Advertising news

• Airbnb to buy HotelTonight in its biggest acquisition yet

  07-03-2019 23:38
  Airbnb has agreed to buy HotelTonight, its biggest acquisition yet, in a move to increase hotel listings on the site ahead of an eventual initial public offering for the home-sharing startup.Airbnb declined to disclose financial terms of the deal, but a person familiar with the matter said the price is close to HotelTonight's last private valuation. A venture capital deal two years ago valued HotelTonight at $463 million, according to PitchBook Data, a market research firm. In early 2017, Airbn
  
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• Stagwell eyes investment in MDC; Mark Penn could lead the holding company

  07-03-2019 22:53
  Stagwell Group, the agency company founded by former Microsoft executive Mark Penn, is in negotiations to make a $100 million investment in MDC Partners under the terms being discussed, according to two people familiar with the talks. If the deal is finalized, Penn, known as a longtime political strategist for Hillary and Bill Clinton, is expected to lead MDC as part of the investment.Stagwell is not expected to assume MDC if the deal closes. Instead, it is expected to get up to two board seats
  
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• Netflix CMO Kelly Bennett to depart

  07-03-2019 19:33
  Netflix Chief Marketing Office Kelly Bennett is leaving the company after a seven-year run at a time when the streaming giant must find a way to further differentiate itself as new players prepare to enter the marketplace.Bennett, who joined Netflix in 2012, will remain in his role until a new CMO is named.Bennett is the latest C-level executive to leave Netflix over the last year; Jonathan Friedland, the communications chief, left in June after making racially insensitive comments at an intern
  
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• People are getting angry About 'Fearless Girl' again (no bull)

  07-03-2019 19:25
  Good thing she's fearless, with all these ticked-off humans around."Fearless Girl," the sculpture State Street Corp. installed in downtown Manhattan two years ago to great fanfare and consternation, is now the subject of a court order blocking her creator from selling a replica to buyers in Germany.A federal judge in New York this week issued a preliminary injunction barring the artist, Kristen Visbal, from completing the sale, promoting the replica or using an online form to sell others, accor
  
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• Watch the newest commercials on TV from Lay's, Sprite, Shipt and more

  07-03-2019 19:08
  Every weekday we bring you the Ad Age/iSpot Hot Spots, new TV commercials tracked by iSpot.tv, the TV ad measurement and attribution company. The ads here ran on national TV for the first time yesterday.A few highlights: Hip-hop duo Rae Sremmurd and friends enjoy Sprite LymonadeSprite "with just a splash of lemonade." Shipt, the shopping/delivery service ("We bring the store to your door") wants you to start your free 2-week trial today. And Lay's hypes its Fiery Habanero chips with a little he
  
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• Brands emphasize customer experience at Shoptalk

  07-03-2019 18:00
  At Shoptalk 2019, retailers were buzzing about customer experience. From established brands like Barneys New York and newer companies such as lingerie startup Lively, all retailers are exploring how to use marketing, and both online and in-store offerings, to acquire and retain shoppers.Barneys is modernizing its marketing, messaging and products to reach a younger consumer. The strategy, which comes on the heels of Barneys' recent announcement that it will be entering the cannabis space, inclu
  
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• Watch Jimmy Kimmel try to make sense of R. Kelly's 'insane' interview with Gayle King

  07-03-2019 17:48
  If you somehow haven't seen Gayle King's Wednesday "CBS This Morning" interview with R&B star R. Kelly in the wake of his arrest surrounding sex-abuse allegations, Jimmy Kimmel is here to help you out. In this segment from last night's "Jimmy Kimmel Live," the host serves up the most explosive, melt-downy clips from the sit-downincluding the moment when Kelly jumps up from his seat in a menacing fashion while King remains utterly calm. "Is there anyone cooler than Gayle King?," Kimmel asks.
  
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• Havas partners with JCDecaux and Facebook to profile female innovators

  07-03-2019 16:29 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Media owners have donated sites in London and New York, and digital and print space.
  
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• The women who inspire Campaign

  07-03-2019 16:20 via campaignlive.co.uk
  For International Women's Day the Campaign editorial team profile the women in the industry who inspire them the most
  
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• Every day should be #IWD: A year of celebrating 'badass' female creatives

  07-03-2019 16:18 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Two advertising creatives set up a platform to spotlight female talent every day of the year.
  
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• AT&T's WarnerMedia to probe allegations against Warner Bros. studio chief

  07-03-2019 16:18
  WarnerMedia will investigate a report that studio chief Kevin Tsujihara had a sexual relationship with an actress he helped promote, a startling development that comes just two days after AT&T expanded his duties in a corporate shake-up.In a story published Wednesday, The Hollywood Reporter said Tsujihara arranged meetings between the actress, Charlotte Kirk, and executives at Warner Bros. to discuss film and TV projects. Kirk appeared in two Warner Bros. movies, "How to Be Single" in 2016
  
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• New lingerie brand Lively has an army of ambassadors

  07-03-2019 16:08
  Just three years into its existence, lingerie startup Lively is already giving established underwear retailers a run for their money. The brand, which started as an e-commerce site in 2016 but has since expanded to channels including Nordstrom and its own retail store in New York, has been able to build awareness so quickly because of a robust ambassador program. The strategy taps into Lively's community of consumers, who serve as brand ambassadors and market the company through their own socia
  
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• Barnes & Noble dives as it forecasts more gloom ahead

  07-03-2019 16:05
  Barnes & Noble Inc. fell sharply after it slashed its outlook for this yearan admission that the scenario is worsening for the chain as it considers options including finding a potential buyer.The company cut its guidance. It sees 2019 earnings in a range of $140 million to $155 million, well below the $175 million to $200 million it had forecast as recently as November. The bookseller already warned in January it had a bad holiday, noting it was mulling cutting its earnings guidance after
  
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• Moneysupermarket promises to help people 'Get money calm' in brand relaunch

  07-03-2019 14:47 via campaignlive.co.uk
  The brand wants to move beyond traditional price-comparison services in new campaign by Engine.
  
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• Campaign Agency of the Year winners revealed

  07-03-2019 14:28 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Mother, Manning Gottlieb OMD and Droga5 London are among the victorious agencies.
  
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• WPP's Blackett: Use Brexit paralysis to 'steal share of voice', not cut ad spend

  07-03-2019 14:21 via campaignlive.co.uk
  'Cautious behaviour is impacting marketing budgets'
  
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• John Lewis extends partner marketing to home range after 'fantastic' response in fashion

  07-03-2019 13:43 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Profit at department store falls by half, but business retains staff bonus despite reports suggesting it could be scrapped.
  
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• Barbie to host global events celebrating 60 years of 'empowerment'

  07-03-2019 13:09 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Barbie is celebrating 60 years of 'girl empowerment' with a global social and events campaign.
  
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• Opinion: Optimization is for losers

  07-03-2019 12:00
  I figured out one of the reasonsthere are manywhy corporations suck: it's the way you plan, forecast, budget and ultimately spend money.You live in the particular circle of Dante's Inferno I call, "Death by a thousand budget cuts," which by the way is your just reward for an entire process that is horribly flawed, inept and borderline incompetent.You begin the process around September and go into this trancelike planning dance whichsomehowis meant to predict accurately what the next 15 months a
  
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• Facebook (belatedly) puts the focus on privacy. Plus, the story behind a famous Nike ad: Thursday Wake-Up Call

  07-03-2019 12:00
  Welcome to Ad Age's Wake-Up Call, our daily roundup of advertising, marketing, media and digital news. You can get an audio version of this briefing on your Alexa device. Search for "Ad Age" under "Skills" in the Alexa app.What people are talking about todayFacebook, the social network, wants to be less social and more private. In a new post (a "manifesto," as Ad Age's Garett Sloane calls it), CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined the company's new focus on more private forms of communication, including
  
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• Brand Film Festival London 2019: shortlisted films revealed

  07-03-2019 11:53 via campaignlive.co.uk
  The shortlisted films for Brand Film Festival London 2019 - the awards scheme and seminar from PRWeek and Campaign that celebrates brand storytelling - have been revealed, with tickets now available for the must-attend event.
  
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• TrustX, P&G and the ANA move to reduce so-called 'ad-tech tax'

  07-03-2019 11:00
  TrustX is eliminating a 12.5 percent fee for buying ads through its platform following a three-month trial with Meredith, NBCUniversial, CBS Interactive and Magna Global, a move it hopes will have broader implications for the digital advertising ecosystem.The trade body, which represents 35 publishers, including ESPN, Hearst, News Corp. and Cond Nast, argues that for every digital ad dollar spent, only 40 percent goes toward working media. The rest, it says, finds its way into the pockets of age
  
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• Cashmere's chief creative officer on what 'multicultural' means in 2019

  07-03-2019 11:00
  Subscribe to us on iTunes, check us out on Spotify and hear us on Stitcher, Google Play and iHeartRadio too. This is our RSS feed. Tell a friend!L.A.-based lifestyle marketing agency Cashmere has been on a roll lately: This week Jack in the Box selected the shop as its social media and public relations agency following a two-month review.
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• Three creates temporary tattoo pop-up for 'commitment-cautious'

  07-03-2019 10:36 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Activation will feature Jay Hudson from Channel 4 show Tattoo Fixers.
  
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• Facebook announces overhaul of privacy policies

  07-03-2019 10:31 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Founder Mark Zuckerberg admits Facebook does not have a strong reputation for building privacy protective services.
  
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• Anti-Brexit groups launch damning parody of Leave.EU's 'Breaking point' poster

  07-03-2019 10:11 via campaignlive.co.uk
  A band of pro-EU campaigning groups have joined forces to create a Leave.EU parody ad holding the Brexit elite to account.
  
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• What brands can learn from Kraft Heinz's reckoning

  07-03-2019 10:00
  Anyone who has ever waited impatiently as they banged on a bottle of Heinz ketchup to get that first drip can appreciate how agencies feel about Kraft Heinz as an early adopter of so-called "zero-based budgeting."Kraft Heinz looks a lot like those ketchup bottles: doing everything in its power to hold back every drop of money. It's frustrating. Just as we know how that zing of ketchup would taste so good on that burger, we understand that great advertising can change the fortunes of brands.Now
  
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• F1 taps The Chemical Brothers to create the fastest remix of all time

  07-03-2019 09:16 via campaignlive.co.uk
  The collaboration launches Formula 1's 2019 season.
  
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• The Good Life: When Plymouth rocked

  07-03-2019 09:00
  Stakes couldn't have been higher for Plymouth at the dawn of 1955. The Chrysler Corporation's boxy compact fleet had dropped Plymouth to fourth place behind Buick. Under the supervision of Plymouth chief stylist Maury Baldwin, the 1955 models were the product of a level-setting redesign: Longer by more than 10 inches, lower by nearly two and wider to boot, the car leapfrogged into the space age. It didn't just look faster; it was faster. V-8 engine performance was reaching new highs in the auto
  
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• Vivendi, Ascential, Stylist, Ozone and Tortoise speak at Digital Media Strategies 2019

  07-03-2019 07:38 via campaignlive.co.uk
  Top media companies and start-ups feature at DMS on 2-3 April in London.
  
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• Bar fight: Clif challenges Kind Snacks to go organic, Kind fires back

  07-03-2019 00:50
  .firstp { clear:left; } .pop-out { float: left; margin: 6px 25px 15px 0; width: 150px; display: block; } .pop-wrap { clear: left; font-family: 'outsiders'; font-size: 12px; line-height:20px;" } .pop-out-mobile { display:none; margin: 6px 25px 15px 0; width: 250px; float: left; } @media only screen and (max-width: 767px) { .pop-out { display:none; } .pop-out-mobile { display:block; } }A bar fight is brewing in the snack industry.Clif Bar is using high-profile ads to challenge Kind Snacks to use
  
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• Google's ad manager will move to first-price auction

  07-03-2019 00:10
  Google is making a change to its programmatic exchange that will likely result in marketers paying more for their ads, at least in the short term until brands adjust.Under a plan announced Wednesday, Google Ad Manager's Adx will move to a first-price auction, a significant shift that will resonate across the $48 billion programmatic landscape."By simplifying our auction in Ad Manager, we can help make it easier for publishers and app developers to manage and get fair value for their inventory,"
  
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