Prototype: Tech Accessories, Courtesy of the Mountain Pine Beetle

With his father and stepmother, Dave and Nadine Lipson, he owns 37,000 acres that include a cattle ranch, a resort and a 10-mile stretch of the Blackfoot River, other parts of which were featured in the 1992 film “A River Runs Through It.” The infestation had the potential to ruin their business, which banks on the area’s scenic beauty.

“Having a resort in Montana with no trees is a big problem,” Mr. Lipson says. So rather than watch the bugs turn the land into a tinderbox for wildfires, the Lipsons decided to take steps to stop the beetles in their tracks. In the process, they found a way to turn their ravaged wood into something useful: a material for making accessories for Apple products. Their story offers lessons in adapting when an environmental crisis hits and, more broadly, how to be resilient in the face of adversity.

The mountain pine beetles that descended on the Lipsons’ ranch have coexisted with pine trees for millenniums, but as temperatures have risen in recent years, the insect’s range, population and winter survival rate have grown. The beetles now inhabit trees from Southern California all the way up to the Northwest Territories of Canada and as far east as South Dakota.

“From an evolutionary perspective, it’s very similar to a pack of wild dogs attacking an elk,” Andrew M. Liebhold, an entomologist with the United States Forest Service, says of the beetles’ prowess. “When they gang up on the tree in large numbers, they’re able to overcome its resistance.”

The Lipsons’ challenge was to shut down the pack. “We had scouts that hiked through the forest, identifying trees that were infected,” Mr. Lipson says, adding that the needles turn a burnt-red color. The next step was to isolate those trees by thinning around them, then cut them down and haul them out. Within two years, their corner of the infestation was under control.

But now they had thousands of tons of lumber to dispose of. While other landowners burned the wood or sent it to mills to be mulched into sawdust, Mr. Lipson, a self-proclaimed serial entrepreneur, was eager to find a better use.

He learned that beetle-kill timber retains its structural integrity if harvested before the natural decay process begins. He reasoned that the wood could be used for flooring, framing and moldings in projects on the ranch, which has more than 50 buildings, so he sent 16 feet of raw timber to a mill for processing. What came back surprised him: a shimmery, blue-tinged wood. The mountain pine beetle, he found out, carries a fungus that produces a natural blue stain. “We thought it was pretty spectacular-looking,” he says.

That further motivated the Lipsons to make something out of the wood. Last June, they started Bad Beetle, which makes accessories for Apple computers, tablets and phones. They also hope that the company will raise awareness about the mountain pine beetle infestation.

The accessories “have the ability to reach people who are interested in eco-minded issues,” Mr. Lipson says. In January, Bad Beetle started offering iPhone backs and iPad stands on its Web site and has sold 730 so far. This summer, it will roll out cases for MacBook computers and iPads. Should Apple, which doesn’t require a licensing agreement for the products, become interested in selling Bad Beetle items in its stores or online, Mr. Lipson says he’s prepared: “We have a stockpile of blue-stain pine that will provide the raw material for Bad Beetle products indefinitely.”

Were his supply to somehow run out, replenishing it would be easy. Some 20 billion cubic feet of such beetle-kill timber is now standing in 12 Western states, by Forest Service estimates. Private land with gently sloping contours and good access to roads provides the easiest and most profitable harvesting and manufacturing opportunities.

Bad Beetle is not the only company using this type of wood. Judson Beaumont, a furniture designer who owns Straight Line Designs, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, creates cabinets, benches and children’s treehouses with beetle-infected two-by-fours. He estimates that in the past three years he has sold about 75 items at $1,000 to $4,000 each.

“It’s probably been my most successful run of furniture pieces,” he says.

John Stein, owner of Kirei, a company based in Solana Beach, Calif., says architects and interior designers have been enthusiastic about the beetle-kill wood panels it began selling six months ago. When they hear the back story, “it resonates,” he says. That’s especially true in the West, where many prospective buyers have firsthand experience with the beetle infestation.

The Forest Service’s Forest Products Laboratory based in Madison, Wis., has worked with insect-killed wood for 50 years, and is now using it as a component in plywood-like panels. The state of Colorado has exempted beetle-kill lumber, sawdust and furniture from sales tax, and estimates that the value of items made from trees felled by the mountain pine beetle and the spruce beetle will hit $22 million this year.

The byproducts of two environmental scourges in Southeast Asia have similarly been transformed into furniture at the hands of Bannavis Andrew Sribyatta, founder and design director of a Miami design firm, Project Import Export.

He obtains dried water hyacinths and liana vines — both considered destructive plants — from his home country, Thailand. He weaves them into chairs, chaise lounges and wall panels for individual and commercial clients, including a Nobu restaurant in Los Angeles. The story behind his creations often “seals the deal” for potential buyers, he says. “Our work doesn’t stop at the point where I tell the customers about the product,” he says. “They tell their friends. It’s a topic of conversation.”

The effort involved in transforming these raw materials typically results in higher prices. Bad Beetle’s iPhone backs, for instance, cost $69, whereas silicone ones by the fashion designer Marc Jacobs sell for up to $48 and resin hard cases by Kate Spade are $40.

GIVEN the industry’s youth, it’s not yet known how many consumers will pay a premium for such products, but according to Thomas Lyon, a professor at the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan, the beetle-kill wood could be a tough sell.

Since it would otherwise go to waste, the timber that’s used can be considered sustainable. But the response to sustainably produced wood has been underwhelming so far, Professor Lyon says, adding that people tend to open their wallets enthusiastically only for items that affect their health or are showpieces. With wood products, those criteria rarely exist. “Typically they’re hiding behind your walls,” he says. “Nobody can see that you bought sustainable wood.”

Buyers, however, could consider high-end furniture or hand-held tech accessories as a kind of wooden bling that’s worthy of their dollars.

If businesses can “transform the color into a positive so that it becomes something cool, then it may sell for a premium,” Professor Lyon says. “But it won’t be because it was sustainable, is my guess.”

Advertising: Mountain Dew to Introduce a Sponsored Web Site

The PepsiCo Americas Beverages division of PepsiCo is teaming up with Complex Media on behalf of one of its biggest soft-drink brands, Mountain Dew, for a sponsored-content initiative that will be housed on a new Web site, Green-Label.com. The site will replace several Web sites and a YouTube channel that have been overseen by PepsiCo Americas Beverages since 2007.

“We have a lot of heritage” in content creation, said Jamal Henderson, senior brand manager for Mountain Dew at PepsiCo Americas Beverages in Purchase, N.Y. “This new digital destination will align everything we’ve done into a hub for youth culture.”

“It’s all in one place, and it’s dynamic,” he added, and signals “a transition from a campaign-specific approach to an ‘always on’ approach.”

PepsiCo Americas Beverages will work with Complex Media on the creation and production of content for the site, which will be led by an editor in chief, Justin Tejada, who recently joined Complex Media from a Time Inc. magazine, Sports Illustrated Kids; he will oversee a team dedicated to Green-Label.com.

“This is a rather large play for both Mountain Dew and us,” said Rich Antoniello, chief executive at Complex Media in New York. “We’ve done custom content development on a campaign-by-campaign basis for marketers, but never something as deep as this, creating a platform on a continuous basis.”

Green-Label.com will be billed by Complex Media as “presented by Mountain Dew,” echoing an earlier era of content marketing in which radio and television shows were “brought to you by” sponsors’ brands. Other Web sites in the same vein carry similar designations; for instance, The Adrenalist has articles about adventure sports that are sponsored by the Degree Men antiperspirants sold by Unilever and is described as “powered by Degree Men.”

Advertising sales for Green-Label.com will be handled by Complex Media, and the ad revenue will be shared with PepsiCo Americas Beverages. The current content marketing efforts for Mountain Dew, which include Green Label Art, Green Label Sound and Green Label Sports, carry ads only for Mountain Dew.

Financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed. “Pepsi legal are not exactly easy people to deal with,” Mr. Antoniello said, laughing. Mr. Henderson said: “We’re excited about sharing in the risk and the reward. I can’t comment on the exact investment spend.”

PepsiCo Americas Beverages spent $44.2 million to advertise Mountain Dew in major media last year, according to the Kantar Media unit of WPP, compared with $23.6 million in 2011, $16 million in 2010 and $24.2 million in 2009. During the first quarter of 2013, PepsiCo executives said last week, advertising and marketing spending for all the company’s brands rose by 11 percent compared with the same period a year ago.

Complex Media operates numerous verticals, or specialized Web sites, and publishes Complex magazine. All are aimed at the young men who are also the target audience for Mountain Dew. The sites that are part of what is called the Complex Media Network include Complex.com, Do Androids Dance, Four Pins, Nice Kicks and Sneaker Report; they are devoted to the same kinds of content that will be featured on Green-Label.com, on subjects like fashion, music, sports and style.

That is a primary reason Complex Media is “the right partner” to help evolve the content marketing efforts for Mountain Dew, Mr. Henderson said, along with Complex Media’s significant presence in social media.

“We’ll share on our social communities as well,” he added, referring to Mountain Dew’s presence on sites like Twitter.

Asked about the decision to find a branded content partner, Mr. Henderson replied: “Our goal is to always innovate and instigate and be a leader. To push the limits beyond.” That, of course, echoes the active lifestyle and confident attitude that the Mountain Dew brand projects in content marketing and traditional advertising.

Green-Label.com will also repurpose the content now offered online under the Green Label umbrella. And PepsiCo Americas Beverages will continue operating its brand-centric site for Mountain Dew, mountaindew.com.

PepsiCo Americas Beverages and Complex Media have worked together for a decade, Mr. Antoniello said, citing examples that include the ads the beverage marketer runs in Complex magazine and events on which the two companies have collaborated.

Mr. Henderson said the content marketing deal with Complex Media was “a single year kind of proposition,” adding, “Like anything we have, we hope it’s a hit.”

Mr. Antoniello said he wanted to “see how this goes, how much effort it needs, how profitable it is,” before considering whether Complex Media would “go all in” for other marketers and take on similar branded content assignments.

As content marketing becomes more popular, sponsors and creators are being asked increasingly about the value of such content compared with what is deemed to be objective content that appears in conventional publications.

If “authenticity and credibility” are not paramount, Mr. Antoniello said, the branded content will be dismissed by its intended audience, and the result will be the sponsor’s failing to achieve its goal “to have a deep conversation on a consistent basis with the consumer.”

State of the Art: Placing a Dollar Value on Apple’s Mountain Lion Software - State of the Art

Apple takes a different approach with its OS X software for the Mac. It intends to offer a modest new version every year. Installation is a 15-minute, one-click operation, and the price is piddling. For OS X 10.8, Mountain Lion, which came out Wednesday, Apple wants $20 — and you can install one copy on as many Macs as you have, without having to type in serial numbers or deal with copy protection hurdles.

If you’re a Mac owner, then, here’s the question: Is Mountain Lion worth $20? (A note: I have written a how-to manual to Mountain Lion for an independent publisher; it was neither commissioned by nor written in cooperation with Apple.)

There’s only one precise way to answer that, of course: assign a dollar value to each new feature.

Now, Apple claims “over 200 new features.” But some of them are tiny tweaks (Safari checks for software updates every day! Ooh!) or techie-only treats (“Xsan, the high-performance cluster file system”). Fifteen are improvements for Chinese customers, which is great for Apple’s world-domination plans but irrelevant to non-Chinese speakers.

So how many are real steps forward?

Mountain Lion continues to put velvet handcuffs on people who own iPhones, iPads and other Macs. For example, three iPhone/iPad apps are now on the Mac, too: Notes (a yellow pad, now with formatting and graphics), Reminders (a to-do list); and Game Center (lets you play against people on their Macs, iPhones and iPads, although few compatible games exist yet).

All of these sync with other Apple machines wirelessly, courtesy of Apple’s free, increasingly sophisticated iCloud service. The new apps join Mail, Calendar (formerly called iCal) and Contacts (formerly Address Book), which already sync with your iGadgets. Change a phone number on your phone, and it’s instantly updated on your tablet and computer; set up a reminder on your Mac, and your phone will chirp at the appointed time or even place.

It’s all useful and a bit magical — if you own more than one Apple device. Clearly, the company wants to keep you a happy prisoner inside its beautiful walled garden.

So what’s the value for these new syncing apps? Well, if phone apps cost $1 or $2, and computer shareware $20 or $30, then these new apps are probably worth about $7.

The new Notification Center is also modeled on an iPhone/iPad feature. It’s a dark gray panel that slides onto the screen when you drag two fingers onto your trackpad (or click a menu-bar button). Here are all the nags, messages and alerts that your programs have issued, consolidated into one tidy, customizable list: today’s appointments, incoming messages, software updates, Twitter updates and so on.

They tie into Mountain Lion’s new alert system, in which each incoming alert bubble slides quietly into the corner of your screen. It’s like a butler who tiptoes into your room with lunch, sees that you’re busy, and sets the tray down on the side table before quietly withdrawing.

But being bombarded with bubbles would be a big bummer. So the Mail app’s new V.I.P. feature lets you designate certain people whose messages you never want to miss — your spouse, your boss, the cable guy. You can set it up so that alert bubbles appear only when those people write. That’s so smart. Notification Center: easily worth $3.50.

Dictation has come to the Mac, too. When you double-tap the Fn button on your keyboard, you can speak to type.

It’s exactly the same recognition technology as the iPhone’s. So it requires no voice training and no special microphone, but it requires an Internet connection. And the accuracy is not quite what you see in the Martin Scorsese Apple commercials for Siri. Still, dictation fast and useful, to the tune of $5.75.

The new Share button is a keeper, too. It pops up everywhere — in shortcut menus, window edges, programs like Safari and Preview, and so on.

State of the Art: Placing a Dollar Value on Apple’s Mountain Lion Software — State of the Art

Apple takes a different approach with its OS X software for the Mac. It intends to offer a modest new version every year. Installation is a 15-minute, one-click operation, and the price is piddling. For OS X 10.8, Mountain Lion, which comes out Wednesday, Apple wants $20 — and you can install one copy on as many Macs as you have, without having to type in serial numbers or deal with copy protection hurdles.

If you’re a Mac owner, then, here’s the question: Is Mountain Lion worth $20? (A note: I have written a how-to manual to Mountain Lion for an independent publisher; it was neither commissioned by nor written in cooperation with Apple.)

There’s only one precise way to answer that, of course: assign a dollar value to each new feature.

Now, Apple claims “over 200 new features.” But some of them are tiny tweaks (Safari checks for software updates every day! Ooh!) or techie-only treats (“Xsan, the high-performance cluster file system”). Fifteen are improvements for Chinese customers, which is great for Apple’s world-domination plans but irrelevant to non-Chinese speakers.

So how many are real steps forward?

Mountain Lion continues to put velvet handcuffs on people who own iPhones, iPads and other Macs. For example, three iPhone/iPad apps are now on the Mac, too: Notes (a yellow pad, now with formatting and graphics), Reminders (a to-do list); and Game Center (lets you play against people on their Macs, iPhones and iPads, although few compatible games exist yet).

All of these sync with other Apple machines wirelessly, courtesy of Apple’s free, increasingly sophisticated iCloud service. The new apps join Mail, Calendar (formerly called iCal) and Contacts (formerly Address Book), which already sync with your iGadgets. Change a phone number on your phone, and it’s instantly updated on your tablet and computer; set up a reminder on your Mac, and your phone will chirp at the appointed time or even place.

It’s all useful and a bit magical — if you own more than one Apple device. Clearly, the company wants to keep you a happy prisoner inside its beautiful walled garden.

So what’s the value for these new syncing apps? Well, if phone apps cost $1 or $2, and computer shareware $20 or $30, then these new apps are probably worth about $7.

The new Notification Center is also modeled on an iPhone/iPad feature. It’s a dark gray panel that slides onto the screen when you drag two fingers onto your trackpad (or click a menu-bar button). Here are all the nags, messages and alerts that your programs have issued, consolidated into one tidy, customizable list: today’s appointments, incoming messages, software updates, Twitter updates and so on.

They tie into Mountain Lion’s new alert system, in which each incoming alert bubble slides quietly into the corner of your screen. It’s like a butler who tiptoes into your room with lunch, sees that you’re busy, and sets the tray down on the side table before quietly withdrawing.

But being bombarded with bubbles would be a big bummer. So the Mail app’s new V.I.P. feature lets you designate certain people whose messages you never want to miss — your spouse, your boss, the cable guy. You can set it up so that alert bubbles appear only when those people write. That’s so smart. Notification Center: easily worth $3.50.

Dictation has come to the Mac, too. When you double-tap the Fn button on your keyboard, you can speak to type.

It’s exactly the same recognition technology as the iPhone’s. So it requires no voice training and no special microphone, but it requires an Internet connection. And the accuracy is not quite what you see in the Martin Scorsese Apple commercials for Siri. Still, dictation fast and useful, to the tune of $5.75.

The new Share button is a keeper, too. It pops up everywhere — in shortcut menus, window edges, programs like Safari and Preview, and so on.