IN THE NEWS

NEW YORK TIMESTurner to Offer Marketers Way to Link Ads to Content Ever smile while watching a movie on TV because, say, you just saw the scene from "The Godfather" when Vito Corleone leaves his office at the Genco Olive Oil factory and a commercial comes on for Bertolli olive oil? Turner Entertainment Networks wants to turn those coincidences into sales opportunities.

At the Turner Entertainment upfront presentation on Wednesday, Linda Yaccarino, executive vice president and general manager for advertising sales and marketing, described a new system intended to pair commercials with relevant moments in the shows they interrupt. The system, called TV in Context, was more than a year in development, she said.

Ms. Yaccarino likened TV in Context to contextual targeting, which is all the rage in online advertising and takes advantage of tracking the online behavior of computer users to serve them ads they would find relevant. The Turner Entertainment system, part of Time Warner, "matches spots with relevant scenes," she said, in the movies and series that are shown by the TBS, TNT and TruTV cable networks.

USA TODAYCan restaurants go green, earn green? Ted Turner struts into one of his busiest restaurants at lunch hour and is ogled by startled customers. One overeager diner leaps in front of Turner for a handshake, then gushes, "Love your food, Ted. What's next?" The short answer: green grub.

Turner, the media mogul turned philanthropist, now wants to be known as something of a different color: a green restaurant owner. In other words, a guy whose restaurants leave a smaller carbon footprint on the environment.

Which is why you won't find a plastic straw or cup in any of Ted's Montana Grills' 55 casual dining restaurants. The straws are made from biodegradable paper. The menus are printed on 100% recycled paper. Even the cups are cornstarch.

Turner is helping to fund a "green" restaurant initiative that the powerful National Restaurant Association (NRA) will unveil Monday at its annual convention in Chicago. The purpose: to nudge owners of the nation's 945,000 restaurants to think about controlling energy use and waste creation.

ADAGEWhat Accountants Can Teach You About Using Social Media H&R Block Cast a Wide Net With a Campaign That Included Profiles, Videos, Twitter and Widgets

Tax software isn't the first thing that comes to mind when you think of marketing in social networks or on YouTube, spaces dominated by movie trailers and goofy viral videos. But H&R Block proved that it, too, can be successful in the space, but it's about matching content to the social community and then making that content valuable to consumers, said Amy Worley, director of digital marketing for H&R Block. Ms. Worley was speaking at the latest installment of Advertising Age's Digital Bites breakfast series yesterday and shared successes and lessons learned from H&R Block's most recent social-media campaign. The campaign cast a wide net in the social-media space, with MySpace and Facebook profiles, YouTube postings, a Twitter account, widgets and even a virtual tax office in Second Life.

Most companies, she noted, wouldn't dive into all the tactics at once but her product is very seasonal and "anything we didn't learn in one season, we would have to wait until next year [to try]."

The recent social-media blitz to market H&R Block's digital tax solution produced a 171% lift in internet ad awareness among the targeted audience and an overall brand awareness lift of 52%. H&R Block devoted about 5% of its total marketing budget to the effort.

WALL STREET JOURNALHit TV Writer Has Brief Message For His Viewers It Only Lasts a Second, But Stirs the Airwaves; Mr. Lorre's Beer Apology

Some of the most provocative writing on broadcast television can be found on CBS on Monday nights. It airs for a combined duration of about two seconds.

The writing comes in the form of what many in the industry call "vanity cards" -- an image flashed on the screen at the end of a TV show. Usually, the cards just identify a show's creator or production company. But Chuck Lorre -- a writer and executive producer of the sitcoms "Two and a Half Men" and "The Big Bang Theory" -- uses the airtime as a public diary.

Shown at about 8:29 p.m. and 9:29 p.m. Eastern time, his Chuck Lorre Productions vanity cards feature an essay -- usually about 100 to 200 words -- on subjects such as meddling network executives, Hollywood culture and his own family drama. The messages can't be read in full as they air, because they're shown so briefly, but they can be read by viewers who have DVR technology with a pause button on their remote control. The cards have attracted a cult following, as well as the attention of network executives.http://www.chucklorre.com

Agencies Go From Selling to Creating Products Pouring Money Into Development, Some May Even Start Brands

As they try to diversify beyond the 30-second spot, agencies, in addition to getting digital, are vying to be the next place to source hot products. Ownership is the watchword on Mad Ave, with agencies wanting stakes in everything from intellectual property to marketers themselves.

There are now many shops that take it one step further by creating products themselves out of thin air. These agencies are pouring more and more time and money into product development that has nothing to do with client brands. Some even sell entire lines of merchandise and create viable businesses such as stores and eateries.

Indie agency Mother is, well, the mother of adland's product-making set, hatching numerous kitschy projects including books, shopping bags, candies and comics. But there are soon to be more; several agencies have told Ad Age they're in talks to launch their own brands.

INNOVATIONEXERCISE

AvoidAmbiguity Mental Lock #8 from A Whack on the Side of

the Head

In the following line of letters, cross out six letters so that the remaining letters, without altering their sequence, will spell a familiar English word.

B S A I N X L E A T N T E A R S

AvoidAmbiguity Mental Lock #8 from A Whack on the Side of

the Head

In the following line of letters, cross out six letters so that the remaining letters, without altering their sequence, will spell a familiar English word.

B S A I N X L E A T N T E A R S

BANANA

AvoidAmbiguity Mental Lock #8 from A Whack on the Side of

the Head

CONSULT AN ORACLE

Conversation

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