This week saw another patent awarded (this time for Google), the launch of a massive social-media campaign by the CDC, and lots of academic and MBA-style theorizing about the business value of social-media marketing. And apparently your grandparents are using Facebook.

• Patents are going like hotcakes. A week after Facebook received a patent for “a method for displaying a news feed in a social network environment,” Google is awarded its own patent for location-based mobile-advertisement technology.
• Fighting an epidemic. In an attempt to raise awareness about the spread of HIV/AIDS, the CDC begins a five-year $45 million social-media campaign.
• I’m too old for this sort of thing. Apparently this statement doesn’t apply in all cases, as Baby Boomers begin to experiment with social media.  It’s a seismic shift as the older generation emerges as mavens of new media.
• The Pareto Principal for Social Media? In five years, nearly 20% of marketing dollars will go to social-media budgets. Will this result in 80% of returns as the 80/20 rule suggests? We’ll have to wait and see.
• Getting back to the fundamentals. In creating a remarkable customer experience, the tools and landscape can change, but the essentials are the same. Businesses need to get back to the basics before adopting the latest fads.
• The balance sheet of on-line and real-world conduct. How are companies and individuals investing in the social economy? Contributions to social capital will be rewarded with ROI in the form of new opportunities and lucrative relationships.