Meanwhile, in the U.K. (and all of Ireland), Netflix has signed a multi-year licensing agreement with MGM Studios to become the exclusive subscription streaming service for much of the studio’s feature films. As VentureBeat reports, the licensing agreement is set to kick off when the Netflix streaming service launches in the two new markets in early 2012 -- which VentureBeat first reported in October. “The MGM content will be available to subscribers in a variety of different streaming platforms, including computers, television sets, tablets, game consoles, set-top boxes and mobile phones,” it writes. Netflix is expected to get some of …

So, what’s the Web really worth? Leave it to McKinsey to do the math. According to a new report by the U.S. consulting firm, The Internet -- an $8 trillion global economy made up of some 200 million consumers -- has accounted for 21% of GDP growth in the world's largest economies over the last 5 years. “As an entity, it accounts for more GDP than the Spanish or Canadian economies, and it's growing faster than Brazil,” The Atlantic notes, citing McKinsey’s research. “As a sector, it is now larger than these countries' agriculture or energy industries.” Because “there is …

Driven mainly by video, mobile data traffic is on pace to increase tenfold over the next five years, telecom technology provider Ericsson predicts. “By 2016, Ericsson also predicts mobile broadband subscriptions to exceed 5 billion in its latest Traffic and Market Data report,” TechCrunch notes. “The company earlier predicted that number to surpass 1 billion in 2011, but now forecasts 900 million subscribers by year’s end.” According to Ericsson -- which specializes in technology and services for telecom operators -- mobile data traffic will double this year, mainly due to surging sales of smartphones, tablets and other devices. Total smartphone …

Though unlikely to impact consumer behavior -- and the biggest no-brainer since Double Stuf Oreo’s -- the Associated Press reports that the CIA tracks social media for relevant information.  A CIA team informally known as the “vengeful librarians" pores over Facebook, Twitter newspapers, TV news channels, local radio stations, chat rooms, and “anything overseas that anyone can access and contribute to openly,” according to AP. They CIA team operates from the Open Source Center -- a CIA facility set up in response to a recommendation by the 9/11 Commission. With a focus on counterterrorism and counterproliferation, the center has several …

In case you needed more evidence that daily deals ain’t dead, the wine specialists at Lot18 just raised $30 million in Series C financing led by Accel Partners, along with existing investors, including New Enterprise Associates and FirstMark Capital. Just a year old, the members-only flash sales site is best known for high-quality, curated wines, made available in small quantities and limited runs. “The Gilt Groupe for wine,” as TechCrunch calls it, Lot18 has already expanded to offer wine accessories, gourmet food, and even travel excursions. “Last month, the company launched Lot18 Experiences, which comprises wine- and gourmet-themed travel excursions, …

On CBS’s third quarter earnings call this week, CEO Les Moonves said the company had decided against joining an Apple TV service because it was based on an ad split, GigaOm reports. Apple was long rumored to be working on a subscription streaming service that would aggregate content from multiple TV networks and compete against more traditional cable and satellite services. But, as GigaOm notes, the product never made it to market, as Apple was apparently unable to convince enough content providers to join. “The decision not to join the effort follows CBS’s philosophy of getting paid upfront licensing fees …

Google is reportedly considering a plan to offer paid cable-TV services to consumers. “Google has looked at ways to expand a previously announced project to build a high-speed Internet service in Kansas City, Mo., and Kansas City, Kan., adding video and phone service in a mirror of offerings from cable and telecom companies,” reports The Wall Street Journal, citing sources. As part of the video service, Google could one day be distributing major TV channels from top media companies like Walt Disney, Time Warner, and Discovery Communications. Although the discussions remain exploratory, the move could ultimately “unleash a new wave …

Don’t tell the kids, but a new study finds that, among 491 12-year-olds, those who play video games tend to be more creative. What’s more -- according to research out of Michigan State University, published online in the journal Computers in Human Behavior -- it didn’t matter how violent the games were; the more kids play, the more creative they’re likely to be. As CNet notes, head researcher and psychology professor Linda Jackson believes the findings should encourage game designers to investigate which aspects of gaming are more responsible for this creative effect. "Once they do that, video games can …

A German privacy watchdog is questioning whether Facebook tracks users’ Web activity even after they cancel their accounts with the site. “An in-depth probe of the way cookies are installed after a user opens and then closes their Facebook account has made the Hamburg Data Protection agency ‘suspicious’ the company is unlawfully tracking users,” Bloomberg reports. “Arguments that all users have to remain recognizable after they leave Facebook to guarantee the service’s security can’t stand up,” Johannes Caspar, the Hamburg data protection representative, said on the agency’s Web site. “The probe raises the suspicion that Facebook is creating user tracking …

According to new third-quarter data from Nielsen, 43% of U.S. consumers now own smartphones -- up 5 percentage points in the past six months. Within that 43%, according to Nielsen, Android has 43% of the market and the iPhone has 28%, i.e., “exactly where they were three months ago,” Fortune points out. “In the rapidly growing U.S. smartphone market, Google's Android and Apple's iPhone seem to have reached a steady state,” Fortune writes. “What is changing is the rate at which different age groups are switching from dumb phones to smart ones.” Young adults, in particular, are now more likely to …