Once again, Visa was quick off the mark with real-time congratulatory commercials for their sponsored athletes winning gold in the Summer Olympics. For Team USA women's beach volleyball champs Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor third consecutive (and final) Olympic gold medal, check out their reaction (below) to the new Morgan Freeman-narrated congratulatory spot (above). Also below, watch Visa's on-air congrats to Allyson Felix that aired on NBC after she won the gold (her first individual Olympic gold medal) in the women's 200m sprint.Continue reading...

Today's Brandlympics round-up is brought to you by field hockey, the London 2012 Olympics sport celebrated in today's Google homepage logo:

Government Not Relaxing Olympic Marketing Ban for Months

The architects of London’s new arenas and sporting venues would like the world to know who they are and what they’ve done, but London won’t allow it. Due to the strict marketing rules in place, the venues can only be associated with London 2012 and the Olympics and not be used to market anyone or anything that hasn’t shelled out the millions it takes to be an official sponsor. And that rule isn’t expected to disappear before year’s end. This, of course, has left the architects unhappy. “The end of the year’s no good,” said Angela Brady, the president of the Royal Institute of British Architects, to BDOnline. “All eyes are on London right now. I want the architects to be able to stand proudly in front of their buildings and talk about them to international TV crews. These rules are against the whole spirit of the Olympics. Crushing the small guy is just not on.”Continue reading...

Brands spend millions to become official partners of the Olympics, and Ace Metrix says those sponsorships are worth it. Ace Metrix is the only company scoring every nationally airing US Olympic ad leading up to and during the games, and today announced their Olympic ad effectiveness program.

“We are thrilled to provide a 360 degree view of ad effectiveness for brands who have invested in Olympic sponsorships and Olympic themed ads,” said Peter Daboll, CEO of Ace Metrix, about its ranking of London 2012 marketing campaigns to date.

“The Olympics are a significant investment for any sponsor, and understanding the effectiveness of that sponsorship is critical in the era of marketing accountability," he added. "We are particularly interested in the data regarding the vital emotional elements associated with the Olympics. Understanding how the emotion of such a global event relates to the rational consumer processing that accompanies the vast majority of advertising will be fascinating."Continue reading...

With 32 days before the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games kick off in London....

Official sponsor McDonald's UK offers sneak peek at designer Wayne Hemingway's sustainable, Mad Men-inspired uniforms that will debut at its biggest restaurant (if for only six weeks), which is now under construction at the London Olympics Park:Continue reading...

Why have some conservatives apparently shied away from going to see Dolphin Tale, a family-friendly film if ever there was one? Because Morgan Freeman is the star. And because Freeman reminded the country about his liberal politics when he complained on CNN's Piers Morgan Tonight, right as the movie opened, that Tea Party opposition to President Obama "is a racist thing."

Ditto for why many liberals have soured on conservative actors including Jon Voight and Gary Sinise. Sinise, star of CSI: New York on television, is a big supporter of the U.S. military and has committed the unpardonable sin of talking with Sean Hannity on the latter's radio show.

The box office, it turns out, is every bit as divided as everything else in America's increasingly political culture, according to a new poll by Penn Schoen Berland conducted for The Hollywood Reporter.Continue reading...

With his campaign to deprive incumbent politicians of corporate campaign contributions until they get the federal-debt issue right, Howard Schultz has certainly added to the increased noise by executives yammering about what's wrong with the American economy, and what to do about it. And at a time of continued economic distress -- including stubbornly high unemployment and the threat of a double-digit recession -- many CEOs aren't just talking. They're also putting -- or not putting -- their money and companies' resources where their mouths are.

Take Schultz and his simpaticos. “We’ve touched a nerve,” the Starbucks CEO said in an interview with TheWrap last week. "There’s such a groundswell of disappointment and concern with regard to the leadership in Washington and crisis of confidence that we have.” He called for a suspension of donations to all incumbents, including President Obama, and dozens of other CEOs have signed on to Schultz's pledge, including Tim Armstrong of AOL and Mickey Drexler of J. Crew. Schultz doesn't even want politicians on vacation until they get the nation back on a viable fiscal path.

But at the same time, another renowned CEO, Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway, made a tacit -- but very clear -- expression of confidence in the Obama administration last week by plunking down $5 billion to invest in and help the Bank of America through a rough patch. The renowned financier also promised to hold a big fundraiser in New York next month for the beleaguered president, who at some point last week interrupted his Martha's Vineyard vacation to call Buffett, presumably to thank him for his support. Of the same accord seems to be a new TV advertisement by Midwestern stalwart Fifth Third Bank, which says, "We're not waiting for the economy to improve -- we're helping businesses to make it happen."Continue reading...

Amazon booted WikiLeaks off its servers following political pressure, the whistleblowing site confirmed on Twitter. Bank of America, meanwhile, grapples with rumors it's next on the WikiLeaks hotseat as Julian Assange sets sights on corporate reputations.

Apple's iPhone takes top spot in US smartphone market.

Bloomberg's annual World AIDS Day breakfast disrupted by activist bagel protest.

EU proposes end to branded cigarettes.

USA makes final pitch (incl. Morgan Freeman, Bill Clinton) to host 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Google Doodles expand to mobile; clamps down on business trolling.

Groupon expands in Asia with three acquisitions ahead of Google deal.Continue reading...

Every so often, advertisers all look at one actor and decide he or she is the one that captures a mixture of the here-and-now and the particular product the ad will promote. This makes for an odd perfect storm of advertising for viewers, who all see one person playing different roles across different brand platforms.

Currently, that guy is named R.J. Kelly III and you may have seen him recently about how this happens and if the phenomenon is good or bad for brands.Continue reading...