Men. Who needs them? Marketers with stuff to sell them, that's who. But men are notoriously hard for advertisers to find - at least the young, single ones coveted for their disposable income and trend setting. Young men with no family responsibilities have money to burn for products such as video games, cars, fast food, beer, apparel, electronics, sports gear and personal-care items. And more are staying single longer. Half of U.S. men in their late 20s are single, vs. 20% in 1970, says Rose Cameron, director of planning at ad agency Leo Burnett.

The Los Angeles Times has canceled a novel Internet feature that allowed readers to rewrite an editorial on the newspaper's website, after some users sabotaged the site with foul language and pornographic images. The newspaper launched the experimental "wikitorial" Friday and killed it early Sunday after an unknown user or users posted explicit photos.

America Online Inc. unlocks the gates of AOL's walled garden Tuesday, giving everyone free access to features and content previously available only to subscribers. Jonathan Miller, America Online chairman and CEO, is heading this fundamental shift in the company's approach to the Internet, guided by his years as an entertainment executive and his relationship with AOL parent Time Warner. He detailed his plans and strategies in a recent interview with the Hollywood Reporter.

Microsoft's MSN plans to launch on Tuesday a test version of a local-search function that integrates mapping and satellite image technology to help consumers pinpoint nearby stores and other locales.

Contextual advertising service provider Chitika plans today to unveil its new "eMiniMall," an advertising format that allows marketers to spotlight particular merchandise, targeted by site.

Sony Corp. and Time Warner Inc.'s gaming units announced on Friday long-term licensing deals that move development and distribution of "The Matrix Online" to Sony Online Entertainment and also give it rights to make a multiplayer game with DC Comics super heroes. No financial terms were disclosed.

Shares of eBay Inc. fell about 3 percent on Monday on concerns that Google Inc. may offer an "online wallet" service that rivals eBay's PayPal. The move comes amid news reports that Google this year may launch "Google Wallet," an electronic-payment service that could help the Internet-search company diversify revenue. Like PayPal, the service could let users pay for purchases on Web sites by funding accounts from their credit cards or checking accounts.

Online advertising and marketing is a tricky business. We all struggle with the varied metrics to justify ad buys and e-marketing campaigns. Selecting metrics is never easy, particularly when the industry is lacking in standardized definitions and parameters.

Telemundo is hiring Peter Blacker, a well-known Internet executive who heads America Online's multicultural efforts, to take on the newly created post of senior vice president of digital media.

Nearly one-fifth of Web users who read newspapers now prefer online to offline editions, according to a new study from Internet audience measurement company Nielsen//NetRatings. The first-time study from Nielsen//NetRatings found that 21 percent of those Web users now primarily use online versions of newspapers, while 72 percent still read print editions.