-BBDO Ukraine promoted that country’s Marketing Forum event by infecting Philip Kotler’s classic “Marketing” with moldy spores. It’s a high-concept execution.
-Here’s an April Fools joke you missed: Publicis and Omnicom, Part Deux.
-On a more serious note, media agencies—led by Publicis—are requiring their publishing partners to sign over audience data that the shops can then use to place their own clients’ ads on other properties, according to this Digiday report.
–The New York Times digital privacy beat reports that smart home devices will eventually be able to read your mood or determine whether your child is engaging in “mischief.” But Amazon and Google deny this is all about targeting ads.
-OK, so we knew the future was all about data. But as to which agency model will survive, it’s still anybody’s guess.
-Wieden+Kennedy, MAL, JohnXHannes and Acme Filmworks are among the finalists for the Tribeca Film Festival’s 2018 TribecaX Award for “the best in storytelling at the intersection of advertising and entertainment.”
-MDC Partners acquired a 51 percent stake in Portland indie agency Instrument.
-Hanson Dodge of Milwaukee won the AOR business of Stanley PMI, maker of “iconic, stainless steel beverage and food containers.”