Mike Elgan

Google+ Hangouts is so powerful that most Google+ users don’t know what to do with it. Many are just poking at it like those ape-men in 2001: A Space Odyssey suddenly confronting a monolith. Or, they’re ignoring it all together. This amount of communication power has never before been placed into the hands of the […]

Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference keynote Monday made it clear to the world that Apple is escalating its conflict with former ally Google. Pundits are speculating about how this separation, conflict and polarization of the tech world can be avoided. It can’t be. Conflict and enmity between Google and Apple is inevitable. The reason is that […]

Suddenly, the thrilling future of consumer electronics is becoming clear. We’re entering a world in which any content — movies, TV, music, books, games and more — will be available on any device at any time. This is a huge transformation, and it’s coming very soon. It used to be that different devices were used […]

Wall Street has a funny way of getting to the bottom of things. When billions of dollars are on the line and experienced investors (i.e. those burned in previous dot com bubbles) are asked to pony up real cash, it’s amazing how fast hard truths surface. Facebook went public this month. And the event was […]

People say a lot of dumb things about social media. Once a wrong idea hits the technology-pundit echo chamber, it takes on a life of its own. When repeated enough, even the most absurd falsehoods about social media become “true” through repetition. Sometimes, it’s a good idea to stop and take a reality check. Here […]

If you could think of a single behavior that defines the zeitgeist our time, it would be the uploading of mobile phone pictures to Facebook. This particular act — and the convergence of social networking and mobile computing generally — dominates the hard-core center of what’s happening in Silicon Valley right now. The reason is […]

Google’s Android mobile platform is great — for users. But is it bad for Google? The company’s acquisition of Android seven years ago, and its cultivation of the platform since, has provided the handset industry, mobile carriers and users with a powerful alternative to the Apple iOS steamroller. In fact, without Android, Apple would completely […]

Back in February, I described in this space a sudden rise in the influence and power of social networks over both governments and corporations. The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the House and the Senate’s Protect IP Act (PIPA) were broadly favored by Congress. But when Google+, Twitter and Facebook users united against them, […]

Apple had a crazy earnings call this week. The company nearly doubled quarterly profits, vastly exceeding Wall Street expectations. Apple’s stock price will probably now reverse course and head back into the stratosphere, and for one reason: China. Apple sold 35.1 million phones during the quarter worldwide, which provided half the total revenue reported by […]

Have you heard about CISPA? It’s the acronym for the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. CISPA is being likened to the now-moribund SOPA and PIPA bills smothered by Congress after widespread public opposition. However, only opponents see similarities. Advocates see it as completely different. While SOPA and PIPA were about shutting down US web […]