Chief Marketer Staff

• News Brief

  ELLEN DEGENERES: debuts her new line of pet products, HALO, Purely for Pets, on the QVC cable network on Jan. 17.

• Agencies

  Ward Catalog to Make Comeback: Reports

  Montgomery Ward, now an online U.S. retailer, plans to revive its iconic catalog in a brand-rebuilding gambit, according to news reports.

• Agencies

  R.R. Donnelley Shutters Plant, Axes 160

  R.R. Donnelley is closing its Spencer, IA plant in March and will lay off its 160 employees, according to wire service reports.

• Agencies

  Khubani to Pay $7M Fine in Long-Running Case: FTC

  Marketers who allegedly made false and deceptive claims that a device would cause consumers to lose weight by applying electronic stimulation to their abdominal muscles have agreed to pay $7 million to settle an action brought by the Federal Trade Commission to obtain consumer redress, according to the FTC.

• InfoGroup Names Two Independent Directors

  InfoGroup, a data compiler, has named Roger S. Siboni and Thomas L. Thomas independent directors. They fill positions vacated by the resignations of George Haddix and Vasant Raval.

• Challenges of Measuring Word of Mouth Campaign ROI

  In 1995, Ethernet pioneer and 3Com founder Robert Metcalfe articulated Metcalfe

• Listline e-Newsletter 1/14

  GIE Media Inc. picked Statlistics to manage lists of subscribers to Garden Center Magazine, Garden Center Product Source, Greenhouse Management & Production, and Nursery Management & Production magazines

• Agencies

  Ikea Builds Oval Office in Busy Washington Train Station

  To celebrate the upcoming inauguration of President-elect Obama on Tuesday, Swedish-born home retailer Ikea has built its own version of the Oval Office in a busy Washington, DC

• Dell Must “Reboot” Customer Service, State AGs Say

  Dell will pay $3.85 million to settle cases being made with attorneys general in 46 states arising from problems with the computer vendor’s consumer practices

• Agencies

  Subway Offers DanceDanceRevolution Premiums

  Video gamer Konami has teamed up with Subway Restaurants to give away merchandise tied to its best-selling, get-up-and-move video game