Tempra Technology has developed proprietary technology for a self-refrigerating can, which lowers the temperature of a can by a minimum of 30 degrees in just three minutes via an environmentally safe process. When activated, the all natural desiccant contained within a vacuum draws the heat from the beverage through the evaporator into an insulated heat-sink container, and it’s this patented vacuum-power, which lowers the temperature so dramatically and quickly. The company is commercializing the technology and Miller Beer will be introducing Tempra cans by mid-2007. There will be, of course, a price premium, but it’s an incredibly great product offering for camping or fishing, for example.

[thanks, Ilya Vedrashko]

Ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi is responsible for this Folgers campaign: Ads placed over manhole covers in New York. I really like the creativity of it, but don’t the ads sort of suggest that Folgers coffee tastes like sewage?

[thanks, Mike Elgan]

Once cans leave manufacturing facilities, the distribution, storage and retail conditions present opportunities for can tops to become soiled. I have often thought there should be a way to ensure sanitary enjoyment of soda from cans, and in the near future, this may be a reality. Cali St. John, an entrepreneur from Florida, has patented an inexpensive, consumer-removed, thin, clear and flexible plastic film that’s completely biodegradable. In addition, the film can be printed on, which presents merchandising, or promotional opportunities for beverage manufacturers. 300 billion cans are produced worldwide each year, so this a potentially huge opportunity.

RyanAir, an Irish Airline, is Europe’s most profitable airline, and amazingly currently offers free tickets to a quarter of its passengers! The company hopes to increase this number to over 50% by the end of the decade. HOW?? The airline has an incredibly lean cost structure, and puts a price on virtually everything except tickets, from baggage check-in to in-flight beverages and snacks to seat-back advertising space, and referral fees for related travel offerings via its popular website. As a result, last year Ryanair collected $265 million –15.6 percent of overall revenues– from sources other than ticket sales.

[thanks, Business 2.0]

EOS, a premium, single class airline that flies between New York and London launched 6 months ago, and continues to innovate. Yesterday, the company announced that it’s introducing curbside escorts to greet arriving passengers at curbside, and escort them to check-in and through expedited security, which means you can safely arrive only 45 minutes prior to your flight. The EOS fleet consists of Boeing 757 planes equipped with lie-flat seating for 48 people. In addition, the airline offers complimentary car service to and from London’s Standsted airport.

Finally, the WSJ recently profiled cutting edge technology being developed for hypersonic jets. Imagine a two hour flight from New York to Sydney, which translates to about 7,000 miles per hour, or nearly 10 times the speed of sound!

More information is available on the NASA website here.

[thanks, The Business Innovation Insider]

BMW and Airbus

Versace and TAG Group SA

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Lamborghini and Intel (The ASUS-Lamborghini Notebook)

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Martha Stewart and KB Home

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Aston Martin and Nokia

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Acer and Ferrari

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What’s next?

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Apple and GM?

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Tiffany and Revlon?

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Polo Ralph Lauren and Super Cuts?

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Wolfgang Puck and Iams?

Scientists from Princeton, University of Southern California and University of Michigan have published a paper in the scientifc journal Nature about their potentially revolutionary invention, an organic material that emits natural appearing light when attached to an electrical source. The material can be printed in wafer thin sheets and could potentially transform walls, furniture, and ceilings into lights. The (OLED) material does not heat up, lasts much longer, and is significantly more energy efficient than light bulbs.

[via BBC]

Invented by Russian designers Vladislav Kropachev and Vladimir Makarov, this innovative syringe button allows consumers to comfortably inject medicine. The dosage and perscription information can be printed on top.

More information is available here (in Russian).

[thanks, Nick Baum]

There are several interesting entertainment concepts emerging that offer an embryonic glimpse into next-generation entertainment. Street Wars, for example, is a week long water gun tournament where the objective is to squirt your assigned victim before you get squirted by the player who has been assigned to squirt you. Entering the game costs $35. Whoever gets squirted is out of the game, and the last person left dry gets a cash prize.

Another innovative entertainment concept is being pioneered by 5W!TS (five wits), which produces elaborate, interactive, walk-through adventure games at their building in Boston. 5W!TS’ first show is TOMB, a 40-minute adventure set in a realistic rendition of an archaeological dig site in Egypt. In groups of 2-15 people, and accompanied by a guide, participants try to make their way to the pharaoh’s burial chamber. Unlike regular, boring haunted house attractions, the path and story of the adventure aren’t fixed, but depend on whether participants are able to solve challenges and avoid traps along the way. Not every team makes it to the burial chamber, and losers are faced with a faux death experience before leaving the game.

I propose that interactive, choose your own adventure type games that exist simultaneously online, possibly on TV, and real world — true convergence — is the future of entertainment. The traditional 90 minute movie format will be akin to stage “plays,” an artsy experience. Video games are already integrating movie-type narratives, and this will accelerate and also integrate more real world experiences in the future. In 2002, Electronic Arts launched a very innovative game called Majestic, which utilized IM, phone and fax, in addition to online elements, to create an experience that aimed to blur the line between fiction and reality, but the game failed, because there was no objective or ending, the gameplay wasn’t compelling, and the characters that called players were just voice recordings, so the interactivity was very limited.

Imagine a reality show that takes place on tv, online, and real world where the contestants on TV are either voted on by players online, or achieve certain objectives online thereby qualifying them for the television element. It would be true convergence, and democratization of gameshow participation. Mark Burnett, the producer of Survivor and The Apprentice, is working with AOL on a related concept for an online reality treasure hunt, as well as Lloyd Braun at Yahoo who has tried to develop an Internet-based show called The Runner, but apparently, Yahoo doesn’t seem to believe they can recoup the $5-$10 million or so production cost. Perhaps not with simply an advertising business model, but what about also generating revenue via pay to play (with a cash prize for the winners, which is legal since the game would presumably be one of skill and not of chance)?

Massachusetts-based IPIFINI has developed an innovative, choice-enabled bottle, which contains flavor or other additive buttons, so consumers can select various flavors. For example, a programmable cola bottle with buttons for lemon, lime, vanilla, and cherry flavors as well as a caffeine button allows for 32 combinations of soda. A PDF overview is available here.

[via Gizmodo]

Luggage Free offers door-to-door shipping service for luggage, so you don’t have to deal with the hassle of lugging luggage, long lines at check-in, long waits at baggage claim and customs, and the risk of lost luggage. The company retrieves luggage at designated times from clients’ homes or offices, wraps it in heavy plastic, and delivers it directly to a client’s destination. In addition to standard luggage, Luggage Free also ships golf bags, skis, bikes, cribs, strollers and other heavy or bulky items. Overnight service is available, or ground shipping for $1 per pound for the cost conscious. Pick-up fee is $40 for domestic service, and varies for international service. Luggage Free is available anywhere in the United States, and over 110 countries worldwide.

[photo via Flickr]