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NEW YORKThe U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Co., a part of UST, has consolidated its advertising assignments at Warwick Baker O'Neill. The decision followed a review for the company's Skoal brand, which was previously handled by Vogt/Wein in Westport, Conn. The consolidation brings USSTC billings at the New York agency to a reported $15 million annually. Warwick, which has handled the USSTC's Copenhagen brand for more than 32 years, will now assume responsibilities for Skoal, Rooster, a new brand, and the promotion of the company's recent name change. The Greenwich, Conn.-based client was formerly known as the U.S. Tobacco Co. According to Competitive Media Reporting, the USSTC spent close to $15 million on media in 1999 and about $10 million for the first 10 months of 2000. Sherwood Outdoor, the owner and exclusive representative of more than 30 percent of the advertising signs in New York's Times Square, has recently started displaying work for three new clients on its One Times Square building. The new advertisers are Dentyne Ice, Aflac Insurance and Sauza Tequila. The building, the former home of The New York Times, is the site for the New Year's Eve ball drop.Robert Martin, a strategic-marketing and advertising-communications firm in Hauppauge, was tapped to create a full-scale branding and positioning campaign for Investor Communication Services. A division of Automatic Data Processing, ICS is a provider of investor relations services for North American public companies. In addition to banking and financial-services accounts, RMI also handles those in the high-tech and healthcare fields, with clients throughout the tristate region.Palio Communications, an advertising and com munications agency in Saratoga Springs, launched its Web site, www.-paliocommunications.com. Palio specializes in healthcare and consumer products.The Child School, a New York-based therapeutic-academic community for children with severe learning and emotional challenges, appointed New York-based Network Design and Communications for public relations and marketing activities. The Child School is chartered by the Board of Regents of the State of New York as a nonprofit educational institution. Network Design and Communications will work with The Child School primarily on publicity for the school's "Raising the Roof" campaign, a $7 million building-expansion plan.New Paradigm Advertising, with locations in New York and Harrison, received eight awards at the recent International Awards Competition of the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International. The shop's work for six clients was honored in seven categories. New Paradigm's CD-ROM for The Castle at Tarrytown won a gold award in the multimedia category; the agency's work for that client also won a silver award in the consumer print campaign category. New Paradigm's other silver award, in the consumer brochure category, was for its 2000 Brochure for Island Destinations. The shop's other awards were bronze.FCB in Costa Mesa, Calif., tapped New York design house Eyeball to give Taylor Made's new line of golf clubs a new design sensibility. The spots debuted last month. The 45-second "300 Series" spot was directed by Eyeball creative director Limore Shur, and is key to Taylor's rebranding effort, which focuses on technology that delivers golf clubs specifically designed to complement different players' swings. The commercial, which was filmed on a Colorado golf course, features two-time U.S. Open champion Ernie Els.An overzealous repairman and nervous teens are featured in two new spots for Nstar, a Boston-based electric and gas utility. The commercials highlight the company's reliability and sometimes overpassionate dedication to service. Both spots were cut by Jesse Reisner of Editing Concepts in New York. "Porch" opens as a couple notices that all the lights in the house across the street have gone out. Panicked, the man is ready to spring into action, while his wife tries to calm him. As he makes his way across the lawn, a light comes back on. "See, honey," the wife says, "they're just going back to bed." "I knew that," the husband says. The closing voiceover: "At Nstar, sometimes our service team is so dedicated, they don't know when to quit." "First Kiss" shows two teens about to share their first kiss when all the lights at the girl's house gradually go on. The boy flees; the girl looks up to see her father watching from an upstairs window. The voiceover: "Nstar—we'll be there when you need us."The Yellowstone Group in Irvington was awarded The Advertising Council's Branding and Identity Project. The Ad Council tapped the marketing-communications agency after a competitive search. The Ad Council identifies and selects a number of significant public issues, and stimulates action on those issues through public- service-advertising programs. NEW JERSEYSentrix Global Health Communications in Short Hills has landed new business from bio-pharmaceutical company Cytogen Corp. of Princeton. The assignment encompasses corporate-image marketing, as well as ads for drugs that treat prostate cancer, said agency general manager John Racik. Sentrix, one of two healthcare networks under Young & Rubicam Group, claimed total revenue of $20 million last year. PENNSYLVANIAPhiladelphia-based RHB Ventures and Quintus Group in London merged to form Quintus, Inc. The two sports, entertainment, and events-marketing and man agement firms will operate as Quintus in more than 10 offices internationally. Peter Worth and Anthony Bouchier formed Quintus Group in 1991; Henry Brehm, who will serve as CEO for Quintus in the U.S., formed RHB Ventures with Ray Benton in 1993. Quintus offices will be located in London, Philadelphia, New York, Mumbai, India, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Singapore, Hong Kong, Chicago, Naples, Fla., Raleigh, N.C., and Richmond, Va.The Philadelphia Department of Human Services hired Keel Communications in Bala Cynwyd to create a series of public- information campaigns designed to educate people about the programs and services available through DHS. The agency created a video to assist DHS in recruiting foster parents for special-needs children in the region. Keel Commu nications also completed an internal poster campaign meant to motivate DHS staffers. In addition, the shop is developing strategy for two other public-information campaigns: a truancy-prevention effort and a parenting-skills-training campaign.

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