For many years regulators have been aware of the need to regulate advertising within digital media. However, operational challenges in implementing such controls delayed the extension of regulation. In the UK, the Advertising Standards Authority’s remit to regulate digital media was only extended as recently as March 2011 – and even then its scope had limitations. This historic lack of regulation encouraged many brand owners…

How much market research is too much research?It could be argued that too much of anything may not be a good thing, but from my knowledge, no marketing executive in the drinks sector ever got fired for undertaking market research to provide appropriate solutions to meet their corporate objectives. Of course, it is the quality rather than the quantity of research that is important.

Sparkling wine producers should be pleased: the increased willingness to spend among sparkling wine drinkers and the development of new markets will both increase future sales opportunities for sparkling wine without it needing to compete with other alcoholic drinks. This is the result of a worldwide survey on the sparkling wine sector in 17 markets – the data from which was published by the…

IN PORTO, the city that funnels the river and wine of the Douro to Portugal’s north west coast, melancholic sounds of Fado singers fill the air. Sad songs of lovers left behind; full of warbling regret. Portugal’s wine industry, with its years of longing for overseas and cross-border recognition cuts a similarly romantic figure. Of the old guard of European winemakers, Portugal is the one…

BY 2016, tequila and mezcal sales are predicted to increase by 8% to 27 million cases (Euromonitor). As customers continue to move to the more premium 100% agave end of the market, that’s a lot of agave plants. Right now, there is a question mark over what this will do to raw material prices in the region. Tequila expert Tomas Estes sent word…

> VODKA COMES IN ALL FORMS, as we know. Pure and international. Local and characteristic. And then there are flavours – aren’t things getting a bit silly when we start getting wedding cake, cotton candy, cookie dough and chocolate? Has there been a mass defection of creatives from Häagen Dazs and Ben & Jerry’s to vodka companies? Absolut has been…

p> Mikaël Silvestre, the French international central defender, is now 34 so the end is in sight for his footballing days. For all the glamour and wealth among the top flight, the career of a footballer is a relatively short one. You break into the first team squad (assuming you’re good enough and lucky enough), maybe have a few injuries and, before you…