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MICROSOFT will purchase 1.6% of FACEBOOK for $240 million, which places a $15 billion valuation on the three-year-old company. Microsoft will begin to sell banner ads for international versions of the site and split the revenue with Facebook. In related news, RIM launched Facebook software for Blackberries. BARRY DILLER told a group of conference attendees Continue Reading →

FACEBOOK is the focus of a heated bidding war between MICROSOFT and GOOGLE. The two companies are competing for less than 10% of the social networking site and a deal could be announced within the next 48 hours. Google is reportedly driving the price very high in an attempt to outbid Microsoft. The winning bidder Continue Reading →

NBC confirmed the pulling of all official NBC content from YouTube ahead of the Hulu launch. The company believes that pulling the content will help push more traffic to the forthcoming online video service. Hulu will host NBC videos and distribute them through Yahoo, AOL, MySpace and other video destinations. However, it does not currently Continue Reading →

COMCAST is drawing heat for allegedly inhibiting access to BitTorrent. The Associated Press claims that the provider “actively interferes” with P2P file-sharing services to reduce network traffic. Comcast denies the claim, saying they do not block access to any sites, applications or services. However a nation-wide test found that Comcast consistently delays connections to the Continue Reading →

BIG MEDIA has formed a coalition to stop pirated material from being released on the web. The group includes Viacom, Disney, Microsoft, CBS, Fox, MySpace, and NBC Universal. These companies have agreed to put “commercially reasonable” content identification systems in place by the end of the year. They issued a 15-point manifesto outlining extensive copyright-protecting Continue Reading →

BEST BUY has stopped selling all analog TV sets and has ordered stores to pull unsold sets from the shelves, ensuring an all-digital holiday season. The mandate is an aggressive and bold move to prepare for the upcoming digital transition. The retailer has committed to selling digital-to-analog convertors and will stock them by early January. Continue Reading →

ACXIOM announced a targeted ad system that utilizes data it has collected on 133 million households. Acxiom’s massive database was created from public records and information received by partnering companies. It will now power “Relevance-X” on partner sites, displaying ads that correspond to a user’s data profile. Acxiom claims it will reach 60% of US Continue Reading →

GOOGLE has unveiled its piracy-fighting service for YouTube, calling it “YouTube Video Identification.” The system requires media companies to submit digital files to Google, who will process them and create a “digital fingerprint.” Videos uploaded by users will be checked against the fingerprint, and rejected if a match is found. The system was developed in-house, Continue Reading →

BLACKARROW will unveil its multi-platform ad management system today. The company will help manage, deliver, and measure targeted ads that appear in online video and VOD. In the future, BlackArrow will allow advertisers to update ads that have already been recorded to DVRs. The company is funded by some major players, including Comcast, Intel, and Continue Reading →

The 59th Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards Ceremony will be held on January 7, 2008 at the Venetian Hotel, Las Vegas, NV (the opening night of the CES show). For more information, please contact: Cheryl Daly or visit http://www.emmyonline.tv The nominees for Outstanding Achievement in Advanced Media Technology for Best Use Of Commercial Advertising Continue Reading →