Top Story

• Armed with high-tech, Advertising Week takes N.Y. again
  The annual Advertising Week in New York will add new sponsors such as Adobe, Amazon, Pandora and Twitter, and focus on jobs for returning war veterans. Partnering with the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Operation Deploy has the goal of each of two dozen participating agencies hiring at least one vet. Roughly 150 events such as speeches and panel discussions are planned for the week. The New York Times (tiered subscription model)/Media Decoder blog (9/28)     

Agency News

• ZenithOptimedia revises forecast but sees Internet ad boom ahead
  Citing the looming European debt crisis, ZenithOptimedia reduced its 2012 global ad-spending forecast from a June prediction of 4.3% growth to 3.8%. But the media company sees better times ahead, forecasting a 15% rise in Internet advertising and an overall increase in ad spending of 4.6% in 2013. Reuters (9/30)     

Creative

• Travelocity promotes world tour contest with its new, old agency
  Travelocity's Roaming Gnome is making a stopover in New York to promote a new travel contest dubbed the Great Gnome Nabbing. The ad campaign for promoting the video-submission contest is the first under former Nutrisystem marketer Brad Wilson, now Travelocity's chief marketing officer, and new agency McKinney, which replaced Leo Burnett in August. McKinney handled the brand before, inventing the Roaming Gnome icon. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (9/30)     

• Arby's slices away fast-food image for fresh-food appeal
  Arby's is repositioning itself as a sandwich shop where meat is freshly cut in a new Crispin Porter + Bogusky ad campaign, which will feature Bo Dietl, a celebrity private investigator. The chain is also adding menu items to attract the attention of the frequent diners and renovating company-owned restaurants nationwide. Bloomberg Businessweek (10/1)     

• Time Inc. turns Twitter profile-page into ad space
  Time Inc. has developed a new ad unit that lets brands take over the wallpaper on its publications' Twitter profile pages. Time Inc.'s People StyleWatch magazine redesigned its Twitter profile to promote Jergens Daily Moisture, in a move that won the blessing of Twitter officials. "The space is the user's to customize," a spokesman said. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (9/28)     

Media

• ESPN will keep spot top ad spot among cable nets for 2012
  The top 25 cable networks, with the exception of CNN and Nickelodeon, are each on track to finish 2012's advertising sales ahead of last year. ESPN, which led in 2011, is expected to again finish on top with a 13% gain to almost $2 billion. The projected No. 2 is USA Network, with an expected 12% rise in ad sales to $1.2 billion. MediaPost Communications/TVBlog (9/28)     

• T-Mobile, Toyota test Telemundo's language-targeting platform
  Telemundo Media and Comcast Spotlight are partnering on an initiative that will allow advertisers to employ user data to show English- or Spanish-language ads over NBCUniversal, Comcast and Telemundo networks. So far, T-Mobile and Toyota have signed on to test the so-called Telemundo Plus service. The New York Times (tiered subscription model)/Media Decoder blog (9/30)     

Trends & Research

• Study: Social-net likes can lead to close encounters later
  An Active Network study on how social media interaction influences offline behavior indicates that more than half of respondents don't see mobile applications as helping them achieve personal goals. But Facebook and LinkedIn led other social nets in the ability to drive face-to-face encounters as followups to online connections. LinkedIn topped the other nets in promoting job changes, with 7% reporting such an interaction. MediaPost Communications/Online Media Daily (9/28)     

• Publishers struggle to monetize mobile-ad dollars
  Ad industry executives and analysts are lamenting the trend where offline ad dollars that became online dimes are now worth pennies in mobile. The cost-per-thousand impressions of $3.50 on the desktop Web is 75 cents on the mobile platform, according to Mary Meeker, a Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers partner. While there is a steep incline in mobile use, publishers have not learned how to monetize the small format banner ads and shorter sessions peculiar to the mobile platform. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (10/1)     

Marketer News

• How far can Psy ride "Gangnam" video's success?
  Psy, the Korean pop star, is getting several deals with brands in Korea as a result of its "Gangnam Style" YouTube hit and just returned from a U.S. tour appearing on "Ellen," "Today" and other shows. In the East, brands are catching on but his marketing hold in the West is unclear. Psy has secured a deal with Schoolboy Records, which is operated by Justin Bieber's manager. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (10/1)     

• Beer industry brews a slowdown
  Beer sales fell 1.3% in 2011, to 2.787 billion cases, according to "2012 Beer Handbook," published by the Beverage Information Group. Sales of light beer fell by 39.2 million cases, but imported beer sales rose 1.3%. "We are looking to the craft segment to continue to spur growth in the beer industry," said Beverage Information Group senior analyst Adam Rogers. MediaPost Communications/Marketing Daily (9/30)     

Technology

• Nielsen offers cross-platform video ad analytics
  The value of online video advertisements compared with traditional TV spots should be easier to determine under a new service from Nielsen. Cross-Platform Online Campaign Ratings will provide analytics for ads viewed on TV, on digital devices and both platforms. "This is the first time we can show the number of people who saw a campaign no matter where it lived," said Steve Hasker, Nielsen's president of global media products and advertiser solutions. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (10/1)     

Association News

• Competitive Edge Series at Advertising Week
  Successful clients recognize that innovation lies in cultivating talent and leveraging strategic partnerships to reach today's expanding multicultural market and increase revenue. Successful agencies are aligning business practices to engage those clients. As you coordinate your schedules for Advertising Week 2012, plan on attending the 4A's Competitive Edge series, which brings together award-winning executives who share best practices that lead to transformational culture and solid business results, on Oct. 3 at B.B. King's, 237 West 42 Street.
  
  Visit the website to learn more about the event and to make plans to join us during Advertising Week. Register now to gain YOUR Competitive Edge!     

• "Best Practices Guidelines for Digital Media Audits" Released
  Members from the 4A's Digital Marketing and Media Agency Finance Committees joined together to develop "Best Practices Guidelines for Digital Media Audits" for advertisers that utilize audits as part of their governance approach to managing and monitoring digital media activities.
  
  "Best Practices Guidelines for Digital Media Audits" is structured to provide advertisers with important information about the way digital media transactions are planned, negotiated and executed. The publication suggests industry best practices and recommends constructive steps that advertisers can and should take to ensure that their media investments are effectively and efficiently planned, purchased and verified.
  
  This guide is free for members and is available at the 4A's bookstore!     

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by 4A's SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Advertising Age honors top women in advertising's history (Advertising Age (tiered subscription model))

• Samsung's commercials for tablets resonate with consumers (Mobile Marketer)

• 6 agencies are tapped for 5-year FDA anti-smoking campaign (Advertising Age (tiered subscription model))

• BBDO counters a loss with big win -- a core value for the agency (Advertising Age (tiered subscription model))

• Adidas spot imagines excitement of Derrick Rose's return (Advertising Age (tiered subscription model))

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

SmartQuote

Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working." --Pablo Picasso, Spanish artist