It seems that Amazon is going local. Today, the world's largest online purveyor of books, music, video, and lots of other stuff is introducing a local Web search service through its A9 subsidiary, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The service will offer maps, images, and other information for restaurants and businesses in 10 cities. The local search function makes sense for Amazon. One thing that doesn't make as much sense though, is the video shorts it's been hyping on the home page. While they're smart and stylish, the Minute doesn't really understand what they do for Amazon.

A coalition of entertainment companies filed court papers yesterday complaining that file-sharing networks Grokster and StreamCast Networks are "breeding grounds" for piracy. They want the networks to be held responsible for the actions of their users. Illegal downloading and file sharing of music tracks, videos, and other content is a big deal for the entertainment industry. When there is so much entertainment content widely available, why do people need to engage in illegal file sharing?

Google's latest? It seems the high-flying search giant wants to dabble in TV.

A report out today from the Pew Internet & American Life Project finds that only one in six users of Internet search engines knows the difference between organic search results and paid search ads.

I don't know about you, but we're running right out today to get one of those Angus Steak burgers. The 'street smart' team marketed them so successfully last night on "The Apprentice" that they've actually become a real product.

Nielsen//NetRatings confirms what many of us already suspected about online shopping.

Yahoo! reported earnings yesterday and oh, what a quarter it was. In fact, quarterly profits nearly quintupled. How many times a month can one actually use the word "quintupled?"

More holiday-related online traffic tallies are in today. ComScore Media Metrix reports that holiday-related content dominated online traffic in December with seasonal sites accounting for eight of the top 10 gaining properties and nine of the top 10 gaining categories.

On this day, the Minute is happy to report that the adware misery it suffered last week was successfully resolved.

I've been seeing lots of promotion on the FoodNetwork for the new, souped-up version of "Iron Chef" premiering on January 16.