As if our attention spans aren't already short enough.

'Even on radio, where TiVo is not a factor, short ads are showing up: Clear Channel Radio is running five-second ads, called adlets, for products including Afrin nasal spray. The nation's largest radio company even has created sample one-second ads, called blinks, to offer to marketers.

Consumers "are bombarded with messages on a daily basis ... (so) we were looking for ways to use our medium that were fresh and of interest," says Jim Cook, head of Clear Channel's creative group. "Shorter lengths are the way so many things are being consumed today in an overcommunicated world."

Clear Channel created a one-second McDonald's ad with its "I'm Lovin' It" jingle and a Mini Cooper ad with a honk and a voice that says, "Mini." McDonald's and BMW did not create the samples, which haven't aired. And Cook insists the company won't overwhelm listeners with wee ads. "We have limits on how many and how often any of these shorter ads will appear."'

KUSA