EU set to clear Google/DoubleClick merger: sources

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Google is expected to receive unconditional approval from European Union regulators next week for its $3.1 billion takeover of ad firm DoubleClick, people familiar with the situation said.

The approval has long been expected because the European Commission decided in January not to object formally to the transaction.

The Commission, the EU's top competition watchdog, has never rejected a deal without sending formal objections.

Privacy advocates have objected to the deal, saying it would give the two firms unprecedented access to information about consumers. The Commission has said privacy considerations are outside the scope of its authority over mergers.

The deal would combine Internet search engine giant Google's dominance in pay-per-click Web advertising with DoubleClick's market-leading position in flashier display ads.

The planned acquisition won approval from the Federal Trade Commission in December. For the past six years, the EU has never rejected a merger approved by U.S. authorities.

The merger is part of a consolidation within the Internet advertising industry.

Microsoft Corp bought aQuantive for $6 billion, Yahoo Inc acquired BlueLithium for $300 million and Time Warner Inc's AOL unit bought Tacoda for an undisclosed amount.

eBay Sellers Network on Facebook for Fun and Profit

People are popping up all over on Facebook like so many prairie dogs in a Kansas field. The social networking site has been growing at lightning pace. It now has more than 64 million active users and has had an average of 250,000 new registrations per day since January 2007, according to its statistics page.
It didn't take long for eBay and online sellers to spot the opportunities on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/), especially on a site that has "networking" in part of its name. Although the site has only just started exploring out-and-out advertising, there are many ways for Facebook users to get the word out about their wares. (And it's easy to have fun while you're there, especially for a site rife with fluffy little apps like "Happy Hour," where you can send a virtual drink to your friends, and a quiz naming car logos of the world).
News Feeds A "News Feed" shows up in the middle of your Facebook home page, informing you what is going on with your Facebook friends. For example, the feed may notify you when a friend joins or leaves a Facebook group, adds or removes an application (see below), or comments on a photo.
You can also use the "Status Update" feature, which allows you to write a short note about what you're doing or thinking that moment. This is also a good way to alert your Facebook friends if you've made a new blog post. You can also add a Feed or Blog application to your page to keep folks piped into your blogging activities.
Applications/Widgets Facebook offers a number of widgets, aka "apps," which allow you to embed a little mini-program within your profile on the site, publish news stories that go out to your friends, etc.
For example, the "eBay Marketplace" app lets you broadcast to your Facebook friends when you sell an item on eBay, and they can click a link to see what else you are selling.