The University of Southern California's Annenberg Innovation Lab has conducted a groundbreaking social sentiment analysis of the 2012 Academy Awards race. The project, in collaboration with IBM and the Los Angeles Times, illustrates how organizations and brands — from media & entertainment, retailing, sports, and politics — can apply advanced analytics tools in order to learn and report on new trends.

For readers of comic books, 2011 may go down as the year that big business figured out that it might be worth sticking its massive hand into an industry that’s been more aligned with outsiders than the mainstream.

Earlier this year we saw the introduction of big-brand product placement in comics when Nike’s logo appeared on a Marvel character’s T-shirt. Now Marvel has taken another step and struck a licensing deal with the University of Southern California to have its characters appear on gear alongside the university’s mascot and logo.Continue reading...

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. While the Associated Press has announced that it will not strip the University of Southern California Trojans football team of its 2004 national title championship, the damage to the USC brand has been done.

With the world focused on "futbol" with today's World Cup kick-off, many in the U.S. remain focused on football. Earlier this week the NCAA sanctioned USC's football program for a "lack of institutional control."

The penalties include four years of probation, a two-year ban on bowl game appearances, and a loss of 30 scholarships over three years. USC is appealing but it is unlikely the bans will be overturned. Additionally, more senior players are being allowed to transfer programs.

It's a black eye for a football program that has enjoyed royalty status of late. And while USC may certainly come back, will the brand ever be the same?Continue reading...

The University of Southern California is accustomed to winning on the playing field. In fact, one could argue that part of the school's brand is winning. Now, the university's brand is a winner, quite literally.

Far from the sunny shores of California, the University of South Carolina, on the east coast, attempted to register its interlocking "SC" logo -- which is has used to represent its baseball team for years. However, the University of Southern California filed a law suite claiming the University of South Carolina's logo was confusingly similar to its own "SC" logo.

In true college rivalry fashion, the University of South Carolina countered with a claim that Southern California's logo misleadingly suggested affiliation with South Carolina. The Federal Circuit Court, however, sided with Southern California. It dismissed South Carolina's claim, upholding the 2009 US Patent and Trademark review board ruling that rights to the "SC" belong to the University of Southern California alone. Continue reading...