Marketing Trends & Research

• TV embraces the app culture
  Video providers are vying for ways to appeal to iPhone users with interactive apps that integrate TV viewing with the popular mobile computing platform. Comcast's chief software architect Sree Kotay said, "We want people engaged with television in ways we haven't thought of yet." NYTimes.com (9/6)

• Congress, ad groups at odds over need for Web privacy law
  Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., the lawmaker behind a draft bill to regulate online ad targeting, claims the measure would not place undue restrictions on Web marketing. However, industry groups believe the more user-friendly approach is for marketers to regulate themselves. "At the end of the day, the most important asset any online company has is a strong relationship with the consumer," said Mike Zaneis, the IAB's vice president of public policy. MSNBC/The Associated Press (9/7)

Company Watch

• Garlinghouse tapped for key Web, mobile role at AOL
  AOL has hired Brad Garlinghouse, a former executive at Yahoo! who was known to be frank in his assessments of the portal's issues, as president of Internet and mobile communications. Among his duties will be to helm AOL's soon-to-be-expanded Silicon Valley office, and the West Coast unit of AOL Ventures. NYTimes.com (9/8), PaidContent.org (9/8)

• NBCU's iVillage site slated for major redesign
  NBC Universal's female-focused iVillage Web site is slated to begin undergoing a six-month metamorphosis that will include overhauls of its food, health, home, family and beauty departments. Content from other NBCU properties -- including Oxygen and Bravo -- is expected to be a key component of the new site. NYTimes.com (9/6)

• Google makes concessions to publishers in Europe
  Google said it will not include in its digital-books program any works by European authors that are still commercially available. The move comes after European publishers and authors raised concerns about copyrighted books. "It's a step in the right direction, [but] it's not enough for our members to sleep peacefully," said Jessica Saenger of a booksellers association in Germany. The Wall Street Journal (tiered subscription model) (9/8)

Agency News

• Leo Burnett to work on AOL rebranding
  Publicis Groupe's Leo Burnett, Chicago, has been chosen by AOL to reposition the Web portal during its transition from Time Warner unit to independent company. AOL selected Burnett through "a closed request for proposal process," this article says. Adweek (9/4)

• Supermarket taps agency head as chief marketer
  Bruce D. Murdy, president of Piggly Wiggly's longtime agency Rawle Murdy, took on a second job as interim marketing director for the supermarket chain in April. Murdy said, "The biggest challenge I had was changing culture. It was the spark the marketing department needed to start changing, someone to encourage them to try things." This week, Murdy will return to his agency full-time, and Christopher Ibsen will take over as the supermarket chain's chief marketer. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (9/7)

Marketer News

• Allrecipes.com cooks up success by integrating ads with content
  Lisa Sharples, president of Allrecipes.com, talks about the elements contributing to the success of the site, which over the past year has boosted its number of users by almost 50%. The ad-driven unit of Reader's Digest features Campbell's, Kraft and other top marketers as sponsors, and also integrates marketer recipes into offerings provide by users. The Boston Globe (free registration) (9/6)

Sponsored Content

Interactive Media

• For gamemakers, it's all about building ties with players
  EA Sports' Tiger Woods franchise, which has grown from one title to include a roster of games for consoles, PCs and mobile games, exemplifies the gaming industry's focus on building long-term connections with users. "It is changing the industry from one that was based on products to one that is based on relationships," said Rob Enderle of the Enderle Group. "It's shifting to become more of a services industry where the relationship, instead of being fleeting and based on the release of a title, is pervasive and based on updates and online relationships." Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (9/7)

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by IAB SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Report: Roughly 1 in 5 display ads in July were on social-media sites (Reuters)

• Gartner: Mobile ads will explode in 2011 (MediaPost Communications)

• Wi-Fi hotspots as marketing medium? (MediaPost Communications)

• Magazine publishers are taking on ad agency role (NYTimes.com)

• How marketers can get gamers' attention (The Guardian (London))

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

Career Development

• Are you neglecting your other brand?
  To attract and retain great talent, companies need to develop their "employer brand," Stefan Stern writes. The best candidates learn quickly to avoid companies with reputations of mistreating their workers, he argues, just as consumers learn not to frequent businesses with a history of poor service. "If, as an employer, you want to bring in the best new recruits you need to offer them something attractive -- and not just in terms of the financial package." Financial Times (tiered subscription model) (8/31)

Interactive Media Planner / Buyer Beeby Clark+Meyler Irvington, NY Director, Regional Sales - New York City Hulu New York City Account Executive - San Francisco Hulu San Francisco Account Executive - Los Angeles Hulu Los Angeles Account Executive, Dallas TX Hulu, LLC Dallas, TX Online Account Executive WhitePages San Francisco/LA

IAB News

• ALMOST SOLD OUT: MIXX is Powerful Insights from Industry Leaders
  There's a reason MIXX is the Official Interactive Event of Advertising Week each year. It's the only place to do all this ... Gain insights and information from the ecosystem's most innovative thinkers. Learn from never-before-seen case studies. Hear from brands that are achieving brand lift through interactive. Get an inside look at what's happening with major media players. Redefine innovation in interactive with ideas from creative leaders. Make the session choices that meet your needs. Network with decision-makers who can help your career. MIXX is fueling interactive advertising's creative revolution -- and no media professional can afford to miss it on Sept. 21 and Sept. 22. Register now -- MIXX 2009 is ALMOST SOLD OUT!

SmartQuote

We can draw lessons from the past, but we cannot live in it." --Lyndon B. Johnson, 36th U.S. president