More later - and if you wish to comment -

business@theadcompany.com.au

Tony Clemenger

Old AdAge Daily Updates can be found at - AdAge Daily Updates.

Rudd proposes ban on political ads
The Age
Page: A9 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Peter Ker

ABIX Summary: Advertising & Promotion Campaigns

A row over political advertising has erupted in Australia. The Leader of the Australian Labor Party, Kevin Rudd, has expressed his frustration at the numerous political advertisements currently shown on TV. While waiting for the 2007 election date to be called, Australians are watching many ads that put a positive spin on Australian Government initiatives. This advertising, or so-called "information", is paid for by taxpayers. Rudd said that if elected to power, he will impose a ban on taxpayer-funded political advertising three months prior to a general election. Rudd said that the Labor-led states should also stop this type of advertising

How consumers get eaten alive
The Sydney Morning Herald
Page: 4-5 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Michelle Innis

ABIX Summary: Advertising & Promotion Campaigns

Consumer advocates are concerned about fineprint and legal jargon in contracts, especially when manipulative sales tactics are involved. Choice's Gordon Renouf believes legislation should exist to better protect consumers. Although unfair contract legislation exists in Victoria, and New South Wales (NSW) is considering similar laws in 2007, the 2004 Victorian legislation does not cover credit contracts. Gerard Brody, of Victoria's Consumer Law Centre, and Katherine Lane, of the NSW Consumer Credit Legal Centre, warn that terms and conditions have to be closely examined

Violently one-sided
Marketing
Page: 56-57 : October 2007
Original article by Tony Lambaart

ABIX Summary: Advertising & Promotion Campaigns

The Australian Government's advertising campaign "Australia says no!" is biased and one-sided. The aim of the campaign is to raise the awareness of the issue of violence against women. Regrettably, the Government seems to ignore the issue of violence against men. Statistics show that men aged between 18 and 24 years are most likely to be assaulted. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, an estimated 27 per cent of men and 56 per cent of women report being harassed in their lifetime

Products & Services

GPhone seeks to repeat online success
The Australian Financial Review
Page: 60 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Miguel Helft

ABIX Summary: Products & Services

Engineers at Google have been working on the Google Phone or GPhone. It is not certain what they actually are doing, or whether anything they come up with will be successful. Google is keen to enter the mobile internet space. It wants to persuade telcos and mobile telephone makers to offer mobile telephones based on Google software. Google engineers believe that this would rival the mobile operating system of Microsoft. Google executives have made no public comment about plans for the GPhone. Some analysts argue that Google will not be very successful in the mobile telephone world, because it is totally different, in economic terms, to the world of the internet. Originally published in "The New York Times"

The first-mover advantage
Marketing
Page: 52-53 : October 2007
Original article by Roger La Salle

ABIX Summary: Products & Services

Innovation should be understood as change that adds value. Success in business often depends on the pace of innovation. In the electronic industry, 10 per cent of companies replace 80 per cent of their products every five years. Without innovation, companies risk being eliminated from the market. Lester Thurow writes in his recent book "Creating Wealth" that the life expectancy of a publicly listed company is now less than 10 years, compared with around 65 years in the 1920s

E-Business

You search, YouTube ...
The Australian Financial Review
Page: 60 : 10 October 2007

ABIX Summary: E-Business

The world of the internet is becoming even richer and more varied. Google has unveiled plans to show YouTube videos on many other websites, hoping to gain profits from the advertisements attached to the videos. Google paid $US1.76 billion ($A1.97 billion) for YouTube, and it wants to recoup some of this money. Google will only show videos from YouTube if the video provider signs a consent form. Google will share the advertising revenue generated by the YouTube videos with both the content provider and the website which shows the video clips

Marketing Strategy

German giant fires up down under
Money Management
Page: 18-19 : 4 October 2007
Original article by Jayson Forrest

ABIX Summary: Marketing Strategy

The history of DWS Investments, the fund management arm of Deutsche Bank's Asset Management unit, dates back to 1956. However, it has taken until 2007 for DWS Investments to expand into Australia, with the German fund manager due to make its Australian debut on 8 October 2007. As part of the entry into Australia of DWS, which has global assets of EUR244 billion ($A393.5 billion), the retail asset management business of Deutsche Bank in Australia will be re-branded under the DWS Investments name. DWS Investments is well known for its marketing slogan, "When traditional thinking is not enough"

Consumer Behaviour

Credit excess drives up bankruptcies
The Australian Financial Review
Page: 3 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Patrick Durkin

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

The number of bankruptcies has increased in Australia in the 2007-08 financial year. Some home owners have resorted to credit cards to make mortgage repayments or have raided their superannuation for the same purpose. The number of bankruptcies is of concern to groups such as Insolvency & Trustee Service Australia. This group notes that excessive use of credit has led to the bankruptcies. Matthew Bransgrove, of Bransgroves Lawyers, notes that many people have run out of options to refinance their debt. The Consumer Credit Legal Centre of New South Wales is worried that some people have raided their super to get more money, and this will make matters worse in the long-run. The average credit card debt has risen above $A3,000 for the first time

Millionaires, mansions, on the move
The Australian Financial Review
Page: 3 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Ben Wilmot

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

The booming financial services and resources sectors in Australia have increased the wealth of some people. They are buying mansions for record amounts. Vaucluse, one of the most exclusive suburbs in Sydney, is the location of many mansions. A house called "Tahiti" at Hermit Bay in Vaucluse was sold recently for $A29 million. "Routala", a mansion in Point Piper, was sold for $A28.7 million in August 2007. Experts at Raine & Horne note that very few mansions in Sydney's prestige suburbs come on the market and there is huge demand for them. This group expects to see mansions on Sydney Harbour sell for over $A50 million in coming months

Australand likes neighbourly feel
The Australian Financial Review
Page: 66 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Mathew Dunckley

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

Australand Property Group has bought two shopping centres in outer Melbourne. It has paid about $A30 million for neighbourhood shopping centres at Healesville and Berwick, in a joint venture with Bank of Scotland International. The two properties will be the seed assets in the $A200 million Australand Retail Fund. Angus MacHutchison of Australand says shortage of time is prompting consumers to increasingly favour neighbourhood centres

Public offer broadens industry funds' base
The Australian
Page: 5 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Gillian Bullock

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

Since the introduction of superannuation choice laws, many Australian industry funds have opted to move to public offer status. This means that workers outside the specific industry are able to become members. Health Super is not yet a public offer fund. The fund's Chris Clausen says the regulatory burden is much greater for public offer funds, and he believes that many members remain loyal even after switching employers. Industry funds offer far less choice when it comes to investment options, however this does not represent a problem to many consumers

How consumers get eaten alive
The Age
Page: 4-5 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Michelle Innis

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

Consumer advocates are concerned about fineprint and legal jargon in contracts, especially when manipulative sales tactics are involved. Choice's Gordon Renouf believes legislation should exist to better protect consumers. Although unfair contract legislation exists in Victoria, and New South Wales (NSW) is considering similar laws in 2007, the 2004 Victorian legislation does not cover credit contracts. Gerard Brody, of Victoria's Consumer Law Centre, and Katherine Lane, of the NSW Consumer Credit Legal Centre, warn that terms and conditions have to be closely examined

What phone bill, Mum?
The Sydney Morning Herald
Page: 9 : 10 October 2007
Original article by Lesley Parker

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

More and more children in Australia own mobile telephones. They often do not understand that in making calls and getting services they are running up bills. The Australian Communications & Media Authority has issued a mobile telephone checklist for parents, in tandem with the internet safety group, Childnet International. Parents should use the checklist to get answers from service providers before allowing the child to use a mobile telephone. Research has shown that it is children in low-income households who are most likely to have a mobile telephone. It may be best for parents to get a pre-paid plan, which allows parents to keep a check on costs. Parents should use this opportunity to help their child to learn to budget

Reverse mortgages risk future shock
Money Management
Page: 1/3 : 4 October 2007
Original article by Liam Egan

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

Australians who take out reverse mortgages are not considering all the possible implications, according to Greg Kirk. Kirk, a senior official with the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC), said the regulator's research has found that people are not looking very far ahead when they take out a reverse mortgage, despite it being a long-term product. Kirk said part of this reluctance appears to be an unwillingness to think about getting old, which can lead to poor decision-making

Healthy appetites
Marketing
Page: 40-42 : October 2007
Original article by Paul Best

ABIX Summary: Consumer Behaviour

Consumers are showing an increasing interest in healthy food. Companies operating in the fast-moving consumer goods sector have certainly taken notice of this trend. A survey of more than 300 CEOs from 48 countries, conducted by international food business network CIES, indicates that health and nutrition are the surveyed CIOs' most important concerns. Nick Goddard, corporate relations and communications director at Unilever, says consumers are nowadays quite sophisticated. They often use the internet to find out about characteristics of the products they consider buying