Apparently Apple released a product Wednesday

Is it just me or did the iPad feel like old news before it was 30 minutes old? The advance rumours were (in some cases) so accurate this time and so far ahead of the actual announcement that it was hard not to feel a bit let down by reality. The perennial Apple Fanboy Vs. Hater debate aside, the new iPad device tries to fill a gap between the portability of a smart phone and the bulkiness of a laptop or netbook, all with Steve Jobs trademark flair for the stylish. Buried in all the hoopla is that Jobs said when you consider MacBooks as “mobile” devices, Apple generates more revenue from mobile hardware than any other company in the world. (via John Gruber’s Daring Fireball)

New Social Media Use Stats

Neilsen released some new statistics on usage of social media showing that Facebook is continuing to eat MySpace‘s lunch, Twitter use has exploded and the global audience spending 82% more time on social media platforms than they did last year. Mashable summarizes the results and offers up fresher month-over-month stats that show Twitter use in decline.

CBC Charges for Article Embeds

The publishing industry continues to struggle with a profitable online news model, focusing particular attention on the wide gulf between outright piracy and fair use of their copyrighted content . The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) among other news organizations have been using the iCopyright system to help monetize their content. The Torontoist breaks down how it is being used.

An Incovenient PR Truth

According to a video by RealWire (an online news distribution service), irrelevance is to the PR industry what pollution is to the environment. Breathe in that irrelevance, baby.