extra texture :: marketing news + trends

WPP chief executive Martin Sorrell warns that leading media companies like News Corp. are on the verge of panic amid seismic shifts brought on by the internet. (more)

A ranking of the 10 most egotistical celebrities has just been published by Teen People. The stars were selected by virtue of comments they have made which indicate a breath-taking degree of self-involvement. (more)

After meticulous research, we have determined the 100 things that most make you quiver like a schoolgirl. (more)

More Britons believe in ghosts than God, according to research. (more)

A Florida couple uses Halloween to spread the message of Christianity with their own event. (more)

You can’t take it with you. But you can still sell it. Just look at the commercials on TV: Dead people want you to buy all sorts of things. And not just during the Halloween season of ghosts and goblins. (more)

A white suit belonging to John Lennon that he wore on the album cover of “Abbey Road” sold for $118,000 at an auction while the Austin Princess he drove in the movie “Imagine” went for $150,000. (more)

Beer’s bad reputation as an unhealthy, highly fattening beverage is undeserved, according to a professor of food science and technology at the University of California, Davis. (more)

Leinenkugels Apple Spice is sure to remind people of a cup of apple cider and can be served both warm or cold. (more)

A constitutional battle is brewing over a holiday beer that state officials are trying to ban because they say its label might entice children to drink. (more)

Throughout November, 18 first-year Vehicle Design students at London’s Royal College of Art will be designing works of art from genuine BMW parts. (more)

The occasion was the grand opening reception for the new Adidas Originals store, an ultratrendy boutique dedicated to advancing the idea of sneaker couture by blurring the lines between shoe store and art gallery. (more)

“We’re saying it basically creates a brand-new segment,” said Ron Mueller, manager of luxury sport-utility and touring vehicles for Mercedes-Benz USA. “We’re calling it the sports tourer segment.” (more)

When the Volvo Ocean Race starts Nov. 12 from Vigo, Spain, the sloop with the skull and crossed cutlasses on the sails will stand out from the rest of the fleet. The Black Pearl — a high-tech, floating billboard to promote Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.” (more)

Tennis has become the first sport to follow the Olympic Games’ lead and restrict the use of Adidas’ three-stripe design on athletes’ apparel. (more)

Users of Apple’s trendy device will be able to take the Bible on the move when an audio version, which also scrolls Scripture across the iPod screen, goes on sale in February. (more)

Dubai Refreshments Company, the sole franchisee and distributor of PepsiCo products in Dubai and the Northern Emirates, will stage the Pepsi Sport Fiesta (PSF) for a third consecutive year. (more)

Samsung Electronics, the regional and global leader in digital technology, has launched the ladies-exclusive E530 mobile phone in the Middle East. (more)

Bill Gates, chairman of the world’s biggest software developer Microsoft, has found new worlds to conquer: your livingroom, your bedroom and just about any other room in the house. (more)

Coca-Cola Co selects independent agency Wieden + Kennedy to lead a global brand overhaul in conjunction with its local advertising agencies. (more)

Hershey makes Milk Duds — spelled D-U-D-S — the chocolate covered caramel. But there’s a California company that sells clothing for nursing mothers under the name of Milkdudz — spelled as one word and ending in D-U-D-Z. (more)

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) announced an expanded relationship with Atlanta International Consulting Group (AICG) as a NASCAR promotional licensee. NASCAR also announced a new vendor relationship with Padraic Major Photography. Both companies are minority-owned. (more)

The car company Toyota Motor will dramatically increase the number of its Lexus luxury brand dealerships in Russia, expecting stable growth in sales over the coming years, the company president said Wednesday. (more)

Starting next week, McDonald’s will replace its brew in all 600 New England stores with Newman’s Own Organics Blend produced by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. in Waterbury, Vt. (more)

The inside story of why the ROKR went wrong.* (*And what it will take to make a truly rocking music phone.) (more)

Outdoor giant Clear Channel has donated $5m (£2.8m) of outdoor advertising space around the world to highlight Unicef’s campaign to raise awareness about children living with HIV and Aids. (more)

British Airways crews have been banned from doing Su Doku puzzles. (more)

Delta Air Lines, which is reorganizing under protection from the federal bankruptcy court, announced plans Friday to discontinue its discount carrier Song and incorporate Song’s fleet into Delta’s regular service. (more)

The Stillwell Avenue station has been heralded as a revolutionary design thanks to its extensive use of solar power — a rarity in municipal transportation services in the United States. (more)