Who needs online privacy legislation? In the interest of control, teens are doctoring their Facebook experiences in ways that could make it harder for the social network -- and its marketing partners -- to track their connections and behavior. A "Super-logoff," for instance, is when a Facebook user literally deactivates his or her account -- but doesn't erase it -- so that other users can't post anything on their wall, or even look them up. As All Facebook explains, more teens are taking the super-logoff route when they're not online and unable to closely monitor what others might be …

Will online publishers and advertising actually abide by a "do not track" feature, which would keep Web sites from tracking consumer surfing habits and personal information? As The New York Times reports, a coming "confrontation" among Internet companies, federal regulators, the Obama administration and Congress might leave no other option. The Federal Trade Commission and the Commerce Department will soon release independent -- and, as The Times suggest, "possibly conflicting" -- reports about online privacy. Meanwhile, top commerce officials are suggest that the department favors letting the industry regulate itself, "building on the common practice of user …

What's the second most popular app on Facebook? Ahead of Texas Hold Em Poker, FrontierVille and Café World, Windows Live Messenger now claims the Number 2 spot behind Zynga's FarmVille. According to AppData's Facebook app top 10, Microsoft's instant messenger app now has 9 million daily active users, compared to FarmVille's 16 million. What's Microsoft's secret? Launched less than three months ago, the software giant released the latest version of Messenger with a deep integration of Facebook and Facebook chat, according to ReadWriteWeb.What's more, "In order to allow both Microsoft to connect its 300 million Messenger users …

Hulu is on-track to earn over $240 million in revenue this year, chief executive Jason Kilar said at a conference on Wednesday. By comparison, the joint video venture reported $108 million in revenue last year, and $25 million in 2008. The only problem? As MobileBeat notes, Hulu undoubtedly shares a large portion of that revenue with its content partners. "Still, as an indicator that Internet TV could be a big business, it's pretty promising." According to MobileBeat, Kilar also revealed that Hulu now has 30 million monthly users; 260 million content streams (each TV episode is counted …

Can anything stop the rise of smartphones, and Android-powered devices in particular? Not according to new data from Gartner, which finds that smartphone sales nearly doubled year-over-year, while Android's market presence has soared more than sevenfold. "The smartphone revolution shows no signs of weakening," writes Mashable regarding the figures. "Android is benefiting from global adoption of different models by different carriers, and from its extending price range," adds ZDNet. Arguably the greatest threat to Android is an end to the exclusive partnership between Apple's iPhone and AT&T. As …

Despite positive reviews and serious marketing muscle, Microsoft sold just 40,000 Windows 7 phones on Monday, reports TheStreet.com, citing an unnamed "market research source." By contrast, Google said last month that it was selling 200,000 Android phones a day, while Apple has said that its iPhone sales rate was 270,000 a day. One explanation for Windows Phone 7's inauspicious launch? "Mondays aren't great launch days," industry strategist Michael Cote tells The Street. Also, Cote suggested that Microsoft may have confused consumers with too many models -- nine to be exact. "In the phone world, our surveys show …

Call it corporate benevolence or an admission of falling stature, but Google is giving its entire workforce a 10% raise and $1,000 cash bonuses at the end of the year. "Google, which has long been a hub for some of the smartest people in Silicon Valley, is under siege from Facebook and other companies in a bruising war for talent," notes the Los Angeles Times. Recently, Lars Rasmussen, the co-founder of Google Maps, left for Facebook, while AdMob founder Omar Hamoui said he was done with Google. Google's chief financial officer, Patrick Pichette, recently called the market …

Last week, in response to Facebook hoarding consumer data, Google disallowed the social network from using its data feed for Gmail contacts. The change, as Fast Company writes, was "evidence that Google is seriously worried about Facebook's increasing dominance over the Internet." Firing back, Facebook has reportedly subverted Google's export barrier so new registrants can download -- and then upload -- a file of their Google contacts without having to leave Facebook. TechCrunch's Michael Arrington -- who last week called Google's data denial "the true beginning of data protectionism" -- likens Facebook's response to …

The National Labor Relations Board claims that a company illegally fired an employee after criticizing her supervisor via Facebook. Labor officials and lawyers tell The New York Times that this is a ground-breaking case involving workers and social media. "This is the first case in which the labor board has stepped in to argue that workers' criticisms of their bosses or companies on a social networking site are generally a protected activity and that employers would be violating the law by punishing workers for such statements," The Times reports. Last week, the labor relations board said it …

And you think Google has domestic problems ... In China, a group of ad resellers are on a hunger strike in protest of Google terminating their contracts. About 200 employees from seven Chinese ad-reselling companies are currently protesting outside Google's offices in Shanghai, PCWorld reports. About 40 of those participating have gone on a hunger strike, which they say will last until their grievances are resolved. In September, Google notified the ad resellers that it would be ending their partnerships. "But the companies say they do not know the reasons behind the termination," according to PCWorld. "Since …