iPhone Doesn't Just Want to Be Your Expensive New Friend; It Wants to Be Your Lifestyle Companion

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Engadget says Apple has applied for six patent applications that reveal plans to turn iPhone into a "lifestyle companion." (Is that anything like a domestic partner?)

The patents would make iPhone the only product of its kind with the ability to scan product barcodes, track workouts and suggest new ones.

This probably doesn't mean the days of Nike+ are numbered, but we still want to say something ominous like, "Watch out, Nike. When you dance with the devil..."

Not that Nike ever needed help being bad-ass.

by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Brands, Mobile/Wireless



'Will You Ever...?' is Probably a Better Question.

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Here's a tense, exhilarating survey of things many aspire to do, but most never will (even with two weeks paid vacation):

o Freefall into a bottomless canyon
o Dive into mysterious ocean depths
o Glide across the Antarctic plains
o Drive a Land Rover

One of those things doesn't belong. We're just not sure which.

The spot was put together by HSI Productions and a52 (which did the VFX) for agency Young & Rubicam, which was commissioned by guess-which-company.

by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Brands, Commercials, Good, Television



The Guild Wins Best Series at YouTube Video Awards

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The Guild, an online show written by MMOG gamers for MMOG gamers, got some love at the YouTube Video Awards. Huzzah.

Catch the webisodes at Watch the Guild. Turn the volume down: we thought we were getting all schizophrenic, but it was just that a bunch of them started playing at the same time.

Since closing the window, the room seems quiet. And lonely.

by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Events, Good, Online, Video



Little Minx Experiments with Exquisite Corpse

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...and no, not in the PBS kind of way.

"Exquisite Corpse" is a game where words and images are assembled to make a new whole. Players must adhere to certain rules to keep the game going.

Thus inspired, LittleMinx.tv invited directors Chris Nelson, Josh Miller, Malik Hassan Sayeed and Phillip Van to play "Exquisite Corpse" with short films. Two rules:

o Each must respond to the last line of text from the last director's script, and
o Each film must feature the Little Minx brand somehow

View the results of the game. If you just want a taste, here's a lovely sad one about the death of innocence, which follows this one about a man who cheats at cards. (And that's a really, really short synopsis.*)

more »

by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Good, Video



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'Under the Same Moon' Takes the Piss Out of Lou Dobbs

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Spoof meets the big-leagues in this trailer for Under the Same Moon, a Hispanic-American film with a title so sappy it could itself be a spoof.

The trailer pulls the sympathy card with child star Adrian Alonso while mocking Lou Dobbs, whom HuffPo dubbed "CNN's anti-immigrant crusader."

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by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Commercials, Political, Promotions, Spoofs, Television



Ew, Gross. It's a Big Shiny GUT.

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French company Tefal is promoting a newfangled muscle:fat tracking scale for beachside midlifers that suffer the indignity of sucking it in.

Simple. Relatable.

We've heard the gut-clench is common practice. Not that we'd know. We were born with abs of steel. Because we're robots.

by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Commercials, Good, Television



Scion Doesn't Just Speak; It Speaks for You

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In keeping with Scion's build-your-own identity, StrawberryFrog launched Scion Speak, where you can create a Scion crest.

The site was developed after the agency interviewed Scion lovers in urban areas like LA and New York. Graffiti artist Tristan Eaton, who designed the options for the coats of arms, called the campaign "one of the most rewarding art projects I've ever created.

"I love that what I've created can be pieced together, in thousands of variations to become something no longer mine, but yours," he added.

We can identify with Eaton. Scion's campaigns aren't just creative; they tirelessly conceive creativity without deviating from Scion's gritty brand feel or relinquishing too much control. And because of that, a car we considered to be ass-ugly is now strangely desirable.

by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Good, Online



Sony Foams Miami For New Commercial

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Here's some behind the scenes footage of that foam shoot that bathed the streets of Miami with gallons and gallons of soap suds we reported earlier this month. It's all for an upcoming Sony ad along the lines of Balls, Paint and Rabbits.

by Steve Hall    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Brands, Commercials



Hub Strategy Wins ADDYs, Top 50 Shocking Ads, AgencySpy Tweets PSFK

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- San Francisco's Hub Strategy took home Best of Show and two Best of Divisions along with other awards at last week's Greater San Fransisco ADDY Awards.

- Trendhunter has put together a long list of the top fifty most shocking and controversial ads. Oh the memories:-)

- The Web Marketing Association's 12th Annual WebAwards has opened its Call for Entry which will extend until May 31.

- The future of advertising is clear. Word of Mouth is aided by floating "nano-millo-chip thingies." Sampling is handled by robots. Car dealers will employ robots dressed in monkey suits to sell flying cars. Google will live inside your brain.

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by Steve Hall    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Industry Events, Outdoor, Racy, Research, Strange



Krystal Keeps Branded MySpace Page Trendlet Alive

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Who knew? Apparently, brands still think it's a good thing to create branded MySpace pages. We thought that trendlet was long gone. Nope. Thanks to fast food chain Krystal's Brain Freeze Relief, we can confirm it hasn't completely died off.

But that's not the only trendlet Krystal is trying to extend. They're also doing the fake word thing with the invention of sphenopalatineganglioneuralgia, or brain freeze. OK, so we're kidding on that one. Sphenopalatineganglioneuralgia is a real word. It's a medical term for the ailment more commonly known as brain freeze.

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by Steve Hall    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Online, Promotions, Social



Guinness Mobile Application Speaks Cantonese

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OgilvyOne Hong Kong along with XS2TheWorld and the Hyperfactory, in partnership with rugby tournament Sevens, have created, for Guinness, what's being touted as the first Cantonese-speaking mobile guide. The application, Guinness Passport to Greatness, tournament attendees match schedules, stadium information, maps, reviews and a guide to the city. Of course, spots where one can have a Guinness are highlighted.

For those attending the tournament who don't speak Cantonese, the mobile application speaks the language so non-locals don't get lost in the labyrinth of a foreign land. With prerecorded phrases such as "Take me back to the South Stand", "Another round of Guinness please" and "Can you direct me to the nearest ATM machine?", visitors will be well cared for. Well mostly. We're guessing it won't ask, "Where the nearest strip club?"

by Steve Hall    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Good, Mobile/Wireless



First Lady of France Bares All for GQ, Uses Queen to Push Pop

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Carla Bruni -- in all the sultry flesh -- appears pretty much nude in the April edition of GQ magazine. (Heavens, she's hot. We're sobbing "Are you there, God?" all over again.) More nakie pics are going on auction next month. They're expected to swoop up 2,000 pounds (the currency) at least.

Plugging the fertility of Mother France ain't all she's up to lately. The still-fresh-faced First Lady was recently accused of turning a visit with the Queen into an opportunity to punt her new CD. After a visit to Windsor, stickers appeared on the album promoting the Italian chanteuse as the new First Lady and chum to Her Highness.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Mar-27-08    
Topic: Political, Promotions, Racy