Ford, which launched the global creative campaign for its Focus car in late February, this week is introducing a U.S. urban-market effort. The campaign has an "inner child" theme, with the idea that a fun drive can evoke childlike joy. Shawn Lollie, Ford manager, multicultural marketing said the idea came from consumer reactions to driving the car. "We wanted to find a way to combine this excitement with some of the key technologies and features of the Focus in a way that emotionally connected the consumer to the car." The ad, which Ford says was shot in Los Angeles, …

The American Association of Advertising Agencies has tapped John Montgomery, Chief Operating Officer of GroupM Interaction, to chair the organization's new online privacy committee. The committee, made up of more than 15 media agency representatives, will address lawmakers' increasing calls for privacy legislation, among other issues. The new committee expects to meet every six weeks. Other media agencies participating in the committee include MPG, Universal McCann, MediaVest, Digitas, Horizon, PHD, Omnicom Media Group, VivaKi, and GroupM's Mindshare.

AT&T has introduced a new service to help retailers create and manage mobile commerce sites and applications. The new software offering called Digby Mobile Commerce from AT&T promises to help businesses boost sales by providing a user-friendly interface for users to search, browse and buy products on their mobile devices. Besides mobile sites, retailers can also use the m-commerce solution to develop shopping apps which can be used to automatically send exclusive promotions and new product information to drive customer loyalty. Digby Mobile Commerce can also be integrated with existing AT&T services including the carrier's Mobile Barcode Services, …

The Mobile Marketing Association has published guidelines for mobile couponing, which it defines as “electronic coupons or rebates that traverse the full redemption process without the requirement for conversion into a paper or other hard-copy format.” The guidelines include the five stages of mobile price promotions, general and campaign-specific best practices, and tips for designing coupons, using the word “free” and creating terms and conditions. The MMA’s Mobile Couponing Task Force created the standards with input from the Mobile Commerce Committee as well as a 30-day public comment period. More information on the guidelines can be found here.

MediaPost has learned that Mediaweek and Brandweek's final print issues will publish on Monday.   Their coverage will be merged the following week into Adweek, which will continue both online and in print.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 238-174 on Friday to vacate the Federal Communications Commission's net neutrality rules. The vote broke down on party lines, with nearly all of the Republicans voting in favor of vacating the rules, and nearly all of the Democrats opposing the measure. The vote likely is largely symbolic, given that the Democratic-controlled Senate probably won't also pass a resolution to vacate the rules. Additionally, President Barack Obama has indicated that he will veto an attempt to vacate the FCC's rules. The FCC last December voted to enact neutrality rules banning all broadband providers …

Google Friday launched YouTube Live, which offers streaming content of concerts, sporting events, and interviews. The site integrates live streaming content and discovery tools directly into the YouTube platform. There's a YouTube Live browse page where users can find live events happening on YouTube and add events to their calendar. Users can subscribe to their favorite YouTube Live streaming partners to be notified of upcoming live streams on a customized homepage.

Barnes & Noble announced today that it's opened up the Nook to third-party developers and content providers. The company also introduced a new suite of developer tools and services for the color version of the Nook including software for debugging apps and the ability to connect with other developers and technical experts. Third-party apps will be subject to a review/acceptance process and the company will take a 30% cut of revenue from paid titles. B&N initiated the Nook developer program last fall. More information is available here.

What with rising gas prices and a late Easter holiday, shoppers had plenty of reasons to stay home in March, but while retail sales fell from the previous month, they still came in higher than expected. Kantar Retail says March sales rose 2.5%, compared to 4.4% in the prior month, and 9.2% in the March a year ago. The International Council of Shopping Centers , which tracks a slightly different group of stores, says its index registered a 2% gain, on the high side of its expectations. "This gain, in the face of somewhat adverse factors, was encouraging and …

In a new forecast, Gartner predicts worldwide smartphones sales in 2011 will increase nearly 58% to 468 million and that Android will be easily the most popular mobile operating system by year's end, with 38.5% market share. By 2012, Gartner expects that share to grow to nearly 49%. The research firm also projects Windows Phone becoming the second most pervasive smartphone platform by 2015, with 19% share, on the strength of Microsoft's recent alliance with Nokia. IDC issued a similar forecast last week, projecting 49% growth in the smartphone market and Android becoming the dominant platform this year, with …