There are disputing rumors across the blogosphere this a.m. about whether Facebook is close to buying Plaxo, which offers browser plug-ins for maintaining contacts across certain Web sites and applications. VentureBeat sources claim that Facebook is "one-hundred percent" buying Plaxo, while TechCrunch (link: http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/01/14/plaxo-and-facebook-merger-rumors-false-so-far/) says, "it's very unlikely any offer has been made, let alone accepted." The only thing we know for certain is that Plaxo is on the block; meanwhile, various unnamed sources have floated valuations of between $100 and $200 million. Facebook stands to gain by acquiring Plaxo, as the social network would love to have …

MySpace has been cooperating with law enforcement officials in creating a new plan to ensure the safety of minors on the Web. The News Corp. company is working with the attorneys general on a set of principles to help combat a variety of social networking issues, including pornography, predators, cyberbullying and identity theft; educating parents and schools about the threat these sites present to their kids. Hemanshu Nigam, MySpace's chief security officer, called the new Multi-State Working Group on Social Networking a "landmark" partnership, which was orchestrated by attorneys general Roy Cooper of North Carolina and …

Serial entrepreneur Mark Pincus believes that social networking provides the perfect platform for casual gaming. His new company, called Zynga, has spent the last several months creating simple card and board games that social networking users can add to their profiles and play with their friends. Considering that casual games have a tremendous reach across all demographics and social networks like MySpace and Facebook reach hundreds of millions of Web users, Pincus' plan seems like a lay-up. But the opportunity has only recently presented itself as social networks opened their platforms to third-party software developers like Zynga. …

Microsoft is under the European Commission's microscope yet again in two new probes: the first for allegedly preventative technology inside Internet Explorer, its Web browser, and the second for failing to share interoperability information for products like Microsoft Office. The fresh probes follow the software giant's landmark decision three months ago not to appeal a European court ruling upholding a 2004 decision against the company. That decision forced Microsoft to pay hundreds of millions in fines and to share information related to its server software, so rivals so could create compatible software. One of the …

The long-rumored day when marketers begin invading phone calls may soon be upon us. At the end of 2007, Internet telephony company Jangl started testing so-called "in-call" advertising, which delivers a short audio message while consumers wait for their calls to be connected. Jangl hopes to attract advertisers for wireless products like games and ringtones. Jajah, another Internet telephone provider, has plans to incorporate in-call advertising later in the year, but their service will be opt-in and customers will receive phone bill credit for listening to 15-second clips. As Mehta points out, the ads really aren't that …