The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has raised eyebrows this week by releasing a high-resolution version of the season finale of "Canada's Next Great Prime Minister," a political reality TV program, on the peer-to-peer file-sharing network BitTorrent, hours after its broadcast, and without copy protection. The show's other interactive offerings included YouTube auditions and a Facebook group, but the BitTorrent move surprised many because most broadcasters regard P2P networks as their worst enemy. It meant that the public could now download, copy, and share the popular program without any restrictions. BBC columnist Michael Geist, who applauded the move, points out that …

The future of Time Warner unit AOL largely hinges on the success of Platform A, an integrated advertising services network that hasn't gone to market yet. In the wake of the dismissal of former president Curt Viebranz, Lynda Clarizio, the former head of Advertising.com, is now charged with the task of integrating $1 billion worth of AOL ad network acquisitions into the division she formerly headed. Platform A is said to have the widest reach of any ad network in the country--reaching 90 percent of the U.S. online audience, according to comScore--but The Wall Street Journal says it isn't …

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Comcast Corp., Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks are in talks to supply close to $2 billion in funding for Sprint Nextel and Clearwire Corp.'s off-again on-again venture into WiMax technology. The new company, operated by the founders, seeks a total of $3 billion in outside funding--of which Comcast would invest $1 billion, TWC $500 million, Bright House $100 to $200 million, and Intel Corp. and Google, in separate arrangements, would pledge $1 billion and an undisclosed sum, respectively. Until now, WiMax looked to be dead in the water--as investors, fearing …

Citigroup Investment Research analyst Mark Mahaney on Tuesday raised his price target for Yahoo's stock from $34 to $31, citing the likelihood that Microsoft would increase its bid for the company to $34 per share. Microsoft launched a $44 billion bid to acquire the flagging Web giant nearly two months ago, which was later rejected by Yahoo's board of directors. "We think the strategic value of Yahoo to Microsoft is very significant," Mahaney said in a research note, adding that Microsoft was unlikely to walk away from the deal because it had yet to make money from its online …