Ogilvy & Mather's recently named chief of branded entertainment reflects on brave new content world.
Doug Scott became executive director of branded content and entertainment at Ogilvy & Mather this summer after serving as a consultant to the agency since January. In what is relatively speaking still an embryonic marketplace, he has a notable track record, dating back to his tenure at Hypnotic where as executive VP of marketing he co-executive produced the Chrysler Million Dollar Film Festival, which opened up opportunities for young aspiring filmmakers The first feature to come out of that initiative–the Jeff Wadlow-directed Cry Wolf–was released last year.
Also at Hypnotic, Scott had a hand in Reebok’s “Terry Tate: Office Linebacker” phenomenon. Hypnotic acquired the original Terry Tate short from then fledgling director Rawson Thurber, connected with Reebok agency The Arnell Group and the rest is history. A Thurber-directed Terry Tate spot debuted on the 2003 Super Bowl and generated a record number of hits on the Reebok Web site with the public clamoring to see more of the linebacker wreaking comedic havoc at the workplace.
After Hypnotic, Scott launched Matter, through which he co-executive produced the 90-minute MTV special Diddy in the City, chronicling Sean Combs’ bid to run the New York Marathon and raise $1 million for New York City’s public schools. Scott oversaw corporate and fundraising relationships, helping the project exceed expectations and generate $2.5 million for the Big Apple public school system. Among those he brought into the fold were Nike, Footlocker, McDonald’s and Pepsi.
Next Scott was senior VP for public relations/entertainment marketing agency Bragman Nyman Cafarelli. However he found that a PR firm wasn’t the most advantageous roost from which to bring about the kind of progressive branded entertainment fare he envisioned. He left Bragman and began consulting for Ogilvy.
Google Opens Its Defense In Antitrust Case Alleging Monopoly Over Online Ad Technology
Google opened its defense against allegations that it holds an illegal monopoly on online advertising technology Friday with witness testimony saying the industry is vastly more complex and competitive than portrayed by the federal government.
"The industry has been exceptionally fluid over the last 18 years," said Scott Sheffer, a vice president for global partnerships at Google, the company's first witness at its antitrust trial in federal court in Alexandria.
The Justice Department and a coalition of states contend that Google built and maintained an illegal monopoly over the technology that facilitates the buying and selling of online ads seen by consumers.
Google counters that the government's case improperly focuses on a narrow type of online ads — essentially the rectangular ones that appear on the top and on the right-hand side of a webpage. In its opening statement, Google's lawyers said the Supreme Court has warned judges against taking action when dealing with rapidly emerging technology like what Sheffer described because of the risk of error or unintended consequences.
Google says defining the market so narrowly ignores the competition it faces from social media companies, Amazon, streaming TV providers and others who offer advertisers the means to reach online consumers.
Justice Department lawyers called witnesses to testify for two weeks before resting their case Friday afternoon, detailing the ways that automated ad exchanges conduct auctions in a matter of milliseconds to determine which ads are placed in front of which consumers and how much they cost.
The department contends the auctions are finessed in subtle ways that benefit Google to the exclusion of would-be competitors and in ways that prevent... Read More