Yahoo's Earnings Drop Despite New Ad System

Social-networking site to allow targeted ads based on user profiles

(NEWSER) - Facebook is at work on a way to sell ads based on information users and their friends post on the site, the Wall Street Journal reports. A basic version of the service could launch this fall, and the social-networking titan eventually might allow marketers to predict products and services users may be interested in before they specifically request them. More»

(NEWSER) - Could a Microsoft-Yahoo! merger be in the works? The New York Post reports that Microsoft has quietly approached the Internet giant about opening merger negotiations, after informal talks fell apart several months ago. Insiders say Microsoft is looking to fight back against Google after the search-engine leader bested it in a spate of recent deals. More»

Copyright-protected content will be available for free online in new NBC-News Corp. partnernship

(NEWSER) - TV biggies NBC Universal and News Corp. are teaming up to hit YouTube with the full force of their their combined TV content, offered online for free. Starting this summer, AOL, Yahoo, Microsoft's MSN and News Corp. subsidiary MySpace will hope to win over internet users (and the advertising that goes with them) with shows like 24 and Heroes. More»

They say other 'players in the industry' are welcome to join them

(NEWSER) - Declining tech powers, unite! Microsoft, Yahoo, and Aol have agreed to a deal that will let them sell each other’s display ads, in a bid to drive revenue up and help them compete with Google and Facebook. A Microsoft VP characterized the deal as a "rising tide that lifts all boats"; Reuters notes that the companies would still be competing with each other for ad spending and publishing partners. And the trio is betting that such a setup will ensure the deal passes antitrust muster. More»

They choose to work in a country that undervalues human rights

(NEWSER) - Why is Google alone in its stand against China? "Bald hypocrisy," argues Richard Cohen in the Washington Post . America wanted to believe the Internet would change China. Bill Clinton, no fool, once said that China's attempt to censor the Web was as fruitless as nailing Jell-O to the wall. Well, writes Cohen, "the Jell-O's on the wall." China censors with impunity, yet only Google walks away . More»