining, Flooring Contractor, Wood Floor Sanding, Residential Wood Flooring in Norwalk CT

    ReplyDelete
  18. The Center for Body Wellness offers Massage and CBD Massage at Rochester NY. Call us now: 585-266-6730

    ReplyDelete