Zugl.: Freiburg (Breisgau), Univ., Diss., 2008

With the rise in product placement and integration on television in recent years, much of the popular press has discussed it as being a new phenomenon, one that has come about as a result of shifts in how audiences view television. As audiences change their viewing practices due to modern technologies such as DVRs and online streaming, product placement has increased in the industry's attempts at still reaching audiences with commercial messages. This thesis seeks to prove that instead of the common current assumption that this increase in product placement on television is a new phenomenon, this surge in blurring the line between advertising and entertainment is actually part of a long history of doing so in American commercial television. Historically, it was very common in the 1950s to have fictional television characters promoting products or to have the product featured as part of the story line in an episode. In fact, I believe the instances are common enough to establish generic expectations from audiences and industry alike. By understanding product placement and other forms of television advertising as part of a genre, it allows for shows like 30 Rock to employ parodic techniques that make their instances of product integration obvious to their viewers. Both the history of advertainment and its generic conventions create a base for current shows to riff off of, thus allowing them to combine entertainment and advertising to please the networks, but acknowledging to their viewers what they are doing and parodying it so as not to alienate them. / text

Background: Advertising channels in today's marketplace are becoming more limited with the development of ad-free sources of entertainment. The phenomenon of product placements is therefore becoming one of the most important sources for advertising in media. Especially film productions have turned into a canvas for companies to display their brands upon. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the case of product placements in Hollywood blockbuster movies. In particular, brand recognition and audience's ac-ceptance of a brand’s presence in movies were examined. Method: A mixed method approach was applied in order to fulfill the purpose of this thesis and answer research questions. A questionnaire in the form of a handout and focus group discussions were used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from audiences consisting of international students. The questionnaires were handed out after the movies had been shown in a setting resembling that of a movie theater, meaning that respondents were not aware of the study beforehand and were therefore not biased. The focus group discussions gave us information needed in answering the second research question and getting more insights of the practice. Conclusions: Our research showed that product placements in movies lead to brand recognition, and audience’s acceptance of a brand’s presence is influenced by congru-ency of product placement in movies. This outcome resulted from the combination of four determining factors: movie genre, execution factors, appropriateness in the movie setting and brand characteristics.

Univ., Magisterarbeit--Jena. / Literaturverz. S. [174] - 185.

Bachelor-Arbeit Univ. St. Gallen, 2005.

Zugl.: Göttingen, Univ., Diss., 2009/2010

Thesis (doctoral)--Universiẗat, Giessen, 2003.

This thesis deals with the functioning of product placement in Czech television and film production. The theoretical part describes its role in marketing communication, its specifics and characteristics. Also, these characteristics are illustrated in specific examples. The practical part deals with the current situation in the country. It examines the attitudes and experiences of professionals implementing product placement and production of film and television works. It discusses the process of implementation of product placement. It also describes how the correct product placement should look like, which is then illustrated by specific examples.

In recent years, the product placement industry has seen a significant boom. The growth of product placement continues as media seeks funding and branded products vie for increased audience attention. Because of the increased product placement, there are many studies that examine the attitudes towards product placement, the experiences and interpretations of brands post-product placement, the effects of product placement, and memory of product placement. However, while product placement is a popular trend, there are occasions when branded products are altered in movies and television (this thesis refers to the altered products as “brand-modified products”). Little, if any, research has been done on the effects, perceptions, or reactions toward brand-modified products. The brand modifications are made for various reasons, including branded product's lack of desired affiliation with the message of the media and/or casting a product in defamatory light. This study, through a test of unaided recall and aided recognition of four brand-modified products, demonstrates the immediate associations that were made between brand-modified products and authentic products when the four brand-modified products made appearances in various movie clips. The results of a survey of 211 undergraduate students' unaided recall and aided recognition of brand-modified products are reported in this study. It is demonstrated that the participants recalled and recognized authentic brands rather than the actual brand-modified products that appeared in the shown movie clips. Schema theory suggests that the brand-modified products were assimilated into preexisting knowledge structures, and that the recall and recognition of the products was due to prior exposure of the authentic brands. In terms of brand-modifications, this study demonstrates that associations are made to authentic products more often than to the brand-modified products that appeared in the movies.

This paper explores fantasy brands and product placement in order to determine which method serves to be more effective to a targeted audience. A fantasy brand exists only in a virtual or fictional world. Reverse product placement is the process of transforming brands in a virtual world into products or services in the physical world. Common fictional brands include Willy Wonka Chocolate (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Duff Beer (The Simpsons), Dunder Mifflin Paper (The Office), Bubba Gump Shrimp Company (Forrest Gump), Central Perk (Friends), and Stay Puft Marshmallows (Ghost Busters). Previous research has suggested that people who are fans of a television show or movie are more likely to purchase a fantasy brand than those who are unfamiliar with the show or movie. Additionally previous research indicates that some people believe product placement is invasive and results in negative brand image. However, no previous research directly compared product placement to fantasy brands, and which a consumer might prefer. This paper will explore the advantages and disadvantages of both product placement and fantasy brands. The study conducted tested 175 subjects in a moderated laboratory setting to discover which form of advertising was more likely to drive a purchase interaction. This study goes on to provide evidence that consumers are more likely to purchase a fantasy brand when there is a high level of “fandom”. However, if they have a low level of “fandom” they are more likely to purchase the item in the form of product placement. This paper contributes to the idea of branding, experiential consumption, and advertising in an overcrowded era.