Danny G. asked me earlier today if I'm too hung over to post. He asks because I'm in Austin for SXSW and I haven't been blogging about it on this site. I have made a few posts at BFG Blog about my experience, and I made one at Leftover Cheese about the film "Silver Jew." I have been taking notes during the panels. I don't "live blog" because my typing skills are not great. Plus, I like to absorb the information …
Lawsuit From Big Pink
See if you can figure this one out. From the AP: Levon Helm, former drummer for The Band, is suing a Manhattan advertising firm over the use of the band's signature song, "The Weight," in a television commercial. In a lawsuit filed in state Supreme Court in December, Helm asks for information about BBDO Worldwide's profits from the commercial for Cingular cell phone service and for financial compensation for the use …
Google Gets Sued Over YouTube For A Cool Billion
Well, for a second this seemed like a shocking piece of news: MTV owner Viacom Inc. sued the popular video-sharing site YouTube and its corporate parent, Google Inc., on Tuesday, seeking more than $1 billion in damages on claims of widespread copyright infringement. Viacom claims that YouTube has displayed nearly 160,000 unauthorized video clips from its cable networks, which also include Comedy Central, VH1 and …
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Could Nike Be Running Away From Wieden?
Nike has used other shops for advertising before (i.e, Goodby and Chiat/Day), and they use other agencies for projects and things, but this Adweek article suggests a real big shift may be on the way: The first piece of business likely to be up for grabs, sources said, is the client's U.S. running shoe account, currently handled by Wieden + Kennedy. The Nike rep, Dean Stoyer, would not discuss potential contenders or …
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Killing The Iconic Sears Brand, One Dollar At A Time
Here's an interesting article from the Washington Post about Sears and its chairman, Edward Lampert. Lampert bought Sears in 2004. He has no retail experience. Actually, he's a Wall Street guy. So he's taking the money he makes from Sears and is turning it into a hedge fund while letting the stores die: But, if Sears the Retailer is ailing, Sears the Hedge Fund has never been healthier. Hedge funds are massive …
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Producers and Flash Programmers Wanted in Miami/Boulder
SXSW is sensory overload. I finally waded through my film, interactive and music schwag bags. Lots of junk, of course, with several good mags tossed in--HOW Design Annual, Paste, Paper, Relix, Utne Reader, etc. In the interactive bag, I found three white pieces of paper stapled together. Simple black type on white pages. No design at all. All copy. Here's some: Not only can you interview while at SXSW for a shot at …
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Rachael Ray Finds Time To Make The Donuts
Sometimes, I like Rachael Ray. Sometimes, I like Dunkin' Donuts. But together? I'm not sure about that. However, we're all just gonna have to get used to it: As its new brand representative, Ray will appear in a multi-platform marketing campaign for Dunkin' Donuts. Ray will also lend her perspective to the Dunkin' Donuts culinary team in the development of new, "better for you" food and beverage options. In recent …
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Blogging Bridges
Shawn Waite's Shedwa Six--a six question interview series with ad geeks and bloggers--this week features Ariel Waldman from Shake Well Before Use. I find this exchange interesting: S: What impact, if any, do you think blogs serve in the ad community? AW: I find that blogs have really broken down the barriers between competing agencies over time. Rather than operating in isolated pods, we're sharing ideas and …