Branded Entertainment ID: Do Viewers Care Who's Behind The Curtain?

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ESPN will air a documentary in March about the 24 Hours of Le Mans race -- a program totally financed by German automaker Audi.

One obvious question: Will the show, "Truth in 24," let viewers know that the program is backed by Audi -- and therefore could influence its content?  But a bigger question remains:  Does it matter?

For some time now, the Federal Communications Commission has been considering instituting regulation over marketing identification, clarifying branded entertainment, product placement, and perhaps full sponsorship in TV shows for viewers. The aim is to show who is at the controls behind the big curtain.

But how much does it really matter to viewers these days? On a blizzard of reality shows, sponsors names are readily identifiable, including the biggest of shows -- "American Idol" and "Dancing with the Stars."

Audi, with its show, wants to convey its association with high-performance cars and high technological standards to ESPN's mostly male sports viewers -- those who would be likely to buy high-performance vehicles.

According to estimates, branded entertainment is not only destined to grow on traditional TV airwaves, but on new digital platforms as well. Many video content providers will tell you in-program marketing sponsorship helps to reduce TV production costs. Much of this is probably true with non-scripted shows -- and new independent series like those on the Web.

Viewers seem sophisticated enough to understand the business underpinnings of TV and Web content these days. But how far do we go? Do you need to name the corporate parent of every consumer product with a commercial? How about the creative and media agencies responsible?

If federal regulators head down this road, I reckon they should go a lot deeper -- revealing a lot more about where programming, commercials, infomercials, and corporate-sponsored TV news clips, comes from.

You want to level with TV viewers and Web video users?  Tell them more than they want to know.

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0 comments on "Branded Entertainment ID: Do Viewers Care Who's Behind The Curtain? ".

1. Walter Graff from Bluesky Media
   

   commented on: January 19, 2009 at 10:21 a.m.

   Pretty soon, the commercials will be 46 minutes long and the TV shows content will be the little 30 second spaces between the ads. :)

2. Tim Street from mDialog
   

   commented on: January 19, 2009 at 10:22 a.m.

   Do we really need to explain to viewers that a movie trailer is an advertisement for a film?

   I think adult consumers know when they are being advertised to although I do think some senior citizens can be taken advantage of.

3. Nancy Rich from Swept Away TV
   

   commented on: January 19, 2009 at 10:52 a.m.

   We have a great opportunity for a youth oriented branded series for the web or cable tv. We've been producing our own rock music tv show for the past 9 years with over 300 major rock stars on it, most before they became so famous.
   The drama in the making of the show which is made with teenagers and college students is better than any episode of The Hills and not contrived either. Book coming out May 2009. info@therockstarstories.com or info@loonatictv.com.

4. Angel Mcclinton from Media Mojito
   

   commented on: January 19, 2009 at 10:55 a.m.

   If the story is good, it won't matter who brands the content. Ads are EVERYWHERE. I'm with Tim Street, on most people knowing they're being advertised to.

5. Jerilyn Kessel from Kessel Strategic Marketing
   

   commented on: January 19, 2009 at 12:10 p.m.

   Thank you Wayne...again, bullseye comments. Having created a valuation methodology to encourage advertisers to embrace "Branded Entertainment" nearly 5 years ago with Roy Salter, we saw it as a solution to rising costs and more strategic than simple "product placement". As a consumer researcher, I can assure you and your readers, the audience doesn't care (with the possible exception of shows targeted to young children), as long as it benefits them in some way and it doesn't interfere with the content (more typical in movies). The audience isn't so naive.

6. René Figueroa from MS
   

   commented on: January 19, 2009 at 1:20 p.m.

   Since we can assume were does FCC is going with this we can save us a lot of headache with some auto-regulation. Websites with the programming sponsors info could be place online and informed in the program credits.

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