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Vivi Zigler, EVP of digital for NBC Entertainment, is responsible for all of NBC's individual web sites. Which makes her also responsible for NBC Direct, the network's much-derided free download service.

We -- and many others -- are dubious that the site, which offers ad-supported NBC shows that only run on Windows PCs and disappear after seven days, has much mainstream appeal. And since Vivi wouldn't provide usage numbers for the service, we'll continue to think that until we see otherwise.

Web video JV Hulu tells us it's not planning to launch an iPhone/iPod touch edition of its service any time soon. That squashes a rumor on MacRumors, which said that Hulu was planning to launch an iPhone version of its site "as early as this Thursday."

Why aren't they? Here's our guess:

First, the tech hurdles: Hulu's videos require Adobe's (ADBE) Flash plugin, which isn't available yet -- or ever? -- for Apple's (AAPL) iPhone and its Safari browser.

Remember how the writers strike was going to change everything -- beginning with viewers' TV habits? Think again, says media agency Carat: A survey of TV watchers this week says 95% are ready to resume their old schedules as new shows come back on the tube.

But surely some people have abandoned their remote control for their mouse, right? Maybe, says Carat: Of the 5% of viewers totally turned-off by TV, a whopping 11% said they'd be watching more shows online.

The most important thing about the iPhone isn't the sleek design, the touchscreen, iTunes integration, or any other single feature. It's the way that people use the device. Specifically, it's that people actually use it to do stuff besides making phone calls. Examples:

Newsflash: People are getting exposed to a lot of advertising on the Web. How much? One measure: comScore co-founder Gian Fulgoni says the Internet is more than twice as many ad impressions than TV.

But this is nothing to brag about. It means the Web is bombarding its users with low-value ad units that may in fact be declining in their effectiveness. Fulgoni says online accounts for 17% of time spent with media and only 7% of the U.S. advertising marketplace.