What does that mean?
There are networks of  companies  who create cookies on your machine and use these to track  your behaviour  across multiple websites.
                       
And in English?
You will see ad  based content on one site based on  your activity on another and you won’t even  know it  happened.
                       
Who invented   it?
Netscape invented cookies to allow state to be maintained  between  HTTP transactions. However Microsoft filed for  a patent  in 2000 which  was granted in 2006. So it’s been around for many years.   It’s typically  used to authenticate or identify a registered  user of a website without  requiring them to sign in again, provide a  personalised view of the site or  track pages visited and use this data  for marketing purposes ( that is  refereed to as cookie  sniffing)
                       
What does it mean for my  business (what  are the marketing implications)?
It’s very likely you’re   already using the technology, but are likely not part of a network of   companies who share the  gathered information.  But, be  careful as  storing cookies on a users machine opens privacy issues. So  speak with you IT  team/tracking vendor to get more information   before going for world  domination through a proliferation of  cookies.
                       
What do I need to do  about it?
I you want to  opt out of tracking cookies from some of the  larger players follow the  little advertised link (surprise, surprise) http://www.networkadvertising.org/managing/opt_out.asp
                       
How   or where do I find out more?
Speak to an expert or get talking  to the  players on the list found in the above link.

 Is it a paradigm  shift or just another  TLA?
Its nothing new cookies where  invented partly for marketing  purposes. But, lets face it cookie  sniffing and trading sounds   better.