The Rise and Fall of Napster In the late 1990s, Napster burst onto the scene, fundamentally changing how people accessed and shared music. Founded in 1999 by Shawn Fanning, John Fanning, and Sean Parker, Napster was a peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing service that allowed users to share MP3 files. By 2000, Napster had exploded in popularity,

The Climate Change "Debate" How Oil Giants Finance Anti-Climate Change Campaigns to Protect Their Bottom Line For decades, oil companies have known about the devastating impact of fossil fuels on the environment. Internally, their own scientists predicted the catastrophic effects of greenhouse gas emissions, warning executives about the future we now face. Yet, rather than

Sparkling Deception How De Beers Convinced the World to Spend a Fortune on Engagement Rings “A diamond is forever.” This simple phrase revolutionised how we think about love and commitment, but more importantly, how we think about spending a hefty chunk of our hard-earned cash on a tiny stone. Behind this phrase stands De Beers,

The Truth Behind the Kellogg’s Marketing Lie Is Breakfast Really the Most Important Meal of the Day? Ah, breakfast, the sacred ritual of cereal, crunchy toast, and a side of guilt if you skip it. For generations, we've been told that “breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” This golden mantra is drilled

What the Censuswide “Voice of the CMO” Report Means for Marketers An Overview of the Latest Report From Censuswide In today’s fast-evolving marketing landscape, keeping pace is more challenging than ever. Fortunately, the Censuswide “Voice of the CMO” Report offers invaluable insights for navigating this brave new world. Based on the perspectives of 500

Peloton's "The Gift That Gives Back" Campaign A Journey into the Past, or Just Tone-Deaf Marketing? Ah, Christmas 2019. A time when the world was cosying up to their Christmas trees, tucking into som mince pies, and watching in awe as Peloton gifted us a marketing disaster that will echo through the halls of advertising

McDonald's "I'd Hit It" Campaign The Double Cheeseburger Disaster In 2005, McDonald's decided to roll out a new ad for their Double Cheeseburger, thinking they had something sizzling. The ad featured a young man ogling the cheeseburger with a simple, bold caption: "I’d hit it." Now, for anyone unfamiliar with early 2000s slang, this phrase

New Coke A Deliciously Disastrous Debacle or Secret Marketing Genius? 1985. The birth of yours truly, "The MAMBA". There was big hair, neon clothes, Dire Straights published "Brothers in Arms" and… Coca Cola launched New Coke!? It was the year Coca-Cola decided to do the unthinkable: mess with a formula that hadn’t been touched since

KFC "Mouthfull" Advert Finger Lickin' Bad or Just a Bit of Fun? Let’s set the stage. It’s 2005, and KFC, the fast-food giant known for its bucket of chicken, decides to release an advert in the UK that would go down in history – not for being groundbreaking or revolutionary, but for being an etiquette