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Ten years ago yesterday, the way we listen, collate and even just consider music, changed. On 28 April 2003 Apple launched the iTunes Music Store *. A decade later and it’s just days since social network Twitter launched music.twitter.com – an iPhone and web app designed to help people sample and share their current favourite music -  and it’s partner to purchase the previewed track from? iTunes. It really has become the dominant force.

Pre-iTunes, digital music was at a cross-roads. Illegal downloads were threatening to get out of control and because of that many record labels, producers and artists were reluctant to move into digital formats. iTunes made  the world change the way it did music. In effect iTunes was the biggest influence in ensuring people continued to pay for their music.

Many would argue, iTunes’ parent, Apple, did so only to boost it’s own profits and indeed the insular format of iTunes certainly forced up sales of Apple hardware. Many, argue it is wrong to combine audio library management tools with a music download service and others complain about the restrictive digital rights management (DRM) that comes with iTunes downloads, but you can’t argue about its influence or success as 10 years on it is still head and shoulders above competitors in terms of popularity.

Love it or loathe it iTunes continues to grow, evolve and lies at the heart of Apple’s resurgence as a genuine competitor to PC based computing. The iTunes Music Store led to third-generation iPods and many regenerations since. It also led to the success of the iPhone and of the iPad too, not forgetting MacBooks, Apple TV et al, all part of Steve Jobs’ “digital hub” strategy.

Apple does love iTunes and with stats like this who can blame them

• 40 billion apps downloaded
• 25 billion songs sold – that’s over 15,000 songs downloaded every minute
• 1 billion courses downloaded on iTunes U
• More than 100 million books on iBookstore

Apple are celebrating that decade with a very interesting interactive timeline ‘A Decade of iTunes’ (you need iTunes loaded on your machine in true Apple style). Well worth a look as it is thought-provoking to see how digital music really has changed over that time.

The question arising is where does it go now. Spotify has certainly begun to become a force to rival iTunes as more and more people live their lives permanently online. Integration into mobile is well established, but could the next step be integration of these services into more traditional technology such as in car entertainment systems and home music systems? Will the next decade even see a new model or new way of delivering music that we haven’t even contemplated? We wait to see…

* The iTunes Store UK wasn’t launched until 15 June of that year.

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Today is StartUp Britain’s #STARTUPDAY! Their aim is to celebrate the ever-increasing contribution that start-ups make to the British economy and we think that’s a pretty good thing to be celebrating. The StartUp Britain bus, has been travelling the nation spreading entrepreneurial spirit for the last four weeks since we saw it at Youth Enterprise Live. It arrives at the British Library for the next couple of days so if you are in London, get along. There are also a series of events being organised by StartUp Britain Local Champions. Whether you can make an organised event or not though, here’s six ways you could play your part in getting the British economy going once again:

1. Help a start-up

If you are not a start-up yourself that doesn’t mean you can’t be involved. Just giving your business to a new start-up goes a long way to helping them develop as a business. Better still if you have some business skills why not offer them about for free. Networking is key in the current business world and if you can do a favour for a startup who knows where it may lead.

2. Fund a start-up

Finance, or lack of it, is probably the biggest barrier facing would be entrepreneurs at present yet there are more and more innovative schemes offering people the chance to link and find investment and others find investable opportunities. The trendy way is via a crowdfunding scheme where businesses invite interested people to invest relative small sums in their projects in return for small gifts or the like. Recently US-success Kickstarter launched its UK specific site but there are plenty of others like CrowdCube and WeFund if you can’t find a suitable project to invest in at first.

3. Start a start-up

Feeling empowered and inspired? Launching your own start-up needn’t be as daunting as it sounds. There is plenty of advice and guidance available on the StartUp Britain site and here at 123-reg we  have solutions for a whole range of online operations whatever your technical knowledge.

4. Donate a product or service

Money is tight for everyone, but if  you can donate something that is already part of your own offerings you can minimise that cost also boost your own customer base. Getting an up and coming business using your services or products can be a great way to increase your own brand awareness too as they are more likely to pick up some press coverage than your own business if you have been going longer, it’s the nature of the beast. The recipient will no doubt be more than grateful and keen to recognise you and name-check in any interviews too.

5. Mentor a new business

If you really want to help a business grow into a success, giving them the benefit of your wisdom and experience is the greatest gift you can give. We’ve all made mistakes in business and helping others avoid those is not only rewarding for you but also benefits the growing business. Being a mentor needn’t be massively time-consuming either. Often it is just being on the end of a line for a second opinion or as a sounding post. A mentor doesn’t interfere with the  other person’s business either, you are there to share knowledge, skills, information and put it all in perspective. The idea is to foster the personal and the professional growth of the person or persons you are mentoring.

6. Re-tweet a start-up

If you really don’t have much time or spare investment then just a simple message of encouragement for a new start-up can be a wonderful thing. We all like being told what we are doing is good, so in the early days of worrying if you are doing the right thing, a message of support from those already doing it can give a big lift. A tweet is the quickest and most public way of achieving that.

Get Involved – Tweet #StartUpDay with what you plan to do and don’t forget to tag @123reg in there too.

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This week is Global Entrepreneurship Week

It’s the world’s largest campaign to promote entrepreneurship, and is promoted in 115 countries between 12-18 November this year. In the UK, the campaign is hosted by Youth Business International, a global network of initiatives that help young entrepreneurs to start their own business, in partnership with Barclays.

The theme for 2012 is Pass it On! urging people to offer the practical help & support needed by early start-ups and individuals who are considering taking the plunge. Last year over 900 partner organisations got involved in the week in the UK alone, reaching 213,000 people through 2,305 activities. This year that’s already at 2,900 events with over 270,000 participants. Have a look for an event near you.

Events are being held for all those thinking or already running a business. You are never too old or too young to learn nor to start up your own business and this week more than any is a great way to get those ideas up and running. Over the next month at 123-reg too we will be offering more words of advice and inspiration to get you and your business online. There’s no business in the modern world that won’t benefit from a professional and reliable set of internet services.

So whether you are looking for simple web-hosting, email, or looking to go full ecommerce we have solutions for your inspirational business project. You don’t need masses of technical knowledge either as it’s as simple as 1-2-3 to get started especially with products like Website Builder.

What you do need is to be inspired and hopefully the events of #GEW2012 and the articles on this blog will be the springboard you need to set your business off in the right direction.

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The battle of sexes continues in the virtual world and it’s the fairer sex that leads the way according to the latest report from Nielsen.

STATE OF THE MEDIA SPRING 2012 – ADVERTISING & AUDIENCES PART 2: BY DEMOGRAPHIC released today is a US-centric study on who is engaging and where and it throws up some interesting stats, suggesting a big shift in the online audience in recent years. The report shows that women are now significantly more likely to engage with social media than men.

Women are also 8% more likely than the average online adult to build or update a personal blog and 6% more likely to have created at least one social networking profile

If advertisers needed more proof that their target engagers are female not male the report also suggests a lady is 12% more likely than the average adult to purchase a product featured on TV.

A pretty clear definition and pattern that advertisers will no doubt no longer ignore. So don’t be surprised to see more fluffier, pinkier or simply more feminine websites and networks springing up in months to come as the strive for social media returns enters a new chapter.

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Love them or loathe them the London Olympics are set to have an impact on everything we do this summer and with just over three months to go until “London 2012” the impact on business is beginning to become clear.

UK parcel delivery companies are already preparing to cope with traffic flow issues across the London road network. Many of the big name delivery companies are thought to be considering surcharges during July and August to help cover additional costs such as even sending staff out on foot to skirt around the disrupted transport networks. With nearly a fifth of all deliveries in the UK made to London-based addresses the forecasts suggest that the number of deliveries made per driver may even halve.

Yet it is not just parcel delivery agents and couriers that need to be worried. Almost every trade and business is likely to be affected. Retailers will have to work hard on customer service to manage expectation of customers waiting for urgent deliveries that may not be able to get through.

Transport for London (TFL) and Olympic officials have been consulting for years to assess the impact and have designed a 109-mile “Olympic Route Network” and “Paralympic Route Network” . The aim is to allow participants at the games to travel quickly between event venues, but with each network expected to cover 2.6% of London’s roads, the impact on the local and national communities could be massive. The route networks will add waiting restrictions, various checkpoints, traffic flow modifications and even complete road closures to non-event traffic.

That may have a massive impact on people travelling to and from appointments, even commuters getting to work. While the roads are likely to be the most affected, the railway and London Underground network will be hard hit too, with

While the main event only runs for 16 days days from 27^th July, the disruption is likely to be from the day the torch relay his London on 21^st July until the 10^th September which is the day after the Paralympics closing ceremony. That’s longer than the traditional school summer holidays when Londoners normally heave a sigh of relief that peak-time traffic has dropped off. It’s not just Londoners who will be affected either. The parcel delivery issues will have nationwide impact, as will people’s movement restrictions in the capital, but in addition the Olympic torch relay will be travelling the length and breadth of the country from 18^th May when it arrives in Cornwall, bringing with it days of local disruption too.

So how can you Olympic proof yourself? Here’s a few ideas from us:

Avoid the Capital

If you don’t need to be in London during this time, it is probably wise to avoid it, the biggest disruption will be in the capital city.

Be flexible

If they are going to be affected by traffic issues, consider allowing your employees to work from home or at least work hours that will avoid the worst of the issues.

Be pro-active

Give your customers a heads-up that you may be affected, especially if it is not obvious – ie you are not located within a few miles of the Olympic park.

Promote social media as a communication tool

If you run into problems you will want to let your customers know as quickly as possible. Twitter and Facebook are proven to work in this regard so make sure your customers know about your channels and that you will be using them.

Replenish stocks now

While it may impact on cash-flow now if you rely on parts to be delivered on a regular basis you will save a lot of headaches in the long-run by buying ahead and stockpiling now, as deliveries in a few months time may not be able to service the demand. The same is true regarding your own offices stocks such as paper and ink. Think ahead and save time and hassle.

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Last month we gave you a heads up about the pending closing date of the Nominet Awards 2012 being April 12th… well if you missed it you are in luck. The deadline has been extended by a few more days and entries now close on April 16th (on Monday). So don’t delay,  get your application together and in over this weekend.

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There’s less than a month left for entry submissions to the Nominet Internet Awards so what are you waiting for?

The annual awards recognise and raise awareness of UK businesses, charities, individuals and public and private sector organisations that are making a difference on, or through, the internet. Every year the awards highlight the great work that embraces the web and finds solutions to the challenge of making the internet a secure, open, accessible and diverse experience for all.

Last year’s winners included the Silver Surfers initiative that helped older people to get online, a web TV station aimed specifically at young British dads and an online tool to help schools review their own e-safety policies.

If you think you have a project worthy of a nomination details about how to enter can be found here along with a full explanation of the categories. Don’t delay too long though entries need to be submitted by 12 April 2012 after which they will be reviewed by an independent panel of judges. The winners will be announced at the annual awards ceremony on 5 July 2012.

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Today is Safer Internet Day.

Every year, Insafe – a European network of Awareness Centres promoting safe, responsible use of the Internet and mobile devices to young people – organise Safer Internet Day to promote safer and more responsible use of online technology and mobile phones, especially amongst children and young people.

This year’s theme is connecting generations and educating each other, with the slogan: “Discover the digital world together… safely!”, and ironically, it appears those new to the internet are probably safer online than those more experienced, something the campaign is at pains to point out.

Perhaps it is the familiarity that leads to a sometimes blase attitude, but the knowledge, fears and and caution that can help in the real world also have a place in the virtual world too.

For many, our offline and online worlds are strongly connected and often blurred – which can also lead to a detachment from the risks. The online world is unique in many ways but in many other ways is just a reflection of the physical world too. Just as tech savvy youngsters can teach their elders how to use new technologies, so those parents, grandparents, etc can can draw on their own life experiences to advise younger generations on how to stay safe online.

In the era of social networking, geo-location and social sharing it is a very good point and one worth considering. Insafe are running various events and workshops looking to promote the theme for those looking for further inspiration. If not, just remember to use the internet wisely and with respect – both for yourself and others using the net too.

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There may be a sort of irony in those who have chosen the freelance way of life joining together but freelancing is more about efficiency and work-life balance than working on your own.

Today is the third annual National Freelancers Day celebrating the freelance way of work and in current economic times it is an option more and more individuals and companies are looking at.

As the official site says: “It is more than a celebration – it is about adding credibility to a crucial method of working in the UK.”. To many it is “the future of work”. Minimising overheads and maximising expertise. Naitonal Freelancer’s Day 2010 focused on ‘Freeing up potential’ and the 2011 campaign aims to build upon that and promote the fact that freelancers offer increased efficiency and productivity to help grow small business and aid economic recovery in the UK.

National Freelancers Day is organised by PCG an associaton representing the needs of freelancers in the UK. You can follow the event on Facebook and via the twitter hashtag #NFD23NOV

Are you a freelancer? What is the biggest hurdle you face on a daily basis?

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