Archive for August 12th, 2008

By iTVX Staff

Many of us have no clue what the title of the new Bond movie  (The Quantum of Solace) means, but one thing is clear, we know what phone 007 will be using in the movie. Sony Ericsson has announced its Titanium silver C902/Cybershot will be lodged to Daniel Craig’s ear when the movie comes out. The phone is available for a limited period of time with exclusive mobile content (games, trailers, behind-the-scene interviews) connected to the movie.

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By Jon Chattman, iTVX Staff

Upon seeing the megahit Dark Knight again in theaters, I picked up on a lot more product placement than the first time around. The placement is so subtle I guess (more or less), it skipped by me the first time (well the Lamborghini presence, pre-release Nokia touchscreen cell phone and the huge Canon sign didn’t). Having said that, a repeat viewing has opened my eyes to see more. For starters, a criminal in one of the film’s opening sequences spews out a line that it’s more likely to win the Powerball lotto then bump into the Caped Crusader. Other products spotted included the Volkswagon Beetle, Armani, Mercedes, and Magnum. The incorporation, for the most part, of all products in the film were seamless in the storytelling- and what epic storytelling it is.

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By iTVX Staff

Showtime made news the other day when it announced Ilene Chaiken, the creator of the lesbian drama The L Word,  had been given full control over all brand intregrations from the network on the show’s final season as well as a planned spinoff series for next year.

AdAge.com noted that an integration package would be offered and products would be incorporated to the show’s storylines.  Earlier this year, iTVX interviewed John Lehr, co-creator of 10 Items or Less fame, who noted how he and his partner had created a product placement agency because they loved incorporating products into their shows. Between that and this newfound power for Chaiken, it’ll be interesting to see where it takes the product placement industry as it continues to evolve rapidly.

For more on Chaiken and the branded deal, click here.

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By iTVX Staff

Banking on the popularity she has in the Hispanic community and beyond, Nestlé Waters North America has signed a two-year spokesperson deal with Cristina Saralegui for its first national marketing campaign targeted to U.S. Hispanics.

The Hispanic television personality has been inked for the “Vive Sanamente” campaign (said to be multimillion dollars). The campaign, which translates to Live Healthy in English, will include television ads on Univision, TeleFutura, Galavision and Vanidades as well as radio spots in Los Angeles, New York, Houston, Phoenix and San Antonio. Print ads are also part of the deal.

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By iTVX Staff

If you live in New York, you didn’t see the Last Comic Standing finale last week. The NBC  affliate in NY decided against showing the finale in favor of a preseason football game. While fans of the show in that area were hung out to dry so was Honda, who have had a special segment each week during the series in which a comic appears in Honda Pilot ads AKA “Last Comic Driving.” A story in Advertising Age tells us all about.

The show was also pre-empted in Cleveland and Baltimore. In NY, the show ran in the middle of the night. Honda, according to that story, had a big ending to its Honda/Comic gimmick in which several comedians would appear in Pilot ads. Viewers were able to vote for their favorite comic riding in on it.
Speaking for ourselves, if we’re Honda we’d be pretty upset that top markets like NY, Cleveland, and Baltimore were left out in the dark. As for viewers, they complained about the show not airing.

The full episode of the show will be available on NBC.com,  and I’m sure the series finale will reair sometime, someway either during the Olympics or after.  Not to spoil anything (well kind of, sort of) Iliza Shlesinger won the show, becoming the first female to win the show in its six year inception.

To read more about it on Advertising Age, click here

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By Jon Chattman, ITVX Staff

I recently read the cover story of Barack Obama in Rolling Stone magazine, and oddly enough, all I took away from the article was what songs he had on his iPod. Another story with Obama and John McCain in Entertainment Weekly feature the presidential candidates going over their favorite movies and so on. Admittedly, the articles were both refreshing after reading story after story from other publications on the candidates, but I have to say, the Rolling Stone piece in particular, was of interest. Sure, it was well written and documented the rise of Obama, but the mere mention of what songs were on his iPod came off as a form of product placement to me. It’s amazing how a simple mention of an Obama playlist (he listens to everyone from Jay-Z to Sheryl Crow by the way) can illicit images of a Nano or Video iPod. I know it’s sort of a stretch, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a few more people bought iPods because of that article. Well, it’s not like Obama namedropped a specific iPod but still… it makes you wonder. What do you think?

Does this count as product placement to you?

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By iTVX Staff

The BattleCreek Enquirer has an interesting story up on its site today regarding the FCC and how they don’t need to step in and monitor product placement in television - even if product placement is growing rapidly. Product placement or as they refer to it “embedded advertising” has been around for as long as one can remember, the article goes on to say, and that audiences are sophisticated enough to know when a product is being promoted within a show and don’t need advertisers to disclose each placement visually to them on screen. The viewer, the article goes on to say, can simply change the channel or ignore the placement. We couldn’t agree more.

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By Jon Chattman, iTVX Staff

In a review of American Idol’s recent concert stop in Newark, NJ, a Billboard.com writer noted how there was product placement on the tour - just like the show. Last season, the Fox juggernaut added Apple’’s iTunes to its list of sponsors, which also include Coca-Cola. Each week, contestants were seen listening to their iPods and audiences were told that they could download their favorite contestant’s song for the week on iTunes the next day. On the tour, the writer notes how Guitar Hero is featured prominently. Makes you wonder if Guitar Hero creators are set for a big pay day to appear on the show itself next season. Auditions will take place later this month. The new season kicks off in January 2009.

For the NJ review, click below.

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By iTVX Staff

Microsoft is about to rock. According to MediaPost, the company has partnered with the music video network Fuse to launch a new Summer of Music series on its Xbox Live console.  The new series, which will run from now until late next month, features content from various music festivals and concerts held throughout the United States this summer including The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee and the Vans Warped Tour. Performer interviews will also be part of teh show, which will run on Xbox Live exclusively.

For more on the series, click here

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By iTVX Staff

Tropic Thunder rolls into theaters tomorrow in the midst of controversy (several groups have  protested the film’s release because of its depiction of mentally challenged individuals), and a lot of buzz (critics seem to dig it - finding it the “funniest movie” of the summer). Focusing on the latter, Paramount is banking on the film’s popularity by partnering with Ubisoft and its in-game advertising company Massive to create an in-game scavenger hunt. The huntwill be available on Xbox 360 versions of Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Vegas 2.

As quoted in a recent story (see original link below), Amy Powell, Paramount senior vp interactive marketing said, “This is taking our in-game advertising campaigns to the next level by making them interactive and actionable.”

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