As we head into awards season, which kicks off Sunday with the 78th Golden Globes, Morning Consult’s entertainment reporter, Sarah Shevenock, found that Americans are largely unfamiliar with the top nominated films. Despite spending much of 2020 at home, a majority of U.S. adults said they’d heard “nothing at all” about 23 out of the 30 nominees in major categories. Still, they’re rooting for Disney+ and Netflix to win big — as am I, crossing my fingers for “The Queen’s Gambit” to take home a trophy. Read on for more.

• The Ad Council and COVID Collaborative, a group of organizations and health experts, are launching coordinated ad campaigns from several brands such as Verizon Communications Inc., NBCUniversal and Google to encourage people to get vaccinated, with ads in English and Spanish launching this week across broadcast TV, digital, radio and social media. The initiative, supported by more than $51 million in donations from major corporations such as Amazon.com Inc. and Comcast Corp., according to the Ad Council, marks the second time the Ad Council has worked on a large scale with a group of nonprofits and brands, the first being its “Love Has No Labels” campaign promoting acceptance, diversity and inclusion. (The Wall Street Journal)

• ViacomCBS Inc. beat analyst expectations in its fourth quarter, with total revenue coming in just short of $6.9 billion and advertising revenue up 4 percent to $3.145 billion. Streaming and digital video revenue rose 71 percent to $888 million, including a 69 percent increase in streaming advertising revenue, as the company prepares to launch its Paramount+ streaming service next Thursday. (Deadline)

• The National Retail Federation’s new annual forecast projects that retail sales will grow between 6.5 percent and 8.2 percent this year to more than $4.33 trillion in sales, including between 18 percent and 23 percent growth in e-commerce to reach $1.14 trillion to $1.19 trillion in online sales — all dependent on the effectiveness and rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine. Growth in online shopping gave last year’s retail sales a boost as well, according to a preliminary reading, which shows 2020 retail sales up 6.7 percent to $4.06 trillion, with an increase of almost 22 percent online. (CNBC)

• McDonald’s Corp. has for years been collecting “strategic intelligence” on workers who are part of the Fight for $15 campaign advocating for a $15 minimum wage, according to two former employees with direct knowledge of the surveillance and leaked documents explaining strategy and tactics, with a goal of learning “how and where will FF$15 attack the brand,” according to an internal document. A McDonald’s spokesperson denied part of the alleged program — that the company uses fake social media accounts to monitor certain employees — adding that “none of the business intelligence work is related to labor relations.” (Vice)

Jeep’s Super Bowl Ad Is Back as DWI Charges Against Bruce Springsteen Are Dropped
Lisa Lacy, Adweek

The spot will be unpaused following the resolution of the case.

AMC Networks Takes Step Toward National TV Addressability
Mike Juang, Ad Age

In the latest step toward opening up national TV ad inventory that can be targeted at a household level, AMC Networks says it completed two national linear addressable campaigns for Volkswagen. 

NBCU Expands Addressable Offerings Through Charter Partnership
Andrew Blustein, Adweek

NBCUniversal is expanding its addressable ad offerings in a partnership with Charter’s Spectrum as both companies look to protect against the rise of streaming.

Paramount+: Here’s everything you need to know about ViacomCBS’ new streaming service
Frank Pallotta, CNN

ViacomCBS announced that the rebranded service will have two tiers: $4.99 per month with ads, and $9.99 without. That’s roughly the same price of CBS All Access, but with a lot of more content. 

Plus + Plus + Plus = Streaming Name Surplus
Tiffany Hsu, The New York Times

An idea that seemed like a real plus when streaming was newer has fallen into cliché.

Pluto TV Surpasses 30 Million Actives, Showtime & CBS All Access 19.2 Million Domestic Subscribers in 2020
Jeremy Milliner, The Streamable

Pluto TV has reached 30.1 monthly active users in the U.S., from the 28.4 million actives in Q3 (up 34% on the year). Globally, Pluto TV saw 43 million monthly active users, up from 36 million last quarter.

Magnite’s Tight Relationship with Disney Now Extends Beyond Hulu
Andrew Blustein, Adweek

CTV now generates one-third of the platform’s revenue.

YouTube stars The Try Guys break into traditional TV with new Food Network production
Dan Whateley, Insider Premium

Food Network is the latest legacy media company to hire social-media stars in a push to reach new audiences.

Podcasting Is Booming. Will Hollywood Help or Hurt Its Future?
Ben Sisario, The New York Times

A frothy adaptation market is just one sign of the rapid evolution of the industry. But some worry that big money will stifle the D.I.Y. spirit that has driven much of its success.

Disney California Adventure park to reopen for food and shopping event
Hugo Martín, Los Angeles Times

About a year after the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of theme parks statewide, Disney California Adventure park plans to reopen starting March 18 at limited capacity, welcoming visitors who buy tickets to stroll through the park and purchase food, drinks and merchandise.

Dunkin’ enters world of gaming as Twitch Rivals sponsor
Max Miceli, Dot Esports

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, nor was its length, but it will make Dunkin’ the “Official Fan Fuel” of Twitch Rivals North America. The deal was brokered by Publicis Sport and Entertainment and Inspire Media Engine.

Verizon is the top bidder on 5G spectrum, committing more than $45 billion
Kif Leswing, CNBC

The Federal Communications Commission announced the winners of an $81 billion auction for the license to use important airwaves that are ideal for 5G.

Snapchat’s flashy TikTok rival has lured creators with direct payments but has banned sponsored posts, which are a key element of the influencer industry
Sydney Bradley, Insider Premium

Snapchat is directly paying creators millions of dollars for their posts on Spotlight, its new short-form video feature and TikTok lookalike. But many creators don’t think the gold rush will last. They anticipate the company will get tired of shelling out millions to keep users engaged.

McKinsey’s Kevin Sneader voted out in leadership ballot after crises
Arash Massoudi et al., Financial Times

McKinsey partners have voted to replace Kevin Sneader as global managing partner in a historic rebuke over his handling of a string of crises, according to several people with direct knowledge of the matter. 

Hard Seltzers Help Bud Brewer Regain Some Sparkle
Saabira Chaudhuri, The Wall Street Journal

Beer giant AB InBev says alcoholic sparkling waters are helping offset weaker sales of Budweiser.

L Brands Reports Higher-Than-Expected In-Store Sales and Earnings
Cathaleen Chen, Business of Fashion

L Brands’ overall fourth-quarter revenue totaled $4.82 billion, an increase from $4.71 billion in the year prior. Same-store sales for the quarter increased 10 percent overall, reflecting a 22 percent increase for Bath & Body Works and a 3 percent decline for Victoria’s Secret. 

T.J. Maxx parent misses estimates as lockdowns cut sales by $1 billion
Praveen Paramasivam, Reuters

Net sales fell to $10.94 billion in the quarter ended Jan. 30, from $12.21 billion a year earlier. Analysts had expected sales of $11.48 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Best Buy earnings beat expectations, but shares fall as sales growth slows
Melissa Repko, CNBC

The retailer said its growth rate will likely slow even further. Best Best Chief Financial Officer Matt Bilunas said the company expects same-store sales to drop by as much as 2% or grow by as much as 1% this year.

Sports gear maker Under Armour halves sponsorship commitments
Sara Germano, Financial Times

Company has pulled back from costly deals with teams, schools and athletes that have promoted its brand.

More Than 150 Executives Back Biden’s $1.9 Trillion Stimulus Plan
Jennifer Jacobs and Saleha Mohsin, Bloomberg

A letter to congressional leaders is signed by David Solomon, chairman and chief executive officer at Goldman Sachs; Stephen Schwarzman, the chairman and CEO of Blackstone; Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google; and John Stankey the CEO of AT&T.

Fry’s Electronics, a favorite of tech enthusiasts, will cease operations.
Gregory Schmidt and Gillian Friedman, The New York Times

Fry’s Electronics, a big-box retailer that nurtured a generation of do-it-yourself tech fans and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, announced on Wednesday that it was shutting down operations, effective immediately.

For Travel, a Sustainable Comeback?
Elaine Glusac, The New York Times

From a newly certified Whale Heritage Site to scenic byways for electric cars, five new initiatives suggest the travel industry may be envisioning a more responsible future.

U.S. airline CEOs to meet with White House on cutting carbon footprint
David Shepardson et al., Reuters

The chief executives of major U.S. airlines are set to meet virtually with two key White House advisers on Friday about efforts to reduce carbon emissions and use renewable fuels, five people briefed on the matter told Reuters.

Gap to invest $140 million to build Texas warehouse as online sales swell
Lauren Thomas, CNBC

Upon completion, Gap said the 850,000-square-foot facility will be able to process 1 million packages per day. Initially, it will be used for Old Navy’s burgeoning e-commerce business, then expand to other parts of Gap’s business.

The wellness industry is coming for your mattress
Alden Wicker, Vox

Are mattresses toxic? And does that matter?

First-Party Data Strategies For Advertisers And Publishers In The Age Of Privacy
Elizabeth Brennan, Ad Age

Key takeaways from Permutive’s Sponsor Session at Ad Age Next: Health & Wellness.