Look Less Idiotic, for $25,000 per Month

Declaring "a new milestone for the commercialization of blogs," AdAge.com reports that Sony Consumer Electronics e-Solutions Group is paying $25,000 a month to be the exclusive sponsor of LifeHacker, a new weblog published by Gawker Media "about the software of personal gadgetry." Gawker blog readers are considered "prime influencers" or "connectors" on technology issues. "What Sony is paying for is reducing their odds that they look idiotic and increasing their odds that they hit a home run," explained Blogads.com founder Henry Copeland. But "ads can cheapen and compromise a blog," warned Carat Interactive's media director John Cate.