• by Amy Corr , Staff Writer @MediaPostOTL, April 16, 2008

Chopsticks can be dangerous when mixed with sake. Girls love football, too. Bouncy balls, paint, clay, and now foam hawk Sony products. Let's launch!

Starbucks launched a print and outdoor campaign promoting something new to the brand: coffee. So what was I drinking before? The campaign highlights the company's new daily brew, a beverage that supposedly does not taste like burnt coffee. Time will tell. Print ads are running in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Boston Globe and Los Angeles Times, to name a few. The first series of ads featured a chalkboard outline of a coffee cup with the launch date 04.08.08 in the middle. Then came the ads where a Starbucks logo replaced the date in the middle of the outline. See the ads here and here. Current ads use loud pastels and copy such as "Coffee, for people who love coffee." Click here, here and here to see the ads, created by Wieden+Kennedy Portland.

Koodo Mobile, a value-based cell phone company, is kicking additional fees and charges to the curb with a TV, outdoor, print, radio and online campaign running in Canada. The theme of the campaign is cheesy workout gear, namely loud colored leggings, short shorts, and headbands, symbolizing the company's trimmed-down offerings. The first ad shows a karate class kicking away fees and feeling their wallets bulge. See the ad here. A woman reminiscent of Jane Fonda text messages while performing leg lifts in the next ad. Fitness buffs can talk, text AND stretch in the third ad, seen here, while the final ad plays like a fitness infomercial that should star Tony Little, promoting a healthy mobile diet. Click here to watch. "Unlimited text for squat," reads one print ad, while bus shelters contain fluorescent fitness bands. See the ads here, here and here. TAXI 2 created the campaign and Media Experts handled media planning and buying.

Sony launched its latest TV campaign, online only until its official debut May 1, called "Foam City," which follows "Balls," "Paint" and "Clay." This time around, the ad promotes Sony's line of digital cameras and camcorders. Sony will never trump its first effort, "Balls," but that doesn't make subsequent ads any less enjoyable. The streets of Miami became a sea of foam, covering adults and children alike. Many participants were equipped with Sony cameras to capture this unique occurrence. "Images like no other" concludes the ad, seen here. Fallon UK created the ad.

Happy Hour at a sushi restaurant can cause injury or embarrassment. Imbibe sake with caution and put down the chopsticks to prevent patrons from yelling "You'll poke your eye out." Hapa Sushi launched three print ads educating visitors to dance, flirt or use chopsticks responsibly or prepare for the consequences. Ads are running in The Onion, Boulder Daily and Westword, and one features a woman wearing an eye patch following a bad run-in with chopsticks. See the ad here. Another ad, seen here, shows a woman having a Janet Jackson moment, revealing a nipple slippage while dancing. The final ad, seen here, finds a man sporting a hand print on his face, above copy stating, "flirt responsibly." TDA Advertising & Design created the campaign and media buying was handled in-house.

Some women not only love to watch football, they love to play it... professionally. The Independent Women's Football League launched an outdoor and direct mail campaign for the Pittsburgh Passion, consisting of dainty, feminine pictures that reveal a stronger, rougher interior. In the first ad, a woman smells a pink rose. "We celebrate the delicate flower that is Woman," reads the ad. Further down, copy changes from feminine to gritty: "As well as the beauty of one delicate flower drilling the other delicate flower into the ground." See the ad here. A second ad shows a manicured set of hands and the headline, "A Woman's hand can heal, teach, inspire and comfort," followed by, "It can also deliver a wicked head-slap when the ref's not looking." Ouch. View the ad here. The ads launched this month to coincide with the Passion's April 26 home game. Garrison Hughes created the campaign and media buying was handled in-house.

Poke New York created an e-commerce Web site for Teroforma, a tableware company with products designed by artists. The site makes a table the centerpiece of the shopping experience. Visitors shop by types of tableware (flatware, linen, glassware, dinnerware and accents), materials used (crystal, stone, linen, steel, etc) and finishes (color, natural or pattern). The table becomes an assembly line of selected products; clicking on something of interest brings the product off the table and closer to the buyer, allowing for a summary of where the product was made, by whom and the price.

Match.com launched a TV and print campaign that looks back at the origin of numerous relationships. A newborn cradled in a father's arms begins the first ad. "How did it all start," asks the spot, as it rewinds time, showing intimate moments, a wedding, walks on the beach and a first-time meeting via Match.com. "It starts with a look," concludes the ad, seen here. A couple on vacation rewind time in the next spot, featuring the boyfriend surprising his girlfriend with an unexpected getaway, which would not have happened had the two not met via Match.com. See the ad here. Print ads rely on cute copy while simultaneously guaranteeing singletons their very own love story within six months. See creative here. Hanft Raboy and Partners created the campaign.

"Office Stress," the latest Get a Mac TV ad, begins with PC giving Mac a plastic stress reliever doll to squeeze when times are stressful. I had the same one until I found it deflated on my desk. The spot promotes Microsoft Office 2008 for Macs. "You and Mac are so compatible, I want to transfer all my files over to a Mac," says a disgruntled PC, who gets better use out of Mac's gift than Mac himself. See the ad here. TBWA/Media Arts Lab created the campaign and handled the media buy.