Bought an iPod touch but I could just have gone to the Olympics instead

Critics are questioning Travel Alberta's decision to spend more than $200,000 to hand out free iPod Touches to passengers on the Alberta Train during the Olympics. ... "It's a little bit over the top to spend that much money handing out free iPods," NDP Leader Brian Mason said Wednesday.

...[Travel Alberta's spokesman, Don] Boynton said the iPods were an environmentally friendly way to provide media and guests with videos, stories and pictures of Alberta's tourism hot spots. While some organizations might put the same information on USB sticks, Boynton said, "This (promotion) was distinctive and highly interactive."

Source: Calgary Herald

Let's see: A 1 gig USB stick would be maybe $5 in bulk (and that's probably a drastic overestimate), whereas the cheapest iPod touch about $200. Spend 40 times as much and you'd better get something "distinctive"! And yes, iPods grow on trees and are ever so "environmentally friendly" compared to printing out a booklet with some photos.