In-depth features, interviews and insights into marketing’s biggest issues.
Blyk, Europe’s first advertiser-funded mobile phone network, is looking for a UK managing director. It is thought the brand has held talks with several senior marketers about the role. Blyk, which is run by former Nokia president Pekka Ala-Pietila, will offer free calls and text messages to users willing to accept ads on their handsets. […]
US toy brand Mattel is under fire for its “inconsistent” reaction to its toy recall crisis. The criticism comes as the toy company launches a major PR campaign in the US to reinforce its commitment to child safety, yet the brand has failed to act in the UK. Mattel faces its first lawsuits in the […]
John Ayling & Associates has been appointed to handle the media planning and buying for the launch of the Tio Pepe Midweek Dining Club.
The Geek Squad, the technology troubleshooting service backed by the Carphone Warehouse, has appointed Will Lever as its first UK marketing director. Lever, who was head of marketing and communications for Apple UK and Ireland, will be responsible for brand positioning, strategy development and cross-group marketing across retail, PR and direct channels. Prior to joining […]
Radio ratings success boosts beleaguered EMAP
Land Rover changes gear for climate challenge
As magazines across all sectors suffer from falling circulation figures, many find the solution is to increase internet readership and use promotions or price cuts to boost sales, says Sonoo Singh
Supermarket brand Morrisons has been rocked by turbulence since it took over Safeway in 2004. Its latest mishap an E.coli outbreak on the eve a 450m brand makeover has done nothing to persuade analysts that the retailers fortunes will turn a corner. By Matthew Gorman
Jim Hytners decision to leave Barclays for Top Up TV may seem like a step down, but at least hell be back in the media world he loves. Will he defy critics by showing his experience at Barclays has given him a more hard-nosed and strategic side? Time will tell, says Catherine Turner
Nokia has appointed former O2 marketing chief Will Harris as UK marketing director. Harris, who starts his new role in October, replaces Simon Lloyd, who left to join The Number 118 118 earlier this year (MW April 19). Harris, who is also a former marketing director of the Conservative Party, joins Nokia from Voice over […]
The food and advertising industries have slammed a Which? report into the use of kids cartoon characters to promote “junk” food for being “out of date” and “bizarre”. The report, which was released today (August 21), warns food companies that using the characters could harm their brands. The Cartoon Heroes and Villains report criticises companies […]
Cisco chief executive John Chambers and Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer have held a joint webcast to reveal plans for closer collaboration between the two companies as they seek to offer consumers more compatible solutions between the products they offer. The move towards working together follows more than a year of fierce rivalry between the […]
BLM Azure, the specialist toys and games arm of BLM Group, has created the 1m launch campaign for new doll range, This is Me. The media planning and buying agency was appointed to the handle the brief without a pitch.
RIAS, the specialist insurer for the over-50s, has become the first brand to sponsor Odeon Cinema Senior Screen, which offers over-50s regular, reduced-price cinema screenings across the UK. As part of the deal, RIAS has rolled out a multi-media ad campaign, created by Watson Phillips Norman. The campaign uses the theme of “happy endings”, with […]
Lego – which this year celebrates its 75th anniversary – and Nickelodeon are searching for two children to star in Lego’s next TV ad campaign. The 40-second TV execution for its City sub-brand will break on Nickelodeon children’s channel in mid-October, ahead of the run up to the Christmas trading season, to tap into the […]