English Major, Cyclist, Tech Geek, RC Nerd, Gadget Addiction, Acquisition Disorder. I should be studying for the LSAT instead of wasting time here.
My Name is Yaniel and I Suffer From Hobby Acquisition Disorder
I'm so sick of product placement. I don't mean the subtle PP, but the in your face PP (relax kids) really irks me. I specially hate how forced it seems, and how little they usually add to the scene or how poorly done it is.
For years I'd see iPods, iMacs, MacBooks, iPhones, etc in shows. But they were usually just background scenery or carried discretely by characters. In all honesty I couldn't tell you if it was paid product placement, or the producers just like how it looked and wanted it in the scene. Thats how it should be.
Microsoft is the largest offender as of late. The PP is so blatant it makes you roll your eyes. They'll zoom in on the phone while the actor navigates 20 screens on the phone. Yea I thought Windows Phone 7 was a pretty good looking phone OS, but the terrible marketing in these shows makes me think it's cheesy. I don't want this to be an Apple vs Microsoft thing, but it's just the most current example I can think of, and the one that pisses me off the most. It also shows the difference between the marketing departments for the two brands.
The other is the constant use of the phrase "Bing it." Sorry Ballmy, but become a verb is an honor you earn, not one you fabricate in your low rent marketing department. Google is a verb because the users deemed it so, if you try to force Bing it down our throats, we'll just retaliate. I personally will laugh in someones face if they, seriously, tell me to Bing it.
Sometimes they get it right, in Parenthood the computers would be on the Bing homepage but they were just sitting in the background. Thats fine, I got the message. Hearing an actor claim the "bing it" makes me want to push a baby seal in the face.
Microsoft isn't the only one doing it wrong, Toyota isn't much better Every show I watch now has a new Toyota in it, and whenever a cast member buys one, they do an entire show room style sales pitch for the car. That bothers me, but I'm a tech geek, not a Sienna minivan geek so I don't have that much to say about it.
We already have to watch ads while watching the shows, don't riddle the shows with poorly done product placement. It's an insult to your audience and the producers, directors, writers, and actors should be embarrassed to do it.
English Major, Cyclist, Tech Geek, RC Nerd, Gadget Addiction, Acquisition Disorder. I should be studying for the LSAT instead of wasting time here.
English Major, Cyclist, Tech Geek, RC Nerd, Gadget Addiction, Acquisition Disorder. I should be studying for the LSAT instead of wasting time here.
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