Verizon's V Cast Music store now provides MP3s — unprotected music files — through a $15 monthly subscription. The service includes downloads to mobile units or PCs.
MediaPost believes the move could improve Verizon's market share in mobile data. And it...
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Consumers in 11 key markets around the world, especially the fast-growing economies of India, China, and Brazil, have strong demand for mobile devices — including cell phones, MP3 players, hand-held gaming devices, and laptop PCs, according to (pdf) research conducted...
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Google Analytics crashed yesterday around 3PM EST. Websites nationwide saw traffic reports drop to zero for most of the day.
Google did not respond to complaints on the Analytics blog until after 2AM, when the situation had long been remedied.
According...
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To increase brand awareness and drive sales, marketers struggle to build accountability programs that effectively measure the impact of marketing, according to a study from the Association of National Advertisers and Marketing Management Analytics, MarketingCharts reports.
Although a plurality of...
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Google quietly rebranded its Performics Affiliate Network, reports John Battelle's Searchblog.
The service, which Google inherited with the DoubleClick buy, is now called the Google Affiliate Network.
And in news that did merit an announcement from Google, the company retired AdSense Referrals,...
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Consumers that regularly do research products online before buying them in a store are a wealth of information.
And they like to share that information via word-of-mouth, according to an analysis of BIGresearch's Simultaneous Media Survey (SIMM 11, Dec. 07) -...
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In the wake of Congressional inquiries about behavioral targeting and privacy, ISPs CenturyTel and Embarq have publicly distanced themselves from NebuAd.
The news follows Charter's decision to hold off on a planned pilot of NebuAd's services.
"NebuAd and its ISP partners are...
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ZenithOptimedia downgraded its forecasts for ad spend growth in 2008: from 3.7 percent to 3.5 percent for North America and from 3.9 percent to 3.7 percent for Western Europe, citing credit-crunch worries by investors, consumers and advertisers in Western markets,...
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Ad Networks and Analytics:
Lyris has upgraded its HQ product for the marketing and ad industry. HQ for Agencies enables users to manage online marketing campaigns.
Google Ad Planner was playfully blamed for yesterday's Google Analytics crash.
Italian motorcycle vendor Ducati selected WebTrends...
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With the launch of a Flash-reading tool from Adobe, marketers can factor Flash into their SEO efforts, instead of compensating for the presence of Flash with extra text.
Adobe, the creator of Flash Player, developed a product that interprets Flash applications...
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Today edo Interactive launched the Facecard Prepaid MasterCard, a cash card targeted directly to Millennials — youth aged 16-27.
The Facecard serves both as charge card and online payment platform. Users can access accounts from social networks and use it as...
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2008 figures for United Kingdom (UK) advertiser investment are staying put, but discretionary spend is becoming shorter-term, at or slightly short of budget.
Nonetheless, WPP's GroupM forecasts 4 percent growth in 2008 and 3 percent in 2009 for the UK, thanks...
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Some 60.5 percent of the UK population, or 36.8 million people, went online at least once per month in 2007. And of those, 30 percent — 11 million people — visited social network sites at least once per month, eMarketer...
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CBS has completed its $1.8 billion acquisition of CNET Networks, and has merged the company into a new and expanded CBS Interactive business unit, according to Radio Ink (via MediaBuyerPlanner). comScore ranks the new unit the eighth-largest web network worldwide.
The...
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Without spam protection, the average web user can expect to get 70 spam messages each day, according to a survey by McAfee, the BBC reports.
For the McAfee spam test, 50 people worldwide were asked to web-surf without a spam filter....
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71 percent of US consumers rate corporate America's reputation as poor, but consumers still will buy, recommend and invest in the most visible companies that focus on building their corporate reputations, according to the ninth annual Harris Interactive Reputation Quotient...
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Boston.com, the website for The Boston Globe, has added new features, marking its transition from a news destination — secondary to its print variant — to a standalone source for lifestyle content and local needs.
Additions include:
Local Search
Real estate listings
Goings-on for...
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Kia.com ranks highest among automotive manufacturer websites for usefulness in new-vehicle shopping, according to (pdf) the J.D. Power and Associates 2008 Manufacturer Web Site Evaluation Study (MWES) — Wave 2, writes MarketingCharts.
The semi-annual study measures the usefulness of automotive...
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The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has revised its Ad Unit and Rich Media Creative Guidelines.
Changes include:
New banner size specifications — 300×100 IMU for a 3:1 Rectangle, 720×300 IMU for a pop-under — in the Ad Unit section.
A revised definition for...
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Microsoft announced plans to acquire Powerset, a "natural search" firm that launched last year.
"Powerset will join our core Search Relevance team, remaining intact in San Francisco," wrote Satya Nadella on Microsoft's Live Search Blog. Nadella also said Powerset's natural language...
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Adidas named Montreal-based Sid Lee its global creative agency of record for the Adidas Originals label.
Adidas Originals is a contemporary interpretation of the Adidas parent. It bears affiliations with celebrities like Missy Elliott and high-end street brands like Diesel. Much...
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Cadbury North America has put its media-buying and planning account under review. Media spend for both the US and Canada is estimated at about $100 million, said Advertising Age.
The Cadbury label includes Trident, Stride, Swedish Fish, Sour Patch and Dentyne....
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Leveraging recent news that eBay was ordered to pay $61 million for auctions of counterfeit goods, a company called CheckMEND is offering its services to users of online retailers and auction sites.
CheckMEND is an online property authentication firm. Clients search...
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A French court has ruled in favor of Louis Vuitton Malletier and Christian Dior Couture in a case against eBay, which stood accused for auctions of counterfeit luxury goods by its members.
eBay owes the two companies damages totaling over $61.6...
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The Asia-Pacific internet audience (at-home and work locations, users age 15+) increased 14 percent from April 2007, to 319 million visitors, in April 2008, outpacing the growth of all other worldwide regions, according to comScore findings on the Asia-Pacific market,...
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Orbitz.com and ebookers.com, another Orbitz property, replaced Expedia as MSN.com's preferred travel agencies on MSN.com in the US and United Kingdom, reports Reuters.
MSN.com is the online home of parent company Microsoft, which reportedly made the switch because employees preferred Orbitz's...
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Over 68 percent of business travelers spend more time on the road than in the past, but nearly two-thirds (66 percent) claim that they can manage work-life balance while traveling, according to a survey by Expedia Corporate Travel, MarketingCharts writes....
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Google has been ordered to surrender the data of users that watch YouTube videos, including videos streamed on other websites, to Viacom.
The ruling (pdf) was made by Judge Stanton of the federal court for the Southern District of New York.
YouTube...
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US consumers are going online to discuss their growing frustrations about the economic downturn as well as share money-saving tips and strategies for deferring purchases, according to (pdf) Nielsen Online, writes MarketingCharts.
Gas and driving strategies and grocery-shopping considerations are...
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The Senate Commerce Committee's has rescheduled its online behavioral targeting hearing for July 9.
On the eve of the hearing, Public Knowledge, Free Press and the Center for Democracy and Technology will hold a debate contesting the safety of behavioral...
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Word-of-mouth (WOM) conversations that take place in person and over the phone are far more prevalent than those online, according to a study released by the Keller Fay Group and OMD, writes MarketingCharts.
Face-to-face communication is also more positive in...
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Ad Networks and Analytics:
Omniture unveiled Survey, an online survey tool.
Agencies and Marketing Execs:
Publicis Groupe acquired Kekst, a corporate and financial PR firm.
Ad-supported mobile game firm Cellufun adds two: Keith Katz of Gameloft and Tom Burgess of Third Screen Media.
Interactive marketing...
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Ad network optimization firm The Rubicon Project has partnered with online ad market AdJug.
Per the agreement, AdJug will sell ad inventory for US-based Rubicon clients that wish to target the United Kingdom.
The Rubicon Project recently launched Certified Ad Space, a...
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Victoria's Secret partnered with 33 universities to launch Pink's Collegiate Collection: a series of shirts, accessories and sports gear cross-branded with names, colors and mascots from 33 universities. Participating schools include University of Texas, UC Berkeley and Boston College.
The Collegiate...
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In tangent with PBL Media, Microsoft rolled out "Secret Search," a poker-style promotion where users win prizes for using Live Search. The effort is based in Australia.
Prizes include money, gift certificates, Compaq computers, JAMA pocket PCs, Canon digital cameras, a...
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Following Ask.com's moral example, Google has added a privacy link to its search site.
The company made the announcement in a wordy blog post explaining why Google cannot have more than 28 words on its homepage. Screen shots of the Privacy...
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Pepsi's senior VP-chief marketing officer Cie Nicholson is leaving to "pursue other interests, like travel and spending time with family," according to a Pepsi spokesperson. The company has not revealed a departure date or a successor.
Nicholson joined Pepsi in 1997...
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Online television show content is emerging as an increasingly effective way to reach new-vehicle buyers, 68 percent of which report going online to find information on TV shows, according to the JD Power and Associates 2008 Power Auto Online Media...
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Good Health Advertising, an ad network comprised of health and medical websites and email patient lists, closed a premier round of funding for less than $1 million. The round was led by Gersh Venture Partners.
This follows news of GTA's first...
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Weighed down by plummeting CD sales, the global recording industry is struggling to find footing in a changing marketplace: spend on physical music is down as online and mobile formats gain momentum, according to eMarketer, writes MarketingCharts.
Global spend on...
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The Travel Ad Network currently leads the travel information category — which grew nine percent in May, to over 47 million visitors — with 11.7 unique visitors per month, up 7 percent, reports comScore (via MediaPost).
The five-year-old ad network recently...
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Some 60 percent of American Marketing Association member marketers say halting or reducing spend on key marketing programs is the biggest mistake marketers can make in an economic downturn, according to (pdf) a recent AMA survey, writes MarketingCharts.
Focusing on...
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Designer Michael Kors launched a fashion line inspired by AMC's Mad Men, a show about a fictional ad agency in the '60s. Purchases of over $350 will come with a Mad Men season 1 DVD, which was released this month.
Harking...
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The Weather Channel was purchased by NBC Universal and two private equity firms. The cost of the acquisition was around $3.2 billion.
The Weather Channel shall continue to operate as a separate entity, with management provided by NBCU.
At OMMA Publish this...
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Google may rule in search share and on mobile phones, but it is less popular among its child-rearing employees, reports The New York Times.
In a recent series of private focus groups with employees that use its day care service, Google...
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Holiday Inn Express's web-based series, The Smart Show, begins its second season today.
Hosted by Henry Dittman, the fully-sponsored show explores business travel with humor and trivia. During the debut episode for season two, Dittman asks strangers what their dream jobs...
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55 percent of adult Americans have a high-speed internet connection at home, up from 47 percent in early 2007 and 42 percent in early 2005.
Among those that use the 'net at home, 79 percent have a high-speed connection and...
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Visual search engine SearchMe launched a feature that enables users to cluster their favorite webpages and share them via email, on blogs and on social networks.
The feature is called Stacks. Samples of Stacks in action across verticals — like news,...
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76 percent of Americans over 50 say the internet is an important source of information for them.
That figure is up from just 51 percent five years earlier, according to findings from AARP and the Center for the Digital Future at...
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Under a partnership with Hasbro, Electronic Arts (EA) is releasing an authorized version of Scrabble on Facebook. The game will be available exclusively to players in the United States and Canada.
Scrabulous, a popular Facebook app based on the Scrabble board...
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