Advertising Age - Digital

Is (Formerly) Homeless Dude Ted Williams the New Isaiah Mustafa?

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:10:06 -0500

In a three-day Valentine's Day campaign for Macaroni & Cheese, Kraft will direct consumers to tweet love messages that its voiceover talent, Ted Williams, will read back with his golden pipes.

Mindshare Opens Mobile Hub in India for Global Clients

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:00:00 -0500

Mindshare is the latest agency to set up an international hub in India, broadening the scope of its existing mobile practice in Mumbai to service global clients.

Apple Stores Get Consumer Petitions Over Worker Treatment in China

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:30:00 -0500

The petitions' 250,000 signatures comprise perhaps the most tangible showing of consumer outrage over labor conditions in the iPhone and iPad maker's supply chain.

Microblogs Make or Break Crisis Management in China for Marketers

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:23:26 -0500

Crisis management in China hinges more and more on effective use of microblogs, the vibrant Twitter-like social networks that drive public sentiment, a new report says.

Super Bowl Spots Keep Piling on Web Views

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:20:54 -0500

Old wisdom: releasing your Super Bowl ad early on the web builds excitement and buzz for your spot and gives it a huge boost online. New wisdom: still true, but it's not necessarily a requirement.

Nerds Run to Comic-Con for a Good Cause. With Lightsabers.

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:00:00 -0500

Some of the biggest names at Comic-Con have found a way to truly make the geek-fest a "force" for good.

Google to Open Retail Location in Dublin

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:26:05 -0500

Google is planning its first stand-alone retail store at its European headquarters in Dublin after a trial at a computer shop in London.

Groupon Reports Loss in First Quarterly Filing After IPO

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:53:01 -0500

Groupon outperformed analysts' revenue expectations on Tuesday by announcing $506.5 million in revenue for the last quarter, more than double the revenue from the year-earlier period. But it still reported a net loss.

RB Pumps up Spending in Developing Markets

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:34:02 -0500

Reckitt Benckiser will invest around $160 million more in marketing globally but report it through a "Brand Equity Index" that puts more emphasis on digital.

GigaOm Buys Digital-Media News Site PaidContent

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:57:01 -0500

Om Malik's GigaOm is acquiring the digital-media news site PaidContent.org from London-based Guardian News & Media.

Blip Raises Another $12 Million, Still Seeking CEO

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:52:01 -0500

Indie web-TV distributor Blip.tv has raised more than $12 million in a mix of equity and debt financing, with participation from existing investors Bain Capital Ventures and Canaan Partners as well as Silicon Valley Bank.

Join Hulu, Facebook, Spotify, Sony and Verizon at Ad Age Digital 2012

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:30:23 -0500

Ad Age Digital 2012 will feature drill-downs in social, mobile, video, gaming and e-commerce, as well as a second round of Brand Hacks, where a promising group of startups pitch new ideas to brands, and brands help startups find revenue.

Viacom Deal Brings More Shows to Amazon Prime Streaming

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:27:01 -0500

Viacom is bringing "Jersey Shore" and other shows to Amazon Prime amid mounting speculation that Amazon will soon introduce a standalone streaming service.

At Walgreens, a Mobile Check-in Acts Like a Circular

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 08:12:01 -0500

When customers check in to any of the drugstore chain's 8,000 stores through mobile apps like Foursquare or Yelp, Walgreens will message them back with a deal.

Yahoo Board Gets New Blood as Chairman Bostock Steps Down

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:34:05 -0500

In the wake of Roy Boystock's announcement, the company has named two new directors: Alfred Amoroso, the CEO until December of digital entertainment company Rovi, and Maynard Webb, chairman and former CEO of LiveOps, a maker of call-center software.

PepsiCo Loses Digital Guru to Kraft

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:14:02 -0500

Bonin Bough, PepsiCo's digital and social media guru, is departing for Kraft Foods in a post in which he will manage consumer engagement.

Redbox and Verizon Face Key Decisions for DVD-and-Streaming Service

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:05:02 -0500

Redbox and Verizon's streaming-and-DVD service is at least considering some strategies that Netflix has ruled out or de-emphasized. Ad support may be a long shot, for example, but isn't off the table yet.

Fading 'American Idol' Falls Out of TV's Top 10 Check-ins

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:43:02 -0500

In this week's Top 10, "Idol" falls victim to the Super Bowl, "The Voice" and ... the Puppy Bowl.

Magazines' Newsstand Slide Accelerates but Digital Circulation Shows Promise

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:50:03 -0500

A persistent undertow at newsstands seems to be regaining strength. But readers still snap up single copies around big news events. And digital circulation continues to gain.

Thrillist Hires New Head of Sales, Forms Thrillist Media Group

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:30:02 -0500

The media company-slash-e-commerce site for urban guys is undergoing a metamorphosis of sorts: It's adding a sales chief and reorganizing into a new structure, Thrillist Media Group.

AOL Seeks New Agency to Convince Consumers to 'Care About AOL Again'

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:16:02 -0500

AOL is searching for an agency to help it devise a new brand campaign in the hopes of reconnecting with consumers, Ad Age has learned.

Verizon-Redbox Streaming Video Service to Take on Netflix

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 10:12:02 -0500

Verizon and Coinstar, the owner of Redbox DVD kiosks, are partnering to enter the streaming video fray.

Fresh Numbers: Honda Won the Super Bowl Before It Even Began

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:34:42 -0500

Automakers dominate the most-viewed Super Bowl ads on the web with Honda, VW, Acura and Audi earning more than 63 million total web views by Monday morning.

An Inside Look at How the BBC Created the Work for Its iPlayer

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0500

A series of TV spots and short films features U.K. celebrities such as Ricky Gervais speaking earnestly about personal topics -- all while getting poked in the face. Here's how they did it.

Mobile, Local are Key Factors in Facebook's Post-IPO Revenue Growth

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0500

Facebook itself expects user growth to slow thanks to the law of large numbers. So to fuel the growth expected of it as a public company, it will have to double down on advertising, including two key areas: mobile and local.

Facebook Hires Former Levi's, Apple Exec Rebecca Van Dyck to Lead Marketing

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:43:11 -0500

Ms. Van Dyck spent the last 10 months as Levi's global CMO, where she oversaw the company's global "Go Forth" campaign.

Ogilvy Working With Susan G. Komen for the Cure in PR Crisis

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:53:02 -0500

Who's the PR agency for Susan G. Komen for the Cure? Ogilvy, which was brought on eight months ago and now has its hands full trying to manage crisis communications for the charity now under fire.

Kia Taps Celebs for Super Bowl Spot Based on Their Social Graphs

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:58:02 -0500

Securing the services of a supermodel to wear minimal clothing is standard for a Super Bowl advertiser, but hiring her based on her social-media credentials is a sign of the times.

Former MySpace, MTV Exec Nada Stirratt Joins Data Giant Acxiom

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 09:42:08 -0500

Former MySpace, MTV and AOL exec Nada Stirratt has a new job: she's joined former Microsoft advertising chief Scott Howe at Arkansas-based data giant Acxiom.

With HuffPo Streaming Network, Tim Armstrong Doubles Down on the Brand of Arianna

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:23:02 -0500

AOL is dedicating at least 100 employees exclusively to the Huffington Post Streaming Network, said Roy Sekoff, who will head up the venture as its president.