New Microsoft Spot: More Harmful Than We All Thought

Microsoft gets slammed in this spoof faulting Microsoft for it's January 25, 2003 SQL Slammer that apparently caused $1B in damages in 10 minutes.

The spoof is based on the National Youth Anit-Drug Campaign's "I Helped" spot.
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Tabacco Company Tells it Like it is

Licensed to Kill is the name of a new tobacco company founded in Virginia on March 19,2003. Whether it will ever really sell tobacco is another story. The company was founded simply to prove how easy it is to set up a corporation whose charter might not be all that welcome if the truth was actually told. Sure, it's kind of a spoof. Here's a clip from their corporate statement:

"Licensed to Kill, Inc. is a tobacco company. We knowingly kill people for profit. And we're proud of it. In fact, it is the explicit aim of our corporation. Just check our articles of incorporation.

We're not like other tobacco companies that try to obscure what their business is about. If you market cigarettes, you market death. It's that simple. In a country which effectively allows corporations to be formed without regard to their purpose, corporations are allowed to kill people to make money. Addiction to cigarettes may be lethal, but profiting from spreading death is perfectly legal.

Truthfully, as a corporation, we couldn't care less about the health hazards of smoking our products. Our bottom line is and always will be boosting profits for our stockholders. That is, after all, what corporations are about. You could say that we're 'addicted to profit.' "

Clever.
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Restaurants Fight the Don't Drink Trend

In a welcome display of un-PC behavior, a new advertisement from the American Beverage Institute encourages people to have a drink before they go home. This is in response to the overwhelming anti-drinking trend that has emerged over the past few years.

"These overly conservative messages tell responsible Americans that they're wrong in going out and having a glass of beer, a glass of wine or a cocktail at dinner, or at a sports venue, and driving home," said Paul Avery, president of the Outback Steakhouse restaurant chain and the American Beverage Institute. "We're just trying to protect ourselves."

So do your part. Drink and Drive.
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Cable News Hotties

Do we have the best looking anchor women in the world? Apparently so. Here's a round up of the cable babes from the dudes over at ApeChild. Read how they describe Laurie Dhue of Fox News:

Those lips... Laurie Dhue has incredible lips. And she knows it. She probably has an entire case of lipstick in her dressing room, every single piece in bright, "fuck-me-red." She hosts a health-related program on the weekends that old people watch and send in questions about new geriatric drugs. I can't even fathom a guess at the number of heart attacks she's caused by crossing and uncrossing her legs "Basic Instinct" style while that old doctor guy drones on about arthritis and prostates. I think about 30% of Viagra sales can be attributed directly to old dudes watching Laurie Dhue, her lips, and her legs on Sunday mornings... What else can I say?

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That Honda Commercial Took 606 Takes to Complete

The Honda commercial where car parts miraculously obey the laws of physics for the entire length off a two minute commercials is absolutely real. No trick photography or post production manipulation. Read all about it here.
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The Couric/Leno Sweeps Stunt

Now this should be interesting. Jay Leno and Katie Couric are switching places on May 12. Katie will host The Tonight Show and Leno will host Today. I'm sure Katie will do fine but Leno in the morning will be a strange one. It was Katie's idea says Jay. It's also the first time Leno has had a a guest host.

"She'll do fine," says Leno. "People like her; she has an infectious personality. And she's so cute that if she bombs, she can get away with it because she's cute."

How very un-PC of you, Jay:-) [via TV Guide Online]
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J2O: Bathroom Advertainment

Check out your accuracy with this little Flash Pee Game. [via Adland]
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Truck Advertising

Now here's a good one that I had never been aware of before. Even with all my long years buying space and time, I had never heard of a company called Truckads. What do they do? Just like a bus transit company, they place ads of the sides of trucks nationwide. Think about all those trucks you see going by you on the highway or the ones you are stuck behind in a traffic jam. Now think about all the millions of people you could reach with an ad on the back of that truck.

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Skeptical About Online Advertising? This Might Change Your Mind

Those of us who have a connection to the online advertising world here it all day long. "Results are sketchy. I can't compare them to offline. It's too complicated. No one sees the ads. There are too many ad units to choose from. It's measurement isn't comparable to other media. Online doesn't help offline sales."

And the list goes on. All valid points. Though if you are skeptical and if you do have an interest in online advertising, you should spend 5 minutes reading this article which address, one by one, each of the above concerns. Perhaps you are all for the benefits of online advertising but your client is not. Have them read this article. It might help.
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Reality and Scripted Work for Cable

Love it or hate it, reality TV is here to stay. It's serves a purpose which is to deliver an audience for advertisers. Cable is finding, however, that given its fragmentation, there is room for plenty of scripted shows in the mix. Phychographically, everyone does not love nor watch reality television and smart network executives know this. And they are programming accordingly with a mix of modified reality programming and scripted dramas. [via MediaPost]
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