Webkinz suffers ad-free attacks
The popular site "The Webkinz" began running ads for movies back in October. Within hours, The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, an advocacy group in Boston, demanded that the site remove all advertising. Susan Linn, the director for the campaign said that it was disappointing that the site is choosing to maximize revenue at the expense of children.

Ganz, the Toronto based private company that owns Webkinz dolls and that introduced them to the marketplace in the spring of 2005, obviously listened to the critics. A few days ago the movie ads disappeared from the page.

Lutz Miller, the owner of Klosters Trading suggested that Ganz might be repositioning the Webkinz line as a mass product so that it could be sold to a larger corporation. He was also quoted as saying: "There you are paying a lot of money for a piece of plush that probably cost Ganz 15 cents"....????

It is clear that a lot of companies and executives do not have a clear understanding of the true costs of manufacturing for these items. A plush of the nature and quality distributed by Ganz is CONSIDERABLY more expensive. I question if Miller has even seen a Webkinz plush in real life and has touched and felt it...if we can produce an item of this nature at this price, he is definitely in the wrong line of business.

McDonald's gets pounded by ad-free advocates
McD's picked up US$ 1,600 of the cost of printing report card jackets for the 2007-08 school year in a Florida county in exchange for a Happy Meal coupon on the card's cover. Based on the 27,000 elementary school kids taking these covers home a total of 3-4 times per year, that is less than 2 cents per impression. The program rewarded children who earned A's and B's and that had less than 2 absences entitling them to a free meal, provided they presented their card.

This program has riled a few consumer groups. Susan Linn, director for The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood was at the top of the list claiming the Golden Arches has now hit an all new low by directly targeting kids and bypassing parents.

Regina Klaers, spokeswoman for the school district, defended their take by saying that the report cards contained some form of advertisement for the last decade. Pizza Hut sponsored the printing up until last year and added that to date, ONLY one parent had complained about the jacket.

The NRA announces the top 5 trends for 2008
- Green / Environmental practices: 38%
- Health Consciousness: 32%
- Culinary Tourism: 13%
- Exotic Flavor Exploration: 10%
- Beverage Focus: 7%

It is clear the "eco-friendly" themes will continue to be popular in 2008 as well. These trends will also apply to international markets rapidly.

Moe's offers free child ID's
This was the best franchisee-driven program per QSR Best of 2007 list. Along with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, Moe's Southwest Grill called on its franchisees to host Child ID events at various locations. Each participating franchisee paid US$ 240 for the kits from Polaroid, which make about 150 ID's. The program launched in 2006 has now yielded more than 1,000 children cards. Moe's said the goal of this program was NOT to increase sales, but rather to create a positive connection with neighbors.