Parent company InfoGroup has combined its Direct Media and Millard brands to form Direct Media Millard Inc. (DMM), a new direct marketing company that officially launches July 1. The two groups will combine their client rosters and work together to serve them. Larry May, CEO of Direct Media will serve as the president of Direct Media Millard, while Jeff Kelley, president of Millard, will serve as president of consumer management for DMM.

Ken Hicks is leaving his position as president and chief merchandising officer at JC Penney Co. Inc. to become president and CEO at specialty retailer Foot Locker Inc. JC Penney said Hicks, who has held his position there since 2005, will serve his last day on July 6. Myron Ullman, chairman and CEO, will assume Hicks' responsibilities while an executive search is being conducted. Hicks will also resign his position on the JC Penney board of directors.

Dunkin' Donuts has introduced a new online ordering form in a move to create viral marketing.The goal of the new campaign is to make ordering easier and to take the concept of "A Dunkin' Run" — a trip to Dunkin' Donuts — and make it a household term. To promote the new service, Dunkin' Donuts is using Facebook, Twitter and e-mails to opted-in customers.

Taking advantage of the fact that mobile applications continue to gain traction, Google has introduced a new way to sell ads on the mobile phone. The new product, called AdSense for Mobile Applications, lets advertisers place text and image ads within mobile applications. Urbanspoon, a restaurant and bar directory on the iPhone that lets mobile users search for restaurants based on their location, worked with Google on its test phase.

Dress Barn Inc. and Tween Brands Inc. have entered into a definitive merger agreement. In the stock-for-stock transaction, a subsidiary of Dress Barn will merge with Tween Brands. Each share of the latter's common stock will be exchanged for 0.47 shares of Dress Barn common stock, representing an equity value of approximately $157 million based on June 24 closing stock prices for both companies. Upon closing of the transaction, Tween Brands stockholders are expected to own approximately 16% of Dress Barn.

PrivatAir, a company that offers private flights to VIPs and executives, has signed Ink Publishing to helm a relaunch of its custom magazine in July. The 6,500-circulation quarterly, PrivatAir — the magazine, is offered on board PrivatAir flights and on all business-class services operated by partners Lufthansa, Swiss International Airlines and KLM, and at some luxury hotels in Europe and the Middle East. It's also direct mailed to PrivatAir clients and subscribers worldwide.

Food service management company Compass Group is working with First Data to roll out a new, tiered loyalty program nationwide. The two companies have been working together on payment and loyalty programs since February 2007. This year, they are rolling out ZipThru Rewards to Compass Group's corporate cafés and dining centers nationwide.

The US Postal Service has created a new augmented reality Web tool, called the Virtual Box Simulator, to promote the fact that Priority Mail Flat Rate boxes can make shipping easier.

Almost everyone has been fired at one time in a professional career. Some can admit it; some never can. But many who admit to being fired say it ultimately contributed to success in their career in direct marketing.

As Web sales gain importance for nearly every multichannel retailer, making sure your site is competitive with today's best e-commerce offerings is essential. Whether you're just getting started in e-commerce or your site needs freshening up, there are some basic must-haves, says Scott Todaro, senior director of product strategy at Demandware:

Omniture is a data company that works with hundreds of technology vendors, including ExactTarget and Silverpop to help combine data with digital channels. It recently partnered with ComScore to help media planners have better audience measurement tools. DMNews chats with Matt Langie, senior director of product marketing at Omniture, about data integration, behavioral targeting legislation and the new partnership

New list — Scroll Saw Woodworking and Crafts Subscribers — List Services Corp. —This file contains subscribers to Scroll Saw Woodworking. Eighty percent of this list is male, and 90% of these craftsmen are more than 50 years old. Forty-three percent cell the products they make, and 55% have a college education or higher.

New list — Cadalyst — Statlistics — This file contains the primarily corporate and senior management readers of a bimonthly publication covering engineering and CAD management. These include persons in the architecture, engineering, construction, GIS and manufacturing industries. More than 90% of these subscribers have indicated that they plan to buy CAD products, computer peripherals, mechanical, graphic design and visualization software, printers, plotters, monitors and high speed Internet access within the next 12 months.

New insert program — Summit Racing Equipment PIP — Leon Henry Inc. — Inserts can be included in packages reaching mostly male, car and truck enthusiasts who have regularly purchased name-brand performance automotive parts and accessories, automotive tools and automotive collectibles from the Summit Racing Equipment and/or Genuine Hotrod Hardware catalogs. Buyers have an average age range of 18 to 59 and an annual income of $50,000 to $60,000.

New list — Casa & Estilo International — Specialists Marketing Services — This file contains subscribers to Casa & Estilo, a US, Spanish-language magazine dedicated to home design, architecture and art. The quarterly publication reaches Hispanic audiences with an average annual household income of $150,700.