Chief Marketer Staff

• Cadillac Blitzes Super Bowl Setting

  Over 400 Cadillac cars and trucks have blitzed Jacksonville, FL in preparation for Super Bowl XXXIX. As the official vehicle sponsor for the Super Bowl and Pro Bowl, the Cadillac brand plans to leverage its sponsorship with a strong presence both on and …

• Diageo to Buy Chalone Wine Group for $260 Million

  Diageo PLC has agreed to purchase Chalone Wine Group Ltd. for $260 million, increasing the company’s stake in California wine making. The deal comes after Chalone terminated a merger agreement with Domaines Barons de Rothschild, according to news …

• Listline e-Newsletter

  Subscribers to the e-mail newsletter “Really Useful Sites for
  International Trade Professionals” are being offered on the Federation
  of International Trade Associations (FITA) E-mail file.

• Loose Cannon: Blockbuster Bets: Will Customers Lose?

  Picture the stock market as a giant roulette wheel. (From personal experience, I can say this is not just a fair, but perhaps an overly kind analogy. I see it more as a two-armed bandit.) Before placing a bet on Blockbuster Inc. to win in 2005, consider the following.

  On Jan. 1, the movie-rental chain will launch a program that will eliminate late fees

• Listline E-Newsletter

  CNET Networks Inc. has introduced seven files related to information
  technology. Specifically, these are subscribers to Digital Living
  Magazine and the newsletters Home & Entertainment Weekly, CNET at Work,
  Digital Dispatch, Music Center, On the Go Weekly and Photo & Video
  Weekly.

• Online Buying Gap Between U.S. and U.K. Closing: Report

  The gap between the proportion of U.K. and U.S. consumers buying online will be closed this holiday season, according to payment processor and card fraud prevention company Retail Decisions.

• Ebay to Acquire Rent.com

  Ebay will acquire Rent.com, an online rental housing listing service, for $415 million in cash and stock, according to wire service reports.

• Kissner Exits Pitney Bowes

  Matthew Kissner has decided to leave his post as executive vice president and group president of the Pitney Bowes’s global enterprise solutions operations to “pursue other opportunities,” according to the company.

• DMA Names Peterman Chair of New Travel Council

  The Direct Marketing Association has named Michael Peterman, vice president of sales for AccuData America, chair of its Travel and Hospitality Council.

• Equifax, Fair Isaac Team on Credit Service

  Equifax Inc. has joined forces with myFICO.com, a division of Fair Isaac Corp. to launch Score Watch, a service available for monitoring consumers’ credit health.