Paris sets new trend as the product placement Olympics
By Sheila Dang and Mimosa Spencer
PARIS, Aug 10 (Reuters) -Winning athletes in Paris have received their medals on Louis Vuitton trays before being handed a Samsung flip phone to take a "victory selfie", heralding a new era of product placement at the Olympics that Los Angeles looks set to build upon.
The medalists' podium photo didn't happen by chance. Samsung 005930.KS told Reuters it began talks with the International Olympic Committee 18 months ahead of the Games to plot the product placement drive.
The boundary-pushing placement of wares by high-profile sponsors LVMH LVMH.PA and Samsung in Paris is illustrative of how sponsors are seeking new commercial opportunities from an event that still has strict rules around advertising inside competition venues.
Samsung said the strategy was "driving awareness of the new Galaxy Z Flip6 globally," though it did not provide details on sales since the Paris Games opened.
Meanwhile online searches for LVMH grew 43% in the United States during the first week of the Games, according to digital analysis provider Captify.
The opening ceremony saw artists Lady Gaga, Aya Nakamura and Celine Dion all clad in LVMH brand Dior, whilst the event included a minutes-long video showcasing Louis Vuitton's design and crafting of the Olympic flame trunks and medal trays.
"Paris has moved things on significantly for all and created something that's been like a playground for brands - the ultimate playground," said Steve Martin, founding partner of MSQ Sport and Entertainment, a sports marketing agency.
Paris 2024 has seen sponsors and broadcasters turn to product placement, influencers and celebrity commentators like U.S. rapper Snoop Dogg to reach younger audiences and new markets.
The International Olympic Committee this week said it was embracing the trend and facilitating it.
Organisers of Los Angeles 2028 say their Games - with a budget estimated at $6.9 billion - will be privately funded through a combination of sponsorship, ticket revenue, broadcast and merchandise revenues, and not taxpayer money.
LA28 officials told Reuters they had raised more than $1 billion in domestic sponsorship to date, more than Paris had achieved at the same point, and was two thirds of the way toward its goal that exceeds $2 billion.
LA28 anticipates announcing an auto sponsor by the end of the year, LA28 CEO Casey Wasserman told Reuters.
"We’re in the market for the category, we've got very active discussions and I imagine that before year-end, we're likely to announce our partner," he said.
THE 'COMEBACK OLYMPICS'
The increased product placement at Paris 2024 is likely to prompt debate over just how far to push it.
Michael Payne, a former IOC marketing director, said the overt display of LVMH wares during the opening ceremony and the 'victory selfies' with Samsung's flip phone threatened to cross a fine line.
"Other sponsors will say, 'well, why can't I have something on the medal stand?'" he said. "If you let that genie out of the bottle, you will never put it back," he told Reuters.
Nonetheless, the IOC appears set on its course.
"This is the path that we are taking, deliberately, and you will see things evolve in that direction in future Games," Anne-Sophie Voumard, the IOC's Managing Director of Television and Marketing Services, told reporters this week.
The IOC's shift was "encouraging", said Martin Sorrell, the founder and former chief executive of WPP, a leading global advertising group.
Los Angeles' reputation as a city that oozes celebrity glamour, wealth and ostentation was a tantalising prospect for sponsors, said Harry Poole, vice president of marketing solutions at Excel Sports Management.
"There couldn't be a better commercial market," he said.
Reporting by Sheila Dang and Mimosa Spencer; additional reporting by Rory Carroll and Mathieu Rosemain; Writing by Dominique Patton; Editing by Richard Lough and Christina Fincher
Asset collegati
Ultime news
Disclaimer: le entità di XM Group forniscono servizi di sola esecuzione e accesso al nostro servizio di trading online, che permette all'individuo di visualizzare e/o utilizzare i contenuti disponibili sul sito o attraverso di esso; non ha il proposito di modificare o espandere le proprie funzioni, né le modifica o espande. L'accesso e l'utilizzo sono sempre soggetti a: (i) Termini e condizioni; (ii) Avvertenza sui rischi e (iii) Disclaimer completo. Tali contenuti sono perciò forniti a scopo puramente informativo. Nello specifico, ti preghiamo di considerare che i contenuti del nostro servizio di trading online non rappresentano un sollecito né un'offerta ad operare sui mercati finanziari. Il trading su qualsiasi mercato finanziario comporta un notevole livello di rischio per il tuo capitale.
Tutto il materiale pubblicato sul nostro servizio di trading online è unicamente a scopo educativo e informativo, e non contiene (e non dovrebbe essere considerato come contenente) consigli e raccomandazioni di carattere finanziario, di trading o fiscale, né informazioni riguardanti i nostri prezzi di trading, offerte o solleciti riguardanti transazioni che possano coinvolgere strumenti finanziari, oppure promozioni finanziarie da te non richieste.
Tutti i contenuti di terze parti, oltre ai contenuti offerti da XM, siano essi opinioni, news, ricerca, analisi, prezzi, altre informazioni o link a siti di terzi presenti su questo sito, sono forniti "così com'è", e vanno considerati come commenti generali sui mercati; per questo motivo, non possono essere visti come consigli di investimento. Dato che tutti i contenuti sono intesi come ricerche di investimento, devi considerare e accettare che non sono stati preparati né creati seguendo i requisiti normativi pensati per promuovere l'indipendenza delle ricerche di investimento; per questo motivo, questi contenuti devono essere considerati come comunicazioni di marketing in base alle leggi e normative vigenti. Assicurati di avere letto e compreso pienamente la nostra Notifica sulla ricerca di investimento non indipendente e la nostra Informativa sul rischio riguardante le informazioni sopra citate; tali documenti sono consultabili qui.
