FCC To Investigate Product Placement
I guess I'm behind the times, but I didn't even realize that Embedded Ads (a.k.a. product placement) in TV shows was really that big of an issue, but many consumer groups have been speaking up against the wide-spread practice as of late, and the FCC is listening. Well, listening and that's about it.
Here's the issue: many programs today will solicit advertising dollars by placing subtle (or not so subtle) ads into shows, but not anything like traditional ads. Unlike the traditional 15-30 blurbs that annoy us all during commercial breaks (and that most of us fast forward through with our DVRs these days), the Embedded Ads are harder to catch. The police officer that inexplicably stops to by a Pepsi out of a Pepsi Machine with the largest Pepsi logo ever on it. The odd occurrence that everyone on the show, including the terrorists, drive Ford branded vehicles. Even the convenient flash of the alligator logo on the polo shirts. These are all examples of Product Placements.
Well, although these seem like a smart way to reach consumers who are otherwise ignoring the commercials that make TV "free," they are kind of deceptive in that we don't know that we're being advertised to. Yeah, the point is we don't know that we're being advertised to and therefore are much more susceptible to said advertising, but that's also the point of the FCC. It hearkens back to the subliminal advertising debate, but it's an interesting fight.
Advertising is going to exist, always and forever. Companies need to get their name and product out there, and we as consumers need to be informed about new things. I know we all hate to be advertised to, but it's a necessary evil. In my mind, I'd much rather what Carrie Bradshaw pull out her MacBook for the 15,000th time than see another Mac vs PC commercial. But, on the other side, shouldn't we be told that we're being covertly marketed to? Don't we have the right to know when someone is trying to implant themselves into our psyches, and don't we have the right to accept or reject that ad?
It's a good fight, if you ask me. What do you think?
FCC finally prepares to investigate embedded ads on TV [Ars Technica]
Jesse James
Posted to In the News on 30 June 2008
· Comments (9)
Other stuff like this: Embedded Ads, FCC, hearings, Product Placement
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I don't really care. I mean, it's not as if they're doing anything duplicitous. The products, or something of the type, are going to be used anyway, it adds more realism to the medium, and picking out the advertising is fun. My two favorites: Any James Bond film, 'though the later ones do it far more, and Super Mario Bros. The bob-omb wears reebok's.
I say get rid of conventional adds, and only do subtle product placement where we don't know we're being advertised to.
I'll occasionally catch these types of adds if it's something I'm familiar with, like seeing all the Dell monitors and computers used by everyone good or bad in 24... my roommate will notice all the cars are of the same brand in some shows... and in that sense it really will target your audience without being an out of place oddly conspicuous advertisement for other uninterested viewers.
Anything's better than commercial breaks! I wonder how Dollhouse in the fall will manage that...
If you remember season 2 of 24 was done completely without commercial break, so the product placement was an extremely important function of the show... which kinda hurt the shows believability in the end.
I think we still need traditioinal ad breaks, but fewer commercials during them. After all, not all products/services can be worked into scripts and shows, but those that can, why not? Maybe a disclaimer at the begining of the show saying "so and so will be advertising throughout this episode" would suffice as good notice?
I didn't watch Season 2 live, but I thought those episodes were also 44 minutes long, like all else?
And I don't really see the need to be warned or notified I'm being subliminally advertised to.
It does seam cheesy if all the products in a show are made by one company.
Also, I can see a disclaimer or mention "this show brought to you by..." at the beginning of the show. Before product placing the Hell out of it.
Yet, I hate all commercials direct/indirect ones. But I can tolerate them. Especially if it deters the use of products with hidden logos. Like a big ole round sticker covering the apple logo on a laptop. That just grinds my gears.
It's worse in movies. I'm sure we all remember the Xbox 360 that became a transformer, but think back a few years to the movie 'The Island'. That was one big ad for Microsoft. Giant MSN and Xbox logos, not to mention the usually 'everone has a mac' phenomenon.
When TV was new, the concept of commercial breaks didn't exist. Advertisements were worked directly into the script.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=5uwPFvWwnQ8
In a lot of countries, there are still no commercial interruptions; advertisements only run between shows, like with premium channels in America. This was a big issue when CBS first tried to bring Monty Python's Flying Circus to American TV. The Monty Python guys sued because CBS was cutting up the show to fit in commercial breaks. It was pulled off the network and shown on PBS instead, which could accommodate the uninterrupted format.
Personally, it's only the extremes that get to me. When a brand name is rubber stamped on everything, or like on MTV when they censor any product or article of clothing that has any text on it, that just interrupts the experience and makes me think of how stupid what I'm looking at is.
i remember a WHOLE episode of friends the revolved around shopping at pottery barn.
i remember blade III when they stop to talk about jessica's ipod
Blade: "What's she doing?"
Ryan Reynolds: "She's making a playlist. She likes listening to MP3's when she hunts"
Close up of Jessica Biel making a playlist in iTunes, and then puts on her iPod.
not jokiing.
i've seen reality tv shows where they stop to talk about their new myspace page and the cool features it comes with.
i remember when joan crawford stopped to take a drink of pepsi in straight-jacket. she was on the board of directors.
most of the time it's none to subtle and consumers find it insulting.
It's worse than you think. There are "public performance" embedded advertising tricks. See that guy standing over there with his friends, laughing and having a good time, and everyone's enjoying a Pepsi? Notice how the label just happens to be clearly displayed? Any time you NOTICE a product in public it's possible that was intentional.
No, I'm not paranoid, there are actual marketing campaigns designed around such tricks.
I call them "tricks" but actually I don't have any problem with the whole embedded thing. People are smart enough to resist a product they don't really want, and if they're gently nudged toward or reminded of a particular product, who cares?