Archive for June 19th, 2007

‘Brand experience,’ is an often misunderstood term, typically defined as the interaction of the customer with a product or service. But in The Experience Economy”, authors Joseph Pine and James Gilmore categorize experience as “a new source of value,” “as distinct from services as services are from goods, but one that has until now gone largely unrecognized.” It’s a distinction Hasbro has taken to heart in their search for new ways to boost revenue.

According to an analyst quoted by MSNBC, Hasbro lost $144 million in 2000 due to “an over-reliance on movie-related toys, like tie-ins to the ‘Star Wars’ franchise.”Rather than manufacturing toys based on movies, Hasbro decided to create a movie based on one of its most popular toys, Transformers. Hasbro Chief Operating Office Brian Goldner commented, “In the past, I think that the company may have thought too narrowly about its brands as forms of entertainment.”

MSNBC notes that other companies that have broadened their reach with movie debuts include Marvel’s “Spider Man,” and “X-Men” and the “Fantastic Four,” Mattel’s “direct-to-DVD movies based on Barbie,”, and MGA Entertainment’s “Bratz” A movie, according to Goldner, based on the “experience” of the Monopoly board game might not be far behind.

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It seems hardly a day goes by without a fresh news article or story relating to in-game advertising. Faced with game-changing challenges in almost every aspect of their traditional B2C marketing communications landscape, the foremost brands and agencies are now moving out of the “test phase” with in-game advertising and investing dedicated budgets and infrastructure at a level that will have a measurable impact alongside other core marketing activities.

Early adopters such as Daimler Chrysler, Intel and Red Bull have already captured significant mindshare, but the variety of brands adopting the medium is now as broad as the game genres in which they appear, and every major territorial market is waking up to the unique dual benefits of engagement and measurability that in-game advertising brings.

This first article in a series of three will take a look at the specific categories that exist within in-game advertising, and the ideal uses and benefits of each.

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After pulling from its £3 million sponsorship of Channel 4’s Big Brother earlier this year, Carphone Warehouse is now to back ITV’s X Factor. It’s stepping in to fill the space left by previous sponsor Nokia. The three year deal will see The Carphone Warehouse sponsoring all episodes of the forthcoming series of The X Factor on ITV1, repeats and brand extensions like The Xtra Factor on ITV2. Read the rest of this entry »

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