4th March, 2011 Press Releases

Newcastle United Fans Choose their ‘Man of the Match’ with new Screenreach Technology

The Screach Innovative platform can make any screen, anywhere fully interactive – with no hardware and no set up cost.

4th March 2011. ScreenReach Interactive, a tech start up from the UK, today announced the use of its Screach platform by marketing company Think Innovative and their client Newcastle United to enable for the first time ever fans at home games, starting on 05/03/11 with Newcastle v Everton, to interactively vote with their Smartphone for their Fans ‘Man of the Match.’

Promoted on Real Radio and running to the end of the season, all fans need to do to vote is simply download the FREE SCREACH App from the App store*, hit the SCREACH tab and enter code ‘9’ while the Match is on– the experience will load and fans can select their Fan’s Man of the Match.

Screach is a new, unique interactive digital media platform that allows anyone to create real-time two way interactive experiences between a smart device (through the Screach App) and any content, on any screen with no need for additional hardware. The Screachxml language can create all kinds of interactive experiences, transforming Smartphones into quiz answer pads, polling tools, games controllers and much, much more.

The two-way nature of Screach means consumers can interact with content and win instant, real-world prizes sent straight to their Smart Device – giving consumers compelling reasons to engage with digital signage, TV shows and ads in new and exciting ways.

“ This is a huge step forward for new media, and it’s exciting that the world’s first interactive media will be launched locally at the home match where Newcastle United take on Everton, “ says Think Innovative Director, John Atkinson. “ For me as both a fan and running company that is constantly thinking of new ways to get interaction between brands and customers I just think this Fan’s Man of the Match campaign is where it’s at right now,” he added.

“We are really excited that fans will for the first time be able to interactively vote for their Man of the Match at Newcastle United home games,” said Paul Rawlings, CEO of ScreenReach. “In modern life we are surrounded by screens, but most of them offer a passive, one way experience. With Screach these screens can become fully interactive; giving in this case football clubs an opportunity to really engage their fans on a whole new level. As a fan myself I just think it’s brilliant to be able to vote for who I want in real-time and even get rewarded.”

Fans can vote as many times as they like. Votes can be cast either whilst fans are at the match, or listening to commentary on Real Radio or online. To celebrate the launch of the SCREACH Man of the Match Newcastle United are giving everybody who votes a 20% discount for the Official Club Store. If a fan logs in through Facebook, they’ll also have their face displayed on the virtual team sheet on the screens in bar concourse areas.

About ScreenReach Interactive

ScreenReach Interactive, a UK based tech start up has already raised over $1.2m in seed Angel funding since it’s establishmant in Summer 2010. It’s Screach platform and App can make any screen, anywhere fully 2 way interactive at no set up cost and with no additional hardware needed – just a screen, a smart device and a bit of imagination. Screenreach recently launched it’s Screach platform at Demo2011 Spring (www.demo.com ) and has recently announced a raft of live contracts with the likes of RMG Networks (interactive experiences in 800 coffee shops in the US) & The Royal Armouries Museum (interactive exhbits) which in the first month alone had over 12,000 interactions, compared to only 107 ‘check ins’ at the same location achieved by other location based services.

Learn more at: http://www.screenreach.com & http://www.screach.com

About Think Innovative

Think Innovative is a Sales Promotion Agency offering inventive and productive campaigns to advertise, promote, and most importantly engage with a target audience. Think Innovative has a portfolio of products and services that will transform your idea of advertising or marketing into a dreamland of opportunity.

Learn more at: http://www.thinkinnovative.co.uk

For further information, please contact me at suzanne@stunningpr.com or 07957 371840

17th February, 2011 Press Releases

5 Exercises to Avoid Lower Back Pain

According to the British Medical Journal, most people suffer from lower back pain at some point, and while many people recover, between 10 and 25 percent of people with low back pain have long periods where they’re unable to work. Treatments for back pain include painkillers, physiotherapy, osteopathy or even surgery. But, according to top personal trainer Greg Brookes (http://www.gbpersonaltraining.com/) many people can alleviate their pain through practising five simple exercises.

1. Stretch your Hip Flexors
Your Hip Flexors are a group of muscles responsible for raising your knees to your chest. They are a very active and easily get involved in movements that they are not primary designed to do. The Hip Flexors over activation and lack of stretching often results in a shortening of the muscles. As the muscles shorten they start to pull on the Lumbar Spine and ultimately create a more Lordotic curve in lower back. This posture is easily recognized with the buttocks pushed out at the back and belly protruding out at the front.
Solution: Stretch the Hip Flexors by taking a deep lunge position, rotating your pelvic bone towards your chest and bracing your abs.

2. Lengthen your Hamstrings
Following lengthy periods of sitting with bent knees the Hamstrings shorten. Shortened hamstrings attach to the bottom of your pelvis and prevent correct rotation of the pelvis during forward bending. An inability to rotate at the pelvis results in a compensation in the lower back and ultimately lower back problems.
Solution: Stretch the Hamstrings by sitting with your lower back against a wall and straightening your legs. Keep the chest up and proud.

3. Improve Thoracic Spine Mobility
The Thoracic Spine is situated from the base of the neck to the mid back and is anatomically designed for movement. The Lumbar Spine with its larger vertebrae is designed for stability and lack of movement. Most people due to repetitive seating positions have “locked up” Thoracic Spines resulting in limited movement. The Lumbar spine is then forced to produce movement that it is not anatomically designed to perform and hence lower back issues.
Solution: Mobilise the Thoracic Spine by sitting tall on a backless chair and holding a stick across the shoulders. Brace the abs to lock the lower back and rotate slowly alternating sides.

4. Strengthen the Inner Core
The Inner Core is designed to work as a compression chamber to support the Lower Spine. The Pelvic Floor and Diaphragm are on top and bottom, the Transverse Abdominis goes around the sides and the Multifidus is at the back. An inability, through excess sitting, to activate the inner core leaves the Lumber Spine “Naked” during movement.
Solution: Strengthen the Inner Core by lying face down with the head on the hands. Breathe in deeply and push the belly into the floor, then breathe out deeply and pull the belly off the floor.

5. Use Correct Abdominal Training
The world’s obsession with flat stomachs and 6-pack Abs has resulted in a whole multitude of abdominal exercises. Unfortunately the majority of these exercises go against the true function of the Core muscles and only exacerbate existing problems. The Cores primary role is to provide stabilisation and a strong platform for other muscles to function from. Sit ups and crunches work in the total opposite direction of the Cores true function and only increase excess flexion in the Lumbar Spine. These exercises in turn increase the hunched over desk seated position and further stimulate and shorten the over active Hip Flexors.
Solution: Work on Core Stability by holding a rigid Press Up position while slowly raising one arm and taping the opposite shoulder. The less conditioned can omit the shoulder taps.

You can see videos of all the exercises required to create a strong core to prevent lower back issues by following Greg’s “Core Conditioning Course” here: http://gbptmembers.com/store/products/33

For further information please contact: Suzanne@stunningpr.com, 07957 371840

1st February, 2011 Press Releases

The Dictionary of Intellectual Property – IP just got sexy

From 1-click and the ActionAid Chip to zwart maken, Peter Groves’ Dictionary of Intellectual Property Law (Edward Elgar, 28 February 2011, £70) provides IP professionals and other interested parties with over 1,000 definitions covering most of the expressions that they might encounter.

Dubbed by one lawyer ‘the Dr Johnson of intellectual property’, Groves’ work is not merely informative but also entertaining, erudite and occasionally acerbic. ‘Compulsively readable’, wrote another reviewer, in an email headed ‘Darn you, Peter Groves’, complaining that he was supposed to be studying a patent specification. Law books don’t have to be dry-as-dust, nor do they have to be for lawyers only.

You may not believe this, but patent law just got sexy,’ wrote The Lawyer back in 2004, commenting on a couple of cases in what we then called the House of Lords. To lawyers working in this area, what was hard to believe was that the rest of the world hadn’t already noticed. Compared to most other areas of law, intellectual property law as a whole – copyright and trade marks as well as patents – has been sexy for a long, long time.

One reason for its sexiness is the way government and business have embraced the idea that IP is valuable and important. In our everyday lives we engage with IP every day, downloading copyright material from the Internet legally (or not), going for the branded goods in the supermarket (or not) and doing thousands of other little things that involve it.

Yet to say that there is widespread ignorance about intellectual property is a massive understatement. What is said and written on the subject is more urban myth than solid legal understanding. Ordinary people – those who aren’t IP professionals – often have a hard time telling patents from trademarks from copyright. Many lawyers don’t know the difference, either. There’s no dictionary of intellectual property law to tell them what the words and expressions mean… until now. Peter Groves, a solicitor with 30 years’ experience of intellectual property, several books and many articles to his credit, and hundreds of hours of lecturing under his belt, has spent much of the last few years putting one together.

Intellectual property has a vast, perplexing and diverse vocabulary, and this enriching Dictionary provides a starting point for understanding new concepts and crafting precise definitions to meet the needs of a particular case. Not only are new words and phrases being coined as technology changes and the law follows, but also the international scope of intellectual property means that IP lawyers will encounter foreign words and phrases.

With over 1000 expressions defined clearly and entertainingly, this book should be the first reference point to understanding intellectual property terminology. It will be particularly helpful to practitioners when they encounter expressions they have not seen before which they need to understand the true meaning and definition of. Students finding unfamiliar terminology and concepts will also appreciate the instant explanation available from this essential resource.

Feb 2011            c 288 pp            Hardback            978 1 84980 777 7c  £70.00            • e978 1 84980 778 4

ELGAR ORIGINAL REFERENCE

For media enquiries and review copies, please contact: Suzanne@stunningpr.com, 07957 371840

6th January, 2011 Press Releases

LazyTown Huge Success in Mexico!

LazyTown took Mexico by storm when Magnus Scheving made an appearance in Mexico City to promote a new, world first initiative between the Washington Apple Commission, California Grapes, USA Pears and the US Department of Agriculture. The primary goal of the promotion was to increase consumption of fruits amongst kids in Mexico, the highest childhood obesity country in the world. This was the first time two governments collaborated on a kids health program, with USDA and Salud (Minister of health of Mexico). WAC shipped 66,500,000 apples during the promotion! Now LazyTown are working with the USDA on other potential markets with a similar concept.
 
The ‘Dulces Sanos’ (SportsCandy) campaign has been supported by Mexico’s Department of Health and all the key grocery retailers in the country who have committed to helping children to eat more fruit.  WAC saw a 29% increase on exports of apples in to Mexico during promotion  – the highest export in November in the last 7 years!
 
Dulce Sanos also gave away thousand of tickets to kids for an exclusive LIVE Show event on Nov 28 in Mexico City. Magnus Scheving, LazyTown’s creator and star, appeared on TV and in no less than fourteen publications. The publicity campaign received over 37 million impressions.  A local Sportacus actor appeared at over 50 retail stores throughout the country during the 4 week promotion.
 
While in Mexico, Magnus also appeared at Sports World, a high quality family friendly gym chain, to launch the LazyTown Sports Club there. Over 2,000 people and twenty media outlets attended the event. Sports World have the exclusive to provide LazyTown branded Sports Clubs to children in all their gyms. This is fantastic news for Mexican children who will now have access to a sports club aimed specifically at them. The Sports Club concept is unique to LazyTown and is proving popular in the UK where it was first launched. Other territories are currently being sought to trial this amazing fitness program for children.

More news on www.lazytown.biz
Please contact us at biz@lazytown.com