Neil Hughes
Soon after it was unveiled last week, Ping was inundated with spam, as comment sections on many popular artists' pages were filled with links to items like phony surveys. But by Monday, that spam was all but removed from the service.
Ping also initially had a number of fake accounts, with users posing as Apple executives, including CEO Steve Jobs and designer Jony Ive. Many of those accounts had also disappeared by Monday.
In addition, Apple made minor tweaks to the Web-based interface of Ping, adding "back" and "forward" buttons that were missing when the service launched last week alongside the release of iTunes 10. The buttons make it easier for users to navigate the Ping service, which can only be accessed through iTunes.
On Friday, Apple revealed that Ping had enlisted more than a million users in its first 48 hours. About a third of the people who downloaded iTunes 10 activated the service, said Eddy Cue, Apple's vice president of Internet services.
But despite the initial success, Ping was also met with some criticism by members of the press when it launched last week. Some, including Peter Kafka of MediaMemo, complained that Ping does not analyze a user's entire music library. Instead, it only considers items that were purchased through the iTunes Store.
Ping has also been criticized for its lack of connectivity with other, larger, and more established social networks. Facebook last week reportedly blocked API access to Ping after the company failed to reach an agreement with Apple. Chief Executive Steve Jobs alleged that Facebook demanded "onerous terms" for the two parties to work together.
Apple touted last week when unveiling Ping that it has 160 million iTunes users with active credit cards in 23 countries. The new service allows users to "follow" artists and friends, allowing them to see popular songs within a group and hear about upcoming concerts.
Charles Martin
Malcolm Owen
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
Wesley Hilliard
64 Comments
Death penalty for spammers..........
I like Ping. 'nough said.
Most user libraries are rife with outdated I D 3 tags or poorly maintained info. So, it would be a mess for this info to be included really. Apple would have to parse this info, correct, complete & reformat it. Many people have used outdated apps to import music, have not had Internet access to complete album info when importing, or have not maintained their libraries metadata. Plus, this would provide the R I A A with another means to identify potential P 2 P downloads & begin a new round of persecution. As we all know from the music industry's reliable, credible & independent data, nearly 100% of music on iPods is stolen. Of course, zune's are not included as their owners are honest & law abiding & they realize the damage that P 2 P can create
Cheers !
While I personally don't mind, I think some people would raise privacy concerns of them scanning their library. Also, as some have mentioned above, some people don't properly keep tabs on their library and are missing a lot of things in their tags.
I wouldn't mind having my library scanned. Genius does it anyway.
I do buy from iTunes, but also bleep.com, cd rips small label mp3 stores.
I think Ping needs to include the whole library and integrate with facebook and twitter while also offering an instant message functionality. Their goal is music based social networking....these things are essential