Website starcount to measure brands' social-media popularity

The website aggregates public information from eleven global social networks, namely Facebook, Renren, Twitter, Tencent Weibo, Sina Weibo, YouTube, Youku, mixi, Vkontakte, Google+ and Orkut. The global launch of starcount took place in Singapore last night.

For brands, the website will generate popularity charts based on the frequency with which social media users talk about them on the cyber world, on daily and all-time basis. Based on the charts and numbers, brands are able to know where they need to strengthen their digital presence and subsequently plan their marketing strategy.

Thien Kwee Eng, executive director, Lifestyle Programme Office at Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) noted that starcount’s portal and analytics would allow global brands to gather insights on their Asian consumers, and more effectively build their Asian strategies from Singapore.

“We warmly welcome starcount’s service and setup in Singapore, and believe that Singapore’s pro-business environment, vibrant entertainment scene, and base of brand owners will help starcount tap into Asia’s growth opportunities,” he added.

Supported by the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and Interactive Digital Media Programme Office (IDMPO), starcount was developed to serve as the benchmark for popularity across geographies and cultures, to discover trends and rising stars in social entertainment.

Drew Thomson, co-CEO of All The Worlds Entertainment, noted that the website is the first-of-its-kind global measure of popularity, which dynamically aggregates the social media activity of every person in the charts to give fans one place to keep up to date with the social buzz from around the world.

“The website will generate revenue through (banner) sponsorships as well as starcount pages for brands or celebrities,” he told Campaign Asia-Pacific.

Andrew Khaw, senior director (industry development) of IDA, menwhlesaid, “We are pleased that Digitales has chosen Singapore as the global hub for its innovative service. Leveraging on IDA’s Digital Marketplace Programme (DMP), Digitales has an ideal digital platform to reach new markets in Asia. Among other objectives, DMP aims to enable the management and monetisation of digital assets in and through Singapore.”