3 posts tagged “apple”
first of all - if you haven't heard of or checked out the new website HULU then you need to click that link and get with the program...for those of you not in the know, HULU is the "YouTube Killer" that FOX and NBC, along with their networks, hashed together to offer their content through their own portal. ABC & the Disney family keep their content locked up behind ivory towers though making you visit their website to gain access to some of their content. HULU content includes full streaming episodes, movies, shorts, etc and includes some social networking features. With this and other media revolutions are changing the landscape of media and creating a seismic shift in how consumers are viewing their media these days. in a recent new york times article i was shocked to learn that the office premiere back from september had 1 in 5 viewers watching the episode on their home computer.
with the likes of video-on-demand, streaming content via the internet, DVR, TiVo and many more; the television program is becomming a different medium...tv is no longer tv, it's now just content with limitless boundaries for broadcast and few controls for advertisers. and with the rise of devices that allow consumers to control how and when they watch this content (PSP, iPods, iPhones, SlingBox, etc) people are not only able to determine how they'll watch it but also where and when. not to mention the media extenders that are coming about such as Apple's iTV and Microsoft backed Media Servers that already allow folks to setup a home media network so they can even stream video from sites like HULU, iTunes, Amazon Unbox and Joost directly to your TV...talk about true on-demand...not to mention ability to stream in HD!
what i find to be the most interesting of this whole media revolution is how it'll change the way brands advertise and leverage their marketing dollars. people are already beginning to see the decline in value for tv spots now that they can so easily be fast forward through. so what are brands to do? how can they still show up on TV and hit home with consumers to make the pitch? my answer, sports.
granted i work in the sports field so my answer may be a bit bias...but it is true. where else do you have a captive audience for multiple hours that you can take your brand and immerse it with a player, team, league or broadcast to provide fans with brand message points, consumer/brand interactions via promotions/sweepstakes and branding all in one programming segment...be it a game, season or playoffs? while some may argue the sports field is cluttered - that's partially true - but isn't TV just as cluttered? every category and brand is covered across television and multiple shows. no one really pays attention to know whether or not Car Maker X is the official car for commercials during the office...however fans will know that Car Maker X is the official partner of the NFL, or New York Yankees or the NCAA March Madness. not to mention you are connecting with a fan's passion during these times which has shown a correlation with stronger brand affinity and purchase intent.
anyhow the times article is an interesting take on the state of media consumption. with the recession at who knows what point of the cycle pending on the coverage you watch - brands are definitely going to be cutting back some dollars where they can over the next few years...in our trade journals people are expecting dips in our business given that sponsorship compared to tv metrics doesn't measure apples to apples but when those tv avenues are evaporating almost daily before our eyes i feel our industry will emerge to help brands bridge that gap that the new world of tv will be missing.
opinions? thoughts? sarcastic remarks? would welcome any and all.
A reader forwarded me an article from Forbes about Apple's new plan to turn their iPhones and similar devices into an advanced ordering device. As the article points out, this sheds a whole new light on the Starbucks/Apple partnership. Currently Apple and Starbucks came together to offer Apple users with an iPhone or iTouch free wi-fi at select Starbucks locations (with more coming this year) and in return Apple agrees to help push Starbucks Music through their devices. While connected to Starbucks network your Apple device will begin playing music that is playing in the Starbucks location over the speakers and if you happen to like what's playing you can purchase it from the iTunes Store right then and there.
Now Steve Jobs and the rest of Cupertino are looking build a system to allow you to avoid lines at places like Starbucks. A patent was filed by Apple on December 20, 2007 and it describes a technology that could work through your typical Apple devices as well as PDAs and cell phones. The proposed system would allow consumers to place an order wirelessly through a device and chime the user once their order was ready for pickup. As Forbes puts it, "The technology promises to morph Apple from the business of simply selling gadgets and music and movies that can be played on those devices into an intermediary in all kinds of exchanges."
The system would also be designed to track consumer purchases and where they shopped as well as what they bought. This information would obviously be useful to the stores as well as potential advertisers if Apple opens up a can of worms one day by serving ads through their devices in exchange for consumers having access to use the ordering service, which given the way our society accepts blatant advertising won't be that surprising.
The whole concept makes a lot of sense and could work nicely with the right partners and demographic. Obviously starting with Starbucks and the lines that some people endure for their daily coffee seems like an automatic homerun, not to mention a more affluent and tech savvy customer base. This is definitely one thing to keep an eye on for 2008. It will be interesting to see what other avenues and applications Apple tries to insert their wi-fi enabled devices into.
read an article about Nick Haley, an 18 year old english student from the University of Leeds, who created an apple commercial for the new iPod Touch as part of a school project.
the commercial has the look, feel and sound of a true iPod commercial...and apple felt the same way. apple told their marketing agency, TBWA/Chiat/Day, to get in touch with the individual about creating a professional version of the commercial. accoridng to the ny times it's slated to run this sunday during football games and on Desperate Housewives and Game 4 of the World Series that night (10/28/07).
The song is pretty killer too - “Music Is My Hot, Hot Sex” by a Brazilian band, CSS
Check out the original video below:
