Reuters reports that a growing number of popular musicians are starting their own social networks, rivaling the massive database of friends they've accumulated on other social networks like MySpace. 50 Cent, Kylie Minogue, Ludacris and Pussycat Dolls are just a few of the big names that have launched their own social networks, which Reuters says are becoming like next-generation versions of their own Web sites. Why start their own social networks? "The thing that separates Thisis50 from MySpace is we control the e-mail database," says Chris "Broadway" Romero, director for new media for the record company that handles Thisis50. …

Who needs Internet TV? The New York Times is reporting that Microsoft just hired a Hollywood producer to create programming that will initially only run on the Xbox 360 console. Its first major deal --"the first of many," according to Scott Nocas, the global marketing manager for Xbox Live--is with the Safran Company, a Hollywood talent manager representing the producers of such films as "Monster's Ball" and "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." Safran co. founder Peter Safran told the Times that the first round of programs would be scripted, and would run under 10 minutes. His group plans to …

There's one question on everybody's mind before Google releases first-quarter earnings in a few weeks: can fewer clicks on paid links lead to more revenue for the search giant? This depends on many factors--but if the answer is yes, it would corroborate the claim made by Google supporters that fewer clicks reflect the company's efforts to improve the quality of its advertising system by minimizing the number of clicks that don't lead to conversions for advertisers. The result: advertisers would pay more money for higher-quality clicks--a measurement that comScore couldn't take into account in its January and February reports, which …

Unfortunately, 2008 won't be the year that mobile marketing finally takes off, says Ad Age's Alice C. Cuneo. For starters, there simply aren't enough mobile Web users in the U.S.: of the 219 million nationwide subscribers, a paltry 30 million have data plans. Why? Two reasons: one, the mobile Web isn't a great experience, and two, it costs too much. Advertising can help the latter problem--but which comes first--a leap of faith on the part of marketers to reduce the cost of mobile content, or a leap of faith on the part of carriers to provide free or low-cost data …

The Micro-hoo camp has been eerily quiet over the last few days, leading BoomTown's Kara Swisher to believe that a deal is getting closer. Ever since Yahoo released its "sunny-side-up growth plans," Microsoft has gone virtually silent. Most figure that the software giant will up its initial bid of $31 per share to something approaching $35. The official word from Redmond: "We are being patient and open to listening." With a deal approaching, Swisher imagines a post Micro-hoo world in which Yahoo remains more independent than some might fear. She says the Web giant would clearly take the lead in …