Following my earlier post on product placement and as a comic book fan, please stop this madness in particular. An excerpt from the WSJ article:
"In July, Time Warner Inc.'s DC Comics, home to characters such as Batman and Aquaman, is launching "Rush City," a six-part miniseries that boasts visible promotional support from General Motors Corp.'s Pontiac. As part of the series, a new hero known as "The Rush" will be prominently featured driving a Pontiac Solstice in the comic book. "The car will be as essential to the character as the Aston Martin was to James Bond," says David McKillips, vice president of advertising and custom publishing for DC Comics.
DC Comics' hero 'The Rush,' who will be featured driving a Pontiac Solstice.
Over the past few months, Marvel Entertainment Inc. has begun putting the "swoosh" logo from Nike Inc. in the scenes of some of its titles, such as "New X-Men." So far, the emblem has appeared on a car door and on a character's T-shirt. "We are always looking for new and interesting ways of connecting with our consumers," says Nate Tobecksen, a Nike spokesman. "This is certainly one of them."
Last week, DaimlerChrysler AG's Dodge finalized an ad pact that will include product placements in Marvel comics. Marvel, home of Spider-Man, Captain America and Sub-Mariner, may feature Dodge's new car, the Caliber, in the books' cityscapes, including on billboards, T-shirts or signs over the next four to eight months, Joe Maimone, Marvel's advertising director, says.
Both Pontiac and Dodge are getting the product placements deals as part of larger ad buys. The two car companies are purchasing print ads as well -- the first time either auto maker has taken out an ad in a comic book.
Product placement has become commonplace in movies and TV shows. Now it's coming to comic books -- in part because the industry's two giants, DC and Marvel, are promoting some of their titles as places to reach one of Madison Avenue's most elusive audiences: guys in their 20s. Notoriously hard to reach, young adult males are known to be wary of traditional sales pitches, especially ones that get in the way of their entertainment. "It's the kind of audience that is harder and harder and harder to get to," says Dino Bernacchi, advertising manager for Pontiac."
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