This Might Be an Ad That’ll Actually Get Click-Through

Why Apple’s Latest Online Spot From TBWA Is ‘Value Added’

The next 600 words nominally review the latest Apple ad, but actually they represent more of a bone toss.

The tossee is Randall Rothenberg, president of the Interactive Advertising Bureau. The … um … tosser is AdReview.

The reason is a friendly, ongoing dispute concerning the future of online advertising. The difference of opinion breaks down as follows: AdReview believes the internet will be at best a marginal ad medium, never to replace the venerable but collapsing Mainstream Media.

Public Might Cut Cord on Landlines, Cable TV

As Consumers Take Hard Look at What Subscription Service to Drop, Their Choices Could Reshape Marketing Landscape

BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) — Agencies, media, telecoms and other marketers are pondering the implications of an impending shakeout where, after years of piling on one subscription fee after another, consumers take a harder look at what they really need.

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Marketing the Big Apple: New York City & Co. A 3 Minute Ad Age Video Report

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — New York, the city that never sleeps, is also a tireless marketer of its own image. Two years ago, Mayor Michael Bloomberg combined Gotham’s marketing, tourism and partnership efforts into a single new entity called New York City & Co. Staffed by former advertising agency professionals, it has since harnessed some of the Big Apple’s greatest assets to tell the city’s story to the country and the world.

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No Recession Yet in Apple Stores, but Cloud Over Holiday Sales

Company Boasts Plenty of Cash and Zero Debt, as Quarterly Profits Jump 26% Over Last Year

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — If consumers are pinching pennies, it isn’t happening at the Apple Store — at least not yet. The maker of some of the tech industry’s best-loved luxury goods reported a strong quarter, including the sale of 6.9 million of the new 3G iPhones, a figure that crushed estimates, and 2.6 million Mac computers, a quarterly record.

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Hit by Downturn, Yahoo to Lay Off 1,400 Employees Disappointing Quarter Attributed to ‘Increasingly Cautious’ Advertisers as Display Advertising Slows Further

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Yahoo is cutting 1,400 employees in an attempt to goose its cash flow after a quarter when its net income dropped 64% due to what President Sue Decker attributed to pullbacks from major brand marketers.

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Ad Age Marketer of the Year Candidates

Video Preview: A Look at Our Finalists Apple, Coors, McCain, Nike, Obama, Zappos

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Advertising Age’s Marketer of the Year ceremony will be part of the CMO Choice Awards on Oct. 16, to be held during the ANA conference in Orlando, Fla. In these six video previews, Ad Age staffers explain why each marketer — Apple, Coors, Sen. John McCain’s campaign, Nike, Sen. Barak Obama’s campaign and Zappos — is worthy of the top honor.

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Can Google’s G1 Smart Phone Be More Than an Apple Knockoff?

Search Giant Hopes to Get the Masses (and Advertisers Who Court Them) Onboard With Mobile Internet

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — With a touch screen, a 3G high-speed network and an application store full of third-party-developed tools, the new “Google phone” has elicited numerous comparisons to Apple’s iPhone. But for Google’s Android mobile-operating system to be successful, it needs its phones to be much more than the first viable iPhone competitor.

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Microsoft vs. Apple Fight Enters New Round

In a Sudden Ad Shift, PC Maker Co-Opts Rival’s Geeky Character

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — After only two weeks, Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates’ rambling conversations about nothing have been jettisoned for a new campaign in which Microsoft tries to rebuild an image that has long been battered by rival Apple.

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Hyundai, Goodby Said to Be Parting Ways Dealers Unhappy With Agency’s Cerebral ‘Think About It’ Effort

DETROIT (AdAge.com) — Hyundai Motor America appears to have cut loose its creative ad agency, Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco, after 17 months, three executives close to the marketer said.

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McDonald’s Reports 4.5% Sales Bump for August

Olympic Sponsorship Appears to Pay Off, at Least in Short Term

CHICAGO (AdAge.com) — McDonald’s Corp. Tuesday reported same-store sales for August were up 4.5% in the U.S. — a result one analyst estimates will be nearly double the industry average. But industry-watchers are doubtful the company can keep up that pace, especially now that the Olympics are over.

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Apple Doesn’t Offer ‘One More Thing’ at ‘Let’s Rock’ Event Steve Jobs Trots Out Next-Gen Updates — and Jokes About His Health — but No Surprises

YORK, Pa. (AdAge.com) — Apple underwhelmed both fans and industry watchers with a “Let’s Rock” event in San Francisco that ended up being more holiday-product showcase than typical Apple innovation fest.

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Despite Rising Costs, Burger King Adds to Value Menu

Will Advertise New Items With ‘Reverse Pickpocketer’ Campaign NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — In the latest evidence that value menus are shifting across the fast-food category, Burger King is adding smaller, lower-cost items — priced at $1.39. The move comes as franchisees in the fast-food industry struggle to balance rising commodity costs with value menus, which often have items priced at or under $1. FULL ARTICLE

Orange Denies Planting Fake Apple Customers Outside Polish Stores Reports of Poor iPhone Sales Are False, Says Mobile Provider YORK, Pa. (AdAge.com) — Newswires have been buzzing with reports that Apple’s 3G iPhones might not be selling as briskly in Poland as they are in the U.S., noting that the company’s telecom partner in the country, Orange, has hired people to stand outside stores and create phony lines. A juicy story, except for one thing: Orange says it isn’t true. FULL ARTICLE

Captain Morgan Joins the Race for President Spirits Mascot Uses Convention Sponsorship to Campaign for Himself Campaign Trail CHICAGO (AdAge.com) — Coming to a presidential ballot near you: Sen. Obama, Sen. McCain — and Captain Morgan. Diageo has launched a faux-presidential campaign for its rum-shilling pirate. The alcohol behemoth is the official wine and spirits company of the Republican National Convention and the preferred wine and spirits company of the Democratic National Convention. And so, it is leveraging that sponsorship by having the Captain and his sidekick Morganettes campaign at both sites. FULL ARTICLE

Why Apple Must Tell Its Story

With Fortunes So Tied to Jobs, Marketer Needs to Lay Out Succession Plan

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — When Steve Jobs catches a cold, Apple sneezes. And that’s why the rumors and innuendo swirling about his health are particularly serious for Apple.

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Maddened by ‘Mad Men’ Decades Later, Marketers Are Finally Coming to Understand Women’s Buying Power

Commentary by Marti Barletta

The media and ad industry have been all abuzz about AMC’s “Mad Men,” which started its second season Sunday. Much has certainly changed since the era depicted — not only the treatment of women in the workplace, but views about women as consumers.

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Move Over Paula, Make Way for Julie

Ex-Wal-Mart Exec Roehm Picked as Judge for CBS Reality Series That’s Now on Hold NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Is Julie Roehm the next Paula Abdul? The former Wal-Mart marketing executive who found herself smack dab in the middle of one of adland’s steamiest scandals has been chosen as a judge on the new CBS reality show “Jingles” by hit-maker Mark Burnett. FULL ARTICLE

P&G Global Marketing Chief Stengel to Step Down Wants to Purse a ‘Personal Passion’; Will Be Replaced by Marc Pritchard BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) — Believe it or not, Procter & Gamble Co. Global Marketing Officer Jim Stengel has something bigger in mind than P&G as he steps down from his post. Exactly what that is, however, he and P&G aren’t yet saying. FULL ARTICLE

AT&T Speaks Out Against Yahoo-Google Partnership Congress Hears Conflicting Claims About Effects on Ad Sales WASHINGTON (AdAge.com) — A major internet advertiser is sounding the alarm about a Yahoo-Google ad deal. AT&T said Yahoo’s deal to start replacing some of its own search ads with those supplied by Google could hurt advertisers by driving up prices. FULL ARTICLE

Bostock: How Being More Like InBev Could Have Helped Microsoft Yahoo Chairman Calls A-B Takeover ‘Perfectly Managed,’ but Says Software Giant Lacked Similar ‘Commitment’ NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Perhaps Microsoft can learn a thing or two from InBev about executing a clean, quick corporate takeover. And if Microsoft’s approach had looked a little more like InBev’s, Yahoo says a deal would have been done by now. FULL ARTICLE

Airlines Stamping Ads Onto Boarding Passes Messages Will Include Coupons, Local Restaurant Picks NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — In an effort to generate additional revenue, six major U.S. air carriers have decided to cover their boarding passes with ads — at least giving disgruntled travelers something to look at as they wait out delays and rifle through their wallets for cash to pay baggage fees. FULL ARTICLE

What the Auto Industry Can Learn From Apple IPhone Stampede Offers Lessons in Total Transformation Commentary by David Murphy Witnessing the exuberant demand for the iPhone made me wonder if this feat could be repeated in other categories, such as the auto business. What would an automaker have to do to seduce consumers to stand in line to buy a hot new car? FULL ARTICLE

A Rare Admission: Wowed by Competitors’ Marketing 3 Minute Ad Age: July 16, 2008 NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Corporate marketing chiefs rarely admit their companies have fallen behind their competitors in a field they pioneered. But that’s what Doug Palladini, marketing VP of the half-a-billion-dollar-a-year Vans, did at this week’s Association of National Advertisers’ Marketing Accountability Conference. In other news, Sobe last night debuted a follow-up to its Super Bowl spot that had supermodel Naomi Campbell dancing with lizards. And State Farm erects a mini Yankee Stadium in Times Square. FULL ARTICLE

Our Q Answered: Tag Records Reveals First Artist Brooklyn Beatmaker Appears in Artful Print, TV Campaign Beginning Tonight Songs for Soap The gods at P&G were obviously listening last week when I asked who Tag Records had signed as its first artist. It’s Q, a nigh unGoogleable rapper from Brooklyn. Anyone who’s heard of him probably saw “Drumline,” where he worked with Jermaine Dupri on the song “Been Away.” FULL ARTICLE