It’s the question on everyone’s lips today – would you invest in Facebook? As the company finalises its IPO price ahead of its market debut on Friday, the general consensus is a positive one – early reports show a huge amount of interest in owning a tiny piece of Facebook’s 900-million-user success story. Predictions suggest that the share price could push valuation up to $104bn – according to the Telegraph, this makes it more ‘valuable’ than both Disney and Ford.

So, for Facebook’s early investors, payday has arrived. But surely the fact that so many of them are cashing in should be a warning to wannabe buyers? If you invested in 2004, you’re laughing – the social network’s value has exploded to such an extent that even someone like U2’s Bono, who owns fewer than 2% of the shares, is set to be a billionaire and the world’s richest rock star by the weekend. Read more »

As the Leveson inquiry rattles on, every day seems to uncover a new angle to what can truly be called a scandal (today whether Rupert Murdoch is a fit and proper owner for BSkyB)- proving once again that sometimes truth really is more bizarre than fiction. Headline-writers had a field day when it emerged that the Met Police had ‘loaned’ ex-News International chief executive, Rebekah Brooks, a horse. In the midst of allegations of bribery, corruption and inappropriate relations between the media empire and the police force, this slightly surreal turn of events did nothing to stem the rising tide of evidence against News International.

Events took another dramatic turn when James Murdoch resigned as News International’s Executive Chairman. The official line was that it was to focus on ‘international television’ but it’s clear that the only way the Murdoch empire might truly recover from this mess is with a clean slate – a new paper (the Sun on Sunday) and a new public face. Which may potentially be another Murdoch. Read more »

You’ve already heard my views on the subtle ways that realtime media, user-generated content and networks are fundamentally changing the world of journalism. As digital technology weaves its way into every part of our lives, it’s also starting to drastically change consumer behaviour – and with it, the industries and products around us.

The publishing industry has seen some dramatic changes over the past year, and that shows few signs of slowing down in 2012. A few years ago, it was simple – books were published by publishing houses, we bought them from bookshops or online retailers such as Amazon and the author was paid a small royalty for every sale. It was a formula that worked on a basic level.

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Gordon MacMillan started the debate last month with a piece about the strongly conflicting views of views of two journalists on the role of social media. The piece itself and the ensuing comments raised an interesting paradox.

Several years ago I grudgingly set up a Facebook account, joining an online community that now has over 800 million users across the world. I’ve never been Facebook’s number one fan – I use it minimally and mainly to not-so-subtly spy on my 16 year old son, to make sure he’s behaving himself as much as possible.

However, even a skeptic like me couldn’t fail to be impressed after a sneaky look at the developer’s preview of the new Facebook timeline. Put simply, when it rolls out across the site’s user base over the next few months, Facebook’s new layout is set to be a game changer. Read more »