There are 60 times more blogs than there were three years ago, says Technorati’s David Sifry as the latest “State of the Blogosphere” report upped the number to 35.3 million blogs.

Now you can read the latest gossip on your favourite celeb - straight from the horse’s mouth - because they’re blogging at Blogstar , a service that connects rich and famous stars with their fans worldwide using cellphones.

The service will soon feature celebrities like Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, blogging about their lifestyles using camera phones and post pictures, text and even video to their personalized mobile blogs hosted on Blogstar. Hey, if Pierce Brosnan starts blogging there, I might subscribe
Via Amit Agarwal

“Are men more RSS savvy?”, was the question that poped into my mind as I read in AdAge’s 2006 Interactive Fact Pack data that 78% of RSS feed users are male.

It also notes that 70 per cent of media & communications companies are going to include blogs and social networks into their marketing efforts whereas 35 per cent are likely to spend marketing budgets to develop in-house blogs. Google’s Blogger.com has been found to be the most popular tool used for blogging. Via AlooTechie and PRMachine

Forrester reports that just 1% of online households in North America use podcasts. And they strongly favor listening to existing content like Internet radio or broadcast radio, not necessarily new content. Researcher, Charlene Li, notes that content that already exists such as earning calls, training updates, and executive presentations are all excellent fodder for podcasts. But she also recommends that companies shouldn’t be dashing out to create expensive original content for a small audience unless they gain value from being seen as innovative.

Adam Schultz reports on PubCon, with blogging advice from Jeremy Zawodny, Matt Cutts and Robert Scoble , on how A-list bloggers manage blog, work and home life. Scoble confessed that his wife lets him know when he’s slacking around the house because of work or the blog by flaming him on her own blog. Well, angry wives, there’s another way to communicate with your spouse…

David Utter profiles the agony of the the high-profile blogger, for whom sometimes the prospect of posting an entry can cause personal misgivings. ‘Be smart’ applies all the time, to any of the corporate bloggers.

A number of prominent bloggers are retiring, to pursue other avenues, reports News.com, including blogging pioneers, Dave Winer and Dan Gillmor. Winer, who popularised RSS technology, indicated that he intends to free up time and become less of a public figure — temporarily. His new projects include getting the students and faculty blogging at Harvard University. Gillmor wrote that he’d be ending his San Francisco Bay Area-focused blog, Bayosphere, to explore new projects. Via Lockergnome

Blogging curbs corporate excesses, notes Joy McCann, because consumers have more power now — via the Web — than they ever did before. Keeping up with online chatter is becoming paramount for companies that want to remain profitable.

Companies like McDonald’s, lock manufacturer Kryptonite, and computer firm Dell have all fallen foul of internet buzz in recent years. Because search engines like Google can allow grassroots campaigns to become highly visible, industry insiders agree decisions can be shaped by a small number of activists.

Martin Lynch observes how bloggers are influencing buying choices as the ˜blogosphere’ becomes more important than traditional marketing. A report from Jupiter Research warns that marketers need to be aware of just how influential the opinions of certain blogs are and how fast they can circulate in the blogosphere.

Takeaway: If your customers are blogging about you, you need to participate in the conversation.

Blogging can be good for your career notes C|Net News and The Boston Globe, which carried articles on how a well-executed blog sets you apart as an expert in your field.

Can blogging make you a full-time income? MoneyControl India says it can and so sure are they that blogs are where the money is, that they’ve begun a new series on ‘Professional Blogging as a Career’, promising to reveal how to make money out of blogging. At the Wall Street journal, the debate is still on. Via Om Malik

Learn all about Del.icio.us , the free service where thousands of people store their bookmarks, enabling you to see what’s trendy and popular, in this post by Andy Wibbels, author of BlogWild!.

And finally, here’s an excellent list of the Top Bloggers Essential Research Tools compiled by B. L. Ochman, with whom I share a love for salsa dancing (besides blogging, of course).