The L.A. Times Names Its Favorite Flops of the Year

SternisheFan writes "Salvador Rodriguez and Deborah Netburn of The Los Angeles Times have a rundown of the top 10 tech gaffes of 2012. From their article: 'As 2012 comes to a close we take a look back at the biggest "oops" moments of the last year. Whether it was an advertising misstep (Facebook's "Chair" commercial), or a product released before it was ready (Apple Maps), or just an idea that was ill-received (homeless men as Wi-Fi hotspots), we tried to compose a list of the times when the major players lost control of the narrative. It's also a reminder that everyone makes mistakes--even exacting tech companies.'"

Comments

Re:Why are we linking to the LA Times?

[SternisheFan]

1. Apple Maps fiasco How bad was it when Apple replaced Google Maps with its own mapping system on iOS 6? Well, a Tumblr blog showing Apple Maps' biggest fails emerged days after the release, and Apple chief executive Tim Cook issued an apology and suggested iOS 6 users download alternate mapping tools. Then in December, Australian police accused Apple Maps of stranding motorists in a national park, shaming the company once again.

2. Path privacy breach It all started when Arun Thampi, a programmer in Singapore, blogged that the app for the social network Path was downloading his entire address book—including names, emaill addresses, and phone numbers--without asking his permission. The tech blogs took the story and ran with it, and before long, Path had a major publicity issue on its hands. Eventually, company founder Dave Morin issued an apology, and updated the app so users can opt in or out of sharing their contact list.

3. Facebook IPO When Facebook went public in May, many people bought its stock thinking they’d strike it rich quick. Many thought the IPO would be the most successful since Google went public in 2004. After a few hours of gains, the stock slide back to its opening price, but concerns over Facebook’s position on the mobile platform kept the slide going for going for the next few months.

The stock seems to have finally stabilized and has made gains since bottoming out, but it’s still more than $10 below its $38 opening day price. 4. Nokia's fake photos Nokia impressed quite a few people when it announced its latest flagship phone the Lumia 920 in September. Specifically, a Web ad showing the phone’s video recording and night-photographing capabilities made the Lumia 920 noteworthy. Unfortunately, Nokia’s positive press coverage went away when it was discovered the footage and photos used in the ad were not actually taken by the phone. In the end, Nokia had to issue an apology and label the video as a simulation.

4. Nokia's fake photos Nokia impressed quite a few people when it announced its latest flagship phone the Lumia 920 in September. Specifically, a Web ad showing the phone’s video recording and night-photographing capabilities made the Lumia 920 noteworthy. Unfortunately, Nokia’s positive press coverage went away when it was discovered the footage and photos used in the ad were not actually taken by the phone. In the end, Nokia had to issue an apology and label the video as a simulation.

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/12/27/tech/web/top-tech-stories-2012/

Re:Facebook IPO

[iserlohn]

By all accounts, Google was not *allowed* by Apple to release a version of Google Maps that was Google branded. Google was willing to compromise by offering a non-branded version that collected more information from iOS users than Apple would like to allow. That was the impasse that led Apple's ill fated venture into GIS.