EMI Group said this week it will allow its music to be sold DRM-free on Apple's iTunes. The move marks the first time one of the four major record labels is allowing Apple to sell tracks free of software that limits people's ability to transfer them to other non-Apple devices.

Outdated satellite images of New Orleans now available on Google Earth have attracted the attention of the U.S. Congress, which has asked CEO Eric Schmidt to explain himself.

Around seven in 10 male Web users viewed online video last year, according to a new report by research firm eMarketer. While women also turned to online video, they did so in smaller proportions; just 55% of female Web users watched online video last year, according to the report.

Former Disney chief Michael Eisner's new studio, Vuguru, will create a new 80-episode serial drama, "Prom Queen," that will run on the social networking site MySpace. The show, a murder mystery, will unfold in 90-second installments, starting Sunday. For Eisner, the move obviously marks an attempt to devise entertainment that will appeal to teens.At the same time, the initiative begs the question, why would anyone on MySpace need to watch a soap opera? They're living them.

Viacom's MTV Networks is the latest company to come out this week with new mobile offerings. The company said this morning it's launching new mobile Web sites for MTV, VH1 and Comedy Central.

Broadband penetration continues to surge, according to a new report by Magna Global. As of the end of last year, an estimated 55.6 million U.S. households, or 74% of all Internet households, connected to the Web via high-speed lines. That's up significantly from 2005's 43.9 million households and more than double 2003's 26 million.

CBS has struck a deal with Sprint to make ad-supported versions of "Jericho," "Evening News with Katie Couric" and other TV programs available on mobile phones. The deal marks yet another CBS experiment to distribute shows via non-traditional methods.

Google's YouTube appears to be facing challenges on several fronts. Viacom filed a $1 billion lawsuit against the site, while NBC and News Corp entered into a joint venture designed to rival it. But not everyone thinks that the moves spell doom for the video-sharing site.

NBC Universal and News Corp are teaming to distribute free TV shows and movies via the three large portals -- AOL, MSN, Yahoo - and social networking site MySpace. The initiative will launch this summer, with what the networks say are "thousands of hours" of full-length TV programs and movies.

A Web ad for Barack Obama that recently surfaced on YouTube is drawing a huge amount of notice this week. The spot, incorporating footage of Apple Computer's "1984" Super Bowl ad, is being hailed as an example of how consumers are repurposing professionally created content -- though it's not clear whether this ad, likening Hillary Clinton to George Orwell's "Big Brother," is in fact an amateur creation....