The Society Of The Spectacle

Image from Stéfan’s Flickr

2010 has started with a bang for the worlds biggest search engine. Firstly, on Sunday, at the most watched Superbowl in history, Google paid $5 million to screen it’s 60 second ‘Parisian Love’ ad. Probably one of the best of the Superbowl ads, it’s simplicity showed the power and scope of Google’s search engine business. It was significant in other ways too. It was the first time Google had ever advertised it’s search engine. This was pounced on by commentators, bloggers and Google watchers as an admission of the pressures Google find’s itself under from Facebook in one corner and the emerging Microsoft Bing search engine.

Events this week have in fact revealed the opposite to be true. Yes, the facts remain Google has lost some market share to it’s rivals, but like any huge global corporation, Google’s not just got it’s finger firmly inserted in one pie, it’s sticky fingers are everywhere, and just like the after the opening credits of Star Wars have rolled, Google’s advancement into almost every single area of your web experience starts to look alot more like the Star Destroyer looming into view. (more…)

Another nice bit of Crowdsourcing, (Thanks It’s Nice That for this one) this time to produce a video, similar to the Sour video seen last September. Comissioned for the group C-Mon & Kypski This one uses photos taken of users posing in the same way to the members of the band. Apart from the fact it’s a nice way to generate play (and buzz) for your single, it shows how easy it can be to get people engaged in your content by giving them a little bit to play with. Interestingly, the director, Roel Wouters is using Crowdflower to help facilitate the process. Keep up to date with progress here.

Images taken from the ‘coversourcing’ tag on flickr.

It seems the crowdsourcing debate is as fiery as ever. This time sparked by the inevitable controversy that CP+B (Crispin Porter Bogusky for those that don’t know) have generated by using Crowdspring for a logo for the a new motorcycle project. (more…)

Ten days. Lots of things happen in ten days. For me? A few lessons learned and spirits galvanized, the scent of something new and inspiring around the corner meant that the spectacle had to take a few days off to reflect, re-charge and be ready for what is sure to be an interesting autumn. So it seems like a fitting time to share some fantastically inspiring work form the vaults of Vimeo. I’ve collected these over the past few months and have been trying to find the right context for them ever since. So sit back and be inspired by these works.

Something short, sweet and stunning.

http://www.vimeo.com/4505537 (more…)

I went to see Moon over the weekend and mighty good it is too. Starring Sam Rockwell as a lunar employee who after three years working on his own to maintain and mine the Moon the fuel that has solved the energy crisis (Th film is set in the near future) finds out all is not as it seems… (more…)

Via Brian Morrissey’s blog I found out about this fantastic idea from Nike and Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong Foundation. It’s a great example of digital media and physical experience meeting. Creating an idea that is viral yet has a permanence to it, namely in the form of chalk messages sprayed onto the road in front of the cyclists during the Tour De France (more…)

Image from What Makes The Pie Shops Flickr

Over at talent imitates, genius steals, i found this engrossing piece of branded content from the consistently excellent Honda. (more…)

A few months old now, but I stumbled upon this again while I was writing a presentation to the DAVE crew. It’s still a lovely way to bring to life lectures and presentations. it probably helps the insights are of the highest quality. Can’t wait for SXSWi ‘10! More examples after the jump.

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Oki Ni have recently started an online archive of some of their most treasured brands from their history. (more…)

Another one of those random websites that leaves you bemused and curious in equal measure. This is 24 Hours Of Perfect Content