The naming news from Singapore arrived today in a report from the Pakistan Daily Times, which was picked-up and blogged by Stefan in Iasi and sent “over the top” (Arctic route ) to us in Northern California. And boy is it tired…..

After spending S$400,000 ($240,964) to come up with a suitable new name for the revamped downtown Marina Bay, Singapore has decided to stick to, well, Marina Bay, media reports said Friday.

The city-state’s urban development authorities and global branding company Interbrand spent months deliberating over 400 potential names before settling on the original moniker, according to the Today newspaper. The $400,000 financed a massive branding exercise that involved market tests, focus group discussions and consultations with developers and the general public, Today said.

Finding the right name for the city-state’s revised downtown, which will include the much-debated resort casino, a new business district and swanky retail outlets, was a process akin to parents deciding on a name for their child, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.

We take a lot of shots at suspect naming and branding results, but must say the above has to be the piece of work out of Interbrand that we most respect.

If you don’t believe us, try this on for size. Or this. Or this. Or this. Or this. Or this. Or this. Actually, that last one has to be a close second.

The sex appeal of the Apple brand is intoxicating, but they are walking around with a single long streamer of tissue stuck to the bottom of their shoe – the single-button mouse.

We just unboxed some new iMac G5’s, and right there, right next to the most beautiful, intuitive computer ever fashioned, was that annoying piece of has-been technology. So now, like most Mac users, we have swapped out Apple’s mice for two-button models w/ scroll wheels (old Dell’s!), breaking the Apple brandscape before us.

What is Apple clinging to with the single-button mouse? An iconic design with a lot of brand legacy, for sure. But since this mouse is the one part of the experience that falls short, the part that shouts, “Yesterday!”, and unnecessarily so, the brand equity cost is too high. This mouse needs to find a new house.

MTV’s much anticipated “competitor to iTunes” presents an interesting naming puzzle. What do you name a service that will pull together the multicultural audience of MTV’s 100 plus global television stations, not to mention their CMT and VH1 viewers? What do you need to do to name a music downloading service that must have a bit of the MTV edge, yet still intrigue classical music fans worldwide? Hold onto your fat, apparently you call Igor ( we don’t get it either).

Some of the finest time we have ever spent on the corporate teat was on this job, but now the weaning must begin, as the results are in, the job is done, and a sippy cup will have to do. . . But hot damn, that’s one fine name. Stay tuned, right now we’ve got some refrigerators that need moving.