Comic Dive: Bracket Busting Brands

As the Final Four wraps up, the real winners of March Madness appear to be challenger brands like Buffalo Wild Wings and BodyArmor.

By John Hazard • April 5, 2019

Paramount brings 'Pet Sematary' scares to life with 3D photo ads

The studio is the first to deploy a new format by OmniVirt, which is positioning the offering as more dynamic than Facebook's 3D photos.    

By Peter Adams • April 4, 2019

Winery invites fans to the 'Freakshow' with AR face filter app

Michael David Winery is giving people who share their "freak'n faces" on social a chance to win a "Freak-of-the-Week" swag pack.

By Robert Williams • April 4, 2019

Apple News Plus reaches 200K subscribers in first 2 days

Signups exceeded the subscription base for Texture, which Apple acquired last year as the basis for its new "Netflix for magazines" service.

By Robert Williams • April 4, 2019

Franzia wine toasts millennials with 'Franz for Life' campaign

The boxed wine brand's first campaign in 35 years gives the "Golden Girls" theme song a fresh spin.

By Erica Sweeney • April 4, 2019

T-Mobile video service inks deal to show MTV, Nickelodeon

With 5G on the horizon, Viacom partnered with the third-biggest wireless carrier to deliver live TV and on-demand content.

By Robert Williams • April 4, 2019

Adobe parodies influencers with star-studded short film directed by Zach Braff

Inspired by the winning poster in a contest, the film depicts the coddled, over-the-top life of a 19th century influencer and features Alicia Silverstone, among others. 

By Erica Sweeney • April 4, 2019

Gartner: 5G will drive 100M people to shop in AR by next year

Nearly half of retailers plan to deploy AR/VR features, but the technologies still face several challenges.

By Robert Williams • April 3, 2019

Campaign Trail: How Reebok's artsy 'Storm the Court' may have missed its shot

The campaign's compelling first installment pivots from the athletic giant's past messaging, but did the creative risk to capture millennials sacrifice effective branding?

By Natalie Black (Koltun) • April 3, 2019

Planter's brand NUT-rition highlights wage gap frustrations with hidden-camera video

"The Pay Gap is Nuts" shows male grocery shoppers receiving packages with 20% less product, representing the disparity in how women are often paid.

By Erica Sweeney • April 3, 2019

Ad Age: Instagram pitches IGTV ads for creators

Facebook reportedly wants to monetize the video platform and pay creators to develop content that will keep viewers coming back.

By Robert Williams • April 2, 2019

Mike's Hard Lemonade blocks negative news in Washington Post homepage takeover

Intended to spread joy, the campaign also includes an AI-powered pop-up, ad spots focused on happy local news and bright yellow newsstands.

By Erica Sweeney • April 2, 2019

Maxwell House's Amazon orders come with 'Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' Passover book

Consumers who order Maxwell House coffee on Amazon will receive a limited-edition Haggadah, the text read at the Seder during Passover. 

By Erica Sweeney • April 2, 2019

Study: Mobile ads get most attention while people watch TV

More than half of U.S. adults said brand familiarity is the top reason to pay attention to an ad seen on a smartphone.

By Robert Williams • April 1, 2019

IDC: AR/VR headset shipments to surge 54% this year

AR headset shipments will outpace those for VR devices, which have a bigger base of installations among gaming platforms.

By Robert Williams • April 1, 2019

Ad Age: Hulu enforces ad cap across partners

The change effectively removed more than half of the commercial time that previously ran during programming on the platform.

By Erica Sweeney • April 1, 2019

63% of broadcaster impressions were served via connected TV in 2018, study finds

Advanced creative elements of CTV also brought higher engagement than standard pre-roll and the potential for greater earned time and attention. 

By Erica Sweeney • April 1, 2019

Sizmek files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy amid programmatic challenges

The filing comes as uncertainty surrounds the ad-tech ecosystem, with reports that Google is mulling a change in how online media is monetized.

By Erica Sweeney • April 1, 2019

McDonald's makes black millennial consumers top priority with extensive 'campaign movement'

"Black & Positively Golden" is the chain's most significant effort targeted at African-Americans in 16 years and specifically courts younger consumers.

By Peter Adams • March 29, 2019

NBCUniversal tees up content-and-commerce site with Golf Channel

Shop with Golf launches with 30 brands, including William Murray Golf, founded by comedian Bill Murray and his five brothers.

By Erica Sweeney • March 29, 2019

Buffalo Wild Wings shames fans on Instagram for not watching March Madness

Fans of specific teams get the Stories message from an all-star alumnus of their school in the chain's highly targeted approach.

By Robert Williams • March 29, 2019

Netflix is fastest growing brand in 2019 as its value jumps 105%, report finds

Disney was the top-performing traditional media brand and entered the top 10 thanks to its value growing 40%.

By Erica Sweeney • March 29, 2019

Making YouTube work better with advanced TV

When it comes to planning a campaign that spans TV and digital media, brands often miss out on all the layers of extra content and audience segmentation the video platform holds, writes Channel Factory's Tony Chen.

By Tony Chen • March 29, 2019

Mtn Dew's brandless cans reveal 'Game of Thrones' content when chilled

The cans feature thermodynamic ink and appear brandless when they're warm, then change to expose a character's kill list as they get colder.

By Erica Sweeney • March 29, 2019

DoorDash's new program supports immigrant-founded restaurants

The "Kitchens Without Borders" campaign spotlights owners' stories and offers credit to fund a free delivery promotion, among other marketing opportunities.

By Alicia Kelso • March 28, 2019