Briefing: Code for 'Second Life' opened to public
Linden Lab said Monday that the programming code that runs its PC interface would be made available under the GNU Public License, an agreement among developers that allows them to modify and share software legally.

Microsoft to build its products into Ford cars
Microsoft and Ford will offer buyers a system called Sync, a voice-activated method for connecting cellphones and media players — like Microsoft's Zune — to a vehicle.

Threatened by the Internet, Time magazine slims down
The management is trying to cut costs, reflecting the brutal realities of the mass magazine business. At the end of the month, there will be significant layoffs at the magazine division, and it will not be limited to cuts among Time's 280 editorial employees.

From the mind of a TV producer, satellite television to go
The portable satellite dish, which folds up like a piece of luggage, can be used for camping and tailgate parties or in dorm rooms.

For journalists, it's not politics as usual
As newspapers across the country are cutting staffs and trimming back Washington coverage, The Politico is finding younger journalists and veterans who are willing to leave the once-secure confines of traditional print to join a start-up.

TV 'time-shifting' goes international with Sky
British Sky Broadcasting sold about 700,000 digital recorders last year as it carefully marketed to viewers the benefit of being able to zip through commercials.

Vivendi sees more value in media than mobiles
Unlike many investors who are pouring funds into mobile telecommunications, Vivendi's chief executive sees the future more closely tied to the media side of the equation.

Unsuspecting zombies recruited for Internet crime
The botnet systems, which lurk in users' computers, are also blamed for the recent spike in spam e-mails.

French Retailers Rush to Advertise on TV as Ban is Lifted
French retailers have moved swiftly to advertise on TV after a ban on advertising by supermarkets, department stores, hypermarkets" and other merchants expired at the end of last year.
- The Internet is shaking up the ad industry even as it keeps it afloat

Wireless: Patent suit could stunt Bluetooth's growth
The lawsuit filed in Seattle could hamper the growth of Bluetooth in the United States just as the technology is gaining traction in that market.

Linden Lab will review and test some add-ons, modifications and bug fixes, and incorporate them into the official version of the PC viewer, which can be downloaded for free. The announcement does not cover all the software behind "Second Life."

The program that controls the underlying infrastructure will remain proprietary, though Philip Rosedale, Linden Lab's chief executive, said open-source "is absolutely our direction." "Second Life" users create avatars of themselves and move about the virtual world, chatting with others, buying land, building homes and businesses. (AP)

Nokia-Siemens plan gets reviewed by U.S.

BERLIN: The Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States, a group of 16 federal agencies that screens mergers involving foreign companies with U.S. subsidiaries, is reviewing plans by Nokia and Siemens to merge their network- equipment businesses

A Nokia spokeswoman in Espoo, Finland, Rita Mard, said the companies were in talks with the U.S. committee, but declined further comment. Representatives of the committee and of Siemens did not comment.

Frank Rothauge, an analyst in Frankfurt with Bankhaus Sal. Oppenheim, described the review as routine. The Nokia-Siemens venture already has received U.S. and European Union antitrust approval. The U.S. committee routinely reviews transactions affecting basic U.S. infrastructure.

News Corp.'s MySpace.com Web site will display submissions for the expanded Broadband Emmy Awards as part of an effort to identify aspiring video artists. Under an agreement with the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, MySpace will be host to a site for user submissions in 12 Emmy categories, triple the number of categories last year.. The academy, known for its annual television industry awards, is expanding a program started last year to give Emmys to works created for the Internet.(Bloomberg)

MEETIC, the leading online dating agency in Continental Europe, said it was close to concluding a friendly takeover of a British peer, DatingDirect. Meetic said it would pay £27.3 million, or $52.7 million, for DatingDirect and that the "accord should be finalized in the course of January 2007." (Reuters)

YOUTUBE, the video-sharing site owned by Google, is being blocked by Brasil Telecom in response to a judicial order banning a steamy video of the supermodel Daniela Cicarelli. The widely viewed video shows Cicarelli and a Brazilian banker in intimate scenes along a Spanish beach. (AP)