Are You Ready For Some Football (Ads)?

Posted on January 27, 2010 by Karen Brennan

Well, even though the Vikings didn’t make it, I am still looking forward to the Super Bowl – for the commercials.  I am sure I am not alone in my excitement.  In fact, there are numerous Web sites dedicated to the best Super Bowl commercials, such as this one which chronicles them by decade.  Purchasing one of the coveted 30-second time slots can make or break (remember the controversial Just for Feet ad in 1999?) a brand.   

Estimated to be “the biggest TV audience in the world,” the Super Bowl presents a very unique opportunity for businesses to advertise.  Not only do they capture a huge audience (last year there were 95.4 million viewers the third most watched program of the year), but a captive audience who actually looks forward to the commercials rather than using that time to grab a snack or use the restroom. 

Even in this economy, the coveted time slots are selling fast.  According to Portfolio, Super Bowl ad sales started off slow, with only half of the slots sold six months ago.  However, it was recently reported that CBS has sold 95% of its 30-second spots, and the remaining spots will fill up fast. 

This year, a few of the reported purchasers of ad time include: 

  • Anheuser-Busch bought the most airtime and is the exclusive beer brewer for Super Bowl advertising;
  • CareerBuilder.com, who last year, in my opinion, had one of the best ads of all time (click here to view); and
  • Dr. Pepper, a first-timer to the Super Bowl, whose commercial is reported to include the band KISS. 

Stay tuned for more on the 2010 ads after the Super Bowl airs on February 7, 2010. 

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Purple People Eater Jim Marshall & Friends Take on the NFL

Posted on November 12, 2009 by Tiffany Blofield

Viking fans will recall the famous Purple People Eaters from the late 1960s through the late 1970s. The nickname arose for the defensive line of the Vikings from their purple jerseys and the popular Sheb Wooley song bearing that name. Although they went to four Super Bowls (unfortunately, not taking home a Super Bowl ring), the Purple People Eaters did not receive the astronomical, multi-million dollar, contracts received by the Pro Bowl players today. Accordingly, the retired players rely upon the use of their names, images, and likenesses on paraphernalia, sports bars, and other businesses to make money.

 

To protect their valuable trademarks in their names, images and likenesses, Purple People Eater Jim Marshall, along with five other retired National Football League (“NFL”) players, filed a class action lawsuit against the NFL to recover for their injuries as a result of the NFL’s unauthorized use of their identities to promote the NFL, sell NFL-related products and otherwise generate revenue for the NFL.  They have brought claims for false endorsement under the Lanham Act and various state law claims. The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota.

Their Amended Complaint alleges that “by commercializing the names, images and likenesses of its players, both active and retired, the NFL has become one of the largest entertainment conglomerates on the planet, raking in an estimated $6.9 billion in 2008 alone.” In contrast, the “now-retired NFL players, as a group, suffer severe physical maladies and disabilities as a result of the sacrifices they made to make the NFL what it is today.”  One example identified in the Amended Complaint was that safety Toby Wright sought to use his name, likeness and identity as an NFL player to promote two businesses, one a sports bar and the other a training facility. In response, the NFL informed him that he would have to pay the NFL $100,000 to use his own identity. Because he did not have the funds, the safety was effectively “blocked” from using his own identity. 

Only time will tell if Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Alan Page, who is also a Purple People Eater, will join the class action and whether the Purple People Eater Jim Marshall and the other retired players can beat the NFL off the football field.

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From Trademark to Tin God: Long Live the King?

Posted on September 23, 2009 by Brent Lorentz

A few years ago, the world was introduced to arguably the creepiest fast food mascot of all time: The King.  For many of us, this introduction came courtesy of a frightening commercial suggesting that we "Wake Up With The King."  Over the following years, TK expanded his popularity.  He went from our bedrooms to our football fields (other examples here and here).  Eventually, TK became less about burgers, and more about celebrity.  He became more than a mascot, inviting (fake) controversy and spawning imitators.  As a matter of fact, he has become immensely popular with 114,000 My Space friends.

So, the moral of the story is that Burger King has done an incredible job of product promotion here and companies should do whatever they can to establish their symbol as a pop-culture icon, right? 

Maybe.  Consider the following:  what if TK eventually becomes such a pop culture icon that he no longer represents Burger King.  Stated differently, what if the public appropriates TK for its own uses such that he can no longer be considered an indicator of source for Burger King's goods and services?  Could we be looking at the first case of trademark regicide, as opposed to trademark genercide?  I would say that we have a ways to go at this point.  Nonetheless, I think it's a realistic possibility given today's viral marketing environment.    

   

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