The Wall Street Journal describes a test by P&G that delivers media messages to consumers when products are taken off the shelf in-store.

The tags are in a German Metro Extra store and use lcd screens at eye level. For example, when a consumer picks out a shampoo for a particular type of hair, the screen recommends the most appropriate conditioner or other hair product. The installations come via G2 Interactive, the WPP digital marketing subsidiary.

IPTV has an interesting branding development with Intel’s new chip that brings Yahoo on board to deliver internet protocol television. The Yahoo element effectively creates an easy to navigate Yahoo channel when the box is switched on. This makes a lot of sense and should soon be followed by similar moves from the other giant internet brands like Google and Microsoft. In the traditional tv world, people still trust their channels to arrange their programming for them.

The technology announced by Intel is a purpose built System on Chips (SoCs) and will go into Internet connected products such as cable set top boxes and digital TVs. The processor has high-definition video support, home cinema quality audio and advanced 3D graphics.

Intel and Yahoo! previewed a collaboration for TV and related devices that use the chip, blending the Web with the simplicity of TV. It’s called the Widget Channel and is claimed to be a user-friendly way to enjoy Web content while watching TV programs. These “TV Widgets” are small Internet applications designed to enhance the traditional TV watching experience by adding content and community features within easy reach of the remote control. Or in simple English; big screen icons you can click on to link to Yahoo! stuff.

Eric Kim, Intel senior vice president, tells us:

“TV will fundamentally change how we talk about, imagine and experience the Internet. No longer just a passive experience unless the viewer wants it that way, Intel and Yahoo! are proposing a way where the TV and Internet are as interactive, and seamless, as possible. This effort is one of what we believe will be many exciting new ways to bring the Internet to the TV, and it really shows the potential of what consumers can look forward to.”

Meanwhile, Marco Boerries, executive vice president, Connected Life, Yahoo! sounds very excited and visionary as hetells us:

“(We call) the emerging world of Internet-connected TV the Cinematic Internetâ„¢. By partnering with leaders like Intel, we plan to transform traditional TV into something bigger, better and more exciting than ever before. We intend to provide an opportunity for all developers and publishers to create new experiences that can reach millions of TV viewers globally. Yahoo! plans to enable the Cinematic Internetâ„¢ ecosystem, which will benefit consumers, device makers, advertisers and publishers.”

Intel and Yahoo! are working with a bunch of big media names on this, including Blockbuster, CBS, CinemaNow, Cinequest, Disney, ABC, eBay, GE, Joost, MTV, Samsung, Toshiba and Twitter. We’ll see if they all get there ahead of the stampede.

Our sense of smell is the sense with the strongest, most accurate level of recall. Whilst it can protect us from drinking milk that’s turned sour, it also reminds us of moments we first experienced decades ago.

America’s Scent Marketing Institute has a list of future trends in smells. It reads more like a marketing manifesto for the emerging medium but it’s interesting nevertheless:

1. Technology providers and fragrance manufacturers will morph into Scent Solution Providers, coordinating their products and services to the benefit of end-users.
2. Better data on ROI will emerge, further making the case for Scent Marketing as a valid strategy to enhance brand image and to improve sales.
3. The industry will proactively develop answers to criticisms and concerns from consumers and special interest groups.
4. Education and outreach programs will be tailored for the advertising industry so they can better understand Scent Marketing and react to their clients’ requests.
5. Microencapsulated scent will move beyond printing applications to become an element in fashion design.
6. Scent will be used to prevent counterfeiting since it cannot be easily reproduced.
7. Architects and interior designers will use scent as a design feature which will help developers sell commercial and residential property.
8. Scent will delivered in large spaces such as concert venues and stadiums during artistic performances to further brand the entertainment experience.
9. Fragrances and delivery systems from questionable sources will enter at the low end of the spectrum where price is deemed more essential than quality and consumer safety.
10. Natural oils will compete with synthetic fragrances and be perceived as more valuable.

More often than not, scents in marketing are used very obviously. You sell bread, so you spray freshly baked bread smells into the air. You sell perfumed fabric conditioner, so you stick a scent strip into a woman’s magazine. This is the scent equivalent of a pack shot or a product demonstration. It’s time to branch out and use the medium of smell more creatively, to evoke a brand’s core values rather than directly represent it.