--On Who Owns the Data, and Whether Media and Creative Should be Rebundled "First, the discussion about ownership, retention and usage of consumer data must take place openly among agencies, marketers and publishers, if we have any hope of coming to a consensus as an industry. Second, let’s agree to disagree about the unbundling or rebundling of media services in agencies. Again, that ship has sailed and it’s time that we accept the fact that there’s no going back. And last, let’s end the great debate about 'digital.' As I said in my remarks at last …

A packed room at an afternoon discussion about communications planning broke out laughing when a panelist said he was struggling to figure out why he was the target of a sign inside the men's restroom. It reads: "Warning: Drinking alcoholic beverages during prenancy may cuase severe mental and physical birth defects." The same sign is also posted in the women's restroom -- perhaps a more appropriate spot but still quizzical considering there's no adjacent bar. Then again, it is New Orleans, where walking around with a mixed drink is legal and common -- as long as it's in …

Attendees eager to hear from one of Hollywood's most high-profile executives - NBC entertainment chief Ben Silverman - were left disappointed. Scheduled to serve on a “Developing Ideas for the New Patterns of Media Consumption: The Creative View” panel, NBCU sent Cameron Death, a digital executive who works for Silverman, instead. Had Silverman made it to New Orleans, he might have enjoyed the morning sessions Thursday. GroupM executive Marc Goldstein touted NBC's launching a Jay Leno-fronted show in the weeknight 10 p.m. slot -- calling it "stunningly innovative" and "an original and potentially game-changing move" and suggesting it "may …

Top GroupM executive Marc Goldstein's effusive praise for Barack Obama Thursday came less than a month after a top industry lobbyist warned that Democrats controlling Washington could have a negative impact on the ad business. At the 4As media conference, Goldstein mentioned a “ray of hope” he felt when Obama was sworn in on Jan. 20. “Did you feel just a small â€" or perhaps a significant â€" jolt of optimism after Obama took the oath,” Goldstein asked the audience, “because you felt that at the very least, here was someone with new ideas, a new team, and …

The panels where "real" consumers try to provide marketers with useful insight -- perspectives they can't get at a run-of-the-mill focus group -- are plodding to say the least. But intriguing nuggets do emerge. On the panel of females 25-to-54, one woman offered a peek into just how much Hurricane Katrina continues to impact some residents in New Orleans. And if residents spent years shrugging off the threats of hurricanes, they may do so no more. She said she has become an avid viewer of CNN since Katrina, and further indicated it provided useful information last summer as …

4As chief Nancy Hill seems to be thinking "How did I get here?" as she moderates a panel with baby boomers -- which is supposed to provide insight into their media behavior. At times, she's giving off the impression that getting useful info from the panelists is like pulling teeth. One panelist, a retired New Orleans school teacher, was interesting. She said she begins the day reading the paper -- "nobody bothers me when I'm reading the newspaper" -- and then turns on the local TV news. Touchingly, the woman subscribes to the New York Times to keep …