Will Ferrell as the spokesman for Chrysler.
The new spokesman for the Dodge Durango is very important. He has many leather-bound books and his apartment smells of rich mahogany. He is of course, Ron Burgundy, the vainglorious newsman created by Will Ferrell, whose Anchorman sequel comes out this year. In the lead-up, Paramount Pictures has partnered with Chrysler to co-promote both the movie and the auto maker's SUV, with videos tailored for online success; reports suggest 70 Ron Burgundy shorts have been filmed for the brand. Dodge is posting them bit by bit. Among the early offerings is a comparison of the vehicle's horsepower with an actual horse, and praise for the 0.1 cubit feet of storage in its glove compartment.
"I see this accelerating, I really do. Blurring of what an advertising agency is, what a media owner is, what a content creator is. I think this is going to be completely blurred in the future,' Phillip Thomas, CEO of Lions Festivals (the company that runs the advertising awards in Cannes), speaking in Toronto this week about how the lines between advertising and entertainment are eroding.
THE GOOD OLD HOCKEY GAME
How true are the stereotypes about Canadian hockey fans? Exponential Interactive polled 200,000 fans to find out. Here's a sampling.
Montreal fans
77 per cent more interested in travelling to France than the average fan.
Vancouver fans
47 per cent more likely to be into video fighting games.
Toronto fans
Nine times more likely to research travel to Ottawa.
Ottawa fans
Nine times more likely to be interested in romance movies.
THE RISE OF M-COMMERCE
More than half of those who make a purchase digitally in the U.S. this year will buy something on a mobile device, according to a study from research firm eMarketer. That's a major leap from just two years ago when the number was just one in four. The study found that 16 per cent of U.S. retail e-commerce sales will come from mobile this year, and those m-commerce sales will reach $41-billion (U.S.). The report did not include data for Canada, but it does give a glimpse of where consumer behaviour is headed. Worth noting is that this mobile activity isn't just about phones: More of those purchases are coming from tablets than smartphones.