| Today's Top Stories | | #1 | FTC Charges Volkswagen With Deceptive Advertising
| | | The Federal Trade Commission in a complaint filed in federal court alleges that Volkswagen Group of America deceived consumers by spending tens of millions of dollars on ads that promoted "clean diesel" VWs and Audis that were later discovered to have illegal emission defeat devices. The lawsuit seeks compensation for consumers who bought or leased any of the affected vehicles between 2008 and 2015.
Why This Matters: The automaker's U.S. creative agency is Deutsch Los Angeles, but the lawsuit does not list the agency as a defendant. But the entire Volkswagen emission scandal should be a wakeup call to agencies that they need to be more diligent when making claims on behalf of their clients, rather than just being go-alongs.
Two Takes: Ad Age | WSJ
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| | #2 | NBCU Says Summer Olympic Ad Sales Top $1B
| | | With four months to go before the telecast of the Games begin from Rio, ad sales are pacing well ahead of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games that were televised from London, when NBCU officials say they hit the $1 billion mark in late July. Seth Winter, executive VP of ad sales for NBC Sports Group, says there is still prime time inventory available across the TV platforms.
Why This Matters: What's helping drive sales is that marketers realize the Games should draw higher viewership because the Rio time zone is closer to the U.S. than when the games were televised from London. So there will be an opportunity to see more events live.
Three Takes: B&C | Adweek | MediaPost
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| | #3 | Gender-Neutral Marketing on the Rise
| | | The trend is in the process of upending how the $22 billion toy industry and the $250 billion fashion industry weight their product and marketing strategies, Digiday reports. One example is the introduction of the limited edition Moschino Barbie last November, a collaboration between the dollmaker and the Italian fashion house. Not only did it sell out in less than an hour, but the promotional video has since been watched by over 3 million on YouTube. Coke recently introduced its "Dude or Diva" soda can campaign and Jaden Smith appeared in a Louis Vuitton ad wearing a women's skirt.
Why This Matters: Marketers need to monitor this trend carefully. "People have begun to protest against convention in favor of more tolerance, diversity and acceptance," says Nelson Freitas, chief strategy officer at Wunderman.
A Take: Digiday |
| #4 AOL Launches Video Ad Formats (Adweek)
#5 Angriest Whopper Latest Burger King Gimmick (Ad Age)
#6 Anti-Ad Blocking Companies Merge (Adweek)
#7 Facebook Offers Native Ads in Instant Articles (Digiday)
#8 High-End Hunting Apparel Heats Up (Adweek)
#9 iHeart Media Facing Mounds of Debt (Media Life)
#10 iSpot.tv Says March Madness Brings in $775M (MediaPost)
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Percentage of millennials who say they are more likely to click on an ad aimed specifically at their generation, according to a survey by Yahoo, Audience Theory and Ipsos. The percentages are slightly lower for Gen Xers (30%) and Baby Boomers (27%).
– Reported by eMarketer |
| | Ratings | 'Voice' Raises NBC
By Michael Malone
NBC took the Monday ratings title thanks to a powerful Voice, which was up 4% to 2.8 in viewers 18-49, while drama Blindspot was flat at 1.6. NBC tallied a 2.4 rating in viewers 18-49, per Nielsen's overnights, and an 8 share. CBS did a 1.5/5, ABC and Fox were both at 1.3/4, and The CW at 0.4/1.
CBS had Supergirl, in a crossover episode with CW property The Flash, at a 1.7, up 31% from last week. Scorpion too benefited, up 7% at 1.6, while NCIS: Los Angeles was down 8% at 1.2.
On ABC, Dancing With the Stars rated a 1.7, down 6% from last week. It led into a repeat of The Catch at 0.7.
Fox's Gotham rated a 1.3 while Lucifer did a 1.2, both flat.
On CW, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend posted a 0.3, up 50%, while Jane the Virgin did a flat 0.3. For more, click HERE |
| | Fates & Fortunes | • MARK CIBORT has joined Razorfish Los Angeles as managing director and KEVIN LANE was named VP of strategy and planning. Cibort, who will oversee more than 100 staffers in the Los Angeles office, was previously president of Deep Focus and Trailer Park's digital division in L.A. He was also a group managing director at R/GA New York. Lane was most recently chief strategy officer at TWBA/Designory.
• MICHAEL KLEIN was named executive VP of original content at MTV, where he will oversee all original programming, development and creative across all platforms. He was previously executive VP of programming and content strategy, digital channels, at Condé Nast Entertainment, which he helped launch. He also served as senior VP of programming and development for the Sundance Channel and held positions at Travel Channel and at Discovery Communications.
• PETER KING has signed a multiyear contract extension with Sports Illustrated Group and will continue in his role as editor and writer for year around MMQB.com (Monday Morning Quarterback) football website. King has been with Sports Illustrated since 1989 and with SI launched MMQB.com in 2013.
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Phone: 201-314-0424 | Send Email
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