[Ken Gracey]

Huh ?

I am struggling with a tittle for this post, so fuzz it is

Years ago, there was a popular game around these forums called "apple spotting" where we would say we saw an iPod on a TV show or we saw a Mac in a movie, etc.

But what happened, now when you see an iMac on a desk or somebody sitting with a MacBook on there lap in a show, more and times you see the apple logo "fuzzed out" or with sticker of Picture of some sort of elephant or some other small creature over it.

But why, what happened ? Has apple stopped springing for advertising? Or has TV directors and producers, fallen out of love with apple ? Anybody know the answer to this question.

[Dave Bullard]

Good spot, Ken. I've noticed it myself but hadn't really thought about it until now.

There's also a Disney show my daughter watches on a Saturday morning – can't remember which one, might be iCarley – where they use MacBook Pros but have changed the glowing Apple logo into a pear.

Cheers
Dave

[Ken Gracey]

Exactly .... But why ?? This is the curly question, that a google search can't answer for me.

[Some Random Bloke]

I imagine it's either because the production companies don't want to give Apple free advertising or possibly some legal issue with associating the brand with the show. Just guessing though.

[JZ]

What x said sounds a out right.
One example I can think of. Two and half men. Ashton Hutcher had all the companies he had shares stuck all over his MacBook air. I think he was asked to take them off. His apple products have stickers over the apple a well. I guess some tv shows don't want to give free advertising.

[Dave Bullard]

Yeah, that sounds about right, but why the change?

Do you think Apple used to pay for product placement?

Cheers
Dave

[lumeswell]

It's a joke though. These things are just props, if you don't want to credit Apple just get any generic PC casing and use that. Everyone knows it's still a Mac, so they want the cool of using the Mac, but hide the logo because Apple didn't pay for the spot. Apple know they don't have to pay for it anymore, because everyone still knows anyway, so win/win

[lumeswell]

Mind you, I prefer this to the painful product placement of Microsoft I saw in NCIS the other night. Every shot you could tell had 'contractual obligation' for duration etc, let's linger just a few more frames on the windows logo in the corner of the screen, even though the action was somewhere else.

[Nic Woudstra]

If you are interested in product placement in popular movies - watch The Fifth Element with Bruce Willis, McDonald's, Coke and all the big names have quite a bit of background advertising in the future it seems.

Speaking of McDonalds - I have just noticed that they never appear in mainstream media, in cop shows, movies or the like. How odd.

[Islandhead]

I love the Fifth Element! But you're right about the product placement. With all that advertising revenue it might just have covered Bruce's wages

[Nic Woudstra]

Islandhead, on 22 March 2012 - 09:22 AM, said:

I love the Fifth Element! But you're right about the product placement. With all that advertising revenue it might just have covered Bruce's wages

I would suggest he buys some hairplugs but then realised that Bruce Willis with hair is Blasphemy.

[BrianB]

Good post Ken. I've been thinking about this too.

Happens alot in the show 'Big Bang Theory'.

Stickers over a part of the Mac logo on MBPs and even shell cases covering MBPs as well.

I saw an episode last night where they were using the iPhone 4 for video chat but it wasn't FaceTime or Skype... Very interesting.

[Ken Gracey]

The tricky part is, we all know almost by default what a Mac looks like, but if you shoved a HP, or a dell or some other pc on desk, you couldnt tell what brand it is easily, so what do they do ?

They film the footage from the front, so all you see if the windows logo, so the hardware vendors still miss out, on any free advertising, and apple still win.