As New York City enters a period of public comment on Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposed ban on large soft drinks, it seems that everyone already has had a lot to say about it. What's left?

There's the contingent who's backing the entire idea, including the city's health commissioner, Dr. Thomas Farley. He heads NYC's Board of Health, which voted unanimously on Tuesday to put Bloomberg's controversial (and lampooned on the current cover of The New Yorker) proposal to the public.

Other avowed fans of the proposed ban include ex-Coca-Cola marketing executive Todd Putman, who has gone on a mea culpa tour to oppose the soft-drink industry and expose his earlier 'dirty' work.

"How can we drive more ounces into more bodies more often" was how Putman described what he perceived as his mission as a Coke marketer.

Meanwhile, however, the proposed ban has fallen flat with New Yorkers in a new poll by Quinnipiac University. Slightly more than half — 51 percent — are against the idea, led by older voters, with 57 percent of those aged 50 to 64 raising their hands as opposed. Manhattan lodged the highest geographic support.Continue reading...

It didn't take long for New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who has been on the warpath against obesity, to create buzz around his plans for a ban on banning the sale of sugary drinks in containers larger than 16 ounces at cinemas, restaurants and other "service" outlets in Gotham.

Hizzoner barely had time to tweet messages such as, "Obesity kills thousands of NYers a year & adds $4 billion a year in health care costs," and, "Public health officials across America talk about fighting obesity. In NYC, we DO something about it," before one of the biggest brand targets of his proposed move, Coca-Cola, lashed back at the Bloomberg-spurred Department of Health proposal.

"The people of New York are much smarter than the New York City Health Department believes," Coca-Cola's statement said. "We are transparent with our consumers. They can see exaclty how many calories are in every beverage we serve. New Yorkers expect and deserve better than this."Continue reading...

Coke does it. Pepsi does it. And now Snapple does too. Have their logos on glasses sitting in front of judges of high-profile reality-competition shows on TV, that is. Snapple hatched a deal to have its brand represented on bright yellow glasses that are sitting in front of the three-judge panel on NBC's America's Got Talent, which just launched its new season this week.

On American Idol on FOX, of course, Coca-Cola long has been a sponsor and gets to plop its logo on glasses that are nursed — or not — by judges Randy Jackson, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez as they sit in front of them. Fox's similar show, the U.S. version of X Factor starring Simon Cowell, counts Pepsi as its major sponsor and so features Pepsi glasses in front of the judges.

That has left the AGT judges looking — well, thirsty by comparison. "But not any more," Regan Ebert, VP of marketing for the non-carbonated beverage portfolio for Dr Pepper Snapple Group, told brandchannel. "They'll be refreshed this season."Continue reading...

It's the time for end of the year lists and Nielsen’s "Tops of 2011: Advertising" collection is certainly worth a look.

The media tracking firm covers everything from Volkswagen’s Little Darth Vader Super Bowl phenomenon to product placement. Nielsen says these "best-liked ads reflect the enduring value of traditional ad elements that have withstood the test of time – strong creative, simple and engaging messaging, and a solid emotional connection."

The Nielsen charts that caught our eye were the two pertaining to product placement, because both tell us almost nothing about measuring product placement except to underscore how nobody can properly measure product placement.Continue reading...

Anyone watching The Amazing Race on CBS on Sunday night couldn't have missed the series' latest sponsor. As you can see in the clip above, episode six made a pitstop in Kolkata, India — along with Snapple, which the contestants chugged as they chatted with host Phil Keoghan.

Snapple has created a limited-edition papaya mango tea flavor (along with a diet version) in tandem with its sponsorship of The Amazing Race this season — check out its colorful, India-inspired packaging and labels below.Continue reading...

Organizers of the Olympics are attempting to control reviews of its brand. [Econsultancy]

New technology says that watching the Olympic games on television is so 2009. [Reuters]

The new 4G cellphone technology may not be as fast as corporations claim. [CNN Money]

Twitter users are curious about the site's soon-to-be-implemented advertising platform. [WSJ]

In addition to Canada, Wal-Mart hopes to expand its stores into Latin America. [Businessweek]

Intel and Google have experienced the same type of "sophisticated" hacking. [NY Times]Continue reading...