WMA versus MP3: Another Tech Turf War

Last month, I finally reacted to the newsletter from my library that encourages downloading audio books and decided to put an audio book on my iPod.

Some of the local libraries have offered downloads of audio books for some time but since the library had loads of books on CD, I never investigated using my iPod for this purpose.  Recent family events have found me sitting in hospital waiting rooms so I decided it was time to make better use of technology.

The library newsletter has often reported that a majority of acquisition funds are allocated to digital material.  I assumed that included audio books.  It does – sort of. 

People over the age of 30 will remember the first format war of Beta vs. VHS.  Apparently there is another – WMA vs. MP3 – also known as Microsoft vs. Apple. 

What does this have to do with my library?  It means that, contrary to what is touted in the newsletter, I am not able to easily download audio books.  I scroll through the titles and find several that look interesting.  Then I read the fine print and see that the format is WMA and WMA (Microsoft) does not play on iPods (Apple).  Of the approximately 1,000 titles available in MP3, nearly all are always checked out and there are waiting lists.  Apparently my library is licensing more WMA books than MP3 books.

I don’t know about the rest of the world but in my library district almost everyone owns an iPod.  So why would the library invest in books that we can’t listen to?  Are the licenses less expensive?  I don’t know but I intend to find out.

I the meantime, I am listening to the only book available – The Battle for Las Vegas: The Law vs. The Mob.  It’s not a bad book but it isn’t what I would have selected had I the option of listening to all those WMA titles.

Thirty Seconds Worth 1,000 Words?

It is an old cliché but one that certainly applies to the Super Bowl commercials. Now that a couple of weeks have passed since the big game, I am intrigued by my co-workers conversations about the ads. At roughly $3 million each just to broadcast, the commercials and the products they pitched should stay in people’s minds. Otherwise, what’s the point?

Volkswagen scored big. They knocked it out of the park. People are still talking about the little Darth Vader. I don’t think I’ve reacted so positively to a commercial since the Pepsi ad featuring the Labrador puppies scampering over the little boy. Another contender for #1 was the Dorito commercial in which the fish and the plant were revived by eating Doritos. My coworkers continue to laugh about it. Congratulations, Doritos. You have a winner.

The Doritos ad used humor. Volkswagen tugged our heart strings. All the winning commercials over the years have connected a universal human emotion to the product. In Volkswagen’s case, we remember how it felt to believe in something so thoroughly that we knew it must be true.

Other commercials were memorable this year but perhaps because they were poorly done. Everyone reacted to Kim Kardashian but no one remembered what she was selling. Most thought it was a sports drink. And all recalled “those babies” but couldn’t name the brokerage firm they represented.

It is important to convey the message but it is critical that the whole message be received to be successful. Think back. Can you name the products featured in your favorite Super Bowl ads? Which ads were the real winners?

Mayhem Makes Me Flip

Have you seen the Allstate Insurance Mayhem commercials?  They are the ones in which “Mayhem”(the condition of chaos, bedlam, and turmoil) is personified in a human male wearing a scruffy suit and a three-day growth.  The actor is seen in a variety of situations in which bad things happen to cars as a result of Mayhem’s presence.  Mayhem, representing a puppy, eats the car’s back seat.  Or Mayhem causes a tree branch to fall and crush a car.  Mayhem is a comely female out for her run.  There are several variations on this theme.

The point of the commercials is that Mayhem can strike any time. Allstate covers these types of accidents where some of their competitors may not.  The ads are effective in that my 84-year old mother, who doesn’t drive, got the message.  I wonder if the demographic Allstate wants also gets it.

I understand the point of the ads.  I got it right away myself.  However, I do not watch these ads.  I hate them.  I cannot grab the remote fast enough. 

I have nothing against Allstate or its insurance.  I like the ad about the hazards of frying the Thanksgiving turkey; I just can’t stand the Mayhem ads.  My aversion to them interested me so I thought about it.  I decided the concept was fine but I just don’t like the character.  (I’m not supposed to like Mayhem - I get that.) 

What it is that repels me?  His appearance?  Mayhem isn’t nice and neat. Mayhem is supposed to be a mess.  Could it be what he does? No. All those accidents would bring mayhem into our lives.  I don’t know.  I haven’t figured it out.  I just know that I click to a different channel the moment one of the Mayhem ads begins. 

I wonder why.  Your thoughts?