Production company Durable Goods has signed director Neil Tardio for U.S. commercial representation. Tardio’s signature comedic storytelling for brands such as AT&T, Budweiser, Coca-Cola, ESPN, Ford, McDonald’s, Nike, Verizon and Volkswagen has earned him numerous industry accolades, including Cannes Lions, Clios, Addys, Tellys, and London Art Director Awards. His natural knack for casting and dialogue can be seen in recent work, including a spot for Kaplan University out of Arnold Boston, a comedic commercial for Bank of America featuring the Boston Red Sox out of Hill Holliday, a Domino’s campaign out of Crispin Porter + Bogusky and a Tim Hortons spot out of JWT Canada.
Tardio grew up in the midst of the advertising industry, with his father owning a powerhouse commercial production company in New York in the ‘80s. After graduating from Boston University, he began his career on the agency side, working as a producer and writer for such agencies at Saatchi & Saatchi NY and DDB Chicago. Soon after launching his directing career, he earned a 1992 Peabody Award for the “Rock the Vote” special with Madonna.
In addition to his notable commercial work, Tardio has also helmed television projects, including 32 episodes for the children’s sports program P.E. TV, which eventually aired on ESPN, and the web series Lifeisode. His music video directorial success includes high-profile artists The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Queen Latifah. Regarding film, his original screenplay, Son of Santa, was sold to United Artists, and he is casting for the upcoming feature The Wrong Man.
Tardio comes to Durable Goods from GO Film.
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