'Jurassic World' shows just how weird product placement has become - Washington Post (blog)
When the dino hunters of "Jurassic World" race into action, they don't just use any car: They roar into the jungle aboard Mercedes-Benz G-Class luxury SUVs. When "Jurassic Park" hit theaters in 1993, it instantly became famous for its dozens of product tie-ins, the camera lingering on logos for Ford Explorers, Jeep Wranglers, Nikon cameras and Jolt Cola. But the blockbuster's latest sequel opening today, the $150 million "Jurassic World," shows just how much product placement has evolved, both as a consistent moneymaker for film executives — and a cringe-worthy fact of life for the theater-going... Some companies have pushed to extend their corporate tie-in from the first film, like Barbasol shaving cream, a can of which was used to smuggle dinosaur embryos. in the book, smugglers used Gillette — but the shaving-cream maker now calls it one of its biggest victories: John Price, a marketing vice president for parent company Perio, called it "one of the most recognized brand integrations of all time. The company has now embarked on a "fully integrated marketing program" taking victory laps on Twitter, launching consumer sweepstakes at www. Product placement has become so fundamental to how film and TV studios and distributors make money that corporate tie-ins are more the rule than the exception. Source: www.washingtonpost.com
