Tiger Woods’ much anticipated return to competitive golf–at the storied Masters tournament–is accompanied by his return to advertising. The black-and-white TV spot for Nike Golf simply shows a silent Woods looking directly at us with a facial expression that is subject to interpretation–perhaps part serious, part sad, part introspective.
The only voice heard comes off camera and is that of Tiger’s late father, Earl Woods, seemingly offering food for thought to his son. Earl Woods says, “Tiger, I am more prone to being inquisitive, to promote discussion. I want to find out what your thinking was. I want to find out what your feelings are and did you learn anything?”
The spot–directed by Max Malkin of Prettybird, Santa Monica, for Wieden+Kennedy, Portland–has already elicited mixed reactions in the blogosphere, from those who are offended that Earl Woods has been resurrected to help his son break back into the ad game after his much publicized infidelity, to those who view the spot as smart in that it positions Woods as a man hearkening back to a positive influence in order to recover from his transgressions.
What’s your take on the spot? Have a look here and get a rundown of the creative and production credits.
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