February 07, 1994
Euro Disney SCA is finally heeding its own motto that it's a small world after all.
February 07, 1994
Even with an edge that appeared more secure than at any other time during its four-month battle for Paramount Communications, Viacom remained locked late last week with QVC Network in a war to win Wall Street support. Viacom officials said they consider their offer to be "a clear win"-a sentiment investors generally shared, pushing the price of Vi...
February 07, 1994
AT&T's futuristic Eo device is a disconnect, but that won't stop BellSouth next month from introducing its own personal communicator. The difference is that BellSouth is disguising its entry as a familiar cellular phone. BellSouth's cellular, named Simon, will work as a fax machine, pager, calendar and electronic note taker, all wrapped up in an ...
February 07, 1994
Forced to dish out dollars in other areas, pet food marketers reined in promotional spending on dry dog food in 1993. The total number of coupons issued for dry dog food fell 3% to 563 during the first 11 months of 1993, according to an exclusive analysis prepared for Advertising Age by Promotion Information Management, Chicago. But what's more t...
February 07, 1994
"This car is like punk rock ..." screams a 20-year old male wearing jeans, T-shirt and a plaid flannel shirt wrapped around his waist. It was the commercial that a year ago launched the subcompact Subaru Impreza into the world of Generation X. And according to a panel of Generation X experts assembled by BBDO Worldwide, the spot is a classic exam...
February 07, 1994
For Neon, marketing influenced manufacturing. Early on, Chrysler Corp. planned to build and ship 1994 Neon models to dealers beginning in November 1993, as is traditional in the industry. But because of input from marketing executives on the platform team, shipments were delayed until January. Why? So the car could be sold as 1995 models, and als...
February 07, 1994
Middle America meet Andy Warhol, Keith Haring and ... Absolut vodka. The House of Seagram, which took over marketing the U.S.' No. 1 imported vodka on Feb. 1, is aiming to keep Absolut growing by paying more attention to areas outside the top five media markets. There, Seagram wants to add greater emphasis on providing point-of-purchase displays ...
February 07, 1994
The party's over for a non-commercial Mardi Gras. This year's edition of the annual pre-Lenten carnival revelry wraps up Feb. 15. Come next year, a joint venture formed by the city of New Orleans and Atlanta-based Primedia will be licensing official New Orleans Mardi Gras merchandise, splitting evenly the expected $200,000 to $300,000. An 1877 ci...
February 07, 1994
Rather than going to the mall to buy that new sweater or the latest in videocameras, many people are going straight to the TV or computer in their family room. A study for the National Retail Federation, sponsored by MasterCard International and conducted by Yankelovich Partners, indicates consumers are growing wary of shopping at traditional ret...
February 07, 1994
WASHINGTON-Terrence McDermott, 50, former president of Cahners Publishing Co., has been named ceo-executive director of the American Institute of Architects, a professional association with 60,000 members. Mr. McDermott left Cahners, Newton, Mass., last April and said he pursued several acquisitions in the publishing industry before deciding to ac...
February 07, 1994
CBS' next big promotional tie-in is with MCI Communications Corp. and it's going to be a real joke. Actually, it will be four jokes: one each from different CBS comedy stars participating in an interactive promotion that will enable viewers to send personalized versions of the jokes to friends courtesy of MCI. Dubbed the "MCI/CBS Send-A-Laugh Net...
February 07, 1994
The fight for interactive medical marketing dollars is escalating. Whittle Communications-the first in the field with Medical News Network for physicians offices-announced last week that three of the nation's top 10 pharmaceutical companies will provide $147 million to sponsor the satellite-delivered interactive news program's rollout, scheduled f...
February 07, 1994
What is MPEG-2? Some say the new TV set-top boxes that will support in teractivity will be delayed because of it. What does it mean?
February 07, 1994
For many enterprising media executives, playing videogames during working hours would probably be frowned upon. For Gab Del Sesto, it's a prerequisite. As VP-interactive media research and planning for MTV Networks, Ms. Del Sesto spends much of her time trying out videogames and watching music videos. That's fine with her bosses at MTV and its p...
February 07, 1994
The broadcast networks are in a new battle for affiliates, but this time it's a fight to align with interactive on-line services, not TV stations. In a bid to move themselves onto the burgeoning electronic superhighway, two of the Big 3 have quietly begun locking up deals with the major on-line providers. Advertising Age has learned NBC is close ...
February 07, 1994
It's time for a change in strategy for major watch marketers. In what industry executives call a first, Timex Corp. will advertise continuously throughout the year instead of just in the spring and fall, the traditional time for watch campaigns. Meanwhile, Swatch is quintupling its ad budget to $10 million while courting controversy in a print ad...
February 07, 1994
Unilever is baring its teeth and challenging Procter & Gamble Co.'s biting remarks in a new commercial for Tartar Control Crest toothpaste. Unilever is taking the commercial personally because hydrogen peroxide and baking soda, whose combined benefits are questioned in the Crest spot, are unique to Mentadent toothpaste from Unilever's Chesebrough-...
February 07, 1994
Procter & Gamble Co. is readying a major offensive for Tide that will further pressure Lever Bros.' ailing Wisk detergent. P&G confirmed that in February it will start shipping nationally a reformulated liquid and powder Tide. The new formulation, following last year's successful new "grease releasing" formula, will use the carezyme technology fir...
February 07, 1994
Andrew Jergens Co., Dial Corp., Procter & Gamble Co. and Unilever are all crowding into the shower. The four package-goods Brobdingnagians are getting ready to converge on shower gels, a tiny $54 million category in the U.S. now virtually owned by Colgate-Palmolive Co.'s Softsoap. In late March, Jergens, a subsidiary of Japan-based Kao Corp., wil...
February 07, 1994
Shalala says thanks I write to applaud your recent editorial praising the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the new public service announcements aimed at preventing the sexual spread of AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases among young adults (AA, Jan. 17). AIDS is a public health emergency that kills an average of 92 American...
