Celebrity hot news gossip: Desember 2007

Senin, 31 Desember 2007

Jessica Alba Feels The Burn

Monday, December 31, 2007

JESSICA ALBA FEELS THE BURN

Never content to allow her pregnancy to put her out of shape, Jessica Alba returned to Emerson Hall Fitness club this past weekend. And this girl has the discipline of a martial arts guru.

Her ever-so-subtle baby bump was barely evident underneath her white hoody/black t-shirt combo. The "Awake" actress also sported some red sweatpants and a retro-looking trucker hat.

And it seems Jess doesn't really like having her picture taken, as she shielded her face from the paparazzi lens as she emerged from her Toyota Prius hybrid car.

But one thing is for sure this girl is happily on her way to the chapel, so to speak. With a ring as big as the one she's been sporting, any girl would be thrilled.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Jessica out for her daily workout, then on the UCLA campus with Cash later the same day (December 29).

McKellen, Minogue, Potter Stars Treated Royally (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Queen Elizabeth II went to the ends of the (Middle) Earth to select the latest crop of recipients of her annual New Year honors.

Ian McKellen, who will forever be known to some as the wizard Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings trilogy but whose 2007 turn as the title character in King Lear made theater tickets sell like $1,000 hotcakes in New York and Los Angeles, was named a Companion of Honor to go along with the knighthood bestowed upon him in 1991.

The 68-year-old stage and screen stars latest title is currently held by only 65 others, including Oscar winners Judi Dench and Paul Scofield and Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter, with the sovereign member being the Queen herself.

The 2008 Honors (or, Honours) List further expanded into the multitasking magical set with the naming of Julie Walters, Richard Griffiths and Leslie Phillips, all of the Harry Potter franchise.

Walters, who plays the perennially concerned Mrs. Weasley and whose credits also include Billy Elliott, Calendar Girls and the upcoming big-screen adaptation of Mamma Mia!, was awarded a Commander of the British Empire, meaning she technically now has the right to sign her name Julie Walters, CBE if she so desires.

Mean Uncle Vernon, aka Griffiths, who scored a Tony Award this year for his acclaimed performance as an inspiring yet troubled academic in The History Boys, received an Order of the British Empire, or OBE.

And Phillips, best known in his native England for his comedic roles but perhaps more familiar to American audiences as the voice of the Sorting Hat, also was given a CBE. The 83-year-old actors face was last seen in the Peter OToole vehicle Venus.

But you dont have to be a Brit to rank with the Queen.

Australian pop star and breast cancer survivor Kylie Minogue was also among the list of OBE recipients.

I feel deeply touched to be acknowledged by the UK, my adopted home, in this way, the Cant Get You Out of My Head singer told Britains Sky News. I am almost as surprised as I am honored to be awarded an OBE by Her Majesty The Queen.

This last year I have felt so much love and support from everyone as I took greater steps back into the public domain, and it is with absolute gratitude and joy that I say farewell to 2007 and look forward to what the New Year will bring.

Other entertainment industry figures among the 972 honorees included Barbara Broccoli, coproducer of the James Bond films (OBE); Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson (Member of the Order of the British Empire, or MBE); and Soul II Soul frontman Trevor Romeo, aka Jazzie B (OBE).

The Queens New Year Honors List, which recognizes people for their contributions to their industries or communities, included in 2008 actors and TV personalities, musicians, artists, authors, designers, sports stars, businessmen, lower-profile civilians such as teachers and bus drivers, and members of the Queens own staff.

Lauren Conrad Kisses Ex, Parties at LAX

Monday, December 31, 2007

LAUREN CONRAD KISSES EX, PARTIES AT LAX

It's been a busy weekend for Lauren Conrad. Between club-hopping and making out with her ex-boyfriend Stephen Colletti, this girl barely has time to breathe.

The Hills hottie was spotted out at Los Angeles' Central this past Saturday night, getting cozy with Colletti, to the point that they played a little tonsil hockey before hitting the dance floor.

And last night, LC was cutting a rug at LAX night club in Las Vegas. She partied with her fellow Hills girls, sporting a slivery cocktail gown and a mischievous grin on her face.

If you're a big fan of Lauren's and you haven't made plans for New Year's Eve yet, you may want to consider stopping by San Diego's McClellan-Palomar Airport. She'll be hosting a party with fellow Hills-er Audrina Patridge.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of The Hills girls out at LAX on Sunday night (December 30).

Paris Hilton and Kevin Federline: Round Two

Monday, December 31, 2007

PARIS HILTON AND KEVIN FEDERLINE: ROUND TWO

For a second night in a row, Paris Hilton and Kevin Federline found themselves running into each other while enjoying the Vegas party scene - with reports claiming that Paris made a move on the former Mr. Britney Spears.

As previously reported by Gossip Girls, the two spent Saturday night partying it up at LAX nightclub, with a source close to Federline telling People magazine that "Hilton invited the aspiring rapper back to her hotel room that evening."

Continuing on with the Sin City nightlife, Paris and K-Fed both spent Sunday evening at Pure nightclub - where the former Simple Life star was hosting a party in the Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino hotspot.

And it became quite apparent that the hotel heiress had moved on from K-Fed, if there was ever really any interest at all. Paris, dressed in a sparkling pink dress, spent most of the night getting intimate with a mystery man, while K-Fed hung out with the boys as they pounded Jack Daniels straight from the bottle.

Tonight, the two are hosting separate New Years Eve parties. Hilton will play emcee at LAX while Federline is lined up to get the party started at Tangerine.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Paris and K-Fed partying at PURE last night (December 30).

Nicole Kidman is Not Expecting

Monday, December 31, 2007

NICOLE KIDMAN IS NOT EXPECTING

With all of the pregnancy announcements flying around Hollywood, there's one rumor that is definitely false. According to Nicole Kidman's rep, she is most assuredly not expecting.

According to the Melbourne Herald Sun, the rumor is bunk. "It is incorrect. She must have had about 30 babies by now," reported her rep.

The UK's Daily Mail initiated the notion that the "Moulin Rouge" actress had a bun in the oven, erroneously reporting that Nic and husband Keith Urban were expecting their first child together.

But her rep emphatically denies the claim, stating, "She's in Australia making a film and her family is in Australia. She's happily ensconced away somewhere having a few days break. It's the silly season. As far as we're concerned, it's another rumor out of London."

However, casting doubt on the rep's words, a pal of Kidman's told press, "She did have a small baby bump a month ago, so it would be reasonable that she'd now be three months and telling her friends and family."

Celebrity Gossip

Bud Bundy Married No More (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) - David Faustino is officially single. . .without children.

The erstwhile Marriedwith Children stars divorce from actress Andrea Elmer Faustino became final on Friday, according to court papers filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, ending three years of less-than-wedded bliss.

The couple separated in May of last year and the 33-year-old actor filed a petition seeking to end their union back last February, citing the usual irreconcilable differences.

He and the 32-year-old Elmer met in 1999 while visiting a spiritual center in Los Angeles. After dating for five years, they tied the knot Jan. 24, 2004 in Las Vegas.

Per court documents, Faustino and Elmer, who didnt have any kids, hashed out a settlement specifying spousal support, division of property and other assets as well as attorney fees. The terms were kept under wraps.

The actors attorney was not available for comment.

Aside from putting the wraps on his split, Faustino has been chilling out--perhaps a bit too much.

The thesp was arrested on May 12 in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, on charges of marijuana possession and disorderly intoxication while arguing with his soon-to-be former missus at a street intersection. He was jailed, but the charges were later dropped.

Faustino has spent his post-Married career making guest stints on the tube, including The X-Files and The Bernie Mac Show and also, appropriately enough, headlining the stoner caper Puff, Puff, Pass. He next stars in the Hollywood-skewing comedy Working Title and is expected to pop up with fellow sitcom vets Alan Thicke and Corin Nemec in the sci-fi comedy RoboDoc, due out next year.

Motorola and Metrologic settle patent disputes (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cell phone maker Motorola Inc (MOT.N) and Metrologic Instruments Inc have settled all outstanding patent infringement disputes, the two companies said in a joint statement on Monday.

Metrologic and Motorola subsidiary Symbol Technologies Inc had been in a dispute over patents related to bar-code scanning and mobile computing since 2002.

As part of the agreement the two companies will cross-license their patents for a limited term.

(Reporting by Kenneth Li; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

Robin Williams to open Letterman's show (AP)

NEW YORK - Robin Williams will be David Letterman's first guest upon the return of his "Late Show" on CBS Wednesday. The appearance of a Hollywood A-lister who can talk a mile a minute may be Letterman's way of quickly trying to draw a distinction between his show and his late-night rivals, who are without writers and may also have trouble booking major entertainers as guests.

NBC's "Tonight" show said Monday that Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee will appear on Jay Leno's first show back Wednesday.

Letterman announced Friday that his production company, Worldwide Pants, had reached an agreement to have his show return with writers despite the continuing writers strike, which began Nov. 5. The deal also allows writers to return to Craig Ferguson's late-night show, also owned by Worldwide Pants.

The late-night shows hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and Conan O'Brien are also returning Wednesday but have said little about who will be appearing.

Sean and Robin Head For Splitsville

After 11 years of marital ups and downs which survived two California wildfires and produced two children (Dylan Frances, 16 and Hopper Jack, 14), actors Sean Penn, 47 and Robin Wright 41, are heading for the divorce courts.

It was second marriage (the first was infamously to Madonna) and subsequent divorce of Sean Penn.

Saoirse Ronan a young actress to watch (AP)

LOS ANGELES - Her role in "Atonement" earned Saoirse Ronan a Golden Globe nomination, but she hasn't read the Ian McEwan novel the movie is based on. Ronan is only 13, and the book deals with sexual themes.

"Atonement" is Ronan's third film, but the Irish actress (whose first name is pronounced "SUR'-shuh") is already getting attention for her role as the young Briony Tallis.

In 2008, she'll appear with Bill Murray in the action-fantasy "City of Ember" and star as a con artist in "Death Defying Acts" alongside Catherine Zeta-Jones. She also has the lead role in Peter Jackson's film version of "The Lovely Bones" -- another book she hasn't read because of the mature content.

Based on the Alice Sebold best-seller, "The Lovely Bones" is the story of 14-year-old Susie Salmon, who's raped and killed. She narrates her story from heaven as she looks down on her family as they try to cope with the tragedy.

Ronan auditioned for the part on videotape with her father Paul Ronan, a well-known Irish stage actor. The teenager says she's still "trying to get my head around" the fact that she's in a film by Peter Jackson, who directed "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy.

Coupons to help buy digital converters (AP)

WASHINGTON - Millions of $40 government coupons become available Tuesday to help low-tech television owners buy special converter boxes for older TVs that might not work after the switch to digital broadcasting.

Beginning Feb. 18, 2009, anyone who does not own a digital set and still gets their programming via over-the-air antennas will no longer receive a picture.

That's the day the television industry completes its transition from old-style analog broadcasting to digital.

The converter boxes are expected to cost between $50 and $70 and will be available at most major electronics retail stores. Starting Tuesday, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration will begin accepting requests for two $40 coupons per household to be used toward the purchase of the boxes.

Viewers who have satellite or cable service will not need a box.

To request a coupon, consumers can apply online at http://www.dtv2009.gov starting Tuesday. The government also has set up a 24-hour hotline to take requests, 1-888-DTV-2009 (1-888-388-2009).

Congress, in ordering the transition to digital broadcasting, set aside $1.5 billion for the coupon program, which will fund 33.5 million coupons and other costs.

The giveaway basically works under the honor system.

The first 22 million coupons will go to all households that request them. That includes a residence that gets cable service for one television but has a spare TV that still uses an antenna, for example.

The rest of the coupons, however, are meant only for those who do not subscribe to a pay-television service.

The Nielsen Co. estimates that 14.3 million households, or about 13 percent of the 112.8 million total television households in the nation, rely on over-the-air television broadcasts for programming.

Tony Wilhelm, director of consumer education for NTIA, said the agency expects to have enough coupons to satisfy demand. "We think the high number will be 26 million," he said. "Low end is 10 million."

Members of Congress have criticized both the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the Federal Communications Commission for their work on the transition to digital television.

In November, the Government Accountability Office, Congress' investigative arm, released a report that concluded there is "no comprehensive plan" for the transition.

Most of the concern rests with public education campaigns. While Congress allocated $1.5 billion for the coupon program, only $5 million was for education. The Association for Public Television Stations reported in September that 51 percent of participants surveyed were unaware that the transition was taking place.

Since then, the broadcast industry has announced a voluntary public education campaign. The FCC is circulating a plan among commissioners that would make public education efforts by broadcasters mandatory.

Congress ordered the transition to digital broadcasting to make more efficient use of the publicly owned airwaves.

On Jan. 24, the FCC will auction off the spectrum currently used for analog television. That portion of the airwaves will be sold to wireless providers and is expected to bring in as much as $15 billion. A portion of the spectrum will also be dedicated for use by emergency responders.

___

On the Web:

FCC information: http://www.dtv.gov/

Rosie O'Donnell is Annoyed That She's Thought of As Annoying

rosie Rosie O'Donnell is pissed because she made a "Best" list for 2007. The talk show host is bothered that according to a new poll featured in Parade magazine that found half of Americans surveyed named her the most annoying person of 2007. Paris Hilton come in a distant second.

The former talk show host is so upset about her dubious distinction, that she's made a video and posted it on her website. Proving to us why she was in fact named annoying, she came out with this comment:

"I apparently am the most annoying celebrity, according to Parade magazine. And, frankly, most celebrities are annoying. So, I agree. Celebrities are annoying and the fact that I am one is annoying. And I suppose I am the most annoying. But whatever. Why? Cuz I'm loud. Some people don't like me. Barbra Streisand likes me!"

Katherine and Josh’s Winter Wedding

Katherine Heigl and musician Josh Kelley tied the knot in an intimate winter wedding in the Utah's Park City. Katherine, who shot to stardom playing the role of the unlucky-in-love Izzy in Grey's Anatomy, wore an Oscar de la Renta gown.

Source: E Online

Italian design guru Ettore Sottsass dies aged 90 (AFP)

ROME (AFP) - Designer and architect Ettore Sottsass, the figurehead of 20th-century Italian design and founder of the influential Memphis Group, died on Monday aged 90, the ANSA news agency reported.

Sottsass died at his home in northern Milan of heart failure after suffering from flu.

"(Sottsasss) talent endured throughout a century. (As a designer), he never ceased to amaze us right up until the last days of his life," the Italian Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli said in a statement paying tribute to the legendary architect.

A retrospective of the designers work was opened in northeastern Trieste in early December marking his 90th birthday on September 14.

The exhibition, titled "I Want to Know Why," includes 130 of Sottsasss creations and runs until March 2.

"I would like the visitors to leave crying -- that is, with emotion," he said at the time of the opening.

Sottsass, who was born in Innsbruck, Austria, studied architecture in northern Turin, opening his first studio in Milan in 1947.

A consultant for Olivetti from 1958 to 1980, Sottsass created the iconic portable red Valentine typewriter in 1969.

Right up until his death, Sottsass continued to produce work at his Milan studio, notably designing private homes.

K-Fed?s Lawyer Grows Impatient with Britney Spears

Monday, December 31, 2007

K-FED'S LAWYER GROWS IMPATIENT WITH BRITNEY SPEARS

Given her tendency to blow off her deposition dates, Britney Spears is gaining a reputation for stalling her custody case with Kevin Federline. But that's all about to change.

The "Piece of Me" singer missed her most recent court-ordered deposition on December 12th because she claimed she was too ill to show up. But the fact that she was photographed partying later that night has caused K-Fed's lawyer, Mark Vincent Kaplan, to toughen up on her.

Kaplan told press, "Britney Spears will have her deposition early (next) year. We've got a lot to talk about."

Regarding Spears' playing hooky, Kaplan said, "She was, in fact, out later that day and night. It's not fourth grade where you get a doctor's note and it's all OK."

Despite her apparent desperation to regain custody of Jayden James and Sean Preston, Brit hasn't done anything to help the custody battle move along swiftly. You gotta wonder if she's afraid that her deposition will be a detriment to her case.

Celebrity Gossip

TO SEE MORE TOP SHOTS OF BRITNEY SPEARS THROUGHOUT 2007 - CLICK HERE!

Hollywood Stars Prepare For New Years Eve

Monday, December 31, 2007

HOLLYWOOD STARS PREPARE FOR NEW YEARS EVE

It's that most important night of nights New Year's Eve! And it all comes down to where you are and who you're smooching at midnight.

No matter where you are in America, there's a celebrity-laden party near you. But you'd better hurry admission lines are already forming to get in, and you'd better look your best!

According to US Weekly, here's where to catch your favorite celebs later tonight:

MIAMI

Shore Club: Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz, with a performance by Eve
Mansion: Kim Kardashian
Setai: Jennifer Hudson
The Raleigh Hotel: Mandy Moore, Chace Crawford, Kristen Bell, Dax Shepard, Elisha Cuthbert, Jeremy Piven, Samantha Ronson
Opium Garden: Nick Cannon
Hotel Victor: Adrian Grenier
Sagamore Hotel: Shannon Elizabeth

NEW YORK CITY

Tenjune: Ryan Seacrest
Times Square: Carson Daly, Lenny Kravitz, Alicia Keys, Miley Cyrus, Carrie Underwood, Joel Madden, Ryan Seacrest
Hammerstein Ballroom : Slash, Velvet Revolver
MTV Party, Times Square: Tila Tequila
Hotel Gansevoort: Perez Hilton

LAS VEGAS

LAX : Paris and Nicky Hilton, DJ AM, Criss Angel
Tangerine: Kevin Federline
Tao: Mariah Carey
Pure: Rick Salomon and Pamela Anderson
Body English, Hard Rock Hotel : Backstreet Boys
Prive, Planet Hollywood Resort: Avril Lavigne
Moon, The Palms: Jaime Pressley
Rain, The Palms: Dave Navarro

LOS ANGELES

Les Deux: Travis Barker
Playboy Mansion: The Girls Next Door's Holly Madison, Bridget Marquardt and Kendra Wilkinson
House Parties: Kate Walsh and Scarlett Johansson
Party For The Cause to benefit AIDS research, Woodland Hills, California: Vanessa Williams

Celebrity Gossip

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Pitfalls on the Road to Digital TV (NewsFactor)

According to the Consumer Electronics Association, more than 50 percent of U.S. households now own a digital television -- a milestone that the industry trade groups president Gary Shapiro characterized as a "critical threshold" for the nation.

Whats more, an additional 32 million DTVs are now forecast to ship nationally during 2008, "with high definition expected to account for 79 percent of total DTV shipments in the U.S.," Shapiro explained.

However, the U.S. governments General Accountability Office (GAO) recently warned that no comprehensive plan is in place for tracking or measuring transition milestones. Having no plan raises concerns about whether consumers will have the information necessary to respond to the transition and to maintain access to TV programming, the GAO said.

"Only the FCC appears to be in a state of denial over what the GAO is telling us," FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein noted. "Rather than making excuses, we need to come up with solutions," including the establishment of an interagency task force, Adelstein said.

THE HOUR IS LATE

A comprehensive partnership between the public sector and the private sector should have accountability, clear lines of authority, and daily coordination at the highest levels, noted FCC Commissioner Michael Copps. "I agree with GAO that the FCC is in the best position to get the job done," Copps said. "But the hour is late -- very late."

Digital-to-analog conversion capabilities are included in all set-top boxes for cable and satellite TV reception -- the preferred reception mode used by 87 percent of U.S. households, which will be able to continue to view broadcast programming on analog TVs after the transition to digital. But the remaining 13 percent of U.S. households will not be so lucky.

These over-the-air reception households disproportionately represent low-income workers, the elderly, and minorities -- particularly those for whom English is a second language, the FCC noted. Once the transition to DTV begins, they will all need analog-to-digital conversion equipment to continue to receive over-the-air TV programs.

Congress has agreed to provide an initial amount of $990 million to subsidize a converter box program under which any American household will be able to request up to two $40 coupons toward the purchase of digital-to-analog converter boxes. Still, the GAO maintains that this conversion program will face several challenges, not the least of which is how best to inform consumers about their options.

EDUCATION IS KEY

Another major transition obstacle is the lack of any concerted effort to educate the general public about the technologys capabilities and limitations. "Too many consumers are confused about what television they want or what they are buying," said iSupplis principal analyst for television systems Riddhi Patel. "There are far too many acronyms, and while education at consumer electronics stores and by OEMs is improving, it is not at a level where consumers understand it all."

According to the research firms latest survey, 75 percent of those U.S. consumers who had recently bought a flat-panel TV said they believed they had purchased an HDTV-compatible model. Upon further investigation, however, most of the flat-panel displays they had purchased turned out to be lower-resolution TV sets.

"Some people are buying televisions they think are full-HD but arent," said Sonys vice president of television marketing Jeff Goldstein. "Some people believe they have full-HD programming but they dont. There is a learning curve out there that needs to be addressed."

Vonage and Nortel settle patent dispute (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Internet-based calling company Vonage Holdings Corp (VG.N) said it has agreed to settle a patent dispute with Nortel Networks (NT.TO) (NT.N) with no payment of damages, sending its share up more than 8 percent.

The settlement would put to rest the last of the major litigation against Vonage after it settled suits brought by AT&T (T.N), Verizon Communications (VZ.N) and Sprint Nextel Corp (S.N) earlier this year.

"This is the last of them and were quite happy to put it behind us," Vonage spokesman Charles Sahner said.

The settlement involves a limited cross license to three Nortel and three Vonage patents and will not call for any monetary payments by any party. Claims over past damages will be dismissed without prejudice, Vonage said.

Sahner said the dispute originated in a lawsuit filed by Digital Packet Licensing against Nortel in 2004. Vonage bought that company in 2006 and Nortel filed a counterclaim to the suit earlier this month.

The dispute centered on patents behind "911" and "411" emergency and information call numbers, as well as click-to-call technology.

Vonage shares rose 14 cents to 2.14 on the New York Stock Exchange after trading as high as 2.17 early in the session.

(Reporting by Michele Gershberg in New York and Purwa Khandelwal in Bangalore; Editing by Maureen Bavdek)

Vonage, Nortel settle patent dispute (AP)

JERSEY CITY, N.J. - Vonage Holdings Inc. and Nortel Networks Corp. have settled their patent litigation, allowing for cross-licensing of the telecom companies' technology.

The agreement does not call for any payments by either company.

The settlement involves a limited cross-license to three Nortel and three Vonage patents, and dismisses claims relating to past damages and the remaining patents. The settlement is subject to final documentation.

Shares of Vonage rose 11 cents, or 5.5 percent, to $2.11 in morning trading. Shares of Nortel climbed 11 cents to $15.35.

Under the agreement, Toronto-based Nortel and Holmdel, N.J.-based Vonage will cross-license each others' technology, which is used to make emergency calls and dial 411. Vonage won't have to pay Nortel for any alleged unauthorized use of its technology.

"We are pleased to resolve this issue and enter into a productive relationship with Nortel," said Vonage Chief Legal Officer Sharon O'Leary.

This year, Vonage agreed to settle four other patent suits, and in each case, promised to pay the other side for prior use of its products.

Earlier this month, it agreed to pay AT&T Corp. $39 million as part of a settlement. Vonage also has said it will pay Sprint Nextel Corp. and Verizon Communications Inc. a total of $200 million to settle lawsuits.

Vonage spokesman Charles Sahner said earlier this month that the company was dragged into the legal battle with Nortel after it acquired three patents from Digital Packet Licensing last year. DPL had filed a suit against Nortel in 2004 alleging violation of those three patents, so Vonage continued with the lawsuit. Nortel countersued, claiming Vonage violated 13 of Nortel's patents, and asked that Vonage be kept from using the technology.

Despite having now settled all of its legal battles, Vonage still faces many challenges as cable companies roll out their own digital phone services and consumers increasingly opt for cell phones in place of landlines.

____

Ben Charny contributed to this article.

Marilyn, Dita Free to Von Tease Other People (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Its official: Brian Warner and Heather Sweet are back on the market in time for 2008.

The duo, slightly better known by the professional aliases Marilyn Manson and Dita Von Teese, have formally ended their marriage, nearly one year after she filed for divorce citing irreconcilable differences.

A judge signed off on the odd-couple uncoupling in court papers filed Thursday in Los Angeles Superior Court. Their respective legal standings were restored to the status of single persons, with the goth rocker and burlesque babe both now free to marry other people.

Financial terms of their split were not disclosed. They didnt have any children.

The 35-year-old Von Teese filed for divorce last December after just more than a year of marriage. They tied the knot in an Irish castle in November 2005 following four years of dating.

While they initially stayed mum on the details leading up to their split, the ex-spouses have since spoken out about the demise of their relationship.

Von Teese, currently a spokesmodel for Viva Glam, blames the rockers partying and alleged infidelity as contributing factors.

While not denying her claims, Manson has said he was devastated by their separation. He told Spin magazine earlier this year, She said she had tolerated the lifestyle because she hoped I would change and threatened to leave if I didnt.

The Dope Show singer has been dating 20-year-old Across the Universe star Evan Rachel Wood since the separation.

Ive found my double, my twin he said of the actress to Frances Le Parisien newspaper earlier this year. She understands I like to get up when night falls and go to sleep at night.

Come next year, the shock rocker may have to make some amends to his nocturnal schedule. Manson is currently embroiled in litigation with his bands former keyboardist, Stephen Bier.

In August, Bier, whose stage name was Madonna Wayne Gacy, filed a $20 million breach of contract suit alleging Manson shortchanged him on salary and medical support and illicitly pocketed band profits. Manson countersued earlier this month, claiming Bier failed to carry out contractual obligations, including taking part in master recordings, concerts and selling band merchandise.

NBC: Golden Globes Still a Go (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Will the ongoing writers strike take some of the glow off this years Golden Globes? Not if NBC has anything to say about it.

The Peacock confirmed Monday it will proceed with airing the 65th annual installment of the pre-Oscar kudofest live from Los Angeles as planned on Jan. 13--despite the threat of picketing from the Writers Guild of America and fears that many of the nominated stars might not show up out of solidarity to striking scribes.

The latter possibility has sparked speculation that NBC and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association would scotch the ceremony to avoid damaging the shows credibility and the telecasts viability. The Globes usual star-drawing power makes it a ratings success.

The WGA has refused to grant the Globes a strike waiver. Speaking to the New York Times over the weekend, WGA strike coordinator Jeff Hermanson said the guild would position strikers along the sidewalks around the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

If the Globes is telecast and it is produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is a struck company, we will picket the show, Hermanson said.

Such actions, of course, would likely prevent A-listers from attending, concerned that an appearance might garner them negative publicity as strikebusters. Publicists for many stars say their clients have already signaled they wouldnt turn out for any struck productions.

Further complicating matters is the Screen Actors Guilds own potential work action against networks and studios. SAGs current deal expires in June, and actors have threatened to follow the WGA and strike if their demands for a larger share of payments related to new-media growth are not met.

The Times quoted several unnamed insiders saying the Foreign Press Association has begun exploring ways to ensure nominees such as Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Keira Knightley, Denzel Washington, Katherine Heigl and George Clooney make the scene without incurring any sort of public backlash or embarrassment.

Among the ideas bandied about: nixing the dinner and trophy fest in favor of a Webcast or a private affair, the organizations first since 1979.

Already, CBS and producers of the Jan. 8 Peoples Choice Awards have decided to tweak the format to avoid any hassles with picketing scribes

The network announced last week that instead of airing live this year, the Peoples Choice Awards will do away with the traditional red carpet and ceremony and instead tape segments ahead of time in a magazine format hosted by Queen Latifah.

But a rep for NBC told E! Online Monday that the Globes show will go on as scheduled and declined to talk contingency plans. The network continues to run promos for the event, touting the glittery nominee slate.

Jorge Camara, president of the HFPA, says there is no intention of canceling the event.

Globes organizers arent the only ones with strike issues.

Producers for the late-night shows are scrambling to fill guest slots, as the shows are set to come back over the next few days.

NBCs Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with Conan OBrien, along with ABCs Jimmy Kimmel Live will air fresh episodes starting Wednesday without the benefit of their writers. That means each show will likely depend on its hosts improvisational skills, pretaped bits from the field (generated by producers, not scribes), more musical guests and extended interviews.

The same will apply to Comedy Centrals Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, wholl be returning to their respective anchor desks on The Daily Show and The Colbert Report Jan. 7 sans scribes.

I expect these shows to have a much harder time booking guests, WGA East spokesman Sherry Goldman told USA Today. Wed hope theyd honor the picket line and respect the fact that its a struck show.

Lenos first guest Wednesday will be a political figure, Republican presidential candidate and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. No word yet on guests for OBrien and Kimmels shows.

CBS will fare a bit better. Since David Lettermans Worldwide Pants Productions wholly owns The Late Show and The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson, he was able to strike a separate deal with the Writers Guild, allowing both of those programs to retain their writing staffs when they resume broadcasting this week.

Letterman not only gets to do a WGA-approved monologue Wednesday, he has lined up Robin Williams as well as country star Shooter Jennings. Bill Maher, Juno star Ellen Page and the cast of Broadways Young Frankenstein will appear on Thursdays show, while Donald Trump and Lupe Fiasco will be the featured guests for Friday.

Mindy McCready released from jail (AP)

FRANKLIN, Tenn. - Mindy McCready, who was sentenced in September for violating probation from a 2004 drug arrest, has been released from jail. The 32-year-old country singer was released Sunday morning, said a clerk at the Williamson County jail.

The violation occurred in July when McCready was accused of scuffling with her mother and resisting arrest at her mother's home in Fort Myers, Fla.

She still must serve two years' probation.

Her attorney, Lee Ofman, said McCready has learned her lesson and will stay out of trouble.

She had a No. 1 single in 1996 with "Guys Do It All the Time."

Mindy McCready: Free at Last (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) - It may be a new year, but time will tell if its also a new Mindy McCready.

The trouble-prone country warbler was granted early release from Tennessees Williamson County Jail Sunday after more than five months in lockup on a probation violation charge.

Im so happy to be out, the 32-year-old singer said. Im the happiest girl in the world right now.

McCready was greeted by her manager and family upon exiting the jailhouse--and kissing its gates--just after 9 a.m. Sunday. The Guys Do It Every Time songbird had been behind bars since July, when she was arrested in Florida on charges of battery and resisting arrest, stemming from a domestic dispute with her mother.

McCready was formally sentenced to a year of incarceration in September as a result of the Florida bust, which violated the terms of a 2004 drug arrest. In that case, she was sentenced to three years probation for obtaining the painkiller OxyContin with a fake prescription.

At the time of her sentencing, the singer received credit for 75 days already served. Her term was further shortened for good behavior--something she plans on continuing outside the confines of jail.

McCready, whose woes include a suicide attempt, drug overdose and hospitalization after a beating from her ex-boyfriend, said she plans to turn her life around by focusing only on those things that truly matter to her.

Oh, my God, Im gonna work, she said. Work, work, work. And sing. And go see my son, who Ive missed more than anything you can possibly imagine.

McCreadys son, 21-month-old Zander McCready, has been staying with the singers mother at her Fort Myers residence since the country stars bust.

And while the sprung singer has completed her jail time, she has not yet made good on her debt to society. McCready will remain on probation for two more years.

Lohan voted worst performance in online movie poll (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) - As if 2007 could get any worse for Lindsay Lohan, now this: Moviegoers tagged her with the years worst performance by an actress.

Fifty-eight percent of voters in an online poll by AOLs Web site Moviefone gave Lohan that dubious honor for her turn as a woman escaping a sadistic killer in the box-office flop, "I Know Who Killed Me."

The poll, which tallied more than 3.8 million votes, had more bad news for the starlet, who recently spent a brief stint in jail for drunken driving and cocaine possession and also attended voluntary rehab.

Another of Lohans films, "Georgia Rule," finished second among voters for biggest waste of 10 spent on a movie ticket.

The No. 1 biggest waste? "Norbit," a slapstick comedy starring Eddie Murphy, whose performance in the movie was the runaway pick for worst by an actor.

Voters were given five choices in each poll category. Two box-office smashes were voted the most worthy of the price of a ticket: The blood-soaked ancient war epic "300" edged out the sci-fi extravaganza "Transformers," 28 percent to 26 percent.

"Transformers" stars Megan Fox and Shia LaBeouf were named best on-screen duo, barely beating out Michael Cera and Jonah Hill, the nerdy leads of the comic coming-of-age romp "Superbad."

"Superbad" made more voters laugh out loud than any other film, registering 37 percent of the tally, ahead of the 28 percent for the bawdy pregnancy comedy "Knocked Up." Both comedy blockbusters were from producer Judd Apatow.

Sexiest babe went to Fox of "Transformers," while hottest hunk went to Johnny Depp, from "Pirates of the Caribbean."

Ralph Fiennes dark turn as Voldemort in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" earned him best male villain honors. Angelina Jolie won best female villain for playing the mother of the demon Grendel in "Beowulf."

Voters gave Matt Damon the nod for best two performances for "Oceans Thirteen" and "The Bourne Ultimatum," the latter of which easily nabbed years best sequel.

Reuters

Italian designer Ettore Sottsass, founder of Memphis Group, dies aged 90 (AFP)

ROME (AFP) - Designer and architect Ettore Sottsass, the figurehead of 20th-century Italian design and founder of the influential Memphis Group, died on Monday aged 90, the ANSA news agency reported.

Sottsass died at his home in northern Milan of heart failure after suffering from the flu, ANSA said.

A retrospective of the designers work was opened in northeastern Trieste in early December marking his 90th birthday on September 14.

The exhibition, titled "I Want to Know Why," includes 130 of Sottsasss creations and runs until March 2.

"I would like the visitors to leave crying, that is with emotion," he had told ANSA.

Sottsass, who was born in Innsbruck, Austria, studied architecture in northern Turin, opening his first studio in Milan in 1947.

A consultant for Olivetti from 1958 to 1980, Sottsass created the popular portable red Valentine typewriter in 1969.

Lindsay Lohan Loves Italian Men!

Monday, December 31, 2007

LINDSAY LOHAN LOVES ITALIAN MEN!

Yesterday, it was reported by Gossip Girls that Lindsay Lohan had a date with an Italian bartender on Saturday night. And it looks like he was just one of three guys she hooked up with over the weekend.

When she arrived on the island of Capri, LiLo scored a date with Alessandro Di Nunzio. And the "Mean Girls" actress was spotted playing a little tonsil hockey with the Roman stud.

But just a few hours later, she seemed to have a new kissing partner in Eduardo Costa, an actor. The pair was observed getting up close and personal, and Lindsay was loving every minute of it, according to onlookers.

For the hat trick, the "Georgia Rule" babe locked lips with long-haired actor Dario Faiella. She reportedly made out with him shamelessly, regardless of who was watching.

One witness told press, "Lindsay certainly likes her men and judging by her efforts over the weekend, they love her too. She wasn't content to share a snog with just one fella - it seemed like she wanted them all. She certainly set tongues wagging."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Lindsay with her Italian men in Capri (December 29-30).

Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady?s NYC Celebration

Monday, December 31, 2007

GISELE BUNDCHEN AND TOM BRADY'S NYC CELEBRATION

How did Tom Brady celebrate leading his team to the first undefeated NFL season in 35 years? By taking his supermodel girlfriend out on the town, of course!

The New England Patriot quarterback and Gisele Bundchen were spotted out for dinner with friends at a downtown restaurant on a rainy evening in New York City last night.

Arriving by cab, Brady and Bundchen kept it casual - with Tom sporting jeans and a collared shirt topped off with a charcoal sweater.

Gisele, meanwhile, complimented her man's look with a long black shirt under a charcoal button top with matching pants.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Gisele and Tom out last night in the NYC rain (December 30).

New energy uses for asphalt (AP)

SCHARWOUDE, Netherlands - If you've ever blistered your bare feet on a hot road you know that asphalt absorbs the sun's energy. A Dutch company is now siphoning heat from roads and parking lots to heat homes and offices.

As climate change rises on the international agenda, the system built by the civil engineering firm, Ooms Avenhorn Holding BV, doesn't look as wacky as it might have 10 years ago when first conceived.

Solar energy collected from a 200-yard stretch of road and a small parking lot helps heat a 70-unit four-story apartment building in the northern village of Avenhorn. An industrial park of some 160,000 square feet in the nearby city of Hoorn is kept warm in winter with the help of heat stored during the summer from 36,000 square feet of pavement. The runways of a Dutch air force base in the south supply heat for its hangar.

And all that under normally cloudy Dutch skies, with only a few days a year of truly sweltering temperatures.

The Road Energy System is one of the more unusual ways scientists and engineers are trying to harness the power of the sun, the single most plentiful, reliable, accessible and inexhaustible source of renewable energy -- radiating to earth more watts in one hour than the world can use in a whole year.

But today, solar power provides just 0.04 percent of global energy, held back by high production costs and low efficiency rates.

Solar advocates say that will change within a few years.

Other renewable sources have drawbacks: Not every place is breezy enough for wind turbines; waves and tides are good only for coastal regions; hydroelectricity requires rivers and increasingly objectionable dams; biofuels take up land once used solely for food crops.

"But solar falls everywhere," says Patrick Mazza, of Climate Solutions, a consultancy group in Seattle, Wash.

Compared with other energy sources, "solar comes out as the one with the real heavy lift. It's the one we really need to get at," he said.

Ooms' thermal energy system is actually a spin-off from attempts to reduce road maintenance and costs.

A latticework of flexible pipes, held in place by a grid, is covered over by asphalt, which magnifies the sun's thermal power. As water in the pipes is heated, it is pumped deep under the ground to natural aquifers where it maintains a fairly constant temperature of about 68 F. The heated water can be retrieved months later to keep the road surface ice-free in winter.

Though it doubles the cost of construction, the system is designed to provide longer life for roads and bridges, fewer ice-induced accidents and less need to repave worn surfaces.

But the same system can pump cold water from a separate subterranean reservoir to cool buildings on hot days.

"We found we were gathering more energy in summer than we needed, so we asked a building contractor what we can do with the extra energy," said Lex Van Zaane, the commercial manager. The answer was to construct buildings near the tarmac and pipe hot water under the floor.

The water usually isn't hot enough on its own, and must go through an electricity-powered heat pump for an extra boost, Van Zaane said. The installation cost is about twice as much as normal gas heating, but the energy required is about half of what would otherwise be needed. That translates into lower monthly heating bills and a 50 percent savings in carbon emissions.

Rooftop solar water heaters have been standard in some countries for decades. In 1954 Bell Labs created the first photovoltaic cells, which use sunlight to create electric current.

But it is only in the last decade that researchers have begun raising the efficiency of photovoltaic cells to economically generate electricity, and new technologies aim to make them commercially competitive without subsidies from taxpayers.

Experimental technologies involve new methods to concentrate the sun's energy by using mirrors or lenses, or devices that track the sun's path across the sky. New materials are being developed to make better cells. And scientists are working with electrochemical cells using a liquid rather than a solid component to absorb light.

"The prospect of relying on the sun for all our power demands is finally becoming realistic," says report in New Scientist.

Mindy McCready is released from jail (AP)

FRANKLIN, Tenn. - Mindy McCready, who was sentenced in September for violating probation from a 2004 drug arrest, has been released from jail.

The 32-year-old country singer was released Sunday morning, said a clerk at the Williamson County jail.

The violation occurred in July when McCready was accused of scuffling with her mother and resisting arrest at her mother's home in Fort Myers, Fla.

She still must serve two years' probation.

Her attorney, Lee Ofman, said McCready has learned her lesson and will stay out of trouble.

She had a No. 1 single in 1996 with "Guys Do It All the Time."

Hot Hookup: Milo Ventimiglia and Hayden Panettiere

Monday, December 31, 2007

HOT HOOKUP: MILO VENTIMIGLIA AND HAYDEN PANETTIERE

Love is in the air for a couple of Heroes. It seems Hayden Panettiere and Milo Ventimiglia have come clean about their relationship, and they couldn't be cuter together.

What about the age gap, you ask? While Milo is a ripe old 30 years old, and Hayden is just 18 is seems to work. A friend of the couple reports, "At first it doesn't seem like there's a big age difference, but then you do see it. ... He's more proper and reserved, and she's still playful and very girly."

The dolphin-loving, blonde bombshell has been living it up in Capri, Italy these past couple of days for the Capri Film Festival, and you can be sure there has been plenty of trans-Atlantic cell phone calls back and forth between her and her beau.

And it sounds like Hayden isn't the only one crazy about Milo. A source close to the Panettiere family told press, "Hayden's mom adores Milo. She thinks he's so cute. She tells her friends that he's her boyfriend. She's very proud. He's even met her grandparents. He fits in perfectly with the family. Milo jokes around with her little brother. They're buddies."

It seems Milo is making all the right moves to ensure that this relationship gets off on the right foot. A friend of the actor told press, "They're very affectionate and very comfortable around each other. He really takes care of her, even down to the little things like giving her a back massage and going with her to work."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Hayden at the Capri Film Festival (December 30).

Reese and Jake: Still Going Strong

Monday, December 31, 2007

REESE AND JAKE: STILL GOING STRONG

Despite speculation that the romance between Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal would be a short-lived movie affair, the Rendition co-stars still seem to be going strong.

The Hollywood couple were spotted in good spirits as they stepped out in Santa Monica over the weekend for a coffee and some shopping.

Meanwhile, as their careers go, the two box office stars are hoping to rebound from the poor reviews received for their latest work - Rendition.

Reese has been busy filming Four Christmases with co-star Vince Vaughn, and also has a movie titled Tokyo Suckerpunch in the works.

Jake has a few big roles lined up, as well. The Jarhead actor has a spot in the sure-to-be hit Brothers, co-starring Natalie Portman and Tobey Maguire. Gyllehaal also has agreed to portray football icon Joe Namath in a yet-to-be titled film.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Reese and Jake out in Santa Monica (December 29).

Philips to Unveil 52-inch Multi-Touch LCD at CES (PC World)

LG.Philips LCD is planning to unveil a 52-inch multi-touch LCD (liquid crystal display) at next weeks Consumer Electronics Show, it said Monday. The screen is 5-inches larger than one it recently showed in Japan and is the largest display of its type in the world, the company said.

Multi-touch screens differ from conventional touchpanels because they allow input from more than one spot on the screen so, for example, an image can be manipulated from opposite corners. Probably the most famous current example of the technology is the display on Apples hit iPhone and iPod Touch devices.

With the technology helping to make the iPhone a smash hit display makers are now pursuing its inclusion in screens. The LG.Philips 52-inch screen uses an infrared image sensor to gauge input from fingers or other instruments and can recognize gestures such as the movement of fingers. It boasts full HD resolution (1,920 pixels by 1,080 pixels).

Additionally, the company will be showing an 84-inch multi-touch display that is made up of four 42-inch panels joined together.

LG.Philips LCD will also unveil a 47-inch "triple-view" screen. This has a filter over the front that sends light from pixels in one of three different directions so that three images can be displayed at once: one to viewers on the right of the screen, one to people in front of it and one to those on the left. The feature is being positioned at public display applications for use in advertising.

Also at CES the company will show a 47-inch double-sided screen that is made up of a single backlight sandwiched between two LCD panels and a 42-inch transreflective panel for outdoor advertising use.

International CES opens in Las Vegas on Jan. 7.

Brandy Off The Hook In Fatal Car Crash

brandy Singer Brandy Norwood has been completely cleared and won't be charged in the deadly car crash she was involved in last year. The LA county DA's office said Friday there was "insufficient evidence" for a jury to find her guilty of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter beyond a reasonable doubt.

Brandy was driving on a Los Angeles freeway December 30 2006 when traffic slowed and her Land Rover smashed into the back of a Honda. The driver, 38-year-old Awatef Aboudihaj, died in the accident. But ...

According to the California Highway Patrol, the investigation found that Aboudihaj actually struck the car in front of her and then slammed on her brakes before Brandy made contact.

Brandy's attorney, Blair Berk, released the following statement exclusively to TMZ:

"We are extremely pleased that after a more thorough and extensive investigation by authorities, the Los Angeles City Attorney has determined that Brandy Norwood should not be charged with any crime whatsoever relating to the accident back in 2006."

She continued, "These past 12 months have posed an extraordinary hardship for Brandy and her family, who have been unfairly forced to live under a cloud of suspicion initially caused by the ill-advised and premature press release sent out by the California Highway Patrol accusing Brandy of wrongdoing before the police investigation was even finished. However, Brandy continues to be mindful that she was so fortunate to be uninjured in this accident and there was a life lost that should be remembered."

Mischa Toying With Quitting

The 21-year-old actress has admitted that thoughts of quitting the Hollywood limelight have passed her mind more than once. Born in the UK and raised in the US, Miss Barton's self-described "roller coaster" career, which peaked with her role as Marissa in the OC is the probable reason for this change of heart.

Nicole, Keith Not Kidding Around (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) - A babymaking epidemic may be sweeping Hollywood, but Nicole Kidman is one star who has most adamantly not been hit.

One of the Oscar winners publicists has shot down the most recent report to speculate on the state of Kidmans fertility, denying a tabloid tidbit claiming Kidman is expecting her first child with hubby Keith Urban.

It is incorrect...she must have had about 30 babies by now, Kidmans Australian publicist told the Melbourne Herald Sun Sunday.

Shes in Australia making a film, and her family are in Australia. Shes happily ensconced away somewhere having a few days break. Its the silly season. As far as were concerned, its another rumor out of London.

Specifically, out of Londons Daily Mail.

The typically outrageous British tabloid made the pregnancy proclamation on Saturday, saying the 40-year-old Golden Compass star and the 40-year-old country sensation had begun breaking the stork news to friends and family over their Christmas vacation.

Now 18 months into her marriage to Urban, Kidman has not been shy about her desire to expand her family, which includes her two adopted children with ex-husband Tom Cruise, 15-year-old Isabella and 12-year-old Connor. She even recently revealed that she suffered an ectopic pregnancy in addition to the widely reported miscarriage during her first marriage.

While the tabs search for any signs of a baby bump, Kidman is enjoying a break from work. She wrapped production on Baz Luhrmanns much delayed Outback epic Australia, alongside Hugh Jackman, on Dec. 21 and spent the Christmas holiday with Urban and her family in Sydney.

Next up is The Reader, a drama costarring Ralph Fiennes that will reteam her with Hours director Stephen Daldry. Cameras roll next month in Berlin.

Nicollette Sheridan: It?s All About Location

Monday, December 31, 2007

NICOLLETTE SHERIDAN: IT'S ALL ABOUT LOCATION

When you're rich and famous, getting married is less about the budget and more about where to tie the knot. And Nicollette Sheridan can't wait to find the perfect spot to marry her fianc, Michael Bolton.

Apparently the location of the wedding is the only aspect holding things up. The Desperate Housewives actress told press, "We haven't decided where, and as soon as we make that decision it will happen very quickly."

Engaged since March of 2006, Bolton and Sheridan are, indeed, a match made in heaven. Nicollette gushed about her soon-to-be hubby to press, saying, "For me there's only been one person, and that's Michael."

"Michael is a wonderful human being. He has brought me a profound love and support. He is an amazing sounding board for me. I am the happiest now I've ever been in my life, feeling more grounded than I ever have."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Nicollette and Michael on vacation in St. Barts (December 29).

Sharon Stone Nipple Slip - The Last of 2007

11:41 AM, Filed under: Home Celebrities Sharon Stone

If you thought that the Nicolette Sheridan nipple slip we saw last week would be the last one for the year, well, there's always time for one more, and now the distinction of Last Nipple Slip of 2007 goes to these Sharon Stone nipple slip pictures.

And you've got to really appreciate this nipple slip, because Sharon's actually wearing two shirts, and her nipples still manage to show through. First, they wiggled their way out of her tank top, and her see-through sweater on top was absolutely no match for the tenacity of her nipples.

Well done Sharon. I don't know if you should be proud, but you are officially the final nipple slip of 2007. Now, lets just hope we get some new, and younger nipples in 2008.

Video game looks into world of wolves (AP)

MINNEAPOLIS - The new video game "WolfQuest" allows players to follow the call of the wild in the role of a wolf in Yellowstone National Park.

Players learn quickly, with help from realistic graphics, that wolves do a lot of running -- across plains, through forests and up and down steep slopes.

"You have to learn how to hunt, survive, defend your territory and ultimately find a mate and establish your own pack," said project director Grant Spickelmier, assistant education director at Minnesota Zoo in Apple Valley.

The first episode, "Amethyst Mountain," was officially released Dec. 20 as a free download at http://www.wolfquest.org. Spickelmier said the game had been downloaded 13,500 times by Wednesday.

The Minnesota Zoo developed "WolfQuest" with Eduweb, an educational software developer in St. Paul, on a $508,253 National Science Foundation grant. Other partners include the National Zoo in Washington, the Phoenix Zoo, Yellowstone and the International Wolf Center in Ely.

The game is aimed at ages 10 to 15 because kids that age have largely stopped going to zoos and are more interested in things like video games, Spickelmier said.

"We're hoping to capture some of those kids back with this game," he said, adding that the Minnesota Zoo also hopes to interest kids in wolf conservation and biology.

Eleven-year-old Riley Breckheimer, of Apple Valley, tried out "WolfQuest" at its launch party at the zoo and declared it "pretty cool." He said he took down one snowshoe hare and got an elk about halfway down. The game also gave him new respect for wolves.

"They can run over miles and miles of area just to get to one elk to get something to eat," he said. "It's not like humans where humans have to go just a few blocks to the grocery store."

It's not the first time a zoo has offered computer games. The San Diego Zoo, National and the New York Zoos and Aquarium have games for younger kids on their Web sites. Nor is it the first time a video game has simulated wolf life: the DOS game "Wolf" was released in 1994.

But Steve Feldman, spokesman for the American Zoo Association, said "WolfQuest" takes things to a higher level.

"The level of realism, and also the goal, which is to effect real conservation behavior change, is what make this game unique," Feldman said.

In the first episode, as a solitary wolf roaming Amethyst Mountain in Yellowstone, players chase down elk and hares, relying on their eyes and sense of smell. When the "scent vision" screen toggles on, the background goes black and white and scent trails light up. The screen also shows how old the trails are.

To howl like a wolf, players just hit the "H" key, which in future episodes will help draw in their pack.

"WolfQuest" can be played alone or with up to five players online, where players also can connect and share tips. Additional episodes due in 2008 will explore other areas of Yellowstone and allow players to establish territory (yes, by lifting a leg) and defend their elk carcasses against hungry grizzly bears, raise pups and even kill sheep on nearby ranches.

The game won praise from David Walsh, president of the National Institute on Media and the Family, a group that studies the impact of media on children's health and development and often makes news for its criticism of violent video games.

"It's got great educational value while at the same time it's engaging," Walsh said. "It's a good alternative to the shoot 'em up games that are so popular with that age group. ... I think this game has the potential to chart some new territory."

___

On the Net:

WolfQuest: http://www.wolfquest.org

Minnesota Zoo: http://www.mnzoo.org

Eduweb: http://www.eduweb.com

National Institute on Media and the Family: http://www.mediafamily.org

Jay-Z Opens Vegas Club with Knowles Sisters

Monday, December 31, 2007

JAY-Z OPENS VEGAS CLUB WITH KNOWLES SISTERS

Jay-Z's grand opening of the 40/40 Club at The Palazzo Resort-Hotel-Casino in Las Vegas went off without a hitch last night (December 30).

The rap mogul showed up in a tux, but most of the attention was drawn by his girlfriend, Beyonce Knowles, and her sister Solange - who both worked the red carpet looking ever-so stylish.

During the course of the evening, which besides being a grand opening was also a birthday party for basketball star LeBron James, Jay-Z told the crowd: "I just want everyone to have a good time and not get caught up in the whole glitzy pretentious clubbing thing. But I'm up for a big night, and a big year next year. Good things are gonna happen."

A press report describing what patrons of the club can expect tells: "The 40/40 Club, named after one of sport's most prestigious achievements - 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases in the same season, combines a multi-level ultra sports bar with a chic lounge all under the direction of hip-hop mogul Jay-Z." Providing the ultimate in sports and entertainment, the 40/40 Club will feature an eclectic menu including The Picnic (fried deviled eggs and southern-fried chicken sticks with the special 40/40 sauce), signature 40/40 burgers, and wings amongst other items. The sports memorabilia amidst the lavish gold and platinum decor will serve as the perfect backdrop for the ultra luxurious sports bar."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Beyonce and Solange Knowles, along with shots of Jay-Z - all at the 40/40 club opening last night (December 30).

Jennifer Aniston Enjoys Mexico, Denies Pregnancy

Monday, December 31, 2007

JENNIFER ANISTON ENJOYS MEXICO, DENIES PREGNANCY

For the fourth year in a row, Jennifer Aniston is enjoying the fun and sun of Los Cabos, Mexico. She and pals Courteney Cox, David and Coco Arquette touched down in their private plane this past Friday.

While gal pal Courteney has been all over the beach, running windsprints and taking long walks, Jen has been content to relax by the pool and take in some sun while reading a book.

And the big talk surrounding Miss Aniston has been the pregnancy rumors stemming from a National Enquirer report which stated that Jen allegedly admitted she's pregnant by proclaiming: "I'm having a baby!"

Since that time, however, the former Friends star's rep issued a statement which read: "She is not pregnant."

Which side is telling the truth? Take a look at the pictures of Jen in a bikini this past weekend and see what you think.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Jennifer on vacation in Mexico (December 29).

Mischa Toying With Quitting

Heidi Montag?s New Lips

Monday, December 31, 2007

HEIDI MONTAG'S NEW LIPS

She's fast becoming the up-and-coming generation's poster girl for plastic surgery. And one look at Heidi Montag's kisser begs the question, "What's next?"

The Hills hottie and her beau Spencer Pratt were spotted grabbing some sushi with Pratt's sister Stephanie at Katsuya in Brentwood, California this past Saturday.

And while she was dressed ultra-chic with a black dress and black stockings, the most noticeable aspect of Heidi's ensemble was her mouth. Reportedly the previous day, she went under the knife, so to speak, having a lip enhancement procedure done.

Her new lips are just the latest "amendment" Montag has made to her body. Earlier this year, she got some new breasts, along with a new nose.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Heidi out meeting Spencer and Stephanie on Saturday (December 30).

Vonage says settles patent dispute with Nortel (Reuters)

Garner named West Virginian of the Year (AP)

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Actress Jennifer Garner has been honored as the 2007 West Virginian of the Year by her hometown newspaper.

The Sunday Gazette-Mail says it chose Garner for her dedication, hard work and service as an ambassador and role model for West Virginia.

Garner is balancing the raising of her 2-year-old daughter Violet, her marriage with fellow actor Ben Affleck and a career that includes a starring role in "Cyrano de Bergerac" on Broadway, the new film "Juno," and two more films yet to shoot.

Garner is actually a Texas transplant, but moved to the Mountain State as a 4-year-old and considers West Virginia home.

Shakira Does Rome

Monday, December 31, 2007

SHAKIRA DOES ROME

Pretty soon, she'll be as well-known for her penchant for travel as she is for her singing. After recently visiting Bangladesh on a Goodwill Ambassador trip, Shakira treated her boyfriend to a romantic Roman holiday.

The Latin American songstress and her beau Antonio del la Rua spent the weekend in the city of Rome, taking in the sights and spending some quality time together.

The pair hired a tour guide to escort them around the famous landmarks native to the historic city. And the "Hips Don't Lie" singer wasn't taking any chances of catching a cold, wearing a winter coat and gloves.

Shakira and Antonio stopped by a couple of museums (the Capitolini and Berberini) and checked out the Pantheon, the Forum Ruins, and Popolo Square on their sightseeing tour.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Shakira and Antonio vacationing in Rome (December 29).

Get real: People will want to connect in 2008 (USATODAY.com)

Next year, our friends in China will be feting the Year of the Rat. Well have no such luxury. Here in the USA, itll be the Year of Getting Real. Or so says a brain trust of marketers, activists and cultural anthropologists who live to dissect our shopping, eating, viewing, networking and lifestyle habits.

The coming 366 days - yes, its a leap year - promise to be rife with drama, considering the Hollywood shutdown, the real estate downturn and a scrappy upcoming election. In reaction, they predict, well be all about avoiding artifice and affectation and embracing the tangible and practical.

Here are seven back-to-basics shifts to look forward to in 2008:

Social networking 2.0

So far, the bulk of the hoopla surrounding MySpace and Facebook has focused on kids connecting with kids. But the coming year will see social networking expropriated like never before by Mom and Dad as they push to make more efficient use of their time as well as stay in touch with their aging parents.

"In the 1950s, multiple generations lived if not with each other then certainly in the same town. Today, that model is dead, and sites like Facebook are essentially a replacement for that nuclear family," says Peter Sealey, a longtime tech-industry marketing adviser and founder of The Sausalito Group.

"Adults will turn to these sites to ask three questions of their loved ones: How are you? Where are you? And what are you doing?" he says. "The conversation on these social networking sites will flow between kids, parents and seniors."

Sealey says the increasing pace of everyday life makes the once simple act of picking up a phone to see what book a friend has read seem time-consuming.

"With social networking sites, you can tell friends what movie youve just seen or find out that your mother is going to be playing bridge for the day, seamlessly and efficiently," he says. "As the Wi-Fi network grows nationally, this is the way well stay in touch."

Expert central

The Web may well have put the world at our fingertips, but many of us are feeling as if its getting a wee bit crowded out there. In 2008, those companies that can help us navigate that sea of information and misinformation will become trusted friends, says Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst with Port Washington, N.Y.-based market research giant The NPD Group.

"This new year will be all about simplification," Cohen says. "Well be looking for help in eliminating clutter in our lives, and that means looking for names and brands that we trust. In a way, its like going back in time."

He says that means companies with brick-and-mortar locations will fare better wooing customers than Web-only outfits. Cohen also suspects that blogging and other amateur online efforts will wane. "The average person may well be shouting I want a say, but thats created an absence of legitimacy on the Web," Cohen says.

What consumers will value most isnt innovation but expertise. "Well listen to those we deem worth listening to, because were tired of all the noise out there," he says. "Maybe itll be Oprah, or maybe its Consumer Reports, but were going to stick with those brands that offer reliable information. In that sense, bigger will be better."

Group think

The enormity of our pressing national issues will cause us to band together to push governmental and business leaders to provide relief and guidance, says Hans Eisenbeis, senior editor at Iconoculture, a consumer trends research company based in Minneapolis.

"Consumers are saying reality bites, and they want elected officials as well as corporate chiefs to step up and help find some solutions," he says, a significant shift away from "the do-it-yourself, less-government-is-better-government attitude of past years."

Eisenbeis says we should expect to see more examples of "people banding together to help each other out," whether its groups picketing home loan companies or individuals starting so-called peer-to-peer lending programs to assist those experiencing foreclosure and personal bankruptcy.

"Theres a were all in it together feeling out there thats only going to grow as more people get affected by issues such as housing and health care," Eisenbeis says. "People are going to lean on each other and push those in power to find the necessary solutions."

Green redux

The message delivered by An Inconvenient Truth and its Nobel Peace Prize-winning star, Al Gore, was both simple and dire: Work to stop global warming now, or else. That mandate probably left many feeling either overwhelmed or bullied into a narrowly focused green to-do list.

Next year, people will take a step back from that mass movement and make up their own minds about the ways in which they can contribute to the planets health, says Zem Joaquin, editor in chief of ecofabulous.com, a blog aimed at showing that style and eco-consciousness can walk hand in hand.

"What started as a reactionary movement - you know, Poor polar bears, but what can I really do? - will really turn into something more personal next year," says Joaquin, whose home just north of San Francisco was outfitted with the environment in mind, from its vintage furniture to its concrete countertops.

"Itll be about picking out what matters to you and pursuing that," she says. "For me, its about material choices (in furnishings) and indoor air quality. But the cause will be different for each one of us, and thats OK."

And for the less-than-motivated, the good news is that you may not have to do much to be green as companies make the eco-changes for you. "A good example is Wal-Mart, who continue to push their suppliers to reduce the packaging used with their products," Joaquin says. "So itll be even easier to go green."

New civility

No, next year were not likely to find all our doors held open or stacks of thank-you notes in the mailbox. But theres a feeling that the hardships were likely to face next year will be met by a return to manners, says Peter Post, great-grandson of etiquette maven Emily and lead presenter of the Emily Post Institutes Business Etiquette seminars.

"Etiquette used to mean rules for rules sake, and thats not what were talking about here," Post says. "Whats really at issue is a civility that helps take the stress out of our daily lives. Its about using etiquette as a tool to achieve pleasant personal and professional relationships, which in turn will only help with our overall lives."

Post says he doesnt expect to see men laying down their coats over mud puddles. But he does believe that more people will work on not letting disagreements explode into vitriol, which is particularly possible with a hotly contested election coming up.

Next year could prove a tipping point in favor of a renewed appreciation of etiquette, Post says, a reaction to a "me-centric, informal world that runs on technology, which requires that we respond to people quickly and not thoughtfully, and at a distance instead of face to face. I think well wake up to the fact that our lives will be more pleasant by being nice."

Radical acceptance

Anthropologist Robbie Blinkoff is convinced that the new year will find more people responding to the problems affecting the USA - such as the war and the economy - by setting out on a soul-searching mission that eventually will lead them to engage fully with the questions at hand.

"We heard so much about people trying to live off the grid, but theres no such thing as that. Its really about reconnecting to the grid and finding out what youre really meant to do on it," says the co-founder of Context-Based Research Group in Baltimore, which helps product planners read the cultural landscape. "The first step is accepting the situation at hand, to know that you cant know what will happen, and be OK with that."

Blinkoff says arriving at a place of "radical acceptance" - a term derived from a book of the same name by psychotherapist Tara Brach - is a process that requires conquering the inevitable fear that comes with bad news.

"Whats great about the term radical acceptance is that it implies, rightly, that we dont have any choice but to confront the reality of our lives," Blinkoff says. "So maybe you cant personally stop a war. But you can help a neighbor in need. And hopefully that will ripple."

Pleasure revenge

OK, being nice to neighbors could be a way in which we regain our true sense of self. Then again, theres another possibility: glorious, damn-the-torpedoes, guilt-free indulgence - pleasure revenge, in the words of Faith Popcorn, founder of BrainReserve marketing consultancy.

"We just cant take all this bad news, so to some degree you start to understand the lets fiddle while Rome is burning attitude, which will only increase," Popcorn says. "People will be eating more red meat, drinking, smoking."

Celebrity culture offers up a template "that says, Let me party now, Ill take care of the rest tomorrow, whether its a quick divorce or a trip to rehab," she says. "So the rest of us figure, fine, well just have our own bacchanal."

Popcorn says evidence of escapist behavior can be found everywhere from Second Life (the virtual world where online players take on alter egos, even marrying other avatars) to Las Vegas (whose pitch-perfect ad campaign slogan, "What happens here, stays here," speaks for itself).

"People feel like, I cant keep track of the terrorists or save the planet, so the heck with it, Im going to have fun, " she says.

"But the big repentance will come," she cautions. Just not now.

"Look for that in 2009."

Pete Wentz?s Year-End Retrospect

Monday, December 31, 2007

PETE WENTZ'S YEAR-END RETROSPECT

As New Year's Eve is now upon us, many celebrities are traveling to be with friends and loved ones to ring in 2008. Pete Wentz was spotted with Ashlee Simpson at the Miami International Airport yesterday, looking relaxed and excited to move into the new year.

And why not? The Fall Out Boy bassist/lyricist tells press that 2007 was an amazing year for him, both personally and professionally.

Wentz said, "On a personal level, this year I've allowed myself to find happiness. In some bizarre way, I've always felt guilty about being happy before. But now, to me, it's a big deal, and I'm letting myself be OK with being happy--happy in an honest, genuine way, not a medicated way, which is good."

The 28-year-old musician also looked back on his philanthropic efforts of the year with fondness. "On a grander level than me, I guess my biggest achievement this year was going to Uganda and seeing the plight of people in a vastly different place than my own, getting a different perspective."

Perhaps 2008 will be the year of Pete's big screen success. "I don't want to be 'the dude in the band' forever. I'm thinking of maybe doing dark, small roles in independent movies. I'm not thinking of getting a million dollars a picture on a big budget movie, just low-key things just for myself. I've never really had a chance to play a character outside myself or the heartthrob guy. I probably have a desire to be someone besides who I am, kind of. We'll see how that goes, but don't expect me to be trying to get an Oscar."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Ashlee and Pete at Miami Airport (December 30).

Jennifer Garner Honored By Her Home State

Monday, December 31, 2007

JENNIFER GARNER HONORED BY HER HOME STATE

It may not be an Oscar, but Jennifer Garner is still thrilled. Yesterday she was awarded the title "West Virginian of the Year."

Charleston, West Virginia's newspaper The Charleston Gazette-Mail proudly announced yesterday their choice to name Garner as their top pick for the honor, "For her dedication, work ethic and unique role as role model and ambassador for West Virginia,"

The "Alias" actress confessed her love for her home state (she moved there when she was four years old), saying, "I like to do the things that are familiar. I like to see people I grew up with. I always go to Taylor Books. I love going home to my church - Christ Church United Methodist. I probably visit a Dairy Queen, and I love the farmer's market."

And Jen's younger sister, Susannah Carpenter (who still lives in Charleston) agrees. "Everyone in my family has a deep love of West Virginia." Mom Pat Garner added, "She's pretty passionate about her love of West Virginia. She just considers it home."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Jen out on a NYC stroll with Violet and at the Richard Rodgers Theater late the same evening (December 29).

IBM to buy Israeli startup for $300 million: report (Reuters)

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - International Business Machines Corp (IBM.N) is in advanced talks to buy Israeli start-up XIV Information Systems for 300 million to 350 million, financial daily Globes reported on Monday.

XIV officials declined to comment.

According to Globes, XIV has developed a system that replaces conventional storage technologies through the use of grid technology and less expensive hardware.

(Reporting by Sergio Tjong-Alvares, Editing by Erica Billingham)

Nicole is NOT pregnant!

An aide to Nicole Kidman insists the star is NOT pregnant!!

Game Group sees year profit ahead of forecast (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) - British computer and video games retailer Game Group Plc (GMG.L) said it expected its full-year profit to be ahead of an average market forecast after continued strong sales in the run-up to Christmas, boosting its shares.

Shares in Game Group, which have outperformed the UK general retailers index by around 184 percent this year, were 9.5 percent higher at 254 pence at 3:08 a.m. EST, valuing the company at around 870 million pounds (1.74 billion).

The company, which earlier this month said it was performing slightly ahead of expectations in the run-up to the key Christmas trading period, said profit before non-recurring costs and tax for the year to January 31 would be no less than 70 million pounds, up from 29.5 million the year before.

Game Group had been expected to report an underlying pretax profit of about 58.9 million pounds this year, according to the average forecast of 12 analysts polled by Reuters Estimates.

On December 11, Game -- which sells computer and video games, consoles and accessories to more than 800 shops in Britain and abroad -- said like-for-like sales rose by 44.1 percent in the 45 weeks to December 8.

The company said it would report fully on Christmas trading for the six weeks to January 12 on January 15.

(Reporting by Mike Elliott, Editing by Erica Billingham)

Rastaman Blondy pleads for ICoast peace in landmark concert (AFP)

ABIDJAN (AFP) - Ivory Coasts biggest reggae star Alpha Blondy staged Sunday his first concert in his homeland since it was split by a failed 2002 coup, calling on his countrymen to put their bloody past behind them.

President Laurent Gbagbo and some 5,000 fans turned up for the "Peace and Reconciliation Concert" in the picturesque coastal town of Grand Bassam, which served as the countrys capital in the early years of French colonial rule.

The dreadlocked and jean-clad Blondy kicked off the landmark concert with "Jerusalem," one of his biggest hits.

"Ivory Coast needs all its children to accomplish a durable and lasting peace," Blondy said, before encouraging his "big brother," President Gbagbo, to address the excited crowd.

"I have come here to tell you that 2007 was a good year and it allowed us to stabilise the civil war and put an end to the conflict," Gbagbo said.

"We must have elections in 2008," he added.

Nearly 1,000 policemen were deployed at the sprawling venue for the 24-hour concert.

The worlds top cocoa producer, Ivory Coast was split in half by a 2002 rebellion against Gbagbo, with international peacekeepers monitoring the north-south buffer zone that is in the process of being dismantled.

But prior to the unrest, the former French colony was hailed as a beacon of peace and prosperity in troubled west Africa and upheld as a continental model during the long rule of its founding president, Felix Houphouet-Boigny.

Record data breaches in 2007, groups say (AP)

BOSTON - The loss or theft of personal data such as credit card and Social Security numbers soared to unprecedented levels in 2007, and the trend isn't expected to turn around anytime soon as hackers stay a step ahead of security and laptops disappear with sensitive information.

And while companies, government agencies, schools and other institutions are spending more to protect ever-increasing volumes of data with more sophisticated firewalls and encryption, the investment often is too little too late.

"More of them are experiencing data breaches, and they're responding to them in a reactive way, rather than proactively looking at the company's security and seeing where the holes might be," said Linda Foley, who founded the San Diego-based Identity Theft Resource Center after becoming an identity theft victim herself.

Foley's group lists more than 79 million records reported compromised in the United States through Dec. 18. That's a nearly fourfold increase from the nearly 20 million records reported in all of 2006.

Another group, Attrition.org, estimates more than 162 million records compromised through Dec. 21 -- both in the U.S. and overseas, unlike the other group's U.S.-only list. Attrition reported 49 million last year.

"It's just the nature of business, that moving forward, more companies are going to have more records, so there will be more records compromised each year," said Attrition's Brian Martin. "I imagine the total records compromised will steadily climb."

But the biggest difference between the groups' record-loss counts is Attrition.org's estimate that 94 million records were exposed in a theft of credit card data at TJX Cos., the owner of discount stores including T.J. Maxx and Marshalls. The TJX breach accounts for more than half the total records reported lost this year on both groups' lists.

The Identity Theft Resource Center counts about 46 million -- the number of records TJX acknowledged in March were potentially compromised. Attrition's figure is based on estimates from Visa and MasterCard officials who were deposed in a lawsuit banks filed against TJX.

The breach is believed to have started when hackers intercepted wireless transfers of customer information at two Marshalls stores in Miami -- an entry point that led the hackers to eventually break into TJX's central databases.

TJX has said that before the breach, which was revealed in January, it invested "millions of dollars on computer security, and believes our security was comparable to many major retailers."

With wireless data transmission more common, hackers increasingly are expected to target what many experts see as a major vulnerability. Eavesdroppers appear to be learning how to bypass security safeguards faster than ever, said Jay Tumas, the head of Harvard University's network operations, at a recent conference for information security professionals.

"Within a year or two, these folks are catching up," Tumas said.

The two nonprofit groups' 2007 data also show rising numbers of incidents in which employees lose sensitive data, as opposed to cases of hacking.

Besides TJX's problem, major 2007 breaches include lost data disks with bank account numbers in Britain, a hacker attack of a U.S.-based online broker's database and a con that spilled resume contact information from a U.S. online jobs site.

"A lot of breaches are due to inadequate information handling, such as laptop computers with Social Security numbers on them that are lost," Foley said. "This is human error, and something that's completely avoidable, as opposed to a hacker breaking into your computer system."

Attrition.org and the Identity Theft Resource Center are the only groups, government included, maintaining databases on breaches and trends each year. They've been keeping track for only a handful of years, with varied and still-evolving methods of learning about breaches and estimating how many people were affected.

Despite those challenges, the two nonprofits say it's clear 2007 will end up a record year for the amount of information compromised, because of greater data loss and increased reporting of breaches.

Both groups acknowledge many breaches may be missing from their lists, because they largely count incidents reported in news media that they consider credible. Media coverage has risen in part because of the growing number of states requiring businesses and institutions to publicly disclose data losses. Thirty-seven states, plus Washington D.C., now have such requirements.

Because of proliferation of such laws, "it may take a year or two before things stabilize and we can see what's really happening," Foley said. "If that's the case, then we'll know whether businesses are practicing better information-handling techniques."

Groups: Record data breaches in 2007 (AP)

Attorney wants Spears deposition soon (AP)

NEW YORK - The attorney for Kevin Federline says he wants to depose Britney Spears soon, the latest step in the former couple's ongoing child-custody battle.

"Britney Spears will have her deposition early (next) year," Mark Vincent Kaplan told People.com late Saturday outside a Beverly Hills restaurant. "We've got a lot to talk about."

Spears, 26, called in sick to a court-ordered deposition Dec. 12, although she was photographed that day driving with a friend.

"She was, in fact, out later that day and night," Kaplan said. "It's not fourth grade where you get a doctor's note and it's all OK."

Spears and Federline have been wrangling for months over custody of their sons, 2-year-old Sean Preston and 1-year-old Jayden James.

Federline, 29, has temporary custody of the children because Spears, who has limited visitation rights, has defied court orders. Spears and Federline were married in October 2004 and finalized their divorce in July.

Minggu, 30 Desember 2007

Willie, Lenny, Dolly releasing albums in '08 (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Whats the biz to do when the top-selling album of 2007 was a Christmas project released in November, Josh Grobans "Noel," and the second-best was a soundtrack to Disneys "High School Musical" movie sequel?

Superstars underperformed, and not enough up-and-comers took their commercial fortunes to the proverbial next level. Still, theres a wealth of highly anticipated albums heading into stores later in 2008, including new sets from the likes of Madonna, U2, Metallica, Mariah Carey and Shania Twain.

In the meantime, Billboard presents a peek at the music youll be hearing about in the first quarter.

JANUARY

Willie Nelson, "Moment of Forever" (Lost Highway, January 29)

The latest salvo from the legendary Nelson was produced by country superstar Kenny Chesney and Buddy Cannon. While Nelson contributed three songs, the 74-year-old also tapped the songwriting talents of Randy Newman (on the poignant "Louisiana 1927"), Kris Kristofferson, Big Kenny of Big & Rich and Dave Loggins, among others. Nelson also covers Bob Dylans "Gotta Serve Somebody" and Dave Matthews "Gravedigger," while the bluesy "Worry B Gone" is a duet between Nelson and Chesney.

Sarah Brightman, "Symphony" (Angel/EMI Manhattan, January 29)

Mega-selling soprano Brightman furthers her crossover ambitions here with songs featuring Kiss Paul Stanley ("I Will Be With You"), Andrea Bocelli ("Canto Della Terra") and Fernando Lima ("Pasion"), in addition to a cover of Faith Hills "There Youll Be" sung in Italian. "Symphony" will be supported with a PBS special during spring pledge-drive season and also sets up "Repo! The Genetic Opera," Brightmans film debut, due later in 08.

Motel, "17" (Warner Music Latina, January 29)

Motel rode a pop/punk wave in Mexico with the success of its 2006 self-titled album, but its U.S. exposure was mainly limited to Texas and Puerto Rico. Warner Music Latina has bigger plans for "17," which debuted at No. 23 on the Mexican sales charts in November, according to trade group Amprofon. Out digitally since November 20, to coincide with an early pitch for the single "Y Te Vas," the album will arrive January 29 stateside on CD. The label is courting pop network Super Estrella with a more commercial single.

FEBRUARY

Lil Wayne, "Tha Carter III" (Cash Money)

Widespread leaks forced the rapper to move this project from last fall to February. Wayne has collaborated with everyone from Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado to Kanye West and the Game, but its unclear what exactly will wind up on the finished project. "I did ask for a list of the songs that were leaked, so I can throw some new joints on there," he says. "I switched the beat up to a lot of them, because the rap is already out there and everybody loves the song, whatever the song shall be."

Nas, "Nigger" (The Jones Experience/Def Jam)

Never one to back down from a challenge, Nas is moving forward with the controversial title of this album, originally expected in December. With production from DJ Toomp, Jermaine Dupri and Sean "Diddy" Combs Hitmen crew, the rapper pulls no punches on tracks like "Youre a Nigger Too" and "The Fear." "Theres a fun level to the album," he told MTV. "Theres an attractive, sexy, aspect to it; a stylish aspect, a flashy aspect. It takes negatives and makes them good."

Ja Rule, "The Mirror" (The Inc.)

On the heels of a public feud with 50 Cent and a 2005 FBI case against Inc. principals Irv and Chris Gotti, Ja Rule calls "The Mirror" a growth process that covers a lot of substantive ground. "This is a very grown-up album, expressing a lot of true feelings," says the artist, who worked with such producers as Channel 7 and Erick Sermon. "But its a fun album as well--a dramedy." Tracks include the "Eleanor Rigby"-sampling "Judas" and "Damn," a song Ja Rule says he wrote with Mary J. Blige, Jennifer Lopez and Christina Milian in mind.

Nicole Scherzinger, "Her Name Is Nicole" (Interscope)

Shes dominated the charts and the airwaves with the Pussycat Dolls, but vocalist Nicole Scherzinger is finding solo success a bit harder to come by. Her debut album was bumped last fall from October 16 to November 20 and then to February, after initial singles "Whatever U Like" featuring T.I. and "Baby Love" failed to dent the Billboard Hot 100. Collaborations have been put to tape with Sting, Snow Patrols Gary Lightbody, Akon and Kanye West, but word is Scherzinger may cut some new tracks as well.

Sheryl Crow, "Detours" (A&M/Interscope, February 5)

"The songs are very inspired by the last three years of events in my life," Crow says of a time that found her battling breast cancer and splitting with partner Lance Armstrong. First single "Shine Over Babylon" is "is very environmentally conscious, in the tradition of Bob Dylan," while Crows infant son can be heard on the tune "Lullaby for Wyatt."

Lenny Kravitz, "It Is Time for a Love Revolution" (Virgin, February 5)

Kravitz played nearly all the instruments on his first effort in three years, which was recorded at his studio in the Bahamas as well as Miami, Paris and New York. "The last record was still very natural, but it had a cleaner sound," he says. "On this one, I was really into using more of the room mics and getting a lot of spill. I wanted to hear the walls and the room." The result is a more-stripped down feel on rockers like "Bring It On," "Love Love Love" and the fast boogie "Will You Marry Me."

Anthony Hamilton, "Me" (So So Def/Zomba Label Group, February 5)

On his third album, R&B crooner Hamilton says fans will find songs that are "full of life and situations we all go through, the changes of men and women and relationships with God and family and children -- and the political side of Anthony Hamilton." Look for the album to include Diane Warrens soul-oozing ballad "Do You Feel Me," which also appeared on the "American Gangster" soundtrack. Collaborators include Mark Batson, Kelvin Wooten, James Poyser and the Avila Brothers.

Jack Johnson, "Sleep Through the Static" (Brushfire/Universal, February 5)

Johnsons latest album was recorded on tape machines that ran on 100% solar-powered energy. First single "If I Had" is a lighthearted love song with swirling electric guitar arrangements. Much like prior efforts, Johnson rarely meanders into the minor keys, though songs like "They Do, They Dont" tread into deeper and sometimes darker subject matter. Johnson says, "Some of the songs are about raising (kids). Some of the songs are about the world that these children will grow up in; a world of war and love, and hate, and time and space."

Dolly Parton, "Backwoods Barbie" (Dolly, February 5)

The country legend veers between new material and interpretations of Smokey Robinsons "The Tracks of My Tears" and the Fine Young Cannibals "She Drives Me Crazy" on her new effort, which is being released on her own Dolly Records imprint. Look for the title cut to appear in the forthcoming Parton-spearheaded musical "9 to 5," based on her classic 80s film. A world tour kicks off in Februray, preceded by club shows in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.

Simple Plan, "Simple Plan" (Atlantic, February 12)

After two sets of energetic pop/punk, Simple Plan collaborated with Timbaland associate Nate "Danjahandz" Hills, 90s pop svengali Max Martin and rock producer Dave Fortman for an album that brings the noise but also incorporates dance grooves, hip-hop beats, power balladry and, on first single "When Im Gone," synthesizer loops. "There was sort of a realization that we needed to really take chances and just go for it and . . . challenge ourselves," drummer/co-writer Chuck Comeau says. He and frontman Pierre Bouvier actually wrote an initial set of songs they abandoned because they werent quite moving Simple Plan forward. "We dont want to become the band that just stays where they are," Comeau says.

Rick Ross, "Trilla" (Slip-N-Slide/Def Jam, February 19)

The Miami rappers sophomore album was supposed to be out in time for Christmas, but a few clearance snafus forced the project into early 08. One of the affected tracks was the DJ Toomp-produced "This Me," which Ross calls "a real personal record I wanted to make sure got on the album." R. Kelly guests on current single "Speedin," while Jay-Z, Pharrell, T-Pain, Nelly and Freeway make their presence felt on other tunes. "Its going to be the biggest street album of the year," Ross promises.

Janet Jackson, "Discipline" (Island, February 26)

After a nearly 10-year stint at Virgin, Janet Jackson is starting fresh with boyfriend/Island Urban Music president Jermaine Dupri by her side. Island Def Jam chairman Antonio "L.A." Reid is personally steering her project, with assistance from Rodney Jerkins (on the single "Feedback"), Ne-Yo, Stargate, Tricky Stewart and the-Dream. "Janets (new) music is exciting," Reid says. "My guess is that Janet, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis will do something together because they have such magic. But weve experimented with things for no other reason than to find some freshness and give her some different challenges musically."

Erykah Badu, "Nu Amerykah" (Universal Motown, February 26)

Breaking a five-year hiatus, Badu is set to return with "Nu AmErykah," which she says was inspired by her two children and the direction of contemporary American culture. "The first half of the album speaks to my creative interpretation of Francis Ford Coppolas Koyaanisqatsi, and the second half is more traditional," she says. Working with producers Sa-Ra, Kareem Riggins, Mike Chavarria, Madlib, Bilal and the late J Dilla, Badu crafted 18 tracks of funky, 808 bassline-driven R&B music, which will be spread across two separately sold discs. The 9th Wonder-produced "Honey" is the first single and is climbing Billboards Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and "Soldier 7" may be the second.

Goldfrapp, "Seventh Tree" (Mute, February 26)

Goldfrapp fans are in for a noticeably different sound from the British duo on their fourth album. Although it doesnt completely eschew the synth-fueled dance grooves of prior efforts, theres a greater emphasis on ethereal, psychedelic pop in the vein of early Air. "We did talk quite a lot about what kind of instruments would get that kind of warmth and that kind of sound we wanted," Alison Goldfrapp says. "Wed never used acoustic guitars before. We wanted the sound to be delicate, but not weak."

MARCH

Ashlee Simpson, "Bittersweet World" (Geffen)

With Timbaland, Kenna and the Neptunes Chad Hugo providing the beats, Simpson indulges her 80s fetish on her third album. The sassy "Boys" imagines the Cardigans "Lovefool" atop a Chic rhythm, and theres a "Beat It" vibe on the chugging "Rag Doll." "I almost wish I lived my 20s in the 80s," says Simpson, who was born in 1984. "A lot of the record is a bit cheeky. Sometimes Im writing about something serious, but it was fun for me to kind of goof around as well." Simpson put in a fair share of 14-hour days in the studio; often shed leave at night and return the next morning to find that Hugo had crafted a song based on conversations from the previous day. "Everybody really had their hands in this album," she says.

The Offspring, TBA (Columbia)

For its eighth record, the Offspring headed to the studio with an unexpected producer in tow -- Bob Rock, best-known for his work with Motley Crue and Metallica. He didnt change the Orange County, Calif., punk bands sound too much, though; lead singer Dexter Holland describes one fan hearing new tracks and proclaiming it to sound like "new old Offspring." Holland also sought guidance from Rick Rubin throughout the process, and describes the bearded one as an "invaluable resource."

Gavin DeGraw, TBA (J)

It will be close to five years since the release of his debut, "Chariot," when DeGraws new set hits stores. The currently untitled album features a more seasoned, edgier version of the 30-year-old songwriter, whose tuneful voice will be heard over more guitars and more "primal" piano lines. "I played really simple piano parts in order to get out of the way of the melody and the lyrics, to enhance whats meant to be heard," the New York resident says. Produced by Howard Benson, the album features first single "In Love With a Girl," the playful "Cop Stop" and the catchy-chorused "Young Love."

Estelle, "Shine" (Homeschool/Atlantic)

The first artist inked to John Legends label offers a fresh helping of R&B and soul on "Shine," augmented by guest turns from Kanye West, will.i.am, Cee-Lo, Wyclef Jean and Legend himself. "Its all about the songs and music," Legend says. "British soul artists havent come with the right music. Estelle has the right music and producers; her music will speak for itself. Shes undeniably a star."

Alan Jackson, "Good Time" (Arista Nashville, March 4)

With a new single, "Small Town Southern Man," already climbing Billboards Hot Country Songs chart, one of the genres most reliable hitmakers will return in March with his 15th studio album. "Good Time" also includes the Martina McBride duet "Never Loved Before," the self-explanatory "Country Boy" and "Sissys Song," a tribute to a deceased family friend. Jackson wrote all the tunes, which were produced by longtime colleague Keith Stegall.

Bauhaus, "Go Away White" (Bauhaus Musik, March 4)

The good news for Bauhaus fans: "Go Away White" is the groups first studio album since 1983. The bad news: There will be no further activity from the legendary goth band, which reunited in 2005 for the Coachella festival and later toured the world, but has since splintered due to internal tensions. "We have that gothic tag," drummer Kevin Haskins says. "But if you actually listen to our music, theres a lot of humor and light." Pointing to cuts like "Eternal Summer of the Damned," "Adrenaline" and "Black Stone Hearts," he says, "With this album, I see all that. It all came out again."

Michael McDonald, "Soul Speak" (Universal Motown, March 11)

Though the idea of a third Motown album was broached, McDonald wanted to engage in a little "soul speak" for his next album. The Simon Climie-produced set features a variety of covers like Van Morrisons "Into the Mystic," Stevie Wonders "For Once in My Life," Bob Marleys "Redemption Song," a bluesier treatment of Leonard Cohens "Hallelujah" and three originals that McDonald says "seemed to fit on the record." The covers, he adds, "are songs I remember hearing as a kid that really changed my musical direction or turned my head around. They were more sophisticated than the average pop song."

Moby, "Last Night" (Mute, March 11)

The bald techno mavens Mute debut "is best-described as an eclectic dance record," according to the man himself. "I Love to Move in Here" features veteran rapper Grandmaster Caz, who co-wrote "Rappers Delight," while two tracks are "big, piano-driven rave anthems." There are also "some atmospheric songs and some techno songs that sound like buildings falling down," Moby says.

Leona Lewis, "Spirit" (J/Syco, March 18)

The 2007 winner of the United Kingdoms "X Factor" talent contest shocked the industry when "Spirit" became the fastest-selling debut in U.K. history. Its first single, "Bleeding Love," also logged multiple weeks atop the U.K. singles chart. The albums U.S. rollout comes under the watchful eye of RCA Music Group chairman Clive Davis. "She has power and range and this ability to transform a song. Thats what the world will see," says Davis, whose clout attracted such contributors as Dallas Austin, Ne-Yo, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Walter Afanasieff and Salaam Remi.

Panic! at the Disco, TBA (Decaydance/Fueled by Ramen, March 25)

For its second album, this Las Vegas four-piece is relying less on ProTools and more on actual instruments. "If anything, it sounds more like a band," guitarist/lyricist Ryan Ross says. "Weve been tracking live and doing minimal overdubs." Many of the songs are influenced by "bands that my parents grew up on," Ross says, citing such classic rock acts as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and the Beach Boys. "Im getting into that early rocknroll stuff," he says. Lyrically, songs like "Things Have Changed" and "Nine in the Afternoon" move away from the "whole one-liner, sarcastic thing" and focus on "everyday things," Ross says.

Reuters/Billboard

Paris Hilton Parties It Up With K-Fed

Sunday, December 30, 2007

PARIS HILTON PARTIES IT UP WITH K-FED

It was yet another wild weekend in Sin City for Paris Hilton, as the hotel heiress made her way from club to club in Las Vegas on Saturday night (December 29).

In town to host a New Year's Eve celebration at Luxor, Paris, along with sister Nicky Hilton, started things off at LAX nightclub.

Upon entrance, the former Simple Life star spotted a mohawk-sporting Kevin Federline posted up at a VIP table with his parents, brother and friends. Paris proceeded to visit with K-Fed, as the two seemed to have quite a good time together.

From there, the Hilton sisters hit the exit and headed over to Pure nightclub for an hour or so. While there, Paris posed for pictures and visited the DJ booth - where she proceeded to do a little provocative dance to the grins of her nearby security squad.

Afterwards, it was back to the hotel for a little beauty sleep. After all, Paris has to get ready for her hosting duties on Monday night.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Paris, Kevin and Nicky at LAX and Pure last night (December 29).

Jimmy Fallon Updates Marital Status (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Jimmy Fallons jingle bells were playing the Wedding March this year.

The 33-year-old Fever Pitch star and producer Nancy Juvonen, 40, tied the knot Dec. 22 in an intimate ceremony on Necker Island in the Caribbean, according to the actors rep.

No details were released, except that the nuptials took place with close family and friends in attendance, publicist Ina Treciokas said.

This is the first marriage for both.

Fallon popped the question to Drew Barrymores longtime pal and Flower Films production partner in August at sunset, on the dock outside the Juvonen familys lakeside home in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire. In addition to the romantic setting, the actor further tipped the scale in his favor with a one-of-a-kind emerald-cut diamond ring designed by Neil Lane.

Shes the coolest girl in the world, Fallon told People of his fiance in October.

Juvonen, whose credits include such Barrymore fare as Charlies Angels, Duplex, 50 First Dates, Music and Lyrics and the upcoming adaptation of the self-help book phenomenon Hes Just Not that into You, also worked on the Farrelly Brothers Fever Pitch, which starred Fallon as a Red Sox-obsessed math teacher who romances Barrymores type-A workaholic.

Fallon, whose impressions of Carson Daly on Saturday Night Live were enough of an improvement on the late-night hosts actual persona to land the young comic on the list of possibilities to succeed Conan OBrien next year, most recently appeared in Factory Girl and recently wrapped The Year of Getting to Know Us.

Maybe it was playing an emotionally scarred commitment-phobe in the dramedy opposite Lucy Liu and Sharon Stone that made Fallon realize he was more than ready to take the plunge in real life.

Study: Young adults heavy library users (AP)

NEW YORK - Young adults are the heaviest users of public libraries despite the ease with which they can access a wealth of information over the Internet from the comforts of their homes, according to a new study.

That's especially true for those who had questions related to health conditions, job training, government benefits and other problems. Twenty-one percent of Americans age 18-30 with such questions have turned to public libraries, compared with about 12 percent among the general adult population with problems to solve.

Education-related tasks -- making decisions about schooling, paying for it and getting job training -- are the most common problems drawing people to libraries, according to a joint study from the Pew Internet and American Life Project and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

And people are going to libraries not only for the Internet computers there but also for library reference books, newspapers and magazines.

"The age of books isn't yet over," said Lee Rainie, Pew's director.

The study found that library usage drops gradually as people age -- 62 percent among those 18-30 compared with 32 percent among those 72 and up, with a sharp decline just as Americans turn 50.

"It was truly surprising in this survey to find the youngest adults are the heaviest library users," Rainie said. "The notion has taken hold in our culture that these wired-up, heavily gadgeted young folks are swimming in a sea of information and don't need to go to places where information is."

Leigh Estabrook, a retired professor of information science and sociology at the University of Illinois, said young adults used to finding information online are likely to crave even more and realize they need to turn to libraries to get it.

Rainie added that young adults are the ones likely to have visited libraries as teens and seen their transformation into information hubs, with computers and databases alongside stacks of printed books.

A 1996 report from the Benton Foundation, a nonprofit group that studies the digital age, had warned that Americans ages 18-24 "are the least enthusiastic boosters of maintaining and building library buildings. They are also the least enthusiastic of any age group about the importance of libraries in a digital future."

That generation now uses libraries to solve problems at half the rate as the current 18-30 set, the new study found.

In the decade since the Benton report, Internet access has grown from about 44 percent of public libraries to more than 99 percent. Many libraries have rearranged spaces or moved into new quarters to accommodate the expansion in computers. In many places, individual study carrels gave way to long tables where patrons can interact.

"We're seeing a lot of conversion of what may have been stack areas, warehouse areas," said Loriene Roy, president of the American Library Association, which was not involved in the study. "Libraries are creating social spaces."

The study also found library usage lower among those without Internet access or only dial-up access, especially when their income also is lower, even though for them, the library might be their only source of high-speed Internet terminals.

But when they have a problem to solve, they turn to libraries as heavily.

"We know everyone has problems and needs for information, and libraries still need to reach out and make sure people know" about the resources available, Roy said.

The telephone survey of 2,796 adults, including 1,702 Internet users, was conducted June 27 to Sept. 4 and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. To get meaningful conclusions on low-access users, past survey participants were called back to boost numbers, and the results were weighed to reflect the general population.

Beta Watch: Spokeo, RescueTime, Zoho Show 2 (PC World)

Spokeo: Providing The 411 On Your Friends

With the explosion of social networks, fracturing is inevitable: Some of your friends are on MySpace, other buddies use LinkedIn, and still others are addicted to Twitter. Spokeo helps you keep track of everybody from one spot. The free service scans your address book, and finds your friends accounts on any of 30 networks and services, including old-school Friendster, photo spot Flickr, and even Amazons Wish List. When your friends post new musings or pictures, Spokeo lets you know. Spokeo has one big hole--it doesnt monitor Facebook--but otherwise, its scarily complete. The site displays only information youre authorized to view, but I still find it a little creepy that I am now fully informed about what kind of sheets a casual business acquaintance wants for his birthday.

RescueTime: Charting What You Do

Ever get to quitting time and wonder where your workday went? If you spent much of your day on your computer, RescueTime will tell you exactly what you were doing. After you download RescueTimes free monitoring software, the program keeps track of how long you worked in a specific application or browsed at a particular Web site. The software is smart about recognizing when youre actively working and when youve merely left the system on during your lunch break. Afterward you log in to your account on the services site to see detailed graphs illustrating what youve been up to. The site combines data from any PC you use that has the monitoring software running. In addition, you can apply such tags as work or gaming to applications, to categorize how you spend your time. You may find the answer disturbing.

Zoho Show 2: Improved Online Presentations

The second generation of Zohos free, Web-based PowerPoint replacement, Zoho Show, gets closer to Microsofts program, with some cool collaborative features. This version of Show brings new themes, the ability to add shapes and clip art, and more options for formatting text and arranging images. Show is certainly more capable than Googles bare-bones equivalent. The developers promise an improved import function, but I still encountered problems when I pulled a PowerPoint presentation into a prerelease version of the application; graphic elements on the pages displayed improperly. You can deliver your presentation remotely from within Zoho Show, and you can chat with participants and even allow them to take over the presentation.

Love, others may follow Radiohead's no-label lead (Reuters)

DENVER (Billboard) - Rock band Radioheads decision to release its new album "In Rainbows" by itself -- online, without a record labels help and at any price the user chose -- rocked the industry last fall.

Some hailed it as the beginning of the end for record labels. Other dismissed it as merely a publicity stunt. Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher told Reuters the group would follow such a strategy "over my dead body."

But everyone wants to know: Whos next? The following 10 acts represent where the smart money is on such speculation. Let the games begin.

PRINCE

Hes already shown a willingness to distribute music outside traditional label structures by releasing new music on his Web site, via his NPG Music Club and by offering his latest album as a covermount with the Daily Mail newspaper in London. Prince is also staging a massive effort to "gain control of the Internet" by suing the Pirate Bay and forcing independent fan clubs to remove images and other content, suggesting perhaps that he wants all eyes on his site in the future.

TRENT REZNOR/NINE INCH NAILS

After a highly publicized departure from label Interscope and Universal Music Group, Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor came right out and declared his intention to release the groups next album from its Web site for 5. He also collaborated with Saul Williams on the "Niggy Tardust" release, which was offered online in a Radiohead-like fashion. This one is money in the bank.

COURTNEY LOVE

The singer penned a rambling stream-of-consciousness post on her MySpace page admitting her fascination with the Radiohead model and said she would consider something similar in the future. Her latest album, provisionally titled "How Dirty Girls Get Clean," was supposed to be released last year but has yet to appear; Love is also not presently signed to a label.

DAFT PUNK

The techno groups new live set, "Alive 2007," appeared on iTunes a week before it did physical formats, so clearly the act is interested in digital releases. Although still signed to Virgin, Daft Punks Thomas Bangalter told Billboard last summer that hes open to experimenting when free to do so. "What we might be interested to do from an artistic point of view might not have the same agenda as a major label for using physical formats," he said. "Personally, we still buy music, but we hardly buy any physical music. Weve definitely changed our habits."

. . . AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD

The group left Interscope last fall with no small degree of animosity, and is rumored to be considering a digital-only self-release in partnership with indie digital distributor IRIS. The Texas-based outfit is working on a new album, expected in August.

CHUCK D/PUBLIC ENEMY

Chuck D is already releasing his own material and that of Public Enemy under his primarily digitally distributed label SLAMjamz. Expanding his love for Internet releases with the pick-your-price angle of Radioheads move is just the kind of anti-authority rebellion that he and his crew are known for.

SUFJAN STEVENS

The prolific indie rocker has almost complete control over his work through his label Asthmatic Kitty, and has a proven willingness to do things differently. He even gave away full rights to one of his songs as a prize in a Christmas songwriting contest opened up to all fans. At the rate he puts out material, Stevens may easily decide to just push his songs online as soon as theyre done rather than wait for a more traditional model.

PEARL JAM

The Seattle group already sells live recordings directly to fans through a proprietary Web interface, and has a history of eliminating the middleman to make its work more affordable to fans. With a distribution and payment model already set up for the live material, it would be a simple matter for the group to add studio albums as well. Pearl Jam has the freedom to do it, as it is signed to Sony BMGs J label on a per-album basis, as opposed to a long-term deal.

UNDERWORLD

After ending its deal with V2 in 2005, the electronica duo launched an official online store called the Riverrun Project, which focuses on lengthy one-off tracks bundled with digital photos. The group cited the desire to make new music available immediately, rather than wait years for an album release. Underworld is now signed to ATO imprint Side One Recordings but remains free to sell music via Riverrun whenever it chooses, sources say.

DEPECHE MODE

Eleven studio albums in, these synth-pop stalwarts arguably no longer need a major label in their corner. The group, which recorded for Sire since 1981, can still fill arenas and land new tracks on DJ playlists without the support of radio.

Reuters/Billboard

Will CES 2008 Live Up to the iPhone? (PC World)

Microsoft chair Bill Gates has a tough job ahead of him when he kicks off the keynote speeches at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2008 in Las Vegas next week.

Hell be hard-pressed to make sure CES outshines the Macworld Conference & Expo. Last year Steve Jobs stole the technology-world spotlight at Macworld when he announced the iPhone.Thenewsovershadowed everything at CES, and the device has been as big a hit as everyone thought it would be. Hes on tap to speak again at Macworld this year, and rumors say Apple could reveal anything from its own ultramobile PC to an online movie rental service.

What will Gates announce? Last year rumors of the iPhone--and poor scheduling, with the two shows running at nearly the same time--prompted some people to skip part of CES to hear Jobss speech at Macworld. At least this year the scheduling is better, with Macworld starting just after CES ends. But what Microsoft rumors are floating around? Vista Service Pack 1? Internet Explorer 8? The Xbox 360 might get motion-sensing game controllers so it can compete with Nintendos Wii? Yawn.

Details on the rumored next-generation Windows OS, code-named 7, might be interesting; but since Vista is still new for most people, its hard to guess what a new Windows OS might look like. The most exciting Microsoft rumors today are corporate, not product-oriented--namely, that the software giant might buy Yahoo or Bloomberg.

CES officially runs January 7 through 10 in Las Vegas, but Gates keynote is on Sunday, January 6. The show is one of the largest technology expositions in the world, with companies displaying thousands of gadgets to an estimated 150,000 attendees. The Macworld expo is from January 14through 18 in San Francisco.

New Products On Display

A few disconcerting signs that CES might not be so hot this year have appeared. One is the fact that show promoters are pushing out lists of sports stars, actors, and other celebrities who will be on hand at the show, including Yoko Ono, race car driver Danica Patrick, actor Michael Douglas, world champion Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz, and singer Mary J. Blige.

Certainly, so many new and improved gadgets appear at CES every year that companies have to find ways to stand out. More than 2700 companies will be jostling to show off their wares at CES in venues that take up several huge buildings, including the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Sands Expo and Convention Center, and most of the meeting rooms in The Venetian and other resort hotels.

But does CES need celebrity power to take the place of hot gadgets? So far, only a few trends and product announcements are known to be on the horizon for the show.

Mobility is a major theme this year due to strong sales of laptop PCs, which buyers are starting to favor over desktops. The notebook computer market is growing 30 percent a year,in contrast tosingle-digit growth for desktops.

Motorola is expected to show off new handsets and other products at CES, while Yahoo is said to be previewing new mobile technologies, which may possibly counter Googles Android. Some companies may evenintroduce Gphones made with the Google software. Rumors say that Taiwans HTC has handsets that it has designed for Googles software, and is currently tweaking and perfecting the devices.

Companies are also expected toexhibit satellite technology for mobile TV, as well as HDMI (High Definition Multiple Interface) technology to let users connect high-definition camcorders and cameras to their HDTV for video and picture display.

Show attendees will also see laptop computers with huge hard drives of500GB to 1TB, as well as a number of new ultramobile PCs and smart phones.

Samsung is expected to unveil a 31-inch to 40-inch OLED TV (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode television set) that uses less than half the electricity of a comparable-size LCD TV and is only 4.3 millimeters thick--far easier to mount on a wall than LCDs, which are five to ten times larger.

This year, green is gold at CES. Companies are clamoring to become known as environmental allies with less-toxic or more-power-efficient PC gear. Expected products range from a PC made from corn by Fujitsu to a laptop PC from Asustek that uses bamboo for its casing. The Fujitsu PC uses plastics made from biodegradable products, including castor beans and, its U.S. publicist says, corn. Does that really make the casing biodegradable? In the end, the company will have to prove that the casing does break down, and how long the process takes. If it cant, thenperhaps Fujitsu will be a good corporate citizen and offer a free-recycling program to buyers.

Other companies are expected to show off energy-efficient components (includingmicroprocessors, memory chips, and batteries) andfull systems (including servers, PCs, laptops, and more).

Automotive electronics will be more prominent at this years CES, andthe selection will extend beyondGPS devices (of which there will be many). Rick Wagoner, chair and CEO of General Motors, will give a keynote speech at CES, purportedly about new technology for cars.

Electronics have found their way into more parts of cars, including orchestrating how hybrid cars use their different power sources (such as gas and electricity). Other car technologies include software, such as Sync,that will let youtell your car to turn on the radio or answer the phone, so you can keep your hands on the wheel.

At CES wellfind plenty of new things to check out. But well have to seewhether the show can beat out the Macworld expo for this years technology spotlight.

Generation Y biggest user of libraries: survey (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than half of Americans visited a library in the past year with many of them drawn in by the computers rather than the books, according to a survey released on Sunday.

Of the 53 percent of U.S. adults who said they visited a library in 2007, the biggest users were young adults aged 18 to 30 in the tech-loving group known as Generation Y, the survey by the Pew Internet & American Life Project said.

"These findings turn our thinking about libraries upside down," said Leigh Estabrook, a professor emerita at the University of Illinois and co-author of a report on the survey results.

"Internet use seems to create an information hunger and it is information-savvy young people who are most likely to visit libraries," she said.

Internet users were more than twice as likely to patronize libraries as non-Internet users, according to the survey.

More than two-thirds of library visitors in all age groups said they used computers while at the library.

Sixty-five percent of them looked up information on the Internet while 62 percent used computers to check into the librarys resources.

Public libraries now offer virtual homework help, special gaming software programs, and some librarians even have created characters in the Second Life virtual world, Estabrook said. Libraries also remain a community hub or gathering place in many neighborhoods, she said.

The survey showed 62 percent of Generation Y respondents said they visited a public library in the past year, with a steady decline in usage according to age. Some 57 percent of adults aged 43 to 52 said they visited a library in 2007, followed by 46 percent of adults aged 53 to 61; 42 percent of adults aged 62 to 71; and just 32 percent of adults over 72.

"We were surprised by these findings, particularly in relation to Generation Y," said Lee Rainie, co-author of the study and director of the Pew project. In 1996 a survey by the Benton Foundation found young adults saw libraries becoming less relevant in the future.

"Scroll forward 10 years and their younger brothers and sisters are now the most avid library users," Rainie said.

The survey of 2,796 Americans was conducted by telephone from late June through early September and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. It was funded by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services, an agency that offers federal support for U.S. libraries and museums.

(Reporting by Julie Vorman; Editing by Bill Trott)

Canseco plans sequel to tell-all doping book: reports (AFP)

NEW YORK (AFP) - Retired slugger Jose Canseco, who unveiled steroid doping by Major League Baseball stars in a 2005 book, plans a sequel to his tell-all memoir "Juiced" that promises to add names to the sports shame.

The New York Daily News and New York Post reported Sunday that Cansecos lawyer, Robert Saunooke, said the former Oakland As star has signed a publishing deal.

Canseco hopes to have the new book available for sale when the season opens in March at Tokyo and promises to plug what he considers holes in the Mitchell Commission report that linked more than 80 men to performance-enhancing drugs.

"It will be an unjaundiced view, without the rose-colored glasses that (Mitchells report) obviously put on," Saunooke said.

The book has a working title of "Vindicated" but actual vindication for the once-bulky slugger is unlikely even given the massive scope of the doping plague that has tainted the past decades results in Americas pastime.

"Juiced" was Cansecos confession of dope cheating and named Mark McGwire and Jason Giambi as steroid takers, helping to spark hearings before US lawmakers in which McGwire refused to deny doping while under oath.

More hearings before US lawmakers are planned in January but without players being involved, diminishing the importance and drama that can be expected given prior threats and inaction when applying pressure to baseball officials.

Hometown paper honors Jennifer Garner (AP)

Miley Cyrus and Nick Jonas Call It Quits

Sunday, December 30, 2007

MILEY CYRUS AND NICK JONAS CALL IT QUITS

Teen sensation Miley Cyrus keeps chugging along on her Best Of Both Worlds tour, playing the second of a two-day stint at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ tonight (December 30).

Carrying her puppy, the Hannah Montana singer/actress was spotted leaving her hotel to head to the arena earlier today, followed close behind by her opening act, the Jonas Brothers.

Big news on tour centers around the relationship between Miley and Nick Jonas - who have reportedly broken off a relationship which began at the beginning of the tour.

A source told the NY Post, "They just broke up, but not many people even knew they were going out."

Meanwhile, as expected, a spokesman for Cyrus didn't offer any info, simply saying, "We do not comment on our client's personal life."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Miley and the Jonas Brothers leaving their hotel to head to tonight's show (December 30).

'Treasure' tops weekend at $35.6 million (AP)

LOS ANGELES - Fortune-seeker Nicolas Cage, lonely guy Will Smith and a pack of talking chipmunks ended Hollywood's year on a happy note. Cage's "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" was the No. 1 movie for a second weekend with $35.6 million, followed by "Alvin and the Chipmunks" with $30 million and Smith's "I Am Legend" with $27.5 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Those hits along with a solid crop of other holdovers and new movies that opened Christmas Day capped a year-end hot streak for Hollywood, whose business soared the last few weeks after a sluggish fall.

"It's being spread among three or four key movies, then another six or seven or eight below that, which is great," said Mark Zoradi, president of the motion-picture group at Disney, which released "National Treasure."

The top 12 movies took in $169.2 million, up 18 percent from the final weekend of 2006, when "Night at the Museum" led the box office with $36.8 million.

Hollywood will finish the year with record revenues of about $9.7 billion, up from the previous best of $9.45 billion in 2004, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers.

Since prices are higher, the revenue represents actual admissions that were up only a fraction over 2006's and fell well short of modern Hollywood's record of 1.6 billion tickets sold in 2002.

With the holidays falling on Tuesday, many people have been taking five-day weekends, a boost for the movie business. Many students are off from school until next week, too.

"It's turned into like a two-week-long weekend for the movie industry," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers.

"National Treasure," a sequel with Cage chasing historical clues to find a legendary city of gold, raised its domestic total to $124 million.

"Alvin and the Chipmunks," from 20th Century Fox, lifted its haul to $142.4 million. The Warner Bros. hit "I Am Legend," with Smith as a plague survivor who may be the last man alive, has climbed to $194.6 million.

Opening with huge numbers in limited release was Paramount Vantage's "There Will Be Blood," starring Daniel Day-Lewis in a tale of greed and violence during California's oil boom in the early 20th century. Playing at just two theaters in New York City and Los Angeles, "There Will Be Blood" took in $185,525 over the weekend and $309,703 since opening Wednesday. It expands to the top 10 markets Friday.

"There Will Be Blood" joins other films of violence and misdeeds such as "No Country for Old Men," "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" and "Michael Clayton" aiming for top honors at the Academy Awards. All scored well in this month's Golden Globe nominations.

Oscar campaigner Harvey Weinstein, who delivered such best-picture winners as "Shakespeare in Love" and "Chicago" while at Miramax, said he hoped his feel-good drama "The Great Debaters" would stand out for awards consideration among all the blood-soaked fare. The Weinstein Co. release, distributed by MGM, took in $6.3 million over the weekend and $13.5 million since opening on Christmas.

A Golden Globe nominee for best drama, "The Great Debaters" features director and star Denzel Washington alongside Forest Whitaker in a story of a black debate team in the 1930s South.

"We're late, but we're hoping we can get that last best-picture spot" for the Oscars, Weinstein said. "The other movies are pretty bloody, but this is an uplifting American story."

Oscar nominations come out Jan. 22.

Other films that debuted on Christmas had solid weekends. "Alien vs. Predator: Requiem," a sci-fi horror sequel from 20th Century Fox, took in $10.05 million, raising its total since opening day to $26.9 million. Sony's Loch Ness monster fantasy "The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep" grossed $9.2 million and lifted its sum to $16.8 million.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Wednesday.

1. "National Treasure: Book of Secrets," $35.6 million.

2. "Alvin and the Chipmunks," $30 million.

3. "I Am Legend," $27.5 million.

4. "Charlie Wilson's War," $11.8 million.

5. "Juno," $10.3 million.

6. "Alien Vs. Predator: Requiem," $10.05 million.

7. "The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep," $9.2 million.

8. "P.S. I Love You," $9.1 million.

9. "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street," $8 million.

10. "Enchanted," $6.5 million.

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On the Net:

http://www.mediabynumbers.com

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Universal Pictures and Focus Features are owned by NBC Universal, a joint venture of General Electric Co. and Vivendi Universal; Sony Pictures, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; DreamWorks, Paramount and Paramount Vantage are divisions of Viacom Inc.; Disney's parent is The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is a division of The Walt Disney Co.; 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures and Fox Atomic are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros., New Line, Warner Independent and Picturehouse are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a consortium of Providence Equity Partners, Texas Pacific Group, Sony Corp., Comcast Corp., DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and Quadrangle Group; Lionsgate is owned by Lionsgate Entertainment Corp.; IFC Films is owned by Rainbow Media Holdings, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corp.

Stone joins hostage-release mission (AP)

VILLAVICENCIO, Colombia - With its fearsome record of kidnapping and violence, Colombia's largest guerrilla army might seem a nightmare group to encounter. But not to Oliver Stone. The American filmmaker is jumping at a chance to meet with a group the U.S. classifies as a terrorist organization.

Leaving the glamor of Hollywood far behind, Stone arrived in the steamy Colombian city of Villavicencio on Saturday as part of a mission led by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to retrieve three hostages held for years by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.

"I have no illusions about the FARC, but it looks like they are a peasant army fighting for a decent living," Stone said in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press at his hotel bar. "And here, if you fight, you fight to win."

Stone is part of an international delegation expected to fly by helicopter as early as Sunday into the country's eastern jungles, an area the size of France, to collect the captives: former congresswoman Consuelo Gonzalez, Clara Rojas and her young son Emmanuel, who was fathered by one of her guerrilla captors.

When asked if he's concerned the heavily armed guerrillas could turn on him, he joked: "Well, if they took us, they would be swapping three hostages for 10," referring to himself and observers from five Latin America countries, France and Switzerland, along to supervise the release. "If I were them, that would make sense.

"But seriously, no, I'm not worried. The FARC knows there would be universal condemnation if they did that," said Stone, whose arrival has ramped up the media circus that already surrounds the pending handover.

More than 150 journalists have camped out in Villavicencio's airport since Thursday, waiting for the rescue operation to begin.

The mission seemed unlikely to be completed Sunday as originally promised by Venezuela, as rescuers were still awaiting word from the rebels on the exact location of the release. Meanwhile a rocket narrowly missed an air force cargo plane as it was landing in southern Colombia, underscoring the difficulties involved in crossing live battle lines.

The famous director's presence in this violent country, struggling through its fifth decade of civil conflict, is a worry to his Colombian and Venezuelan guides. They prohibited him from leaving his hotel in Villavicencio, a town rocked in recent years by turf battles between rival drug traffickers and far-right death squads.

Chavez personally invited Stone to join the rescue delegation after the pair, who say they are mutual admirers, met for the first time earlier this week in Caracas.

Dispatching rescue helicopters from Venezuela on Friday, Chavez joked that Stone was President Bush's emissary to the operation, while Stone called Chavez "a great man."

The hostage release could improve prospects for hundreds of other rebel-held captives, Stone said, including three U.S. defense contractors whose four-year confinement he said he has closely followed.

"This release could be a new start, a break in the ice -- and the release has been well-propelled forward by Chavez," said Stone. "The important thing is that we build momentum so everyone can be released."

The mission also gives Stone a chance to get the lay of Colombia's political landscape for two upcoming movies.

Footage from the liberation will form part of a documentary on "North America, and that includes our relations with South America and people like Chavez and Castro," he said, without giving details.

He is also producing of one of two rival Hollywood biopics about Pablo Escobar, history's most infamous cocaine trafficker, who was gunned down in 1993 after a bloody war against the Colombian state.

The movie, which Stone hopes to film in Colombia, is based loosely on a book by Escobar's brother, Roberto.

"Escobar is still very controversial. Many people hate him but many people love him," said Stone, who first rendered the drug-smuggling underworld as a screenwriter for "Midnight Express" and "Scarface." "To some, he was this Robin Hood figure, giving money to the poor."

Sienna Miller?s Birthday Engagement

Sunday, December 30, 2007

SIENNA MILLER'S BIRTHDAY ENGAGEMENT

It's turning out to be quite the holiday season for Sienna Miller, as the Factory Girl actress recently celebrated her 26th birthday by reportedly getting engaged to Welsh boyfriend Rhys Ifans.

The couple, who were spotted over the weekend leaving the Wolseley Restaurant after having lunch in Mayfair, "officially got engaged on Sienna's birthday after spending Christmas together in Wales."

Before the birthday proposal, a source told Britain's Sun newspaper of Rhys' plan: "He's collected 10 presents for Sienna of varying shapes, sizes and prices. They are all part of a plan for a romantic night in with a mountain of presents."

The insider added: "He is keeping tight-lipped on a proposal but hinted to he has had a Welsh designer craft a special ring for her, which can only mean one thing."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Sienna and Rhys leaving their lunch outing and at Sienna's mom's house (December 30).

Christina Aguilera: Ready To Pop

Sunday, December 30, 2007

CHRISTINA AGUILERA: READY TO POP

With less than two weeks to go until her scheduled delivery date, an ever-growing Christina Aguilera was spotted out running errands with husband Jordan Bratman last night (December 29).

The Dirrty singer has been busily preparing for her cesarean section - slated to take place on January 10th. According to the latest reports, Christina and her hubby are considering the names Jackson, Jake and Max for their son.

A NY Post insider told: "Although Christina and Jordan want to make up their minds on a name before the birth, part of them wants to wait and see what the baby's personality is like before assigning a name for life."

Also taking up much of Aguilera's time leading up to her pregnancy are the duties involved with setting up a new house.

She and Bratman bought Ozzy Osbourne's pad earlier this year, with Christina admitting to being a fan of the The Osbournes show and "falling in love with the kitchen on T.V.".

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Christina out in Hollywood with Jordan last night (December 29).

James Brown's children challenge will (AP)

AIKEN, S.C. (AP) -- Five of James Brown's children say their late father's will should be invalidated because his former advisers used undue influence to get him to create charitable trusts that the advisers would profit from, according to court documents filed this week.

The children were largely left out of the financial portion of the will, which leaves the bulk of the soul singer's money to trusts set up to educate Brown's grandchildren and needy kids.

Atlanta attorney Louis Levenson said the children discovered earlier wills drafted by their father that cast doubt on whether he truly wanted to leave his estate to charity.

"There was sporadic indication that Mr. Brown intended to benefit some charities, but the circumstances surrounding the making of these documents have always been clouded in mystery," Levenson said.

Five Brown children are challenging the will in Aiken County Probate Court. They claim Brown's longtime advisers Buddy Dallas, Alford Bradley and David Cannon convinced the soul singer to create the trusts so the advisers would profit from managing the two charities after Brown died.

Dallas denied the allegations and called attempts to void the will "an act of desperation."

"No one told James Brown what to do," Dallas said, adding that if he were going to use his influence to benefit himself, "I would have just influenced him into giving me something."

The Brown children challenging the will are Deanna Brown Thomas, Venisha Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar and Larry Brown. A sixth child named in Brown's will, Terry Brown, has hired a different attorney.

One grandchild whose tuition would be paid for by the trusts has accused his relatives of trying to break the charities to get the money.

Most of Brown's estate, including his Beech Island home and rights to his image, name and music, would go to the James Brown "I Feel Good" Trust for the education of needy children in South Carolina and Georgia, as well as to a family trust to educate his grandchildren younger than 35.

Brown died on Christmas Day 2006 of heart failure. He was 73.

Just how much money is involved in Brown's estate is unclear. In October, Forbes reported Brown made an estimated $5 million in 2005 alone. But attorneys have said Brown's accounts do not have the money they expected.

Fergie Wraps Up Year in Atlantic City

Sunday, December 30, 2007

FERGIE WRAPS UP YEAR IN ATLANTIC CITY

Wearing a tiara and holding a crystal-studded scepter, Fergie took to the stage of the Borgata Event Center to perform her final show of 2007 to a sold-out crowd.

According to Atlantic City press, "On Saturday, Fergie brought all her hits, including a medley of her popular Black Eyed Peas singles and the full-length version of My Humps."

Continuing on, the spectator told that Fergie took a moment from the show to "discuss the gossip bloggers who have said negative things about her very public missteps (she once urinated on stage) and her relationships."

"This next song is dedicated to those mother f****rs saying negative things!" Fergie said to wild cheers, adding, "By the way, I apologize to all the moms and dads for my filth mouth sometime."

The Duchess also told the concert-goers that "she had a $500 bet with her drummer on the New England Patriots - New York Giants game."

"Does anyone know who is winning?" she asked the crowd. "What's the score?"

When she found out the Giants were ahead 14 to 10, Fergie shouted, "14-10 baby! Wooo!"

Obvious that she put her money on New York, it looks like the Black Eyed Pea singer is out $500, as the Patriots ended up coming back to win the game.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Fergie performing at the Borgata Casino last night, as well as attending the concert after-party (December 29).

Vanessa Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale: Inseparable

Sunday, December 30, 2007

VANESSA HUDGENS AND ASHLEY TISDALE: INSEPARABLE

They just can't spend enough time together! BFF's Vanessa Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale were spotted out on yet another shopping adventure - this time heading to the Lisa Kline boutique in Beverly Hills on Saturday.

The High School Musical co-stars were helped by security as they made their way to the store's entrance, being covered with blankets at one point to shield themselves from photographers on site.

Once inside, Hudgens and Tisdale browsed the store's selection before heading off to grab a bite to eat.

With paparazzi still following them, the Disney duo laughed hysterically as they pulled into a McDonald's drive-thru. Ashley quickly grabbed the grub and jetted for the exit hoping to gain a little privacy and lose the procession which followed them throughout the day.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Vanessa and Ashley's outing yesterday afternoon (December 29).

Gisele Bundchen Lunches, Cheers On Tom Brady

Sunday, December 30, 2007

GISELE BUNDCHEN LUNCHES, CHEERS ON TOM BRADY

Supermodel Gisele Bundchen was spotted making her way through New York City's West Village after grabbing a bite to eat with a gal pal on Saturday.

But the lunch outing was merely a pre-game for the 27-year-old, as Gisele spent the evening cheering on boyfriend Tom Brady and his New England Patriots at Giants Stadium.

And Tom did his best to put on a show for his lady - setting an NFL record for touchdown passes in a season and, more importantly, beating the Giants to cap off the first perfect season in 35 years.

In other news on Gisele, the Brazilian bombshell recently spoke to press about how she, too, has her off days, saying: "Do I feel fabulous all the time? Of course not! You never see yourself in that way. Everyone sees themselves in the morning and thinks, 'Oh God, look at me. And today I have to take a picture, for God's sake. Everyone has those days."

For some reason, we find it hard to believe that Miss Bundchen could look all that bad - even at morning wakeup time!

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Gisele out and about NYC yesterday (December 29).

Hayden Panettiere and Lindsay Lohan Hit Capri

Sunday, December 30, 2007

HAYDEN PANETTIERE AND LINDSAY LOHAN HIT CAPRI

The Capri Film Festival is underway, and celebrities including Hayden Panettiere and Lindsay Lohan have made their way to the small Italian Island for the festivities.

Over the weekend, Hayden and LiLo were spotted sitting next to one another during a gala presentation, while Lindsay also lined up a date with an Italian bartender on Saturday night.

A source close to the situation told: "After a day out and about in Capri, Lindsay Lohan headed back to her hotel, La Palma, to get ready for her date with the Italian Charmer she picked up a few hours earlier...Roman bartender Alessandro Di Nunzio."

But there won't be any random hook-ups for Miss Panettiere, as word has just come forth confirming speculation that the Heroes hottie is dating co-star Milo Ventimiglia.

"He (Milo) called her his girlfriend and said that he loved her," an insider told The Sun.

The Capri Film Festival continues on tonight, with Miss Lohan set to receive an award for her "contribution to cinema".

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Hayden and Lindsay at the Capri Film Festival (December 28-29).

China's Baidu says CFO dies in accident (AP)

BEIJING - The chief financial officer of China's dominant Internet search engine Baidu.com has died after an accident while on vacation in China, the company said.

Shawn Wang, who joined the company in 2004, helped Baidu list on the Nasdaq stock exchange the following year. He died on Dec. 27 during a Christmas vacation in China, the company said in a notice seen Sunday on its Web site. The company did not give further details and officials could not be reached for comment Sunday.

"Shawn's leadership and vision helped transform Baidu into a leading U.S. public company, and his presence will be greatly missed," Robin Li, chairman and chief executive said in the statement.

Baidu.com is the dominant search engine in China, with a 60.7 percent market share, according to research firm Analysys International. U.S. giant Google Inc. is in second place with 23.7 percent.

Conservative William Kristol becomes NY Times columnist (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) - William Kristol, a prominent conservative pundit and magazine editor, has signed on as a columnist for The New York Times, a publication he has often sharply criticized, the newspaper announced on Saturday.

Kristol, 55, is the editor and co-founder of The Weekly Standard, a Washington political magazine with a strongly conservative viewpoint.

He regularly appears on Fox News, and served as Vice President Dan Quayles chief of staff during the administration of President George H.W. Bush.

Kristol, a staunch supporter of the war in Iraq, will write his first weekly column for the January 7 issue, the Times said.

Just last year Kristol promoted the idea that the federal government prosecute the newspaper for disclosing details about its program tracking international financial transactions. Prior to that he wrote that the paper was "irredeemable," the Times noted in its announcement.

The Times is owned by The New York Times Company, a leading media company with 2006 revenues of 3.3 billion including the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe and 15 other dailies.

(Reporting by Chris Michaud; editing by Mohammad Zargham)

The Year of the New Mobile Operating System (PC World)

2007 could be called the year of the mobile operating system.

Since Microsoft entered the scene around five years ago, the smartphone operating system industry has been fairly stable. Symbian, Linux, Research in Motion and Windows Mobile make up the bulk of smartphone software, each to varying degrees of success in different regions.

But in 2007, Apple introduced the iPhone, which runs its own brand of software, and Google announced that next year its Android mobile operating system platform will come out.

The entrance of two new operating systems from well-known brands shakes up the plans of some mobile operators, creates some headaches for end users, presents bigger challenges for application developers and indicates some fundamental changes in the mobile industry.

Smartphone Market Share

To put the discussion in perspective, realize that smartphones make up a relatively small portion of overall mobile phone sales. In 2006, 8 percent of phones sold were smartphones, said Chris Hazelton, an analyst with IDC. Thats set to grow in 2007, but will likely only hit the low double digits, he said.

Why all the interest then? The industry has high hopes that existing phone owners, who now make up a large part of the overall population in developed countries, will want to move on to the next generation of more capable smartphones.

In addition, operators are gradually indicating that theyre stepping aside from their role as gatekeeper and will allow more outside companies to offer phones and services to their customers, opening up new opportunities for software, hardware and Web services companies.

Verizon and AT&T have recently made bold statements indicating that theyre opening up their networks to more devices. While end users might have the option to use a wider variety of devices, Verizons announcement at least comes with a catch. "Its like, OK, well bow to what you want, but be careful what you wish for. You can bring these phones to our network, but if you have problems, dont call us," said Hazelton. Verizon hasnt promised technical support for handsets that run on its network as part of its new open program.

New Handsets, Fewer Restrictions

Still, at the very least mobile customers in general will soon be able to add the iPhone and new Android phones to the list of handsets they can choose from. Thats good and bad for phone customers. "End users will probably need to do a bunch more homework," said Scott Horn, general manager of Microsofts mobile communications business. Thats because theyll need to figure out if the new software can support the features and services they want.

At the same time that operators are opening up to new handsets, theyre also beginning to ease restrictions on which online services customers can use. The trend started in Europe, where operators like Vodafone have said that the bulk of their online data revenue came from services offered by third parties outside of its portal. Operators also learned how difficult it is to build a portal of desirable services. "Its an incredibly resource intensive and expensive undertaking," Horn said. The shift away from the walled garden is just starting in the U.S., he said.

Allowing easier access to Web services is relevant to the software on the phones. Microsoft says that some handset makers and operators are interested in Windows Mobile because of its support of popular Microsoft services like Live IM and Hotmail for mobile users. Google has a whole host of services that it targets at mobile users, from which it hopes to earn advertising dollars. And Apple has cleverly linked the use of the iPhone and its software with iTunes, where customers can buy content.

Operators Reluctant To Change

All of these changes represent a major challenge for many operators. Some operators have in the last year or so said they want to support just a couple of operating systems as a way to cut costs related to support and training, Hazelton said. "I think carriers are kind of backing down on the demand that there be fewer platforms," he said, as a result of the new software hitting the market.

The additional operating systems might also pose a problem for application developers. "It will be hard for application developers to pick," Hazelton said. Developers dont always focus on just one platform, but there will be so many operating systems in the mobile space that it will be difficult for them to choose which will be the most popular. For now in the U.S., BlackBerry and Windows Mobile have the largest developer base and that should continue in the foreseeable future, he said.

But the new operating systems should also serve to grow the number of developers, Horn said. Developers will continue to have to make bets about which platform will pay off. "Thats always been the case. Developers say, wheres the biggest market for my talents and which market has the lowest cost to enter. In many ways, its an economically driven decision for developers," Horn said.

The experts agree that the new operating systems dont pose a threat to any particular existing platform provider. "The more entrants in the near term means faster growth in the category, driving us all up collectively," Horn said. "There will be big players and there will be niche players, well see different business models."

Hazelton agreed. "Theres more a benefit than a threat because it serves to broaden awareness of smartphones," he said.

Danielle Lloyd Gets Physical

Saturday, December 29, 2007

DANIELLE LLOYD GETS PHYSICAL

She's perhaps best known for her Big Brother gig or her tendency to wear skimpy clothes. But Danielle Lloyd has a loftier goal- becoming a fitness queen!

The British babe was busy in London, England today doing press for her new DVD fitness program. And she was showing off a fitter, trimmer form, presumably the result of her exercise regimen.

Lloyd confessed to press that the whole filming process was much messier and mistake-ridden than the DVD showed. "There's a lot to remember, and I kept messing up and doing the wrong moves or getting out of time! Learning the choreography was definitely the hardest thing, but I love a challenge and I got the hang of it in the end."

Prior to the shoot, Danielle confessed that she had plenty of time to get in shape, via the help of a personal trainer. But, nonetheless, it was still a grueling process. "I had a personal trainer for two months before we shot the DVD because I wanted to be in good shape for it. It was such good fun shooting it all, but it's really hard work! I was absolutely knackered by the end of it - we were shooting for about seven hours and barely had time for a break. I couldn't get out of bed the next day. But it was really good fun, and I hope that comes across in the DVD."

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Danielle promoting her new fitness DVD (December 29).

Sabtu, 29 Desember 2007

Morrissey steps in to help Smiths youth club: report (AFP)

LONDON (AFP) - British pop star Morrissey has made a donation to help restore a youth club which his former band, the Smiths, immortalised on one of their albums, the club and his management told a newspaper Saturday.

Morrissey and bandmates Johnny Marr, Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce posed outside the Salford Lads Club in their home city of Manchester, north-west England, for the cover of 1986 album "The Queen Is Dead".

The club, which has become a mecca for Smiths fans from around the world, launched a one million pound (1.4 million euro, two million dollar) restoration campaign earlier this year.

Now the singer has pledged 20,000 pounds to help upgrade the red-brick building, which was established in 1903.

Club secretary Brian Ball told the Manchester Evening News newspaper: "Morrissey and the Smiths made a big difference to the Salford Lads Club by having their picture taken outside in 1986... its a marvellous gesture".

Morrisseys manager Merck Mercuriadis added that the donation was intended as a "private gesture" but the club requested it be made public to encourage further contributions.

Report Questions Future Of Qualcomm's 4G Wireless (TechWeb)

Ultra Mobile Broadband, a fourth-generation cellular technology backed by Qualcomm, is not likely to be widely adopted as it becomes commercially available, according to a report released by ABI Research on Friday.

UMB is expected to go commercial in mid-2009, but none of the carriers has announced plans to test or deploy the technology, ABI Research analyst Nadine Manjaro said in the report.

"While Qualcomm has made many significant contributions to mobile communications, in this case we just have to be realistic. Vendors need to step up and say that they arent going to invest any more resources in developing this technology, since there is virtually no demand for it," Manjaro said.

Instead, ABI suggests the 4G technology of choice will be Long Term Evolution, which in November was picked by the GSM Association, a global trade association representing more than 700 GSM mobile phone operators, as the preferred standard over WiMax and UMB.

LTE is a high-speed cellular technology developed by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project standards organization, known as 3GPP, and is capable of global roaming and reaching peak data rates of up to 100 Mbps. LTE is an upgrade to High Speed Downlink Packet Access, a GSM implementation of a 3G cellular technology.

UMB, also developed by 3GPP and backed by Qualcomm, is a successor to Evolution Data Optimized, a CDMA implementation of a 3G cellular technology. It promises peak data rates of up to 280 Mbps.

Unlike UMB, LTE has won support from Vodafone and Verizon.

Verizon recently disclosed plans to roll out its 4G mobile broadband network using LTE, while also adopting a common access platform with Vodafone to provide services worldwide based on the technology. Verizon and Vodafone, the joint owners of U.S. cellular carrier Verizon Wireless, will begin testing LTE starting next year.

Its estimated by Juniper Research that nearly 24 million subscribers worldwide will be using services based on LTE by 2012.

The other 4G technology under consideration worldwide is WiMax, which has more than 50 commercial deployments under way, said Manjaro. WiMax will take off commercially within the next year or two, and LTE is about four years away from being commercially deployed.

See original article on InformationWeek.com

Matt Damon and Robert Downey Jr.?s Double Date

Saturday, December 29, 2007

MATT DAMON AND ROBERT DOWNEY JR.'S DOUBLE DATE

There's nothing like a celebrity double date. And last night, the city of Miami, Florida was host to two movie stars' dinner date.

Matt Damon and his wife Luciana Barroso joined Robert Downey Jr. and his wife Susan Downey for a taste of Italian cuisine.

The foursome stopped into Quattro Gastronomia Italiana Restaurant to enjoy an evening of gourmet food and wine, and it seems they all had the same color scheme in mind while choosing attire.

Matt and Luciana opted for blue jeans and black shirts, and the Downeys followed suit, also wearing similar ensembles. Always the unique one, Robert chose a bright blue shirt to go under his black zip-up hoodie.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Matt and Robert out with their ladies in Miami last night (December 28).

Children challenge James Brown's will (AP)

AIKEN, S.C. - Five of James Brown's children say their late father's will should be invalidated because his former advisers used undue influence to get him to create charitable trusts that the advisers would profit from, according to court documents filed this week.

The children were largely left out of the financial portion of the will, which leaves the bulk of the soul singer's money to trusts set up to educate Brown's grandchildren and needy kids.

Atlanta attorney Louis Levenson said the children discovered earlier wills drafted by their father that cast doubt on whether he truly wanted to leave his estate to charity.

"There was sporadic indication that Mr. Brown intended to benefit some charities, but the circumstances surrounding the making of these documents have always been clouded in mystery," Levenson said.

Five Brown children are challenging the will in Aiken County Probate Court. They claim Brown's longtime advisers Buddy Dallas, Alford Bradley and David Cannon convinced the soul singer to create the trusts so the advisers would profit from managing the two charities after Brown died.

Dallas denied the allegations and called attempts to void the will "an act of desperation."

"No one told James Brown what to do," Dallas said, adding that if he were going to use his influence to benefit himself, "I would have just influenced him into giving me something."

The Brown children challenging the will are Deanna Brown Thomas, Venisha Brown, Daryl Brown, Yamma Brown Lumar and Larry Brown. A sixth child named in Brown's will, Terry Brown, has hired a different attorney.

One grandchild whose tuition would be paid for by the trusts has accused his relatives of trying to break the charities to get the money.

Most of Brown's estate, including his Beech Island home and rights to his image, name and music, would go to the James Brown "I Feel Good" Trust for the education of needy children in South Carolina and Georgia, as well as to a family trust to educate his grandchildren younger than 35.

Brown died on Christmas Day 2006 of heart failure. He was 73.

Just how much money is involved in Brown's estate is unclear. In October, Forbes reported Brown made an estimated $5 million in 2005 alone. But attorneys have said Brown's accounts do not have the money they expected.

Mobile advertising still in tryout stage (AP)

NEW YORK - In the weeks leading to Christmas, an online wine retailer gave 15 percent discounts to anyone who sent in a photo of its newspaper ad snapped with a camera phone.

SnapTell Inc., the company helping Wine Enthusiast and other merchants offer such services, uses image-recognition software to determine what offer, video clip or other content to return to the phone. In the coming months, the same technology could deliver movie reviews and discounts to anyone snapping a picture of a movie poster or billboard.

It's one of a number of emerging approaches to mobile advertising, an industry still in its infancy but showing promise. More than 80 percent of Americans now own cell phones -- a statistic Jupiter Research analyst Neil Strother equated with "carrying a potential advertising channel in their pocket."

Fast-food chains, carmakers and TV reality shows have run contests and other promotions in which consumers participate by sending text messages. Wireless carriers have begun letting companies run banner ads -- mini-versions of what you might see on a PC. Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc. have brought lucrative search ads to phones.

Advertisers have been spending a little money here, a little there trying to gauge what works on mobile phones. The efforts so far are best described as trials and pilots, lacking in comprehensive strategy.

"It's the Wild, Wild West right now," said Rick Sizemore, chief strategy officer for the tech consultancy Multimedia Intelligence. "This is an interesting and compelling vehicle, but they don't necessarily know who to work with. There are so many options out there -- a lot of hype with no substance, and then a couple of gems."

SnapTell is among Sizemore's favorites.

Gautam Bhargava, SnapTell's co-founder and chief executive, said the company considered the phone's unique qualities -- its lack of regular keyboards in most cases, and the ubiquity of built-in cameras. Rather than require someone to punch in a brand name using a clunky keypad, the company decided to accept picture messages.

"We wanted to make it simple for the end user," Bhargava said. "There's nothing to install on your phone. You don't need to pre-register. We do not have to worry about whether you are with Carrier A, B or C."

Another of Sizemore's favorites is Single Touch Interactive Inc., which plans to unveil in February a program that lets customers activate electronic coupons at drug stores and other retail chains simply by dialing the pound sign on the phone followed by "SAVE." Discounts are automatically applied at the register.

"I don't want to increase the line and have customers be frustrated because someone's fumbling trying to find a coupon" in a text message, said Anthony Macaluso, Single Touch's chief executive. "What we need to do today is not change the behavior of the retail point of sale or the behavior of the customer."

There are still a number of hurdles before mobile advertising can truly take off.

Advertisers now have a good idea what a typical desktop computer can do. Handsets, however, vary in screen size and features -- even the same model can be configured differently depending on a customer's carrier.

And there are also big differences among users: Some people use phones only for calling, some have dabbled with text messaging and others are comfortable surfing the mobile Web and watching video.

"In mobile you can't assume anything," said Derek Handley, chief executive of The Hyperfactory, a mobile ad company. "You need to build programs and campaigns around this fact."

In addition, many users pay for services by the minute, message or kilobyte. Seven ads via text messaging could hike a phone bill by a dollar.

The uncertainty has led to some experimentation in business models, as some wireless carriers and ad companies bet that consumers will embrace ads for free minutes or ring tones.

Virgin Mobile USA LLC, which offers prepaid mobile services, said more than 10 percent of its 5 million customers have signed up for Sugar Mama, a program that lets customers earn up to 75 minutes of free airtime each month simply by watching ads or responding to mobile surveys. PepsiCo Inc., the U.S. Navy and Nintendo Co. have been among the brands participating.

Expect the experimentation to continue in the new year and beyond.

"That's how a new market is being created," said Dan Olschwang, chief executive of JumpTap Inc., an ad-technology company. "People adopt all kinds of stuff they know from other medium and gradually the industry learns how to utilize the best in this new medium that's called the mobile phone."

Internet opens elite colleges to all (AP)

Gilbert Strang is a quiet man with a rare talent: helping others understand linear algebra. He's written a half-dozen popular college textbooks, and for years a few hundred students at the elite Massachusetts Institute of Technology have been privileged to take his course.

Recently, with the growth of computer science, demand to understand linear algebra has surged. But so has the number of students Strang can teach.

An MIT initiative called "OpenCourseWare" makes virtually all the school's courses available online for free -- lecture notes, readings, tests and often video lectures. Strang's Math 18.06 course is among the most popular, with visitors downloading his lectures more than 1.3 million times since June alone.

Strang's classroom is the world.

In his Istanbul dormitory, Kemal Burcak Kaplan, an undergraduate at Bogazici University, downloads Strang's lectures to try to boost his grade in a class there. Outside Calcutta, graduate student Sriram Chandrasekaran uses them to brush up on matrices for his engineering courses at the elite Indian Institute of Technology.

Many "students" are college teachers themselves, like Sheraz ali Khan at a small engineering institute in Peshawar, Pakistan, and Noorali Jiwaji, at the Open University of Tanzania. They use Strang and other MIT professors as guides in designing their own classes, and direct students to MIT's courses for help.

Others are closer to MIT's Cambridge, Mass., campus. Some are MIT students and alumni, while others have no connection at all -- like Gus Whelan, a retiree on nearby Cape Cod, and Dustin Darcy, a 27-year-old video game programmer in Los Angeles who uses linear algebra regularly in his work.

"Rather than going through my old, dusty books," Darcy said, "I thought I might as well go through it from the top and see if I learn something new."

There has never been a more exciting time for the intellectually curious.

The world's top universities have come late to the world of online education, but they're arriving at last, creating an all-you-can eat online buffet of information.

And mostly, they are giving it away.

MIT's initiative is the largest, but the trend is spreading. More than 100 universities worldwide, including Johns Hopkins, Tufts and Notre Dame, have joined MIT in a consortium of schools promoting their own open courseware. You no longer need a Princeton ID to hear the prominent guests who speak regularly on campus, just an Internet connection. This month, Yale announced it would make material from seven popular courses available online, with 30 more to follow.

As with many technology trends, new services and platforms are driving change. Last spring marked the debut of "iTunes U," a section of Apple's popular music and video downloading service now publicly hosting free material from 28 colleges. Meanwhile, the University of California, Berkeley recently announced it would be the first to make full course lectures available on YouTube. Berkeley was already posting lectures, but YouTube has dramatically expanded their reach.

If there isn't yet something for everyone, it's only a matter of time. On iTunes, popular recent downloads include a climate change panel at Stanford, lectures on existentialism by Cal-Berkeley professor Hubert Dreyfus, and a performance of Mozart's requiem by the Duke Chapel Choir. Berkeley's offerings include 48 classes, from "Engineering Thermodynamics" to "Human Emotion."

"It's almost as good as being there," said Whelan, the Massachusetts retiree, of the MIT classes he has sampled. "The only thing that's lacking is the pressure." He says he usually doesn't do the homework assignments, but adds: "Now that I'm not in school, I don't have to do that anymore."

YouTube, iTunes, OpenCourseWare -- none are the full college experience. You can't raise your hand and ask a question. You can't get a letter of recommendation.

And most importantly, almost everywhere, you can't get credit or earn a degree.

That caveat, however, is what has made all this possible.

When the Internet emerged, experts predicted it would revolutionize higher education, cutting its tether to a college campus. Technology could help solve one of the fundamental challenges of the 21st century: providing a mass population with higher education at a time when a college degree was increasingly essential for economic success.

Today, the Internet has indeed transformed higher education. A multibillion-dollar industry, both for-profit and nonprofit, has sprung up offering online training and degrees. Figures from the Sloan Consortium, an online learning group, report about 3.5 million students are signed up for at least one online course -- or about 20 percent of all students at degree-granting institutions.

But it hasn't been as clear what role -- if any -- elite universities would play in what experts call the "massification" of higher education. Their finances are based on prestige, which means turning students away, not enrolling more. How could they teach the masses without diminishing the value of their degree?

But MIT's 2001 debut of OpenCourseWare epitomized a key insight: Elite universities can separate their credential from their teaching -- and give at least parts of their teaching away as a public service. They aren't diminishing their reputations at all. In fact, they are expanding their reach and reputation.

It turns out there is extraordinary demand for bits and pieces of the education places like MIT provide, even without the diploma.

OpenCourseWare's site gets more than 1 million hits per month, with translated versions getting 500,000 more. About 60 percent of users are outside the United States. About 15 percent are educators, and 30 percent students at other universities. About half have no university affiliation.

"I think the fundamental realization is that distance learning will solve the problem of access to certification, but there's a larger problem, which is access to information," says Steve Carson, director of external relations for the MIT initiative.

"If you're going to work as a public health professional, you need the certification," Carson says. "If you're working in a community" -- say, in Africa -- "you don't need the certification. You just need access to the information."

About 7,200 miles from Cambridge, the Polytechnic of Namibia in is the kind of place eager to learn from MIT. Though barely a decade old, the school in the young African nation's capital Windhoek, is poised to play a key role in the country's development. It's one of 84 sites in Africa where MIT has shipped its course materials on hard drives for institutions to store locally on their own networks. With bandwidth costing about 1,000 times its price in the United States, patching into OpenCourseWare over the Internet would crash the school's fragile networks.

CIO Laurent Evrard says Polytechnic takes pride in standards on par with top global peers -- he notes how U.S. exchange students get credit for work there -- and says students like using OpenCourseWear to see how they stack up.

"Everybody here knows about MIT," he says, though it doesn't hurt that the school rector -- its top official -- is an alumnus.

On the opposite coast of southern Africa, Jiwaji says most of his Tanzanian students have never heard of MIT. Students use the courses "because it gives them a tool. They feel lost and they don't have good books," Jiwaji says. "They need a guide to help them."

His distance university -- with 30,000 registered students -- has OpenCourseWare available at centers around the capital of Dar es Salaam. There, it gets an impressive 600 hits per day, mostly in management classes.

Though it's found a wider audience, OpenCourseWare was originally intended for teachers. The idea wasn't just to show off MIT's geniuses but to share its innovative teaching methods. After examining an MIT course called "Machine Structures," Khan, the Pakistani professor, redesigned his lab assignments for a computer science class to get students more involved, asking them to design and build their own microprocessors.

"It really encourages the students to discover and try something new," he said. "Normally the stress here is on how things work, not on creating things of your own."

MIT's free offerings focus mostly on well-organized texts like syllabuses and readings, along with an expanding video lecture collection. Others, like Stanford and Bowdoin College in Maine, provide more polish, editing and features.

Berkeley, meanwhile, is focused less on bells and whistles than on ramping up its ability to roll out content with a system that automatically records and posts lectures. Berkeley's eight YouTube courses drew 1.5 million downloads in the first month, said Ben Hubbard, co-manager of the webcast.berkeley program, and the school is being inundated with requests to post more.

"That's why we're so focused on automation," he said. "Our motto is 'Fiat Lux' -- 'let there be light.' We feel like this is a great way to let the light of Berkeley shine out on the world."

A big obstacle is cost. Professors are reluctant to participate unless staff are provided to help with logistics. A major expense is video camera operators, unless schools can persuade lecturers to stand still at the lectern. MIT estimates OpenCourseWear costs a hefty $20,000 per course. Money from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation started the project, but from now on it will rely mostly on contributions from MIT's budget and endowment, and from visitor donations.

But there are direct benefits. Small schools like Bowdoin can use iTunes to show prospective students the richness of their offerings. MIT reports half its incoming students have already checked out OpenCourseWare.

Meanwhile, half of MIT alumni use OpenCourseWare, too. And alumni who stay connected with the intellectual life at their alma maters are more likely to donate.

MIT and other schools also emphasize the services benefit their paying customers -- the students. On-campus use at MIT and Berkeley spikes during exams, as students review lectures. Fears that technology would hurt class attendance have proved unfounded, at least at MIT, where 96 six percent of instructors reported no decline.

Will the free offerings of elite universities ever reduce demand for the full -- and full-price -- experience at places like MIT? Carson doubts it. Networking, late-night arguments over pizza, back-and-forth with professors -- that's where the real value lies, and even MIT's technology may never catch up with that.

For teachers like Strang, his expanded reach is no more than a minor inconvenience -- occasional e-mailed questions from "students." And it's a major reward.

"My life is in teaching," he says. "To have a chance do that with a world audience is just wonderful."

___

On the Net:

http://ocw.mit.edu

SNL's Fallon marries producer Juvonen (AP)

LOS ANGELES - Longtime "Saturday Night Live" performer Jimmy Fallon and movie producer Nancy Juvonen were married in the Caribbean, a publicist announced Saturday.

Fallon, 33, and Juvonen, 40, were married in a Dec. 22 ceremony on Necker Island "with family and close friends in attendance," said a statement from Ina Treciokas.

It was the first marriage for both.

No other details were released.

Fallon joined "Saturday Night Live" in 1998. He also has made movies, including the 2005 comedy "Fever Pitch," which Juvonen co-produced.

Paris Hilton?s Coffee Date

Saturday, December 29, 2007

PARIS HILTON'S COFFEE DATE

Though their relationship has been rumored to be over, Paris Hilton and her Swedish boy toy Alex Vaggo looked friendly enough as they grabbed some Starbucks in Bel Air.

The "Simple Life" starlet looked playful in a black and white polka dot dress, black stockings, and a white wool overcoat.

Alex extended a little public display of affection to the bleach blonde socialite, putting his arm around her several times during their date. He wore a white long-sleeved collared shirt with some cargo pants and a man-purse.

Perhaps these two are rehearsing for their big SuperBowl commercial gig - reportedly Pizza Hut offered the pair an undisclosed sum of money to star in an ad in which Alex delivers a pizza to Paris' house and they fall in love.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Paris and Alex out for coffee in Bel Air last night (December 28).

Free swap network makes trash treasure (AP)

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - When Laura Gernell heard about a place where people gave away perfectly good things to strangers -- no money changing hands, no questions asked -- she figured it was too good to be true.

But husband Ronald had lost his job as a truck driver and she was temporarily unemployed, at home in a rented, unfurnished apartment with her infant son. With nothing to lose, she joined The Freecycle Network, a Web-based community swap program, and asked if anyone had a sofa to spare.

"I wasn't looking to furnish my whole apartment," says the 32-year-old mom from Marmet, just south of Charleston. "I was just looking for the basics, just something to sit on."

Three people e-mailed with offers, and Gernell used the sofa from that day in 2004 until last summer, when the springs broke. Today she runs West Virginia's largest Freecycle group, 2,100 members strong and part of a far-flung forum where people can find homes for things they no longer want.

"It just has completely floored me, the generosity of people," says Gernell. "Especially in West Virginia because West Virginia is considered one of the poorest states in the nation. But people are very generous. It's amazing."

Freecycle is a global recycling phenomenon. Since it started in Arizona in May 2003, it has grown to more than 4 million members in more than 4,100 cities, from Istanbul to Inwood. It boasts of keeping more than 300 million tons of trash out of landfills every day and has inspired imitators.

There are, says founder and executive director Deron Beal, as many heartwarming stories as there are groups: the American Indian tribe that collected used prom dresses for girls in need; the Hurricane Katrina evacuee who furnished a new home; the 98-year-old man who collects and assembles bicycle parts, then gives what he's built to children; and the woman in Austin, Texas, who collected items for an orphanage in Haiti, then got FedEx to deliver the shipping container for free.

"It's just all sorts of countless acts of random kindness," says Beal, 40, of Tucson, Ariz. "Whatever they want to make out of it, they really can."

Call them corny. Call them cliche. But Freecycle is built on principles that work: One person can make a difference. Giving is better than receiving. One person's trash is another's treasure. Commit an act of kindness and it will be returned.

"It's not like a get-rich-quick scheme. You're not going to get everything you want every time you want it," Gernell says. "The more offers you post, the better outcomes you're going to have."

Beal began his experiment with an e-mail to 30 or 40 friends, inspired by his Dumpster-diving adventures on behalf of homeless men trying to get back on their feet. When his nonprofit group's warehouse was full, he realized he needed a new way to unload.

His network grew to 800 members almost overnight, after a newspaper story started spreading the word.

"From the get-go, it absolutely snowballed, and we're basically doubling in size every year," Beal says. About 30,000 people join weekly, with the single largest group in London, some 40,000-strong.

Though Freecycle caught on first in progressive cities like Portland, Ore., San Francisco and Madison, Wis., Beal says Chicago, St. Louis and New York followed quickly. Then word of mouth took over, with people in the cities telling people in small towns.

"It's very much a viral sort of growth and randomly beautiful," he says.

It's also self-policing, patrolled by 10,000 volunteer moderators who ensure that items are being swapped legally, and that all are G-rated. Playboy collections and porn tapes are a no-no.

"West Virginia was probably one of the slowest states overall for it to really pick up," Beal says, citing lack of Internet access as a likely reason.

Earlier this year, the Public Service Commission estimated that less than 35 percent of West Virginia households had broadband service. A June survey by the Communications Workers of America measured the state's median download speed at 1.12 megabits, one of the slowest rates in the country.

However, West Virginia has more than two dozen Freecycle groups, with thousands of members offering a service Gernell says many people need.

"Even at Salvation Army and Goodwill, you still have to pay for things," she says "With the cost of living the way it is and gas prices the way they are, the prices there are still way more than some people can afford."

Heather Edwards, a moderator of the Martinsburg-Berkeley County group in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle, finds great deals for her four children, who range from 9 months to 15 years old.

"I got a humongous plastic playhouse for the kids," she says. "It costs about $400 new."

Edwards, 35, often drives to Hagerstown, Md., to gather her Freecycle finds.

"They have everything from Sunday coupons to refrigerators," she says. "Yesterday it was a whole dining suite -- a table and six chairs."

She urges novices to post more offers than requests, to avoid being greedy and to use common sense in arranging pickups to ensure personal safety.

Andi Bassett, a Morgantown mom with five children ages 20 months to 10 years, says she'll soon be donating a batch of baby clothes.

"The most appealing thing to me is finding someone who wants my 'junk,' that it's useful to them and they are thankful for my unwanted stuff," she wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press. "And the same is true of other people's 'junk' that is useful to me: I am thankful for it. Freecycle just puts people together."

___

On the Net:

Freecycle Network: http://www.freecycle.org/

Cricket star Pietersen weds pop star bride (AFP)

LONDON (AFP) - England cricket star Kevin Pietersen married pop singer Jessica Taylor in a private ceremony on Saturday, a spokesman said.

Hampshire batsman Pietersen and Taylor, who topped the British singles charts with her former band Liberty X, married at St Andrews Church in the picturesque village of Castle Combe in Wiltshire, south-west England.

Henry Jacob of The Outside Organisation, which represents both the 27-year-olds, said: "We can confirm that today Kevin Pietersen and Jessica Taylor were married.

"The private wedding was attended by close family, relatives and friends of the couple. They are now going away on their honeymoon and will return to the UK in January."

Former England fast bowler Darren Gough was Pietersens best man. England Test captain Michael Vaughan and One Day International skipper Paul Collingwood were among the stars in attendance.

Brooke Shields? Breakfast with Baby Grier

Saturday, December 29, 2007

BROOKE SHIELDS' BREAKFAST WITH BABY GRIER

After all the cooking and cleaning necessitated by the holiday season, sometimes it's nice to just go out for breakfast, rather than make it yourself. At least, that's what Brooke Shields was thinking yesterday morning.

The "Suddenly Susan" actress was spotted out in Brentwood, California grabbing a quiet breakfast with her 8-month-old baby, Grier Hammond, and a girlfriend.

And Brooke was dressed warmly with a white ribbed half button sweater, black scarf, matching black shades and a pair of comfy jeans. Her baby, Grier, has gotten so big, sporting a full reddish coif.

For those of you missing Brooke on the big screen, there's good news. She just finished filming "Midnight Meat Train" with famed horror director Clive Barker, also starring Bradley Cooper. The film is slated to hit theaters in May of 2008.

Celebrity Gossip

Enjoy the pictures of Brooke and baby Grier out in Brentwood (December 28).

Violet Affleck Voted Hollywood?s Cutest Baby

Saturday, December 29, 2007

VIOLET AFFLECK VOTED HOLLYWOOD'S CUTEST BABY

You gotta hand it to Jennifer Garner. She may be wrapped up in her Broadway gig "Cyrano de Bergrac," but she still makes time to take her daughter Violet Affleck out to play in Central Park.

Yesterday, the happy mother and daughter were spotted looking playful, and bundled up to cope with the chilly NYC winter weather. Violet sported a grey and pink tweed coat by Cacharel, a pair of jeans, and some rose/red plum Ecco kids Glow shoes.

When it got extra cold, she pulled up her green and white striped hood to keep her head warm. Oh, and don't forget the adorable beret she wore in her hair.

Violet has been stealing the show from her celebrity baby peers as of late, and was voted the cutest celebrity baby in a poll done by Parade magazine. She beat out the likes of Suri Cruise, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt, and Dannielynn Smith in the competition.

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Jen and Violet's Central Park play date (December 28).

Sean Penn, Robin Wright Penn to divorce (AP)

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. (AP) -- Sean Penn may soon be a single man walking. Robin Wright Penn has filed for divorce from the actor and director, according to media reports.

Papers were filed Dec. 21 in Marin County Superior Court. Wright Penn cited irreconcilable differences as a reason for the split, which was first reported by the Web site CelebTV.com.

The couple has two teenage children and are seeking joint custody.

Penn directed "Into The Wild" and starred as a death row inmate in "Dead Man Walking."

Wright Penn's acting credits include "Beowulf" and "Breaking and Entering."

Mischa Barton Pulls Out Of New Year?s Party

Saturday, December 29, 2007

MISCHA BARTON PULLS OUT OF NEW YEAR'S PARTY

As we've all learned from the adventures of Lindsay Lohan, getting in trouble with drugs and alcohol can severely hamper a celebrity's career. Just ask Mischa Barton.

Earlier this week, the OC hottie was spotted smoking a joint, and later was arrested for DUI in Los Angeles, California. And now she's feeling the aftershock of her bad behavior.

Barton was scheduled to host a grand opening party for Cathouse in Las Vegas later on tonight. But due to her recent indiscretions, she's been pulled from the gig.

An inside source told press, "Mischa can't give interviews on the red carpet or deal with the press right now, so they told her she can't do the event." Situations like this also cause special events coordinators to think twice before booking "bad girls" for publicity appearances.

At press time, Cathouse was desperately searching for a new celebrity to take over the hosting duties, with no success.

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Mischa leaving jail with her family and a sheriff escort (December 27).

Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox Go to Mexico

Saturday, December 29, 2007

JENNIFER ANISTON AND COURTENEY COX GO TO MEXICO

They have their Christmas Eve tradition of dining together at Beverly Hills restaurant Mastros. And now it looks like Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox may be establishing a New Year's tradition as well.

Yesterday the "Friends" friends were spotted boarding a private jet in Burbank, California. Also along for the ride were Courteney's hubby David Arquette, their daughter Coco, and a mystery man.

What's more, the mystery man appeared to be Jennifer's date for the excursion. There's no word yet as to his identity. (As for Aniston's recent pregnancy rumors, her rep simply said, "She is not pregnant.")

Their flight arrived in sunny Mexico a few hours later, and the happy vacationers took to the beach after checking into their luxury beach house digs.

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Jen, Courteney and the gang leaving Burbank and in Mexico (December 28).

Jessica Alba Dishes Out Relationship Advice

Saturday, December 29, 2007

JESSICA ALBA DISHES OUT RELATIONSHIP ADVICE

Hot mom-to-be Jessica Alba is the picture of pregnant health. She was spotted visiting the gym yesterday, prior to stopping by the Bristol Farms market to pick up some healthy grub.

And the newly-engaged "Good Luck Chuck" actress is getting vocal about the dos and don'ts of relationships. In a recent interview, she shared some words of wisdom for young girls in love.

Alba told the interviewer, "Most guys, especially when they're younger, really are only after one thing. To all the girls out there, I don't want to say, 'Don't give your heart to somebody like that,' but wait at least a good year."

Jessica spoke from experience, saying, "You can be in a relationship and do some things, have fun, get to know each other - but don't give them everything. That was something I did at a young age, fell in love and gave him my everything, and I was left with nothing. It took me a long time to put myself back together, and I wish someone would have told me back them to hang on to some of myself."

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Jessica out to Bristol Farms market and the gym (December 28).

Lindsay Lohan?s Personal Pictures Emerge

Friday, December 28, 2007

LINDSAY LOHAN'S PERSONAL PICTURES EMERGE

Lindsay Lohan's ex Riley Giles wasn't all that happy when he found out that he was being dumped by the Mean Girls star.

Unfortunately for LiLo, Giles, who recently bragged about how many times he had sex with her, has already started releasing his collection of private pics from the two's time together.

Some G-rated images of the 21-year-old redhead have already hit the Internet, with more graphic images being offered out to the highest bidder.

Of the situation, a source told press, "Say what you will about their relationship, but I don't think she ever imagined he would do this to her. Lindsay has worked really hard to get clean."

"She's finally the 'old' Lindsay, and now she's got to deal with this."

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures from Riley's collection, along with shots of LiLo in Capri on Friday (December 28).

Microsoft: No evidence in states' claim (AP)

SEATTLE - States pressing for continued scrutiny of Microsoft Corp.'s business practices failed to support their argument with evidence, the software maker said in a court filing Friday.

Microsoft, which was found to be using its operating system dominance to quash other types of competing software, has operated since 2002 under the terms of an antitrust settlement struck with the federal government and 17 U.S. states.

Most of the consent decree, which said Microsoft must help rivals build software that runs smoothly with Windows, was set to expire in November.

But in October, after requests from several states to add five years to federal oversight of the software company, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly pushed the expiration date to Jan. 31, 2008, to allow time to consider arguments made by both sides.

On Dec. 10, after a first round of court filings, the judge asked the states to give "specific factual information and legal argument" to support their claim that allowing most of the consent decree to expire would interfere with ongoing enforcement of the remaining portion.

In its filing Friday, Microsoft said the states failed to back up that claim.

The Justice Department has extended the parts of the consent decree that have to do with technical documentation and server software licensing through 2009.

___

On the Net:

Justice Department documents:

http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/ms_index.htm

Half Of U.S. Households Have Digital TVs, Trade Group Says (TechWeb)

One out of every two U.S. households has a digital television as the nation moves closer to switching to all-digital broadcasting, a trade group said Friday.

U.S. manufacturers are projected to take in more than $25 billion in DTV sales this year, an 11% increase from 2006, according to the Consumer Electronics Association. In 2008, the group is forecasting a 17% increase in unit sales and 13% growth in revenues.

According to the CEA, half of all U.S. households have a DTV, an important milestone as the nation moves away from analog systems. By federal mandate, broadcasters will have to distribute all content digitally in 2009.

Growing in adoption along with DTVs are high-definition televisions, which have a resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 pixels for a clearer, better-defined image. HDTVs are expected to account for 79% of DTV shipments in the United States next year, according to the CEA.

The Federal Communications Commission has ordered all U.S. TV broadcasts to be exclusively digital as of Feb. 17, 2009. The deadline became law early last year. Starting in March 2007, all new TV sets that could receive over-the-air signals were required to include digital or HDTV tuners.

Despite reports of some consumer unhappiness with HDTVs, sales of LCD TVs, the most popular high-definition sets, are growing at an impressive rate. Shipments worldwide are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of nearly 32%, from 41.4 million units in 2006 to 165.3 million units in 2011, according to iSuppli.

Global revenue is expected to reach $116.2 billion in 2011, increasing at a 19.4% compound annual growth rate from $47.8 billion in 2006, iSuppli said.

See original article on InformationWeek.com

Cell phones: The next great ad frontier? (AP)

NEW YORK - Your cell phone is a potential gold mine for marketers: It can reveal where you are, whom you call and even what music you like.

Considering the phone is usually no more than a few feet away, these are powerful clues for figuring out just the right moment to deliver the right coupon for the store just around the corner.

But first marketers will have to wrest the personal profiles from mobile carriers worried that annoyed subscribers might defect to rivals.

"It's proceed with caution," said Jarvis Coffin, chief executive of advertising distributor Burst Media Corp. "Are consumers going to be spooked by the idea that suddenly their phone goes beep and it's a Starbucks offer, and they are standing next to a Starbucks?"

Carriers are now guarding the data zealously, but many people believe it's only a matter of time -- over the next year or two -- before marketers can routinely target ads to a potential customer's location and actions.

Imagine getting pitches for rental cars and hotels the moment you land in San Francisco because an analysis of past calls suggests you tend to take weeklong trips there. Or if day trips to Boston are your thing, you might get an offer for cab service instead.

"My phone has a lot of very specific and detailed information about myself ... information that isn't always going to be resident when I'm at a number of PC browsers," said Rob Adler, chief executive for mobile Web company go2 Media Inc.

The research firm eMarketer estimates that U.S. spending in mobile ads, at about $900 million in 2007, will grow more than fivefold to nearly $4.8 billion in 2011. By contrast, paid search and other online spending will only double, to about $42 billion in 2011.

Mobile ads today are mostly blasted at the mass audiences, with a few carriers offering limited targeting based on users' age, gender, ZIP code and other characteristics.

That should change. Ever since the Federal Communications Commission ruled in 1996 that wireless carriers must help 911 dispatchers identify a caller's location, technology companies and privacy advocates alike have been speculating about making phones' location information available to commercial services and advertisers.

"It's always been the next big thing around the corner the last 10 years, and now we really feel that it is," said Brian Levin, chief executive for Liberty Media Corp.'s Useful Networks Inc., a company that helps outside developers tap location information from cell carriers.

Americans are finally using cell phones for more than calling, joining European and Asian counterparts in embracing data services like text messaging and ring tones.

Devices also are improving, and last summer's release of Apple Inc.'s iPhone unleashed an era of bigger screens and friendlier interfaces for mobile Web browsing.

Advertisers, meanwhile, are starting to experiment with mobile ads. With a boom in GPS devices and location services like maps and child tracking, it's only natural that advertisers, too, will want to take advantage of location information.

The phone's highly personal nature will mean more privacy red flags compared with what's collected when someone surfs the Internet from a regular computer.

Two industry trade groups -- CTIA and the Mobile Marketing Association -- have committees developing guidelines, including how to properly get a customer's permission and periodically remind them of any tracking.

Companies are also developing ways to share profiles with marketers while stripping out sensitive information like names.

On Sprint phones, all targeting to such attributes as age and ZIP code is done on Sprint Nextel Corp.'s end; advertisers give Sprint the ads for the company to place without having to share any data with anyone, spokeswoman Emmy Anderson said.

Meanwhile, an ad-delivery system from Ad Infuse Inc. can be installed entirely on a carrier's own premises so that data remain under the carrier's control.

The wireless industry deserves credit for its caution, said Ari Schwartz, a privacy advocate with the Center for Democracy and Technology. He said advertising and technology companies are the ones having to first prove to wireless carriers "that they have put in a lot of thought about how to do it in a way that won't raise the creepiness factor."

Telecommunications companies face unique federal privacy regulations, requiring notice and permission to use and share calling records for marketing, but carriers believe competition is as important.

"We have great expenses with customers leaving one company and going to another," Verizon Wireless spokesman Jeffrey Nelson said. "One thing I can guarantee Verizon Wireless will not do is get a bump of short-term advertising dollars while scaring and losing our customers in the process."

The challenge will be getting consumers at the right state of mind. You might appreciate that restaurant discount when you're hungry but not if you've just finished lunch.

The mantra, for now, is to avoid the type of backlash that online hangout Facebook recently faced when it enlisted users as endorsers of movies and other products, initially without them necessarily realizing it.

"We know this is a great opportunity for targeting, but we don't want to blow it by overdoing it," said Eswar Priyadarshan, chief technical officer for Quattro Wireless Inc., a mobile ad distributor.

Initial ads tied to location tend to revolve around search terms and other user input rather than GPS detection. If you search for movie theaters in Chicago followed by a search simply for "pizza," Google Inc. will assume you are looking for a pizzeria in Chicago.

Go2 Media lets users enter cities, ZIP codes or specific addresses, but users can activate an "auto locate" feature on some phones.

But current location isn't always as useful as where you're going or what you're doing.

Figuring that out means pairing location information with other behavioral data.

For instance, advertisers might also target to the beginning of a billing cycle, when a customer might be more willing to spend, said Dan Olschwang, chief executive of JumpTap Inc., which is offering targeting technologies to mobile carriers and Web sites.

Working with Britain's Vodafone Group PLC, Yahoo Inc. has been able to target to basic demographics like gender.

Possibilities down the road include targeting by calling patterns, such as whether you make calls to a certain region on weekends but to another on weekdays -- all without the carrier having to reveal anything about the customer's identity.

One day, the mechanism might be in place to even marry location data with purchase history. Say, you've bought a movie ticket for a particular theater and show time, and the phone senses you're at the theater, Yahoo could infer you are waiting in line and perhaps deliver coupons for popcorn.

Or consider a fast-food chain targeting youths looking for a midnight snack. They may deliver late-night ads to those who send several text messages a month or have bought a Death Cab For Cutie ring tone -- activities popular among youths, said Roger Wood, an executive with mobile ad company Amobee Media Systems.

"These are scenarios that will unfold in the next 24 months," Wood said. "The technology is absolutely there. The players have to become more comfortable. We believe they are doing so rapidly."

Young female singers hope for '08 breakthrough (Reuters)

LONDON (Billboard) - In recent years, female singer/songwriters such as Amy Winehouse, KT Tunstall and Corinne Bailey Rae have broken internationally out of the U.K. But the emerging class of 2008 suggest the trend has only just begun. Here are four artists to watch for.

KATE NASH

"Scary but amazing" -- thats Kate Nashs description of America as she contemplates the U.S. release of her quirky piano-pop debut album, "Made of Bricks" (Geffen), January 8.

Nash became a pop phenomenon in the United Kingdom when her debut major-label single, "Foundations," spent five weeks at No. 2 in July and August.

"I still live at home and have my friends around me," says Nash, an excitable and talkative 20-year-old from north London. "Im not really interested in fame and celebrities."

Jim Chancellor, head of Nashs U.K. label, Fiction, says he signed an "exciting and talented young lady whos quite a poet," and Nash has repaid his faith. "Made of Bricks" was moved up seven weeks to capitalize on the success of "Foundations."

Chancellor says Fiction would have "missed our moment" if it hadnt scrapped the existing campaign -- and was proved right when it debuted at No. 1 in August. It has now shipped 300,000 copies in the United Kingdom and a further 100,000 in Europe, according to the label.

In the States, the "Foundations" EP, released in September, peaked at No. 2 on Billboards Hot Singles Sales chart and Nash played three New York shows in September. "I thought, are these people thinking, whats this weird English girl talking about?" she says with a laugh. "But it went down really well."

Universal U.K. director of international marketing Greg Stafford says key U.S. press, from Teen Vogue to the New York Times, "have come onboard early . . .There is a real expectation." Nash returns to North America for promotion and four dates starting January 7 in Toronto, with "Foundations" serviced to radio just before Christmas. A full U.S. tour is planned for April and May. The album will be released in January in Australia, where Nash will appear at Big Day Out, Down Unders biggest traveling festival.

AMY MACDONALD

Amy Macdonalds U.K. breakthrough has already earned her comparisons to major artists like fellow Scot KT Tunstall.

"Im always going to take it as a compliment because Im being compared to some of the most successful women in music," she says with a grin. "But we all have our different sound."

And though Macdonald is on track for global success, the 20-year-old Glaswegian singer/songwriter is still proud of her Scottish roots.

"People are always really behind me in Scotland," she says. Her debut album, "This Is the Life" (Vertigo/Mercury), went to No. 2 in the United Kingdom and No. 1 in Scotland.

"We marketed the album really well in Scotland," Mercury U.K. president Jason Iley says. "We really showed how Amy was home-grown."

He also credits digital campaigns on Bebo and MySpace with building sales, but adds, "Its a multifaceted campaign where every area has strategically worked together and succeeded."

Iley says the album has now reached U.K. shipments of 260,000, and predicts an eventual total of 500,000 U.K. sales, with fourth single "Run" due to be released early next year. He says the record is taking off in Europe with 50,000 shipments after a support slot with Paul Weller in Germany, Holland and Belgium, and key TV appearances in France. A headlining European tour is penciled in for March, after 15 U.K. dates.

American audiences will discover Macdonald next year. She will play a New York showcase in April for her U.S. label Mercury, ahead of a planned summer release for "This Is the Life."

"Ive worked hard at this for the past five years of my life," Macdonald says. "The good thing is that people feel theyve discovered me for themselves."

ADELE

Just 19, jazz and soul-steeped Londoner Adele Adkins (who uses only her first name) has already employed a musical education ranging from Dusty Springfield to Jeff Buckley to become a hot new property for XL Recordings.

On the heels of the limited edition "Hometown Glory" last October, Adeles single "Chasing Pavements" is set for release January 21 in the United Kingdom, a week before her first album, "19," hit the streets. The collection features "Cold Shoulder," a collaboration with U.K. producer du jour Mark Ronson, and Adele already has widespread press support and radio play at BBC Radios 1 and 2. On December 10, Adele was named the winner of the inaugural BRIT Awards Critics Choice prize for new acts, and will perform at the nationally televised gala February 20.

"Im inspired by American artists, and I learned to sing by listening to Etta James," she says. "But I also loved (U.K. pop/soul singer) Gabrielle. It was a real mix, and thats how the album is."

Adele attended the BRIT School in south London ("I got to listen to music every day and (received) a qualification at the end") and attracted industry interest after developing a MySpace page. She signed a worldwide deal with XL in November 2006.

"I signed a good deal, but not one of these stupidly big ones," she says, "and my publishing (with Universal Music) was sensible. I dont see the point in taking loads of money (as an advance), because youll never start seeing money in your pocket."

Label CEO Richard Russell says Adele is "in a tradition of artists who know exactly what they want -- incredibly focused and quick to tell you which of your ideas are rubbish." He says "19" will be released in the United States on XL "perhaps as early as April, perhaps as late as June (or) July."

DUFFY

Great things are expected of Amy Ann Duffy, who goes by only her last name. Before she has even released a record, the Welsh 22-year-old with the stunning 1960s-style soul voice and the utterly contemporary pop songs has already been called "the sound of 2008" by the London Evening Standard.

Universal Music operations president David Joseph calls her debut album, "Rockferry" (A&M/Polydor), "a classic album by a contemporary artist."

U.K. media have been falling over themselves to get involved. Her limited edition vinyl/download single, also called "Rockferry," in November was added to the playlist at BBC Radios 1 and 2, and shes one of the few artists to appear on tastemaking TV show "Later . . . With Jools Holland" before a release.

"I can only remember that happening with Mika and James Morrison," Universal VP of international marketing Hassan Choudhury says. "And they both went on to sell millions of records."

All the attention is in stark contrast to Duffys "traditional Welsh Sunday-school upbringing."

"It feels very weird being public about my music," she says. "When I was a kid, I never felt I could tell anyone that I wanted to sing, so I kept it to myself."

Thats unlikely to be an option for much longer. Her first U.K. single "Mercy" is due for release February 25, with the album following a week later. She will play a residency in January and February at Londons Pigalle Club, with key international media being flown in, and will showcase in early 2008 in Europe ahead of an international album rollout in April. Choudhury says there have been "phenomenal reactions" from across the world, "which normally means you have a huge global star on your hands."

Duffy herself is most looking forward to the U.S. release, also in April, and her first official stateside promotional trip in January.

"I cant wait to go to Detroit, Memphis, the Motown studios, Al Greens church," she says. "America is where soul began, and where it is right now."

Reuters/Billboard

Brangelina?s Trip to Pippen Lane

Friday, December 28, 2007

BRANGELINA'S TRIP TO PIPPEN LANE

Always looking out for their brood, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt took some time out of their day to browse for a few items at the Pippen Lane store (specializing in kid's clothes, accessories, and toys) in the Big Easy today.

The Fight Club stud and his Girl, Interrupted partner were spotted on Magazine Street scoping out some post-holiday bargains.

Brad sported the motorcycle tough guy motif, including a leather jacket, boot-cut jeans, and the beginnings of a goatee to go with his soon-to-be trademark newsboy cap.

And Ang took a more conservative route with some white baggy pants and a -length black hooded coat.

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Brad and Angelina's trip to Pippen Lane (December 28).

Marilyn Manson officially divorced (AP)

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Marilyn Manson will start the new year as a single man.

The goth rocker's marriage to model and burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese officially ended Thursday, and the two were "restored to the status of single persons," according to a judgment filed in Superior Court.

Von Teese, whose real name is Heather Sweet, and Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, have entered a marital settlement, but terms of the agreement were not disclosed for privacy reasons, court papers said.

Her attorney declined to comment. An after-hours call Friday to Manson's attorney was not immediately returned.

Von Teese filed divorce papers nearly a year ago, citing irreconcilable differences for the split. The pair married in November 2005.

Manson later told Spin magazine he was devastated over the breakup.

"She said she had tolerated the lifestyle because she hoped I would change and threatened to leave if I didn't," he said.

Manson, 38, is now dating actress Evan Rachel Wood, the 20-year-old star of "Thirteen" and "Across the Universe."

AOL Finally Kills Netscape Browser (NewsFactor)

On Friday, roughly a decade after Netscapes fortunes started to slide, AOL announced it is finally pulling the plug on the Netscape browser. "While internal groups within AOL have invested a great deal of time and energy in attempting to revive Netscape Navigator, these efforts have not been successful in gaining market share from Microsofts Internet Explorer," Tom Drapeau, AOLs director of development, wrote on the Netscape Blog.

The start of the saga dates back to 1994, when a University of Illinois student named Marc Andreessen founded a company called Netscape Communications, after taking the world by storm with the NCSA Mosaic browser. For a time, it looked like Netscape would be the dominant player on the Web, as Microsoft seemed to regard the Internet as somewhat irrelevant.

In 1995, Netscape had a stellar IPO, with shares almost tripling in value on the first day of trading, and the dot-com boom was born. Soon enough though, Microsoft got in the game and released its Internet Explorer browser. By 1997, Microsoft was already up to Internet Explorer 4, with significant advances over its three earlier versions.

By 1998, not coincidentally, Netscapes financial results had turned south and the company started laying off employees. A year later, America Online bought the struggling company for $4.2 billion, in what now looks like an exorbitant waste of money, but it was 1999, after all.

BIRTH OF MOZILLA

At the time of the acquisition, Netscape had started building an open-source version of the browser called Mozilla, an effort that in 2003 produced the independent Mozilla Foundation. Before the Foundations creation, Drapeau said, "AOL played a significant role in the launch of the Netscape 6 browser, the first Mozilla-based, Netscape-branded browser that was released in 2000 and continued to solely fund the development and marketing efforts of Netscape-branded browsers."

"AOL was a major source of support for the Mozilla Foundation and the company continued to develop versions of the Netscape browser based on the work of the foundation," Drapeau continued.

While Netscape failed to compete successfully against Internet Explorer, Mozilla has managed to make headway. According to Web usage tracking firm TheCounter.com, the open source Firefox browser has about 14 percent of the Web browser market, while Microsofts Internet Explorer has 79 percent and Apples Safari browser has 3 percent. For comparison, metrics firm NetApplications puts Firefoxs share at 16 percent. Either way, Netscapes share remains negligible.

USERS PUSHED TO FIREFOX

With AOL sounding the final death knell for Netscape, Drapeau encourages Netscapes remaining users to make the move over to Firefox. "Given AOLs current business focus and the success the Mozilla Foundation has had in developing critically-acclaimed products, we feel its the right time to end development of Netscape branded browsers, hand the reigns fully to Mozilla and encourage Netscape users to adopt Firefox," he said.

AOL will continue to provide security patches for the browser until Feb. 1, 2008, after which all support will cease. Nostalgic users can still download old versions of the browser from AOLs archives, although a better option for the Netscape look is to install a Netscape theme for Firefox, Drapeau said.

"27 Dresses" a bad fit for Katherine Heigl (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Having nicely established her big-screen credibility with the summer hit "Knocked Up," Katherine Heigl tries a little further "Greys Anatomy" moonlighting on for size with "27 Dresses."

But while Heigl is terrific, this uninspired romantic comedy is considerably less so.

A tired pastiche of the 27-odd wedding-themed vehicles that preceded it, the film essentially slaps together all the stuff that worked so well the first or second time around, minus any of the original charm or verve.

That it manages to function at all is mainly Heigls doing, but judging from the half-empty theater reserved for the pictures post-Christmas sneak preview, even her fans might get the sense that theyve walked down this aisle many times before.

Heigls not-so-plain Jane is the owner of those 27 dresses -- a perennial bridesmaid who has kept all of them, no matter how hideous -- squished into the closet of her already-cramped New York apartment with the hope of one day being the main attraction.

She has always been there for her friends and longtime boss (Edward Burns), for whom she has harbored an unrequited crush, but her charitable instincts are about to be put to the supreme test when her bratty, globetrotting kid sister (Malin Akerman) comes to town and proceeds to strike up an instant love connection with said employer.

Meanwhile, Jane also has been fending off the perpetual advances of a cynical writer (James Marsden), who, unbeknown to her, pens those Commitment columns in the New York Journal, which she has been secretly clipping out for years.

Will Jane finally find happiness with the right guy or is she destined for Bridesmaids Dress No. 28? Does the devil wear Prada?

It so happens that the person responsible for the "27 Dresses" script is none other than "The Devil Wears Prada" screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna, but in fashion world parlance, this ones a shameless knockoff.

Jerky boss? Check. Sardonic best friend? Check (played by Judy Greer). Scene in which everybody takes part in an impromptu golden oldie sing-along? Check. (Here its Elton Johns "Bennie and the Jets.")

Just as McKennas script brings absolutely nothing new to the wedding movie table, matters arent helped any by Anne Fletchers flat, pedestrian direction. The former choreographer who made her directorial debut with the inner-city dance drama "Step Up," fails to lend this New York story (filmed extensively in Rhode Island) a much-needed visual shot of vitality.

While Peter James camera clearly loves Heigl and the actress looks to have a promising motion picture career ahead of her, "27 Dresses," with its recycled sentiments and empty gestures, wont be the one to build on that "Knocked Up" momentum.

Here, she and Marsden do what they can to work with a chemistry that feels dictated rather than organic, but at the end of the day, theyre hopelessly stuck with hand-me-down material that is really beginning to look and feel its age.

Cast:

Jane: Katherine Heigl

Kevin: James Marsden

Tess: Malin Akerman

Casey: Judy Greer

George: Edward Burns

Hal: Brian Kerwin

Director: Anne Fletcher; Screenwriter: Aline Brosh McKenna; Producers: Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber, Jonathan Glickman; Executive producers: Bobby Newmyer, Becki Cross Trujillo, Michael Mayer, Erin Stam; Director of photography: Peter James; Production designer: Shepherd Frankel; Music: Randy Edelman; Costume designer: Catherine Marie Thomas; Editor: Priscilla Nedd Friendly.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

Kylie Minogue honored by Queen Elizabeth (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) - Kylie Minogue, the Australian singer and actress who has battled breast cancer, was honored by Britains Queen Elizabeth on Saturday, with other awards given to sportsmen, entertainers and businessmen.

Minogue, a former soap star who became one of the worlds most famous recording artists, becomes an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the traditional New Years honors list.

Minogue, famous for hits from "I Should Be So Lucky" to "Cant Get You Out Of My Head," was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2005 and went through surgery and chemotherapy before returning to the stage late last year.

She has sold some 40 million albums around the world, and 12 million viewers tuned this week in to see her star in a special Christmas episode of British television series "Doctor Who."

Sir Ian McKellen, a top Shakespearean actor who gained worldwide fame with film roles such as the wizard Gandalf in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, was made a Companion of Honour under Britains ancient and complex system of honorary titles.

The government said he was being recognized for his "outstanding achievements as an actor and also for his work in championing the causes of diversity."

The actor, a founder member of gay rights group Stonewall, stepped into a debate in Singapore about decriminalizing homosexual acts when he visited the city state in July.

Other honors for media personalities included a knighthood for veteran British television interviewer Michael Parkinson and lesser awards for sports commentator Desmond Lynam and Ian Anderson, who fronts rock band Jethro Tull.

Actors Leslie Phillips, known for playing the quintessential Englishman during a more than 50-year-long movie career, and Julie Walters, who has appeared in the "Harry Potter" films and "Educating Rita," were both granted awards.

In sport there was recognition for Brian Ashton, who coached the England rugby union team unexpectedly to the final of this years World Cup, and the teams fullback Jason Robinson.

Others honored included world snooker champion John Higgins and former European 5,000 meters champion Brendan Foster.

In the business world, there was a knighthood for Stuart Rose, chief executive of Marks & Spencer, who has turned around the fortunes of the well-known British retailer.

In science, Ian Wilmut, a member of the team that cloned Dolly the sheep in 1997, was also rewarded with a knighthood.

It was the first honors list recommended to the Queen by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who took over from Tony Blair in June. Brown in turn acts on the recommendations of committees.

Most of the 972 people on the New Years list are honored for voluntary work or for their contributions to health, education or local services.

(Editing by Catherine Evans)

Striking writers union reaches deal with Letterman (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Late-night TV comedian David Letterman has reached a deal with the union representing striking screenwriters that will let his show return to the air next week with his writing staff, the union said on Friday.

The agreement between the Writers Guild of America and Lettermans production company, WorldWide Pants, came as doubts grew that one of Hollywoods premier awards show, the Golden Globes, would go on as usual due to plans by striking writers to picket the event.

A source close to the awards show said the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which presents the Globes, was considering the possibility of canceling the live TV broadcast of the January 13 event so that the ceremony could proceed without WGA protests.

WGA members are barred from working on any TV programs the union considers "struck productions," which include telecasts of awards shows and late-night series.

Moreover, a number of celebrity performers have publicly expressed reservations about crossing picket lines to attend awards shows or to appear as guests on talk shows. The WGA has even said it plans to picket Hollywoods biggest night of all, the Oscars on February 24, unless the strike is settled by then.

One WGA executive, Jeff Hermanson, said the union was organizing a "massive presence" of its members outside the Golden Globe awards, and "we expect to have some of the nominees and award winners on our picket line."

A spokeswoman for the Screen Actors Guild said its informal canvass of Globe nominees found that "the majority of them are indicating that they will not cross picket lines."

The NBC network, which is scheduled to air the show, declined to comment.

LETTERMAN WILL HAVE HELP WITH JOKES

Letterman, who has kept his CBS "Late Show" off the air and in reruns since November 5 in support of striking writers, had said through representatives that he wanted to return on January 2 with fresh broadcasts, and his writing staff intact, if his company could reach agreement with the union to do so.

Negotiations between the WGA and major studios on a new contract covering 10,500 striking film and TV writers broke down December 7, but the union has been pursuing separate talks with smaller, independent production companies.

The WGAs Hermanson told Reuters that talks between the union and Lettermans company had produced a "full, binding, independent agreement" that includes provisions for paying writers for work distributed over the Internet.

Compensation for Internet content has been the main sticking point in talks aimed at ending the WGA strike, now in its eighth week.

Several other late-night television hosts, including Jay Leno and Conan OBrien of NBC and Jimmy Kimmel of ABC, are planning to resume broadcasts of new episodes on January 2 without their writers.

NBC is controlled by General Electric Co, ABC is a unit of Walt Disney Co and CBS is owned by CBS Corp.

(Editing by Dan Whitcomb and Eric Walsh)

Letterman to return in deal with striking writers (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Late-night TV host David Letterman reached a deal on Friday with the union for striking screenwriters that will let his show return to the air next week while bringing his writing staff back with him.

The Writers Guild of America called its pact with Lettermans production company, WorldWide Pants Inc, a sign of union readiness to negotiate a deal with major film and TV studios to settle Hollywoods worst labor crisis in 20 years.

The WGA said its "comprehensive agreement" with WorldWide Pants included provisions to pay writers for work distributed over the Internet -- presumably covering the large assortment of advertising-supported video clips of Lettermans show that CBS posts on its Web site.

Compensation for Internet content has been the main sticking point in stalled talks between the WGA and studios aimed at ending the writers strike, now in its eighth week.

The work stoppage by 10,500 WGA members has thrown the U.S. television industry into disarray, postponed production on several major motion pictures and is threatening to spoil Hollywoods annual awards season.

The Lettermans deal will pave the way for his "Late Show," and "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," also owned by WorldWide Pants, to resume CBS broadcasts of fresh episodes with their writing staffs intact starting on Wednesday.

Letterman, who like his late-night peers on other networks has kept his show off the air and in reruns since November 5 in support of striking writers, said in a statement he was "happy to be going back to work, and particularly pleased to be doing it with our writers."

"This is not a solution to the strike, which unfortunately continues to disrupt the lives of thousands. But I hope it will be seen as a step in the right direction," he added.

Letterman has been an outspoken critic of studio executives involved in the WGA talks, once describing them on his show as "cowards, cutthroats and weasels."

LETTERMAN ADVANTAGE?

The deal could give Letterman a decisive advantage in the late-night ratings war over his chief rival, Jay Leno, host of NBCs "The Tonight Show," who has long commanded a bigger audience and plans to return the same day without writers.

WGA strike rules bar Leno, a union member like Letterman, from preparing any scripted material for his show that his striking writers would normally have produced.

NBCs "Late Night with Conan OBrien" and ABCs "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" also resume production next week without writers. The NBC and ABC hosts do not own their own shows, so they are unable to negotiate separate deals.

CBS said in a statement it "is very pleased that Dave and Craig will be returning on January 2." The network added it "controls the Internet exploitation rights" for both shows and "will comply with any eventual negotiated agreement between the AMPTP and the WGA."

A source familiar with Lettermans agreement said it was structured to allow WorldWide Pants to pay Internet residual fees provided under the deal to writers out of the companys own pockets. Once a larger AMPTP agreement is ultimately reached, that will supersede Lettermans deal.

The latest round of contract talks broke down in acrimony on December 7 when the studio executives demanded the writers drop several of their demands, and union negotiators refused. The union has since said it would pursue separate talks with smaller, independent production companies.

The studios bargaining agent, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, dismissed the Letterman pact as insignificant, calling it "the latest indication that the WGAs organizers may not have what it takes to achieve an industry-wide deal."

The unions deal with Letterman came as doubts grew that one of Hollywoods premier award shows, the Golden Globes, would go on as usual due to plans by striking writers to picket the event.

A source close to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which presents the Globes, said it was considering canceling the live TV NBC broadcast of the January 13 event so the ceremony could proceed without WGA protests. NBC had no comment.

WGA executive Jeff Hermanson said the union was organizing a "massive presence" of its members outside the Golden Globe awards, and "we expect to have some of the nominees and award winners on our picket line."

A Screen Actors Guild spokeswoman said a majority of the Globe nominees it had contacted "are indicating that they will not cross picket lines."

The WGA has said it also plans to picket Hollywoods biggest night of all, the Oscars on February 24, unless the strike is settled by then. That prospect already has forced producers of the Peoples Choice Awards to cancel the usual live telecast of that show in favor of a pre-recorded "magazine"-style format with winners giving their acceptance speeches in video clips.

It was less clear whether celebrities concerns about crossing picket lines might make it harder for Leno and other late-night hosts who lack special WGA agreements to book guests for their shows when they return.

Screen Actors Guild President Alan Rosenberg issued a statement late Friday saying SAG members "will be happy to appear" on Letterman and Fergusons shows with union writers at work on those programs.

Among the celebrity guests slated to appear on Lettermans first show back next week is real estate tycoon turned reality TV star Donald Trump, according to producer Rob Burnett.

Reuters/Nielsen

Fledgling Web sites help indie musicians (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Billboard) - The next Friendster, MySpace, Facebook, YouTube: There are millions of dot-coms out there, all claiming to be the next bonanza.

But the five below are actually likely to make waves in the indie world in 2008 -- using new models, new takes on old models and emerging technologies to help artists get shows, sales, and song placement on films and TV shows.

Indie acts need not worry about the cost, either -- all the sites detailed here are free to use.

AmieStreet.com: While the debate about how much a song is worth rages on, Amie Street (http://www.amiestreet.com) uses a variable pricing structure that lets fans do the math. All songs start out free and top out at 98 cents; the songs price rises commensurate with the number of times it is downloaded. The site rewards tastemakers by allowing them to earn credit for recommending songs that go on to sell big, and the ability to download music for free is designed to appeal to broke students. While Amie Street has yet to break an unknown act, it has helped more than a few build audiences: The band Middle Distance Runner, for instance, has risen from being a virtually unknown outside Washington, D.C., to playing packed Bowery Ballroom shows in New York since it joined the site last March.

SirGroovy.com: As licensing becomes an ever-greater part of a bands income, Sir Groovy (http://www.sirgroovy.com) connects indie acts to music supervisors who want big-name sounds without having to pay big-name money. The site also takes care of all the negotiations and clearances, and bands are allowed to categorize their tracks in a variety of unusual ways to help catch the eyes and ears of supervisors. The site is still in its infancy, but has had some luck placing tracks by bands including the Sleeping, Jen Chapin, Five Times August and Flickerstick.

Paltalk.com: When aspiring Australian musician Kitana wanted to reach beyond her hometown to set up gigs and find collaborators, she turned to video-chat site Paltalk (http://www.paltalk.com) . Live cams allow musicians to jam together in real time, perform for fans and seek feedback about new music. In Kitanas case, she found a producer in Scotland and worked with him via the site and e-mail to create an album. Paltalk has also recently launched a number of programs that allow more established acts to perform for and connect with listeners.

Eventful.com: Indie bands unaware they had a rabid fan base in Lithuania -- and other young acts apprehensive about turnout when they hit the road -- will appreciate Eventful(http://www.eventful.com), "user-generated touring" site that lets fans request performances and organize gigs for their favorite acts. More than 30,000 artists, 29,000 of them indies, use the site to organize gigs and find out where their most obsessive fans live. CEO Jordan Glazier says that those who pledge to come out via the site almost always turn up. In fact, he reports that promoters have started asking indie bookers, "What is your Eventful demand number?"

OurStage.com: This site (http://www.ourstage.com) aims to be a "democratic competition where the fans decide whos best in emerging entertainment." Indie folks post their content, and fans get to act like amateur Simon Cowells by giving it the thumbs up or down. At the end of each month, the highest-ranking videos in each genre-based channel face off against one another, with the grand-prize winner taking home 5,000. Unsigned acts that receive plenty of votes can also win coverage on Paste and CMJs Web sites and opening slots at Soulives New Years Eve show and the Miami PLUG Awards.

Reuters/Billboard

Film maker Oliver Stone in Colombia hostage mission (AFP)

CARACAS (AFP) - US film director Oliver Stone said Friday he would travel with a Venezuelan-led air mission going to Colombia to pick up three hostages being released by Marxist rebels.

"Its wonderful," the Oscar-winning filmmaker said in Santo Domingo airport in southwest Venezuela, from where a first air convoy left for Colombia on Friday. "Ive never been in such a thing and Im proud to be part of this."

Stone said he was in Venezuela to film a documentary about Latin America and North America, but he refused to say whether he would film the actual rescue of the hostages, two women and a three-year-old boy.

Stone heaped praise on Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who spearheaded the mission after the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) announced on December 18 they would release the hostages to him or someone he designates.

"Its a beautiful, great process," Stone said, calling the Venezuelan leader "a great man." "Im a fan (of Chavez)."

Stone arrived in Santo Domingo with Chavez aboard the presidential jet, along with envoys from nations involved in the mission, including France, Switzerland and Latin American countries.

Chavez had said in September that Stone, the director of Vietnam war dramas "Platoon" and "Born on the Fourth of July," voiced interest in making a documentary about Colombias hostage crisis.

FARC are expected to release former lawmaker Consuelo Gonzalez de Perdomo, 57; Clara Rojas, 44; and Emmanuel, 3, the son Rojas bore to a rebel in captivity. The women were snatched in 2001 and 2002 respectively.

Chavez said he hoped the handover could take place on Saturday.

Sean Penn?s Divorce Proceeding Begins

Friday, December 28, 2007

SEAN PENN'S DIVORCE PROCEEDING BEGINS

In another story of failed Hollywood marriage, actor/actress couple Sean and Robin Wright Penn have filed for divorce.

The couple has been separated since November 30th, according to official court paperwork. Initially, the Mystic River actor filed for divorce on December 7th, but the petition was later dismissed.

Then, on December 21st, Robin filed her own paperwork. Both accounts cite "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for their dissolution, and request joint legal and physical custody of their two kids Dylan Frances (16) and Hopper Jack (14).

From here, they must wait until their hearing, set for April 21st. Sean and Robin Wright Penn have been married since April of 1996.

We'll keep you updated on the divorce details.

Gossip Girls

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Zune, iTunes Sites Get Christmas Day Traffic Boosts (TechWeb)

Microsofts Zune Web site increased its traffic by 299% on Christmas Day compared with Christmas Day last year, as new owners signed up for accounts and downloaded software, according to Hitwise.

Traffic to the site increased 392% on Christmas Day compared with Christmas Eve, according to the online intelligence firm.

Apple iPod owners also flocked to iTunes to give Apples music Web site six times the traffic Zune received. Traffic for iTunes soared 339% from Christmas Eve to Christmas Day, and the Web sites market share reached 0.68%, Hitwise reported. Zunes market share reached 0.009%.

The Nintendo Wii and the Australian womens shoe called Ugg topped the list of popular product search terms to send traffic to shopping and classifieds sites the week ending Dec. 22.

"Although the Nintendo Wii was the most-talked-about product during the holiday season, MP3 players were also very popular as Christmas gifts," Heather Dougherty, director of research at Hitwise, said in a prepared statement. "This year the Zune has captured interest from music listeners with a new line of redesigned players and discounted older models, while the popularity of iPods continued to drive traffic to the Apple Store and iTunes Web site."

The Apple Store also fared well, ranking ninth on Hitwises list of most-visited retail sites on Christmas Day. The week before Christmas, Amazon.com was the most-visited Web site in the retail index, drawing 12% of U.S. online retail traffic. Wal-Marts Web site ranked second with 8%. Shopping.com, Dell.com, and Macys.com saw the largest increases in Web site traffic last week compared with the week before, with jumps of 34%, 18%, and 18%, respectively.

Overall, U.S. retail traffic rose 16% last week compared with the week ending Dec. 23, 2006.

Although retailers expected a surge of online shopping on the Tuesday and Wednesday before Christmas, Hitwise found that traffic to retail Web sites dropped during the week ending Dec. 22, compared with the previous week.

See original article on InformationWeek.com

Kate Moss Partied Hardy For the Holidays

Friday, December 28, 2007

KATE MOSS PARTIED HARDY FOR THE HOLIDAYS

She's a girl with a reputation, and it looks like Kate Moss made the most of the festive holiday season.

Paparazzi stationed outside the supermodel's country home observed a surplus of empty champagne and wine bottles piled up outside. The good news is that she's keeping it green by recycling the containers.

Accompanied by Kills guitarist Jamie Hince, Moss spent Christmas in her luxurious home in the Cotswold countryside. Prior to that, she spent some time in London with friends Davina Taylor, and Sienna Miller and Rhys Ifans.

And now that Christmas is over, it is rumored that Kate will be taking Hince, along with her daughter Lila Grace, and mother and stepfather on a "vacation in the sun." There's no word yet on where they're officially headed.

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Kate and Jamie heading to the pub (December 28).

Jumat, 28 Desember 2007

Privacy delays ad targeting on phones (AP)

NEW YORK - Your cell phone is a potential gold mine for marketers: It can reveal where you are, whom you call and even what music you like.

Considering the phone is usually no more than a few feet away, these are powerful clues for figuring out just the right moment to deliver the right coupon for the store just around the corner.

But first marketers will have to wrest the personal profiles from mobile carriers worried that annoyed subscribers might defect to rivals.

"It's proceed with caution," said Jarvis Coffin, chief executive of advertising distributor Burst Media Corp. "Are consumers going to be spooked by the idea that suddenly their phone goes beep and it's a Starbucks offer, and they are standing next to a Starbucks?"

Carriers are now guarding the data zealously, but many people believe it's only a matter of time -- over the next year or two -- before marketers can routinely target ads to a potential customer's location and actions.

Imagine getting pitches for rental cars and hotels the moment you land in San Francisco because an analysis of past calls suggests you tend to take weeklong trips there. Or if day trips to Boston are your thing, you might get an offer for cab service instead.

"My phone has a lot of very specific and detailed information about myself ... information that isn't always going to be resident when I'm at a number of PC browsers," said Rob Adler, chief executive for mobile Web company go2 Media Inc.

The research firm eMarketer estimates that U.S. spending in mobile ads, at about $900 million in 2007, will grow more than fivefold to nearly $4.8 billion in 2011. By contrast, paid search and other online spending will only double, to about $42 billion in 2011.

Mobile ads today are mostly blasted at the mass audiences, with a few carriers offering limited targeting based on users' age, gender, ZIP code and other characteristics.

That should change. Ever since the Federal Communications Commission ruled in 1996 that wireless carriers must help 911 dispatchers identify a caller's location, technology companies and privacy advocates alike have been speculating about making phones' location information available to commercial services and advertisers.

"It's always been the next big thing around the corner the last 10 years, and now we really feel that it is," said Brian Levin, chief executive for Liberty Media Corp.'s Useful Networks Inc., a company that helps outside developers tap location information from cell carriers.

Americans are finally using cell phones for more than calling, joining European and Asian counterparts in embracing data services like text messaging and ring tones.

Devices also are improving, and last summer's release of Apple Inc.'s iPhone unleashed an era of bigger screens and friendlier interfaces for mobile Web browsing.

Advertisers, meanwhile, are starting to experiment with mobile ads. With a boom in GPS devices and location services like maps and child tracking, it's only natural that advertisers, too, will want to take advantage of location information.

The phone's highly personal nature will mean more privacy red flags compared with what's collected when someone surfs the Internet from a regular computer.

Two industry trade groups -- CTIA and the Mobile Marketing Association -- have committees developing guidelines, including how to properly get a customer's permission and periodically remind them of any tracking.

Companies are also developing ways to share profiles with marketers while stripping out sensitive information like names.

On Sprint phones, all targeting to such attributes as age and ZIP code is done on Sprint Nextel Corp.'s end; advertisers give Sprint the ads for the company to place without having to share any data with anyone, spokeswoman Emmy Anderson said.

Meanwhile, an ad-delivery system from Ad Infuse Inc. can be installed entirely on a carrier's own premises so that data remain under the carrier's control.

The wireless industry deserves credit for its caution, said Ari Schwartz, a privacy advocate with the Center for Democracy and Technology. He said advertising and technology companies are the ones having to first prove to wireless carriers "that they have put in a lot of thought about how to do it in a way that won't raise the creepiness factor."

Telecommunications companies face unique federal privacy regulations, requiring notice and permission to use and share calling records for marketing, but carriers believe competition is as important.

"We have great expenses with customers leaving one company and going to another," Verizon Wireless spokesman Jeffrey Nelson said. "One thing I can guarantee Verizon Wireless will not do is get a bump of short-term advertising dollars while scaring and losing our customers in the process."

The challenge will be getting consumers at the right state of mind. You might appreciate that restaurant discount when you're hungry but not if you've just finished lunch.

The mantra, for now, is to avoid the type of backlash that online hangout Facebook recently faced when it enlisted users as endorsers of movies and other products, initially without them necessarily realizing it.

"We know this is a great opportunity for targeting, but we don't want to blow it by overdoing it," said Eswar Priyadarshan, chief technical officer for Quattro Wireless Inc., a mobile ad distributor.

Initial ads tied to location tend to revolve around search terms and other user input rather than GPS detection. If you search for movie theaters in Chicago followed by a search simply for "pizza," Google Inc. will assume you are looking for a pizzeria in Chicago.

Go2 Media lets users enter cities, ZIP codes or specific addresses, but users can activate an "auto locate" feature on some phones.

But current location isn't always as useful as where you're going or what you're doing.

Figuring that out means pairing location information with other behavioral data.

For instance, advertisers might also target to the beginning of a billing cycle, when a customer might be more willing to spend, said Dan Olschwang, chief executive of JumpTap Inc., which is offering targeting technologies to mobile carriers and Web sites.

Working with Britain's Vodafone Group PLC, Yahoo Inc. has been able to target to basic demographics like gender. Now, Yahoo is looking to tap calling patterns, such as whether you make calls to a certain region on weekends but to another on weekdays -- all without the carrier having to reveal anything about the customer's identity.

One day, the mechanism might be in place to even marry location data with purchase history. Say, you've bought a movie ticket for a particular theater and show time, and the phone senses you're at the theater, Yahoo could infer you are waiting in line and perhaps deliver coupons for popcorn.

Or consider a fast-food chain targeting youths looking for a midnight snack. They may deliver late-night ads to those who send several text messages a month or have bought a Death Cab For Cutie ring tone -- activities popular among youths, said Roger Wood, an executive with mobile ad company Amobee Media Systems.

"These are scenarios that will unfold in the next 24 months," Wood said. "The technology is absolutely there. The players have to become more comfortable. We believe they are doing so rapidly."

Brandy won't be charged in fatal crash (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Grammy Award-winning singer and actress Brandy will not face charges in a December 2006 car crash that killed a 38-year-old woman, prosecutors said on Friday, citing insufficient evidence.

Police had recommended that the former star of the TV comedy "Moesha," whose real name is Brandy Norwood, face vehicular manslaughter charges in the four-vehicle crash, which began when her Land Rover struck another car from behind on a Los Angeles freeway.

"After conducting a thorough investigation, which included consulting with some of the top accident reconstruction experts in the country, city prosecutors concluded that there was insufficient evidence from which a jury could find Ms. Norwood guilty of such a charge beyond a reasonable doubt," Los Angeles City Attorneys spokesman Frank Mateljan said.

Brandy, 28, had been facing up to one year in jail and a 1,000 fine if charged and convicted of vehicular manslaughter in the December 30, 2006, crash.

Relatives of Awatef Aboudihaj, who was killed in the crash, have filed a 50 million wrongful death lawsuit against Brandy. Aboudihaj was killed when her vehicle slammed into a third car, careened into the freeways center divider and was hit broadside by a fourth automobile.

Investigators ruled out alcohol and drugs as factors in the crash and say there was no evidence that Brandy, who was alone in her car, was using a cell phone or otherwise distracted.

A lawyer for Brandy said she was "extremely pleased" the performer would not be charged.

"These past twelve months have been extraordinarily hard for Brandy and her family, who were unfairly forced to live under a cloud of suspicion initially caused by an ill-advised and premature press release sent out by the California Highway Patrol accusing Brandy of wrongdoing before the police investigation was even finished," attorney Blair Berk said.

Berk added Brandy was mindful there had been a life lost in the crash and that she was extremely fortunate not to have been injured.

Brandy burst on the recording scene in 1994 and won a Grammy in 1998 for her duet with singer Monica on the "The Boy is Mine."

(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Sean Penn and wife Robin to divorce after 11 years (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn and his wife, Robin Wright Penn, are divorcing after 11 years of marriage, People magazine reported on Friday.

Penns publicist, Mara Buxbaum, confirmed the divorce to the magazine but gave no details.

Penn, 47, who won an Academy Award for his role in the 2003 movie "Mystic River," and Wright, 41, married in 1996 and have two teenage children.

Penns first marriage -- to pop star Madonna -- ended in 1989 after four years.

Wright is best known for her starring role in the romance "Message in a Bottle." She also appeared in the adventure movie "Beowulf" which opened in the United States in November.

Reuters/Nielsen

Tori Spelling?s Rodeo Drive Family Outing

Friday, December 28, 2007

TORI SPELLING'S RODEO DRIVE FAMILY OUTING

It's a family affair! Taking full advantage of the post-Christmas blowout sales yesterday, Tori Spelling and her hubby Dean McDermott took their sons Liam Aaron (9 months) and Jack (from Dean's previous marriage to Mary Jo Eustace) shopping.

The happy family hit the streets of Beverly Hills, California in search of some hot deals. And they looked to be enjoying some quality time with each other.

Tori sported a big white scarf, a sharp contrast to her otherwise black ensemble, including a black leather coat and some black knee-high boots.

Meanwhile, Dean opted for more of a classic look with a t-shirt and jacket combo, rounded out with a pair of distressed jeans.

It's good to see celebrities bargain hunting just like the rest of us.

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Tori and her family out on Rodeo Drive (December 27).

More Nicolette Sheridan Bikini Pictures

05:36 PM, Filed under: Home Celebrities Nicolette Sheridan

If you liked that Nicolette Sheridan nipple slip, and those Nicolette Sheridan bikini pictures from earlier, then by logical extension, you'll like these Nicolette Sheridan bikini pictures. If you didn't, then you probably won't, and there's not much I can do for you. Sorry.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, yes, Nicolette Sheridan is topless in those last couple of pictures... Lots more after the jump.

Photo credit: Splash / Pacific Coast News / Bauer-Griffin

Kylie Minogue leads celebs on British New Year honours list (AFP)

LONDON (AFP) - Australian pop star Kylie Minogue was among the celebrities decorated in Queen Elizabeth IIs New Year Honours List, published Saturday.

The singer, 39, said she was "deeply touched" to be made a Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the annual list.

Actors, musicians, businessmen, sports stars and unsung heroes such as bus drivers and teachers were among the 972 people rewarded for their services to their industries or communities.

Minogue has sold more than 60 million records worldwide and overcame breast cancer, diagnosed in 2005, to return to performing.

"This last year I have felt so much love and support from everyone as I took greater steps back into the public domain, and it is with absolute gratitude and joy that I say farewell to 2007 and look forward to what the New Year will bring," she said.

Among the actors rewarded were "The Lord of the Rings" star Sir Ian McKellen, who becomes a Companion of Honour; old smoothie Leslie Phillips, who becomes a commander of the order (CBE), and "Harry Potter" regulars Richard Griffiths (OBE), and Julie Walters (CBE).

Barbara Broccoli, who co-produces the "James Bond" films, received an OBE.

In music circles, Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson became a member of the order (MBE), while Trevor Romeo, Soul II Soul frontman Jazzie B, received the OBE.

Ian Wilmut, who created Dolly the sheep in 1996, the worlds first clone from an adult cell, said he was "surprised and delighted" to receive a knighthood.

Stuart Rose, who turned around the fortunes of British retailer Marks and Spencer, became Sir Stuart upon receiving a KBE knighthood.

Hong Kong entrepreneur David Tang also received a knighthood, while a CBE went to Richard Bradbury, chief executive of the international fashion house River Island.

There were OBEs for fashion designers Jasper Conran and Karen Millen.

Writer Hanif Kureishi, who penned "The Buddha of Suburbia" and "My Beautiful Laundrette", got a CBE.

Debby Reynolds, the governments former chief vet who led efforts to tackle this years foot and mouth and bird flu outbreaks, entered the Order of the Bath, an order of chivalry.

In the sports world, England rugby union coach Brian Ashton, who guided the team to the 2007 World Cup final against the odds, got the MBE.

He said he was "honoured and privileged" to receive the award.

Retired former England captain Jason Robinson got an OBE.

World snooker champion John Higgins said he was "stunned" to receive an MBE, calling it "fantastic -- a great thing to have".

In football, Bob Wilson, the former Arsenal and Scotland goalkeeper, was made an OBE.

Former long-distance runner Brendan Foster, who founded the Great North Run, got the CBE.

Gordon Taylor, chief executive of the Professional Footballers Association (PFA), received an OBE.

"This is a nice honour for me personally and it is also lovely recognition for the PFA in our centenary year," he said.

Familiar faces from British television to be honoured included chat show king Michael Parkinson (knighthood), sports presenter Des Lynam (OBE) and BBC reporter George Alagiah (OBE).

People who helped with rescue operations during the June floods across England received MBEs.

The awards are given out by the monarch but are chosen by government ministers and officials.

The queens honours, handed out both at New Year and in June, to mark the monarchs "official" birthday -- distinct from the real event in April -- have their roots in royal orders of chivalry which began in the 14th century.

For centuries a way to reward the great and good of government and officialdom, in recent years more and more awards have been given to sports and showbusiness stars, as well as the worthy in less high-profile roles.

Quotes from the year in entertainment (AP)

From Lindsay Lohan to Kanye West, quotes from the year in entertainment:

___

"She has brought a new vitality to this show and the ratings prove it." -- Barbara Walters, on Rosie O'Donnell, her new co-host on "The View."

"He wounded millions of women by saying that I was fat, you know?" -- Rosie O'Donnell, on her war of words with Donald Trump.

"I felt very remorseful for having thrown the phone at someone that didn't deserve it. I have a deep sense of shame for the things I've done." -- Naomi Campbell.

"With the support of my family and friends, I have begun counseling. I regard this as a necessary step toward understanding why I did what I did and making sure it never happens again." -- Isaiah Washington, on undergoing treatment for his use of an anti-gay slur against a "Grey's Anatomy" castmate.

"I'm ready to make nice!" -- Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks, accepting the Grammy for album of the year for "Taking the Long Way."

"Could you double check the envelope?" -- Martin Scorsese, winner of the best director Oscar for "The Departed."

"I've been chased and hounded for 10 months and told I'm a publicity-seeker, yet I've never gone out and done anything." -- Heather Mills, on her high-profile divorce from Paul McCartney.

"I'm a good person, but I said a bad thing. But these young women deserve to know it was not said with malice." -- Don Imus, on his racial slur against the Rutgers women's basketball team.

"I hate to be the one who told you this, but I told you so: I'm the father!" -- Larry Birkhead, saying DNA results showed he is the father of Anna Nicole Smith's infant daughter.

"I'm sorry, as everyone who knows me is aware, for losing my temper with my child." -- Alec Baldwin, caught yelling at his daughter on a leaked voicemail message.

"All my assumptions about myself are confused when people like the work. On some level, it's almost more comfortable for it to go the other way." -- Judd Apatow, on his success as a filmmaker.

"Recently, I was sent to a very humbling place called rehab. I truly hit rock bottom. Till this day I don't think that it was alcohol or depression. I was like a bad kid running around with ADD." -- Britney Spears.

"I think it's a great ending. It's a good way to go out." -- Michael Imperioli, on the love-it-or-hate-it finale of "The Sopranos."

"I used to act dumb. It was an act. I am 26 years old, and that act is no longer cute." -- Paris Hilton.

"It's sad that the whole world had to watch her make mistakes that all of us have made at one time or another." -- Britney Spears' mother, Lynne.

"We want to have fun. That's one of the many reasons for this, for our children to see what we used to do." -- Victoria Beckham, on the Spice Girls' reunion tour.

"Finishing it was very, very emotional. It was a combination of relief and sadness really." -- J.K. Rowling, on completing the final edition of her "Harry Potter" boy wizard series.

"Hearing the words and saying it and seeing -- it's surreal." -- Robin Roberts, anchor of "Good Morning America," on discovering she had breast cancer.

"Someone needs to teach you some class, my friend." -- Faith Hill, berating a female fan from the stage at a concert in Louisiana. The woman had grabbed Hill's husband, Tim McGraw, in the crotch area at the close of his set.

"When they are with him, he is going to shield his children from unwanted media attention. You will not find a picture of Kevin parading with the children out in a public place." -- Kevin Federline attorney Mark Vincent Kaplan.

"Yes I am." -- Nicole Richie, confirming reports of her pregnancy.

"I would sooner, in exactly what I'm wearing, walk on the surface of the moon. Does that answer it?" -- Charlie Sheen, on whether he would have a third child with ex-wife Denise Richards.

"My biggest inspiration and biggest competition is Justin Timberlake. ... We push each other. I look at me and Justin like Prince and Michael Jackson in their day." -- Kanye West.

"I respectfully ask that the media allow me to receive care and heal in private during this difficult time." -- Owen Wilson, after his alleged suicide attempt.

"Gabriel and I are beyond excited, and I've waited a long time for this moment in life." -- Halle Berry, on expecting her first child with her boyfriend, Gabriel Aubry.

"We're not done. They say, `Any plans for a fifth?' And I say, `And a sixth, and a seventh, and an eighth, and a ninth.' That's my answer." -- Brad Pitt, on his growing family with Angelina Jolie.

"I got a cracked rib, so I'm not jogging right now. No jumping jacks." -- George Clooney, following a motorcycle accident.

"It was a sobering experience. It was humbling. It made me look at myself, and all of the people, places and things in my life in a different way. I was in there for substance abuse, after all." -- Lindsay Lohan.

"Please, please, please, just give the dog back." -- Ellen DeGeneres, after a pet rescue agency took back the adopted terrier she had given away to her hairdresser's family.

"I don't just love him, I like him. We are an oddly good match." -- Pamela Anderson, on her new husband, Rick Salomon.

"After nearly 15 minutes of soul-searching, I have heard the call." -- Stephen Colbert, announcing his candidacy for president.

"The first words out of her mouth when she saw us all leaning over her were, `Oh, crap.'" -- Tom Bergeron, on Marie Osmond's fainting spell on "Dancing With the Stars."

"It was great. I'm a little tired, but it was worth it." -- Katie Holmes, on running the New York City Marathon.

"When I first heard about it I spent about a half-hour going around my house crying." -- Oprah Winfrey, on learning of allegations that a dorm matron at her South African academy for disadvantaged girls had abused students.

"I thought that I was cool enough in the black world to be able to use that word as a brother to a brother. I'm not." -- Duane "Dog" Chapman, star of "Dog the Bounty Hunter," apologizing for using the N-word conversationally.

"My wife has been in California for about three weeks. ... Holy smokes. Wow, you just knocked the bottom out of me." -- Hulk Hogan, after learning that his wife had filed for divorce.

"I've never discussed it with anybody before -- intentionally. I thought maybe I would tell it to Caroline when I met her someday." -- Neil Diamond, revealing that President Kennedy's daughter was the inspiration for his smash hit "Sweet Caroline."

"I just wasn't commenting. I'm not being like, `Hey everybody, I'm pregnant!' I'm not that girl." -- Christina Aguilera.

"The biggest phenomenon in all this is that the kid's been able to keep her head on her shoulders. She hasn't flipped out. I'm going to knock on wood." -- Billy Ray Cyrus, on his 15-year-old daughter, Miley, star of the Disney Channel series "Hannah Montana."

K-Fed to Britney: ?Don?t Be A Spoiled Brat?

Friday, December 28, 2007

K-FED TO BRITNEY: "DON'T BE A SPOILED BRAT"

Dressed in the same top she wore the previous evening while grabbing some Thai cuisine, Britney Spears was once again spotted out on her late night routine on Thursday (December 27).

The troubled pop tart made her way to the usual destinations - the Starbucks on Robertson Blvd and a few gas stations. Britney also sped over to a Virgin megastore, only to head home after finding out that it was closed.

Meanwhile, more details of the Piece Of Me singer's Christmas with sons Jayden James, 1, and Sean Preston, 2, are coming forth. And, as always, there's drama involved.

A family insider told Page Six, "Britney would not let her boys open the gifts from her mom and dad. Apparently she hid them, and she told [her ex-husband] Kevin [Federline] she might send them back to her parents un-opened."

Apparently, K-Fed wasn't too pleased with Brit's attitude and let her have it during a phone call on Christmas evening.

"Kevin told her to stop acting like a spoiled brat," the insider said, adding, "He asked her to give them to him and he would let them open them."

The source continued, "Britney then bragged a lot about what she bought them [Jayden and Sean] just to piss him off, but Kevin expected her to do that. The kids got lots of toys, including some LeapFrog learning goodies and miniature cars."

Gossip Girls

Enjoy the pictures of Britney leaving Starbucks on Robertson Blvd last night (December 27).

Comcast heirs to get founder's pay (AP)

PHILADELPHIA - The 87-year-old founder of Comcast Corp.'s pay will keep going to his beneficiaries for five years after his death under a new agreement.

Ralph J. Roberts' new salary agreement takes effect on Jan. 1, according to a document the company filed Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The pact succeeds Roberts' current compensation deal, which expires next week.

Philadelphia-based Comcast said the new agreement, signed by both parties on Thursday, provides benefits comparable to what Roberts had under the existing deal.

Comcast also said that John Alchin, its co-chief financial officer and treasurer, will be retiring at the end of the year. Michael Angelakis, who has been co-chief financial officer since March, will become sole CFO and treasurer on Jan. 1.

Roberts, whose son now heads the company, sits on the board of directors and is chairman of its executive and finance committee.

In 2006, Roberts was paid a salary of $1.8 million. His full 2007 salary and benefits will be disclosed when the company files its proxy statement next year.

The new agreement gives Roberts' beneficiaries his 2007 salary for five years after his death. It also gives the beneficiaries his annual performance-based cash bonus, whatever has accrued but not yet paid out, after his death.

His wife, if she survives him, will get health and welfare benefits for life.

If Roberts becomes mentally or physically disabled for six months and can't do his job, Comcast may terminate his position. If that happens, he will get his salary for five years and benefits for life. If Roberts dies before the five years is over, the money goes to his beneficiaries.

The agreement will stay in effect with Comcast's successor company in the case of an acquisition, restructuring or similar event.

Shares of Comcast fell 3 cents to $18.40 on Friday.

Thatcher's US bathroom farce revealed in new documents (AFP)

LONDON (AFP) - As British premier, Margaret Thatcher may have forged a strong "special relationship" with the US, but an early visit did not always offer a warm introduction to the nation, documents released Friday show.

Thatcher went to the United States as leader of Britains main opposition Conservative Party in September 1977 but the visit took a comic turn when she got locked in a toilet and "had to be released from bondage" at a Texan hotel.

She also displayed signs of what became her trademark strong-mindedness, "wrestling" the microphone from the host of one event so that she could speak and snubbing a journalist from television network CBS.

Roy Fox, an official at the British consulate-general in Houston, wrote to a colleague at the British embassy in Washington, Mark Russell, detailing the mishaps which befell her at a top hotel in Houston.

"The start of the visit on Friday evening was marred by the failure of the Warwick Hotel...to provide either a hairdresser or someone to press Mrs Thatchers dress," he wrote.

"The hotel in fact became a joke with the Thatcher party.

"The inside door handle of the bathroom would not work properly and both Mr Thatcher and Mrs Thatcher had to be released from bondage on different occasions.

"There were no laundry facilities on the Saturday and Mrs Thatchers secretary and mine did the laundry at the latters home on the Saturday evening."

Fox also provides early insights into the character of the woman who came to be nicknamed "the Iron Lady".

After a speech to the English Speaking Union, she "so much enjoyed the question period that she had a short wrestling match with the president for the microphone to enable the questioning to go on when he thought she had had enough."

Thatcher, who was British prime minister from 1979 to 1990, had noted of another engagement that "the Americans all seemed to want their pound of flesh," Fox added.

There was another "sharp reaction" when a CBS cameraman questioned her about the state of the British economy -- she declined to answer and later vowed not to give any more interviews to the network.

Thatcher had meetings with State Department officials and businessmen who were "impressed" with her but "she had not gone down quite so well with the Washington Post editorial board", a letter from Russell to Ramsay Melhuish of the Foreign Offices North America department said.

On becoming premier, Thatcher built a particularly warm relationship with US president Ronald Reagan, describing him as "a dear friend" in a eulogy at his 2004 funeral.

The documents were released at the National Archives in Kew, west London, under laws which allow top secret official papers to be made public after 30 years.

'Bioshock' tops best-of video games (AP)

The over-hyped console wars are so last year.

In 2007, a bounty of actual games finally mattered more than nerdy debates over each system's technological merits. And for the first time since Pong bounced its way into our living rooms, it seems as if video games are again being relished by all sorts of folks.

That retired couple next door? They're probably better than you at Wii Sports.

Here's our annual look at the best and worst in video games, 2007 edition.

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BEST GAME: "BioShock." A first-person shooter turned morality play, a thinking person's action game, a piece of electronic fiction with a soul. There are many positive ways to describe this gripping game and they're all true. There's just nothing else like this eerie vision of an undersea social experiment gone horribly wrong. Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows PC, $59.99, Rated M.

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BEST DEAL: The Orange Box. For $59.99, the innovators at Valve Corp. have provided one of the best bargains in 2007. You get five games, and all of them are excellent. "Portal," in particular, seems destined for legendary status, having spawned a cottage industry for plush companion cubes. (If you don't know what that means, you're really missing out). Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows PC, $59.99, Rated T through M.

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BEST GAME THAT INVOLVES GETTING OFF THE SOFA: "Rock Band." Close the windows, lock the doors and warn the neighbors before you blare the volume. "Rock Band" elevates music rhythm games to arena-filling levels in a game that gets better the more people there are. For a true rocking experience you'll at least need two guitars -- lead and bass -- plus a drummer and a singer to belt out the dozens of tunes. Groupies are optional.

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WORST TREND: The annual holiday video game deluge. Please, video game makers, you're only hurting your most loyal fans here. We spend all year with hardly anything new to play, then October rolls around and it's like an avalanche. Suddenly, we're faced with tough decisions about which of the dozens of good games we can actually afford to buy. Why not release more of these gems in the winter, spring or summer doldrums, when we're really looking for -- and more able to afford -- something new?

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MOST TIRING CONTROVERSY. "Manhunt 2." OK people, it seems pretty obvious that "Manhunt 2" is not a game for the kiddies. So why all the uproar? Ratings issues aside, if a game that lets you perform execution moves is a turnoff, change the channel. Parents have a tough job keeping content like this away from their children, but it's ultimately part of the responsibility. And this game is no more graphic than any number of R-rated movies I've seen -- except they aren't being altered to appeal to industry ratings groups.

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BEST (AND WORST) TREND: First person shooters were back in a big way this year. From the sublime ("BioShock") to the visually stunning ("Crysis"), there are more ways to wield weapons in convincing three-dimensional worlds than ever before. That's the good news, particularly for console owners. PC owners, however, are going to need beefy systems costing many thousands of dollars to make these gorgeous games playable.

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MOST OVERRATED GAME: "Halo 3." Yes, I went there. And I'm not saying "Halo 3" is bad. It's a decent game, with some good fighting and excellent online modes, no doubt. But don't believe Microsoft Corp.'s marketing and PR hype machine. Halo 3 changes nothing about video games. "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare" has a more interesting multiplayer component. And "Halo 3's" single-player story is baffling and leaves this supposedly epic saga feeling somewhat incomplete.

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BEST IDEA FOR A GAME GONE HORRIBLY WRONG. "Lair." Seriously, this PlayStation 3 game looks so awesome yet plays so horribly, it's like a sick joke from the developers. You're supposed to use the PS3's motion-sensitive controller to pilot your very own fire-breathing, butt-kicking dragon. Unfortunately, moving the controller left to move your dragon left, for example, is fairly impossible. Don't even get me started on 180-degree turns. I'm sure with practice you'll gain some semblance of control, but most people will give up in frustration long before they ever reach that point.

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MOST FRUSTRATING DELAYS: If I can't get my hands on blockbusters like "Metal Gear Solid IV: Guns of the Patriots," "Spore" or "Grand Theft Auto IV" soon, I think I'm going to lose it. Production delays are common in the games industry, and they're generally a good thing in the long run. The extra time only makes for a better, hopefully bug-free, gaming experience. But we've been hearing about these titles for like, ever, and I'm frankly getting very impatient.

Here's hoping all these games become a reality in 2008.

AOL pulls plug on Netscape Web browser (AP)

NEW YORK - Netscape Navigator, the world's first commercial Web browser and the launch pad of the Internet boom, will be pulled off life support Feb. 1 after a 13-year run.

Its current caretakers, Time Warner Inc.'s AOL, decided to kill further development and technical support to focus on growing the company as an advertising business. Netscape's usage dwindled with Microsoft Corp.'s entry into the browser business, and Netscape all but faded away following the birth of its open-source cousin, Firefox.

"While internal groups within AOL have invested a great deal of time and energy in attempting to revive Netscape Navigator, these efforts have not been successful in gaining market share from Microsoft's Internet Explorer," Netscape Director Tom Drapeau wrote in a blog entry Friday.

In recent years, Netscape has been little more than a repackaged version of the more popular Firefox, which commands about 10 percent of the Web browser market, with almost all of the rest going to Internet Explorer.

People will still be able to download and use the Netscape browser indefinitely, but AOL will stop releasing security and other updates on Feb. 1. Drapeau recommended that the small pool of Netscape users download Firefox instead.

A separate Netscape Web portal, which has had several incarnations in recent years, will continue to operate.

The World Wide Web was but a few years old when in April 1993 a team at the University of Illinois' National Center for Supercomputing Applications released Mosaic, the first Web browser to integrate images and sound with words. Before Mosaic, access to the Internet and the Web was largely limited to text, with any graphics displayed in separate windows.