New Media Age articles from July 2008

New Media Age archives from July 2008

Digital leads cross-media campaign for Volvo C30.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Volvo has placed digital at the centre of a major multi-platform initiative as it seeks to target a younger audience for its C30 coupe. The automotive brand aims to target an audience of 10m people when it launches Creative 30, an...

Portals drop ad rates to fill space.
July 3, 2008... Media owners have been forced to drop their ads rates in a bid to fill inventory as online ad budgets fall. Top portals including AOL, MSN and Yahoo! are reportedly offering inventory, in some cases premium space, at cut-price rates as...

Channel 4 Education launches multi-platform Year Dot project.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Channel 4 Education has gone live with its experimental cross-platform project for young people. Year Dot forms part of the independent broadcaster's #6m investment of TV budget into cross-platform projects (nma.co.uk 29.04.08). The...

Remington plans first etail site as part of major global move online.(Fuse Digital )(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Hair grooming company Remington is set to launch a transactional site as part of a major global online push. The American-owned brand has appointed full service agency Fuse Digital to handle its global digital account as it prepares to...

Facebook to discuss security with ICO after private data leak.(Information Commissioner's Office )(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) will meet with Facebook UK representatives to discuss privacy issues, following a data leak through an application. The Top Friends application, the fourth largest on Facebook, was shut down...

Chelsea FC uses web to drive interaction.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Chelsea FC will overhaul its website this week in a bid to encourage fans to upload more content and engage with the club online. The club is keen to drive more interaction from its fans and to distribute its content widely around existing...

Lastminute produces bespoke city guides to improve search rankings.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Lastminute.com is set to launch a range of online bespoke city destination guides in an attempt to boost its search engine rankings in the competitive travel sector. The online travel company has commissioned 185 City Guides in six...

Mixmag drops print ClubCard in favour of mobile substitute.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Dance music magazine Mixmag is to scrap its print ClubCard membership scheme as it prepares to launch a mobile version. It's launching a mobile site, developed by platform provider Wapfly, which it plans to drive traffic to by offering...

Football clubs trial contextual mobile ads.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... InfoMedia has launched a trial of contextual advertising to help mobile content owners boost download sales. Mobile sites of NME, Chelsea FC, Everton FC, Liverpool FC, Manchester United FC and Parkers are taking part in the trial, which...

Paramount ties up with Live Search to push Kung Fu Panda.(Paramount Pictures Corp.)(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Paramount Pictures is to launch an online game to push its animated summer comedy Kung Fu Panda. The action-style game encourages users to answer three questions using Windows Live Search to get clues, before playing the Dumpling...

TV industry divided over impact of OFT investigation into Kangaroo.(Office of Fair Trading)
July 3, 2008... The TV industry is split over the potential impact of this week's decision by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to refer video-on-demand service Project Kangaroo to the Competition Commission. The joint venture between BBC Worldwide, ITV...

DoH uses viral to push anti-binge-drinking message.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... The Department of Health has launched a viral campaign to push its anti- binge-drinking campaign. The latest stage in the #4m campaign will use viral site Kontraband to seed a more extreme version of the TV ad, which shows people...

Fashion retailer East bets all marketing budget on search.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Women's fashion retailer East has selected Receptional to handle its paid search account as it looks to drive traffic to its site. The internet marketing consultancy will handle East's pay-per-click account. East has awarded its search...

MTV Networks focuses on search as it pushes new musical talents.(VCCP Search )(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... MTV Networks is to embark on a branding search campaign to rebuild its association with breaking new music in the UK. The entertainment giant has appointed VCCP Search to manage both its paid and natural search accounts, with a specific...

PPLparty becomes YouMeO as part of partnership with Blyk.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Social network PPLparty is to partner with ad-funded MVNO Blyk as part of a major relaunch. The British social network for 16-24-year-olds has become YouMeO, following a round of VC funding earlier this year (NMA 21.02.08). The...

Glamour magazine signs mobile ad deal with Dior.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... CondeNet-owned Glamour magazine has signed a mobile ad deal with luxury brand Dior. The Dior campaign marks one of the first mobile ads deals for CondeNet since it broke ties with the operator portals in March. The campaign will run...

Littlewoods Clearance relaunches online store to win more customers.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Littlewoods Clearance, the bargain arm of the online and home shopping retail chain, has relaunched its online store to attract more customers. The Bargain Crazy site sells discounted end-of-season and end-of-line product ranges such as...

Fiat unveils .mobi site to drive engagement.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Car brand Fiat has launched a mobile site in a bid to engage with new and existing customers. The site, built by AKQA Mobile, allows users to check the location Fiat dealers and click to call them. It also features a range of 'How...

iVillage sponsors health prize in the National Lottery Awards.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Women's portal iVillage is to sponsor the Best Health Project category in the National Lottery Awards. IVillage will use the Awards' website to select and promote ten health projects that have contributed to communities. Users visiting...

Top online advertisers are the sort to survive.
July 3, 2008... The display ad market so far in 2008 provides interesting insights into the health of the online market but also the wider economy. The last five months have seen around #270m spent on display advertising in the UK. As a sector, car...

Over 3.1bn views makes UK users biggest watchers of online video.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... UK audiences are the largest consumers of online video, watching more than 3.1bn videos in April, according to data from measurement company ComScore. It found 27.4m UK users watched an average of 127.7 videos each, putting the UK ahead...

Long subject lines achieve more click-through.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Email marketing messages with long subject lines achieve greater engagement with users. The finding comes from email marketing agency Alchemy Worx, which undertook an in-depth analysis of more than 600 subject lines on 200m messages. ...

ANALYSIS: Digital sector begins to feel pinch of recession.
July 3, 2008... As media agencies warn that clients are beginning to tighten their purse strings, display advertising seems to be the first affected as the focus falls on ensuring ROI The digital industry is the latest area to be hit by the economic...

COMMENT: Digital offers a route through rocky times.(Column)
July 3, 2008... It has taken a while but the waves of the economic downturn have finally begun to lap at the shores of digital media. For the last few months the industry has been, whether through informed confidence or nervous denial, vocal in its belief that...

New laws protect consumers from dodgy selling practices.
July 3, 2008... While we were all enjoying a rainy bank holiday weekend last month, two key pieces of legislation crept into force: the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading regulations 2008 (CPRs) and the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing...

LETTER: In-house agencies lack creative motivation.(Letter to the editor)
July 3, 2008... Rob Hopf, director, Deluxe Corporation Your article on the growth of in-house online video agencies (NMA 05.06.08) raised the business benefits of both outsourcing to a digital agency and creating a team in-house. However, you neglected to...

LETTER: Agencies shouldn't try to do too much.(Letter to the editor)
July 3, 2008... From John Griffith, The Running Bug Michael Nutley's column (NMA 19.06.08) boldly sets out the dynamic relationships between traditional ads, social media and PR, plotting the customer journey from awareness through to consideration and...

LETTER: Search change will only benefit big advertisers.(Letter to the editor)
July 3, 2008... Guy Walker, CEO, FindsYou.com It's no surprise Microsoft is changing its Live Search algorithm (NMA 19.06.08), claiming that the move will 'enhance the quality of its search results'. But the real question is what value this brings to...

OPINION: Guarding against misplaced ads requires vigilance by all.(Column)
July 3, 2008... A few weeks into the job as chair of the Internet Advertising Sales Houses (IASH) Council and the Onlyfights.com story breaks (NMA 19.06.08). An obvious cause for concern, but as the brave new world of ad networks rises to the top of the...

AD WATCH: Sex and the City campaign taps into what women want.
July 3, 2008... I remember when Sex and the City began how hooked I was. Yes, it does help that I'm a girl, just as it helps that I love NY. The series brought a true insight into how girls hang out in groups and unite around their dramas. But to get us...

PROFILE - ANITA FOX: Driving force.(Biography)
July 3, 2008... In her desire to make Volvo the leading car brand in digital, Anita Fox has drawn on her direct marketing expertise to give it a social voice. Nic Howell reports Volvo will probably never shake off its reputation as a safe rather than...

SOCIAL MEDIA START-UPS: Pinning your hopes.
July 3, 2008... As social media sites sweep the web, Luan Goldie finds that targeting a particular niche not only attracts users but also, crucially, catches the interest of investors In a relatively short space of time, social media sites have gone up...

SOCIAL MEDIA START-UPS: Niche players to watch.(Website list)
July 3, 2008... WAYN.com Niche Travel social network Enables you to track where friends are on their travels around the world. Founded by backpackers Jerome Touze and Peter Ward in 2002, the site now has 11.5m global members. Sequoia Capital and DFJ...

MOVES: Cheeze.(Matt O'Brien )(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Digital direct marketing agency Cheeze has promoted client services director Matt O'Brien to MD. He takes over from Katherine Jerman who, keeping her title of founding partner, will take a six-month sabbatical, returning later in the year to...

MOVES: Carlson Marketing.(Andy Gorton)(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Ad agency Carlson Marketing has appointed Andy Gorton as head of creative services. He joins from Personal Communications where he was creative services director. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

MOVES: Coull.(Hitesh Bhatt )(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Interactive video platform Coull has hired Hitesh Bhatt as its new commercial director. He joins from MSN UK where he was most recently acting head of agency sales. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

MOVES: Ogilvy Group UK.(Scott Seaborn )(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Brand and marketing communications agency Ogilvy Group UK has appointed Scott Seaborn as head of mobile technologies. He joins from Magnet Harlequin where he was head of marketing technologies. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and...

MOVES: Iris Worldwide.(Mark Reardon and Adam Murray )(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Integrated marketing agency Iris Worldwide has strengthened its senior management team with the appointments of Mark Reardon to chief client officer and Adam Murray to chief financial officer. Reardon joins from The Engine Group where he was...

MOVES: Code Computerlove.(Rob Jones and Jane Cragg)(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Manchester digital agency Code Computerlove has expanded its online marketing team with the appointments of analytics manager Rob Jones and search manager Jane Cragg. Jones joins from analytics provider Redeye while Cragg has been an SEO...

SITE INSPECTION: Sorted.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Sortedstudents.com Owner Sorted Agency Playgroup Content 20/25 Usability 19/25 Branding 15/25 Monetisation 25/25 Total 79/100 'A recipe for student survival' is...

SITE INSPECTION: East Clothing.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... East.co.uk Owner East Agency Pindar Content 17/25 Usability 20/25 Branding 15/25 Monetisation 15/25 Total 67/100 Clothing retailer East has created a clean and straightforward...

SITE INSPECTION: What About Money?(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Whataboutmoney.info Owner Financial Services Authority Agency 23red, Lightmaker Content 20/25 Usability 18/25 Branding 12/25 Monetisation 15/25 Total 65/100 This resource...

FULFILMENT: dorlingkindersley-uk.co.uk.(Brief article)
July 3, 2008... Founded: 2002 Selection A large selection of reference books for adults and children. Navigation Books are broken down into such categories as atlases, travel and music, then again into more specific groups like age range,...

Telegraph in international ad deal.(AdGent 007)(Telegraph Media Group)(advertisement)(Telegraph.co.uk)(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Telegraph Media Group (TMG) is looking to monetise Telegraph.co.uk's vast international audience via a global advertising deal. It has signed a deal with global ad sales house AdGent 007 to sell the site's non-UK ad inventory to...

Social networks open to support over privacy.
July 10, 2008... Social networks are being forced to self-regulate in the wake of growing privacy issues around online data protection. This week MySpace said it would welcome government backing on regulations for social networks as rival Facebook stepped...

Coca-Cola plans global footie sticker campaigns.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Coca-Cola is in talks with Italian sticker-book publisher Panini and football federations across the globe with a view to launching a series of global interactive sticker campaigns. It plans to roll out online and mobile initiatives to...

Former Sapient head to open Brand Advocate office in UK.(Paul English)(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Paul English, the former head of Sapient Interactive Europe, has joined French independent agency Brand Advocate Group to launch its London office. The office is the first stage of a planned global network rollout for the agency, with a...

Skinny Cow chooses web over TV for ads.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Ice cream-style dessert brand Skinny Cow is set to launch a major campaign to drive traffic to its relaunched website. The campaign, which includes online and on-pack promotions, offers consumers the chance to win an A-list lifestyle, with...

Orange uses free gigs initiative to drive core 'I am' brand message.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Orange has embarked on a major initiative combining digital media with free music gigs in a bid to bring its new 'I am' brand strategy to life. Orange has sponsored singer/songwriter Jont to perform a series of gigs in consumers' homes...

E.On interactive TV campaign achieves high response rate.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Energy company E.On's first interactive TV campaign has revealed high engagement results, with 85,500 individuals interacting. The red-button push formed part of E.On's 'See it and save' through-the- line campaign to raise awareness among...

Channel 4 to measure social impact of TV shows via online.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Channel 4 is to use online to evaluate the social impact of its programming as it moves beyond traditional measurement methods like BARB. The broadcaster is looking to measure audience engagement from the airing of its Disarming Britain...

IASH to reveal ad misplacement results.(Internet Advertising Sales House )(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Ad network body IASH will hold talks with its members this week to reveal the findings of its investigation into the issue of blue-chip brands advertising on extreme sites. Last month IASH and trade association IAB launched the...

Sky signs video ad deal as it looks to roll out increased web inventory.(British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC. Sky News)(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Sky is to significantly increase the video ad inventory across its portfolio of sites as it continues a drive to make video content central to its online ad proposition. Sky has signed a deal with Dutch video ad specialist Adjustables that...

Bel UK uses online ads to raise awareness of Yummy Giggles.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Bel UK has rolled out its biggest digital campaign of the year to promote the launch of Yummy Giggles, a new cheese brand for pre- schoolers. The company, which also owns the Babybel, Laughing Cow and Leerdammer brands, is using online to...

Kellogg's pushes Rice Krispies to families.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Kellogg's is to target families with an interactive website to push its Rice Krispies brand. Krispies Kitchen will offer recipes using Rice Krispies as the main ingredient. Visitors will be able to select recipes based on a sliding scale...

City & Guilds drives automotive courses.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... City & Guilds, the vocational education body, has launched an online campaign to promote its automotive qualifications ahead of the British International Motor Show in London. It has produced a campaign site, Love Cars, and a viral game,...

Viacom courts controversy over implications of YouTube ruling.(cases)
July 10, 2008... The legal wranglings between entertainment company Viacom and Google could have serious implications for the former and its properties, according to industry experts. Last week a US court ordered Google to hand over a database of YouTube...

FHM plans site redesign to fit with magazine.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Bauer's men's title FHM is redesigning its website in a bid to bring it in line with the revamped magazine. The site aims to link more closely to the magazine, which was overhauled last August to reflect a more upmarket and older audience....

FT to gather behavioural data from site portfolio to improve ad offer.(Financial Times Ltd.)(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... The Financial Times is to launch a financial behavioural network in a bid to ramp up online ad sales. It has enlisted Revenue Science to offer cross-site targeting for the first time across FT.com and its sister sites for Investors...

US portal ShopStyle signs up fashion partners for UK launch.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... ShopStyle, the US fashion portal owned by Sugar Publishing, has launched in the UK in a bid to become the leading social shopping site. It has signed partnership deals with retailers including All Saints, La Senza, House of Fraser and...

Times Online recalls 100 years of Bond.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Times Online has launched an interactive James Bond Timeline as part of its sponsorship of the For Your Eyes Only exhibition at London's Imperial War Museum. The timeline, developed in association with American Express, features content...

Search begins for best interactive advertising of 2008.
July 10, 2008... NMA and sister title Marketing Week are looking for the best interactive marketing campaigns to enter this year's Interactive Marketing and Advertising Awards. The IMAAs, now in their fifth year, showcase advertising and marketing across...

Microsoft turns to search to make Multimap key consumer offering.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Multimap is to run its largest search campaign to date as the Microsoft- owned mapping brand goes on the offensive to grab consumer attention. It has appointed iCrossing to run both paid and natural search in the UK, putting search at the...

British Red Cross hires I Spy to counteract trademark bidding.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... The British Red Cross is ramping up its search marketing in a response to Google's recent decision to allow trademark bidding. The charity has appointed search agency I Spy Search to run its pay-per- click (PPC) account in a bid to...

Online video magazine rivals men's titles.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... An online video magazine launches this week that intends to take on the major men's magazine sites. ChannelFlip has more than 200 short-form videos covering computer games, technology and film, aimed at tech-savvy men. The launch is...

Online network links schools with charities.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... An online community for schools is to run a pilot scheme to link its members with charities such as Medicins Sans Frontieres. Rafi.ki currently has more than 900 schools across 87 countries as members, using the site to network and share...

FX UK uses personalised video to push second Dexter series.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... TV channel FX UK has launched an online campaign to promote the second series of Dexter. The 'Dexter Hit List' will feature a personalised video application that allows users to send friends a video of a police press conference in which...

VoD set to grow but DVD still rules home market.
July 10, 2008... Video-on-demand is a rapidly growing industry. At the end of 2007 there were already more than 12m European homes enabled for VoD by their pay- TV operators, up nearly 80% on 2006. Screen Digest forecasts that a further 27m homes will be...

Music etailers overlook disabled shoppers with inaccessible sites.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Music retail sites are shutting out disabled shoppers, claims a report by usability specialist Nomensa. It looked at the home pages and bestselling album pages of top sites Amazon, CD Wow, HMV, Play, Tesco Entertainment and WHSmith. ...

Youngsters more open to using mobile search.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Young people are more likely to use a search engine from their mobile than any other age group, according to Lightspeed Research. The online research group found 32% of all 18-24-years-olds have used a mobile search engine, compared with...

ANALYSIS: Past bids at search branding.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Orange's isn't the first to drop URLs in favour of a search call-to- action. The brand that first hit the headlines for taking this approach was Pontiac in the US, which in January 2006 encouraged viewers of its TV spot by Leo Burnett to...

COMMENT: Search: the new way to reposition a brand.
July 10, 2008... The furore in the press over Heinz's decision to pull an innocuous ad featuring two men kissing may have died down but the anger felt by the gay community lives on online. Heinz's capitulation in the face of a handful of complaints has...

Mobile TV won't be seen until it ties into existing viewing.
July 10, 2008... Did you know that a yeti is a form of cryptid - an animal whose existence has been reported but not proven? This is my word of the week. I use it all the time now to describe mobile TV - a new media format whose existence has often been...

LETTER: Why industry awards are inspirational.(Letter to the editor)
July 10, 2008... From Clare McDonald, creative director, Interactive Media Agency, BSkyB and chair, BIMA Awards 08 It was great to read such an honest and timely piece by Mark Cridge (Cridge of Creativity, NMA 26.06.08). His view on awards and the reason...

LETTER: Taking the cost out of competitions.(Letter to the editor)
July 10, 2008... From Dan Parker, CEO, Sponge Following the recent Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, which came into operation on 26 May, the legal advisory service of the Institute of Sales Promotion (ISP) is issuing advice to the...

LETTER: Branded social pages succeed with planning.(Letter to the editor)
July 10, 2008... From Scott Button, CEO, Unruly Media The fact that marketers are failing to get consumers excited about branded profile pages (Trends, NMA 19.06.08) merely shows that there are too many second-rate approaches. Success lies in tailored,...

OPINION: Times Archive uses web to bring print's past back to life.
July 10, 2008... Zach Leonard is digital media publisher at Times Media The term 'historical insight' sounds like an oxymoron, but when we view current events through the lens of the past we gain a sharper perspective. Moreover, digital delivery allows us...

PROFILE - LORI CUNNINGHAM: Local hero.
July 10, 2008... Johnston Press's digital strategy director Lori Cunningham is confident she can improve online's contribution to the publisher's bottom line, finds Matthew Wall Lori Cunningham's father used to take her gliding through the mountains...

RUBY ON RAILS: Building up steam.
July 10, 2008... Online application framework Ruby on Rails offers faster, more flexible creation of websites. So why aren't mainstream agencies getting on board, asks Emily Cubitt Open-source web application framework Ruby on Rails (often shortened to...

RUBY ON RAILS: Case study: MobileAct.(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... MobileAct is a search for the UK's best unsigned band, in association with Orange and Sony Ericsson. It originally aired in autumn 2007 on Channel 4. A key functionality for its website, built by Mint Digital, was a vote that decided the...

NMA MOBILE: Have your pick.
July 10, 2008... Could widgets have as big an impact on mobile phones as they have on the desktop? Stuart Dredge reports Spurred by the success of widgets online, numerous companies have begun developing mobile widget platforms, either as...

NMA MOBILE: Publishers seek control.(New Media Age)(Brief article)
July 10, 2008... Publishers are following the development of mobile widget platforms with interest. "It's still early days so we've yet to see how they work out, but we do recognise them as a means of engaging with users and are working with a number of...

NMA MOBILE: When using mobile, why can't Britain be more like Japan?(New Media Age)(Column)
July 10, 2008... Attending a technology show in Tokyo recently brought home to me, rather depressingly, just how much the UK mobile operators have screwed up what should be by now a thriving, buoyant, exciting industry: the mobile internet. We all know...

NMA MOBILE: Channel 4 shows it knows its audience with up-to-date site.(New Media Age)(Column)
July 10, 2008... Channel 4 http://mobile.channel4.com Agency QuePasa Platform MobileIQ Channel 4 recently relaunched its mobile site to coincide with the latest series of Big Brother. In line with the Channel 4 brand, the new- look site...