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Imergination

10 July, 2012

No company is immune. The Mum-and-Dad shop on the corner is just as vulnerable as Barclays Bank in Knightsbridge, both susceptible to an aggressive takeover, or mandatory merge. That’s why this week’s Storm is all about fusion of the corporate kind.

Pick two firms, or brands, or trademarks, and weld them together to form a new entity. Dell and Apple may combine to create Dapple, a mega-computer concern. Just as VW and Jeep may share plants to create the all-terrain, low-budget Veep.

That’s one option – picking kindred companies, old or new – but feel free to get surreal too. Like Toblerone and Winnebago merging into Tobago, the world’s leader in triangular campervans.

Or fudge a new identity (rather than create a word) for the sake of a righteous combo. Maybe Pedex (Pedigree/Rolex) make watchdogs, or Slazio (Slazenger/Casio) oversee the numbers racket.

That’s the challenge, a bit of fun while some Dabblers remain on hollies (lucky b-words). Submit your ideas as above, with new name (Firm A/Firm B) and the enterprise’s forte. Use your own bylines, and come Thursday @ 9pm, file your four best hybrids – two words and two non-word examples (Tobago is word, but Slazio is not, say). As the ACCC appointee, I’ll decide by the weekend which new companies in each category will be listed, and which will be roasted in the Dragons Den.

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Riddledom Rave

If you missed my riddle chat with Richard Fidler, then feel free to slurp the podcast at http://ab.co/1I9t1x5

Text-speak is creeping into Scrabble. Where do you sit?
OBVS I'm fine with it
Entrenched stuff - like LOL and OMG - but no more.
Words With Friends, maybe. Scrabble, no
Let the 'real' dictionaries decide first
Just the handy stuff, like FAQ and EUW
I mean, WTF?! No way
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