The Pepsi Refresh Project has been one of the most successful corporate CSR initiatives in recent memory, pledging millions to worthy causes and raising awareness for thousands more. But this morning it got slammed by its first wave of bad PR: allegations in The New York Times that well-funded Lefty operatives are stuffing the online ballot box for their pet causes

Companies plan to invest more in social media next year, a new Econsultancy survey shows. That’s the promising bit. The less inspiring part? Not all of these companies actually know how they are going to track this investment. This comes even as a new report shows how one aspect of social media spend – a Facebook strategy – really does have a pay-off.

No doubt helped by the World Cup and the explosion in smartphone usage, mobile video consumption is booming in much of Europe with the UK and Italy leading the way, new comScore research shows. Roughly two-thirds of all smartphone users use the handset to view video, the data show, either via a mobile TV subscription or by accessing video-sharing sites (or, their apps) such as YouTube.

The global social media landscape continues to shift in surprising ways. Two new Forrester reports show – as expected – a continuing rise in social media usage, but there is no substantial growth in social media-inspired content-creation. Meanwhile, we note another significant (though hardly surprising) development, as Twitter overtakes MySpace in unique visitors.

With a potential market of 108 million online shoppers, China is an e-commerce force to be reckoned with. With an extremely young, social media-savvy net population, it’s become a social commerce force as well.

Two iconic alcoholic beverages, Guinness stout and Jack Daniel’s whiskey, are celebrating their birthdays this month widely across social media channels, inviting all of us in on the festivities. The similarities don’t end there.

It’s no surprise that increasing numbers of retailers are establishing a presence in social media. The surprise lies in their reasons for going social – most say they were pushed into it by customers and rivals.

Dear Blockbuster customers, filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as the struggling movie rental chain did last week, does not mean you’re off the hook on your escalating late fees. And, yes, you do have to return that crappy DVD version of Robin Hood with Russell Crowe that your girlfriend made you take out. To keep up its part of the bargain, Blockbuster has not quite abandoned you either, admirably keeping the Twitter and Facebook feed up to date even as the public concludes the brand is just about dead. Just don’t mention the B-word.

It’s no surprise that Asia is one of the biggest growth markets in social networking. So you might think that’s where Facebook is gaining its new ground, right? Well, actually no. In much of Asia, and some other parts of the world, Facebook is trailing badly in the social network stakes.

Since 2004, Technorati has been publishing its annual State of the Blogosphere survey, an insightful look at how blogging habits of individuals and companies continue to evolve. The details for the 2010 survey will be released in November, but Technorati is asking for your input now.