GM Bails Out of 'Transformers' Marketing Push

GM has scaled back on its involvement with Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. The troubled automaker - which is lucky to be in business, frankly - has several new models featured in the film, as was the case in 2007's original. The difference is that General Motors no longer has tens of millions of dollars to help promote its cars and the movie through advertising. The Los Angeles Times didn't say how much GM will still be involved, only that is has "sharply throttled back its contribution" to the overall advertising and marketing plan. You might not think that's any big deal, but Paramount may not be in a position to make up the difference; that's a lot of commercials we're talking about. If this were the first Transformers, I think there would be a greater cause for concern. There is so much anticipation for the film already that the target audience doesn't need to continually be sold on it with a month-long ad blitz. What Paramount will most likely do is position the film across the many, many Viacom channels - MTV, Comedy Central, Spike, and maybe even CBS - in a month where advertising is already down a little bit in comparison to May, one of the two or three biggest months for television revenue. By targeting some promotional opportunities within its own company, Paramount can get the word out for free, or at least, for less. And the company has a long history of vertically integrating its films. Remember Mike Myers hosting The MTV Movie Awards just a few weeks before The Love Guru? And remember the Tropic Thunder highlight from that same show? Certainly, Paramount will miss the added push that GM could have provided, but as for how significant its impact will be in the long run, it might only be a minor dent.

Comments

[PowerballDrawing]

This looks very good!!!

[mlgreen8753]

General Motors may not have the advertising budget it once had, but it doesn't need it. All they need is a good social media director who knows how to use free online advertising to achieve satisfactory numbers. If the president can win over a nation with social media, a company can surely win over customers.