On my Twitter bio, it says "I say yes a lot." That's because I like it when people offer me opportunities to do interesting things. Sometimes though, it leads to a lot of opportunities coming together. Take this coming week for example:

Tuesday 15 May: In the evening, I'm chairing the SMC_MCR 'Manchester: A Digital Future' debate at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Manchester. This free evening is already way oversubscribed for attendance, I'm afraid, but it will be videoed and live-blogged. Check the SMC_MCR Twitter account for more details about that on the day.

Thursday 17 May: I'm compèring the FutureEverything conference at MOSI in Manchester. This brilliant annual event explores new ideas around digital innovation in all sorts of forms. You can buy tickets here.

In the evening, I'm on the panel for The Sharp Project's 'Manchester, a Tech City?' debate. It's pure coincidence that this is happening on the same week as the similar SMC_MCR event, but this will hone in more specifically on the city's aspirations around tech startups. It's great to see so much momentum around pushing Manchester forward digitally at the moment.

Friday 18 May: In the morning, I'm chairing a panel debate called 'How Social Media & the Internet is Changing the Media' at the SAScon conference in Manchester. That's undoubtedly a huge topic but we've got an hour to thrash it out and hopefully work out exactly what the future holds for media, both social or otherwise.

Then in the afternoon, it's back across to MOSI to compère the rest of day two of FutureEverything's conference. 

On Saturday, I'm going to a wedding. That's not particularly relevant to anything else here, but it makes for a good title to this post. I'll just have to hold myself back from what will by then surely be a reflex action, by grabbing a mic and asking the bride and groom to summarise the social media response to their nuptuals. Or something.

If you're in or around Manchester, hopefully I'll see you at one or more of these events.

Image credit: Joe Shlabotnik

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Earlier this week I gave a talk at Cornerhouse in Manchester about digital tools and trends on the horizon that people should be aware of to enhance their working lives.

Thanks to everyone who came down - the Q&A section was particularly interesting with some great points raised.

In case you couldn't be there, here are the slides.

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What should you be trying, or at least be aware of, to help make your life more productive? We'll be looking at apps, services and devices aimed at both business and personal use - both fun and serious stuff.

It runs from 6pm to 8pm, and tickets are £4 (£3 concessions). You can find out more and book right now over on the Cornerhouse site. 

[Image credit: Phil Chambers]

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The short version: There's a Manchester Startups Facebook group, and please let me know about startups to add to the list in this post, and ideas of next steps, in the comments. Now here's the long version...

Today I gave a short talk at TEDx Manchester about something that's been on my mind for a good while now - why there's no tech startup ecosystem in Manchester. [Update: I've added the video to the end of this post]

The video of the talk will be online soon, but the short version is that while we have a number of successful Internet companies based in (or with a significant presence in) Manchester - hello Laterooms, Myriad and the like - and a number of young companies plugging away at innovative Internet-focused products, there's no real 'scene' to support them.

I used the word 'hub' in my talk but that gets people thinking about physical spaces. Arguably there's room for incubator space like that (a model being followed in Newry, Northern Ireland, for example), but even just meetups for tech entrepreneurs and an online space for them to meet, would be a good start.

When I spoke to one startup, Capsool, recently they told me that they didn't really know any other startups in Manchester. Imagine if, instead of being isolated and looking to London for contacts and support, they could get it right here in Manchester - arguably the most inspiring, exciting, dynamic city in the UK outside of the M25.

UPDATE: Crazy of me to miss off the fact that Manoj Ranaweera runs Techcelerate, which acts as a meeting place for startups in Manchester, although events are often accompanied by a fee. That's one part of what's going on (and I've seen some great talks there and met some interesting people) but hopefully a wider, organic scene can grow in Manchester.

So, following on from today's talk, this post is here to do a couple of things. One: host a list of Manchester Internet tech startups. Two: host suggestions of what to do next, via the comments.

Startups in Manchester

Here's a list of startups that spring immediately to mind that are based in the Greater Manchester area, a brief description of what they do and a link where available. I'm sure I've missed a few that I've met (sorry!) so please add your names and URLs in the comments if you want to be added.

The Agile Planner - A work planning tool for developers

App55 - One-click payments solution for retailers.

CANDDi - Sales data intelligence product for businesses.

Capsool - Messaging-focused startup. First project is the Jubilee Time Capsule.

Capsule CRM - CRM solution.

Crowd.fm - Event promotion tool

Edocr - Document sharing startup.

Malinko - CRM and job scheduling software for teams

Murmr - Stealth-mode startup doing something interesting - but that's all I can say.

Persian Cat Press - Interactive book apps for iOS.

PublishMyData - Linked data publishing platform

ReSporter - Sport-focused Twitter aggregation app from Head First Communications

Scoopd - Curated news

SurveyMe - Real-time customer surveys for businesses.

Video News Agency - A way for promotional videos and their B-roll to find use in broadcast TV, from PR firm SKV.

That's a small list for sure (but it's being updated as more names come in!), but they're the ones that spring to mind as I sit on a sofa on a Monday evening. I'm sure there are more.

Please add to it with suggestions of startups that are creating innovative digital products to operate as businesses (not for clients) in the comments.

A Facebook group

One easy first move would be a Facebook group along the lines of the 1100-strong Berlin Startups group. There's also a more exclusive Berlin Founders group where the CxOs get to swap information in a more private forum.

So, on a whim - here's a Facebook Group: Manchester Startups. Aimed at anyone involved in a Manchester startup or interested in getting involved, please sign up if you're interested. I know some people are Facebook-averse, but it's a first step to get the ball rolling.

What next?

If you have any ideas, or are organising anything to bring a Manchester startup scene going, please do leave a comment below or email me (martin AT martinbryant.net).

This isn't me putting myself forward as anything more than a cheerleader for entrepreneurial, digital activity in the city, and we still need those who lead Manchester to recognise the potential that well-supported high-growth startups can achieve.

Right - I'm hitting 'Publish'. Let's see if this leads to anything...

Image credit: Binary Ape

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Last week I gave a talk at Midem in Cannes about pitching your app or startup to the media. There were a few requests for the slides, so here they are.

While this doesn't work as well without the accompanying talk, hopefully they'll be of use.

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As Zee's post yesterday revealed, I'm now (along with Brad McCarty) a Managing Editor at The Next Web - a role I'm obviously pretty excited about. With Zee heading off to San Francisco as our CEO, I'll be heading up day-to-day operations during European daytime hours, with Brad doing the same in US hours.

Congratulations also to Matt Brian and Matthew Panzarino, our new News Editors, and Courtney Boyd Myers, who is now Features Editor.

With all this, and a few other interesting bits and pieces I'm involved in, 2012 should be a fun year!

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Today I bought some music on vinyl for the first time in at least five years, probably closer to ten.

I stopped buying vinyl because CDs, and then digital files, were infinitely more convenient to play on a computer, MP3 player or phone - the only ways I've wanted to listen to music over the past decade. My Last.fm account has a lot to do with that - being able to log and share my music taste reaps so many benefits in terms of new music discovery that I like to obsessively log every single song I choose to listen to.

In fact, I discovered my favourite band, The Fiery Furnaces, via Last.fm and I've since bought just about everything released by the band and its two members - brother and sister Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger.  So, it's no surprise that my first vinyl purchase in a decade is Cut It Out, a vinyl-only solo album by Matthew Friedberger.

Cut It Out is the fourth of six releases from Friedberger this year that will only be available on good old fashioned 12 inch plastic. I resisted buying the previous three - a subscription to the US-produced series was simply too expensive, and I figured that the individual albums would eventually be available digitally, even if I had to wait a year or too.

Then recently, I stumbled upon one of the vinyl-only tracks on YouTube and realised I'd been a bad fan - I'd missed out on multiple albums worth of material from a brilliant artist who (when I met him at a Fiery Furnaces gig a couple of years ago) had told me that further solo albums were on the cards - the least i could do was buy them.. I contacted Thrill Jockey, the US label releasing the series, to check - would it be released digitally in the future?

Thrill Jockey's David Halstead replied to the negative:

Unfortunately, no. The subscription (or trying to get each individual record in the shops over there) is the only way to get the music. That was intentional to preserve the special aspect of the collection."

So, having missed albums 1 to 3, I've bought number 4 on import from my local record shop. I've no idea how I'll listen to it (I imagine that a USB turntable is a purchase in my future at some point, so I can get the music into the format I want it in), but something struck me as I handed over the money to pay for the album:

As much as I love Matthew Friedberger's music and want to pay for it to help support him financially, isn't it incredibly arrogant to release an album on vinyl only?

 The idea of listening to music on a record player alone at home or in a small group of friends isn't just old fashioned - it's positively obsolete. These days I want to be able to listen to my music wherever I am, to share what I listen to on my Last.fm profile or via Facebook's new social music features - listening without the flexibility and social dimension that digital formats provide is at odds with what music is today.

Sure it keeps the music special, but six albums' worth of music so special that only a few thousand people will ever own it? That's the musical artist equivalent of being Amish.

I'll still buy albums number 5 and 6 of course (1 to 3 are sold out) but I'll do it through gritted teeth. The music may be great, but to ignore the advantages of the 21st Century just to to 'keep something special' just irks me.

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This week I spoke at Media Evolution's conference in Malmö, Sweden about the future of media formats.

I also posted video interviews with Flattr, Ovelin and a member of the team behind MIT's folding CityCar over on The Next Web.  

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Just arrived in the post from BBC Radio Wales is this recording of my appearance on Good Morning Wales last week, in which I discussed LulzSec disbanding... and found myself comparing them to the Sex Pistols. I'm pretty impressed by the quality, seeing as it was being done over Skype.

Interview about Lulzsec, BBC Radio Wales - 27-06-2011 by MartinBryant

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The BBC World Service invited me on to Newshour today to discuss the apparent disbanding of hacking group LulzSec.

Interview about LulzSec - BBC World Service Newshour - 260611 by MartinBryant

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Social media agency Jam recently asked me to write up some thoughts about good blogger relations for PR folk from a blogger's perspective. 

They published my piece on their blog here. 

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During my current holiday in Japan, I visited the village of Toya Onsen. This beautiful spa resort, on the banks of Lake Toya, has been ravaged by volcanic eruptions more than once and the remarkable scars are there for all to see.

Given the recent disasters in the country, this is another reminder of just how fragile Japan is.

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...especially when you have a mass-murdering namesake.

At least, I think she isn't talking about me

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What did I get up to in the opening months of 2011? Well, this:

February saw me head over to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, where (among other things) I explored Google's rather fantastic stand and rode on its slide...

I also helped out at Movement, a social media surgery event for musicians in Manchester, giving advice on moving on from Myspace to newer tools. The next one's on 19 April, so sign up if you want to come along.

In March I went along to a Sky News preview event for its iPad app. With about 30 seconds' notice I interviewed Political Editor Adam Boulton. The lack of notice led meant I couldn't prepare any hardball questions for him, but next time he's getting a grilling :)

I also helped out with Manchester Twestival (not as much as I'd have liked to if I'd have had more free time, to be honest). The event raised £1850 for local charity Wood Street Mission.

Then just this week, I stepped in to cover the Techonomy3 conference in Tel Aviv, Israel. I wrote up a full report over at The Next Web, but it was great to experience another side of the country from the conflict depicted regularly on the news. I found an exciting, inspiring community of technology entrepreneurs doing great work.

Speaking of which, I've got a bit of a bee in my bonnet of late about the lack of high-profile technology startups in Manchester. My recent post about it at The Next Web stirred up some interesting debate both on and off the site, and that's something I hope will continue over the coming months.

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In a move to file under "About time too", I've given MartinBryant.net a new look and added dedicated About and Contact pages. 

In other news, I'm heading off to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month, so if you're going to be there and want to make contact, let me know.

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It's hard to believe that I've been writing at The Next Web part-time for 18 months. When I started, it was just a way of writing about technology for a larger audience than I could get at my old personal blog. Since then The Next Web has grown unbelievably and it's been a pleasure to be part of the excellent team of editors and writers there. So, I was thrilled to recently be asked to join as part of the full-time team.

Yes, as of Monday I'll be a full-time tech blogger. To say I'm looking forward to it is an understatement - the amount of stories I've been unable to cover due to time constraints has become increasingly frustrating in recent months and it will be great to get my teeth into new challenges.

However, it does sadly mean that I'll be leaving the brilliant team at Marketing Manchester, where I've been Digital Content Editor for 14 months. It truly has been a pleasure working there. I know people almost always say nice things about the workplace they're leaving but seriously, from my first day there I felt totally at home with a group of people who are hard-working, positive, on my wavelength and who love Manchester. I honestly haven't got a bad word to say about the place. Heck, when I handed in my notice I actually went through a kind of grief process and I've never experienced that before when quitting a job.

Looking forward though, I'm really excited about sitting down at my keyboard on Monday and seeing what happens. In particular, my 'beat' will be startups from across Europe, online media (digital publishing, IPTV etc) and web/mobile apps so feel free to get in touch at martin[at]thenextweb.com with any news tips or story pitches.

[Image credit: Valeriana Solaris]

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This week I visited the IDCEE conference in Kiev. It was a great opportunity to discover more about this under-reported part of the tech world. Here's an interview I did for the conference's official YouTube channel.

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The three games in the collection all feature an 'Export to YouTube'
function. Here's a clip of my first (rather rubbish) go at
HitogataHappa - I'm sure I'll get better!

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On Monday night I spoke at an event for tech startups called StartupMill Manchester. I was talking about how best to approach tech bloggers and journalists for press coverage.

My colleague Alex Wilhelm at The Next Web wrote a good piece a while back that summarises a lot of the same points that I covered. An interesting conversation sprung out of the talk, with the night's other speaker Jon Bradford sharing his own personal experiences of dealing with the tech press.

A few attendees asked if the slides could be put online for later reference, so here they are. They're a bit 'bare bones' (I like to keep slides minimal) but should hopefully help somebody, somewhere...

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