San Francisco - Google has agreed to acquire Adscape Media, a provider of in-game advertising, for $23 million, RedHerring.com reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. [more..]

Showtime Networks announced on Friday that it has launched Showtime Interactive 2.0, a breakthrough Interactive Television (ITV) application on EchoStar's Dish Network. Showtime Interactive works so that it pulls video from the set-top box's internal DVR into an Interactive TV environment, combining the very best features of a DVR and ITV in a single experience. [more..]

San Jose, Calif. - Networking equipment maker Cisco Systems has agreed to give Apple more time to respond to a lawsuit it filed last month, after Apple announced its iPhone product that bears a name for which Cisco owns the trademark. [more..]

Orlando, Fla. - Contrary to previous beliefs, owners of digital video recorders (DVRs) watch about two-thirds of commercials during TV programming, according to audience data in a new report from the Nielsen Company. [more..]

London, UK - A Jupiter Research survey show that almost two-thirds of European music industry executives think removing digital locks from downloadable music would make more people buy more tracks. The survey was carried out between December and January, before Steve Jobs published his thoughts on music DRM and galvanised the debate about these protection systems. [more..]

Seattle - Shares of RealNetworks fell 14% on Thursday, after the company reported a lower-than-expected sales outlook for the year and saw several analysts downgrade its stock. [more..]

Washington - Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) this week reintroduced his Truth in Video Game Rating Act, which would require games to be played "in their entirety" before receiving a rating, and launch a Government Accountability Office study into the effectiveness of the industry's ratings system. [more..]

Dallas - By the end of 2007, 55% of all U.S. households will have high-speed Internet access, according to projections in a report from market research firm Parks Associates. [more..]

Shanghai, China - Linktone, a Chinese provider of mobile entertainment services, announced that it "expects to make a firm offer" to acquire MonsterMob, a U.K.-based mobile entertainment distributor. [more..]

Seattle - Atomic Moguls, the developer of a fantasy game site that uses entertainment and movie news instead of sports, has raised about $1 million in a first round of funding, led by Second Avenue Partners and Amazon.com, the Seattle P-I reported. [more..]

New York, NY - Primedia Inc. has hired Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Lehman Brothers Inc. to explore the sale of its Enthusiast Media unit. Primedia Enthusiast Media (PEM) consists of 70 publications, 90 websites, and 65 events, including Motor Trend, Hot Rod, and Surfer. [more..]

Atlanta, GA – Beginning with the 2007 Daytona 500, NASCAR fans will be able to download video highlights from iTunes for $1.99. NASCAR.com will produce the footage, which will include driver interviews and radio communication between the pit crews and the cars. [more..]

Jerusalem - Israel's Antiquities Authority has installed Internet cameras at an excavation site on hallowed ground in Jerusalem, so that anyone can monitor the work and ensure it does not negatively affect the holy site, Reuters reported. Last week, Palestinians protested the construction site, fearing it would damage the holy Muslim al-Aqsa mosque or Dome of the Rock. Israel has denied the excavation, part of a plan to create a walkway to a complex known to Jews as Temple Mount and Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif, will harm the site. "The Antiquities Authority invites the public in the country and in the world to monitor the excavations up close and to see what is being done on the ground at any given time," said Osnat Goaz, the group's spokeswoman. [more..]

Hanau, Germany - Sony DADC has announced plans to start an initiative for a production technology alliance for dual-layer Blu-ray discs, which feature a capacity of up to 50GB. The dual-layer format provides room for more than five hours of high-definition video, depending on the encoding method. Sony said it will further detail the initiative at the upcoming Media-Tech Showcase and Conference in Barcelona next month. [more..]

San Francisco - Independent artist Jimmy Camp has produced what he says is the first commercially available album recorded using only an iPod, Wired News reported. "Captain America" was created using a $70 Belkin TuneTalk microphone accessory for the video iPod, and features "no overdubs, processing, cutting, pasting, or any other editing." [more..]

New York - Viacom's The N cable TV network plans on Monday to launch a multiplayer online game, "Trendetta," that challenges teens to pick the most popular trends in fashion, music, movies and celebrities while chatting in real-time with one another. "Trendetta gives our users the kind of experience that they been clamoring for by combining mashed up user-generated content, real time chat, and multiplayer gaming in a unique way," said Tony Zito, vice president of The N Digital. The-N.com counted 2.1 million unique users in December, according to Omniture SiteCatalyst. [more..]

Barcelona - Mobile game publisher Glu Mobile announced this week that it signed an agreement with U.K. game publisher Codemasters, to develop and publish mobile versions of Codemasters titles like "Colin McRae Rally" and "LMA Manager." The deal follows Glu's previous agreement to publish a mobile version of Codemasters' "Brian Lara International Cricket 2007." The first title under the new deal will be "LMA Manager 2008," slated for release in the fall of 2007. [more..]