William & Kate Boogie Down the Aisle for T-Mobile

Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding is just a few weeks away now, but T-Mobile has stolen a bit of the royals’ thunder with this amusing video from Saatchi & Saatchi showing the bride and groom boogying their way down the aisle—much like Jill and Kevin Heinz did in their hilarious 2009 wedding video, which went super-viral. (The T-Mobile clip, posted on Friday, was already over the 3 million mark as of Sunday evening, but it has a ways to go to catch Jill and Kevin’s 64 million views.) The telecom, which has been fond of viral-marketing stunts in recent years, got a some great look-alikes to play the royals—and in a real coup, they seemed to have snagged the actual Camilla Parker-Bowles. Impressive. (www.adweek.com)

FedEx’s Famous Fast Talker Returns … for JetBlue

Federal Express’s 1981 “Fast Talker” spot from Ally & Gargano, starring John Moschitta, is one of the best-loved commercials of all time. Now, Moschitta is back, but he’s backing a different brand—JetBlue. New ads from Mullen, supposedly shot 30 years to the day after the FedEx spot, show Moschitta talking nonstop about JetBlue’s nonstop service. The actor is older and a little rounder, but hasn’t lost a beat when it comes to his rapid-fire delivery. The tie-in with the brand is a bit of a stretch, but at least JetBlue has stopped harassing regular people for its commercials. One spot below; two more ads plus the old FedEx spot after the jump. (www.adweek.com)

Minor League Baseball and KRAFT Singles Partner for Third Consecutive Season

• Minor League Baseball (MiLB) announced today it will once again partner with KRAFT Singles on the popular “Tuesday Night Tickets” deal. Beginning tomorrow through September 6, 2011, fans are encouraged to bring any KRAFT Singles package wrapper to participating teams’ ballpark box offices on Tuesday nights to buy one ticket and get another ticket free courtesy of KRAFT Singles.
• This season’s program features several elements, both in and out of the ballparks. The core of the promotion revolves around the “Tuesday Night Tickets” program. Other elements include ballpark signage and in-game promotions and a Tuesday-specific program that will take place in a select number of participating clubs’ ballparks. Promotional items such as radio ads will also be placed by KRAFT Singles, while an array of promotional pieces will be positioned in-market by participating teams.
• The ongoing association between Minor League Baseball and KRAFT Singles not only brings the two properties together for another fun-filled season of America’s favorite pastime and great food, but fans will continue to benefit from the relationship.
• “Thousands of families look forward to celebrating a baseball outing together where they can cheer on their local team and enjoy a cheeseburger with KRAFT Singles hot off the grill,” said Marisa Zimmerman, senior associate brand manager for KRAFT Singles. “The Tuesday Night Tickets deal is a homerun, bringing savings and smiles to Minor League Baseball fans and families across the country this season.” (www.sponsorship.com)

TaylorMade/adidas Golf Canada Announced as Presenting Sponsor of the PGA Championship of Canada

• On the heels of the major announcement that the PGA Championship of Canada is returning this summer, the Canadian PGA was right back at it today with the news that TaylorMade/adidas Golf Canada has come on board as the presenting sponsor of the event for the next five years.
• “We’re thrilled to add TaylorMade/adidas Golf Canada as the presenting sponsor of this great event,” stated Glenn Cundari, President of the Canadian PGA. “Momentum is an amazing thing in any sport and right now we have plenty of it for the PGA Championship of Canada thanks to our new partners.”
• The PGA Championship of Canada sponsored by Mr. Lube and presented by TaylorMade will be contested June 14-18 at Cottonwood Golf & Country Club in Calgary, Alberta with a total purse of $100,000. Conducted as a match play championship, the PGA Championship of Canada will take the Association’s best 64 players directly off the Canadian PGA Player Rankings List to create what will be the greatest showcase of Canadian PGA talent each and every year.
• “We are very excited to become a key partner in this event and couldn’t be happier to be part of the group that is bringing this great championship back to the schedule,” said David Bradley, VP & GM of TaylorMade/adidas Golf Canada. “We’ve been a proud supporter of the Canadian PGA and its’ Members for many years and we believe this just takes it to the next level. (www.sponsorship.com)

Delta Named U.S. Freeskiing Airline

• Delta Air Lines and The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association have announced that Delta Air Lines will become an exclusive category partner of its new U.S. Freeskiing brand and continue its sponsorship of the U.S. Ski Team and U.S. Snowboarding. Delta has been affiliated with the USSA’s prominent U.S. Ski Team and U.S. Snowboarding brands since 2007 and has served as their official airline since 2007.
• Delta becomes one of a host of global companies to join with the new U.S. Freeskiing brand, which was launched by the USSA in January. Freeskiing includes the events of skicross plus halfpipe and slopestyle skiing. Last week freeskiing got a major boost when the International Olympic Committee added halfpipe skiing to the 2014 Olympic program in Sochi.
• “Delta has had success in partnering with us on the use of our U.S. Ski Team and U.S. Snowboarding brands,” said USSA Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer Andrew Judelson. “U.S. Freeskiing offers Delta even greater scale and relevance through the ability to connect with the millions of skiers and riders who are actively participating in the sport at resorts around the world.”
• The partnership offers Delta exposure at USSA events and connectivity to athletes across all sports. The Team’s branding has been prominently displayed each winter season on seatback video and inflight entertainment screens on Delta aircraft worldwide. (www.sponsorship.com)

Atlantic Remodeling Named Presenting Sponsor for 16th Annual “March for the Animals” to Benefit Maryland SPCA

• The Atlantic Remodeling Corporation has been named Presenting Sponsor of the 16th annual “March for the Animals” being held Sunday, April 17, at Druid Hill Park. The 1.5 mile walk-a-thon around Druid Hill Reservoir is the major charity event conducted by volunteers to raise funds for the Maryland SPCA.
• This marks the second year that Atlantic Remodeling has served as the lead sponsor of “March for the Animals”, which involves hundreds of animals lovers and their pets in a day of demonstrations, contests and entertainment. Last year’s event raised $364,000 to benefit the work of the Maryland SPCA, which was founded in Baltimore in 1869 and is one of the nation’s oldest animal welfare organizations. (www.sponsorship.com)

VH1 Cultivates Its Female Side

• After watching its audience erode in recent years, cable channel VH1, known for its celebrity-driven reality shows, is giving itself a makeover.
• Seeking to reinvigorate the 26-year-old channel, executives are targeting an audience that was once an afterthought for network strategists, but which advertisers now are clamoring to reach: women 25 to 35.
• To attract those viewers, VH1 is introducing a slate of new programming that kicked off Sunday night with a trio of reality shows, including “Mob Wives,” which follows several women who were born into, or married into, reputed Mafia families.
• “We saw ratings deteriorate, and we were hearing from our audiences that there was a fatigue level with some of our shows,” said Tom Calderone, president of VH1, part of Viacom Inc. “So we decided it was time to figure out what our next voice was going to be.” (www.wsj.com)

VW Beetle Is Back … Again … Again

• For those car-mad consumers who have been waiting since the Super Bowl to see the 2012 version of the Volkswagen New Beetle, which was featured in a popular commercial that appeared during the game, the wait is finally over.
• Volkswagen is to introduce on Monday what it is calling the 21st Century Beetle. The original, also affectionately known as the Bug, was sold in the United States from 1949 to 1979. A redesigned version, dubbed the New Beetle, has been available in this country since 1998. The 2012 Beetle is its successor.
• A teaser commercial for the 2012 Beetle appeared during Super Bowl XLV on Feb. 6. It was one of two spots from Volkswagen of America that ran during the game, the other being the wildly popular mini-Darth Vader commercial, called “The Force,” for the 2012 Volkswagen Passat.
• The Beetle commercial during the game featured a black beetle racing wildly through a forest to a version of the rock tune “Black Betty.” The spot ended with the beetle turning into a silhouette of the 2012 Beetle, hidden in shadows. (www.nytimes.com)

ESPN and MasterCard Put Focus on ‘Futbol’

• ESPN and MasterCard Worldwide are joining forces for an extensive branded-entertainment project that is centered on soccer.
• There will be four weekly episodes of a new series, “Capitales del Futbol,” or “Capitals of Football,” i.e., soccer, to be shown across Latin America on four consecutive Sundays, beginning this Sunday.
• The series will be shown at the same time in 18 countries that speak Spanish as well as in Portuguese-speaking Brazil. ESPN says that is the first simultaneous premiere of its type.
• “Capitales del Futbol” is being co-produced by ESPN, part of the Walt Disney Company, and a production company known as 100 Bares, which produced the 2009 movie from Argentina, “The Secret in Their Eyes.” (www.nytimes.com)

RWC picks BlackBerry as tournament’s official mobile

• Research In Motion (RIM) has become the latest company to align themselves with the upcoming 2011 Rugby World Cup, with their BlackBerry line unveiled as the official handheld mobile device of the tournament.
• In their capacity as an official sponsor, RIM will provide the tournament with the latest BlackBerry smartphones and BlackBerry PlayBook tablets to assist operations during the competition. In addition, an official free-to-download application will be released for BlackBerry users to provide fans with up to date news, live scores and video highlights during the tournament.
• RIM, who recently became an official partner of the Australian Rugby Union, joins a prestigious list of official sponsors of rugby’s showcase event, including Microsoft, Toshiba and Land Rover. (www.sportspromedia.com)

Kotex Launches Fem Care Products for Tweens

• Kotex is launching a new line of products designed specifically for tween girls. Accompanying marketing is geared toward helping moms to proactively talk to their daughters about menstruation.
• Research shows that one in three young girls has no idea what’s happening when she gets her first period, according to Kotex. Four out of five moms feel only somewhat or not at all prepared to talk to their daughter about her changing body.
• U by Kotex Tween line offers pads that are sized smaller to fit a tween’s smaller body. The pads and liners have tween-inspired designs that come in a glittery package with a helpful informational booklet on the inside to help reduce the anxiety for mom and tween during the conversation.
• The new product line is being launched through advertising, direct mail and retail. The Kotex brand is refreshing its Web site at www. Kotex.com/Tween to provide tools and tips to empower mom to pick her day to talk to her daughter about her first period. “We will also be reaching out to moms through influential mom Web sites, including a partnership with ModernMom,” according to a Kimberly-Clark spokesperson. (www.mediapost.com)

Best Buy Is Shrinking Stores, Adding Mobile Units

• After suffering weaker sales, Best Buy is thinking small: It says it will focus on expanding its petite Best Buy Mobile stores, which are about 1,400 square feet, and shrink its regular stores by about 10% in the next three to five years.
• In presentations to investors and analysts, the Minneapolis-based chain says the strategy is all part of its mission to look beyond individual products to larger issues of connectivity. “Technology is connecting the world, and we believe it’s changing the world for the better,” says CEO Brian J. Dunn, in a release explaining the changes. “We recognize that people need help in navigating our increasingly connected world. And Best Buy has an unparalleled range of ways we can assist — online, through our stores, over the phone or in their homes. This multifaceted approach allows us to serve customers whenever and wherever they want.” (www.mediapost.com)