In the "Um...WOW" category, Adidas said it would buy Reebok for $3.8 billion. Who new merger madness would hit the sneaker category. Adidas CEO and Chairman Herbert Hainer said in a statement, "We will expand our geographic reach, particularly in North America, and create a footwear, apparel and hardware offering that addresses a broader spectrum of consumers and demographics. With Reebok, we are advancing our position on the playing field of the sporting goods industry and are improving our financial strength to drive increased shareholder value." Watch out, Nike.
On her arrangement with several magazines to use images of Lexus vehicles in editorial, Lexus VP of Marketing Deborah Wahl Meyer told Ad Age, "I'm not talking about pushing anyone to do this We highly respect what a journalist and editor do. We're not talking about crossing any boundaries that are well established." Clearly, the simple act of asking certainly crosses the line. It places journalist in a compromising position. They have been influenced whether they decided to go along with the request or not. Don't worry. We haven't turned into a myopic infant. We know this stuff been going on forever but slowly and surely the line between editorial and advertising is becoming obliterated. Uninfluenced, independent commentary is becoming increasingly difficult to find.
As evil as this may sound, people still have brains, whether marketers realize this or not, and they will adjust to this blurring of reality. Though, it's just not something that needs to be there in the first place. Lending a bit of humor to this magazine product placement trend is the hilariously clandestine, hush-hush attitude both sides have taken on as if knowing which publishers and which marketers are in bed together is as important as codes to detonate a nuclear device.
Joey deVilla, a Technical Community Development Coordinator for back office software company Tucows, Inc., publishes a personal weblog on which he recently recounted an experience he had with moving company Quick Boys, mentioned in the comment section of a post he had made about Toronto movers. One of the commenters to the post, who deVilla knew, shared a bad experience with Quick Boys and recommended others steer clear of the company.
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Peeking out from the elegant archway of New York's Lord & Taylor on 425 Fifth Avenue are racy, stylized video images promoting the fashions available within. The juxtaposition between the elegance of the building's architecture and the giant cleavage peering outward caused our famed fashionista Bucky Turco, riding through Fifth Avenue traffic, to stop and shoot a couple pictures for us.
With the possibility of Bank of America agency Interpublic EVP and CMO Bruce Nelson leaving, the bank is said to have contacted Omnicom and WPP about its account. The possibility of a review for the $261 million (TNS) account is not being commented upon by either side with the standard, circular, agency-to-client, client-to agency referrals be tossed back and forth. More than a dozen Interpublic agencies could be affected if the account shifts.
For the first time in two years, following his arrest for alleged rape, Kobe Bryant will appear in ads for Nike which will appear in Sports Illustrated. "There is no change in Kobe Bryant's contractual status with Nike. Kobe's inclusion in promotional material for the Huarache 2K5 footwear product is consistent with such Nike endorsement agreements. Nike agrees with most NBA observers that Kobe ranks among the very best players in the NBA, and his training and preparation are key elements of his game," said Nike spokesman Rodney Knox.
AdPulp points to a Nike/Maria Sharapova brand rip off that could only come from sexually repressed Japan. A company called Sharanpowan is selling pillows shaped like the breasts and lap of the famous tennis starlet. We suppose playing with Sharapova's pillows is better than copping a feel in public to take care of sexual urges but this, one has to admit, it just weird.
Doing a search on Google, one might conclude the GAP should have chosen Michelle Williams, the Dawson's Creek star instead of Michelle Williams, the Destiny's Child singer for their new spokesmodel. While the GAP has acknowledged its intentions to use several celebs in succession for its ad campaigns, after just a few months of Joss Stone, one might conclude the GAP is suffering a seriously fickle case of ADD.
Kazaa is displeased with how it's been portrayed in the media surrounding Claria's termination of an agreement between the two parties. While the split has widely been attributed to Claria's ongoing mission to "clean up its act" leading many to interpret Kazaa might have, in some way, tarnished the Claria brand.
Kazaa, in a press release, claims the real reason for the split "followed ongoing issues between the parties relating to Claria's lack of performance of its obligations under the agreement and steps Sharman (Kazaa parent company) had already taken to investigate and rectify that performance."
Kazaa further claims, "Claria's announcement is contrary to its obligations under the agreement. At present, Sharman continues to perform its obligations whilst pursuing its options under the Agreement."
Lee Iacocca, who uttered Chrysler's tagline, "If you can find a better car, buy it," in 61 commercials during his reign as turnaround CEO for the troubled car company, is returning as pitchman in a set of new commercials. The deal calls for Iacocca to appear, initially, in three spots with compensation in the form of a Chrysler donation to Iacocca's diabetes research foundation along with $1 for every Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep sold for the rest of the year.
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