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May 6, 2008 issue
Jokeroo signs Warner Bros. for "fade-out" ads
Toronto-based Jokeroo Entertainment has developed a new ad opp into its online video site, Jokeroo.com. Warner Bros. is currently using the tech for its Speed Racer campaign. It is similar to ad offerings from Jokeroo's closest competitors, such as Heavy.com, or perhaps a homepage takeover, but can take a user by surprise.
The fade-out looks like this: When a user visits a video marked with a fade-out ad, he/she sees the video box on Jokeroo.com. All space around the video box is then slapped with clickable ad creative, which fades out (with standard units remaining on the page). The Warner Bros. Speed Racer campaign can be easily viewed by following this link, but a user needs to clear his/her browser cookies to view it more than once.
CEO Chris Pavlovski tells MiC that Jokeroo.com has roughly 700,000 unique monthly visitors in Canada, according to comScore's January 2008 numbers, but his company's internal figures peg the audience at around one million. The company also has syndication partnerships with Canoe.ca and Yahoo! Canada.
Check out MiC's previous coverage of Jokeroo.
Yureekah aims to conquer display ad search
Want to find out what banners and display ads your competitors are using online? A new search service aims to organize the world's online advertising info and make it accessible to anyone for free. Read More
New social movement goes wild online
Guerrilla street tactics are promoting a new social networking site that aims to protect Canada's public wilderness areas. Read More
Voting begins for CBC's UGC hockey contest
As the NHL Playoffs continue to reel in millions of viewers, Pepsi, Lay's and Gatorade are getting sponsorship exposure via CBC's UGC-friendly "Bring Home the Cup" contest, and the pubcaster is asking viewers to vote as the initiative rises to a peak this week.
Three finalists have been chosen from 35 video entries, and now the public is being called on to vote at the microsite until May 9. The contest invited hockey fans to upload video and photo to cbc.ca/bringhomethecup for a chance to win a visit to their home by former champion Mark Messier.
The finalist with the most votes also wins an "Ultimate Hockey Playoff Party" for themselves and 19 friends, with lots of Pepsi, Gatorade and Lay's for all, as well as an on-screen appearance during the playoffs on Hockey Night in Canada during the week of June 8. The winner is announced during HNIC on May 10.
The Pepsi, Lay's and Gatorade brands also have hockey partnerships with Sidney Crosby, Wayne Gretzky, Hockey Canada and the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Young Lions judges named
Lauren Richards, CEO of Starcom MediaVest, will head up the judging panel for the The Globe and Mail Young Lions Competition's first-ever media category. Joining her on the jury will be Ann Kairns, BCP Montreal; Michael Bolt, MBS; Nancy Surphlis, M2 Universal; Cindy Drown, Cossette; and Paula Carolan, OMD.
The Young Lions Awards film, cyber and print catogories jury will be moderated by strategy executive editor Mary Maddever. The jury includes Bill Durnan, EVP, Cossette; Israel Diaz, CD, Leo Burnett; Tim Piper, AD/copy writer, Ogilvy; Mike Kirkland, AD, Ogilvy; Eva Polis, CD, DDB Canada; and Christina Yu, VP/CD, Lowe Roche.
The winning young Canadian creatives are dispatched to Cannes for the opportunity to compete with their global peers in the Cannes Young Lions Competition.
Notes from the Mediascape: P&G invites consumers to try media planning
Should Procter & Gamble continue running ads on TV series that attract hordes of howling protesters, or stop doing so? That's the question North America's biggest advertiser has begun asking consumers.
The practice began last week, after a controversial (at least in the US) same-sex kiss on As the World Turns. When an avalanche of protests resulted, P&G's response was to add a suggestion option to its toll-free consumer hotline, enabling ordinary folks to weigh in on where its advertising should and should not be placed.
P&G had already been taking considerable heat from angry blogsters and protest organizations for sponsoring profanity-heavy, misogynist hip-hop programming on MTV and BET.
"We strive to be responsible advertisers," an unnamed spokeswoman told Advertising Age. "We want to sponsor programming that enables our brands to reach all of our consumers effectively. So we're going to place our advertising in venues that reach our target audience, and that target is going to vary by product."
Citytv picks up Pangea Day
The broadcaster will air the latest global initiative aimed at making the world a better place, while Nokia's sponsorship put mobile video in the hands of Canadian participants. Read More
Vision rerunning Murder She Wrote, Quantum Leap
To delight what's arguably the most loyal fan base ever, VisionTV will air all 264 episodes of Murder, She Wrote beginning May 12 in the 7pm ET/4pm PT time slot. This is the first time the '80s whodunit series, which stars Angela Lansbury as a New England sleuth, has been broadcast in Canada in more than four years.
Another favorite from yesteryear arriving on VisionTV this month is Quantum Leap, which begins May 13 at 9pmET/6pm PT. It stars Scott Bakula (Enterprise, American Beauty) as a maverick genius traveling backwards and forwards in time to test top-secret theories.
Returning to Vision on May 26 at 9pm ET/6pm PT, McLeod's Daughters will update its many fans on the lives and loves of a troupe of strong-willed women who run a ranch in Australia's cattle country.