Singer and celebrity figure Kerry Katona has been dropped by Iceland from its ad campaigns following a front page story which appeared in the News of the World last Sunday showing the former Atomic Kitten star allegedly snorting cocaine. A spokesperson for Iceland said it was “impossible” for Katona to continue fronting their campaigns. Katona […]
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Press must determine consumer wants and deliver on them
The newspaper industry needs to work out what people want and deliver on those needs and the reason why they have fallen on hard times is through their own mistakes, leading US writer and satirist and newspaper columnist Garrison Keillor said in an interview on RTE Radio. Speaking to Myles Dungan on the Today show, […]
McDonald's arches towards golden oldies
Fast-food restaurants staffed by people over 60 help increase profits and improve customer satisfaction by an average of 20 per cent, McDonald’s has reported. The experience of older staff, their work ethic and dealing with people face-to-face were cited as reasons for the improvement. But despite the findings, which were based on studies at Lancaster […]
Dubai tops duty free sales
Dubai Airport now boasts the world’s top duty free with sales of $1.1 billion last year, a report by the independent Generation Research agency indicates. Dubai Duty Free (DDF) pipped London Heathrow and Seoul International Airport, both of which just exceeded $1bn sales. Global duty free and travel retail sales amounted to $37bn last year, […]
Britney is gifted revenue by Facebook
Britney Spears is hoping to exploit her popularity on Facebook by selling ‘virtual gifts’ for $2 a pop, Brand Republic reports. The singer, who has just short of two million Facebook fans and who is currently on a world tour, has a range of branded gifts which can be sent between users of the social […]
Iceland to launch passion pizza
A report by sex columnist Anne Sexton in the current issue of Hot Press claims that Iceland, the British food retailer with stores in Ireland, is said to be developing an aphrodisiac pizza called Pizzagra – a sort of edible Viagra. Pizzagra toppings include artichoke, asparagus, ginger, garlic, onions, chocolate, strawberry and banana – all […]
Mystery murder show live in Dublin
Whodunit fans of CSI:Miami and CSI:New York will be happy to learn that an interactive version of the popular TV crime series is running at the Ambassador theatre in Dublin from this weekend until December. Visitors aged ten and over to CSI: The Experience can ‘investigate’ a crime scene for €18 or try and solve […]
Novel initiative to help Ireland's fiction writers
Stinging Fly publisher and editor Declan Meade has put a call out to advertising copywriters and other creatives of a similar bent who are in the early stages of a novel and feel they could benefit from a relationship of similar-motivated people. Meade plans to form a group of no more than ten writers under […]
High hopes for idle choppers
Writing in Initiative’s Insight bi-weekly update, Simon Hughes asked that with helicopter ownership in Ireland more than tripling since 2000 and the economic downturn forcing people to rethink flying costs, are we going to see hundreds of helicopters lying idle? Hughes said the choppers could make money if they were deployed for advertising. An article […]
PR firms labelled lazy by photographer
A former Irish Times staff photographer has criticised PR firms and has called them “lazy” in their use of scantily-clad models for photocalls. Speaking on Liveline on RTE Radio 1 today, Tom Lawlor was commenting on a listener’s call who phoned into Joe Duffy to complain about celebrity chef Neven Maguire posing with a model […]
Google now worth $100 billion
Google’s brand value is now put at $100 billion and its worth jumped by 16 per cent in the last 12 months making it the world’s most recognised and valued brand for the third year in a row, Millward Brown’s BrandZ report shows. Microsoft was second on $76.2bn, up eight per cent on 2008, followed […]
2FM's Boyzone send-up "foul and offensive"
A segment aired on the Colm and Jim-Jim Breakfast Show on 2FM in May where actors parodied Boyzone singers Ronan Keating and Stephen Gately featured foul and offensive language, the Broadcasting Complaints Commission (BCC) has ruled. The sketch was about how best to deal with the problem of an itchy groin after waxing. The BCI […]
To pee or not to pee at the movies
RunPee.com is a website which tells cinemagoers the best time in a movie to go to the toilet. The site provides details on when the action or romance wanes and prepares you to take that much-needed break. It tells you how long you’ve got and even fills you in on what you missed. The concept […]
