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Two Microsoft research groups, Microsoft Research Asia and Microsoft Office Labs, have launched Task Market, an online marketplace for jobs that can be done on Office applications.

Like Elance, oDesk, and other piecework job sites, Task Market is a marketplace for people with skills and time--and those that need them.

Task Market is focused on very specific, and nontechnical jobs. At the moment, the only job categories allowed on the site are writing, editing, translation, and basic design. Why not programming or scripting or multimedia editing? Because, as the FAQ says, "By focusing on tasks accomplished using applications such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access, Task Market makes it quicker and easier for small businesses to get their job done."

Of course, Webware recommends Web-based productivity suites (like Google Docs) for team editing and collaboration, but there's as yet no marketplace service for Google like Task Market. Anybody want to build one?

Each job in Task Market has its own discussion thread, in which bidders for the job can communicate with the person who wants it done. There doesn't appear to be a way to contact individuals privately, though, which is odd. Users (both contractors and customers) get ratings--just like on eBay--once a task is complete.

Task Market is a simple and clear service for finding document-based tasks for hire.

Task Market lets employers specify the fee they're willing to pay for a job, and all payments go through eBay's PayPal.

Task Market's big benefit right now is that it is very simple to get into. It's easy to post a job, and it's easy to scan the available tasks. More mature services, such as oDesk, provide better job-tracking services, as well as more options for users to promote themselves and set up teams.

The site, still in "tech preview," and has few jobs on it.

UPDATE (12:35 p.m. on 5-03-08): To include reference to possible ties to Zune VideoX.

A reader of a site dedicated to Zune news has posted photos of what are claimed to be new features at Zune's Marketplace, including flash animation and a new video section.

The photos were posted at Zunerama.com and are said to be of flash animation and two new tabs. One of the tabs is called "video" and the other is "listeners."

Speculation on the site is that Microsoft is possibly preparing to update Marketplace and is testing some new features.

A Microsoft spokesman said that the company's policy is not to comment on speculation. He added that Microsoft has not announced any upcoming changes at Marketplace.

The person who posted the photos questioned whether the "listeners" tab may be some kind of social-networking feature. If you have any information, we'd love to know.

UPDATE: Mary Jo Foley over at ZDNet e-mailed me and said she wonders if the photos found on Zunerama are tied to "the coming-out party for Zune VideoX" she has written about lately. Foley has a source who told her that Zune VideoX is "a Video store that bridges Xbox, Windows, Zune and Pink."

According to Foley's source, Microsoft wants to play it up it's video, which it sees as better than iTunes' offer. Go here to read more.

According to Wikipedia, the Department of Justice is "designed to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans." So why is it that the Justice Department recently filed a press release stating its opposition to net neutrality? In the statement, the DOJ argues that "consumers and the economy are benefiting from the innovative and dynamic nature of the Internet," and that "regulators should be careful not to impose regulations that could limit consumer choice and investment in broadband facilities."

Of course, given that almost all locales are limited to at most two broadband carriers--the telephone and cable monopolies--there are already regulations that "limit consumer choice and investment in broadband facilities." The Justice Department seems to be tailoring its antitrust agenda in such a way as to serve the interests of certain big business interests and not the needs of the American people. If any company could enter the marketplace to offer high-speed Internet access then their position would at least be possible to defend. Were that the case, then people would be free to choose among a multitude of Internet offerings, some of which would likely offer neutrality while others would provide a preferential pipe. Only then would there be some teeth in the argument that the free market would ensure Americans get the best access at the best price. In reality, it is only the massive telecoms and cable companies that are able to provide high-speed Internet, and both camps have an economic incentive to abandon net neutrality.

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Facebook's new "Marketplace" classifieds feature launched quietly this weekend, giving the social networking site's members the ability to post Craigslist-like ads and make them visible to their friends and "networks" (which, if you aren't familiar with Facebook, are based around regions, high schools and colleges, and companies). I gave it a quick run-through to test it out; here's what I found.

When you click on Marketplace, which is accessible by a link in the left sidebar (along with other Facebook staples like photos, groups, and notes) you are directed to the Marketplace homepage for your primary network, with tabs where you can navigate to the corresponding pages for your other networks if you're in more than one. In the image below, you can see the CNET network is the one displayed; I also have access to listings from my former university's network and to the NYC network. The interface is more or less just like the rest of Facebook--blue and white, without much clutter.

Read on after the jump...

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Very recently, Facebook launched its new "Marketplace" classifieds ads feature, a potential rival to services like Craigslist. The service, according to a New York Times article, was supposed to go live on Friday. At least in the networks that I have access to, it wasn't actually available until Sunday night. (Facebook occasionally will roll out features to select school, workplace, or regional "networks" within the service before they become widely available. But it looks like now the Marketplace is available to everyone.)

Look for our review of Facebook Marketplace very soon.