More T-R-O-U-B-L-E for Scrabulous. First, members of Facebook fell in love with Scrabulous, an unauthorized, near-identical online copycat of the board game Scrabble; legal issues ensued. Now Scrabble copyright-holder Hasbro is launching their own “authorised” version of online scrabble. — ABC News

Dreaming of Electric Cars. Nissan will be rolling out electric cars in Japan in 2010, followed by the US and (in Europe) Denmark in 2011, and then the rest of Europe in 2012… Think that’s interesting? Try this: on current electricity prices in Japan, a full charge for the car (enough for about 100 miles of driving) might cost as little as 50 cents. — Global Dashboard

The Failed States Index 2008. Whether it is an unexpected food crisis or a devastating hurricane, the world’s weakest states are the most exposed when crisis strikes. In the fourth annual Failed States Index, Foreign Policy and The Fund for Peace rank the countries where state collapse may be just one disaster away. — Foreign Policy

McDonalds limbers up for the Olympics. With just about a month to go, McDonald’s is getting ready for the Olympics… Mickey D’s is spending up big on ad tie ins with the Olympics, and alternate-reality game which is running in more than 100 countries. Beginning in August, consumers will be able to create pictures with their faces on an Olympian’s body at facetheglory.com.  — Advertising Age