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Monday, March 21, 2011

LivingSocial Deal Contributes $2 Million to Japan Disaster Relief

@MASHABLE

LivingSocial Deal Contributes $2 Million to Japan Disaster Relief

National Headquarters
2025 E Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
www.redcross.org

Contact: Public Affairs Desk
FOR MEDIA ONLY
media@usa.redcross.org
Phone: (202) 303-5551

WASHINGTON, Monday, March 21, 2011 — Companies large and small, representing industries across the United States, have taken action to support people in need by donating to the American Red Cross and by encouraging their customers and employees to join them. This support is helping provide immediate needs such as medical assistance, shelter and food and is enabling more help to be on the way.

Thanks to their generosity, since the earthquake and tsunami struck the Red Cross was able to send an initial gift of $10 million to the Japanese Red Cross and open shelters and provide comfort to nearly 2,500 people in Hawaii and the west coast also impacted by the tsunami. Meanwhile, other Red Cross chapters in eight different states continue to respond to a variety of disasters including a blizzard in North Dakota, floods in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, West Virginia and California, a forest fire in Oklahoma and Texas, and a home fire in South Carolina.

The distinguished corporate members of the Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) allow the American Red Cross to respond immediately to the needs of individuals and families impacted by disaster anywhere in the United States, regardless of cost. Beyond their annual commitment, many of them have made additional financial gifts to the Red Cross in support of the Japan earthquake and tsunami.

Additionally, more than 150 companies have launched employee giving campaigns in coordination with the Red Cross and 14 are collecting donations from customers.

"The generous contributions and support of our corporate partners are critical to the ability of the American Red Cross to respond immediately to help people in their time of need, whether in response to the recent tragedy in Japan or disasters here at home," said Gail McGovern, president and CEO of the American Red Cross. "We are very grateful for the support of these companies for our humanitarian mission across the country and around the world."

The American Red Cross would like to recognize the support of Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) members. The Red Cross also recognizes companies that have made donations of $1 million or more to the relief efforts in Japan. (In alphabetical order as of 3/20).

Abbott*; Altria; Aon; Caterpillar*; Cisco Foundation; ConAgra Foods; ConocoPhillips*; Conundrum Capital LLC, a GDR Privee Rothschild Company*; Costco Wholesale; Darden Restaurants, Inc.; Dr Pepper Snapple Group; FedEx Corporation; GE Foundation*; The Home Depot Foundation; Jefferies & Company, Inc.*; John Deere Foundation*; Johnson Controls, Inc.*; Jones Lang LaSalle*; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; Kraft Foods; LivingSocial*; Lowe's Companies, Inc.*;Merck; Morgan Stanley; Nissan Americas*; Northrop Grumman; Red Sox Foundation; Ryder Charitable Foundation; Starbucks Foundation*; State Farm; State Street Foundation; Southwest Airlines; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; UnitedHealthcare; UPS; and Walmart*

[*-Company has pledged to donate $1 million or more]

The Red Cross is also grateful to the more than 50 companies listed below that are serving as official cash donation sites for their customers and the public to support our relief efforts. Collectively, they have created more than 60,000 secure and convenient locations online and in retail stores, restaurants and banks where millions of people can make financial donations where they do business daily. Locations are updated at www.redcross.org/givehere. (In alphabetical order as of 3/20).

1love.org; ABC 4 - Taking Action 4 You; Amazon.com; American Airlines; American Journal Experts; Bank of America; Boscov’s Department Stores; Brooks Brothers; Burlington Coat Factory; Citi; CharityChoice Gift Cards; Clear Channel Communications, Inc.; Conundrum Capital LLC*; Cooking Channel; Corporate Executive Board; Costco Wholesale; D.C. United; Definition 6; Delta; Discover Card; Dogfish Head Craft Brewery; Electronic Arts; Food Network; Gordmans; Hard Rock International; Harris Bank; JPMorgan Chase; KING5/BELO Corporation; Lexus; Liberty Tax Service; Live Nation; Lowe’s; MB Financial; Minor League Baseball; MoneyGram International; National Automobile Dealers Association; National Cherry Blossom Festival; National Hockey League; Nationwide Insurance Foundation; NBA Cares; Panda Express; Philadelphia Insurance Companies; QVC; Red Sox Foundation; Regions Bank; Ross; Sam’s Club; Seattle Japan Relief; Southwest Airlines; Starbucks Coffee Company; Starwood; Subaru of America, Inc.; SXSWCares; TBC Corporation and Its Affiliated Companies;
The Kroger Co.; Ticketmaster; Toshiba; United Continental Holdings; Univision; Vonage; Walmart; Wells Fargo & Company; WGAL; Yokogawa Corporation of America; Yokohama Tire Corporation; Zappos.com

Donations in support of the Red Cross relief efforts for Japan and Pacific Tsunami can be made at www.redcross.org or by calling 1-800-HELP-NOW. Mobile donors can text “REDCROSS” to 90999 to make a $10 contribution.

About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation's blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at http://blog.redcross.org.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Loyal Dog Won't Leave Injured Friend Behind - HELP JAPAN'S LOST & INJURE...

Since this was first posted, both dogs have been rescued. One is under the care of a local veterinary and the faithful one is in a doggy shelter.

This has so touched me. I'm going to find out how I can help. Does anyone know where I can start? If so, please leave information for me in comments.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

5 Innovative Mobile Marketing Campaigns

Sunday, March 6, 2011

HANDS ON: Foldable Bluetooth Keyboard Made For iPhone, iPad [VIDEO]

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Why Online Marketers Should Not Track Children [OPINION]

This post reflects the opinions of the author and not necessarily those of Mashable as a publication.

Girl With Laptop James P. Steyer is CEO and Founder of Common Sense Media, a non-profit organization that provides education and tools for parents and kids about the media and technology in their lives. You can follow them on Twitter at@commonsensenews, on Facebook, and read reviews and advice at commonsense.org.

Most kids today live their lives online, immersed in a mobile and digital landscape. While the Internet is a platform for innovation and provides rich resources for entertainment and learning, the nature of digital interaction creates deep concerns about the privacy of children. Parents fear that their children will inadvertently make personal information public, potentially damaging their own reputations and those of their friends. But they also have profound — and justified — concerns that what their children say and do in the digital world is being tracked by marketers and information aggregators who aim to profit from their personal information and online activities.

Children’s online privacy involves two key concepts: our fundamental right to privacy and our need to protect our children from potential harm. At the moment, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which prohibits the collection of “personally identifiable” information from kids ages 12 and under without parental consent, is the cornerstone policy protecting children’s online privacy.

But COPPA was written before 1998, long before the advent of social networks like Facebook, information aggregators like Google, social game sites like Zynga and geolocation announcers like Foursquare. These sites all have business models that are based on following online activities. It’s no wonder these companies and their competitors oppose legislation that would in restrict their access to information — even if it means not protecting the privacy of kids.

Recently, congressional leaders introduced a “Do Not Track” bill, which would build on the principles of the national “Do Not Call” registry, and set clear standards for how and when a consumer’s personal information can be collected. It also would enable users to opt out of online tracking.

But this legislation may not end up addressing the issue of tracking of minors. Kids should not have to opt out of something in order to protect their privacy. Both sides of the political aisle should agree on that point, but to truly protect our kids, we need a comprehensive approach, and one that includes these important components.

Ground Rules

Children and teens should not have their online behavior tracked or any other personal information about them profiled by or transferred to third parties. Companies — whether Internet service providers, social networking sites, third-party application providers, data mining companies or advertising networks — should not be permitted to sell or transfer that personal information.

Without parents or kids knowing it, companies collect, store, and sell information about what kids do online and on mobile phones. Companies can track which websites kids visit, what searches they conduct, which videos they download, who they “friend” on social networking sites, what they write in e-mails, comments or instant messages, and more. This type of tracking is what needs to stop.

The Industry Standard for All Privacy Should Be Opt In — Especially for Kids

Companies and operators should not collect or use personal information unless users give explicit prior approval. The opt in standard is fundamental to our ability to control our personal information. If online companies, services and applications want to collect and use personal information, they should get permission beforehand by asking people to opt in to the service.

Most sites and networks achieve this through a terms of service agreement, or a privacy policy, which users must agree to before signing up for an account. The trouble is, many policies are extremely long and complex, and few people actually review them before hitting “I agree.” While this is ultimately the responsibility of the user (or the user’s parent, in this discussion), it’s in the industry’s interest to simplify these agreements (see below). Additionally, if any changes are made to the policy after a user registers, the user should be notified and required to review and agree to the new terms — especially when it comes to minors.

Privacy Policies Should Be Clear and Transparent

Privacy policies need to be easy for users to find and understand and should be carefully monitored and enforced. Any significant privacy policy changes should require a clear new opt in by the user or the parent, depending on the age of the child. Most privacy policies today are lengthy legal documents written at a college level or beyond. Instead, companies should use icons and symbols that would be easy to understand and would clearly convey how personal information will be used.

Parents and Children Should Be Educated About Online Privacy

Kids and their parents need to do their part to protect their online privacy and the privacy of their friends. We need a large-scale, multi-year public education campaign to help them learn how to do so effectively. I believe that it should be funded by the industry. Young people need to learn to protect their own privacy and to respect others’ privacy. There should be a digital literacy curriculum in every school in this country with privacy as an essential component.

Privacy Protections Should Apply Across All Online and Mobile Platforms

Current privacy regulations need to be clarified and applied to all online and mobile services and platforms. Social networking sites shouldn’t be able to collect or sell kids’ private information, and neither should third-party apps on those sites. Location-based services shouldn’t be allowed without prior parental consent to a clear and understandable privacy policy, regardless of whether the service is provided by a non-FCC carrier.

Conclusion

After years of complaints from consumers, industry leaders have finally begun to acknowledge the enormity of the privacy issue. Now it is time to step up and make it easier for parents and kids to protect themselves. Through a combination of legislative action and advocacy, we can make the web safer for kids.