In a stunningly retarded move, Microsoft plans to start a social networking site that is pretty much the same as the myriad of Soc-Net sites around, only Microsoft will make you pay for the content that you put on your page.

Wallop says the plan to charge users for the decorations will supplant the advertising that supports many such free sites. The add-ons will initially cost somewhere between 99 cents and $4, said Karl Jacob, the San Francisco company's chief executive. The company will offer some elements for free.

Why would I want to join a site where I have to pay for content that goes on my page just to avoid ads? I don't remember ads being such a problem that I would be willing to pay for my page layout to avoid them. Oh yeah, you can only join if someone else invites you, a practice sure to keep their site membership nice and low. This kind of ignorance of the market place does not belong in today's society. Also the name Wallop sounds ridiculous and forced.