Celebs touch down
The launch of season two of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here last night saw 11 celebrities from all walks of life skydive or canoe into the African jungle. Shortly after the rabble entered Ten announced that one of Australia’s greatest sports stars, international cricketer Shane Warne, will also join the show tonight.
While six celebs faced croc-infested waters to make it to the meeting point, five parachuted out of a chopper . Arriving at the meeting point under a safari tent, the celebrities had their last taste of luxury before heading into the African jungle for their first trial.
The 11 celebrities competing for the coveted title of King or Queen of The Jungle are singer Havana Brown; singer-songwriter Anthony Callea; former AFL player Brendan Fevola; bachelorette Laurina Fleure; Australian Idol contestant Dean Geyer; champion Ironwoman Courtney Hancock; legend of rugby league Paul Harragon; dancer, choreographer, director, television presenter and producer Bonnie Lythgoe; actress Val Lehman; comedian Akmal Saleh and TV host Jo Beth Taylor.
IBM zones in on data
IBM has acquired The Weather Company’s B2B, mobile and cloud-based web-properties, weather.com, Weather Underground, The Weather Company brand and WSI, its global business-to-business brand.
The move builds on the $3 billion commitment that IBM made last year to investing more in the 'Internet of Things' (IoT) technology – allowing it to collect billions of data sets from IoT sensors globally while also serving out real-time information and insights to tens of millions of users worldwide.
As an example, on its website, IBM says weather data can help some of its clients. It explains how insurance companies can work more effectively with customers to mitigate weather-related losses.
Brick by brick
Lego has unveiled its first wheelchair using mini-figure at a toy fair. The figure of a young man using a wheelchair and accompanied by an assistance dog is part of a new set from Lego and comes after nine months of lobbying by the #ToyLikeMe group, led by UK journalist and creative disability consultant, Rebecca Atkinson.
A change.org petition calling on Lego to include disabled mini-figures received more than 20k signatures. A similar one aimed at Playmobil received more than 50k supporters.
Atkinson, who is herself partially deaf and partially sighted, established the online #ToyLikeMe movement in April 2015 to call on the global toy industry to positively represent 150 million disabled children worldwide.
Atkinson said the move by Lego is “massive in terms of ending cultural marginalisation” and will speak volumes to children, disabled or otherwise, the world over.
9Now platform launches today
Nine Entertainment Co. announced today that its new streaming and video on demand product, 9Now, has gone live.
The 9now offering a way to access all of Channel Nine’s content, both live and demand. The other linear channels on the Nine platform, 9Gem, 9Go and 9Life, will also be available to stream in the coming months.
In October of last year, Nine highlighted streaming, a programmatic push and new channels as key on the agenda for its “complete reset” strategy for this year.
Bauer axes Shop Til You Drop online site
Speculation is mounting over whether Bauer will close another in-print magazine.
The media company has confirmed its Shop Til You Drop site has now closed, with web traffic being redirected to Cosmopolitan’s website – just as Cleo did before the publication closed earlier this month.
The Sunday Telegraph reported the diminish of the magazine’s digital presence over the weekend, with Shop being noticeably absent from Facebook since before Christmas.
A Bauer spokesperson told AdNews the news of the in-print closure is pure speculation, with no plans to close the magazine. The spokesperson added that Kelly Baker is working on the next edition of the magazine before she exits in order to take a new role at New Corp’s Body + Soul. The publisher is looking for her replacement.
In 2014 Shop Til You Drop announced its move from a bi-weekly magazine to a fortnightly digital product, and quarterly print edition
NFL on Seven: Super Bowl 50 Live
Channel Seven will be the Australian host of the Super Bowl 50 this year, with the big game streaming live on Monday 8 February.
Super Bowl season is upon us with teasers coming in thick and fast. Read our chat with last year's Aussie finalist Armand de Saint-Salvy.
APN Outdoor announces partnership with AOC
APN Outdoor has today announced a partnership with the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) as an official team partner.
With the launch of the partnership, the outdoor media provider has revealed a teaser of activations, campaigns and stunts that aim to bring “the Australian Olympic spirit to the streets”. This marks the first occasion the Australian Olympic team has teamed up with an outdoor media provider.
At the end of last year APN outdoor acquired Victorian-based Adspace Outdoor, securing 11 large format billboards and three development locations for further large-scale billboards.
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.