With nearly every Web user conducting searches on one of the three major engines, who's advertising on the second tiers? And why do marketers continue to use them?

The three largest search engines -- Google, Yahoo and msn -- account for the vast majority of U.S. searches, but that hasn't stopped dozens of startups from trying to stake out their own claim to the market.

While Google and Yahoo dominate Web search, neither has been able to build a similar juggernaut for video search.

We didn't plan it this way, but our focus on search this month dovetailed with the release of a couple of blended search alternatives - Google's Universal Search and Ask.com's new Ask3D.

Wandering through an expo hall at a recent conference for Web 2.0, I see company after company with oddly spelled names and unusual logos. I have one question for these companies: Other than flashy booths at conferences attended by other 2.0 folks, how do you think people will find you?

In 1992, Bill Clinton said he owed his election to all the young voters. I remember being just out of college and tuning into MV, along with half of America, to watch the widely anticipated Rock the Vote event. It was the first time that a candidate had directly addressed my demographic.

This just in: there's lotsa entertaining stuff on the Web. No, honest, there is. Ask anyone. Streaming music. The previous night's Letterman monologue. Home-made clips of carpenters accidentally nailing two-by-fours to their feet. 'Tis a wonderful time to be alive, assuming you're really bored at work.

There's a parallel universe out there. While linear TV has maintained its "lean back and watch" viewing characteristics, Web-based video content has evolved on a fairly detached, and increasingly "interactive-rich," path. What's causing this divergence? On one side, legacy business models and a lack of standardized digital distribution have hampered TV's evolution. On the other, the industry needs to address Web-based consumer control expectations and the fact that the Web provides a new environment for Internet video -- an environment without barriers.

With more and more music available via digital downloads, it's no surprise that consumers are embracing MP3 players. At last count, U.S. residents were toting around 37.7 million audio MP3 devices - and that number is expected to surge to 73.3 million by 2011, according to JupiterResearch.

Longtime media vet Doug McFarland, now CEO of video advertising startup ScanScout, talks about where he sees the market heading in the next 18 months.