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The worst of the web
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Web company Squarespace is tapping into Superbowl hype with a trailer that shows us everything that’s wrong with the internet. That includes too many things to squeeze into 15 seconds, but Squarespace has managed to get in epic fails, cheesy contests and online dating.

News
Google hearts music
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Google’s new TVC for its entertainment store Google Play is a celebration of everything related to the heart — and alert viewers will notice a quick grab of Kiwi songstress Lorde among the artists gracing the service’s play arrow icon.

News
RaboDirect pens new Seven Sharp deal
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On 27 January a new-look Seven Sharp will see Mike Hosking and Toni Street joining the sole survivor of last year’s Christmas shuffle, Jesse Mulligan, as they take to Kiwi televisions for the first time. But Mulligan isn’t the only one returning to the Seven Sharp fray, because TVNZ has also announced that RaboDirect, the online bank, has re-signed its sponsorship agreement with the show.

News
DraftFCB drops Sony MP3 player into water — UPDATED
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Rather than adopting the shock-inspired approach, DraftFCB has instead chosen to use a PR stunt to show off the utility of the new Sony waterproof MP3 player. The Auckland-based agency dropped the product into a bottle of water and then placed it in vending machines located in areas where the target market would be likely to pass them.

Movings & Shakings
Movings/Shakings: 21 January
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Changes at Saatchi & Saatchi, Tourism Malaysia, Fairfax, The Edge and Hanmer Springs, new business for Sputnik and Pead PR, Fonterra’s rumoured new sponsorship, RIP Richard Clark, kudos for Belowtheline and Award School returns.

News
Battle of the food formats: TVNZ changes tack, MediaWorks looks for a slice
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For most New Zealanders, there’s been a high rate of food consumption over the past few months. And the nation’s broadcasters are hoping there will be plenty of food-related TV consumed this year as well, with TVNZ’s MasterChef NZ making a few changes to its format and MediaWorks hoping for big things with its new show The Great Food Race.

News
From blog to brand: Jamie Frater (Listverse)
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In a new series, we talk to Kiwi keyboard tappers that have managed to shift from the personal realm of blogging to create online media brands that are widely read (and in some cases profitable). In the first segment, we chat to Jamie Frater, the founder of Listverse.

News
Ad flashback: Otago Daily Times 1900
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A look back at the advertising published in the 2 January 1900 edition of the Otago Daily Times provides a glimpse at the cost of living, the advertising standards and the creative motivations that pervaded the early 20th century.

News
Doritos ‘Crash the Superbowl’ finalists announced
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Late last year, StopPress covered the efforts of a team of Kiwi creatives who entered the Doritos “Crash the Superbowl’ competition, which invited ad makers the world over to vie for a chance to have their original ad appear during the Superbowl. Although the Kiwis didn’t make the final cut, the five shortlisted entries are definitely worth a watch.

Opinion
Locking it down: will 2014 be the year of the paywall?
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Newspaper publishers here and around the world are looking for new revenue streams to make up for a big drop in print advertising, says Michael Carney. And both major publishers in this market are thought to be looking at launching paywalls this year. But will Kiwi consumers pony up if they are put in place? And what options do the publishers have?

News
Getty showcases its award-winning snapshots from 2013
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Sometimes poignant, sometimes inspirational, the 2013 awards compilation from Getty Images offers a series of snapshots that captures the highs and lows of the human experience in a way that is only possible through the laconic medium of photography. Portraits of animal cruelty, political snapshots, sporting action pics, war photography and eerie juxtapositions appear alongside the more commonly seen photographs of natural wonders, artistic poses and press shots.

News
Will it blend? Yes it will, says Jacob’s Creek
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There was plenty of excitement about the Share a Coke campaign, which offered punters a personalised can and tapped into the powerful narcissistic tendencies of the modern age. And Pernod Ricard brand Jacob’s Creek is offering something of a grown-up equivalent, with a pop-up winemaking experience in Auckland where customers can taste and combine up to four of the label’s most popular varieties to make their own red or white blend.

News
Meaty issues
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In order to dispel a few myths, McDonald’s New Zealand has recently embraced honesty—and followed in the footsteps of Canada—by inviting people to ask them some tough questions. And The Onion has obviously been inspired by that decision, as evidenced by a deeply philosophical fake ad it generously created for the brand that features “grainy, rapidly shifting images of raw ground beef, masticated hamburger, livestock, a fornicating couple and static”.

News
Remembering Ian Wells
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Aged 76, Ian Douglas Wells died on January 4 and more than 400 attended his funeral at Old St Paul’s Cathedral in Wellington on January 9. Rick Neville takes a moment to reflect on the tireless effort Wells put into making Wellington a better place. (Image credit: Stuff.co.nz)

News
Ajax offers to clean up your social media life
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Given that the lines between the physical and digital worlds are becoming increasingly blurred, Ajax has decided to transpose its real-world cleaning methods into the internet with a new campaign that promises to help you clean up your social media life.

News
Rainger and Rolfe join forces
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Rainger Connect and Rolfe Limited have merged to form a new agency called Rainger & Rolfe. Managing partners Ant Rainger and Jen Rolfe have each left their respective offices in favour of a new digs in Parnell, which now brings 10 staff members and about a dozen key clients under the same roof.

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