The Copenhagen climate conference opens this week:

http://www.erantis.com/events/denmark/copenhagen/climate-conference-2009/index.htm

and there’s sure to be photo ops, and press conferences discussing “progress”.  The stated goals seem to be:  replacing the Kyoto Treaty; reducing emissions from industrialized nations (only 17 industrialized economies make up 90% of annual emissions); and helping developing countries reduce their emissions.    

I hope the technology discussion jumps to the forefront this week.  I hope the participants agree that climate change will only result from a technological change - away from carbon-intensive fossil fuels to renewable sources (AKA, nothing that burns).  Hopefully, this conference (and the media covering it) will shed some light on the hundreds of clean energy companies making renewable solutions.        

An interesting story in CNN today: http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/17/markets/oil/index.htm  illustrates the classic addition-cycle between consumers, businesses, and oil producers.  There’s only one other business relationship that comes to mind, where the provider treats the customer with such abusive distain – and that’s dealer-drug/addict relationship. 

Since September, OPEC (the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) has cut oil production by almost 20 percent.  The goal very simply, is to reverse falling prices (caused by a shrinking global economy), in an attempt to get oil prices back to $75 per barrel.  Today, OPEP’s President Chakib Khelil, told reporters that production cuts will continue until the price reaches his target, stating: “If you’re not surprised by these cuts, then we’ll have to do something about it.”

Talk about kicking your loyal (addicted) customer to the curb.  Whatever happened to fostering the long-term customer relationship?  How about equal concessions on both sides of supply/demand equation, until things improve?  Nope! The pusher man don’t play that way.  If we need what he’s got, then we pay what he says, and that’s the end of that.  Until we decide to break this addiction cycle.  And that means conservation (on behalf of everyone), and a vigilant stance on investing in alternatives like Natural Gas for heating our homes, and electric powered cars for everyone.   Don’t let today’s cheap gas prices trick you.  Soon enough, the pusher-man will have his way (he always does), and we’ll be back to paying $4/gallon at the pump - until we finally cultivate the alternatives we need to break this addiction cycle.   

“Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head, and pretend that he just doesn’t see?

The answer my friend, is blowin’ in the wind.  The answer is blowin’ in the wind…”

Isn’t it amazing how some works can refresh themselves and remain relevant through changing times?  In 1963, Bob Dylan brilliantly, yet ambiguously, shares his views on war and social inequity (either the answer is so obvious it is right in your face, or perhaps, the answer is fleeting…) Well, does that not describe all the social & political issued tied to our current thirst for energy? 

Today, I learned about N-STAR’s “Green” program, http://www.nstar.com/residential/customer_information/nstar_green/nstar_green.asp - which enables consumers to have their energy delivered from wind power.  It’s interesting on a few levels, and perhaps as ambiguous as Dylan’s lyrics.  N-STAR’s marketing touts the environmental benefits of the renewable energy source.  But it’s offered at a premium to the consumer (about an extra penny per kilowatt hour.)  Apparently, the cost is required to move the energy from a wind farm in upstate NY to the New England power grid (and N-STAR feels the consumer should foot the bill for acting responsibly.)     

Perhaps this is great news.  If we all sign up, will that spike demand, and prompt more - and more immediate - investment in developing wind farms closer to home?  Green is good right?  But since we can’t tell the difference between a wind-generated kilowatt hour and a regular one, we’re left with one question – does N-STAR’s use of the word “Green” refer to the renewable energy source, or does it simply reflect the premium price paid by the consumer, and the incremental revenue generated by those trying to do the right thing?  The answer my friend, is blowin’ in the wind – yet the success (and the longevity) of this campaign is certainly worth following.  Stay tuned. 

CNN’s Campbell Brown hits the nail on the head today with a story describing how the “Big-Three” automakers have caused their own demise:  http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/18/campbell.brown.big.three/index.html

The bottom line – Detroit has spent too much time & money lobbying congress to keep things the way they are, instead of focusing on innovation, and actually making cars that people want to buy.  Let’s face facts – times have changed, and the industry has gone in a different direction.  If American automakers can’t provide what consumers want, then it’s time to re-boot (with our help), so that they can come back smaller, leaner, and more focused on serving the needs of their customers (like any other business).   

Here are the facts as I see them:  Ford and GM rely far too much on 12-MPG trucks & SUVs. (they play a semantic game citing highway MPG, and just flat out lie in their advertising – but anyone who owns such a vehicle knows how much it costs to fill it up each week).  The Big-Three continue to milk their investments in these behemoths – hoping to wring out another year of high-margin sales from stale technology.  The CEO of Ford Motors this week said his company’s priority remains to maximize the efficiency of the combustion engine.  WHAT???  In other words - more of the same - No R&D – Just keep cranking out the same old stuff, using the same old technology, and let’s hope we survive another year, until the economy recovers, and until the lemming-like US consumer slides back into his/her trance.

Sure, gas process are hovering around $2 a gallon today – and granted – the American consumer is for-the-most-part stupid, with a live-for-today mentality.  But I think the tide has finally turned.  We all know the price of gas can be manipulated as easily as an NBA game officiated by Tim Donaghy.  $4/gallon is coming back – for sure - and the American consumer has no say in when, or why.  It’s a classic addiction cycle, and the only choice the consumer has control over is when they decide to break this cycle by moving on to a more fuel efficient driving alternative.

So, do we bail these guys out?  I say we use this as opportunity to make some changes.  Any and all government assistance should come with a web of strings attached.  It’s time to invest in battery-powered cars.  At a minimum, every new car (repeat EVERY car) should be a hybrid within 2 years.  This makes new jobs – which accrue to the Energy Economy.  One tenured autoworker doesn’t need to make 80K a year, when two new recent college grads can be employed working on new assembly lines at 40K a year.  It’s common sense.  The Auto industry needs new labor contracts:  its workers need to work on new projects, and the companies in charge of it all need to heed this wakeup call – and set themselves up for the eventual wave of growth – in the new Energy Economy.     

Just as the dot.com/Internet revolution revitalized our economy in the 90’s - the energy sector will lead the next phase of economic growth in the US.  More jobs will eventually be created in the new energy economy than in any other industry.  Simply put, the energy economy is our future.    

As the new administration prepares to take office, we must ask ourselves – what is the long term economic strategy in the US?  What are the set of coherent policies that will ensure the long-term growth & stability of our economy.   Remedying the energy equation in the US solves so many other issues – from national security, to creating jobs, (and growing the tax base), to improving the environment and to addressing our long term sustainability issues. 

Moving forward, this blog will be dedicated to covering these issues.  Our work with CTSI – the Clean Technology and Sustainable Industries Organization – will keep us quite busy in this space, so please stay tuned.     

By becoming the Agency of Record for NSTI - the Nano Science and Technology Institute, and CTSI - the Clean Technology and Sustainable Industries Organization, FIR has diversified its client portfolio and thrown its hat into the “green” marketplace in a meaningful way.  These two organization produce the TechConnect World Conference and Expo (May 3-7, 2009 at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston Texas) which is the preeminent technology exchange for the Clean-Technology, Biotechnology and Nanotechnology industries. 

As Agency of Record, FIR is working with NSTI and CTSI to create the event’s messaging, develop and implement the media relations campaign, and support the 400+ vendors and sponsors, who include some of the largest companies in the world – such as Boeing, Honda, Halliburton, Merck, Sanyo, Shell Oil, and many others. 

In addition to servicing the high growth clean technology industry, TechConnect provides a networking opportunity unlike any other event in any industry, anywhere.   It’s a face-to-face “exchange” - where executives from Fortune 500 companies discuss their current research, and identify the technological challenges for the projects they’re working on (in the areas of traditional energy, renewable energy, and sustainability) - to the academic and research communities - who in turn, discuss how their current research projects might be applied, or adapted, to address the needs presented in the conference.   It’s truly an example of helping solutions find the specific problems they’ve been created to solve - and it’s also about helping our largest companies discover new talent, by finding the companies, scientists and researchers who are currently working on the very things they need the most.  For more information, feel free to visit: http://www.techconnect.org/Summit2009/

We’ve just returned from Los Angeles, and what was – by a wide margin – the biggest and best ITEXPO event I’ve ever been a part of.  Vendors, speakers, attendees, the media, and the show producers were all pleased with an event that exceeded everyone’s expectations – how often does that happen?

A few highlights included: 

The TMC Editor’s Week – which brought together more than 75 exhibitors, with almost a dozen TMC editors – producing a valuable venue for the exhibitors to tell their stories, and for the TMC staff to efficiently gather the show’s news.

The Best-of Show Awards program – which this year featured a pre-show nomination process, and an on-site judging.  FIR was pleased to report that long time client TelcoBridges won (once again) for its Tmedia product. 

Seeing former VON friends & colleagues – who gathered at ITEXPO to connect with each other, conduct business, and keep the VoIP community alive and well.  It was great to see Carl Ford, Bill Kelly, Rich Grigonis, Ari Rabbin, Jon Arnold, and Justin McLain once again.      

The attendance on the Expo floor was fantastic – Attendees seemed to find what they were looking for, and Vendors were pleasantly surprised by the volume, and quality of the leads they got.    

A strong showing was just what the industry needed – and TMC hit it out of the park in Los Angeles (which may be more than the Angels or Dodgers do this season).  I’m looking forward to seeing how this momentum is leveraged at the Miami Show in early February 09’

It’s not as though the Liquid Lens ever went away, it’s just that its inventor - Varioptic has re-engaged FIR to promote it, and we’re thrilled about this development.

Perhaps you’ve heard of the Liquid Lens, and Varioptic’s patented “electro-wetting” technology? It works much like the human eye, using electricity to alter the shape of two drops of liquid, to bend light, alter focus, and produce a miniature, but powerful (multi-megapixel) lens. It solves some problems that current optics cannot: it fits into tiny spaces: it doesn’t freeze, melt, crack, or wear out (because it has no moving parts); and it’s inexpensive to mass-produce, because the materials are just drops of oil and water (with some amazing intellectual property mixed in.) The Liquid Lens is actually based on somewhat simple technology, and that’s part of its brilliance. Today, and in the months ahead, the liquid lens is finding a variety of new uses, such as:
PDA’s, camera phones, miniature (high-end) camcorders, and embedded cameras in laptops
Industrial applications, such as scanners, barcode-readers, and security surveillance applications
Automotive applications, including embedded cameras for diagnostics
And a host of medical applications, such as endoscopes and cameras for ophthalmology

If you’d like to find out more about Varioptic, or about the Liquid lens, let me know.

The 2008 PRWeek agency rankings are in. Last year, despite our best efforts, FIR could not gain entry on the list. Either we were too small, or (perish the thought) we missed the deadline for submission. But with each new year, comes new opportunities, and I’m proud to report that not only did FIR make the list - but only 7 companies of the 195 listed had a higher growth rate than FIR in 2007.

With a 68% growth rate, FIR firmly ranked in the top-10 on PRWeek’s list in this category. We also fared well in the “Revenue-per-employee” category, ranking 44^th of 195. When I look at the staggering revenue numbers posted by some of the iconic agencies (remembering my days working for one), it’s no wonder that vendors in increasing numbers are turning to smaller, more focused, boutique shops to meet their needs.

Seeing your firm’s name in such a ranking gives perspective. It reminds us all to be thankful for our clients, for our partners, and for our colleagues in the media who have helped us, and our clients accomplish our objectives. Here’s to another great, albeit certainly different, year ahead.

After a slight layoff - the Town Hall Meetings are back at Spring VON.x. We can thank the return of Jonathan Askin to Pulvermedia for this development. Scheduled to take place on March 17th from 5:00-6:00 PM, the Spring VON.x Town Hall Meeting, entitled: “Back to the Future” will assemble respected advocates on all sides of the communications policy debate, who will kick off Spring VON.x, by discussing the intersection of technology, business and policy, and its ramifications on the industry.

Joining Askin in this meeting are: Rick Whitt, Washington Telecom and Media Counsel for Google; Kathy Brown, Senior Vice President of Public Policy Development and Corporate Responsibility for Verizon, Larry Irving, former Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and others.

For information on how to attend, and for a free expo pass to Spring VON.x, visit www.pulvermedia.com, or contact me on todd@pulvermedia.com