Aside from a few notable exceptions, too many ads these days fail to capture, exploit or celebrate our unique sense of Britishness argues Dominic Mills. Where are all the witty, self-deprecating, self-doubting, cynical or just plain surreal advertisements? Marketers are really missing a trick here, especially post-Olympics when we’re still – just about – celebrating our nationhood…

Placing the Sun online behind a paywall is an all-or-nothing bet by News International, so you can be certain the company will be throwing a considerable amount of promotional cash at the platform to lure in and maintain readers says Dominic Mills. However, it’s the newsbrand’s competitors who have the most to get excited about – and whoever the first port of call for Sun readers is, the one thing they won’t be doing is putting up a paywall…

In the wake of ‘soda taxes’ – in which governments are seeking to address the huge rise in global obesity – the implications for the likes of Coke are huge – which is why it has launched a new charm offensive. But Coke’s latest campaign is yuck; pure corporate hokum says Dominic Mills, and the idea of it sponsoring a government health campaign is just as ridiculous.

There’s a lot more to allocating ad budgets than just eyeballs, says Dominic Mills, and before any medium can increase its share of ad revenue it has to prove itself.

PepsiCo’s new Mountain Dew ad campaign has been described as ‘arguably the most racist ever’ by a leading black academic. The question is, asks Dominic Mills, how do such things happen? How can a savvy corporation like PepsiCo get it all so wrong?

This week Dominic Mills looks at the striking opportunities presented by online video, from the geekboy fandom of Machinima as it ups production values to team up with Ridley Scott to the incredible rise of ‘social talent’, where non-celebs are reaching serious online stardom – and presenting brands with a whole new level of audience engagement.

Whenever I think of tobacco companies and advertising, I think of cockroaches: however hard the government stamps on their efforts to promote themselves, they keep coming up the drainpipe and inserting themselves into your life, says Dominic Mills.

I do like a nice advertising spat, says Dominic Mills, and the row between BT and Sky over the latter’s refusal to take its ads to promote BT’s Premier League broadcasting, has all the hallmarks of turning into a real ding-dong…

This week Dominic Mills asks why Viking River Cruises didn’t bother to check the storyline for ITV’s Broadchurch before abandoning their ‘proud’ sponsorship of the show after the image of a burning boat was used. If you’re proud, stick with it Mills says – otherwise you’d be ‘ashamed’ or ‘stupid’ sponsors of ITV drama.

Last week, nine months since Dentsu and Aegis tied the knot, the pair can get down to consummating their marriage – but what will the new partnership mean for the two industry giants? Dominic Mills investigates as the joyful couple embark on their new life together…