impressions

Android is the top mobile platform in North America, according to mobile ad network InMobi, but the iPhone's iOS is close behind thanks to a recent surge.

InMobi's Mobile Insights Report for April found that Google's Android remained in the lead among mobile platforms in North America with 37 percent of all ad impressions on its network, a slight increase from January. However, the launch of the Verizon iPhone in February helped boost Apple's share of ad impressions by 9.4 percentage points to 33 percent.

BlackBerry maker RIM found itself in third place in North … Read more

More people viewed video ads at Hulu than at any other Web site last month, according to stats released yesterday by ComScore.

Out of the 4.3 billion video ads that U.S. Internet users watched in March, 1.2 billion of those were at Hulu, making it the top site for video ad impressions for the month. Video network Tremor Media was next on the list with 804.3 million ad views, followed by video marketplace Adap.tv with 553 million video ad impressions, and BrightRoll Video Network with 398 million.

Internet users spent a total of 1.9 … Read more

So, I got a Nintendo 3DS roughly three weeks ago, ahead of the officially released one that's now in stores everywhere. Nintendo's handheld is in the wild, and while I've used mine a fair amount, I'm curious how those not in tech journalism feel about the product.

I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the 3D effect on the 3DS, but I wondered whether 3D would be a gimmick whose appeal faded quickly. Much like any shiny new gadget, there's a quick fascination period that tapers off pretty fast, especially if you're the type (as I happen to be) who plays with a lot of gadgets over the course of any given month.

Several weeks in, here are my observations.

I (almost) never use the stylus. The DS' chief appeal, along with dual screens, was its touch element. The 3DS still has a stylus and a lower touch screen, but the stylus is tucked away in the back behind the display, instead of easily accessible on the side. Maybe this was a wink of acknowledgement on Nintendo's part, because so far I've barely used touch. Why? Because I'm too busy staring at that big 3D screen, that's why.

The addition of a great analog pad also means I'm far more likely to use physical buttons. The 3DS is an immersive portable experience, and I'm far less interested in pulling back and tapping away with a stylus. I think most 3DS games will make little to no use of that touch capability, except in cases like Super Street Fighter IV, where virtual lower-screen buttons are simply pressed with a finger.

… Read more

Android has surged ahead of Apple for the first time as the most popular smartphone OS, according to Millennial Media's mobile ad network.

In Millennial Media's December report, Google's mobile operating system won 46 percent of all ad impressions (the number of times an ad is displayed), compared with 32 percent for Apple's iOS. In November, the two operating systems were neck and neck at 38 percent each.

Rounding up the rest of the competition, Research In Motion's BlackBerry OS grabbed 16 percent of ad impressions in December, Nokia's Symbian nabbed 2 percent, and … Read more

Facebook served up the greatest number of online display ads among all online publishers tracked by ComScore over the third quarter.

With a total of 297 billion online display ads, the popular social network accounted for 23 percent of all ad impressions (the number of times an ad is displayed), ComScore announced yesterday. Facebook's market share for ad impressions jumped 13.9 percentage points from 9.2 percent in last year's third quarter.

Yahoo came in second for the quarter with 140 billion display ad impressions, followed by Microsoft with 64 billion, and Fox Interactive Media with 48 … Read more

Revenue from mobile ads for Android outstripped that for the iPhone for the first time on Millennial Mobile's ad network in September.

For its September Mobile Mix report, the mobile ad network, which hosts ads on the popular smartphone platforms, found that ad requests (the number of times a mobile ad is clicked on) on Android phones rose 26 percent from August and have jumped 1,283 percent since January. In July, Android pulled ahead to become the second largest mobile OS tracked by Millienial and now grabs 29 percent of all ad impressions (the number of mobile ads … Read more

Ad requests and impressions for mobile ad network Millennial Media show a surge for Android devices and the iPad. Meanwhile, Apple overall is maintaining its commanding lead but has slipped a bit lately.

In its August MobileMix report, Millennial Media found that ad requests (the number of times a mobile ad is clicked on) for Android rose 39 percent since July and have shot up 996 percent since January. Ad impressions (the number of times an ad is displayed) for Google's OS rose 7 percent from the prior month to help it capture 26 percent of all smartphone operating … Read more

Not impressing her with your slick smartphone and intimate knowledge of the Duke Nukem Forever release schedule? Scientists in England say they've identified the key dance moves that make men irresistible to the ladies. And no, the King Tut isn't one of them.

Not surprisingly, the dance moves considered "good" signal health, vigor, or strength--and, by association, a man's reproductive prowess, say the researchers at Northumbria University in Newcastle Upon Tyne. Their findings are published Wednesday in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters.

The researchers, led by psychologist Nick Neave and researcher Kristofor McCarty, filmed 19 male volunteers aged 18 to 35 with a 3D motion capture camera system as they boogied to a basic rhythm. Their real-life movements were then mapped onto feature-less, look-alike avatars so heterosexual women could rate their steps without being prejudiced by dimples or come-hither baby blues.

The results showed that eight movement variables made the difference between a Patrick Swayze and a male Elaine Benes. These included the size of movement of the neck, trunk, left shoulder, and wrist; the variability of movement size of the neck, trunk, and left wrist; and the speed of movement of the right knee. Yes, the right knee.

And in case you're taking notes, fellas, the women apparently appreciated large and varied neck and trunk movements. Which could bode well for The Sprinkler (assuming it's executed with some degree of rhythm and grace).

"We now know which area of the body females are looking at when they are making a judgment about male dance attractiveness," Neave said. "If a man knows what the key moves are, he can get some training and improve his chances of attracting a female through his dance style."

The team plans to carry out further research to hone its theories about dance and mating. In the meantime, men wishing to impress the gals at the nightclub might do well to study the below videos demonstrating "good" and "bad" moves. And wear red. … Read more

After years of keeping quiet, developer Irrational Games--the crew behind the original BioShock--held a mysterious event at New York City's Plaza Hotel last night to announce the company's latest endeavor, only known up until now as Project Icarus.

Ken Levine, creative director at Irrational Games, took the stage and rolled a trailer (see right) showcasing Columbia, a gorgeous city in the sky flanked by American flags, skyscrapers held up by gigantic hot-air balloons, and gruesome bionic creatures that immediately made us think of BioShock's Big Daddies.

It wasn't long before we began seeing more reminders of Rapture: billboard propaganda, superhuman powers, and utter chaos. With the trailer complete and the lights up, Levine announced that Irrational's next game would be BioShock Infinite.

BioShock Infinite takes the franchise out from the ocean floor and launches it above the clouds. The original BioShock's Rapture dealt with a mysterious utopian city that crumbles under its own obsession with power; BioShock Infinite will play on the ultrapatriotic--albeit ultimately ignorant--American ideals of the early 1900s. Columbia differs from Rapture because the public is aware of its existence. We hop into the game just as Columbia has disappeared into the heavens and out of the public eye, just as this city--once a great feat of American ingenuity and strength--is experiencing its downfall.

Levine compared Columbia to a theoretical "moon landing of 1900--an expression of American genius designed to demonstrate to the world by example the founding democratic principles of the United States...however, what started out as the Apollo Project became the Death Star. The city, which turns out to be armed to the teeth, goes off-mission, becomes embroiled in a violent international incident...and promptly disappears behind the clouds."

Is BioShock Infinite in the same universe as the original? When exactly does it take place? Who do you play as? When will the game come out? We got to sit down with Tim Gerritsen, director of product development at Irrational Games, who filled us in on some more details.… Read more