The telco that will soon be formerly known as Telecom has launched a new campaign to announce that it is now offering residential customers unlimited broadband data plans. And while this might seem like a smart move to separate its offering from its competitors and potentially attract new clients, the Saatchi & Saatchi-created ‘Giganaire’ TVC used to relay the message has divided public opinion, with some describing the spot as annoying, cringe-worthy and racist while others say it’s brilliant, hilarious and entertaining. Whether for good or bad reasons, the ad has gotten people talking and this has led to a YouTube clip of the TVC tallying up over 20,000 views (at the time of writing) since it was first launched.

From typically humble New Zealand beginnings, Stolen Rum has grown rapidly in recent years, with some experienced campaigners joining the team and some big distribution deals that have put its products on shelves outside the homeland. And, in keeping with some of its past marketing efforts, it recently ran a unique giveaway in Miami, Sydney and Dunedin.

M&C Saatchi has confirmed that it is in the process of transferring ownership of the New Zealand arm of the company to local management. The official handover period has been scheduled for July, when details of the new ownership deal will become officially binding on both parties.

In a continuation of its ‘High Five’ campaign launched last February, Lotto Powerball NZ is sending a bearded protagonist around the country to celebrate the successes of Kiwis. And while it might sound reminiscent of ASB’s ill-fated campaign starring Brian Blessed, Lotto’s effort, conceptualised by DDB, differs markedly from the approach used by the bank. Rather than dressing its protagonist in colonial clothing and placing him in the homes of Kiwi families, Lotto NZ is instead sending Craig, the likeable Kiwi Everyman figure from the ‘High Five’ Campaign, to engage with a range of Kiwi heroes.

Apple has given second life to the Pixies’ 1988 track ‘Gigantic’ in a new spot that will have you mouthing along to the chorus about 45 seconds into the 90-second spot.

It is a sad fact that we have become so accustomed to ignoring the homeless. This social experiment serves as a stark illustration of just how hard hearted and unsympathetic we have become towards the homeless.

Rather than simply contributing to the extensive canon of big data worship, Shane Gibson, the owner of data intelligence agency OptimalBI, has launched a topical campaign that aims to give a visual representation of the type of information that can be extracted from big data. Hosted on a specially dedicated microsite, the campaign will give a data-driven comparative analysis of key poltical figures in the lead-up to this year’s election.

In an effort to illustrate the severity of the risk of extinction for the Sumatran tiger, DDB New York sent 400 copies of an original song to a collection of recipients, who were then asked to make digital reproductions of the tune.

A new Australian ad conceptualised by Clemenger BBDO Sydney depicts skateboarders making Visa PayWave purchases while skating in the bowl. During the course of the 60-second TVC, various people (even a guy in a suit) are shown making payments, mid trick, for coffee, pizzas and tacos at an ad-hoc take-away store.

Next week at the The Project: Digital Disruption conference being hosted by AUT on 30 April and 1 May, Cameron Gawley will appear as one of the international speakers at an event jam-packed with 30 of the sharpest minds in the industry. Gawley’s success has seen him ranked fifth on Business Insider’s list of the 25 most influential ad executives on Twitter, and he is also a founding member of the Social Media Club of Dallas and a Board Member for the American Advertising Federation of Dallas. On Tuesday, StopPress sat down with Gawley for a Skype conversation, which although distorted at times, gave us a glimpse at what to expect from the entrepreneur during his visit. PLUS: enter our competition and be in to win a ticket to The Project: Digital Disruption worth $599.

BKA Interactive kicked off when HTML was newfangled and Webmonkey was the only way to search the net for how to code. 
Now CEO Barbara Anderson, creative director Maak Bow and the team are mining their diverse base of work for nuggets 
to turn into products that could be used across industries, companies and the globe. We take a look behind the concrete curtain at this innovative company.

Although most marketers overlooked the significance of Earth Day from a commercial perspective, Work Communications took it as an opportunity to bring attention to the Earthcare’s point of difference in the market – namely, that all products in its tissue range are made from recycled paper.

Auckland’s Media Design School (MDS) expects its students to be producing PlayStation games by the end of this year now it’s offering the PlayStation First Academic Development programme.

‘Wearable technology’ is quickly become the latest marketing buzzword, with many expressing their love or hate for this emerging trend. With advertisers scrambling to figure out how they will best utilse wearable tech, FirstBank has taken a slightly different approach with the latest ad for its banking app.

For generations, the wallet bulge has protruded, somewhat erroneously, from the side of a men clad in their slim-fit suit trousers. So, in an effort to solve this unsightly problem, the Heritage Bank, Eleven PR and tailor M.J. Bale have colluded in a new spot via Whybin\TBWA Sydney that introduces a suit that removes the need to carry a wallet.

‘This is a generic brand video’, which took aim at naff corporate messaging, went off recently. And now nsmb.com has done the same for mountain bike films.

Only a few hours after stepping off a plane at Auckland Airport on 7 April, Pandora founder Tim Westergren sat down with us for a quick chat at the Generator, the New Zealand headquarters of the company. Although Westergren’s arrival in the country came as part of a promotional push to officially introduce the music-streaming platform to the New Zealand market after its release late last year, Pandora is by no means new to the Kiwi market. PLUS: a look at how Pandora’s offering compares to Spotify and iHeartRadio.

According to Telecom’s annual report, an average smartphone user reaches for their phone 150 times per day. For some, including Banksy, whose latest piece is a commentary on the scourge of mobile addiction, that’s a bit sad. But that level of interest makes it an appealing place to be for advertisers, so local start-up Postr is hoping to get brands into consumers’ pockets by serving ads on their smartphone homescreens.