Could it be that the company who’s mantra states don’t be evil….end up being the most evil of them all?  Let’s face it we live in a world where privacy no longer exists, and everything you do on the web is public domain. And if you think that private browsing in safari or chrome is anonymous…..lol. everything you do on the web is tracked and recorded. Everything. That data trail is valuable and tells anyone a crapload about yours likes dislikes, habits, personality, and the list goes on and on.

Anyone who has been paying attention the last few years realizes that Google loves to collect any kind of data it can from any source including your unprotected WiFi network in your house. A lot of times we are completely unaware of the data trail we are leaving behind. A scary example I recently encountered was with my new android phone, which of course runs Google’s operating system. As I casually browsed through my contacts without searching for anyone in particular I noticed phone numbers in my contact list from 2 cell phones ago. Yea, and I washed that cell phone and Sprint said I was SOL in regards to my contacts. But now they have magically re-appeared in my android, an HTC EVO 4G running Froyo.

I have consciously made the decision to use Google products for my business in exchange for Google having a treasure trove of information on me. Its a tradeoff I willingly accept in exchange for all of their free services. I figure I have nothing to hide, and I don’t plan on committing any crimes.

If you haven’t heard of Google’s latest venture with the CIA called “recorded future” I suggest you check that out. Basically with all the data trails we leave behind Google and the CIA will be able to predict when and where criminals and terrorists will strike. Unless they are smart enough to engineer misleading data trails.

All this to say that net neutrality is in jeopardy by the biggest player on the web, Google. Yea that’s right Google and Verizon have entered into a deal to charge for a tiered internet. So why Google has done this? Is money the motive? Are shareholders having an effect on Google? Lets look at the fact that the Android platform has finally eclipsed iOS and is poised to pretty much be THE platform when it comes to the smartphone market which is steadily growing and wont slow down anytime in the next few years. And in the future the mobile web will be THE medium in which a majority of internet searching will take place. It seems that Google and Verizon are preparing for this transition by create new channels for revenue.

I seriously wonder if Google took into account the serious backlash they will face from developers as we reject this attack against the internet and the free flow of information. We knew that was only a matter of time before the first shot was fired in this looming battle for a free internet but I never imagined that that shot would be fired from Google. The fact that Verizon is involved doesn’t surprise me. But I will drop my Droid and my gmail if they convince congress to adopt their idea on “Net Neutrality”….Those Win 7 phones don’t look too shabby anymore.

Only time will tell how this plays itself out but I encourage you to sign Al Franken petition preserving net neutrality. You may ask why does this matter to you? This is paving the way for two internets. One where those who can afford to pay extra have websites that load quickly and rank high, while everyone else is left to perish. If it sounds like a doomsday scenario to you, that’s because it is.

Written by Sarah Perez / March 16, 2009 – A repost from ReadWriteWeb.com

In a recession, budgets are tightened, jobs are cut, and those who remain are expected to do more with less. Given this type of economic reality, it’s surprising to hear of an industry reporting an increase in spending on anything, much less on something as new as social media. Yet that’s exactly what’s occurring. According to a new Forrester Research survey of 145 global interactive marketers in both B2B and B2C companies with more than 250 employees, the use of social media as a marketing tool is on the rise. What’s more, Forrester reports that over 50% of marketers said they will be increasing their spending on social media marketing in the coming months.

Part of the reason for this increased spending is thanks to the low cost of social media tools. Compared with larger expenditures like that of advertising for example, social media requires much less investment. In fact, three-quarters of those surveyed who knew their budgets said they allowed for $100,000 or less for social media tools over a 12-month period.

It’s also easier for firms to increase spending on social media applications because they aren’t yet formalized line items in marketing budgets. Because of their relatively new and still somewhat experimental nature, marketers aren’t necessarily predetermining the exact amount they’ll spend on these types of applications. Instead, some marketers (45%) pull together funding for social media projects as needed while others (23%) scrape together funds from wherever possible to pay for their various social media efforts.

Yet despite the unconventional methods which are use to fund many companies’ social media investments, 53% of marketers believe they will increase their spending on these initiatives over the next six months. Another 42% expects their investments to remain the same. That makes sense since almost all marketers surveyed were already using some form of social media, whether blogs, social networking sites, or user-generated content.

Unfortunately though, marketers who still fund social media projects only as experiments may be putting future initiatives on shaky ground. Without concentrating on measurable objectives, it will be difficult to justify further investment in the future. Businesses also need to understand that social media efforts should analyzed for effectiveness based on things like customer awareness through activity, interest through interaction, and intent to buy through registration and/or questions. These are the types of successes that social media can deliver; less important are traditional web analytics like page views.

Also key to long-term success in social media are having the necessary assets on-hand. For example, social media strategists and community managers should be dedicated resources.

To prove the value of social media to the business, Forrester recommends marketers start with a listening platform and then integrate social media marketing metrics like share of voice and engagement to demonstrate the value of these new tools.