Adidas aims to outrun Nike with bouncier shoes (Boost), Google ad test and increased soccer focus as Confederation Cup and FIFA World Cup loom, while Nike feels the heat in China.

Disney's Oz: The Great and Powerful wins weekend box office, marking a comeback for Disney's studio arm.

Old Spice introduces wolfish marketing director to boost men's animal magnetism.

America's Brand USA global marketing arm expands reach with $200M boost and German campaign.

Apple CEO Tim Cook may testify in e-book antitrust suit.

Beam looks past corruption scandal with new brand strategy in India.

Bumblebee and Chicken of the Sea expand U.S. tuna recall.Continue reading...

The 110th American International Toy Fair has kicked off in New York, which means that it is time for toy freaks to opine on everything from Superman’s underwear to the merits of creating toys based on "Breaking Bad" — a TV show about a dying chemistry teacher who turns to cooking up methamphetamines in a desperate cash-raising scheme for his family.

Warm and cuddly? Not exactly. But the fair has that elsewhere in droves, including a new line of Fisher-Price plush toys (and other items) relating to the launch of Saban's forthcoming "Julius Jr." show for preschoolers on Nickolodeon's sister network, Nick Jr. — a spinoff of Paul Frank's omnipresent monkey character. ("Julius Jr. is a funky monkey with a penchant for invention," according to a press release.)

Saban, which also owns the Power Rangers brand, is also debuting a bevvy of new action figures, plush toys, board games, consumer electronics and more as the Rangers celebrate their 20th anniversary. The brand has a new show on Nickelodeon as well — "Power Rangers Megaforce" — which has some new products attached to it.Continue reading...

Thomas the Tank Engine has been steaming along on the fictional island of Sodor since 1945, but he is finally catching up to the times. Still, the news that Mattel is ready to revamp the little British engine that could for new markets has some parents of Thomas-obsessed kids worried.

Thomas started out as the creation of British clergyman Rev. Wilbert Audry, whose goal was to come up with a story to entertain his measles-ridden son. Today, Thomas is a global kids powerhosue brand, from toys and licensed goods that expand on his popular TV series.

The Thomas brand brings in about $1 billion in retail sales annually and was a big part of the reason Mattel shelled out $680 million last year for the engine’s former owner, HIT Entertainment, which also parted ways with such beloved kid characters as Barney, Angelina Ballerina, and Bob the Builder as part of the deal.

Finally, Mattel is ready to boost the Thomas brand.Continue reading...

Tesco made headlines a year ago when its HomePlus retail subsidiary in South Korea tested a virtual store in a Seoul subway station, showcasing items that could be scanned and ordered by smartphone for home delivery, while Peapod is testing virtual grocery shopping in the U.S.

Now Walmart is testing a similar idea in Toronto in partnership with Mattel. The retail and toy giants are teaming up on what's described as Canada's first pop-up virtual toy store, enabling QR code-based shopping of Mattel brands — including hot toys from Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price and Thomas & Friends brands — to holiday shoppers.

The pop-up is located in the city's massive PATH underground walkway, a retail concouse that connects downtown buildings and and an array of businesses to Toronto's Union Station rail commuter hub. It may find a ready pool of virtual shoppers, as it will run for four weeks in the same location where Wells.ca tested a QR-enabled store in April.Continue reading...

That's Team USA gymnast (and five-time Olympic medalist) Nastia Liukin, above, doing the splits with the special London 2012 Summer Olympics edition Dora the Explorer doll. Mattel's Fisher-Price will sell the interactive Fantastic Gymnastics Dora doll starting in August for $50. What makes the latest doll from the Nickelodeon hit series interactive? Consumers can download the free, Fantastic Gymnastics Dora augmented reality app on retail shelves or download from Apple's App Store.Continue reading...

Never heard of Peppa Pig? Well, you haven’t been watching children’s TV lately. It’s a British children’s television show with 180 five-minute episodes that focus on the everyday lives of Peppa Pig, her quirky family and her pals.

It was first broadcast in the United Kingdom in 2004. Peppa Pig toys first hit British shelves in 2005 and, according to the Guardian, made more than £200m last year. There are video games, the series has been translated into languages including Italian, there's even a Peppa Pig outdoor attraction in the UK. That’s some pig!Continue reading...

Disney, undoubtedly one the brands that's best known to young children, is looking to work its marketing magic at an even earlier age by bringing new mothers into their brand family with a new venture called Disney Baby.

The company launched the business last month by going around to 580 U.S. maternity hospitals, offering new mothers a Disney Cuddly Bodysuit free of charge, reports the New York Times.

The bodysuit, resembling the popular newborn onesie, is cheerily presented to the new mother by a bilingual representative, who asks mom to sign up on the splashy Babyzone website for email alerts, or participate as "Momgineers" to help spread the word.Continue reading...

After waiting a week for all the world to see the latest Harry Potter film… twice, Disney's modern day Repunzel tale Tangled took the top spot at the box office. After a string of years of heavy product placement and brand "jokes" in animated films, a trend toward minimalist product placement in animated children's films has become mainstream. Did Tangled continue the trend or did Disney let down its hair and signal a return to onscreen selling?Continue reading...