Gizmodo: Promotions

Pepsi and Amazon Giving Away 1 Billion MP3s

Matt Buchanan — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 18:40:22 EST

The Great Pepsi MP3 Giveaway returns, but this time with...Amazon? Yup. Starting Superbowl Sunday (Feb. 3), Pepsi's stuffing 5 billion bottles of ~~Coke~~ soda with download codes, but you need five of 'em to get a free song. That's right, there will be no casual Pepsi drinkers getting free songs on Pepsi/Amazon's dime—which is about 40 cents a track, down from the 65-70 cents Amazon usually places in labels' pockets. Consequently, not all of them may participate, which is lame-o on their part.

It's a promotion people, come on—it helped put iTunes on the map back in 2004 and it might help Amazon's MP3 store gain some much needed visibility. What's interesting is that Billboard says this contest might serve as a tipping point to push Sony BMG into selling songs in the MP3 format—right now, Universal and EMI are the only two major labels doing so. If the contest isn't an adequate carrot, Wal-Mart might be providing the stick, since it's rumored to be threatening to drop Sony and Warner's catalog if they don't supply its online store with the MP3 format.

Given the fear labels have of the iTunes monopoly, you'd think they'd jump at a player-neutral format, and moreover, the chance to promote alternate players in the online music market. I, however, am not jumping at the chance to drink Pepsi. Blech. [Billboard via Paid Content, Flickr]

Chinese Artists Take a VW Down the Hershey Highway for V-Day

Charlie White — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 12:30:00 EST

The Valentine's Day madness has apparently spread around the world, as evidenced by this chocolate-covered Volkswagen Beetle parked in front of a supermarket in China. After first wrapping the vehicle in plastic, seven enterprising car company employees slathered on 440 pounds of chocolate, resulting in the day's biggest internal-combustion chocolate truffle.

If it didn't take such a supreme effort, this could be a good prank to pull on that guy who thinks his "V-Dub" is so frickin' cool. – Charlie White

Chocolate Covered Car [Spluch]

Minihorn: Loud Enough to Wake the Dead

Charlie White — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 16:45:19 EST

The minihorn is one helluva noisemaker. About the size of a film canister, it sounds like a tenor saxophone at full blast. Perfect for making some serious racket at that cockfight you have planned for this weekend.

There was a guy pimping the little noisebombs, quite happy to rattle the rafters of the Sands Expo. – Charlie White

Product Page [minihorn]