New Yorkers and visitors may have (literally) caught this holiday marketing stunt by American Airlines, which made over a NYC subway "S" train in its distinctive livery.

The city's Metropolitan Transit Authority's short-run S train, a three-car shuttle service between two 42nd Street stations (Grand Central and Times Square), is a favorite takeover target by marketers.Continue reading...

With a New York City Council meeting on Feb. 3rd to review its application to open its first Walmart store in New York City, the marketers at Wal-Mart are laying on the charm. In addition to launching WalmartNYC.com as the focus of its community outreach, it's using video spots and direct mail targeting Brooklyn, Bronx and Queens residents. But the hub of its efforts is really online.

“What this site really does is provide the opportunity to advocate for the company, laying out some facts about our business and some testimonials from real customers,” commented Steven Restivo, a Wal-Mart spokesman, to the New York Times.  “It’s a great clearinghouse of information.” The Times finds the website (tag line: “Helping N.Y.C. Save Money and Live Better”) a politically shrewd piece of lobbying.Continue reading...

New York City released a follow-up today to Mayor Bloomberg's anti-sugary-drink campaign.

The pitch: "You'd never eat 16 packs of sugar. Why would you drink 16 packs of sugar? There are 16 packs of sugar in one 20 oz. bottle of soda. All those extra calories can bring on obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Go with water, fat-free milk, seltzer or unsweetened tea instead."

The TV and print campaign is also being talked up on Facebook.

As kids we were told to drink our milk, finish our vegetables, and NOT drink cups of fat? Well, not exactly.

But it appears that the New York City Department of Health is adding this last rule to the list. In a new campaign to address the detrimental effects of sweetened drinks, the Health Department is asking New Yorkers of all ages to think before they drink.

The agency’s recently launched public-awareness campaign, which cost about $277,000 to develop over three fiscal years, features graphic posters that will run in 1,500 subway cars through October.

In the spirit of last year's "Pouring on the pounds" campaign, its latest effort aims to wake up New Yorkers to "what goes into a large serving of sweetened soda." The answer: packets of sugar that transform into blobs of fat via soda, evidently.

It's eye-opening, but nowhere near as unsettling as last year's TV spot, in which an actor drinks pure fat from a glass, while asking viewers, “Are you pouring on the pounds? Drinking one can of soda a day can make you 10 pounds fatter a year.”Continue reading...

Pizza Hut viral dance craze sweeps South Korea, wooing teens with with in Seoul. (above)

OkCupid dating site breaks down attractiveness of users based on camera and mobile phone brands: Panasonic > Canon > Nikon.

Denny's joins the ridiculous sandwich wars with a Cheese stick sandwich.

New York City transit authority relents and accepts ads referencing 9/11 (more background here).

McDonald's french fry ad crosses over, literally.

Playboy's iPad app disappoints with no-nudity policy (that's right: Hef's keeping the smoking jacket on).Continue reading...

iPhone 4 buyers began lining up yesterday, but will find only one color (black) available today. It's already a hit in Japan.

Viacom calls legal ruling favoring Google in billion-dollar YouTube suit "fundamentally flawed" as it prepares to appeal.

CNN confirms new show with disgraced NY governor Eliot Spitzer and conservative Washington Post columnist Kathleen Parker.

More brands in the news after the jump.Continue reading...

With the focus squarely on Big Oil, specifically BP, it's easy to forget about Big Tobacco. But June 22 is historic, because today, the U.S. tobacco industry is required to stop selling and marketing "light," "low-tar," and "mild" cigarettes, in compliance with the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009.

Research shows "light" cigarettes are no less deadly than regular cigarettes. While "light" and similarly branded cigarettes are no longer allowed in the U.S., leave it to Big Tobacco to find a way around the law — they're simply rebranding their products.

Now Camel Lights are called Camel Blues. Marlboro Lights and Ultra-Lights have been re-named Marlboro Gold and Silver. Pall Mall Red, Pall Mall Blue, and Pall Mall Orange are code names for regular, light, and light menthol, respectively.Continue reading...

"See something, say something." Simple, catchy and, it turns out, very, very effective.

The recent containment of the potential bomb debacle in Times Square was due in part to citizen action—spotting a suspicious SUV and promptly alerting authorities—as a result of New York's ubiquitous anti-terrorism slogan.

The slogan, part of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s security campaign, went into effect post-9/11 to encourage the public to report unattended packages and suspect behavior on public transport.

Credit for "If you see something, say something," goes to Korey Kay & Partners, the MTA's ad agency, whose CEO Allen Kay drew his inspiration from an earlier war's public education campaign—"Loose lips sink ships"—which came out before he was born.

Instead, says Kay, think of the MTA campaign as "Loose lips wanted." Continue reading...