Amazon, Netflix, Instagram and YouTube have the greatest vitality among 147 leading media brands, according to a new study of 1,200 media agency and brand marketing professionals conducted by MediaVillage.  Media brand vitality was assessed based on survey respondents’ perceptions of each media brand’s sustainability (ability of the brand to thrive in the new media world) and differentiation (magnitude of difference between the brand and its closest competitors).  Amazon has become the fastest growing ad-supported platform, generating an estimated $10 billion in ad revenues in 2018 with projected ad revenues approaching $25 billion by 2022.  Although Netflix and HBO do not offer advertising opportunities, agency executives appear prepared to support the platforms when and if they decide to open sponsorship opportunities.  Respondents to the MediaVillage survey rated Amazon 9.1 on a 10-point scale for sustainability, the highest rating assigned to any media brand in any of the five brand equity attributes measured in the survey.  Full content of this report and the executive summary are available to MediaVillage member companies only and may be downloaded with password at jackmyerstomorrowtoday.com.

"Media companies can and should have a purpose, identifying areas where the company can have a voice that makes a difference while building the business," believes Marc Pritchard, Chief Brand Officer of Procter & Gamble.  "Ten years ago, P&G; went down a purpose path, but it was too disconnected from the business.  What we've done recently, which is more effective in our view, is we've built what we call 'citizenship' into how we do business.  We've been very deliberate about making sure whatever we do is both a force for good and a force for growth."  In a wide-ranging interview with MediaVillage in advance of P&G;'s induction at CES into the Advancing Diversity Hall of Honors, Marc shared context on P&G;'s and his personal commitment to doing good for society in a way that's good for business, and to advocate for increased commitment by the media and advertising community to diversity and inclusion.

The five-part series that begins with this column isn’t exclusively comprised of the 25 best shows of the year.  As always it is what I hope to be an interesting mix; one that challenges the overarching sameness of so many other year-end lists of this kind.  Think of these collective columns as one list of the 25 shows I found the most engaging, or have the most to say about, or both.  There are quite a few that would be on this list if the caliber of acting were the only criteria, but many of the best in that regard – including Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale and The Looming Tower, AMC’s Little Drummer Girl and Better Call Saul and Netflix’s House of Cards and GLOW -- just didn’t fully come together for me.

If you've ever been at the point where you're very close to deciding to buy something but not quite there yet, you know how effective advertising can be.

Last week, VW announced a major marketing change, consolidating what had been 40 ad agencies globally to just three:  The Britain-based multinational WPP in North America, Cheil (the incumbent) in China, and Omnicom Group for Europe and South America.  The marketing budget will stay the same at $1.7 billion, but the company wants to see its marketing spend become 30 percent more efficient by 2020.  Digital ads will become nearly 50 percent of the mix by that time (up from 25 percent now).

It’s been quite the year for Yvonne Strahovski.  In addition to the accolades she received for her riveting performance in season two of Hulu's accalimed drama series The Handmaid's Tale, which have included Emmy Award and Critics' Choice Award nominations, she became a new mom just a couple of months ago.  The happiness she is experiencing has made transitioning into the dark dystopian world of Gilead even more challenging than usual.  “I've actually come in quite late to the game this season, just now joining my Handmaid’s family,” she explained.  “They have been hard at work for several weeks while I was off giving birth to my son, so that is at the forefront of my mind.