Facebook Streaming Movies:

Warner Bros. is testing out streaming movies on Facebook with “The Dark Knight”. The movie rental costs users $3.00 (Facebook will receive 30% of revenues) and can be watched for 48 hours after purchase.  If the test goes well, we are likely to see more video streaming options on Facebook.

Foursquare v3.0:

Foursquare’s latest app version, v3.0, has some innovative new features. They have done away with the “tips” tab and replaced it with an “explore” tab. The explore tab will look at your information (where you’ve checked in, who you’re connected with, your favorite places to check in) and what you’re looking for (nightlife, sushi, etc.) to show you what Foursquare thinks you’ll like nearby. You will also be able to see how many of your friends have been to a recommended place, and what reviews have been posted about it.

The iPad 2 Available Today:

The iPad 2 has arrived. You can order it online now, and purchase it in store starting at 5pm local time. They will be sold at the Apple Store, AT&T, Best Buy, Target, Verizon Wireless, Walmart and select Apple Authorized Resellers. Starting early today, people were lined up at Apple Stores all over the country in hopes of being some of the first to get the latest tech gadget.

Image from CultofMac.com

SXSW Interactive:

South by SouthWest’s interactive portion was kicked off today in Austin, Texas. Five days of networking events, presentations, announcements and exhibits, all centered around emerging technology. For those of us who can’t be there, we can follow along with the hashtag #SXSW or visit our favorite social media news websites (such as http://techcrunch.com/sxsw/) for updates.

Japan & Social Media:

When a tsunami and an 8.8 magnitude earthquake tragically hit Japan this morning, many took to social media. Some families relied on social media to get in touch with their loved ones, and Google even launched a Japan earthquake person finder to help victims and families locate each other.

There has been an overwhelming amount of support spread though social media channels:

-Anna (@alucas9)

Apple announced the iPad 2 this week. The iPad 2 is 33% thinner, has duel webcams, and new color options. The prices will range from $499 (for 16GB WiFi-only models) to $829 (for the works) and will be available on March 11, 2011. Watch the following video to see more about the new iPad:

(For those who are TeamCoCo, watch a spoof on the commercial here.)

@CharlieSheen:

You’ve probably been following the tirades of Charlie Sheen… actually I know some of you are (on twitter, at least). Charlie Sheen joined Twitter (@charliesheen) this week, and gained a million followers in a little over 24 hours, breaking a Guinness World record.

Side note: Three Feedbacker’s made it into the list of Charlie Sheen’s top 10 followers. #Winning

Libya’s Internet Down

The government has shut down the internet for most of Libya, including the capital city of Tripoli. The Wall Street Journal reported, “U.S. firms that monitor global Internet networks reported that Web traffic in and out of Libya was disconnected abruptly Thursday afternoon local time and continued to be unavailable late Friday.” This is all too familiar to what we saw a few weeks ago in Egypt. Learn more here.

Behind the Scenes with Old Spice

Old Spice brought you the man that smells like a man, man, and now they’re bring you behind the scenes of their latest commercial shoot. Take a look at the following video, which shows the creative process behind the latest Old Spice commercial:

Healthcare Pick: Emerging Media Whitepaper

Those who are members of SHSMD, take a look at the official Emerging Media Handbook/Whitepaper from SHSMD – Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development where Feedback’s Dean Browell wrote the introduction as the Chair of the Emerging Media Task Force.

-Anna (@alucas9)

The sense of immediacy and accessibility created by social media enables these types of rallies and events to take place at a larger and more frequent scale. What once would have taken days and intricate levels of planning are now easy and can reach a wider audience in a shorter span of time.

Consider the story of UK Uncut, a group that is currently organizing protests throughout the United Kingdom. Their following will have jumped by 400 people in the amount of time it’ll take me to finish writing this article.

UK Uncut is a political action group against budget cuts that allow wealthy individuals and corporations skip out on their taxes. Now, I won’t get into the politics of it all, but this “citizen army” has taken to the digital battlefield with zeal, using Twitter and the hashtag #ukuncuts to organize flash mobs that have caused major UK chain stores like Vodafone, a telecommunications company that owns 45 percent of Verizon Wireless, to shut up shop for a day after protestors claimed the group skipped out on paying taxes. The campaign caught like wildfire and the Twitter account now boasts 10,000+ followers. Their website lists the organizations targets and protest schedule, and it’s a pretty impressive list.

And UK Uncut isn’t the first to do this kind of political activism. Far from it. One of the first flash mobs for political purposes was orchestrated before the term social media had taken root, in 2003, by Doonesbury cartoonist Gary Trudeau. More than 100 people showed up under the Space Needle in Seattle, linked arms, jumped up and down, and chanted “The doctor is in” to support presidential candidate Howard Dean. The flash mob didn’t even last a minute before dispersing.

Protesters in Belarus organize through social media and eat ice cream.

A more compelling example is the ice cream flash mob that happened in Belarus in 2006. LiveJournal was used to gather protestors at Oktyabrskaya Square to eat ice cream in protest of one of the most repressive government in Europe. Police were waiting for the protestors and arrested some of the ice cream eaters. The kids got their point across: “What type of government would arrest people for eating ice cream in the street?”

It was a small act that had a big message.

This ability to congregate on a massive scale quickly is forcing the political sphere to alter the way it interprets and reacts to constituents. We no longer live in a world where people learn news the next day – it is right here and now that chants for action take place. The question is: Will politicians heed the call?

-Brittney (@bntrim)

A map of Richmond, made entirely from type.

She may have never done it, though, were it not for the online community: A Richmond Twitter user found a link to a typographic map of Chicago made by a company called Axis Maps, then shared it with the Richmond Twittersphere. Then the gauntlet was laid down: “Can someone make this for Richmond?”

Fleck saw the tweets and desire for Richmonders to have their own version. “I thought I’d give it a shot,” she said. The project has since received immense support from the local online community and regional advertising industry insiders.

The maps (which contain 533 layers of type for you design nerds) went on sale this week at www.RichmondTypeMap.com. They’re $40, with $5 going to local nonprofit group Art 180 for each print sold before Christmas. They are going fast.

“It was a huge undertaking and the attention to detail was enough to drive me insane,” Fleck said. “But I am super proud of how this turned out, and hope Richmonders feel the same way.”

At Feedback, we definitely do. We’ve already ordered a half dozen.

-Jeff (@jephkelley)