12:15 PM -- 2009 is turning into something of an annus horribilis for targeted advertising system specialist Phorm Inc. , which has seen its business potential take a battering during the past few months. (See Poor Phorm and BT Drops Targeted Ad Plans.)

To add to its woes, the U.K.'s Office of Fair Trading has just announced a market study into the advertising sector that "will look at the application of consumer law to advertising and pricing, with a particular focus on the internet... [It] may also look at the use of personal information in advertising and pricing - in particular, where information from a consumer's online activity is used to target the internet advertising he or she receives."

News of the study hit Phorm's share price, and brought the targeted advertising sector under the spotlight. Check out this Guardian article for more details.

— Ray Le Maistre, International News Editor, Light Reading