Archive for the 'Total Entertainment' Category

Tony Bourdain managed to once again knock the Food Network and his former show, A Chef’s Tour, during Monday’s premiere of No Reservations.

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By iTVX Staff

When “24″ returns this weekend for its seventh season, it’ll be interesting to see if it’ll continue its strong and often seamless brand integration. In the past, we’ve seen Apple laptops used in and out of CTU and have clearly spotted hero Jack Bauer riding around in a Ford Expedition. Those are just two examples. And if the recent “24: Redemption” telemovie is any indication, you can count on more product placement on the series. In that film alone, we noted how visible Sprint, among other brands/companies, were seen.  While some call “24’s” product placement blatant in the past, I tend to think it never really gets in the way of the storytelling. Lately, it’s been the writing where we find flaws. Season Six was criticized by reviewers and TV bloggers for its farfetched plots. Buzz on the new season is strong, and you can bet the placements will be as well.

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ABC has given a six-episode order to a new celeb take on the sports-themed franchise “Superstars.” Casting has begun on the alternative series, which ABC plans to run this summer. Juma Entertainment (”The Singing Bee”) and Blue Equity’s Blue Entertainment Sports TV (Best), which owns the franchise, dusted off the title and shopped it around last fall (Daily Variety, Aug. 25).

“ABC was the most aggressive, and they were big on getting the authenticity of the original ‘Superstars’ format,” said Juma prexy Bob Horowitz. “And the fact that they have the NBA Finals in June makes it a phenomenal springboard for promoting the series.”

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HBO will televise Barack Obama’s inaugural kickoff ceremonies at the Lincoln Memorial on Jan. 18, in what is being billed as a star-studded event with top performers from music and entertainment.Obama’s Presidential Inaugural Committee said the ceremony will be free and open to the public, but HBO will get the exclusive rights to show it. The cabler will make the 90-minute event available for free to all of those with cable or satellite services, not just HBO subscribers. Obama and Vice President-elect Joseph Biden are scheduled to be in attendance.

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By iTVX Staff

CBS, according to the Hollywood Reporter, will replace its Monday series  “Worst Week” with “Rules of Engagement” come next month. “Week,” which has had uneven ratings since it debuted, will end its debut season on February 9. It’s unclear if CBS will renew the series, which had been picking up several new viewers last month. The series was also critically acclaimed but then again so were “Pushing Daisies” and “Arrested Development” and we know what happened there.

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By iTVX Staff

Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway play best friends who come to blows when they book their wedding on the same day. The film, which will likely drive up some solid box office returns thanks to the star power and the Sex in the City-esque audience it’ll draw from,  will no doubt be predictable but that may not be a bad thing consider its genre. We’re more struck with the product placement, which if the trailer is any indication, will be a lot especially for Tiffany’s. Hudson’s character wears a Tiffany’s Novo engagement ring in the film and one can bank on verbal mentions and visuals to go with it. In any event, you can see for yourself when the film opens this Friday (January 9).

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Super Bowl advertising is often a solitary endeavor. Each ad is a universe unto itself, with nary a reference to another product or rival. After all, why share the spotlight when ad time costs millions of dollars? Well, this year is different. DreamWorks Animation and Pepsi’s SoBe beverages are moving in the opposite direction, teaming up with NBC and Intel Corp. to create a 3-D ad break set to appear at the end of the second quarter.

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By iTVX Staff

H&M hasn’t advertised much on TV, as the New York Times  reported recently, but it’s about to do so online. As the story mentions, the clothing brand will sponsor TheWB.com’s original series “Soriority Fever.”  Since it launched this fall, TheWB.com has seen roughly 250,000 unique visitors a month. The site features original programming matched with old WB favorites like “Gilmore Girls.” One original program, “Childrens’ Hospital,” premiered last month to much acclaim. Axe brand sponsored that series, which is essentially a parody of medical dramas like “Grey’s Anatomy.”

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By iTVX Staff

Music dramas are hit or miss on television. For every Fame, there’s a dozen Cop Rocks. NBC will hope for the former with their series “Soundtrack,” which is currently in development. The series will, according to Daily Variety, centers on music lierally speaking to a character. For more click here.

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By iTVX Staff

How bad are newspapers doing these days? Look no further than read MediaWeek’s story today on how The New York Times has started selling front-page display ads for the first time. The ads run on the bottom of the newspaper in color. Front page ads will reportedly only be sold below the fold. For more on the story, read here.

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