Have We Seen the Last of the Beer Babe Ads?

Just like PETA getting all hysterical about those funny cow ads, advocacy groups are now asking beer makers to cool it with their racy ad campaigns. What? They don't like seeing Pam Andersen's boobs practically fall out of her top? Don't like seeing bare chested men get all sensitive?

The Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth, a watchdog group at Georgetown University has been amassing data claiming that now fully one quarter of all beer ads are now seen by kids. Not that that is a good thing but until we have media that can be guaranteed only to be viewed by those of us over 21, we are always going to have kids see beer ads. Does a 12 year old need to see Pam Andersons boobs? Probobly not. Is it going to make him become a drunk? I don't know.

Predictably, brewers don't think anyone has the right to tell them what to do.

"Neither the government nor advocacy groups have been anointed as the culture police in the United States," says Jeff Becker, president of the Beer Institute, in a statement.

What do you think?

New Ricky Martin Album Promoted By Cell Phone

Ricky Martin's new album made it promotional debut via cell phone in South Korea. Rather than going the usual promotional route, Sony decided to try cell phone advertising. On May 13, prior to the general release, downloads of the album were made available via cell phone. To date, there have been 100,000 downloads.

With the proliferation of SMS, the inclusion of digital cameras, and their ubiquitous presence, cell phones are becoming a multi-faceted medium that will become a very important channel for marketers.
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