The application market is booming just now, and entrepreneurs are constantly trying to develop the next big thing. One person who has achieved this is Mark Malkoun, who invented the Citizen journalism app known as Signal. But what does it do I hear you ask? Well, it is an innovative piece of social media and news reporting software which should assist the community at large to affect the news, and rank a story in terms of its importance and legitimacy. It is a photojournalism app which provides citizens with the initiative to report and find news for themselves, cutting out the slow and biased online newswires. This is what Mark Malkoun had to say about his new piece of journalistic kit:

What inspired you to create Signal?

A personal desire to get a simple way of seeing what’s happening around you straight from the people. Users are already using their cell phones to take pictures of interesting things they encounter and posting them to social networks, or sending them to traditional news corporation like CNN IReport… However, traditional news are centralized and can be slow or biased… And existing social networks tend to be news about friends, people, or brands and not suitable for on-the-ground events.

How does it work?

Signal is an iPhone application that allows users to create mini-stories by capturing real-world events through camera, Geo-location, and have the community vote for these mini-stories to derive the top ones. The final result is an app that shows you the top stories of any country of the world, completely created and voted by the users in a systematic decentralized way.

Is Signal local or global project?

It is definitely a global project.

What is Signal’s specialty ?

Being a complete decentralized citizen journalism solution.

Since you launched a citizen journalism app, does that mean that you have enough confidence in citizen journalists and their ethics?

Many people know the iconic purple logo of Bit Torrent and have used the site for its file sharing abilities. It has a truly huge audience and now the man who co-founded the company, Ashwin Navin, has invested heavily in his new business Flingo to expand its social TV platform. Flingo started operating in 2008, and have recently secured a financial package of $7 million from August Capital to invest exclusively in the emerging Social TV platform.

Flingo play a unique hand in social media as they publish and distribute Smart TV apps, which are used over televisions that are “internet-enabled”. But this most recent influx of cash will pay for research into the “second screen” space, which encompasses applications and content over laptops, phones and tablets which can be played during television.

This is all part of a crusade of the bigger companies who are trying to become the must have TV viewing accessory, and these include the likes of Miso, IntoNow and Shazam. Many people simultaneously watch TV and play on their laptops and Tablets, talking about the shows they are watching on social media. Studies have suggested that as many as 70% of people who own a tablet use it while watching TV. But it remains to be seen whether these “second screen” companies can overtake the likes of Facebook and Twitter, where people stereotypically vent their views on TV.

There are also concerns whether people will accept second screens for this sort of purpose. There is still much debate in the area and experts are unsure how people engage with the software, and whether social media it is a companion to TV or if it is separate from that experience all together.

What happens when two giants of media, TV and publishing combine forces? Something dramatic no doubt. And that is exactly what has happened after Channel 4 teamed up with Bauer Media to create heat4…Live!

There is good reason why this new creation sounds like E4, it is an excellent marketing ploy full of valuable associations. The Heat4 platform will offer a fully inclusive social TV experience which will incorporate three live social TV events and will also support all of Channel 4’s output.

The marketing machine has already started in earnest to get Heat4 out in the open, and marketers are using all of the tools in the toolbox to publicise the new medium. This includes Bauer’s powerful editorial and advertising arm, ranging from Heat, more! magazine and across all of More’s Facebook site. This represents huge exposure.

Not to mention the radio campaign that is currently underway on stations like heat and Kiss. But how did this collaborationg come about? Well, OMD made the first move and pitched the idea to Bauer’s execs, talking about the possibility of a channel that offered ‘an innovative and noisy new platform that speaks to Channel 4’s core values’. They loved the sound of it.

Lucy Banks, the exec creative director of Bauer Media, said: “We are thrilled to be producing this brilliant campaign in partnership with Channel 4. It allows us to use heat’s ability to ramp up engagement and ‘editorialise’ excitement about great Channel 4 shows with this ground-breaking new format that rewards their viewers – and ours - with an even deeper experience of the stuff they love best.”

James Walker, the head of marketing at Channel 4, said: “The way people watch TV is changing all the time and we’re constantly looking to create new and exciting ways that bring audiences to, and engage them with, our shows. Combining Heat’s strong editorial with Channel 4’s great programming will make for a really captivating viewer experience and we’ve loved working with Bauer to bring Heat4 to life.”

For some people, when a video goes viral thanks to social networking sites, it can be the best thing that can possibly happen. Look at Simon's Cat, an animated cartoon shared throughout social networking sites to the extent that it now clocks up millions of viewers. But what do you do if a video showing you at your worst goes viral?

We all do things which we wouldn't necessarily want on camera. Drunk dancing, singing in the shower, angry rants about various family members are all things you wouldn't want to see yourself doing in a grainy 300p resolution video on Youtube, for all the world to see. But even these wouldn't ruin your life if they went viral, unless you happened to be vilifying a dead aunt or something. The world would be bored after a week or so, and you'll have a great story to tell.

But if the world doesn't like what you're saying or doing, your life can suddenly become a long list of great big problems and worries. People who have discovered this range from a racist passenger on the tube, to 11-year-old Jessi Slaughter, whose only crime was to rant about how happy she was with her life via webcam, to Cher Lloyd, who had the audacity to have a successful music career. Last year, one woman was caught on CCTV throwing a cat into a wheelie bin, and found herself at the centre of an Internet hate campaign. No harm had come to the cat Lola, who had spent the entirety of the incident curled up and asleep. And the woman apologised, claiming that she had had an extremely bad day, and that her actions had been uncharacteristically course. This did nothing for the Internet hate campaign, though, and she received death threats.

With the revolution of social networking websites, we are now in contact with one another more than ever before. And there's no denying it – social networking sites are here to stay. However, whilst very few of us have problems with our online lives, cyber bullying is a growing problem.

Cyber bullying is a significant issue on social networking sites, particularly for school children, who have been known to find themselves in the middle of an escalating hate campaign, feeling unable to do anything about it. Bullying doesn't just stop at home anymore – it can happen around the clock, at any time of day, and the victim doesn't even have to be a member of a social networking site.

Facebook allows members to set up pages and create communities online. This has resulted in a large number of people misusing the service and creating online bullying campaigns. Their popularity stems from the fact that it is much easier to be horrible to an online presence than it is to the person themselves. Many of the comments are despicable. Some are racist and illegal.

But what can be done about the issue? Many social networking sites have a ‘report' button which allows members to report online bullying through the means of automated services, but people have often come back dissatisfied with the results. Even if the offending page is taken down, all it takes is for someone to set another one back up. And with no phone number or email address to get in touch with an actual physical person, there is no way to resolve this dissatisfaction. And although some of the comments are illegal, many people walk away unchallenged by the police, due to the difficulty of tracing them.

Ten years ago, email was one of the most incredible developments of the computing age. To be able to send a message to someone on the other side of the world and have it arrive almost instantly is genuinely a fantastic achievement, and the pinnacle of communication. Since then though, it's all gone a bit downhill. Not in terms of service, but certainly reputation. 73% of all email sent is spam, meaning we now open our inboxes with a sense of trepidation of how many spam messages are going to require deleting today. As many unfortunate victims have discovered, if you purchase one item from Boden clothes online, then that's it – you're on their mailing list forever.

Users are now turning to social networking sites for their communication, because it gives them a sense of control. Suddenly, they are on the other end of spam. Type a short message, and you have spammed all of your friends' news feed, for example. It's also a lot less labour-intensive. Facebook Chat messages are automatically deleted as they get older, eradicating the need to give your inbox a spring clean. ‘High school kids don't use email,' noted Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook in 2010. He's right – Comscore reported a 59% decrease in the use of Internet-based email services such as Hotmail and Gmail last year.

Email still has its uses, however. Many people's online lives are tied to their email accounts. Every site they've ever signed up for requires an email address, so that if they forget their password, they can request a new one. Worryingly, these often include accounts for online bank services. This is because email is universal and compatible with absolutely anything. And with an estimated three billion accounts in existence, email still dwarves any other form of communication.

As the well-known saying goes – the best things in life are Swedish. Cider, furniture, music . . . and no, we're not talking about Abba.

As the well-known saying goes – the best things in lifSpotify is a Swedish music streaming service. Launched back in October 2008, it was meant to be a new era for digital music, allowing people to listen for free whilst at the same time eradicating piracy. The service was supposed to be supported by advertising, with this removed if the user were to upgrade to a paid subscription account. Unfortunately, it became clear in 2011 that the business model was unsupportable, and so severe restrictions were placed on all free accounts to encourage people to upgrade to the paid subscription.e are Swedish. Cider, furniture, music . . . and no, we're not talking about Abba.

But there is a very social aspect to all accounts of Spotify, and that is that they can be linked to Facebook. Indeed, since 2011, it has been compulsory to have a Facebook account before you can sign up to Spotify. The benefits are obvious – you can share the tracks you like with all of your friends on Facebook, and essentially show off your fantastic music taste, as well as discovering new music through your friend's status updates through Spotify. And of course, because it's all via the same free service, you don't have to pay a thing.

As social media becomes more prevalent in all aspects of life, users are becoming more expressive with the use of videos. When people think of social videos, they often think of adverts and marketing clips. However, with the increasing participation of people in social networks and the reliance on technology for interaction, more people are broadcasting using this new way of communication.

In the past, the idea of personal broadcasting using social videos was rare or unheard of. People were not familiar with it, and social media had no avenue for broadcasting such videos to the general public. The only way for people to self-broadcast was by showing their videos to close friends and family. Thus, clips ended up as home movies with only a few, mostly from famous people, reaching the masses.

Fast forward a few years and, with the introduction of social networking, we have an avenue for people to broadcast their videos. Just like companies who use this system to make their products known, people are also increasing their status by use of social videos. From holiday videos, to wedding ceremonies and other events, people are constantly posting their videos though social media.

Personal broadcasting has also been increased by the availability of websites where you can upload your videos and share them with the rest of the world. This has meant that more and more people post their social videos, which reach many more people than they could via their social networks. The leading site for video sharing is YouTube, which receives millions of hits a day.

Since the invention of television, constant improvements have been made to make it more enticing for the viewers. One of the latest elements is play along television programmes. The concept of play along television is for the purpose of social interaction. It enables viewers to be able to interact with each other and be part of the programme that they are watching.

People in the television industry have started to understand the need for viewers to interact with each other and this enables it. You, as the viewer, can be part of the show by participating; you can also join in on online forums where different people interact as they view the program.

Play along television programmes have been inspired by the level at which people are engaging in social networks. This constant sharing, communicating and interacting have come to define how people live, and the same thing is transcending into television viewership.

Television programmes need to enable people to communicate with each other by sharing their thoughts and feelings on different shows, the same way as they would share information through other social media outlets. As much as play along TV is trying to bring social interaction into television viewership; it might be too little too late.

With the spread of online social media, less people are tuning into television and therefore the idea of play along TV is, even now, outdated. Many people, in fact, do not know how the concept is executed or how to participate. People who do not watch that much television have no idea of its existence.

Social software applications are presented in different forms. They can either be written, in audio form or in video form. Written messaging programs enable people to communicate and interact with their social circle by typing out messages over their computers and smart phones. Instant messaging programmes are the most obvious example of this.

Social software applications are presented in different forms. They can either be written, in audio form or in video form. Written messaging programs enable people to communicate and interact with their social circle by typing out messages over their computers and smart phones. Instant messaging programmes are the most obvious example of this.

Audio software, on the other hand, is concerned with the transmission of sounds over social media. Social media would not be the same without audio software applications, and they have improved the ease of interaction greatly. Being able to make telephone calls is often more preferable to typing out a message.

Finally, video software is the latest additions to the social media world. This has brought in an improved and more personal method of communication. Video chat is now being adapted used by many people around the world and, in certain situations; it is preferred to the other types of social interaction. Video chat gives the illusion of being in the same room as the people you are speaking with, which was the main aim of social media in the first place.

Social media software, however, is not independent and to use it you must own the technology and programmes that go with it. Instant messaging would not be a possible without computers, and video calls can't be made without webcams. Often it is costly to buy the technology in the first place.