In an attempt to slow Google down from siphoning off advertising dollars away from television, the nation's six largest cable companies are putting together a joint venture to sell customized and interactive ads across their systems. Over the past six months, executives from Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, Cox Communications, Charter Communications and Bright House Networks have been meeting to pout the plan in motion with Stephen Burke, president of Comcast, and Landel Hobbs, chief operating officer of Time Warner Cable. Cable cos. have long sought to direct the right advertisement to the right person, based on his …

An attempt to broadcast the first ad into space is underway, with Britons being asked to shoot a 30-second ad about life on earth for Doritos "You Make It, We Play It" user-generated campaign. The winning spot will be beamed past the earth's atmosphere and beyond the solar system, while also running on terrestrial TV. The transmission is aimed a solar system 42 light years away that is thought to have a zone that could support life as we know it. The ad will travel at the speed of light, passing the moon in 1.2 seconds and …

A top industry analyst is predicting modest ad-spending growth this year even as the stock market crumbles and the Labor Department shows weaker-than-expected employment trends. According to Bear Stearns' Alexia Quadrani, U.S. ad spending will be up 4% in 2008, vs. 3.3% last year. She says national ad spending "remains healthy," although local advertising is "anemic" in the face of digital media's growth. She sees "no sign of any major pullback in national ad growth," pointing to public comments from top ad executives. But even with fears about the economy, Quadrani says marketers still have reason to …

While Fox's "American Idol" has been staying atop the prime-time heap for some time, it has a long way to go in terms of ratings longevity before it can match up to CBS' "The Young & the Restless." That soap just won its 1,000th consecutive week in the daytime ratings. In other words, the show has won every single week since 1988 -- when it was already 16 years old. "Reaching the milestones of 1,000 weeks at No. 1 and 35 years on the air simultaneously is unheard of in this industry, it is a testament to the …

Ad spending for the NCAA's "March Madness" on CBS is expected to hit a record $545 million this year, according to projections by TNS Media Intelligence. That figure represents a 5% increase from last year's $519.6 million -- and certainly helps offset the whopping $6.2 billion CBS is paying for its 12-year exclusive contract that runs through the 2013-14 season. TNS says the NCAA tournament brings in more ad money than post-season play in any other sport except for the National Football League. And only time in the Super Bowl, which averaged about $2.7 million for a 30-second …

A new ad campaign for ESPN from Arnold Worldwide mixes soap opera stars and Major League Baseball players. Tagged "Endless Drama," the first spot in the effort features New York Yankee Jorge Posada as a bouncer dealing with famous and unruly patrons. Ads broke this week on the sports cable net, says Arnold executive creative director Roger Baldacci, who notes they also include baseball star Chase Utley and ABC soap opera fixtures like Bree Williamson and Rebecca Budig. Apparently, ESPN sees some potential revenue gains by encouraging viewers to sign up to play free fantasy baseball, football and …