A clever marketing promotion for Tom Cruise’s new movie, “Mission: Impossible III,” went seriously awry when Los Angeles County police thought a news rack rigged to play the movie’s theme song contained a bomb and decided to blow it up.  A few thousand news racks selling the Los Angeles Times were fitted with a musical device that would play the “Mission Impossible” theme when a consumer opened the box to buy a paper.  The only problem was that in some cases, the device--a red plastic box with protruding wires--was jarred loose and dropped onto the stack of newspapers inside, …

Coca-Cola Co., has decided to take an offbeat, unexpected approach in a new advertising effort for its Sprite brand, which has been suffering from sluggish sales despite being the leader in the lemon-lime soft drink segment. The ads include bizarre imagery and strange scenarios and are intended to break through the clutter of more traditional fare and keep viewers from zapping through them. Spots include scenes of a woman whipping a tongue and a floating green frog as well as one with two sumo wrestlers painted yellow and green who crush a man's head. The spots carry the line, "Welcome …

The high price of gasoline is having an impact on how dealers and automakers are marketing new cars as well as influencing consumers' vehicle preferences. Some dealers are offering huge rebates or free gas while Ford Motor Co., Chrysler Corp., and General Motors Corp., are all resorting to the time-honored incentive of zero-percent financing to pare their inventory. "Everybody is concerned about fuel economy," says Lou Lombari, general manager of the Linden Dodge and Linden Volkswagen dealerships in Linden, N.J. "Customers are trading SUVs in for something less of a gas guzzler." One example was a California woman who bought …

Automotive brand Dodge will serve as the category-exclusive sponsor of a new TNT drama that will be presented in a commercial-free environment. The program, called "Saved, "will premiere June 12. Under terms of the deal, Dodge vehicles will be integrated into the narrative of the 13-episode run of "Saved" throughout the season. The agreement is yet another example of a trend toward so-called branded entertainment, in which marketers weave their product messages into programming rather than turning to traditional forms of advertising. The strategy has been effective among consumers who say they don't mind seeing products in programs as long …

When it comes to using instant messaging as an advertising vehicle, most marketers are missing the boat, according to new research. A report from JupiterResearch revealed that only seven percent of marketers include advertising in instant messenger programs as part of their media plans. The study, entitled "Instant Messaging: Reaching a Young, Engaged Audience via an Underused Medium," contends there is value in instant messenger ad placements as a component of network buys. "If you're looking at a campaign across the network, it's a fantastic way to leverage that and make sure your presence on Yahoo, MSN or AOL is …

It's not the Super Bowl, but it seems close, at least for marketers. Saturday was draft day in the National Football League, in which top college players were picked by pro teams to join their roster next season. The event is televised, and is eagerly anticipated and avidly watched by fans nationwide. As such, marketers wasted no time in trying to take advantage of the show. The NFL is also well aware of the draft's appeal, and markets the event as the kickoff on the road to the Super Bowl, the single largest advertising event of the year. This year, …

Marketers know that viral marketing can be a powerful tool, but sometimes it can work in reverse. That's what happened to athletic shoemaker Adidas after Asian Americans started spreading the word over blogs and through e-mail lists, alleging that artwork depicted on the company's Y-1 Huff shoe was racist. Adidas said it would pull the shoe off the market after the complaints became too loud and numerous to ignore. The sneaker has a cartoonish image of an Asian person on the tongue of the shoe with a bowl haircut, very slanted eyes and a "pig nose," which sparked talk among …

The National Football League, in preparation for the coming upfront advertising sales market, wants to make ad packages as attractive as possible for marketers. The plan is to offer enhancements such as in-game marketing opportunities, but so far details of exactly how the NFL plans to accomplish that goal have been sketchy, at best. One reason is because such opportunities are relatively new to the NFL. Other sports carry many "brought to you by" moments during games, but the NFL has traditionally avoided such clutter, preferring sponsored highlights or replays for after the game. Another problem has been getting all …

Ford Motor Co., a longtime sponsor of reality TV shows like "American Idol," wants to take the concept a step further and produce its own show. The idea is part of a new, multimillion-dollar marketing plan dubbed "Bold Moves" designed to broaden the automaker's appeal among younger consumers. Under one scenario being considered, the reality show would let aspiring car designers compete against each other to design a new Ford vehicle. Judges would review the designs, praise the most creative ones, criticize the least inspired ones and send the losers on their way. Ford would then build a concept version …