Nivea is not only getting older — the European skincare (it prefers "body care") brand turns 100 this year — but a little wiser. 

The US Federal Trade Commission this week ruled that Nivea must pull its ads for its My Silhouette! cream, which claims using the cream leads to weight loss via the active ingredient: "Bio-slim Complex."

The advertising watchdog, which has been on the warpath against brands making diet claims in their marketing, also ordered Nivea's parent company, Beiersdorf, to pay a stiff $900,000 fine.Continue reading...

Groupon just begat Grouspawn, a spin-off dating site.

Basically,it’s a bribe to meet, greet... and then procreate. Groupon is offering two annual college scholarship grants for babies who were conceived as a result of “a little Groupon action on the first date.”

Grouspawn’s Date Assistant filters members by gender and city in searches for singles to match up with and wine and dine…on a deal. If the first date takes – evidentiary proof in photos must be supplied—andthe spawn is born, the parents can apply for a Groupon scholarship.

You don’t have to be a member to play – as “long as there is proof of Groupon consummation." Groupon explains the need for photographic proof with innocuous disclaimers such as, “Without a photo, nobody will believe we dated because I normally date a Japanese body pillow,” or “I’m on a scavenger hunt, and I need to take a photo with an extremely attractive person.”Continue reading...

Three years ago the Empire State Development Corporation called for a revitalization effort for the iconic "I ♥ NY" logo to "restore the campaign to primacy among state tourism campaigns." The state organization made good on its promise by unveiling a new advertising campaign this past summer featuring celebs including Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin.

Now, the planet's most recognized place branding and tourism campaign will be appearing on JetBlue's advertising.Continue reading...

Ad industry professionals are putting the "mad" in Mad Men. Unhappy with the public seeing them in the same way that some of them enjoy romanticizing themselves (i.e., sharks), advertising insiders are teaming up in an attempt to overhaul the industry's image. But with recent survey results ranking ad professionals among the least trustworthy professions, just below car salesman, can advertising rebrand itself?Continue reading...

The fallout is complete. There is one clear winner and one clear loser in the recent scandal involving America's (now former) military commander in Afghanistan and Rolling Stone magazine. But could there be another, under the radar, winner?

The controversial Rolling Stone profile that led to his ouster this week notes that the general "prefers Bud Light Lime (his favorite beer) to Bordeaux."

Apparently one of the reasons Stanley McChrystal and his staff were so frank (read: career-suicidally open) with Rolling Stone's reporter was that they were "stuck on a bus" with him from Paris to Berlin, all the while "drinking case after case of Bud Light Lime."Continue reading...

Most people use their iPhones for rather pedestrian purposes such as communicating with friends, browsing the Internet, and listening to music. However, the intersection of human nature and technology has always resulted in the proliferation of another powerful tendency: viewing porn.

And, unsurprisingly, a significant number of iPhone owners use the device for just that purpose – putting Apple, and its brand, in the unenviable position of having to make judgment calls on what is acceptable, and what is unacceptable, regarding iPhone apps. So, Apple announced that it would purge all “adult” iPhone applications from its App Store, sending many users in a nuddy rage.Continue reading...

Valentine's Day is on Sunday and DeBeers wants to remind consumers of the importance of love. Actually, it wants consumers to remember the importance of love, and then drop everything.

The jewelry company has collaborated with JWT on a social-networking website that enables consumers to broadcast lovelorn webcam messages to significant others.

Sally Morrison of JWT explained, “This is a greater embrace of social media for DeBeers and a huge step for us in engaging people about what love means in this particular digital environment."

The site also features a collection of short films produced by JWT, which follow nine lovers on quests to surprise their special someone – a savvy attempt to connect with emotional shoppers searching for the perfect gift.Continue reading...

The year 2009 was a bad year for the international art market, with sales at Christie’s down a whopping 29 percent. Hardest hit were contemporary artists, with sales down 59 percent, as collectors instead flocked to “old masters” and 20th-century classics.

However, the demand for such works has never been greater, and while newer and less established artists are continuing to show declines, classic pieces are garnering record sums, instilling much needed funds – not to mention lifeblood - into an industry that just a year ago was seen as dead in the water.

This past week, Alberto Giacometti's "Walking Man I" sold at Sotheby's for $104.3 million, the highest price ever paid for an artwork at auction (it had been predicted to fetch $20 million).Continue reading...