The Nielsen-funded Council for Research Excellence (CRE) has tapped BIA/Kelsey to conduct a comprehensive review of current industry research about the "user experience" on multiple video platforms. The assignment is the result of a request-for-proposals that the CRE issued in October 2010. The CRE said that based on the study, it plans to design and commission new primary research into the latest and evolving formats of video, including live viewing; screen-size impact; HDTV; DVRs; streaming; mobile; game consoles; 3-D TV; tablet PCs; and others as may be found in the course of the review. Among the questions CRE seeks to …

Overlooking Facebook, Russian officials are accusing Google of instigating the ouster of Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak. "Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's deputy blamed Google Inc in an interview published on Tuesday for stirring up trouble in the revolution that ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak," Reuters reports, citing a paywall-blocked story in The Wall Street Journal. "Look what they have done in Egypt, those highly-placed managers of Google, what manipulations of the energy of the people took place there," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin told The Journal. Google executive, Wael Ghonim, did in fact help lead the uprising in Egypt …

Seeking to expedite the new media investment process, CapLinked just announcing a $900,000 round of funding led by a group of former PayPal execs known as the "PayPal Mafia," reports TechCrunch. Co-founded by PayPal marketing exec Eric Jackson, CapLinked, is offering a collaborative platform for entrepreneurs, private investors and advisors to find each other, build relationships, and transact business on a single platform. Already, "There a few platforms that aim to connect investors and startups on the web, including AngelList, and Kickstarter, but for the most part investment transactions and venture funding is done face-to-face, many times with a …

Spotify -- the U.K.-based music streaming service with U.S. ambitions -- is selling a stake to Silicon Valley investor Kleiner Perkins at a valuation of over $1 billion, Sky News is reporting. "Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers ... is paying $50m for a shareholding of just under 5 per cent in Spotify," according to Sky News' Mark Kleinman. "I'm told that the firm Kleiner Perkins is investing alongside Digital Sky Technologies Global (DST), the high-profile Russian investor which has also put money into Facebook and Groupon among other leading internet companies." All told, Spotify could raise $100 million with …

Tellingly, a "Break-up Notifier" app recently attracted over 100,000 Facebook users less than 24 hours after its debut. The new app lets users pick "friends" whose Facebook relationship status they'd like to monitor. "When that status changes, the stalker ... er -- user, is notified via email," The New York Daily News explains. Insisting that he only created the "Break-up Notifier" as a joke, the app's creator, Dan Loewenherz, tells The News: "I wasn't even sure if it was work at first." That is has taken shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone familiar with Facebook and its common …

Aegis Group this morning said it would record a one-time charge of about $40 million on its 2010 full-year, post tax results due to the insolvency of former client Nueva Rumasa, which filed for bankruptcy protection in Spain.

Timberland is weaving a new fabric into its earth-friendly repertoire, integrating Bionic canvas in its spring designs for both men and women. The Stratham, N.H. based company says it has also added a new nano-coating to certain models. Both help make the canvas stronger and more waterproof, while still delivering on the brand's eco-conscious promises. The company is using the canvas appears in footwear, such as its Earthkeepers taller boots, slip-ons and chukka boots, as well as outerwear. Bionic canvas is made from 50% organic cotton, which is wrapped around a 38% recycled PET and 12% polyester core. …

On the heels of announcing strong fourth-quarter results, Nordstrom is jumping into the online private sales business, scooping up HauteLook. In a deal that may go as high as $270 million, it will buy the three-year-old HauteLook, based in Los Angeles, which offers limited time sale events on fashion and lifestyle brands, often with discounts of between 50 and 75%. Such sites—including Gilt, Ideeli, Rue La La and Woot—soared in popularity during the recession, as consumers scoured the net for extreme bargains and luxury retailers struggled to dump high-end inventory. The equivalent of online sample sales, these member-only sites …

L'Oreal says it has tapped athlete and model Aimee Mullins as its latest global ambassador, joining the such spokespeople as Beyonce Knowles, Jennifer Lopez, and Gwen Stefani. Mullins, the first woman with prosthetic legs to compete in top-level NCAA competitions, made a name for herself in fashion modeling for Alexander McQueen, and has appeared in films.

Ousted Time Inc. President Jack Griffin just released a statement claiming that the characterization that his performance and his management style were reasons for his dismissal is not true, and that Time Warner management actually "documented" acclaim for his management of the publishing division. Griffin did not give his own reasons for his ouster, but stated: "I was recruited and hired by Time Warner to lead the business transformation of Time Inc., based on my clear record of success and results in the industry. This continued at Time Inc., with the consistent and documented acclaim of Time Warner's …