Free Republic

Facebook, the top social networking site, will receive more than one in five online display ad dollars in the U.S. this year, and Google (GOOG) likely has nothing to fear from the Microsoft (MSFT) -Yahoo (YHOO) alliance, says a report released early Tuesday. In 2011, Facebook will get 21.6% of all online display ad dollars in the U.S., or $2.19 billion, says the report from research firm eMarketer. That percentage is up from 13.6% last year and 7.3% in 2009. Yahoo is expected to be No. 2, 16.4% of online display ad sales, followed by Google at 12.6% and AOL(AOL)...

CHICAGO, June 15 (UPI) -- An auto repair shop owner buys some online ads and thinks he snagged a bargain by negotiating a deal with the advertising agency to pay only when Web surfers click on the banners. It sounds like a good deal, until the owner receives the bill: His $1 per click deal turns into a $1 million invoice, and he has no idea how many of the clicks came from legitimate prospects. Welcome to the world of Internet click fraud -- crimes emerging from an increasingly popular practice of pricing online ads. By Gene Koprowski