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Chicago Tribune: Premiering on the Silverscreen: Ads
Premiering on the silver screen: Ads
By Mary Ellen Podmolik | SPECIAL TO THE TRIBUNE
February 24, 2008
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-sun_movieads24feb24,0,6783708.story
Moviegoers this Oscar weekend may see director Martin Scorsese up on the big screen, but not in the typical uncredited cameo appearances he's made over the years.
Instead, the director brazenly barges in on a family phone call, telling a mother and son how they should act during the scene. The gist of the 30-second skit: since Hollywood doesn't interrupt your phone calls, don't interrupt their movies.
On its face, the bit is a public service announcement, courtesy of AT&T Mobility. But it really serves as a clever corporate branding message for AT&T, which like so many other marketers is trying to find new ways to grab consumers' attention.
AT&T, which has done similar PSAs with Sidney Pollack and Forest Whitaker, is so pleased with the results of its campaign that it is considering big-screen ads for its cell phone business. In surveys, AT&T found that 62 percent of moviegoers recall AT&T as the company reminding people to silence their phones, and 72 percent said they appreciated its efforts.
"It's a great branding message for us," said Daryl Evans, vice president of advertising and marketing communications for AT&T Mobility. "It's a positive way to relate with the audience."
And the biggest ah-ha realization for marketers, who, like Evans, are increasingly looking to the big screen? "It's TiVo-proof," he said.
Long gone are the days when the only marketing messages to run before movie trailers and the feature presentation were drab slides about the concession stand or a local insurance broker. Long gone, too, are the howls of protest by moviegoers who complained that they didn't buy a ticket in order to be subjected to TV commercials.
For the past five years, companies and marketers have been refining "preshows" that blend film industry behind-the-scenes shorts, TV snippets, trivia questions and advertising.
Now, more marketers are turning to theaters to unveil new campaigns on 40-foot screens with rich audio before they scale down the ads and put them on television.
For some in the advertising industry, the recent writer's strike shined a new light on cinema opportunities.
Ad-buying behemoth MediaVest, whose client roster includes Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Kraft Foods Inc. and Procter & Gamble Co., began talks last month with leading cinema ad companies Screenvision and National CineMedia LLC about transferring more than $100 million of prime-time ads from television to the movie screen.
"Even without the writer's strike, should that not have happened, we'd still be talking to our clients about looking at their current communications mix," said Norm Chait, MediaVest's senior vice president and director of out-of-home investment and activation. "Cinema was a natural place to go. There is no switching, clicking. Unless you're looking at your feet, you're seeing the ad.
"It's not that [marketers] are going to walk away from television. TV is still the 800-pound gorilla. But now's the time to say television is not your only solution."
Ad revenue booming
Movie theater commercials represent a growing phenomenon. On-screen ad spending rose 15 percent, to $417.4 million, in 2006, according to the most recent figures available from the Cinema Advertising Council, whose members account for more than 80 percent of U.S. movie screens.
In-theater advertising isn't a cheap solution, but proponents say it does offer advertisers a way to break out of the clutter. During a 25-minute preshow, about 10 minutes are devoted to a combination of local and national ads; the price tag for a 30-second spot can run from $1 million to close to $2.5 million. The most expensive ads run right before the trailers begin.
Technological advancements allow a marketer to target audiences, say by running mini-van ads before a PG-rated movie or playing the ads only in certain ZIP codes. Target stores in February debuted a "dream in color" ad honoring Black History Month in theaters popular with African-Americans before putting the commercial on television. Movie theater ads for three Unilever products, Axe, Sunsilk and Dove soap, last year were shown to three different types of audiences in Chicago, based on the type of film played.
In-theater advertising has become a source of income for theater operators, but it still pales in comparison to concession-stand sales.
The irony, of course, is that the movie industry is dealing with its own struggles. Last year, box-office ticket sales rose 4 percent, to $9.7 billion, but attendance was flat, according to box-office tracking company Media by Numbers.
Still, the 1.42 billion tickets bought last year represent a relatively captive audience once they are inside the theater, distracted from the screen only by trips to the restroom and concession stand or personal conversations before the feature begins. And many of those patrons are the teens and young adults coveted by product marketers.
Moviegoers do have plenty of time to kill before the 10 minutes of movie trailers that precede a movie. A recent study by Arbitron found that moviegoers are in the theater between 24 and 28 minutes before movie previews begin.
The same study found that 59 percent of moviegoers watch the preshow commercials before the movie starts, and 63 percent of people, and specifically 74 percent of teens, don't mind the ads. More important, 21 percent of moviegoers say they were more interested in a product after seeing it advertised on-screen.
"Outside of the Super Bowl, we are probably the second-best place to break creative," said Michael Chico, executive vice president of Screenvision.
Much of that acceptance has come from the fact that companies like Screenvision and National CineMedia are careful to cut off the digital transmissions right at the publicized showtimes. It's just as critical to offer top-quality entertainment during the preshow as it is to run the last commercial at 7:59 if the advertised show time is 8 p.m.
"We learned early on, and we made our mistakes early on, that consumers want to go to movies and be entertained," said Clifford Marks, president of sales and chief marketing officer of National CineMedia, whose clients include Unilever, J.C. Penney Co. and Nike Inc. "You're not paying the baby-sitter" to watch commercials.
Emphasis on creativity
Chris Johnson, vice president of Classic Cinemas, which operates a dozen movie houses in Chicago's suburbs, said he might have had one complaint in the past year about the preshow ads, but it is nothing compared with years ago when the ads were still running after the posted show times.
"I think the younger audiences like it more," he said of the preshows. "It's in the same vein of when you go to a ballgame and you're inundated with ads and sponsored events. [But] if you just take a TV commercial and put it on the screen, that's not as compelling."
That has become the challenge for marketers, to come up with clever creative efforts worthy of film audiences and a 40-foot screen. Increasingly, cinema ad companies are pressuring advertisers to break longer-format campaigns first in theaters and then trim them down and air them on television. Just a few years ago, marketers would place 2-month-old commercials on the big screen, but that doesn't cut it anymore.
"You try to have more entertaining commercials," said Randy Freissner, senior vice president and group media director of The Martin Agency's Ingenuity Media Group. "People are there to be entertained. You're not going to do a hard sell. You don't want to have something that is more informative and less entertaining."
Hollywood Reporter: Reports 15% growth for in-theater ads
In-cinema advertising grew into a $455.7 million business in the U.S. last year, 15% better than in 2005 and far outpacing boxoffice growth during the same frame.
The Cinema Advertising Council is set to release Monday its 2006 annual report, which indicates that onscreen advertising jumped from $361.6 million in 2005 to $417.4 million last year and that the smaller offscreen category went from $33.2 million to $38.3 million.
Offscreen cinema advertising consists of lobby promotions, standees, ads on popcorn bags, sampling and any other form of marketing that is done inside theaters but not on movie screens.
While still just a small portion of overall exhibition revenue, the growth prospects for in-theater advertising far outweigh those of boxoffice and concession sales. Boxoffice revenue in the U.S. and Canada, for example, rose 5.5% last year to $9.5 billion after falling the previous year, according to the MPAA.
The CAC's data includes only the screens belonging to CAC members, which is the vast majority. Of 39,600 screens in the U.S., 30,800 of them sell ads, and CAC members own about 81% of those ad-selling screens.
CAC president and chairman Clifford Marks said that several industries already have embraced in-theater advertising, with newer ones including family restaurants, packaged goods and retail. Industries with more experience with in-theater advertising include automotive, movie studios, television, consumer electronics, telecom, financial services, educational institutions and the military.
About 70% of in-theater advertising comes from national advertisers, while 30% is regional.
One trend helping in-theater advertising maintain its growth trajectory is that about 18,000 ad-selling screens have upgraded to digital satellite systems that allow the same client to have different ads on different screens.
"They can buy nationally and sell locally," Marks said.
According to industry insiders, a four-week national campaign that would use the two top in-theater advertising companies -- National Cinemedia and Screenvision -- to blanket the nation's ad-selling screens would cost about $4 million. Under that scenario, the ads would be seen by 50 million-100 million moviegoers.
"The best thing to have happened in this industry is that both National Cinemedia and Screenvision have invested significantly to create entertaining preshows," Marks said.
One memorable spot has Vince Gill singing what sounds like a serious country ballad to a teary-eyed audience, though he's accompanied onstage by an apple and some grapes. It's a two-minute Fruit of the Loom underwear commercial.
"There's a trend toward longform marketing embedded in short, entertaining films, music videos or behind-the-scenes footage," Screenvision senior vp marketing Stu Ballatt said.
According to a TNS study in 2005, moviegoers exposed to in-theater advertising were 44% more likely to remember the ad than were viewers who saw a similar commercial on television.
"Marketers who were only experimenting with cinema three or four years ago are now demanding that their agencies make our industry's platform a must buy," Marks said.
Daily Variety: Bigscreen ad revenues rise
Bigscreen ad revenues rise
CAC figures show 15% increase in 2006
By DADE HAYES
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117974029.html?categoryid=13&cs=1
Revenue from ads on movie screens reached $455.7 million in 2006, up 15% from $394.8 million in 2005, according to a report out today from the Cinema Advertising Council.
Offscreen revenues, including all ad initiatives in theaters that don't involve the movie screen, also surged 15%, hitting $38.3 million from $33.2 million in 2005.
The CAC, which reps about 81% of the 37,740 screens in the U.S., presented the results, which were independently tabulated by Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co.
Clifford E. Marks, the org's prexy and chairman as well as prexy of sales and marketing at major onscreen ad firm National CineMedia, said the revenue gain is only part of the story. The resistance to the notion of ads before a feature film has significantly eroded among audiences and ad buyers alike, he said.
"If you go back to when we were putting up slides and showing photos of local Realtors, we have come a really long way," Marks said. "You don't hear of people booing commercials or the backlash we used to hear from people."
Only 8% of moviegoers surveyed by ScreenVision, a major screen ad firm and CAC member, said they would prefer no pre-show at all over current offerings.
Marks said a diverse range of advertisers are starting to tailor their pitches to the megaplex, though only 25% of the commercials shown are made uniquely for the cinema.
The pitch from CAC to advertisers is to use theaters, where attention and retention are far higher than in other media, as a launch platform before running shorter versions of the same ad in other media.
Audiences would want to be in on the inception of an ad campaign that later appears on TV and online, ad execs maintained.
"With regard to audiences, there is virtually no resistance" to pre-show ads, said Stu Ballatt, senior VP of marketing at ScreenVision. "That's been overplayed since the beginning."
MediaWeek: CAC: Cinema Ads Continue Brisk Yearly Gains
CAC: Cinema Ads Continue Brisk Yearly Gains
Katy Bachman
OCTOBER 15, 2007 –
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/tvstations/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003658095
The big screen continues to draw interest from national advertisers who have poured enough cash into cinema advertising to put it up among the fastest growing ad media.
In 2006, cinema-advertising revenue grew 15 percent to $455.6 million, according to figures to be released Monday (Oct. 15) by the Cinema Advertising Council. On-screen ad revenue lifted 15 percent to $417.4 million. Off-screen revenue, such as lobby promotions, was also up 15 percent to $38.2 million.
Tracking cinema advertising since 2002, the CAC revamped its calculating method for the 2006 figures, basing them solely on its members, which represent 81 percent of U.S. movie screens.
Once a mostly local medium, the cinema ad industry has transformed itself by heavily investing in digital and high-definition technology. Today about 70 percent of cinema advertising is national, noted Cliff Marks, president of the CAC and president of sales and marketing for National Cinemedia. Digital technology also allows clients to buy nationally and localize or regionalize messages. Ford, for example, inserted Hispanic creative in specific markets.
This year, the industry is expecting a repeat performance, with new advertisers signed up. NCM in third quarter added Wendy’s, JC Penney, eBay and Yahoo. Screenvision added American Girl, Build-A-Bear, Geico and All-State.
AdWeek: Cinema Ad Revenue Up 15 Percent
Cinema Ad Revenue Up 15 Percent
October 15, 2007
By Shahnaz Mahmud
http://www.adweek.com/aw/national/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003658338
NEW YORK Ad revenue among Cinema Advertising Council members grew 15 percent to nearly $456 million in 2006, up from $395 million in 2005, according to a CAC report released today. CAC members account for more than 81 percent of U.S. movie screens.
Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co. determined the figures.
The report includes revenue data for both on-screen and off-screen cinema advertising. On-screen includes commercials aired prior to movie previews and feature presentations. Off-screen includes audio programming, sampling, special events, concession-based efforts and lobby promotions.
The report said on-screen advertising increased 15 percent to slightly more than $417 million in 2006, up from $362 million in 2005. Off-screen figures also rose 15 percent, to $38 million-plus in 2006, up from $33 million in 2005.
"What was a testing ground five years ago for marketers has become a very significant and important part of their annual media planning. The reason that marketers continue to come back is because the recall is incredible, the impact is big—and it works," said Clifford Marks, chairman and president of the CAC and president of sales and marketing at National CineMedia.
The report indicated that the growth in revenue is also attributable to other types of advertisers getting into the space. These include: food and consumer packaged goods, consumer electronics, telecom, financial services and Internet and entertainment media.
Overall, automotive, entertainment, consumer electronics, telecom, financial services, education and government/military firms ranked among the leading national cinema advertisers in 2006, the survey said.
NY Post: CINEMA AD BUZZ IN-SHOW BIZ SIZZLES
CINEMA AD BUZZ
IN-SHOW BIZ $IZZLES
By HOLLY M. SANDERS
http://www.nypost.com/seven/10152007/business/cinema_ad_buzz.htm
October 15, 2007 -- Call it a sequel, but cinema advertising is having another blockbuster year.
Revenue from in-theater advertising topped $456 million last year, up more than 15 percent from $395 million the year before, according to a new report from the Cinema Advertising Council.
Advertisers eager to reach an audience stuck in their seats are buying up the time in between shows, making it one of the fastest-growing ad categories.
New kinds of advertisers, such as retailers and consumer-products companies that haven't traditionally advertised in theaters, are also getting on board.
In general, digital projectors have made it easier and less expensive to show pre-movie ads, compared with the old method of putting ads on film stock.
Plenty of people still find in-theater ads annoying, but industry execs like to cite an Arbitron study that claimed two-thirds of people don't mind advertising at the movies.
Cliff Marks, chairman and president of the Cinema Advertising Council, is convinced consumers are more accepting of the practice. He credits that in part to pre-shows - a blend of ads and entertainment that lasts between 20 and 25 minutes - with making commercials more palatable.
The big theater chains have also listened to consumers and are being careful about commercial clutter, he said.
"Theaters are encouraging entertainment pre-shows and limiting commercial load," he said. "Many aren't running ads after the show time."
Marks is also the head of sales for National CineMedia advertising, a major theater ad firm that went public this year. National CineMedia and competitor Screenvision are the leaders in pushing for pre-shows.
The latest figures include both on-screen cinema advertising - commercials that air in advance of a movie - as well as off-screen promotions such as displays in the lobby or ads on popcorn bags.
Sales from on-screen advertising alone increased 15 percent, to $417 million from $362 million.
holly.sanders@nypost.com
USA Today: Advertainment greets moviegoers
Advertainment greets moviegoers
By Laura Petrecca, USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/adtrack/2007-10-14-movie-ads_N.htm
Moviegoers at 12 U.K. cinemas on Saturday became human joysticks.
They were shown an ad for the Volvo XC70 before the movie Ratatouille, and were asked to put their hands in the air and wave them left or right — as a group. A single camera at the front of the theater translated the audience's collective leanings, and the onscreen animated car drove in that direction.
That participatory commercial represents a growing trend in movie theater advertising, with on-screen ads and lobby displays becoming more interactive, more entertainment-oriented and frequently offbeat — such as a tongue-in-cheek promotion where an oral-care company stuck dental picks to the popcorn bags.
The idea is that more fun makes advertising go down better with a theater's captive audience.
"If you are going to use cinema advertising, the bar is higher in terms of the engagement and the entertainment that you have to bring to the table," says Jay Waters, chief strategy officer at marketing agency Luckie and Co. "Consumers think, 'I get free programming at home in exchange for watching advertising, but I paid to come in here, so why should I have to watch an ad?' "
The innovations come as marketers continue to ramp up spending on movie theater promotions.
On Monday, the Cinema Advertising Council will report that spending in 2006 hit $456 million — a 15% rise over the prior year. That total includes revenue from on-screen commercials — ads that run before the movie previews — as well as off-screen promotions, such as lobby displays, sample handouts and ads on popcorn bags. CAC members represent about 81% of the movie screens in the USA.
As cinema ads become a regular part of the movie-going experience, marketers continue to try new techniques to test their potential for amusing, rather than alienating, the paying customers.
"If you let people have fun, they don't feel like they've been intruded upon," says David Polinchock, chief experience officer at Brand Experience Lab, which was responsible for the interactive technology behind the Volvo ad. "They don't walk away upset."
Matthew Kearney, CEO of Screenvision, which sells ads for theater chains such as National Amusements and Carmike Cinemas, says the company aims for "entertainment" in on-screen ads before previews that "are designed to help the time pass."
Those ads are welcome new revenue for theater owners grappling with lack of growth in U.S. ticket sales.
From 2002 to 2004, box-office revenue remained relatively flat, hovering around $9.5 billion, according to the Motion Picture Association of America. In 2005, it dipped to $8.4 billion, before reviving to $9.6 billion last year.
Yet, some ad critics still sit there seething and anti-ad groups have organized via the Internet, such as the Captive Motion Picture Audience of America. At captiveaudience.org, consumers are urged to "say 'NO' to TV commercials before feature films at movie theaters."
Theater owners, however, continue to say, "Yes." A look at what's been showing up at theaters:
•Long-form videos. This month, Geico launched a two-minute music video featuring its ad cavemen singing about romantic troubles in their lives. Set in a chic apartment, the video ends with a plug for the Geico website CavemansCrib.com.
"People would much rather see this than a still ad for a dentist," says Phil Ovuka, Geico media director.
The ad is being shown on 4,062 screens at 341 theaters nationwide, says Geico's Joe Talbott, who wrote and directed the video.
•Offbeat lobby displays. This summer, to promote The Simpsons Movie, about 1,000 U.S. and Canadian theaters had life-size lobby displays of Marge, Homer, Bart, Lisa and Maggie on their signature sofa. It had a seat open for moviegoers to plop down next to the characters — and snap cellphone photos.
•Interactive on-screen ads. An Army National Guard ad in about 1,100 theaters in December urged patrons to use their cellphones to text their age to get information about Guard fitness requirements. Those that did got a text reply listing sit-ups, push-ups and running distance needed. They also received subsequent messages about enlistment benefits, such as tuition assistance.
•Corny add-ons. Last fall, DenTek Oral Care attached individually wrapped dental floss picks to 570,000 popcorn bags in 100 markets nationwide. "Floss sticks are really handy if you're eating popcorn and you get a kernel stuck," says A.J. Holt, a marketing specialist for the company.
The bag ad said, "Don't you just hate it when popcorn gets stuck in your teeth?" It included a coupon for $1 off any package of DenTek Floss Picks.
Screenvision's Kearney says consumers will see more creative advertising in the future at the concession stand: "There's plenty of mileage left in the good old-fashioned popcorn bag."
NEW & NOTABLE
Scare those cavities away.
For parents whose biggest Halloween fear is fat dental bills, here's a marketing twist: Coax your kid to sell his or her holiday loot to the dentist.
In a move spearheaded by Middleton, Wis., dentist Chris Kammer, some 150 tooth docs nationwide will pay $1 for every pound of wrapped, "fun size" Halloween candy turned in on Nov. 1. Their goal: collect 1 million pieces of candy — about 33,300 pounds.
The treats won't be trashed — they'll be shipped to armed forces members in Iraq. What about the soldiers' dental health? "These troops are getting shot at, and their lives are on the line every day," says Kammer. "If a little piece of candy can give them a moment of joy, I'm all for it."
MediaPost.com: Silver Screen Turns Golden, Cinema Has Boffo Ad Market
by Erik Sass, Monday, Oct 15, 2007 7:45 AM ET
http://publications.mediapost.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.san&s=69135&Nid=35250&p=226846
2006 WAS A BANNER YEAR for cinema advertisers, with the Cinema Advertising Council reporting 15% growth in revenues over 2005 to $455.6 million. And the medium is on its way to an equally successful 2007, according to executives from the two big cinema ad players, National CineMedia and Screenvision, who pointed to repeat business and the entrance of new advertisers.
Cliff Marks, president and chairman of the CAC as well as the president and chief managing officer of NCM, spoke for the industry as a whole: "Lots of new marketers and new categories are coming into the cinema space, obviously because they understand the appeal of sight, sound and motion." Established categories like automotive, consumer electronics, and military recruiting are being joined by wireless and telecom advertisers, insurance companies, and financial services, including credit cards.
Another big category that's just beginning to break is retail and packaged goods, said Marks and Matthew Kearney, the president and chief executive officer of Screenvision. According to Kearney, after Old Navy adopted cinema advertising last year, other retailers like JCPenney began to express interest, and more big retail names are coming in the near future. Kearney also said Screenvision is making its first deals with insurance companies, with Allstate and GEICO on board (the famous cavemen will be appearing in Screenvision pre-shows shortly).
A key driver of growth has been the expansion of both companies' digital networks for serving ads to movie screens, replacing cumbersome and time-consuming analog tape reels or slide shows. David Kupiec, executive vice president of sales and marketing for National CineMedia, estimated that "90%-92% of our screens are now on the digital network," while Kearney said slightly more than half of Screenvision's partners are hooked up. However, Screenvision's total number is somewhat higher, as it's also using digital systems installed by cinema owners themselves for showing feature films.
The executives also pointed to the attractive demographic reached by cinema advertising: audiences skew younger, better-educated, and more affluent than the population at large. The latest edition of Arbitron's "Cinema Advertising Study" found that 71% of teens ages 12-17 and 61% of adults 18-24 reported going to the movies in the last month. Overall, cinema advertising reaches 53% of adults ages 18-34. Meanwhile, adult moviegoers are 35% more likely than the population at large to have an annual income over $75,000.
Silicon Alley Insider: Pre-Movie Ads in Theatres Now $450 Million Business
Pre-Movie Ads in Theatres Now $450 Million Business
Henry Blodget | October 15, 2007 8:38 AM
http://www.alleyinsider.com/2007/10/premovie-ads-in.html
In-theater ads hit $456 million in 2006, up 15% from 2005, says the Post, citing a report by the Cinema Advertising Council. For perspective, this is about the size of Viacom's "digital" revenue. The head of the council, Cliff Marks, who also happens to be head of sales for the public play in the sector, National Cine-Media (NCMI, see below), says that the introduction of digital projectors is helping spur adoption, as advertisers no longer have to burn ads onto film.
Some theaters have also apparently realized that showing ads after movie start-times is annoying and don't do it (other than interminable slates of movie previews, of course, which audiences have forgotten are ads).
National Cine-Media (NCMI) is growing faster than the industry, with revenue up 47% to $84 million in Q2 ($340 million run rate). The stock has been flat since last fall's IPO.
Media Life: Lights, camera, greenbacks: Movie ad revenue rises
Lights, camera, greenbacks: Movie ad revenue rises
http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman2/publish/News_shorts_31/index.asp
Last year may have been a down one at the box office, but for cinema advertising, it was a blockbuster. According to the Cinema Advertising Council’s new report, in-theater advertising revenue jumped to $456 million last year, a record total and up 15 percent from 2005’s $395 million. That includes in-theater display advertising as well as the traditional on-screen advertisements that these days air for 20 minutes or so before a feature begins. The report finds that nontraditional cinema advertisers such as retailers contributed to some of the rise, but technology also deserves credit. Ads have become less expensive to air and format before movies with the increasing usage of digital projectors.
Jack Myers.com: Ad Spending In Cinemas Up 15% For 2006.
Exclusive to JackMyers.com!
Ad Spending In Cinemas Up 15% For 2006.
Today The Cinema Advertising Council, a national non-profit trade association, released its report on cinema ad revenues reporting that industry revenues among members grew by 15% to $455,661,000 in 2006.
In September Jack Myers Media Business Report forecast growth in nontraditional media projecting cinema advertising growth for 2007 at 15%, 2008 growth at 17.5% and 2009 growth at 12.5%.
President and chairman Clifford E. Marks noted, "Marketers are looking for new, highly-effective, targeted opportunities to engage harder to reach consumer audiences that are increasingly migrating away from traditional media platforms. […] A majority of these marketers who were only experimenting with cinema three or four years ago, are now demanding that their agencies make our industry’s platform a ‘must buy.’"
Contact Music.com:
THEATERS SELLING ADS LIKE POPCORN
http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/theaters%20selling%20ads%20like%20popcorn_1046718
Revenue from in-theater advertising rose more than 15 percent to $456 million from $395 million a year ago, according to a study by the Cinema Advertising Council and reported in today's (Monday) New York Post. Reporting on the results, the newspaper observed, "Advertisers eager to reach an audience stuck in their seats are buying up the time in between shows, making it one of the fastest-growing ad categories." The Post quoted CAC Chairman Cliff Marks as expressing the belief that moviegoers are becoming "more accepting" of screen advertising. A recent Arbitron poll indicated that two-thirds of moviegoers "don't mind" the ads.
MarketingCharts.com
Cinema advertising industry revenues among Cinema Advertising Council (CAC) members grew 15% to $455.7 million in 2006, from $394.8 million in 2005, according to (pdf) the CAC’s just-released 2006 report on cinema advertising revenues. CAC members account for more than 81% of US movie screens, according to the organization.
The CAC report includes revenue data for both on-screen cinema advertising (including commercials airing in advance of movie previews and the feature presentation) and off-screen revenues (including those derived from audio programming, sampling, special events, concession-based promotions and lobby-based promotions).
According to the report:
• On-screen advertising revenues increased 15% to $417,401,000 in 2006 from $361,598,000 in 2005.
• Off-screen revenues grew to $38,260,000 in 2006, a 15% increase from $33,232,000 in 2005.
Also according to the report:
• Leading national advertising categories in 2006 included Automotive, Entertainment/Media (including Movie Studios, Broadcast/Cable TV and Home Video), Consumer Electronics, Telecom, Financial Services, Educational Institutions and Government/Military.
• Growth in cinema advertising revenues in 2006 is attributable to increasing activity from advertisers across a spectrum of national advertising categories: Food/Consumer Packaged Goods, Consumer Electronics, Educational Institutions, Telecom, Financial Services, Automotive, Government/Military, Internet and Entertainment/Media.
• Cinema advertising in 2006 was also buoyed by revenue growth in regional and local advertising. Leading regional and local advertising categories include Real Estate, Automotive Dealers/Manufacturers, Healthcare Professionals/Services and Restaurants.
About the study: Revenue data is independently collected and tabulated by Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co. LLP. In 2007, CAC members account for more than 81 percent of US movie screens. The CAC no longer estimates revenue for non-members or for beverage category advertising.
Oct 15-07
Film Journal International--Screen Advertising and Alternative Content Big Rollout
Digital Technology Lures New Screen Advertisers.
"What's new and exciting in cinema advertising?"...
Other Advertising Magazine--Lights! Camera! Interaction!
Read Ann Cooper's article from Other Advertising Magazine. Click the link above to download the article.
Film Journal International--Leveraging the Cinema Experience Advertising Council Promotes Movie Theatres
Digital Cinema Report-- Cinema Advertising Reached $600 Million Mark in 2006
Digital Cinema Report--Cinema Advertising Names 2006 Creative Excellence Award Winners
The Cinema Advertising Council has named the winners of its 2006 CAC Creative Excellence Awards. The annual awards recognize high-quality, entertaining advertising that has been showcased in movie theatres during the past year, on a national, regional and local basis. In addition to honoring the top on-screen cinema advertising spots and the top integrated marketing campaigns, new award categories were added this year to recognize long-form advertising and digitally animated still advertising in cinemas.
NY Times--Stuart Elliott's Webdenda reports on 2006 CAC Creative Excellence Winners
“Happiness Factory,” a commercial for Coca-Cola Classic, was the big winner at the 2006 Creative Excellence Awards sponsored by the Cinema Advertising Council, New York. The spot, by Wieden & Kennedy, Portland, Ore., was named the top national or regional ad to appear last year in movie theaters. A version of the commercial also appeared during Super Bowl XLI in February.
Advertising Age Magazine: Cinema Ads Should Enhance Movie Theater Experience
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Spider-Man, Shrek and Harry Potter aren't the only familiar names movie fans will get reacquainted with on the big screen this summer. An increasing amount of blue-chip brands are making movie theaters a standard part of their overall media plans, having made cinema marketing a $600 million business in 2006.
Shoot Online--Aero Film Seeks Out Big Screen Spot Work
SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 16, 2007, --- Aero Film has formed a production team dedicated to the development of advertising intended specifically for big-screen cinema. The Santa Monica-based commercial production company, headed up by partner/president Skip Short and partner/executive producer Lance O'Connor, maintains a directorial roster that includes Ken Arlidge, Henrik Hansen, Klaus Obermeyer, Brent Jones and Nelson McCormick.
Just last month, Aero Film's "National Guard/Citizen Soldier" (directed by Obermeyer) was nominated by The Cinema Advertising Council (CAC) as an entry in the CAC's 2007 Creative Excellence Awards which recognizes high-quality, entertaining advertising messages showcased at the movies. The spot was nominated in the Top Integrated Cinema Advertising Campaign category.
NY Post: Big Screen Stars are Made
March 13, 2007 -- After getting plenty of television exposure, "American Idol" runner-up Katharine McPhee is turning to the silver screen to launch her self-titled debut. Read more...
Media Life Magazine: Movie Theater Spots Earn a Thumbs Up
Arbitron study finds most patrons don't mind ads.
Hollywood Reporter: Preshow ads hitting their spots
Radioink.com covers Arbitron Cinema Advertising Study
According to The Arbitron Cinema Advertising Study 2007: “Making Brands Shine in the Dark,” to frequent moviegoers (people who attended more than five movies in the past three months) commercials before movies are more acceptable than commercials on television. Over half (53 percent) of frequent moviegoers find advertising before the movie to be acceptable versus 46 percent who find television advertising to be acceptable.
Mediaweek.com--Arbitron Cinema Advertising Study 2007: Moviegoers Find Pre-Film Ads More Acceptable than TV Ones
Mediaweek.com.
Frequent moviegoers find commercials that air prior to movies more acceptable than ads on television, according to a new study from Arbitron. More than half of frequent moviegoers (those who attended more than five movies in the past three months), or 53 percent, find advertising before the movie acceptable compared to 46 percent who found TV ads more acceptable.
Film Journal Int'l: Global cinema-advertising revenues for 2005 are expected to reach US$2 billion
Global cinema-advertising revenues for 2005 are expected to reach US$2 billion, reports Cheryl Wannell, general manager of the Screen Advertising World Association (SAWA). Better yet, “most surveys that came back were pretty optimistic about 2006” as well. “The forecasts seem to be steady growth, probably above total ad markets.” The industry is “relatively healthy.” as screen advertising “is still able to set itself apart from the rest of advertising due to the unique nature of cinema.”
Wall Street Journal: Box office bounty stirs deals
The Financial Express: In-theatre advertising and brand promotions are bidding for the front seat in multiplexes
Los Angeles Business Journal: Pre-Film Ad Sales Turning into Blockbuster for Theatres
NYTimes.com: Stuart Elliott's Webdenda
Media Life Alternative Media Report: Blockbuster growth for cinema ads
BrandWeek: Movie house ad spending rose in '05
Adweek.com: 2006 Cine Ad Winners
Media Daily News: Chanel Tops Awards for New Media Channel: Cinema
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