Apparently, Google’s popular “simple is better” Web search engine design is not effective in South Korea. Given this scenario, Google Korea will adopt a multi-column and graphic-rich style to be more marketable. In short, it will go ala Yahoo!

Just like Baidu.com in China, Google have a hard time competing with local search engines such as Naver.com and Daum.net. Even its video-sharing giant YouTube is behind the local players.

The search engine giant must be desperate for it is rather rare for them to move away from its global strategy. Still, Google’s International Project Manager Jung Ki-hyun this new design is not a “Korea-only project” and there are plans to implement this system to other language versions.

via The Korea Times

Feeling the immense popularity of rival Facebook nowadays, MySpace will open its doors to outside developers to hopefully regain its dominant leadership in the competitive social networking segment. As they say, better late than never.

Initially announced in October 2007, this is an initiative of the newly assigned COO Amit Kapur to catch up with Facebook. The API will be released to third-party developers this coming February 5. According to independent consultant Ben Metcalfe who advised about this program:

“I can appreciate that in the past MySpace has not always been perceived as playing as well in this space as it could — especially around turning off widgets for unclear reasons. However, in the run-up to this launch, I’ve sensed a very different approach — one that understands the importance of playing well and being a good actor in the community.”

Unfortunately, this task is not as easy as it looks. Facebook has already built a massive collection of about 15,000 apps.

Via Computerworld

Australian advertising buying and selling start-up Ad It Last launched its U.S. operations by establishing its first office in San Francisco and is in talks with investors and major media companies that have inventory to sell.

Tutone said Ad It Last is a marketplace to buy and sell advertising across all mediums.

“We own the patented technology that creates and runs this kind of deadline driven market place for advertising,” she said.

“And we are the only remnant or distressed last minute advertising marketplace that is managed or accessed via an easy online interface.”

“Just as buyers and sellers use technology to manage stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange for example, Ad it Last is the advertising world’s equivalent, with its powerful technology giving access to remnant advertising in a faster and safer environment – and with cost savings of up to 70%.

“Our customers can include on the buyer side clients large companies, through to SMEs, and on the seller side they can be all media companies like Knight Ridder and News Corporation through to small trade or local news outlets. We already have two of the three of Australia’s largest media companies as a seller clients.

blinkx inked a partnership with HowTo.tv. Under the terms of the agreement, blinkx will host, transcribe and index video content from HowTo.tv. blinkx will also place contextually relevant advertising against the footage, and will share resulting advertising revenue with HowTo.tv.

HowTo.tv is designed to provide users with a quick and easy way to access handy tips from top TV experts, whenever and wherever needed. Hundreds of hours of instructional video content, ranging from perfecting your golf swing to finishing a tiling project, are available to help users expand on their interests and “how to” aspirations.

Vibrant Nation, founded to connect and empower accomplished women over 50, has launched to serve as a social recommendation website where boomer women can ask questions and answer questions from their peers and connect each other to the best resources to get the most out of life.

Founded by Stephen Reily, 43, a lawyer and marketing professional, the concept began with the realization that there has never before been a group of women like this: Today’s women over 50 have more money and power— and are expected to live longer— than women of previous generations. Over a 10-year period ending in 2010, the 55 to 64-year old population will grow 48% with a significant female skew. In addition, consumers 50+ own up to 80% of the nation’s financial assets and control 50% of the discretionary spending, spending 2.5 times as much as younger consumers on a per capital basis. Nevertheless, marketers continue to under-recognize their value and potential.

Ideablob.com from Dennis Bouchand on Vimeo.

If you’re a web 2.0 company and would want to present video to our readers, please email us. It’s free and you get our audience.

EDGAR Online, Inc. has attained Gold Certified Partner status in the Microsoft Partner Program with a competency in ISV/Software Solutions. As a Gold Certified Partner, EDGAR Online has demonstrated expertise with Microsoft technologies and proven its ability to meet customers’ needs. Microsoft Gold Certified Partners receive a rich set of benefits, including access, training and support, giving them a competitive advantage in the channel.

EDGAR Online is a premier source of financial information and corporate intelligence. The company’s innovative, productivity-enhancing tools such as I-Metrix enable professionals to easily analyze companies and investment opportunities.

Mainstream Holdings, Inc. has entered into an agreement with private investors to receive $29.6 million of funding for the Company. The funding will be used to accelerate the international expansion and enrich membership development programs of its subsidiary MOLI.

The group of investors includes a number of experienced business executives and Wall Street entrepreneurs known for working with companies to build quality businesses. Three of the investors will join Mainstream’s Board of Directors: Bernard Marcus, founder of HomeDepot; Kenneth G. Langone, co-founder of HomeDepot; and Steven D. Holzman, Managing Member Vantis Capital Management, LLC

Mainstream focuses on four industry segments: e-commerce, behavioral marketing, high-definition video production, and software and infrastructure development. MOLI is its core operating subsidiary. The founder provided $20 million of early stage capital and a select group of private investors provided an additional $6 million in equity.

Mosio announced that it has integrated its live, community-based mobile question and answer service with Twitter. Now anyone can ask questions via Twitter and receive quick, personalized answers and comments in real-time from their personal network of friends and the entire, global Mosio community.

Mosio’s unique, community-based approach provides users with quick, personalized answers and opinions for free on any mobile device, from the entire community or from their friends in real-time. Mosio‘s questions and answers are also fun and entertaining, since users are interacting with live, social responders; irreverent questions often attract equally irreverent answers.

Twitter users can ask questions and have them answered by real people within the community by following www.twitter.com/QNA and then sending direct messages (“d qna your question”). People who would also like to contribute answers can follow www.twitter.com/questionz.

Nokia and Trolltech ASA have entered into an agreement that Nokia will make a public voluntary tender offer to acquire Trolltech. Trolltech is a recognized software provider with world-class software development platforms and frameworks. In addition to the key software assets, its talented team will play an important role in accelerating the implementation of Nokia’s softwarestrategy.

The acquisition of Trolltech will enable Nokia to accelerate its cross-platform software strategy for mobile devices and desktop applications, and develop its Internet services business. With Trolltech, Nokia and third party developers will be able to develop applications that work in the Internet, across Nokia’s device portfolio and on PCs. Nokia’s software strategy for devices is based on cross-platform development environments, layers of software that run across operating systems, enabling the development of applications across the Nokia device range.