USPS to Offer Co-Branded Priority Shoe Boxes to Retailers

Retailers and customers can now ship footwear using the U.S. Postal Service’s new Priority Mail Shoe Box released May 4, writes DM News.

Digital Offerings to Stretch Upfronts to Two Months

This year’s upfronts could take two months, compared to last year’s two week stretch, according to both buyers and sellers that cite the networks’ array of digital offerings designed to capture the growing audiences spending more time on broadband, wireless and other interactive outlets, writes Adweek.

TiVo ‘Guru Guides’ Expand Magazines to TV

TiVo is joining with several magazines, including Sports Illustrated and Star, to offer viewers so-called Guru Guides, or virtual TV channels with content that is hand-picked by magazine editors, writes the New York Post.

DM Veteran Ray Butkus to Take over Automated Resources Group

Supplier of database marketing, subscription fulfillment and loyalty marketing services Automated Resources Group (ARGI), announced yesterday the appointment of direct marketing veteran Ray Butkus as its new President and CEO. Butkus leaves his post as President of Donnelley Marketing and The Donnelley Group of InfoUSA to join ARGI.

Visa Puts up Graffiti Wall Ad in Greenwich Village

Visa has hired artist Trish Grantham to take its “Life Takes Visa” campaign to Greenwich Village in the form of a giant graffiti wall mural sporting the tagline, “Life Takes Expression,” under which Visa will display other pieces of art in the form of furniture, fashion, more graffiti and sculpture, writes Adrants.

In the past, such ads, while paid for and legal, have raised complaints that the wrong message is being sent: that graffiti and vandalism are okay.

XM, WCS Cancel Merger Plans

XM Satellite Radio and WCS Wireless stopped negotiations surrounding their proposed $196 million merger, blaming “the inability to obtain necessary government approval” for the agreement “in a timely manner,” writes MediaWeek.

Arbitron Signs up U.K.’s RAJAR for PPM

U.K. radio ratings consortium RAJAR has agreed to use Arbitron’s portable people meter to measure radio and television audiences in London, writes MediaWeek. According to the two-year contract, global marketing information group TNS will license RAJAR the PPM technology from Arbitron.

Hanley Wood to Launch ‘Architect’ Mag

Construction marketplace media company Hanley Wood has announced that it will debut in October a new magazine, Architect, which will focus on information useful to practicing architects, including business expansion and design, writes BtoB.

ComScore: Google Increases Search Lead, MySpace Makes List

Google continues to increase its share of the U.S. internet search market, edging beyond Yahoo and Microsoft, according to analysis firm ComScore Networks’ latest monthly numbers, CNETwrites. From March to April this year, among home, work and university Internet users, the search engine giant’s market share increased from 42.7 percent to 43.1 percent - up from 36.5 percent in April of 2005.

SBS Top-Ranked Hispanic Radio Broadcaster

Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. continued to sustain its leadership position among Hispanic radio broadcasters, with the top two most listened to radio stations in the country, the top-rated morning show on Hispanic radio, and number one rankings among 18-34 year-old listeners in four of the most populated Hispanic areas, according to the Winter 2006 Ratings Report issued by the Arbitron Ratings Company.