Marketing news

• As NRA chatter trends, brands and media owners still stand divided on affiliating with lobbying group

  26-02-2018 23:25
  As brands pull away from associating with the National Rifle Association, others continue their working relationship with the lobbying group.
  The #BoycottNRA conversation that started after the Parkland, Florida shooting that claimed 17 lives has been a mainstay on Twitter. According to listening analytics platform Simply Measured, conversations involving the @NRA handle and the hashtag have appeared more than 43k times, with the sentiments roughly 61% negative.
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• As NRA chatter trends, brands & media owners stand divided on affiliating with lobbying group

  26-02-2018 23:25
  As brands pull away from associating with the National Rifle Association, others continue their working relationship with the lobbying group.
  The #BoycottNRA conversation that started after the Parkland, Florida shooting that claimed 17 lives has been a mainstay on Twitter. According to listening analytics platform Simply Measured, conversations involving the @NRA handle and the hashtag have appeared more than 43k times, with the sentiments roughly 61% negative.
  Brands that have c
  
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• Google unveils scorecard and calculator to help businesses measure mobile site speed

  26-02-2018 23:16
  Google has unveiled two tools that it says will help give businesses a better sense of where they stand when it comes to mobile site speed.
  According to Google, 53% of mobile site visits are abandoned if pages take longer than three seconds to load. The new tools, which were unveiled at Mobile World Congress, aim to illustrate why businesses should prioritize mobile speed.
  The first is a Speed Scorecard that lets users compare the speed of their mobile site with thousands of sites from 12 countr
  
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• Skippy goes smooth with Mark Ronson soundtrack to promote its creamy peanut butter

  26-02-2018 22:37
  A very smooth kid shows off his smooth moves to a smooth song in a new spot for Skippy peanut butter, showing how smooth its product can be.
  ‘Be Smooth Like Skippy’ is a new national ad campaign and it includes a series of videos with child actor Cooper Friedman performing a variety of smooth tasks, as well as enjoying Skippy peanut butter, done to the soundtrack of Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’ hit song Uptown Funk.
  The 30-second anthem spot features Friedman, dressed
  
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• Multicultural advertising firm Orci adds pair of new hires, Javier Güemes and Lois Cosgrove

  26-02-2018 22:35
  Orcí, a hispanic-led, full-service marketing agency in Santa Monica, recently hired Javier Güemes as its creative director and Lois Mosgrove as group account director.
  Orci, which has catered to clients such as Coca-Cola, Dole, and Honda, called the announcement part of what it calls a "broader expansion of efforts.”
  Guemes brings over 30 years of experience, most recently serving as executive creative director for Dieste. He also was a group creative director at Ogilvy. C
  
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• Multicultural advertising firm Orcí adds pair of new hires, Javier Güemes and Lois Mosgrove

  26-02-2018 22:35
  Orcí, a hispanic-led, full-service marketing agency in Santa Monica, recently hired Javier Güemes as its creative director and Lois Mosgrove as group account director.
  Orcí, which has catered to clients such as Coca-Cola, Dole, and Honda, called the announcement part of what it calls a "broader expansion of efforts.”
  Güemes brings over 30 years of experience, most recently serving as executive creative director for Dieste. He also was a group creative director
  
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• App retention slightly higher on iOS than Android, study finds

  26-02-2018 20:59
  An analysis of 11,000 apps has found that app retention on iOS is consistently higher than on Android, but only by 1-3%.
  Conducted by mobile measurement company Adjust, the study – which defines app retention as “the percentage of users still using an app for a certain number of days after install” – found that Android apps typically retain 16% of their users after seven days, while iOS holds onto 18%. Data for the report was taken between Jan. 1 and Dec. 3
  
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• Lyrics to Life: lyric encyclopedia Genius collaborates with Dropbox on pop-up exhibition

  26-02-2018 20:26
  Genius, a music lyrics database best known for its crowd-sourced transcription and translation of popular music, partnered with Dropbox to create Lyrics to Life, a four-day installation in Los Angeles debuting the first weekend of March (March 2-5).
  Each installation involves a visual artist creating a work of physical art inspired by artists such as The Notorious B.I.G., Radiohead, Animal Collective, Nicki Minaj and others. Artists building the installations include Portland-based rapper A
  
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• Mobile World Congress day one: here's what you need to know

  26-02-2018 19:48
  Mobile World Congress (MWC) has returned. This is what you need to know from day one. 
  Smartphone launches dominated headlines. Nokia revealed it was bringing back another old smartphone. Only it isn't, licencees HMD Global are, and the company wants you to pay attention to its new line of devices. Pekka Rantala, HMD Global executive vice president and chief marketing officer told The Drum there is more than nostalgia on offer at the company that looks to pay respect to
  
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• Samsung powers ahead of Ralph Lauren and Intel to record most digital engagements at Winter Olympics

  26-02-2018 19:29
  International Olympic Committee (IOC) worldwide partner Samsung has recorded the most Olympics related digital content engagement at the recently concluded PyeongChang Winter Olympics. 
  Samsung was followed by the United States Olympic team's official gear partner Ralph Lauren with 57% engagement. Ralph Lauren's opening and closing ceremony kit for the US contingent, which included the suede, frilled gloves, were most talked about along with skaters Maia Shibutani&
  
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• Johnnie Walker temporarily rebrands to 'Jane Walker' to broaden appeal among women

  26-02-2018 18:55
  Johnnie Walker is to temporarily replace its traditional top-hatted male mascot with a female version of its logo in a bid to broaden its appeal among women and support empowerment causes.
  The move marks the first time the brand has significantly altered its logo in over 100 years, with the rejig timed to coincide with both Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day in March.
  The Diageo-owned brand will donate $1 of every bottle sold $34 bottle sold to organisations that cha
  
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• CNN president to government: 'regulate Google and Facebook or our industry dies'

  26-02-2018 18:43
  The president of CNN has called on the US government to do more to regulate Facebook and Google, saying their dominance is the “biggest issue facing the growth of journalism in the years ahead.”
  Addressing attendees in a keynote speech at Mobile World Congress today (26 February), Jeff Zucker, who has been at the helm of CNN for the past five years, said that US regulators are overly concerned with the effect that mega-mergers like  those of AT&T and Time Warner, or Fox and
  
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• Nike's 'Nothing Beats a Londoner' finds unlikely rival in the Royal Yachting Association

  26-02-2018 18:38
  ‘Nothing Beats a Londoner? Sailing is having none of it’. So says the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) in one of the more bizarre creative responses to Nike’s lauded celebration of the capital’s sporting culture, which parodies the W+K original with sailors, windsurfers and canal boat captains.
  The ad opens with dinghy sailor and London-based DJ Asher Robinson, who says: “So you do your sport in London? That’s light work. I do my sport on the ocean.”
  Fol
  
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• Why Nokia keeps launching retro smartphones at Mobile World Congress

  26-02-2018 18:24
  Nokia has caused waves at Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona with another reimagining of its classic phones, this time the 8110 flip phone. 
  Nokia's Finnish partner, HMD Global, is largely constructed from former Nokia executives. Under licence, it produces Nokia smartphones to give retro models a second run in the modern mobile market. 
  In 2017, HMD used MWC to revive the stout and trustworthy Nokia 3310, a headline grabbing-stunt that stood ou
  
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• Glad touts strength of new trash bag by sending it through airline luggage system

  26-02-2018 18:17
  Glad trash bags have long been touted for standing up to the toughest trash, but a new campaign takes the concept to a torturous limit. Glad introduced ‘Torture Tests,’ to promote its new ForceFlex Advanced Protection trash bag as the toughest by testing it through the airline baggage system.
  To highlight the features of what the company is calling its “toughest trash bag ever,” Glad, together with agency partner FCB Chicago, illustrated the bag’s ability to withsta
  
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• Flattr unleashes creativity at The Drum’s Speakeasy in Austin

  26-02-2018 17:40
  Every year creatives flock to South by South West (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas, to shape their experiences, discover a glimpse of the future, and of course – party.
  To get a taste of some of that, come to an exclusive party hosted by Flattr and The Drum. The party, to be held on Tuesday 13 March, will pay homage to the power of creatives. 
  Swedish-based Flattr, a platform for artists and creators, offers an automatic and effortless way for creators to make money from their online
  
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• Does adtech have a heart? A panel of marketers discuss trust, brand safety and ‘taking a stand’

  26-02-2018 17:18
  First it was Marc Pritchard from Procter & Gamble, and more recently Unilever’s Keith Weed – calling out the failings of the adtech industry. From brands pulling away from YouTube amidst radicalism and fake news scandals to the spurious collection of data on children despite online regulations – this new era of technology needs new ethics. And the industry as a whole needs to share the responsibility, according to a panel discussion -- ‘Does Adtech have a heart?&rsquo
  
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• Birds Eye revives classic 'Waffly Versatile' jingle for avocado-loving millennials

  26-02-2018 16:33
  Birds Eye is looking to evoke a sense of fun and nostalgia by reviving its classic 'Waffly Versatile' jingle for the Instagram generation. 
  The catchy 80s melody, which touted the adaptable nature of the dinnertime staple ('they go with cheese, chilli, chicken, burgers, fish fingers, eggs...'), has made its comeback with avocado-loving millennials in mind. 
  The updated sing-a-long jingle endorses a series of re-tuned toppings for the fluffy comfort food. New su
  
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• BT 'can't and won't compete' with Netflix in global drama marketplace

  26-02-2018 16:19 via campaignlive.co.uk
  BT cannot compete with, and has no intention of competing with, the likes of Netflix and Amazon for global dramas, its group chief executive Gavin Patterson admitted at Mobile World Congress.
  
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• Ryanair’s CTO on why he is still confused by the marketing department

  26-02-2018 16:18
  Ryanair wants to become the “Amazon of travel”, but its chief technology officer admits there are hurdles the budget airline must overcome before it gets there – starting with the marketing department.
  Echoing a challenge that a number of businesses face, John Hurley says there is a disconnect between Ryanair’s technology and marketing teams, as marketers “fall in love with technology and rush for the holy grail”.
  “What are we still confused by?” H
  
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• Telaria’s CEO says ‘conflict-free’ business and CTV drive continued growth

  26-02-2018 16:00
  In its second quarterly earnings call since shedding its buy-side business and subsequent rebrand, Telaria today (February 26) posted continued notable revenue growth and significantly reduced losses compared to 12 months earlier, with chief executive Mark Zagorski crediting its clear-cut offering for the ongoing turnaround.
  Although the results fell just short of some analysts’ earlier expectations with revenues of $15m for the December quarter, representing a 45% year-over-year increase,
  
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• Absolut creates cocktail technique masterclass

  26-02-2018 15:46 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Absolut Elyx, the Pernod Ricard vodka brand, is hosting masterclasses in cocktail techniques.
  
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• My side hustle: how I launched an agency and an absinthe brand in the same year

  26-02-2018 15:29 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Just months after founding PrettyGreen, chief executive Mark Stringer was called up by a friend and asked whether he'd like to travel to France to launch a new alcohol brand.
  
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• Coca-Cola launches Diet Coke rebrand in UK with £10m marketing push

  26-02-2018 15:23
  Coca-Cola is launching a £10m advertising campaign to support a revamp of Diet Coke in the UK, as it looks to push more consumers towards its healthier options.
  Speaking exclusively to Marketing Week, Aedamar Howlett, marketing director for Coca-Cola GB and Ireland, says: “One of the key things for us is to invest heavily into driving the growth of all our zero sugar and light drinks and across our portfolio.”
  The brand is hoping that the Diet Coke reboot will work alongside Co
  
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• Hennessy creates dining experience

  26-02-2018 15:19 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Hennessy, the cognac brand owned by LVMH, has created a dining experience for its rare Paradis Imperial range.
  
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• Verizon’s Oath marks MWC with international roll-out of mobile-first ad units

  26-02-2018 15:00
  Oath has kicked off its Mobile World Congress (MWC) activity with the international roll-out of a suite of ad formats, including augmented reality (AR), full-screen native and interactive ad units, as the Verizon-owned adtech offering vies for further ad spend.
  MWC 2018 is the first major telecoms trade show since Verizon Wireless closed its Yahoo acquisition, and with the subsequent completion of the Oath merger – of AOL with Yahoo – the US telco now hopes to simplify the proce
  
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• Ryanair chief technology officer: ‘I find out about our projects in the papers’

  26-02-2018 14:12
  Ryanair’s chief technology officer has been the unseen presence behind some of the biggest changes implemented by the budget airline in the past four years, but he’s admitted it’s a tough job as he contends with both the chief marketing officer and the ever-challenging chief exec, Michael O’Leary.
  In his four years with the company, John Hurley has overhauled the Ryanair website (which now has over 2.5 million visitors a day), launched the MyRyanair app (now with over 35
  
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• BT Sport CEO explains why the Premier League rights are vital to the wider BT Group

  26-02-2018 14:10
  Despite being an eye-watering investment for BT, the Premier League rights significantly boost the media and telecom company's relevancy to consumers, according to Andy Haworth, chief executive of BT Sport.
  Haworth gave an impassioned argument at Mobile World Congress today (26 February), claiming it is content that drives the network.
  Reflecting on BT's entrance into the television market against a powerful Sky that hitherto dominated the UK pay TV entertainment and sports packages, h
  
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• How Hello Kitty harnessed the power of cute to build a multi-billion dollar brand

  26-02-2018 14:05
  The Drum is kicking off a series looking into the weird and wonderful origins of some of the world’s best-known brands with a deep dive into the colourful history of Hello Kitty, exploring how the button-eyed totemic character went on to become one of the most recognisable brands on the planet alongside McDonald’s and Coca-Cola.
  The soft, sparse outline of Hello Kitty was first sketched by Yuko Shimizu in 1974. Having just graduated from Tokyo&rsquo
  
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• Digital transformation. What the hell does it really mean? Dataxu explains

  26-02-2018 14:00
  There has been a dramatic change across various industries, with the common denominator being digital transformation. Advancements in technology means that many companies need to catch up, while other are already playing the field almost like a rookie. Where do you start when developing improvements that your clients, customers and employees will appreciate?
  Dataxu’s vice president, Mike Shaw sees the start of the thread with data. He says it enables you to form a better understanding of m
  
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• Time Inc to sell UK titles to private equity

  26-02-2018 13:55 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Time Inc has agreed to sell its UK publishing arm, which includes NME and Marie Claire, to private equity fund Epiris.
  
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• MWC adds Freeman XP to brand activations supplier list

  26-02-2018 13:47 via campaignlive.co.uk
  GSMA, the producer of Mobile World Congress, has appointed brand experience shop Freeman XP as one of its preferred activations agencies.
  
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• Boy befriends alien in Harry's short film to show how shaving is masculine expression

  26-02-2018 13:45
  Shave company Harry’s is trying to set itself apart from the competition by showing that masculinity can have a softer side.
  Harry’s is debuting a short film today (February 26), ‘A Man Like You,’ to run on digital and social channels. It tells the story of a boy who befriends an alien and teaches him how to be a man.
  It starts with a boy headed to school, who sees a flash in the sky. He roams through the woods to find an alien in man form. A funny scene sees the ali
  
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• Unilever's Keith Weed on trust, cutting agencies and gearing up for GDPR

  26-02-2018 13:03 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Earlier this month, Keith Weed was named the World Federation of Advertisers' Global Marketer of the Year, an award run in association with Campaign. To mark his win, the FMCG giant's chief marketing and communications officer caught up with WFA president David Wheldon and discussed a range of topics from his recent high-profile speech at the US IAB through to coping with GDPR.
  
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• Libby Brockoff: Never give up on the power of good

  26-02-2018 13:00
  Advertising still gets a bad rap. Millennials often view the work of our industry as shallow, greedy, and unimaginative: A bore. Older consumers suspect advertising is dishonest and unethical. "But we know this is an unfair assessment of an industry that has been responsible for some of the most influential work of the last few decades. Work that reached outside of the realm of consumerism and into our culture. Work that helped spark movements toward justice, equality, and positive social change
  
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• Final call for The Drum Marketing Awards: Gap global marketing chief wants to see entries represent a greater relevancy to cultural conversation

  26-02-2018 13:00
  Gap global director of marketing, Eric Toda wants to see entries represent a greater relevancy to cultural conversation. He is one of the judges alongside Triumph International, Graham’s Family Dairy, West Ham United, UEFA Events S.A, Converse and McLaren Automotive Ltd, and many more, for The Drum Marketing Awards 2018.
  He explained: “For years entries have been topical at best, but given the state of society and the mediums that society uses to converse there is a larger space for
  
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• Carter Murray: Doubling down on diversity

  26-02-2018 13:00
  If there is one thing that I have learned on the topic of diversity, it is that the starting point in any conversation, however obvious, is to get everyone to acknowledge that it is not a level playing field out there, professionally or in life. You would be shocked at how hard it is to get everyone aligned on this fundamental truth.
  In advertising and marketing, we need to own this truth like everyone else to properly work out what to do with it. I would argue that our industry should be doubly
  
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• Waitrose hosts fitness classes with Shona Vertue

  26-02-2018 12:31 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Waitrose is hosting series of fitness sessions with personal trainer and yoga teacher Shona Vertue.
  
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• Dublin looks to lure UK TV channels across the Irish sea post Brexit

  26-02-2018 11:53
  The Republic of Ireland is making a play to host UK TV channels post Brexit.
  Capitalising on the potential requirement for UK businesses to have an EU presence once the country leaves the organisation, Ireland is already championing itself as a natural gateway to European markets.
  The move follows decisions by Bank of America and Barclays to locate their EU-bound HQ in Ireland to enable them to guarantee continuity of operations under a so-called 'country of origin' license, which grants firms t
  
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• Cancer Research UK calls for 9pm watershed on TV junk food advertising

  26-02-2018 11:12
  Cancer Research UK is calling for a further crackdown on the marketing of junk food in response to soaring rates of obesity among millenials, advocating for a ban on adverts for foods high in fat and sugar prior to the 9pm watershed.
  Alison Cox, Cancer Research UK’s director of prevention, said: “The government must play a part to help people make healthy food choices. We’re campaigning for a ban on junk food adverts before the 9pm watershed to protect young people fr
  
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• Glenmorangie to create speakeasy bar for new whisky

  26-02-2018 11:02 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Glenmorangie, the single malt Scotch whisky brand, is opening a speakeasy cocktail bar to mark the launch of a special-edition drink.
  
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• Radiocentre picks The & Partnership London to create new campaign

  26-02-2018 10:47 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Radiocentre, the industry body for commercial radio, has hired The & Partnership London to create a new campaign to sell the power of the medium to advertisers.
  
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• Sex scandal fells The Weinstein Company as it files for bankruptcy

  26-02-2018 10:07
  The Weinstein Company is to undergo an ‘orderly bankruptcy process’ according to its directors after talks to sell the scandal plagued business to a group of investors fell through.
  The New York film studio's links to co-founder Harvey Weinstein ultimately proved to be its downfall with the movie producer's fall from grace bringing his commercial empire down with him after dozens of women stepped forward to make allegations of sexual abuse and rape. He denies the allegations of
  
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• Creative Works EMEA featuring Saatchi & Saatchi, McCann Barcelona, Fold7, Rothco and more

  26-02-2018 10:00
  Welcome to The Drum Creative Works.
  As always, this section is dedicated to showing the best creative work of the past week. We're using our five-star voting system, so to vote for your favourite, make sure you click on the stars.
  For project information, credits and more click on the project to expand to full screen. You can submit your own work via our online form.
  For voting updates and more follow The Drum Creative Works on Twitter @TheDrumCreative.
  Show me entity :: 18309
  Sho
  
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• Samsung looks to a ‘new frontier’ of mobile intelligence

  26-02-2018 09:37
  Samsung has laid out its plans for a “new frontier” of virtual and augmented reality, artificial intelligence and machine learning, but says that is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of what it wants to achieve.
  From health care to finance to personal assistants, Samsung claims its engineers are “pushing the boundaries of mobile intelligence” with the aim of bringing its vision of a truly connected world to life and make controlling the most important devices in its cu
  
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• Nokia trails banana-styled slider smartphone retro release

  26-02-2018 09:34
  Nokia has played its trump nostalgia card again this year at Mobile World Congress with the unveiling of a retro styled slider smartphone and a flagship Android device which it claims is impossible to bend by hand.
  In both name and substance the Nokia 8110 echoes its 1990s stablemate with a slide to answer and end calls extension in a follow-up to last year’s surprise hit the, retro styled 3310 feature phone – but will come armed with 4G connectivity and all the latest social media p
  
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• Nokia lays out smartphone ambitions with new devices and another retro reboot

  26-02-2018 09:01
  2018 will be the year Nokia “doubles down” and attempts to break into new markets, parent company HMD Global says, as it looks to compete with the likes of Samsung, Apple and Huawei in the global smartphone market.
  Speaking at a packed Mobile World Congress press conference on Sunday (25 February), HMD’s chief product officer Juho Sarvikas said 2017 had given Nokia the opportunity to “think differently in the technology race and refocus on what actually matters to co
  
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• Monkey ad study shows sex sells

  26-02-2018 09:00
  An unconventional scientific experiment designed to establish the origins of effectiveness of sex and status in advertising has found that monkeys are naturally attracted to sexualised ads.
  Researchers at Stanford University in California recruited a female macaque with which to lure unsuspecting males into appreciating brands such as Pizza Hut, Adidas and Nike, with monkeys naturally gravitating whichever brand was transposed with an exposed monkey rear as opposed to a generic patch of fur
  
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• Unilever, Maplin, Spotify: Everything that matters this morning

  26-02-2018 08:42
  Unilever chief Paul Polman’s pay rises by 51%
  Unilever’s chief executive, Paul Polman’s, pay package grew to £10.3m in 2017 and is set to rise as the FMCG company prepares for more bonuses.
  Polman’s pay grew by 51% last year but Unilever revealed plans for an overhaul of executive pay, according to the group’s annual report. The changes would see Polman gain £9.9m in bonuses and shares a year.
  Currently Polman’s pay deal includes a £1m a
  
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• Sky, Starbucks, Barclaycard: Everything that matters this morning

  26-02-2018 08:42
  Comcast makes rival bid for Sky
  US cable TV gian Comcast had made a £22.1bn takeover bid for Sky, rivalling an existing offer from 21st Century Fox to buy the company. While Rupert Murdoch-owned Fox has agreed a deal to buy the 61% of Sky it does not already own, the deal is yet to go through and faces stiff scrutiny from the governent and regulators in the UK over the issue media plurality.
  Comcast’s bid of £12.50 a share is 16% higher than Fox’s offer. It is initially l
  
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