• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, March 6, 2008

In branded entertainment, there is still the good, the bad, and, more importantly, the less obvious.

Vantage Point/NBC's "American Gladiators"

Look closely, and you'll see there is virtually no organic connection between a Columbia Pictures theatrical release about the U.S. Secret Service, the U.S. president's assassination and an athletic competition reality show, NBC's "American Gladiators."

And that's perfectly fine. Apart from some dramatic music lead-in for the seasonal-best-moments "Gladiators" segment, there was nothing linking the two entertainment vehicles. An announcer intro-ed the effort, saying the specific "Gladiators" segment was brought to you by the movie "Vantage Point." An exclusive clip followed, which was followed by more "Gladiators" action.

The non-placement product-placement amounted to an exclusive message/commercial wrapped in the show's content. The best part: Viewers weren't challenged to figure out what was going on, and they could easily take it or leave it.

QVC/NBC's "The Celebrity Apprentice"

If I'm QVC, I would want people to remember products seen on its shopping network --not just how to pay for them.

In its branded entertainment deal with "Celebrity Apprentice," celebrities had to devise a 10-minute commercial. The losing group--Team Hydra, featuring Marilu Henner, who got the boot--didn't think about including QVC's "easy pay" plan as a selling point. The boardroom ending scene harped on this failure over--and over--again.

In an age of big credit-card debt, where banks give away credit cards like candy at cash registers, this seems a little overdone. The takeaway for QVC? You can pay for products on an installment plan. Big deal.

Apple iPhone/ABC's "The 80th Annual Academy Awards"

Watching "Lawrence of Arabia" on an Apple iPhone during the Oscars? Jon Stewart joked that he was doing just that while hosting the Academy Awards. The mere mention of any product on a big-rated show such as the Oscars can do wonders for any product. Nail clippers could make a big impact.

Still, I'll grade Apple's iPhone effort a B minus. Why the minus? Because Stewart said what many grouse about when it comes to newfangled mobile devices: How much video do you really want to see on your mobile phone?

Sure, you wouldn't watch a movie. But I'm not too sure many people want to watch a music video, followed by a five-second spot for Under Armour or Axe. Still, a drunken news video bite from Lindsey Lohan or Britney Spears on one's cell phone would perk up a lame afternoon meeting with your boss.

Purina Friskies /TBS' "10 Items Or Less"

A food fight on TBS? The closest the network comes these days is a cat-food fight between adults. The best news here: No punches were thrown; no cats were injured.

Seems like there's a run on Friskies, and two customers fight over pet nibbles at the big store in the show. All this seems a bit forced --even with that big Friskies sign looming in between the shopping combatants.

It did make me wonder whether Friskies would render cats more hospitable than their normal apathetic selves.