Washington - The U.S. Justice Department has launched an antitrust probe into the settlement being negotiated between Google and authors over the company's book-scanning service, The New York Times reported, citing two people briefed on the matter. [more..]

Dulles, Va. - The head of media giant Time Warner said on Wednesday that he expects to unveil the company's future plans for AOL, which may include a spinoff of the once-dominant Internet provider, in the coming weeks. [more..]

New York - Over 60% of those who signed up for the popular Twitter microblogging service had stopped visiting the site a month later, according to a new report from Web audience measurement firm Nielsen Online. [more..]

San Francisco - The CEO of RealNetworks testified in federal court on Tuesday that his company's RealDVD disc-copying software does not facilitate piracy, and that consumers have a legal right to back-up their movie collections, according to published reports. [more..]

San Antonio, Texas - Clear Channel, the largest radio station owner in the U.S. with 900 stations, announced on Wednesday that it will lay off around 590 employees, following an earlier round of 1,850 layoffs in January. [more..]

Paris - A proposal that would see repeat file-swappers lose their Internet connections has been reintroduced in the French parliament, while the "three-strikes" concept has been ruled out by the government minister in charge of intellectual property in the U.K., according to published reports. [more..]

Los Angeles - Sony will introduce a new iteration of its PSP handheld game system at the E3 Expo in June, 1UP.com reported, citing "sources directly involved with the new system." [more..]

Washington - In a move designed to make it far easier for government agencies to share information over the Internet, the General Services Administration (GSA) has signed agreements with a group of social media services including Facebook, MySpace, Blist, Vimeo, Slideshare and AddThis. [more..]

New York - IAC, the operator of over 35 Internet firms including Citysearch, Evite and Match.com, announced on Wednesday that it has acquired Urbanspoon, an online local restaurant guide. [more..]

Denver, Colo. - Associated Content, the operator of an open online publishing platform, announced on Wednesday that it has raised $6 million in its third round of venture capital financing. [more..]

Reston, Va. - Hulu, the video site joint venture between NBC Universal and News Corp., overtook Yahoo to become the third most-popular Web video site in March, according to Web audience measurement firm comScore. [more..]

Los Angeles - Movie studio lobbying group the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) announced that it has named Daniel Mandil to oversee its worldwide legal affairs and anti-piracy efforts. [more..]

Los Angeles - Entertainment and pop culture blog network Buzz Media said on Wednesday that it has named Alan Citron as its new president. [more..]

New York - Sony Pictures Entertainment's Crackle.com video website said on Wednesday that it has expanded its feature-length film selection to nearly 100 titles, and now offers free streaming of movies including "Spider-Man 2," "Stripes" and "La Femme Nikita." [more..]