• "Wild West" Atmosphere In Mobile Ad Biz
    In one unusual use of mobile advertising, an online wine retailer gave 15% discounts to people sending in photos of its newspaper ad snapped with a camera phone. SnapTell, the company that helps merchants offer such services, uses image-recognition software. In coming months and years, it could deliver things like movie reviews and discounts to folks who snap pictures of movie poster or billboards. And that is just one of the emerging twists to an industry still in its infancy. More than 80 percent of Americans now have cell phones, a fact that Jupiter Research analyst Neil …
  • Coke Products Coming To ExerciseTV
    Coca-Cola has cut a deal with Exercise TV that will bring its waters, juices and juice drinks, teas, energy and sports drinks and various other products to the video-on-demand network for at least the next two years. Launched last year, ExerciseTV is currently available in more than 23 million homes. It is the brainchild of Jake Steinfeld of "Body By Jake" fame, but developed by Comcast. Under the pact, Coke will integrate brand messages into shows they will co-create, along with existing programming. "Our partnership with ExerciseTV is ideal because it clearly demonstrates how our broad portfolio of …
  • Magazine Launches Slump In 2007
    New magazine launches in 2007 fell to just 650 titles, the lowest such tally in 16 years. Samir Husni, a University of Mississippi professor who keeps tabs on the business, notes that the last time there were fewer was in 1991, with a total of 553. And while some observers hold the Web responsible, Husni does not agree. "I don't blame the Internet," he says, insisting instead there are just too many titles already out there. "In 1980, we had 2,000 titles on newsstands," he says. "Now there are 7,200 titles on newsstands. I think the magazine industry …
  • Study: DVR Ad Impact Not So Bad
    Even with the explosion in DVRs, the technology is not having as much impact on ad-viewing as once feared -- at least according to a study by Palisades Media Group. A survey by the Santa Monica, Calif.-based media shop finds that more than half of prime-time programs recorded were played back the same day of recording and, by the end of the next day the shows aired, about three-quarters had been viewed. Further, time-shifting can actually increase viewing. In the study, conducted this fall, less than half those watching DVR recordings say they fast-forward through ads -- …
  • Singapore Air Ads Upfront About Added Fees
    Starting with the New Year, Singapore Airlines will advertise their ticket prices on an all-inclusive basis, meaning the carrier will only tout the full price payable by passengers -- including taxes, surcharges and fees. The surfeit of extra charges that can now form such a big part of the total price is one driver behind the move, says Singapore Airlines executive vice president Huang Cheng Eng. "We will standardize our advertising practices to provide consumers with the full price in all advertisements, wherever we advertise," he says. "In some markets, this may mean we look more expensive …
  • Disney Channel Nears 2007 Cable Ratings Crown
    The Disney Channel is on track to close out 2007 as No. 1 in prime time ratings for cable, barely edging USA Network, according to Nielsen data. Disney Channel has, with a few days to go in the year, pulled an average 2.2 prime-time rating, or 2,015,000 million households. NBC's USA, meanwhile, is just behind with a 2.1 rating and 1,997,000 households. Year-over-year, though, Disney Channel is flat, and USA is down 5%. Second runner-up -- pending final ratings, is TNT with a 1.8 prime-time rating, down 10%. Tied for fourth are ESPN and TBS. Moving down the …
  • Millions Of Cable Viewers Could Miss Pats Game
    As the New England Patriots attempt on Saturday to become the first NFL team in 35 years to go undefeated for an entire season, their victory--or lack thereof--may not be seen millions of eager fans. The Patriots' season-closing game against the New York Giants will be broadcast by the NFL Network, and may not be available to many cable TV subscribers. Time Warner, Cablevision and Charter have all refused to carry the channel, claiming it is demanding unreasonable terms. The cable operators and the NFL Network are still talking, but the clock is ticking. "There's still time," says NFL Network …
  • Hail The Gizzard King: Tyson Tops In Product Integration
    Tyson Foods' product integration on ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" and Sue Bee Honey and Soft Scrub placements on NBC's "The Apprentice: Los Angeles " were the most effective product integrations this year, based on impact on brand opinion, according to IAG Research. With a brand-opinion index of 394, Tyson--which supplied a year's worth of meat to a family and 20,000 pounds of flesh to their community--managed to boost viewer opinion of the brand to a level nearly four times the average for a product placement. And when "Apprentice" contestants were asked to harvest, bottle and sell Sue Bee, the …
  • Lifetime Is Cuckoo For Coco
    Lifetime has its heart set on a miniseries about the life of Coco Chanel, and the women's cable net has snared Shirley MacLaine to play the long-dead designer. MacLaine will play Chanel in her later years, as she sets out to re-establish a reputation as a trendsetter, while actress Barbora Bobulova gets the nod for the younger Coco. The two-part miniseries is set for a 2008 run. The script, written by Enrico Medioli of "Once Upon a Time in America" fame, follows Chanel's rise starting in the French orphanage where she grew up. Director Christian Duguay says he is intrigued …
  • Romney Ad Spend Highest, Polls Not So Much
    The biggest ad spender in the race for the Republican presidential nomination isn't getting much of a bang for his buck, according to a study by one industry tracker. Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and self-vaunted venture capitalist had laid out $16 million on TV as of Dec. 16--more than the two leading Democratic candidates combined, as per data from TNS Media Intelligence Campaign Media Analysis Group. And still, he struggles in national polls against Mike Huckabee and Rudy Giuliani, who have spent $600,000 and $2.3 million, respectively. Romney has aired nearly 17,000 TV commercials--more than 7,400 of them …
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