Beer.com Launches Virtual Bartender II

Following up on its Virtual bartender, Beer.com has launched Virtual Bartender II which features not one but two hot babes, Trisha and Lisa, reacting to your (almost) every command and teasing you until you just have to...well...visit another website. We don't know if this promotes beer.com's cause but it's sure to increase the time spent viewing numbers for its website.

Volvo Crapped On For MSN Spaces Sponsorship

Just as we did a few days ago, as did BlogAds Founder Henry Copeland, Henry, again, is calling into question Volvo's sponsorship of MSN Spaces weblogs, Reacting to a Spaces blogger's post claiming BlogAds is just jealous that Volvo chose to advertise on MSN Spaces versus BlogAds, Henry counters with a point by point argument as to why sponsor-worthy weblogs can be found within the BlogAds network and not on MSN Spaces. In fact, responding to the Spaces logger's post in which the blogger cites some great Spaces blogs but writes, "I know I'm forgetting thousands if not millions more," Copeland challenges the Spaces blogger to list 20 Spaces blogs that have more than 100,000 page views per month.

Further questioning Volvo's decision to sponsor Spaces blogs, while indicating BlogAds can aid advertisers in selecting appropriate, targeted blogs as opposed to the mass blog buy Volvo made on Spaces, Copeland spent a quick five minutes coming up, via Google, with tens of thousands of Spaces blogs containing the words fuck (15,400), cunt (536), nigger (48), faggot (86), shit (20,900), tits (609), ass (17,400) and bitch (8,540. Obviously Volvo is thick skinned enough to realize people don't always write curse-free, Queen's English but when it's lined up that way, it does, at least, raise a few questions.

Finally, commenting on the ubiquitous Microsoft entry into every conceivable marketplace, Copeland writes, "I'm angry. I'm angry to see blogging -- which I revere for empowering excellence, autonomy and self-expression -- debased by Microsoft into another exercise in corporate mass-market drek marketing. I'm angry Microsoft has diverted money out of great blogger's pockets."

It should be noted that Volvo does sponsor the Autoblog blog and its podcast.

Y & R Struggles With Account Losses And Executive Defections

With the loss of the $150 million Jaguar account, top executive defections and recent IPO and takeover activity, times have been tough for Young & Rubicam and its CEO Ann Fudge. Business Week takes a look at the struggling agency and asks whether CEO Fudge's time has come.

50 Cent Reebok Ad Pulled From UK

Responding to concerns it glorifies gun violence, Reebok has pulled its 50 Cent spot, part of the company's new "I am what I am" campaign, from United Kingdom airwaves but has not yet done so in the States. The ad, very obviously, refers to 50's having been shot 9 times and is, certainly, one of the more daring and questionable celebrity associations.

Clorox Pulls Toilet Brush Ad Over Allegedly False Claims

Once upon a time, when a toilet bowl needed to be cleaned, there was a simple plastic-handled, nylon brush that, when combined with a bit of cleaning fluid, would do a perfectly good job removing accumulated body waste. Now, marketers have seen fit, as they have with floor and counter top cleaning products, to produce and market throw away cleaning brushes that, while certainly less disgusting than the old permanent brushes, just make more trash to throw away, filling landfills, already bulging with all the other throw away products invented, seemingly, to make life easier but, in actuality, contribute to the destruction of natural resources.

In the face of that, Clorox and SC Johnson are fighting over who can manufacture more trash-generating toilet brushes better and faster with SC Johnson taking issue over claims made by Clorox which SC Johnson says denigrates its product. Apparently, SC Johnson was miffed over a Clorox commercial which poked fun at SC Johnson's "papery version of a toilet brush" and showed it blowing away in the wind while claiming the Clorox brush was preferred 3 to 1 over the SC Johnson brush. That claim was based on, according the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, flawed methodology. Clorox, ultimately, pulled its ad. Kinda makes that old, stinky, permanent brush seem a bit more hassle-free.

GM Addresses LA Times Dispute

Recently GM pulled its advertising from the LA Times over some allegedly inaccurate editorial. Writing on GM's FastLane weblog, Communications VP Gary Grates addresses the action saying the company is working with the newspaper to explore the situation and praises the Times for its cooperation. But, he will reserve final comment on the issues until the Times has had a chance to tell its side of the story.

Campaign Launched to Save Big Breasts

As only the Sun can do, the paper has launched a campaign (link NSFW) to save, as they call them, "two of Britain's most outstanding monuments - Jordan's (Katie Price) boobs." The famous model has decided her 32FF breasts are simply too big and she has announced she will have her implants removed. The Sun has enlisted the help of the country's National Trust but a spokesman for the organization declined, citing the non-natural qualities of Jordan's monuments, "Our remit is to preserve places of outstanding natural beauty – so we will have to pass on this." Undeterred, the paper is looking to its readers enlisting support via an email campaign intended to convince Jordan of the country's love and admiration of her assets.

Ad Skipping A $27 Billion Loss

Ad Age reports chilling findings from consultancy firm Accenture which claims on demand and ad skipping will cost the television industry $27 billion over the next five years. Additionally, the company reports 70 percent of DVR users already skip ads and that DVR penetration will hit 40 percent by 2009. Combine this with Bob Garfield's recent manifesto on looming chaos in the advertising industry and the picture is far from rosy.

ZDNet Auctions Podcast Sponsorship on eBay

Jumping on two bandwagons at the same time, ZDNet, using eBay, is auctioning advertising time on its IT Matters podcast hosted by David Berlind. The winning bidder will receive a :60 sponsorship message on five of the podcasts. Graciously, ZDNet will donate the proceeds of this auction to Save the Children: 2004 Tsunami Relief Fund.

Book Promoted With Sheep And One Hit Wonder

Seems book publishers are increasingly experimenting with new means to promote new titles. A book by Sam Apple, called Schlepping Through The Alps is being promoted with a comical "Who Let The Jews Out" Flash video crafted to the tune of Baha Men's Who Let The Dogs Out.

For an uglier version of the tune, check out this video.