UPDATE: Note the addition of information about 3rd parties on the RockYou ad network - they are indeed selling ads for other developers.

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Slideshow tool RockYou, previously depend on MySpace for much of its traffic, is attempting to solidify its position as one of the top Facebook apps providers by helping out those with less popular apps. They’ve just unveiled two new tricks: an API for one of their most popular apps, and the ability to buy ads on RockYou’s applications.

Super Wall API

This is very meta: an API for a Facebook application. RockYou is releasing an API for Super Wall, its popular Facebook app that puts videos, audio, pictures and Flash embeds on the Facebook wall. (Facebook may have just rendered the product useless, however - while RockYou replaces your wall with an entirely new one and makes you remove the original in your settings, Facebook just added the ability for developers to put rich media on the original wall itself. File host Divshare has already taken advantage of this.).

Either way, Super Wall is thriving, with 2.5M active users and 100,000 new users per day. That might be to due to the fact that it aggressively tries to invite your friends to use your wall, making it hard to opt out. RockYou described the specifics of the API in an email:

1. Developer adds a “Share with Friends” button (image attached) to their app - this can be placed on the user profile box, the application canvas page, and even outside Facebook
2. The “Share with Friends” button is linked to a RockYou URL with parameters specifying the attached media content, title, description, and url (developers will want this to point back to their application)
3. When users click the “Share with Friends” button they are taken to a “Post to Super Wall” page where they can choose multiple friends to send the post to. They can also leave a personal comment for the post. One important note: users are not required to have either Super Wall or the 3rd party app installed to post content to their friend’s Super Walls.
4. Content is posted to Super Wall with link back to 3rd party application.

You can see a horoscope app with the Share with Friends button in the screenshot below. There’s currently no web page for the API: contact the developers AT rockyou email address for more info.

Ad Network

Probably even bigger news than an API-within-a-platform: RockYou wants to take on Lookery and fbexchange. RockYou has one thing those companies lack (until they sign up enough app owners, of course) - RockYou apps are already hugely popular on Facebook. Since RockYou can’t monetize its MySpace widgets at all, save for the traffic driven back to RockYou.com, they desperately need to convert this presence to cash.

As a result, they’re now allowing the owners of smaller Facebook apps to advertise on RockYou’s applications: add the aforementioned Super Wall to your Facebook profile, and you may see an offer to install the My Greeting Card app. The ads are sold at the equivalent of a $20 CPM, a massively high rate in the social media space.

Meanwhile, RockYou is also selling ads for 3rd parties, giving developers a 70% share of the ad revenue when ads are bought on their apps. Oodle, MyLot/Interests+, Trendhunter and others have already signed up, they say. Initially, they’ll be focused on Pay Per Install (PPI) - getting paid by advertisers when a user installs that app. They have 200K worth of ad inventory to push out: 60K has already been fulfilled, they say, and they just completed a fulfillment of 15K in 8 hours. Not bad going at all.

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Google Earth has released the latest version of Google Earth Enterprise, incorporating some new geospatial tools, among other things.

Some of the new features include browser integration with the Google Maps API AJAX, allowing maps to be embedded in web-based applications. There’s also a new serch framework for integrating geocoding and other search services, including Java plug-ins. Use the regionator to make Super-Overlays with Regions, and publish them with other Google Earth products. Security and support has been stepped up as well. Overall, a good portion of the upgrades involve some better integration options with other Google Earth services and web-based services.

In other Google Maps news, Google has acquired Image America, and its project with NASA has been completed.

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The BarBook facebook application lets you find local venues and meet others that go to the same places as you.

Based on your location (which can be changed), BarBook will show places in your area and those that have added the particular venue to their list. You can add venues to your list too, and you’ll become a regular. Places that you’ve added will be displayed on your BarBook profile within Facebook, as well as your Facebook profile wall. Each venue has a profile as well, where you can read and submit comments, and edit information about the venue (for example, upload an image). This allows you to meet others on Facebook, and find recommended places to go.

While there is a leaderboard for the most active BarBook members, there’s no way to really rank the venues; you’ll just have to know that the place with the most “regulars” must be the place to go. Looks like BarBook has started its venture in California and is relying on users to slowly build out from there. The team tells us they’ll be incorporating information directly from Facebook event listings in the future, which will probably be a good tie in for additional content and sharing options within the social network.

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We all know that branding is important. Image is everything. And according to a report from Interbrand, Google has been deemed the most improved brand.

According to a survey of global brands, Google has gained the most in value of the past year. Interbrand reports that Google’s brand value has increased 44% in the past year to $17.8bn, bringing it to rank at number 20 on the short list of Best Global Brands. Coca-Cola tops this list for the seventh year in a row, and a few tech companies aren’t far behind, with Microsoft, IBM, GE and Nokia respectively in second, third, fourth and fifth place. Intel isn’t too far either, coming in at number seven. The brands’ value is determined according to how important it is in its sector.

So that means that people really value Google as a brand, and is important to the general public as its own entity. Things like this can’t be taken lightly, especially when it comes to publicly traded companies. The public’s perspective on a company can have an impact directly on its value. There are a great many factors that could have caused its rise, including its numerous acquisitions like YouTube, new developments such as Google Checkout, as well as its furthered integration into mainstream media, specifically its new goals for a print ad distribution network.

[via]

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Social bookmarking site Mr Wong attracted some criticism in the Mashable comments a few weeks back, and again this week, for offending Asian Americans. The 8Asians blog was outraged by the site, saying: “But seriously, one of their web badges has the slogan “ping pong, king kong, Mister Wong.” Which I, of course, interpret as “ching chong, Mister Wong” and get INCREDIBLY F*CKING ANGRY.” The name, and the original logo of a bookish Chinese man, were offensive to some, with our commenters adding:

Wow, what better way to reminisce about all those old coolie stereotypes than by celebrating them through Web 2.0! I’ve already trademarked Mr. White Honky’s Favorite Sites, but I think it may be too long to remember.
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It’s not so much the name that is questionable, more the cliched stereotyped image of Mr. Wong that comes along with it. I really hope they get rid of that on the US beta at least, otherwise there’ll be some angry Asian Americans out there.

The CEO contacted us today to say that they never meant to cause offense, and they’ve now removed the character from the logo (he remains in the favicon, but I’m sure that will get switched, too). He also issued an apology on the site’s blog.

These kinds of clashes seem inevitable when companies launch globally: what’s culturally acceptable in one place is a hanging offense elsewhere. Often, as in this case, people are puzzled by the fact that they caused any offense at all. The “racist” label, however, is one that all startups will want to stay a million miles away from, even if they don’t fully understand their infraction. It’s something we’ll bear in mind when writing our next article: Top Ten Most Racist Startups (kidding, kidding!).

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From sending one document to backing up an entire business, data storage is the key to everything nowadays. Due to popular demand, we’ve put together a list of more than 80 of the leading file hosting services, many of which are completely free.

Online Backup

Allmydata.com - Unlimited storage and automated backup for $4.99 a month.

Angelbackup.com - Prices as low as $1.95 for 2GB of automated backup.

BlogBackupOnline.com - Automatically backs up your blog for you with up to 50MB of storage.

Carbonite.com - Backup your entire hard drive automatically, no free version.

CrashPlan.com - Automated backup plans as low as a one-time $20 fee, unlimited space.

Datapreserve.com - Automated, managed off-site remote backups, focusing on businesses.

Egnyte.com - Backup your files, store them securely, export them back to your computer in a crash. Share with co-workers for collaborative work.

ElephantDrive.com - 1GB of free storage, automated backups; up to 1TB in subscription form.

File123.com - 1GB of space for free, up to 10GB of backup for as low as $4.95 a month.

gDisk - Turn your Gmail account in to an online storage space for free.

GoDaddy.com - All paid plans, as low as $5.99 a year for 50MB, sync between multiple computers.

IBackup - Anywhere from 5GB to 300GB of storage, no free services.

iOmega iStorage - Automated backups for personal or business users, file sharing available.

Ironmountain.com - Focusing on professional backup solutions from small business up to government agencies.

MediaMaster.com - Unlimited storage of your music collection.

Mozy.com - Automated online backup of your selected files with versioning.

Mp3Tunes.com - Unlimited free storage of your music collection, streaming play of the songs from anywhere.

MyOtherDrive.com - Store up to 5GB of files, use as backup or share.

Omnidrive.com - Backup anywhere from 1GB for free, use as backup you can access from anywhere, or use as a file host to use on other sites.

Orbitfiles.com - 6GB of storage for your files, automated backup, ability to share with family and friends.

SOSOnlineBackup.com - Automated backup of your essential files.

Steekr.com - Online backup of digital media, free up to 1GB, subscriptions for more. Stream your stored music for listening anywhere, share files with friends.

Strongspace.com - Minimum of a 5GB subscription package, files are shareable with other registered users.

Textive.com - Backup your documents for free. Choose to publish some or all of your files, get paid for them.

Titanize.com - Online backup that allows you to snyc with other devices and share links to your files.

Trueshare.com - Secure off-site data backup, packages as small as 3GB up to 1TB.

Yuntaa.com - Sync your hard drive with your online storage, restore, or share. Free up to 1GB.

Sending Services

Arunalabs.com - Send large files to anyone on the net.

Bigfilez.com - Send a file up to 500MB in size to multiple recipients.

Bigupload.com - Send files up to 500MB in size, up to 2GB for premium members.

BoxCloud.com - Up to 1GB of free sending, more space with paid plans.

Driveway.com - Send an unlimited number of files up to 500MB each in size.

DropSend.com - Email files up to 250MB in size, subscriptions get you larger files and more storage.

FileFactory.com - Send up to 25 files at a time at 300MB per file.

JustUpIt.com - Send a file up to 120MB to up to four email addresses.

Jagbox.com - Upload a file up to 100MB in size, share the link, set an expiration time.

LeapFILE.com - Send files of various sizes, 7 day trial, subscription thereafter.

Localhostr.com - Upload a file up to 50MB in size, share it with friends.

MailBigFile.com - Send up to a 100MB file to one recipient, up to 2GB to 5 recipients if you subscribe.

MoveDigital.com - Store and deliver large files easily with a drag-and-drop interface.

Pandafile.com - Send a file, no limitations mentioned.

Send6.com - Send up to six large files at once for free, private branding available.

Sendspace.com - Send files up to 300MB in size, unlimited downloads.

SendThisFile.com - Subscription only, size and bandwidth vary with plan.

Sharebee.com - Upload a file, share the link, no mention of limitations on size.

YouSendIt.com - Email files up to 100MB in size for free, bigger limits by subscription.

YouSwap.com - Upload and send up to 1GB of files to multiple email addresses.

Storage/Sharing Services

4shared.com - Share a file or an entire folder for free, up to 1GB. More space available for annual subscription plans.Badongo.com - Unlimited file storage, inactive files files deleted after 45 days for free members, never for premium members.

BigFilebox.com - Free storage up to 100MB, more space available for a fee.

BooMP3.com - Free unlimited storage of audio files.

Box.net - Up to 1GB of storage of files up to 10MB size each, more space for monthly or annual fee.

BOXSTr.com - 10GB of storage of files up to 250MB in size each, 10GB of bandwidth.

DivShare - Upload a file, store it forever, embed it anywhere you want. Premium service allows you to brand your embeds.

Ewedrive.com - Store up to 1GB for free, more available at a fee.

Exaroom.com - Upload files, make a profile, let friends browse and download your files, access your files from anywhere.

FileDEN.com - 1GB of storage, files up to 50MB each, hotlinking allowed of all file extensions.

FileHo.com - Unlimited storage, you can choose to share your files or keep them private.

FileNanny.com - Store up to 500MB of files and share them with anyone.

FilePanda.com - Upload files up to 200MB in size, share them with others.

Flypicture.com - Unlimited hosting of pictures, audio or movie files, free use for blogs and auctions.

Freefilehosting.net - Free hosting of files up to 3MB in size, use anywhere.

GigaSize.com - Store up to 1.5GB, share files for up to 90 days.

I2drive.com - Plans as low as $4.99 for 500MB of storage.

In.solit.us - Upload your files, keep them private or opt to make them public so anyone can download them.

Jumbodir.com - Upload without even registering, up to 2GB of space and no time limits if you do register.

Mediafire.com - Upload up to 10 files of up to 100MB each at a time, unlimited storage, link and share if you like.

MediaMax.com - Up to 25GB of free storage, 10MB per file, more space and size limits available by subscription.

Megaupload.com - Up to 50GB of free storage and sharing capabilities for free.

Mofile.com - Up to 1GB of sharing storage.

MyDataBus.com - Upload up to 5GB of files for free and share, can integrate with Facebook.

MyFabrik.com - 1GB of media storage you can share and embed.

OneDump.com - Free hosting and sharing of up to 10 files of 5MB each.

QuickSharing.com - Up to 500MB per file, deleted after 30 days of inactivity.

RapidSahre.com - Share an unlimited number of files up to 100MB in size, an unlimited number of times.

Supload.com - Unlimited image hosting for use with sites such as eBay and MySpace.

TagAndFile.com - Store up to 100MB for free, more space available for a fee.

Tilefile.com - Upload and organize your files, share them with friends.

Upfordown.com - 20GB of storage with 50GB of bandwidth the first month for free.

Webcargo.net - Mail files up to 100MB for free, stay online for up to 7 days. More paid options.

WOOfiles.com - Up to 1GB of storage, share with friends.

Xdrive.com - Up to 5GB of storage, access from anywhere, share with friends and family.

zUpload.com - Share files up to 500MB in size, unlimited downloads.

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