New York - Google's (NASD: GOOG) YouTube has introduced the ability for "professional" content producers, qualified as those with their own ad sales teams, to sell their own ads against their videos on the site, AdAge reports. Both overlay and display banner ads are included, with YouTube to split the ad revenue with content creators. One pro content producer utilizing the new capability is Web TV producer Revision3, which has sold ads against its YouTube videos to hosting provider GoDaddy -- a sponsor also that is also integrated into the content of its shows, according to AdAge.

London - Major record label EMI Music announced on Monday that it has appointed Cory Ondrejka, co-founder of "Second Life" creators Linden Lab, to the new position of senior vice president of digital strategy. "Cory shares my passion for driving technology and innovation in the digital music business," said Douglas Merrill, president of EMI's digital business. "His unique experience building online environments, like Second Life, will be invaluable to EMI Music, as we create new digital communities for fans and artists."

New York - Veteran rock band AC/DC will sell its forthcoming Columbia Records album "Stiff Upper Lip" exclusively through retail giant Wal-Mart's (NYSE: WMT) stores, the Wall Street Journal reported. "Columbia's decision to sell a major new release at only one retail chain has the potential to alienate retailers left out," the Journal noted. Wal-Mart has done similar exclusive CD releases with other artists including the Eagles and Journey.

Sausalito, Calif. - Sony Pictures Entertainment's (NYSE: SNE) Crackle online video network on Monday announced the release of three nine new original series, including a deal to host "The Take-Away Shows," a Web music video series that offers intimate "street" performances from indie bands. Other shows debuting on Crackle include "The Jace Hall Show," and the second seasons of "Purple Onion" and "C-Spot."

New York - Girl Talk (aka Gregg Gillis), best known for his mashups that combine dozens of samples in a single track, has announced plans to release the follow-up to his 2006 album "Night Ripper" in a pay-what-you-want format -- a la Radiohead's "In Rainbows." Following the digital release of "Feed the Animals" from Gillis' website, a physical CD is also scheduled for release several months later.

London - Bebo, an online social network owned by AOL, on Monday announced that it partnered with Universal Music UK on a new original Web drama series that will be "set amongst the real-life workings of the music company's West London headquarters." "The Secret Life of Sam King" will feature music from Universal artists, and generate revenue from brand integration -- with the first three months of the series to feature Sony Ericsson as sponsor.

Vancouver, B.C. - Hip Digital Media announced on Monday that it will covert all tracks at the Aeroplan Music Store to MP3 format, in effect creating what it says is the first commercial music download site in Canada to offer content from all four major labels in a DRM-free format. The company partnered with Aeroplan in September to create the store, which allows members of Aeroplan -- a loyalty rewards program -- to redeem Aeroplan Miles for music downloads.

El Segundo, Calif. - Toymaker Mattel (NYSE: MAT) on Monday introduced a new subscription-based version of its BarbieGirls.com virtual world, "Barbie Girls V.I.P.," which will cost $5.99 per month and offer "a world four times larger than its original size, with new locations to explore, new games and new experiences throughout the site." In addition, V.I.P. members will exclusively be able to purchase members-only fashions, furniture and room décor, and pet accessories.

Los Angeles - Online animation community MyToons.com announced on Monday the launch of HD Animation, which it says makes it the first animation website to showcase members' animation in HD online. The service also allows users to embed and share HD animations at full resolution on pages outside MyToons.com.

New York - The nonprofit Tribeca Film Institute on Monday announced the launch of Reframe, an online service that will help filmmakers, libraries and other media owners digitize, market and sell their classic and hard-to-find films and video content using the Internet.

Los Angeles - The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has initiated a proceeding at the behest of Hollywood movie studios, to examine their request that they be able to remotely block consumers from recording high-definition, new release films on their digital video recorders, Ars Technica reported.

San Francisco - As expected, Apple (NASD: AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs on Monday unveiled the new iPhone 3G, which he says is "twice as fast" as the first-generation model and will sell in the U.S. for $199 (8GB) or $299 (16GB) beginning on July 11. Apple also introduced iPhone 2.0 software, also to release on July 11, which will include support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, over-the-air push e-mail, remote wipe and Cisco IPsec VPN for encrypted access to corporate networks.

San Francisco - Apple (NASD: AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the much-anticipated second-generation Apple smart phones at the company’s annual Worldwide Developer Conference in San Francisco on Monday. The new iPhone 3G will use third-generation, or 3G, wireless technology to enable users to run wireless Internet applications like streaming video much faster than before. The price is also cut to $199 from $399 for the 8GB version, when it goes on sale in 22 countries on July 11.

McLean, Va. - Citing "tough economic challenges both domestically and in the U.K.," Gannett (NYSE: GCI), the publisher of USA Today and 84 other daily newspapers, said on Monday that it plans to record as much as $3 billion in impairment charges this quarter to reflect the company's dwindling value. Gannett said that the non-cash charges reflect "challenging business conditions" related to the softening real estate market, as well as a decline in its stock price.

New York - Major record label Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) has pulled its catalog from free on-demand music streaming service Last.fm, according to reports. The label was the first of the majors to sign a deal to stream its songs for free on Last.fm -- which was acquired by CBS (NYSE: CBS) for $280 million -- and it may be seeking to improve the terms of its deal with the move.

Toronto - JumpTV, a Toronto-based broadcaster of live and on-demand sports and international television programming over the Internet, announced on Monday that it will merge with NeuLion, an IPTV service that offers live and on-demand sports, international and religious programming over the Internet and through set-top boxes.

New York - GE/NBC Universal's (NYSE: GE) Peacock Equity Fund, together with European private equity group GMT Communications Partners, on Monday announced a $110 million majority buyout of Bigpoint, a developer of browser-based multiplayer online games.