The planned split of Viacom Inc. into two companies is on the fast track, with Tom Freston and Leslie Moonves now set to ascend to the posts of CEO of Viacom and CBS Corp., respectively, earlier than expected -- namely, by year's end. Originally, Viacom management had said the creation of the two new entities would happen during first-quarter 2006, and executives had recently been using the phrase "early 2006" in their timing guidance.

High fuel prices have the Christmas shopping season off and running - weeks before trick-or-treaters have rung their first doorbells. Advertisers, marketers and retailers, worried that fuel prices will crimp spending on holiday shopping later this fall, are moving up their Christmas pitches. Consumers who believe it is not October, but rather November or even December have good reason to be confused.

Apple Computer, known for its trendsetting technology, finds itself in the uncomfortable position of being labeled a follower - or worse, a rip-off artist - over a new ad campaign. Apple's new ad featuring rapper Eminem, set to his hit "Lose Yourself," is under scrutiny after some keen ad watchers suggested it bears a startling resemblance to an earlier commercial for Lugz boots.

Meredith Corp. has become one of the first major publishing groups to launch a video-on-demand service based on a mainstream print property. Meredith, which owns a slew of female-oriented magazines and a TV station group, is producing TV content based on its American Baby magazine.

George Lois, the man who created the iconic and much-lauded Esquire magazine covers of the '60s "Golden Age of Journalism," spent his lunchtime speech at the American Magazine Conference "dressing down the illustrious magazine establishment of America" for its "boring, adoring, butt-kissing magazine covers." Mr. Lois' scathing critique of the state of magazine journalism came just one day after the American Society of Magazine Editors unveiled its top 40 magazine covers of the last 40 years. Three of Mr. Lois' Esquire covers made it into the top 10.

In trading volume nearly seven times its average, Interpublic Group's stock on Tuesday dipped as low as $10.05 per share before rebounding slightly to close at $10.51, still a new 52-week low. Analysts attributed the high-volume activity to IPG's one-day offer of convertible perpetual preferred stock to institutional investors, which is expected to raise about $600 million.

ABC will turn to a three-anchor team of Martin Bashir, Cynthia McFadden and Terry Moran to replace Ted Koppel when he leaves "Nightline" next month. The late-night news program will cover multiple topics and air live each night from studios in New York's Times Square and in Washington.

For the Super Bowl on Feb. 5, the superlatives seem poised to ascend - or descend, depending on your perspective - to a new realm of hyperbole.The reason? The next Super Bowl will be the 40th championship game to be sponsored by the league, which in rendering the sequence in Roman numerals has arrived at the meaningful letters XL. Read one way, it is XL as in excel. Read another, it is as in extra large. But if the league and its advertisers are not careful, America may read XL as XS, as in excess.

There's been no shortage of upstart ad agencies vowing to shake up Madison Avenue in the past few years. Amalgamated, Anomaly, StrawberryFrog, Taxi, The Night Agency, Phenom Boutique, The Concept Farm, Iris Nation, Mother, and Venables, Bell and Partners are among them. It's a pretty long list - and getting longer. The wave of agencies promising new ways of advertising and outside-the-box thinking shows no signs of abating.

Media buyers are mouthing the dreaded words "make goods." Pundits are circling TV Group President Jeff Zucker's head. Critics are carping about Martha Stewart. Welcome to NBC's new fall season, one in which the former prime-time powerhouse finds itself in the dreary cellar most recently occupied by ABC -- which is itself enjoying a turnaround that proves how fine the line is between success and failure for the big broadcast networks.