I was watching Sesame Street while vacationing in Key Largo yesterday. I was shocked to see the muppets do a 15 minute skit on a product called the Ipogo. The skit was filled with convincing shots of a phone that the main character fumbled with. Closeups that left the wifi, time and battery indicator symbols on the phone completely identifiable, which all had a striking resemblance to the Iphone's symbols and placements. Than the sock puppets broke out in song. "There's an app for that" they exclaimed over and over as they danced around the set.
I am not convinced this is simply satire. Companies rely on subliminal (or not so subliminal) advertising to sell there product. And it is nothing new. You can trace it back to the 1920's.
But now with the ever changing world around us and the introduction of the internet, this is become more and more relevant. Online programing like Hulu and Netflix are making commercials obsolete, forcing marketers to become more creative and innovative to get there product seen.
Movies could easily gross more in selling advertising space than at the box office. Screenplays being built around advertising could be the norm. Plots ruined as they cut to irrelevant situations to plug.
Scripts will soon be written for the sole purpose of product placement.
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