Google-owned online video giant YouTube is poised to take a close to 10% minority stake in Universal and Sony's joint music video site Vevo, for approximately $50m. According to reports, the deal is understood to include renewing an existing three-year agreement between the two companies, in which YouTube distributes Vevo music content across its site.

PR firm Webber Shandwick says that this is most likely because of the high profile casualties of Twitter, such as Rupert Murdoch's tweets ('scumbag celebrities') or the former CEO of General Electrics, Jack Welch, who tweeted that Obama was fudging job numbers because he 'couldn't debate'. It's also thought that CEOs do not like being limited to the 140 character rule and would rather a platform that allows them to express themselves in longhand.

Ofcom has ruled in favour of BBC Worldwide in a case regarding whether video-on-demand regulator ATVOD had the jurisdiction to rule on BBC Worldwide's YouTube channels. Ofcom had previously ruled against BBC Worldwide, finding that the YouTube channels were an on-demand service and therefore subject to regulation by ATVOD. BBC Worldwide appealed the decision, winning the case, meaning channels such as Top Gear and BBC Food do not fall under the ATVOD rules.

A British court has sentenced a man to five years in prison for posting gruesome beheading videos on Facebook, according to an AP report. The 42-year-old Craig Slee also put online links to a communique by al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, or AQIM, that encouraged terrorism. In one of two Facebook pages he created, Slee inferred he was a member of the Taliban and claimed he had been on trips to Afghanistan. But counterterrorism police found Slee had no connection to any terrorist organization.

According to a Gartner report, global mobile advertising revenue is expected to grow 400% by 2016 to $24.5 billion. The market is predicted to reach $11.4 billion in 2013, an increase from $9.6 billion in 2012. During the three year period, mobile advertising revenues are expected to create new opportunities for application developers, ad networks, mobile platform providers, specialty agencies and even communications service providers.

The European Union is seeking to increase the private sphere of its citizens by strengthening data protection laws for the web. Large Internet firms and lobbyists are fighting the plans. Here's an overview of the debate in Brussels.

More than 12 million adults in the UK now own a tablet device and four in 10 owners say they are likely to read more news on a tablet, according to a new survey from YouGov for Newsworks. According to the survey conducted for UK newspaper industry marketing body, the ownership of tablet computers increased to 30% to all internet-connected UK adults. The survey found that 42% of owners think that owning a tablet will mean their news consumption will increase, or has increased and 54% of 18-24 year olds and 60% of 25-34 year olds expect an increase in …

The UK Online Measurement company and ComScore are preparing to launch a digital ad planning tool designed to give a unified view of media consumption across the web, mobile and video. The companies have collaborated to offer marketers a single data set from which they can track and plan display advertising across all three platforms, providing them with an unduplicated overview of reach and frequency.

Twitter has launched a new Twitter Index that will track conversations about the Oscars in the run up to the 85th Academy Awards according to thedrum.com. This method of Twitter marketing will be welcome news to the Academy who will have increased media coverage over the coming weeks. The Twitter Oscars Index will rank and measure conversations about the films and people nominated for an Oscar over the course of the next six weeks until the ceremony on February 24th 2013.

British regulators fined Playboy nearly $160,000 after finding the publisher didn't do enough to prevent minors from visiting its website. In a statementissued on Wednesday, the agency Ofcom said Playboy's "failure to protect children .. was serious, repeated and reckless." In deciding to fine Playboy, Ofcom also concluded that requiring visitors click an "Enter I am over 18 button was not an effective age verification system.