iTVX.com publishes opinion as well as accurately reported information from other sources. Links to content and the quotation of material from other news sources are not the responsibility of iTVX.com.
During a recent stop to promote his film “Role Models,” actor Paul Rudd presented a clip of the film on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien.” He set up the clip only to “fool” the host with a clip of the 1980s cornball alien comedy “Mac & Me.” That movie, as we know, is a rip-off of “ET” - which had come out just years beforehand, and included strong product placement for Skittles and especially McDonald’s. As a matter of fact, Ronald McDonald appears in the movie during a party scene.
Interpublic agencies Initiative and DraftFCB will head the combined business as part of a dedicated unit being set up–MC Media. (WPP Group-affiliated out-of-home agency Kinetic will also have a small role in the unit.) Holding company Interpublic has won the bulk of the consolidated media-buying/planning account for both Miller and Coors, as the two beer marketers recently merged operations.
Unilever has partnered with a new display advertising service called SnapAds to promote its dual-function body scrubber, Axe Detailer Shower Tool, just in time for the holiday season.
Introduced in the spring, Axe Detailer Shower Tool features both a soft and a rough side, and has been selling well in major markets, per Unilever. With SnapAds, a new display ad platform launched last month by a San Francisco-based company with the same name, Unilever will run banner advertisements on Wired.com and Reddit.com through mid-December.
Sony’s Crackle.com has unveiled its next season of Web originals, skedded to begin streaming next week.The 13-week season features new and returning skeins including online talker “Anytime With Bob Kushell”; new seasons of “The Groundlings” and “Owen Benjamin Presents”; new webisodes of “The Jace Hall Show”; and David Faustino’s “Star-ving.” Read the rest of this entry »
General Motors today announced that it will terminate its
endorsement deal with Tiger Woods in late December, ending the pro
golfer’s nine-year stint with the
automaker.
GM issued a statement saying both GM and Woods “agreed to a mutual
and amicable separation that included a desire for more personal
time for the [golfer] who is expecting his second child in late
winter as well as the search for budget efficiencies during a
difficult economy for GM.”
Crackle.com, Sony Pictures Entertainment’s Web outlet for original short-form video series, has announced a pair of new programs and several series renewals for the site’s upcoming 13-week season, which officially begins in December. First on deck is a talk show hosted by Bob Kushell, a TV writer who’s worked on series such as The Simpsons, Dream On and Samantha Who? Kushell has lined up several celebrity guests for Anytime with Bob Kushell, which is being shot in his garage Van Nuys, Calif., including Samantha Who? stars Christina Applegate and Jennifer Esposito, How I Met Your Mother’s Neil Patrick Harris and ER’s John Stamos. The first five-minute episode premieres on Dec. 18.
If there was one thing Americans learned about Michael Phelps during his history-making eight-gold-medal run at the Beijing Olympics — other than that he can swim really, really fast — it was that he really, really likes McDonald’s. At a press event before the games, the in-training Olympian revealed he’d been on a double-cheeseburger kick. Newspapers all over the world noted his Arches-fueled 10,000-calorie-a-day diet. Then, in an interview with CNBC, his agent, Peter Carlisle, said: “If there’s one deal [he’s wanted], he’s always said it’d be McDonald’s. … The truth of the matter is you can’t stop the guy from eating the food.”
Reality producer R. Greg Johnston has inked a two-year overall deal with Endemol USA to create and executive produce unscripted series. Johnston is a 16-year MTV veteran who joined the cable network as an intern in its early days and worked his way up to vp in the music development department and then an MTV-based producer.
Growth in online ad spending has significantly decelerated, leading industry analyst firm eMarketer to lower its revenue expectations for 2009.
Online ad spending will climb by 8.9 percent next year, from $23.6 billion to $25.7 billion, eMarketer says. Back in August, just prior to Wall Street’s meltdown, eMarketer predicted that spending would surge by 14 percent in 2009. But the economy is now taking its toll on all segments of media.
Competitive companies should not drastically cut back branding efforts in this economy. History has shown that strong brands ramp up marketing efforts and initiatives during tough times in order to take advantage of its competitors’ weak state. Of course, don’t overspend. You just have to find a way to effectively immerse your most valuable audiences in your brand.
