When a few months ago, with great surprise, Oprah announced the end of her famous programme, lots of people din’t think she could retire. Her programme infact has become one of the longest in the story of the American TV and it would have been absolutely no logical to stop such a successful format and all that got around her. A few time later the announcement of her new project arrived: Oprah Winfrey Network, an entire TV channel dedicated to her and like her. Even if it was not so clear how it would have been and what kind of programming it would have had, the press office of Oprah Winfrey network began to make note press releases of brand integration with the “big spenders” of the market. After Procter&Gamble, it’s the turn of Kohl’s, a sort of general store with more than 1.000 shops in the U.S.A., to which an entire programme will be dedicated with the title of “Your OWN Show”. It would be probably the first important entertainment TV channel on the base of product placement, brand integration, contingency placement, verbal mention and more. The branches interested are so many that it would be easier to underline those unsuitable. The “made in Italy” products are for sure interesting for this project. The strenght of Oprah, her far-sightedness and her incredible capability for business have converted her in a sort of King Mida of the last 20 years. And now for lots of brands which want to emerge and consolidate their image on the American market this is really a great chance.

About one week ago on the post “TV Serials: the ten most interesting new season proposals”, I suggested ten good occasions of product placement connected to TV projects. In different cases, they are a very good solution to start to manage this powerful communication instrument. They are quite cheap (from 3500 to 5000$ for a good positioning), have quite a short time of realisation (three months are necessary from shooting to release, and have a very international visibility. There are other cases instead in which a movie product placement is more apt to the necessities and marketing aims of some Companies. Quite often a movie character is more valued and as consequence the placement is more prestigious. Moreover the attention on a movie is really different from the one on a TV serial and the details in a dark room on a huge screen are more visible….and this is a decisive factor for the efficacy of this technique. Moreover the life of the product is longer (about 7 years between the coming out of the movie, DVD, summer performances, TV programmes and performances). Thanks to special events like “the Première” or the awarding of prizes during any Festival, it is possible to participate with support initiatives that give visibility, prestige and a good economic feedback.

For all these reasons, I could not forgive to underline ten good Features Films to plan Product Placement, Brand Integration and Tie in.

The A – Team – Twentieth Century Fox

o The Hit Television series is being brought to the big screen – set in modern times….A group of Iraq War veterans looks to clear their name with the U.S. military, who suspect the four men of committing a crime for which they were framed.

o Starring: Bruce Willis Woody Harleson Ice Cube

o Start Date: May 11 2009

oDelivery Date: Immediately

ØThe Widows Adventures – Gold Circle Films

o Itching to spice things up and fulfill their lifelong dream, widowed sisters Helene and Ina take off on a cross country road trip to California. Sounds harmless, right? Well…Ina never learned to drive…and Helene is blind!.

o Starring: Diane Keaton (The Godfather) Jane Fonda (Georgia Rule)

o Start Date: June 15 2009

ØRED – Summit Entertainment

o A former black-ops CIA agent now living a quiet life in retirement until the day a high-tech assassin shows up intent on killing him.  He quickly reassembles his old team and is determined to find out who is after him…and why?

o Starring: Bruce Willis (Die Hard)

o Start Date: July 15 2009

ØYour Highness – Universal Pictures

o Two spoiled, arrogant, and lazy princes who must complete a quest to save their father’s kingdom.

o Starring: James Franco (Spiderman), Danny McBride (Tropic Thunder)

o Start Date: July 2009

ØWhat was I thinking – Warner Bros

o A woman is dumped during their engagement party. The dumped brides friends spring into action and whisk heraway on a ski trip for healing and hedonism.

o Starring: Elizabeth Banks (The 40 Year Old Virgin) Leslie Mann (Knocked Up)

o Start Date: July 2009

ØTwilight 3 Eclipse – Summit Entertainment

o The next installment of the Box office Hit Twilight series – Bella a high school girl who moved to the small town of Forks, Washington and fell in love with Edward Cullen a Vampire in Episode 1 and Jacob a Werewolf in Episode 2. The relationship triangle evolves as her suitors try to protect her from an clan of evil Vampires bent on killing Bella.

oStarring: Robert Pattison (Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix), Kristen Stewart (Panic Room)

oStart Date: August 2009

Ø BLOWN

o About Bay Area painter Margaret Keane and her husband, Walter who couldn’t paint at all, took credit for her work. Greenlighted.

oStarring: aJim Caviezel, Samuel L. Jackson, Thandie Newton

oStart Date: mid 05/2009

Ø BULL DURHAM 2

oAbout a minor league baseball team.

oStarring: Kevin Costner, Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon

oStart Date: mid 05/2009

Ø GET HIM TO THE GREEK

o Recent college graduate working as an insurance adjuster is hired to take an out-of-control rock star from London to a concert at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles.

oStarring: Jonah Hill

Ø PLAN B

o About a single woman who gets a positive pregnancy tests showing twins through artificial insemination (her Plan B) only to meet the man of her dreams (her Plan A) on the very same day.

oStarring: Jennifer Lopez

oStart Date: mid 05/2009

In 10 days “UP” will get out in 30 American theatres. The new Disney cartoon realised by Pixar in 3D relates the funny story of an old man and a boy scout on a travel towards South America in a house driven by thousands of balloon . The use of the old man’s image and the cartoon logo have been acquired even by Pet&Co (a California base Company that sells healthy pet food) to put them on its main product : the GRRR-NOLA, food integrated with vitamins, amino-acid and free gluten. Even if the reasons for such Tie In have not been revealed, they can be guessed by a second operation done by the Company. It is a competition with a million dollar prize called “Does your dog looks like you ?”. The web site is bowwowmillion.com and it’s sufficient to send one’s own picture with the dog to show the resemblance. Most of the pictures are from children (the target of the Disney cartoon) and from a few researches done to the Pet&Co mangers, there is a clear connection between families with children and families with dogs (or even between old people and pets). Such a simple info has provoked a new strategy: exploitation of the cartoon’s image that, before getting out, has already become famous (it’s the first one with an old man as main character), proposing such a particular and rich competition, particular as the products of the Company.

Regularity of action, winning image and attractive prizes are the magic formula…that always works out….

paolo@placement-post.com

 Next month a new episode of the most loved space saga in the world will get out in the American theatres (the numbers of Trekkies fans seems to be more than that of “Star Wars”). “Star Trek”, produced by Paramount with an important budget, will be promoted with a huge campaign, with a very long list of Tie In that alone has been valued around 500 millions of dollars.
Among the Companies that will exploit the image of the space heroes there are Kellog’s, Burger Kings, Intel and Nokia. This one seems to have a product Placement, though still not officially. In particolar it’s really incredible the numbers upon which Kellogs’ has bet through this Creative Utilization: more than 100 millions of special pack boxes and a limited edition of marshmallow dedicated to the space saga.

Both in Italy as well in Europe there are lots of Companies that buy the Creative Utilization rights to propose and sell their products, especially on the market of the big distribution. To sense and guess the winning testimonials, able to make the public dream the next season, means to be able to reach a goal that in this moment can help to get out from such a nightmare called economical crisis. A little note: the USA marketing wizards have advised the Companies, that have obtained the Tie In, to think about gadgets both for adults as well for kids. The phenomenon has been consolidating: lots of products and habits between adults and kids are becoming more and more common (see playstation, clothing, sport, etc.), thus more important.  
Born in 1966, the Saga will be 43 years old; so both the over-50 as well as the teenagers love it in such a way that we are sure will be rightly exploited.

p.latini@oratorio.biz