The Leveller

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UK tells parents to get internet wise

Children's internet usage is coming under ever more intense scrutiny in the UK, with a number of reports published over the past few weeks. After conducting a survey on social networks, UK media watchdog, Ofcom warned parents that they need to find out how social networking works, in order to ensure their kids are using it safely.

Who’s looking at your YouTube?

Want to know who viewed your latest ad on YouTube, where and when? It's now possible, as the Google-owned site has added a range of new analytic features that let content owners access this kind of data.

Nokia asks customers to help Morph itself

Nokia has invited its one billion customers, plus bloggers and tech pundits to help it brainstorm ideas on the future of its mobile handsets, in a bid to ready itself for the burgeoning world of internet services via mobile.

EU broadband levels lead the world

Broadband subscription levels in eight European countries, including the UK, are pushing ahead of those in the US and Japan, according to a European Commission survey.

Comment

Are online ad exchanges about to come of age?

Online advertising exchanges, where third-party auction-based technologies allow publishers to set a minimum price for their inventory and media buyers to bid on standard display inventory, have been around for a while. However due to a combination of factors, to date these platforms have not been successful. With the companies behind these technologies taking a sizeable share of revenue from publishers for each transaction, this business model could however be extremely profitable for the company that gets 'first mover' advantage.

Bitesize

Wii’s in the army now

It may have been invented for virtual battles but the Nintendo Wii could soon be helping out the real military. Soldiers could use Wii's 'Wiimote' wireless remote controller to help them with robotic assistants in the field, reports the New Scientist.

Hovering in cyberspace

They starred in the '80s blockbuster film series Back to the Future, but now 'hoverboards' have a new lease of life on VizWoz , a new virtual teen network which has launched in the UK backed by several high-profile investors.

Raving success

A French dance craze has spawned a potential megabrand - and it's all thanks to video sharing. Tecktonik, a blend of punk, techno, break and disco, started in a Paris club but took off after notching up 33,000 videos on YouTube.

Get mobile

Technology is often blamed for turning kids into couch potatoes, with video games keeping them indoors rather than out in the fresh air.

Just the ticket

If you've ever handed your coat into a cloakroom then lost the ticket, or found someone else has walked off with your jacket after a party, you'll understand the monumental significance of Cloakscan, a new biometric coat-check system.

Food for thought

In the blogosphere equivalent of taking a journalist to a slap-up meal at The Ivy, food and drink companies are turning to a new kind of blogger - those who'd do anything for a free lunch.

The Numbers Page

Brits download the most

Eighty per cent of Brits (eight in 10 people) have downloaded from the internet in the last 12 months according to research from price comparison website MoneySupermarket. Predictably 18-34 year olds remain the prime active demographic (89 per cent) with the over 55s rapidly catching them up (71 per cent).

The World’s Most Innovative Companies

Fast Company magazine published its list of the top 50 most innovative companies. The top five are listed here, whilst readers are invited to nominate their own Fast 50 Reader Favourites list until 15 April and discuss the current list here

The US affluent favour social networking

The latest Luxury Institute's WealthSurvey: "The Wealthy and the Web 2.0" study showed that affluent web users in the dramatically increased their use of social networks from 27% in January 2007, to 60% in January 2008.