Sonomanews.com: Sonoma's new Scandinavian Trends offers a bright assortment of gifts and collectibles as sweet as a Christmas kringle.

Launched earlier this month by Danish natives Chris and Merete Bendtsen, the shop brims with Norwegian trolls, Swedish linens, bright Danish paper mobiles, Finnish glass, Skagen watches and hand-knit Norwegian cardigans to warm up the coldest Greenland elf. The store also carries Royal Copenhagen china and its line of retired Christmas plates, Georg Jensen silver and plenty of other visual confections - from children's books to candles to greeting cards.

"No store has anything like we have here," said owner Chris Bendtsen.
"Sonoma is peaceful - it's a (little slice) of paradise," said Chris, who runs a wholesale business for Scandinavian wares and travels to his native stomping grounds frequently.

Scandinavian Trends opens Plaza shop [Sonomanews.com]

WBOC.com: Mash-up Music: it's a trend that gives new meaning to the term "music mix."

It's taking two different songs - and mixing them together. One popular one these days is the blend of Alicia Keys' vocals for her song "Karma" with the music track for the song "Superstition" by Stevie Wonder.

Wyclef Jean of the Fugees says mash-ups are more than just a fad. He says it's a taste of things to come, musically.

The new trend - mashed music [WBOC.com]

Iconoculture: If you can’t fight the sloth, embrace it. Making up for – not necessarily fixing – our bad habits gives lazy homeowners a fun Ready, Set, Go! kick.

Wahoo! There’s an easy cleanup cure for dirty undies and socks littering the floor. Laundry Rug turns a lazy schlub’s messy habit into a carefree lifestyle choice. And unlike the Undy Rug, this form also has a function. Pile the clothes on the rug and – bingo – the rug transforms into a shoulder-carry laundry bag. Wrap 'em, bag 'em, and haul 'em to the laundromat. No more feeling hampered by a hamper.

The rug’s U.K. distributor embraces the art of sloth. "After wearing, clothes are chucked on the stylish Laundry Rug, where they will stay until wash-day comes around ... It's a bedroom must-have for lazy people everywhere!" (Addject.com 7.05). Proper Brits, indeed!

Making up for – not necessarily fixing – bad habits puts a positive spin on mortal shortcomings. Laundry Rug is a slob’s stinky dream come true. No one’s perfect. But that’s OK. Just be sure to run the extra rinse cycle.

Hampered No More [Iconoculture]

We Make Money Not Art: Peter D'Alessandro's Magnetic Mixer is a concept for a kitchen work surface and mixer.

The work surface is embedded with magnets and a heating element, when the magnetic mixer is placed on top a revolving magnetic field is created. The result is that the hands free device starts to stir and/or heat food seemingly unaided.

The designer was inspired by the magnetic stirrers used in chemistry labs. These stirrers are used to mix chemicals with a ptfe coated bar magnet; some also have a heating function. His concept model incorporates the drive magnets into the kitchen work surface. The user interface takes advantage of the translucent qualities of the work top material by back lighting the speed and heat icons as well as their settings.

Magnetic Mixer [We Make Money Not Art]

InternetNews.com: It's the end of attention.

The few crumbs of spare attention anyone has left over from the barrage of daily media will soon be eaten up by "video snacks," little chunks of content delivered to cell phones to fill those awkward moments when no one is calling, texting or e-mailing us.

On Thursday, SmartVideo Technologies announced a content deal with Two Minute Television, a production company that specializes in entertainment for teentsy attention spans. The two companies will offer a free, ad-supported mobile TV channel featuring shows like "Adventures in Speed Dating."

SmartVideo takes broadcast-quality video and transmutes it for the small screen. It plans to let users subscribe directly while also offering the service to content creators and mobile network operators. The SmartVideo catalog includes programming from ABC News, NBC Universal, Fox Sports and The Weather Channel.

Mobile Video: The Last Eyeballs [InternetNews.com]

SignOnSanDiego.com: Have a great photograph of yourself you'd like the world to see?

Maybe a picture that proves you really did reach the top of Mount Whitney, or catch a 50-pound King salmon in Alaska, or hang glide over a beach in Rio.

Wouldn't that photo make a perfect postage stamp?

Make it happen.

Now anyone can join the ranks of George Washington, Dr. Seuss and Elvis and get their images on a U.S. postage stamp.

A 50-day trial sale last summer of vanity postage generated 2.7 million personalized postage stamps. Now the Postal Service and Stamps.com have teamed again – this time, on a yearlong trial of customized postage stamps. More vendors are expected to be licensed as part of the test.

Picture it: Engaged couples can now send out wedding invitations stamped with photos of themselves snuggling. Newlyweds can mail thank-you notes posted with 37-cent stamps picturing themselves exchanging vows. Proud parents can mail birth announcements stamped with the image of junior's first photograph.

Personal stamps again push envelope [SignOnSanDiego.com]

Phonemag.com: This summer, moviegoers walking through theater lobbies in three cities might have felt a sudden vibration in their cell phones, the work of a nearby Bluetooth promotional kiosk.

Last month, 20th Century Fox signed a deal with Loews Cineplex Entertainment to distribute movie trailers, ring tones and pictures through kiosks in three Loews theaters, in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The promotional material can be picked up by anyone with a cell phone equipped to handle Bluetooth, a form of short-range wireless transmission.

Downloading a full-length movie trailer from the kiosk takes about 30 seconds, and there is no fee from the phone’s service provider. One ring tone offered is an emphatic voice from the movie “Kingdom of Heaven” that declares, “Protect the stones!”

Moviegoers can also download cell phone screen “wallpaper” of Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie in “Mr. and Mrs. Smith.” (Pitt has been downloaded more often.)

“Everyone in the entertainment space is looking for creative new ways to access consumers,” said Grant Wakelin, chief executive of the WideRay, the San Francisco company that developed the wireless technology behind the service. “This is a cool new approach.”

A cell phone, a movie lobby and a message [Phonemag.com]

Yahoo! Finance: Wooed by flashy advertising and promotions, kids are now drinking three times more soda than milk. Not surprisingly, childhood obesity rates also have tripled in the last 20 years, and schools are leading the charge to provide healthier food and beverage options to students. New milk research suggests that simple marketing and product improvements can help students choose a healthier alternative at school, and increase milk consumption by up to 34 percent.

"Taking a page from the soda manufacturers' marketing manual, many milk processors are taking steps to make milk more "cool" for kids," said Tom Nagle, vice president of marketing for the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA). "Students in the St. Louis test chose milk because of the new graphics and packaging, but they kept drinking it because of the great taste and new flavors."

Cool New Flavors and Creative Packaging Help Kids Make Better Beverage Choices [Yahoo! Finance]

Springwise.com: More beauty-based ideas, of the Metrosexual kind no less (ah -- how 2004), as male beautification continues its waxed & plucked victory march. Male grooming salons and spas are seeing brisk business (as Springwise reported before). Men now make up 29 percent of all spa goers, according to the International Spa Association, while many European spas even report that men comprise 50% or more of their business. Here's a telling update (and hopefully a source of inspiration) of some recent salon/spas/barber spottings in this field:

The Dandy House Men's Beauty Day Spa is a Japanese chain offering everything from eyebrow trimming to body hair removal to weight-loss programs. Dandy House plans to expand from its current 54 salons to 100 by 2010.

The New Male [Springwise]

Independentcollegian.com: A new accessory has wrapped its way around the waists of New York City's trendsetters.

Scrolling LED belt buckles in vibrant colors allow hipsters to display personalized messages in rhinestone-studded frames.

The battery-powered buckles hold six programmable messages of up to 512 characters, according to Alex Ressi, an online scrolling buckle distributor in Manhattan.

Some distributors sell entire packages, including the buckle, belt and batteries, while others sell only the buckles.

The buckles adorn waists from New York City to Los Angeles, and are sold on Web sites such as NYCScrolls.com or ScrollingBuckle.com.

The Independent Collegian met Ressi at Starbucks on the corner of 34th Street and 5th Avenue in New York City to discuss this growing trend.

Ressi, 28, founder and owner of NYC Scrolls, said he began selling the buckles in February after he saw a woman wearing one on the subway. Immediately noticing the product's personalization and all-around fashion appeal, Ressi partnered with his girlfriend, Meredith Abreu, 28, to sell the buckles online a month after he first saw them, he said.

"It's such a great product to really be seen and stand out," he said of the buckles, which range in price from $29.99 to $59.99. "It's just one of those things that lets your personality through, for good or bad."

Scrolling belt buckles make 'hip' new trend [Independentcollegian.com]

The New York Times: A pear is just a pear, except when it is also a laser-coded information delivery system with advanced security clearance.

And that is what pears--not to mention organic apples, waxy cucumbers and delicate peaches--are becoming in some supermarkets around the country. A new technology being used by produce distributors employs lasers to tattoo fruits and vegetables with their names, identifying numbers, countries of origin and other information that helps speed distribution. The marks are burned onto the outer layer of the skin and are visible to discerning consumers and befuddled cashiers alike.

The process, government approved and called safe by the industry, may sound sinister. But it was designed with the consumer in mind: laser coding could mean the end of those tiny stubborn stickers that have to be picked, scraped or yanked off produce.

Soured on stickers? Try tattooed fruit [The New York Times via CNet]

Iconoculture: Consumers find a release for their primal passions, as well as their sense of unusual style, in retreats that are affordable, energy-efficient, and oh so cool.

Batman isn’t the only guy with a cool cave, OK? Affluent homeowners seeking a novel retreat are digging into their equity budgets to add custom-built caves to their property. The subterranean add-ons house everything from wine cellars to home entertainment centers to luxury spas.

Bacchus Caves in Napa, California, a longtime builder of winery caverns, now sells 60% of its caves to private clients (USA Today 5.19.05). One Connecticut man shelled out for a 3,000-sq.-ft. cave with faux hot springs. It wasn’t cheap, especially by Neanderthal standards, but caves cost just $150 per sq. ft. to build, compared with $500 per sq. ft. for most above-ground construction.

Cool Hideaway [Iconoculture]

BizReport: Nike.com sells nearly 200 styles of sneakers for men and women -- which, for some footwear fiends, apparently isn't choice enough. In fact, the convenience of being able to shop online isn't enough.

Enter NikeID.com, the Web site where you can design a one-of-a-kind shoe using dozens of colors and fabrics. Candy-apple low-tops with a lime-green swoosh? Caramel trainers with your initials embroidered on the back? Dream up combinations from the colors offered, click until you've got it right, and custom-made shoes can be delivered to your doorstep in about three weeks -- for only $10 or so more than their non-customized counterparts.

While NikeID's shoes have become must-haves among those with a sneaker fetish, they also herald a larger trend: the "just-have." As in, just you have it.

Custom Sites Let Users Cobble Their Own Shoes [BizReport]

CoolBusinessIdeas Newsletter Issue 21: 18/07/05 - 31/07/05

New Business Ideas/Opportunities Featured In This Issue:

GAMES
Mirror Mirror On The Walls
Through the looking glass is a system that allows a person to play a game with her/himself in a mirror.
Read more

DESIGN
Graffiti Design
Wonderful Graffiti lets self-proclaimed practitioners of the art of scribble say what they mean in a lawful manner - using vinyl lettering!
Read more

Kitchen's Helper
Peter D'Alessandro's Magnetic Mixer is a concept for a kitchen work surface and mixer.
Read more

TOURISM
Wannado It?
In Wannado City, brainchild of Mexican-born entrepreneur Luis Javier Laresgoiti, kids role-play in real-life settings and carry out virtually real tasks.
Read more

CONSUMER GOODS
Only I Have it
Enter NikeID.com, the Web site where you can design a one-of-a-kind shoe using dozens of colors and fabrics.
Read more

Laundry Rug for Lazy Bums
It's a bedroom must-have for lazy people everywhere - the stylish Laundry Rug!
Read more

Scandinavian Trends
Scandinavian Trends offers a bright assortment of Scandinavian gifts and collectibles.
Read more

LIFESTYLE
Get Me A Cave
Affluent homeowners seeking a novel retreat are digging into their equity budgets to add custom-built caves to their property.
Read more

Male Business
Male grooming salons and spas are seeing brisk business! The Dandy House Men's Beauty Day Spa (Japanese chain) offers everything from eyebrow trimming to body hair removal to weight-loss programs.
Read more

TECHNOLOGY
More Than Just A Pear
New technology used by produce distributors employs lasers to tattoo fruits & vegetables with their names, countries of origin and other information that helps speed distribution.
Read more

FASHION
Scrolling Belt Buckles
Scrolling LED belt buckles in vibrant colors allow hipsters to display personalized messages in rhinestone-studded frames.
Read more

FOOD & BEVERAGE
Cool Packaging
Cool new flavors and creative packaging help kids make better beverage choices.
Read more

ENTERTAINMENT
Movie Goodies on Cell
This summer, moviegoers walking through theater lobbies in three cities might have felt a sudden vibration in their cell phones, the work of a nearby Bluetooth promotional kiosk.
Read more

Two Minutes Mobile TV
"Video snacks" are little chunks of content delivered to cell phones to fill those awkward moments when no one is calling, texting or e-mailing us.
Read more

MEDIA & PUBLISHING
Personalized Postage Stamps
Now anyone can join the ranks of George Washington, Dr. Seuss and Elvis and get their images on a U.S. postage stamp!
Read more

MUSIC
Mashed Music
Mash-up Music: it's a trend that gives new meaning to the term "music mix."

View this issue of the CoolBusinessIdeas Newsletter by clicking here. Subscribe for free by clicking here.

NEXT by Ramla: The blurb says: At Wannado City, kids can be whatever they want to be – right now. From paleontologist to news reporter, to everything in between, kids try out tons of grown-up jobs in the first indoor city just their size. They can operate on a patient, cook up a pizza or even solve a crime.

This is amazing. Be what you wanna be! DO what you wanna do! The ultimate realistic-fantasy of all human beings: get a taste of what it's like to do what you want to do with real objects and playmates.

Kids play out their fantasies in style by role-playing with imaginery objects and imaginary settings (and in my kiddie days, there were sometimes massive disputes on setting the scene and even assigning gender roles). But in Wannado City, brainchild of Mexican-born entrepreneur Luis Javier Laresgoiti, kids roleplay in real-life settings and carry out virtually real tasks. He got the idea for this experiential park when he watched his own daughter play with his telephone.

Wannado City [NEXT by Ramla]

DailyCandy: All the nights spent scaling buildings, tagging bridges, scribing walls with your crew.

Maybe you wanted to mark your territory. Maybe you wanted fame.

Too bad you've been busted. Sucka!

While under house arrest, ditch the spray can for some legal tender. Wonderful Graffiti (with the implied placid name) lets self-proclaimed practitioners of the art of scribble say what they mean in a lawful manner — using vinyl lettering.

Claim the bathroom as your own with your personal expression on the wall. Or scrawl a sweet sentence in the stairwell to your room. Surf the website for fonts, colors, and text. Keep it simple or do it up with embellishments. Then enter dimensions to see how the graffiti lettering looks within your space.

Writing on the Wall [DailyCandy]

we make money not art: Through the looking glass is a system that allows a person to play a game with her/himself in a mirror. A full-body-action pong game can be played with the current installation, which provides the excitement of wining and losing at the same time, against oneself.

Lumisty Film, which is used as the material for the table surface, is a key to enabling this unique gaming experience. Lumisty Film selectively diffuses light based on projection angles, which can be used to implement an LCD projection screen that can only be viewed from a person who is looking straight into an LCD projector. (This technology is used for an interactive table system called Lumisight Table, which was developed by the same group at the University of Tokyo.)

So, using two projectors and a mirror as shown in the following illustration, images from one projector can only be seen in the mirror while images form the other projector cannot be seen in the mirror. The camera tracks the location of the disk that the player manipulates on the table.

Through the looking glass [we make money not art]

CoolBusinessIdeas Newsletter Issue 20: 04/07/05 - 17/07/05

New Business Ideas/Opportunities Featured In This Issue:

FOOD & BEVERAGE
Functional Sweets
Sweet news for the sweet tooth - “functional confectionery” is taking some of the guilt out of guilty pleasures.

ONLINE
Half The Price
Gift certificates are becoming even better for self-indulgence - at half the price!

GADGETS
Wearing Music
A concept that won a Bronze Award at IDEA: a wrist-worn MP3 player controlled by simple hand gestures and audio feedback.

ENTERTAINMENT
Interactive Concerts
Verizon Wireless and Hard Rock Hotel & Casino announced a partnership that will bring top tier music artists and interactive wireless technology to Las Vegas.

LIFESTYLE
Well Wishes
Paper Ink Studio’s collection of cards, invitations etc. are minimalist at heart, but with vibrant color schemes, graphics, and clever text.

Knitting - A New Generation
Knitting has become the new trend, and all of a sudden, the crazy stares are gone.

Workouts in the City
Outdoor gym classes, from Balance Integrated Training Concepts, transforms cityscape features like curbs into exercise equipments.

CONSUMER GOODS
VoiceSave
TJ Walker, a professional speaker and media trainer, has developed a new throat spray, for executives, sales people, political leaders and talk show hosts.

MOBILE
Mobile Phone Spying
French distributor Spy-Phone is offering two Nokia Spy Phones which silently activate themselves.

CNN on my Nokia
NTL and O2 revealed a trial which has been designed to test and showcase the televisual capabilities of the next generation of mobile phones.

ADVERTISING
Pay-per-Call
Search marketing agency Greenlight has launched a Pay-Per-Call service aimed at UK advertisers.

HEALTH
Alarm Pills
The SIMpill bottle takes the guesswork out of medicine schedules, using cellphone tech to alert patients when a prescribed dose is missed.

SERVICES
Happy Hours
PartyBuddys will provide you with your own posse - a guide to take you to all the clubs you want to hit, a trained bodyguard, paparazzi-like photographers to take your picture as you exit your limo, and bottle service at your VIP table - for a fabulous night in town.

Temp Models for Hire
A whole new market for renting out aspiring models who can just 'be', is opening up.

View this issue of the CoolBusinessIdeas Newsletter by clicking here. Subscribe for free (bonus gifts included with subscription) by clicking here.

Iconoculture: As technology lets us monitor more aspects of our lives, it can mean safer medicating and better health for forgetful patients.

Time for a pill? The SIMpill bottle takes the guesswork out of medicine schedules, using cellphone tech to alert patients (or their caregivers) when a prescribed dose is missed. Pharmacists program pill-popping times into the dispenser, and if the bottle’s opened too early or too late, SIMpill notifies the patient via text message on their cell. If there’s no response, an alert hits the phone of a family member or other designated caregiver (Business Day 1.25.05). If the pill’s taken at the appointed time, there’s no warning – a better system than constant alarms, says SIMpill’s inventor, Dr. David Green, because “people get message fatigue”

TAKE A PILL [Iconoculture]

Springwise.com: Beautiful people have always had it easier, but in today's appearance-obsessed society it really pays to be one of the Beautiful Ones. As no event, party, night out, shopping spree or fancy dinner is complete without pretty people serving, tending, hosting, welcoming or just chatting, a whole new market for renting out aspiring models who can just 'be', is opening up. Witness the success of Dutch temp agency Models at Work, which has 150 aspiring/beginning models on file. Corporate clients like Martini, Bacardi, Moët & Chandon, Coca Cola, Puma, G-star, Cartier, MTV, Elle, Esquire, T-Mobile use the agency to make sure their corporate and marketing events are chockablock with easy-on-the-eyes Dutchies.

The Beautiful Ones [Springwise.com]

Iconoculture: Gyms can be intimidating, not to mention crowded and confining – especially for people who spend enough of their waking hours indoors. These workouts set them free.

Park benches aren’t just for sitting. Fitness buffs use them for aerobic step-ups while on Urban Walks in Washington, DC. The outdoor classes, from Balance Integrated Training Concepts (ITC), transform cityscape features like curbs into exercise equipment.

Trainers lead small groups of eight on early-morning 3-mi. walks that wind through leafy neighborhoods and parks. Walkers stop to stretch and pump up their heart rates using whatever is at hand; walls, for instance, make great chest presses. For $10, anyone feeling suburban girth can drop in. Like a tamed version of urban exploration or a kidless take on stroller excursions, the activities engage people to get out and make friends with their neighborhoods.

Fit To Be Tried [Iconoculture]

Entrepreneur.com: For people who long to party like P. Diddy, but don't have quite the celeb status needed to bypass the velvet ropes, PartyBuddys is a lifesaver and, according to co-founder James King, "like a traveling VIP party."

Founded by two longtime friends, the idea is that, for a fee (the average cost is $2,500 for four people), PartyBuddys will provide you with your own posse--a guide to take you to all the clubs you want to hit, a trained bodyguard, paparazzi-like photographers to take your picture as you exit your limo, and bottle service at your VIP table--for a fabulous night on the town. The pair also arranges luxury car rentals, spa services and even personal shopping for their clients.

King and Roefaro, both 30, got the idea after spending countless nights out on the town in their 20s. They felt that as people got older and had more money, they'd pay to bypass lines and get first-class service in the club scene.

After talking to the New York City club owners they knew well, says Roefaro, "They bought into our idea as being the next step in corporate entertaining." With set relationships in place, the pair started marketing their PartyBuddys service by handing out fliers and business cards in front of clubs, and the buzz grew.

Party Time [Entrepreneur.com]

Tech Digest: NTL and O2 today revealed what those lucky punters who are trialling digital TV to mobile phones in Oxford are going to be watching. And if they were expecting live football or blockbuster movies on their Nokia 7710 handsets they are going to be sorely disappointed. For in the first six months of the trial our TV to go guinea pigs are going to sampling the delights of The Cartoon Network, CNN, Discovery Channel, Sky Sports News and Sky Travel.

Overall 16 channels will eventually be lined up by NTL and O2 in the trial which has been designed to test and showcase the televisual capabilities of the next generation of mobile phones. Apparently the trial will look at how people choose to catch up on their favourite TV shows, watch the latest music videos and keep up to date with the news and sport when on the move.

The TV channels now transmitting to your mobile... [Tech Digest]

Textually.org: Apparently, French distributor Spy-Phone is offering two Nokia Spy Phones, normal mobile phones that can be called and it silently activate themselves. The caller can then surreptitiously hear what happens in the vicinity of the phone.

The French spy phone offered is an unlocked 3310 Nokia GSM mobile phone, apparently it will not work on US networks and sells for 399 Euros (about $480 US).

The company also offers a modified Nokia 6100 designed to be given to a person. The phone looks totally normal, but can also be called via a secret number hidden in the phone. This one sells for 699 Euros (some $837.)

Nokia Spy Phone [Textually.org]
Spy-Phones: listen in on a Nokia 3410, 3310, or 6100 [Engadget]

NewsReleaseWire.com: TJ Walker, a professional speaker and media trainer, has developed a new throat spray, TJ’s VoiceSave, for executives, sales people, political leaders and talk show hosts. The spray simulates natural lubricants in the vocal apparatus in order to prevent dry throat, hoarseness and the loss of voice.

Walker noted, “For CEOs, Salespersons, politicians or talk show hosts to lose their voice means they are out of business that day. I couldn’t afford to lose my voice ever again. That’s why I developed TJ’s VoiceSave. Just as your hands need lotion in the winter time to keep from getting dry and cracked, your voice needs a lotion to keep it from becoming dry and cracked. That’s how TJ’s VoiceSave protects your voice.”

TJ’s VoiceSave was developed with pharmacist Gordon Schmitz and is available for sale at www.tjsvoicesave.com

New Product - TJs VoiceSave [NewsReleaseWire.com]

EastBayRI.com: Knitting has become the new trend, and all of a sudden, the crazy stares are gone. The popularity of the age-old pastime has soared in recent years, and even clebrities like Julia Roberts and Cameron Diaz have recognized its theraputic benefits. Sometimes, just being able to sit down and escape the chaos of life and create something is the most soothing thing in the world. Another advantage to knitting is that you can have one-of-a-kind handmade clothing and accessories all year long. There are so many different things that are being knit.

Bella Yarns in Warren is not just your typical yarn store. It's also home to "Open Knit Night," where people come to knit, talk, and learn. Thursday nights from 6 to 8 p.m. the shop is filled with knitters of all ages. The crowd varies from night to night. The winter season is a more popular one for knitting, with at least 12 people a night showing up with their projects in hand.

Knitting, the age-old hobby, attracts a new generation [EastBayRI.com]

NetImperative: Search marketing agency Greenlight has launched a Pay-Per-Call service aimed at UK advertisers.

Pay-per-call is billed as an alternative to traditional pay-per-click search advertising.

The advertiser is only required to pay for the adverts that result in phone calls, in much the same way pay-per-click advertising only charges for visitors sent to a website.

Greenlight said the service could open up the search market to thousands of businesses which operate without a website.

Greenlight launches Pay-Per-Call service [NetImperative]

TMCnet: Verizon Wireless, owner and operator of the nation's most reliable wireless network, and Hard Rock Hotel & Casino today announced a partnership that will bring top tier music artists and interactive wireless technology to Las Vegas. Hard Rock Hotel & Casino concertgoers will be able to interact with the artists and share PIX and TXT messages on interactive plasma screens visible throughout the "The Joint," the hotel's concert venue, as well as on channel 25 shown throughout the casino, pool, restaurants and hotel guest rooms.

"Our partnership with Verizon Wireless reflects the true meaning of partnership marketing," said Philip Shalala, vice president of marketing for the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas. "Their commitment to innovation, music and technology provides our customers with a quality interactive experience. Together, we have been able to create measurable results among a specific target audience."

Verizon Wireless, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Partner to Bring Music Top Music Artists and Interactive Concerts to Las Vegas [TMCnet]

DailyCandy: Let's face it. E-cards meet a need. When, say, you forget your brother's birthday. And when you throw a Bachelor finale party for your pals. But those fast and free messages don't make anyone sentimental.

Nothing says someone cared enough to send the very best like a beautifully designed traditional note in your mailbox. (That strange thing attached to your house.)

Paper Ink Studio is the brainchild of architect Le Vu, who had an insatiable desire to play with color. Her collection of cards, announcements, and invitations are minimalist at heart — but their vibrant color schemes, retro graphics, and clever text give correspondence a kick.

Duly Noted [DailyCandy]

Popgadget: Snap, by Design Continuum, is a wrist-worn MP3 player controlled by simple hand gestures and audio feedback. By monitoring the movement of tendons in your wrist, the device “reads” the hand gestures that control its playback, and reports status through wireless earbuds. The player and earbuds communicate using your skin as a transmission medium, with no wires required, and no radio interference. Songs are loaded and managed with standard wi-fi.

Now, don't hold your breath: as the title of this post said, it's only a concept but it won a Bronze Award at IDEA.

Snap Bracelet Concept [Popgadget]

Iconoculture: Sometimes, more is more. We want our indulgences, but we want to look and feel better, too. Delivering it all in one tasty package makes consumers smile – and keep on chomping.

Sweet news for the sweet tooth. From tooth-whitening chewing gum to skin-enhancing chocolate to vitamin-packed fruit chews, “functional confectionery” is taking some of the guilt out of guilty pleasures. In an effort to bring health-conscious consumers back to the candy aisle, bonbon brands are sugarcoating the good-for-you stuff – literally. The sweetest confectionery crossovers mix things up across health, beauty, and fitness segments. The one thing they won’t mess with? Taste. “Americans are explorers, they like new things,” says Harry Balzer of consumer marketing firm NPD Group. “As long as you don’t upset my expectations of taste, that’s the most important thing”

Sweet Science [Iconoculture]

CoolBusinessIdeas Newsletter Issue 19: 20/06/05 - 03/07/05

New Business Ideas/Opportunities Featured In This Issue:

MOBILE
Simple Phones
Vodafone is getting back to basics - big screens and large buttons.

O-Synchronized
O-Sync interplays between the Web and your phone wirelessly, enabling you to backup and perform synchronization of your phone's mobile contact database, anytime anywhere, without cables.

MARKETING
iPods + Sushi
EMI (UK) has tied with Yo! Sushi to provide music & video content to the restaurant chain.

Differentiated Cap Tabs
Ball Corporation is launching a new advertising medium that allows beverage can tabs and ends to carry customized messaging.

ONLINE
Shopping Haven
Yub.com is the world's first shopping social network.

Social Searching
Instead of using search algorithms, as in the past, Yahoo is tapping into its community of users to assist in setting the ranking and relevance of search results.

FOOD & BEVERAGE
Barhand
Barhand could bring an end to elbows, curses, sneers. This vending machine’s robotic arm dispenses bottled brews, cutting queues and easing staff burdens.

Vending Machine for Beers
A vending machine for bottled beers and RTDs aimed at pubs, bars and nightclubs is being launched by a young entrepreneur.

Pizza, Anyone?
Invented in Italy (where else), cone shaped pizzas - think pizza slice meets ice cream cone - are the latest fast food craze!

Spice Up Your Life
Zesty spices no longer belong in boring jars. Gusto! Spice Cakes are colorful blocks of “visual aroma” that inspire cooks!

SERVICES
Stroll-dating
Stroll-dating is an altogether more civilised affair, a happy marriage between two of life's great pleasures - dogs and country walks.

GAMES
Casual Gaming
Casual games are growing more prominent in the ever-broadening game marketplace, becoming big sellers on a small budget.

DESIGN
More Than Plain Gray
Homeowners who want something other than plain gray curbing in their landscape now have a myriad of options thanks to a new Blount County business – landscape curbing.

RETAIL
Little Boutiques
America's megamalls have begun to embrace the little guys, a new crop of quirky independent fashion boutiques.

Personalization Business
Personalization: over the last few years this movement became big time!

eMall Commerce
A new shopping complex in Ohio will try to combine the convenience of online stores with the hands-on experience of browsing at a mall.

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Entrepreneur.com: Gift certificates have always been ideal for gift giving, but now they're becoming even better for self-indulgence--at half the price. Eric Diamond, 33, spent a decade working tech-related jobs before figuring out a way to combine his tech skills with his family connections in the fashion industry. His brainstorm was SalesOffline.com, a website he originally built to advertise local retail sales that has since evolved into a provider of discounted gift certificates to independent fashion retailers in the New York City area.

Confidence, coupled with approximately $60,000 collected from personal savings, family and friends, provided Diamond the opportunity to develop the website and a business model that brings profits not only to him, but to all involved--even retailers. How does it work? Customers buy gift certificates but pay for only half their values; retailers give SalesOffline.com an average of 30 certificates per month and, in the process, win new customers who help drive sales; and Diamond strategically coordinates the two. Says Diamond, "Our goal, overall, is to show that this is a win-win situation for all parties."

Better Half [Entrepreneur.com]