BAE - it might stand for Bribery Allegations Everywhere - has been pilloried for secretly paying Prince Bandar of Saudi Arabia more than £1bn ($US1.98 billion) in connection with Britain's biggest ever weapons contract and the US Justice department has been investigating the allegations. And at the end of last year, anti-arms campaigners won a judicial review of the 2006 decision by Britain's Serious Fraud Office to end its investigations into the BAE contracts with Saudi Arabia, something I covered in my blog entry here.

Quite a problem for a global business that wants to keep expanding and securing contracts. Which is why the company has launched its first big ad campaign in five years to curry favor and win hearts and minds. The theme for the ads is "Real Pride, Real Advantage"

But with official investigations underway, the campaign is unlikely to be that much of a winner. BAE can run all the ads it wants but this scandal won't go away that quickly.