“Media giant Viacom Inc. said its Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central and 16 other channels will go dark for 13 million subscribers at 12:01 a.m. Thursday if a new carriage fee deal with Time Warner Cable is not agreed upon by then.”
Yup. Turns out Time Warner Cable, the nation’s second-largest cable provider, wants to increase its carriage fees from 22 % to 36 % per channel. But what does this mean?
Well, if the deal isn’t worked out by January 1, 2009, programming like “The Daily Show” and “SpongeBob SquarePants” won’t be available! If the deal is worked out, those who watch television in New York state, the Carolinas, Ohio, Southern California and Texas may see a 23 cent per month hike in their cable bill. But, unless Time Warner Cable wants to hear the wrath of millions of hungover SpongeBob fans, Viacom and Time Warner make a deal.
Throughout the industry, creating and marketing their own brands has become a new trend among ad agencies. Among the myriad of agencies who’ve taken a beating this year, Bartle Bogle Hegarty and many others are coming up with creative ways to bring in revenue.
Ben Jenkins, the strategic director of Zag - a subdivision of Bartle Bogle created to make its own brands - says: “Advertising is a massively old model based on the 1950s. As media has proliferated, it’s become a lot harder for us to earn enough money off our ideas.”
Mrs-O.org, a website dedicated to the stylings of Michelle Obama, is an example of this new trend. Inspired by the First Lady-elect’s wardrobe at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, the blog has become very succesful, getting 120,000 page views in November and earning revenue from Google’s AdSense.
While giving credit to the dude at AdScam for this plug, other agencies like Brooklyn Brothers created its own line of furniture as well as Fat Pig chocolates.
Chip Saltsman, a candidate for chairman of the Republican National Committee, sent RNC members a special Christmas present this year. While Saltsman, who served as Mike Huckabee’s national campaign manager during his “upstart bid for the White House,” is by no means a political newby, his goofy Christmas CD says otherwise.
Dubbed over in the classic Saltsman baritone many have come to love him for, one song entitled, “Barack the Magic Negro,” stirred up a bit of controversy.
A cover of the once-popular “Puff the Magic Dragon,” Saltsman’s rendition is downright offensive for a number of reasons. While people like Conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh defend the song, others (Republicans) are blaming the media for blowing the situation out of proportion. Regardless if the song is ingenious political satire or a cheap racial epithet, Chip Saltman’s candidacy for RNC chairman doesn’t look too hot right now.
Best and Worst Ads: A Year the News Eclipsed Commercial Breaks - NYTimes / S. Elliot / 28 Dec. 2008
The New York Times published an article yesterday regarding the high and low points of advertising in 2008. Citing an exceptional presidential campaign and the recent financial crisis, it seems that actual events eclipsed the commercials that traditionally dominate television screens.
“Overshadowing the best ads, but also drawing attention away from the worst,” companies like Coca-Cola, Burger King and Microsoft survived Obamania while Volkswagen and Toyota came up short in their attempts to capture American audiences.
The tradition of watching the Waterford Crystal ball drop in Times Square every New Years Eve will of course continue this December 31st. It officially goes on display today, Saturday the 27th of December, 2008. However, according to the Associated Press, 1 Times Square will continue to serve as host to the shining ball year-round. It will act as part of a new tradition for numerous other holidays as well, such as Valentine’s Day, the 4th of July and Halloween.Due to the “Let There Be Light” motif being introduced, this year’s New Years Eve ball is supposed to be twice as bright as last year’s.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the President of Iran, delivered an [alternative] Christmas message yesterday on British television’s Channel 4. Though the broadcast congratulated “the followers of Abrahamic faiths, especially the followers of Jesus Christ,” the Iranian leader’s nationwide broadcast seemed to cause an uproar.
Looked down upon by many in the Western world for his blatant anti-Semetism and his continued efforts towards nuclear proliferation, President Ahmadinejad’s Christmas message called for happiness, peace and prosperity while condemning “the tyrannical policies of prevailing global, economic and political systems.”
Many claim the Iranian leader also made thinly veiled attacks against the United States, stating that Christ would have stood against “bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist powers.” Nonetheless, the controversial broadcast will complicate President-elect Barack Obama’s stance regarding the possibility of diplomacy with Iran.
Over the Holiday season, I always get a chance to see some great commercials that are holiday themed. There is always some sort of christmas light holiday commercial and I think they are pretty spectacular. This one is from Wal-Mart. It has all the essentials, the music, some lights, and some holiday cheer. Check it out.
The Canadian Tourism Board has once again taken over Bryant Park, in association with Citibank, as their personal advertisement spot. They have introduced a Canadian-owned restaurant, Canadian-style food and traditionally dressed guides. The purpose is to encourage tourists to appreciate Canada as well as New York, and vice versa for Canadians.
“No More Warner Music on YouTube” - Techtree.com / 22 Dec. 2008
Warner Music demanded that thousands of its music videos be removed from YouTube. Unable to reach fair liscencing agreements for its artists, songwriters and publishers, Warner Music Group artists like Madonna and Metallica account for more than 1 billion YouTube views. Since the conception of digital music, the licensing dispute has become the predominant dispute between the two worlds. Click image for more information.
“COVERLOADCNN, left, used to scroll news continuously at the bottom of the screen. It now has a more static approach” - B. Stetler / NYTimes / 20 Dec. 2008 .
The New York Times published an article yesterday regading the departure of one of cable news’ most [in]famous partners: the Crawl.
Apparently the “crush of news” sparked by the 9/11 terrorist attacks ushered in the constantly-updated-news era, and thus a graphics revolution. But does a less cluttered screen offer more to the viewer? Click the pic. to find out.
Charlie Brooker’s Screen Wipe is one of the most entertaining and informative shows on British television. Containing reviews of current shows, as well as stories and commentary on how the shows are produced, Screen Wipe is serious. Here’s a clip of Charlie “taking the piss” out of the popular, 24.
Sadly, those outside the UK have to settle for YouTube clips rather than video straight from the BBC’s website. Enjoy.
Washington Capitals Choose Web Producer to Fill in For Injured Goalie
Here’s a story everyone can appreciate. With a man down and practically no time to spare before a big game against the Ottawa Senators last Friday, the Washington Capitals called upon Brett Leonhardt to fill in for an inured Jose Theodore. Of course, no one would suspect the 6′ 7″ former college goalie was none other than the Capital’s own Web site producer.
In an effort to bolster the quality of original programming, MTV will release several “aspirational, enterprising and empowering” new series for 2009. Brian Graden, president of entertainment at MTV Networks Music Group says, “these new series reflect Generation ‘Why Not?’ — living, working and playing on their own terms, ‘adventure capitalists’ if you will, pursuing a variety of thrill-seeking, 2.0, express-yourself enterprises.”
For those curious, expect a new Donald Trump show where he will attempt to reform a group of party girls, “How’s Your News,” from Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame, and “The CollegeHumor Show,” which will shadow the “offbeat” workplace of the twentysomething-run Web site CollegeHumor.com.” More on this story atReuters.
In the UK, Stella Artois is sometimes referred to as “wifebeater” for it’s popularity amongst belligerent soccer hooligans. Nonetheless, the Belgian brewery has achieved international prominence. While this beer is known for it’s superior drinkability (as a fine import in the States compared to “wifebeater” in the UK), unique advertising undoubtedly heightens Stella’s ability to transcend cultures. The above advert, delivered to the masses by Mother London, offers us the tale of a more realistic James Bond. Sweet.
Earlier today President George W. Bush fell victim to an impromptu shoe attack by a pissed off Iraqi journalist.Though “a traditional sign of disrespect and contempt in Arab culture,” representatives claim the journalist’s actions did not reflect the feelings of the Iraqi people.
On the 8 hour flight back from London, I found myself in a desperate situation — with an iPod on low battery and having forced myself through The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 and A Journey to the Center of the Earth, I needed something to bring me back to reality (and certainly a break from bad Brendan Frazier movies). This is when I discovered SkyMall.
The Indoor Dog Restroom / $149.00
That tagline mnight as well read: “Did you buy a dog and realize you weren’t ever going to be around to take care of it? If so, buy this green thing for it to piss on.” Little known fact - this product works just as well for humans.
The 40′ Marshmallow Bazooka / $49.95
Only in SkyMall will you find the 40′ Marshmallow Bazooka. Though I was initially excited by this breakthrough in modern weaponry, I was a bit disappointed to read that the bazooka can only launch 5 marshmallows per minute. How on Earth are we supposed to protect ourselves with marshmallows if the damn thing isn’t at least semi-automatic? Maybe if the bazooka came with some sort of toasting mechanism to shoot flaming marshmallows…
SkyMall is genius. It’s a catalogue full of random, semi-practical appliances and other crap that, after watching two really bad Brendan Frazier movies, can make you feel like a human being again.
“Media giant Viacom Inc. said its Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central and 16 other channels will go dark for 13 million subscribers at 12:01 a.m. Thursday if a new carriage fee deal with Time Warner Cable is not agreed upon by then.”
________________________________________________________________________________________
