Urinal Ads Distract

OK, do guys really need to have a massive pair of breasts right in front of their eyes when all that's being attempted is to remain relaxed in order to calmly relieve the previous few hours of liquid intake?

Marriott Says Fat People Should Eat The Buffet

Obviously not a commercial running in the hyper-PC U.S., this spot promoting a Marriott All You Can Eat Buffet makes no apologizes for fat people being difficult to kidnap.

Pogue Promotes, Pokes, Prods Podcasts

In a hilarious video that encompasses both the possibilities and the pointless stupidity of podcasts, The New York Times columnist, David Pogue, explains what a podcast is, where they can be found, how to listen to them and how to create one. That's the possibility part. Pointing out the pointlessness of podcasting, Pogue lip sychs actual podcasts and pays homage to their creators by donning appropriate attire.

Consumer Operated Ad Agency Launches

Hoping the proliferation of citizen's media, other wise know as weblogs, phone cams, video cameras and podcasts, coBRANDiT, formerly OBTTV, has launched as an agency where individuals can submit branded content where "commercial content should be about real people in real places." coBRANDiT defines itself as an open-source agency specializing in documentary advertising and branded content. coBRANDiT is paying $50 to what it deems "acceptable submissions" defined as "slice of life. Stylized, silly, serious...it's up to you. Keep it real, and keep it clean."

Office Cubicle Creative Gets Ripped Off Again

Confirming the well known fact that there are no more new ideas and that the sincerest form of flattery in advertising is to copy another's work, Starbucks is the second company, after Netscape, to copy the office cubicle microsite thing, apparently originated by Hostway in April. Now, for those who like to snoop, yes, Starbuck's version of the office cubicle site, called DoubleShot, resides on a site that was registered way back in 1998 but an informant tell us the cubicle creative was recently launched. No doubt, Adrants readers will correct any errors in this assumption.

The site itself has all the usual stuff from a lame video to a picture of parents that say "hello" to a gadget sweepstakes to voice mail messages to a ceiling darts to a number you can call to reach "Hank" who, of course, isn't answering. It's all been done before. Done. Done. Done. But, why is it that we spent so much time on the site engaging in "brand immersion" as those account management types like to call it? maybe the office cubicle is the new :30. Hey, the :30 worked forever. Why not the office cubicle?

Kids Grow, Get Smart, Watch Less TV

As kids grow, they watch less TV. Or, according to a recent study by MarketResearch's Packaged Facts, they become less interested in it with 60 percent of 12 to 14 year olds claiming they "love" TV as compared to 80 percent of 8 to 14 year olds. The researchers claim it's the fault of multitasking which takes primary attention away from the tube. We think it's just that, as kids grow, they also grow a brain and realize there's really nothing worth watching on TV.