By SHOOT Staff

NEW YORK --

The third SHOOT Commercial Production Forum, presented in partnership with Source TV, drew a diverse mix of industry attendees, providing them with informative panel discussions on both current issues and future prospects for the ad biz, exhibits showcasing an array of technology and services, advice on fostering creativity from keynote speaker Linda Kaplan Thaler, CEO/chief creative officer of The Kaplan Thaler Group (KTG), New York, a give-and-take session on agency in-house editing, and a preview of some key findings from the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) Production Trends Survey.

The latter centered on how the slow payment problem has adversely impacted commercial production houses. Based on feedback from nearly 90 AICP member production companies, poor cash flow due to slow payment is perceived as the leading threat to the viability of the commercialmaking community. (See this week’s lead story for a full report on slow pay, the sequential liability dynamic, its implications and the AICP guidelines implemented earlier this year to help address the issue.)

Though it’s hard to do full justice to the amount of networking and the wealth of information and ideas that surfaced during the daylong Forum at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York, the following coverage of the event’s keynote address and panel discussions gives at least a taste of what transpired. Also check out the photo gallery covering the Forum proceedings.

 

LINDA KAPLAN THALER

After a brief welcome by Forum Hosts, SHOOT Publisher Roberta Griefer and Source TV President, Pamela Maythenyi, and an additional welcome by representatives from Forum Gold Sponsors Kodak and Getty Images (see sidebar), Thaler kicked off the proceedings with a keynote address that offered good humor–and good advice–in promoting free-wheeling yet relevant creativity. The creative chief of KTG–which has made such brand shaping icons as the AFLAC Duck part of pop culture–is also the co-author of “Bang! Getting Your Message Heard In A Noisy World,” lauded in the business press for its insights into selling products and services. Thaler took a page from that book for Forum attendees, offering several axioms to live and/or work by.

One of her main rules is to “Lose the rules.”  She related, “If you try to repeat history, you will.” Instead she advocated risk taking as a prime means to attain originality and success in the advertising/marketing arena. “Lose the fear,” she advised, citing such historic originals as Rosa Parks and Charles Lindberg who dared to defy convention and in the process made an indelible mark on society.

She also stressed the importance of a positive esprit de corps, which can be nurtured in part by “creating a fertile universe.” She urged agency leaders that if their shops accomplish anything, don’t be quick to take individual credit for it. Spread the credit around to your deserving staffers. “Let others feel they own it,” she said, noting that the positive ripple effect will pay off exponentially in future creative projects.

In that same vein, she encouraged creatives to “stop thinking” and “to go off agenda” at times, noting that insights can be gained when people’s minds wander and imagine rather than dwell on the task or problem at hand, which can often lead to writer’s block or a creative stalemate.

Thaler is also a proponent of creating chaos to spur on lateral as opposed to linear thinking. Furthermore, she likes to impose “phony deadlines” because having little or no time to respond can prompt inspired improvisation.

That helped KTG come up with the AFLAC Duck when a staffer remarked that the company name sounded like something a duck would quack. That bit of improv, off-the-cuff thinking took AFLAC from a brand with three percent recognition in the marketplace to a talked about name in the consumer populace at large–with goodwill springing from the good-natured humor of the Duck character.

Thaler related that advertising is everywhere, noting that people are selling space on their foreheads–while others have ad content positioned over urinals in public restrooms. She quipped that the latter is a dream come true for such clients as Budweiser and “Target.”

As an extension of this broadening landscape, so too are there opportunities cropping up beyond a client’s core business. She cited Starbucks which has become a viable outlet for custom-made music. Some 3 million Ray Charles CDs were sold in Starbuck shops. Thaler noted that a Starbucks exec said tongue in cheek that they were in the record biz, not really the coffee business..

As for the state of the ad agency industry, Thaler summed up that it’s a variation on Donald Trump’s famed “You’re fired” line. For ad shops, she smiled, the catchphrase is “You’re acquired.”

–Robert Goldrich

 

SESSION  I: CLIENTS, COMMERCIALS & CHIEF CREATIVE CONCERNS

Mark Huffman, associate director/advertising production at Procter & Gamble, is co-chair of the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) Production Management Committee. During the kickoff panel discussion, he announced that he has taken on a new role at P&G–the Dean of How.

In this additional capacity, Huffman will oversee a small innovation team that will explore how P&G should best play in new media. “Metrics aren’t there when you venture outside of TV, print and radio,” he observed. [When it comes to new media forms], instead you have to spend a little, test a little and learn a little–and hopefully build upon your small successes.”

Indeed the uncertainty about return on investment can be a difficult hurdle to clear at times. During the same Forum session, Susan Credle, executive VP, creative director, member of the board, BBDO New York, noted that the agency recently had two or three new media projects that were “almost a go but didn’t happen.” At the same time, said Credle, “Creative is ready to take off in new ways.” She noted that BBDO is launching a mini comic book on the Web that kids can interact with. “The opportunities to create are tremendous,” she assessed.

“You won’t know until you’ve done it,” related fellow panelist John Garland, executive VP, creative director of broadcast and development, J. Walter Thompson (JWT), New York. “It all comes down to risk….It’s a little bit like rebuilding a plane while it’s flying.”

So risk is what has to be weighed as client production managers try to navigate a successful course to deal with the fragmentation of mass media. Huffman noted that the TiVo or DVR effect underscores that fragmentation. He related that over 80 percent of TiVo users are not viewing TV live–and that 70 percent-plus skip commercial pods altogether.

Garland recommends looking at the situation as a stock portfolio when it comes to reapportioning budgets. “You keep 80 percent in a safe area, for example. And a smaller yet growing percentage in high risk for developmental and experimental media and content…There’s still a lot of trial and error.”

Panelist Greg Stuart, CEO/president of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), advised, “Take a look at your media plan. Pull out one from three to five years ago. If the two look pretty close, you need to examine what you’re doing.”

In that vein, panelist Lee Ann Daly, executive VP, marketing, at ESPN, affirmed that clients and agencies need to come clean as to whether we’ve used any [new media] and have a sense of it. We need to get in boxer shorts and be blogged, get a feel of how short form is served online. We have to look at what’s out there in our everyday lives.”

Both Daly and Huffman contended that television advertising still has considerable value. Daly observed, “:30s aren’t a panacea but they still can be powerful. We need to smartly use them and new tools that are emerging.” But the pricing has to better reflect reality, added Huffman. While major TV network audiences have steadily eroded over the past decade despite there being 30 million more people, the rate for media buys has gone up significantly. Whereas the increase in TV time rates was 7.64 percent in 1994 over the prior year, the hike was nearly 20 percent in ’04, cited Huffman.

The entertainment factor is still key, said Daly. ESPN reinvented the role of promo time. She related that the objective of ESPN’s promo fare is simply “to make people like us and want to spend more time with us.” That approach has been so successful that research has shown that a number of viewers tune in to watch the sports network’s promos, which have become a popular entertainment form unto themselves.

For Garland, the integral factor is not injecting brands into entertainment but rather entertainment into brands. He stressed that opportunities abound in a marketplace which is still being shaped. “What was just a TV production department [at JWT],” said Garland, “is now driving the entertainment offering. Production is about finding solutions.” JWT is currently in co-production on a sitcom that figures to get play both on TV and cell phone screens.

Similarly production houses have to think differently. Panelist Charlie Curran, New York-based executive producer of Crossroads Films, bicoastal and Chicago, related that with an eye on emerging forms, Crossroads has sought out talent beyond the traditional TV commercial director. He noted that Crossroads actively looks to bring aboard helmers who are writers or have agency creative backgrounds or design experience. These diverse skill sets are important, he explained, because they can contribute to the development of longer form fare and new media vehicles.

These new forms in turn pose the question of ownership. Credle related that BBDO had talked about some TV series work but that stopped because the first need was to figure out ownership and rights of such content. Curran chimed in that from a production company standpoint, this is an opportunity to diversify beyond being a paid service provider to actually have an ownership stake of some sort in product. “Ownership is a hot issue [in production house circles],” he affirmed.

Panelist Jonathan Cude, group creative director, McKinney+Silver, Durham, N.C., had a lead role in Audi’s “Art of the H3ist” integrated campaign which successfully launched the A3 automobile in North America. The campaign encompassed traditional TV, live events, gaming, Web communications, viral chats and still growing word of mouth. For Cude, the essential factor is to create “a piece of entertainment to engage consumers,” particularly in a marketplace in which everyone is “competing for mind space.”

At the same time, the :30 is not irrelevant within this space, said Cude. “It [the :30} is not dead. It just can’t suck.”

Huffman concurred that talk of the :30’s death is premature–that it remains valuable, but as part of an expanding environment in which new media forms are emerging..

The bottom line, said Credle, is the fact that there’s still a need for advertising. “The dynamics of “informing, entertaining, branding and making people care about brands are not going away.”

–Robert Goldrich

 

SESSION II: AICP SURVEY

Though the gist of AICP CEO/president Matt Miller’s presentation on the 3rd annual AICP Survey was the slow payment issue as reported on this week’s front page, he shared some other findings from the study, which was independently conducted and analyzed by Goodwin Simon Strategic Research, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

While overseas shooting by U.S. commercial production houses went down in ’04 as compared to ’03, per the AICP Survey of member production companies, Latin America saw a significant spike in activity. According to American spot shop respondents, Latin America accounted for 26 percent of their overseas shoot days in ’04–more than twice the 11 percent reported for calendar year ’03.

The only other foreign region to show an increase was Central/East Europe which went up from eight percent in ’03 to nine percent in ’04. South Africa stayed the same, registering 6 percent both years. Vancouver, B.C., went down from 28 to 24 percent, as did Toronto from 19 to 17 percent, Australia from 9 to 5 percent, the U.K. from 7 to 4 percent, and other foreign markets from 10 to 6 percent. A weaker dollar, translating into a less favorable exchange rate, figured as a key factor behind the decrease of commercial lensing in many foreign countries.

Domestically, there were some increases to report. The percentage of spot shoot days in Los Angeles rose from 46 percent in ’03 to 53 percent in ’04, while Florida went up from 3 to 5 percent. However, New York showed a decrease from 21 to 18 percent and Chicago from 4 to 2 percent.

Maintaining the status quo were other markets throughout the U.S. which collectively accounted for 24 percent of shoot days in ’04 as compared to 25 percent in ’03. Miller tabbed this finding as significant in terms of production centers outside the so-called major markets. He noted that these “other production centers” hosted nearly one out of every four spot shoot days done by U.S. commercial production companies

–Robert Goldrich

 

SESSION III: CINEMATOGRAPHY & POST: HIGH DEFINITION OR HUGE DILEMMA?

In a session moderated by Carolyn Giardina, SHOOT’s senior editor for technology and postproduction, Chris Ryan, colorist at Nice Shoes, New York, Stefan Sonnenfeld, president/managing director of Company 3, Santa Monica and New York, and directors of photography Jon Fauer, ASC and Barry Markowitz, ASC discussed when to shoot on film, and when to shoot with HD, as well as what’s necessary for HD editing, color correction and finishing.

Giardina began the panel with a primer on high definition, and reported that the major broadcast networks are now showing most, and in some cases all, of their primetime episodic series programming in hi def. Standard definition spots shown during an HD broadcast are upconverted, and to fit the different aspect ratio, the images are sometimes “stretched” to fit or aired with black panels on either side of the commercial. Meanwhile, a few stations in select markets have started to black out non-HD spots from HD broadcasts. Moving to production, she related that film is a high resolution medium, meaning one can continue to shoot film and then simply post in high definition to produce an HD spot. She additionally touched on the concept of the digital intermediate (DI) process, which essentially means the process by which camera footage is digitized, and all post and color correction is handled in a nonlinear environment in the digital realm, resulting in the creation of a digital master that is then used to create all deliverables, including film.

The main thrust of the discussion was that as a shooting medium, film is still very much a viable option, but that when it comes to the post process, finishing in HD, and/or using a DI-style processes, allows for greater flexibility when it comes to delivering the final product.

Fauer, who in addition to working as a DP also directs, related that as high definition TV sets and other consumer products drop in price, “[we’re] headed to being able to deliver programming anywhere on anything, and moving there pretty quickly.” He predicted that the day would come when people would go to movie theaters less, because cinematic quality could be delivered to the home via digital technologies. “High definition is going to be huge,” he asserted, “[but] you can still shoot on film.” He noted that film is a “great, archivable, future proof medium,” which can be delivered in many ways.

Markowitz noted that as a DP, he’s a “fan of film,” though one can still get a lot out of shooting in HD. He also said that he often works closely with the colorist on a project, and that the “digital intermediate is a dream come true,” and that if it’s financially feasible for a job, it should be pursued. “It’s like Miracle-Gro,” he joked. “You get the tomato you always wanted.”

“The focus on HD as a replacement [for film] is the wrong way to look at it,” stated Sonnenfeld. He related that like film, HD has its own look, citing as an example the feature film Collateral, which was lensed with a combination of film and digital cameras to generate the desired looks.

Sonnenfeld also commented that finishing in HD, particularly with the DI-style process, makes sense in some cases because all deliverables–whether for TV, cinema, DVD, etc.–come from one source. (Company 3 offers a variety of color grading options, including a DI environment.)

Ryan described the DI-style workflow at Nice Shoes, where film is scanned in to the Grass Valley Specter, then an EDL could sent over, so a spot can be colored in shot order. Ryan relates that this therefore brings nonlinear capabilities to the work environment and allows “clients to see a spot contextually.”

“The boundary between post and production is practically gone,” said Fauer, who added that one has to be “well versed in all these technologies.” He recommends trying as often as possible to finish in HD. He noted that while expensive, the process has its advantages, primarily in having “a product you can deliver in many forms.” Ryan said that when exploring the HD post option, he advises that at a minimum, “the transfer be done in HD.” Sonnenfeld noted that framing is “a paramount issue” in the HD format, and it’s important that it’s correct.

–Kristin Wilcha

 

SESSION IV: EDITING SESSION

SHOOT editor Robert Goldrich moderated this constructive dialogue about in-house agency editorial arms and their impact on the market. Sharing their perspectives were Michael Elliot, founder/editor of independently owned Mad River Post with offices in New York, Santa Monica, San Francisco, Dallas and Detroit; and Michael Aaron, national director of the fledging Association of Agency Creative Editors (AACE). Aaron is supervising editorial producer of The Assembly Line, Fallon’s in-house editorial arm which has operations in Minneapolis and New York.

Elliot described the independent scene as a highly competitive environment where companies vie every day for jobs from agencies and production companies. He related that they constantly strive for excellence, and “in that creative pursuit bring an extra special attribute to a project.”

“We’ve had to reinvent ourselves and adapt,” he said. “That’s a good thing; that keeps us honest as a group.” He added that the net result for ad agencies is that there is constantly developing talent, and they “have the ability to use lots of different solutions and talent, depending on the project.

“We have many different approaches, and we compete ferociously for the work that’s out there– it keeps the creative process extremely fluid and keeps the technological change pouring into the agencies,” Elliot continued. “They have a partner [in independent editing companies].”

Aaron similarly offered “that competition for technology and new talent are the same circumstances for anyone who operates in an agency.” He suggested that there is “a peaceful co-existence” between the two types of editorial companies. “There are so many additional requirements for editors [concepts, pitches], and their in-house facilities are a place to create without [cost pressures],” he said, adding that in-house arms allow agencies “a little more self sufficiency with budgets.”

Aaron also presented an overview of the new AACE, which was formed to foster communication between and among in-house postproduction units. He explained that the group plans to hold various regional meetings during the course of the year, with an annual national meeting held during the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention.

Elliot cautioned agencies to be careful about how choices are made, particularly those that are financially driven. “The postproduction component is probably the smallest [financial] element in the process…Ask yourselves ‘Am I here because I have to be or am I here because money drove me here?’ … if the answer is money, then you know you did a disservice to the work.”

“It comes down to the quality of work,” Elliot concluded. “Whatever services that will survive.”

–Carolyn Giardina

 

SESSION V: HEADS OF PRODUCTION: THE NEXT GENERATION

In this session–moderated by SHOOT’s senior editor, creative and production, Kristin Wilcha–agency heads of broadcast production discussed how they are evolving their departments in order to support a growing number of campaign elements from traditional TV spots to video games, Web sites, DVDs, branded content and other new media forms. But although some of the final product might not look exactly like a traditional 30-second commercial, the skill set required to produce this work is pretty much unchanged.

“We’re still looking for great creative thinking,” related Rich Rosenthal, head of production at Young & Rubicam, New York. “No matter where it ends up, it’s still about producing creative content.” At the same time, he acknowledged that part of talent recruitment involves looking for creative thinkers with new skill sets such as Web design.

As an example, Regina Brizzolara, senior VP/director of broadcast, McKinney+Silver, related that she recently hired someone from HBO–untraditional in that the new hire lacked an agency background, but still “knows the creative process and has a great attitude.” Brizzolara also brought her hands-on experience to the discussion, in that she recently oversaw McKinney’s innovative Audi A3 “Art of the H3ist” integrated campaign, an alternative reality game coupled with live events and TV.

“We need to diversify,” warned Tony Wallace, senior partner/director of broadcast production, JWT, Chicago, who presented an overview of the agency’s branded entertainment division that offers content creation services including music. “We are trying to get more into development of television [content].”

Aaron Royer, senior VP/associate director of broadcast production at  Grey Worldwide, , New York, is working to get “360 degree integrated content from discussion to making it happen.” Grey is directing its producers to come back from every shoot with another form of content–Web, etc., he reported.

Rosenthal and others agreed that their agencies are challenged to ” come up with more than a :30 or :60″–whether that be Web, music, or other forms of content.

But for now, heads of broadcast are preparing for what’s next while keeping their feet firmly planted in today’s commercial needs. Wallace reported that many clients remain conservative and are still doing “90 percent spots, although we are positioned to start working in these other directions for the future.”

Budgets–or the lack thereof–were also discussed. With unanimous agreement from the rest of the panel, Rosenthal stated that there is still “much less time and much less money– the problem is it always gets done.”

–Carolyn Giardina

 

SESSION VI: INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVES ON GLOBAL PRODUCTION

U.S. producers are continuing to look overseas, but at the same time, other countries are coming to the States. That is the dynamic introduced by moderator Massimo Martinotti, president of Mia Films, a group of production companies with offices in Miami, Mexico, Buenos Aires and Costa Rica, as well as associated production houses in Spain and Italy.

Putting an updated perspective on this topic, David Perry, executive VP/head of production at Saatchi & Saatchi, New York, noted that the dollar is no longer the driving factor in shooting outside the U.S. “We are leaving the country for a more highly evolved reason,” he said, noting that the choices are based on the qualities of the given country or the talent. Perry added that in reviewing the Cannes winners list from this past awards season, he concluded, “you can go almost anywhere in the world and get top talent.”

But not everyone agreed. Juan Alfonso, senior VP of marketing at ESPN International, said “my primary concern is costs. We always look in the U.S. first, then the budget limitations come into play.”

Philip Key, managing director/executive producer of Moonlighting Film Production Services in South Africa, acknowledged that costs have helped to make South Africa an attractive destination, but it is not the only factor. “Costs are always an issue, in terms of competition with other countries….but creative, support and other factors come into play.”

“I think relationships play a big part, even if one [country] is cheaper, an agency is not going to take a risk,” he added.

Martinotti asked panelist Debra Sullivan, executive producer at bicoastal/international @radical.media, if production companies such as @radical with offices around the world have an advantage. She agreed that this is a good place to be, but commented “a smart production company is going to do their homework.” She also observed that she is “seeing more companies reaching out to other production companies to form relationships.”

But Perry commented that sometimes U.S.-based production companies that have relationship agreements in place with foreign companies will tend to “lean toward that rather than looking to new ones. [In seeking production partners outside the U.S.], we still do a lot of that leg work.”

Meanwhile, changes are afoot in terms of what is being produced. Avinash Shankar, executive producer at India’s Stratum Films, noted that production in India is very “hands on, a lot of our crews have gone on to features.”

Perry related that media around the world is evolving at different rates, citing the growing interest in mobile content in Europe. He said Saatchi spending remains the same, but a portion of that amount has shifted from traditional TV spots to new forms of advertising. “We want suppliers to lead us,” he said. Alfonso agreed, issuing a similar call to action.

–Carolyn Giardina

 

SESSION VII: THE MEDIA IS THE MESSAGE: WHEN CREATIVE & MEDIA TEAM UP FOR TV ADVERTISING, BRANDED ENTERTAINMENT, AND NEW AD FORMS

In a session moderated by SHOOT’s Goldrich, industry experts from a variety of fields discussed how great results can occur when media and creative come together to find innovative solutions. Panelists were: Laura Caraccioli-Davis, senior VP/director of Starcom Entertainment, Chicago; Teddy Lynn, executive producer of Arnold’s branded entertainment division, Boston and Los Angeles; Jeffrey Greenbaum, a partner at the law firm Frankfurt, Kurnit, Klein & Selz (FKKS), New York, as well as the author of SHOOT’s “LegalEase” column;  Jeffrey Marino, director of production at Visible World, New York; Jim Joseph, president of Arc, New York; and Ashley Swartz, president of Eiko Media, Detroit.

Lynn noted that his unit, which is part of the broader Arnold Worldwide agency, operates within the creative department, and since launching six months ago has been working to develop projects for clients, who, Lynn admits, “are nervous” about entering the branded space.

He added that the Arnold arm is grappling with what sources of talent to tap into–including established Hollywood artisans, and the mainstream commercialmaking community. Lynn related that sometimes major networks require that a proven Hollywood writer, for example, be attached to a property being pitched. It can be a harder sell to bring an agency writer–whom the network has never heard of–to the table

Caraccioli-Davis seeks to link marketers and the entertainment industry to produce exclusive opportunities to integrate brands into pop culture vehicles. She illustrated some examples, including linking AllState Insurance and the popular WB series The Gilmore Girls, which tied

“first experiences” on the show–like a first car or first apartment–back to the insurance company via a Web site. “Clients want to get as close as possible to the creative process,” said Caraccioli-Davis, who noted that integrating marketers and programming is a balancing act, and one needs to “aggressively collaborate.”

Joseph of Arc, an agency that is part of the Publicis Group, and seeks to get brand messages across multiple platforms (e.g. cell phones and podcasts), noted that when coming up with alternative media solutions, it’s important to start with the “underlying marketing essence” of a product, and turn that into a campaign. It’s also important, he said, that the right kind of message is selected. “Things start out media neutral,” he related, meaning that where the content will be featured is predicated on the campaign idea, not a pre-conceived notion. In addition to working with various Publicis shops, Arc also works with agencies outside the network. Swarz of Eiko noted that gamers are “exceptional” in that they are not multi-tasking with other media while playing–their focus is on the game, not a TV set, the Internet and a PDA. She related that there were three areas of gaming an advertiser could get into: “advergaming,” whereby a game, usually online, revolves around a brand; the static integration brand match, where an advertiser links a brand within a game that in turn enhances the game–i.e. Lara Croft and Jeep; and dynamic insertion of ads, which will allow, for example, an advertiser to do object replacement within a networked game.

Marino of Visible World, a company that specializes in developing the tools and processes for planning, executing and delivering highly targeted and versioned ad campaigns to consumers (e.g. a florist could target a neighborhood by zip code), conceded that the ongoing debate about the death of the :30 hasn’t abated. He noted however, that even with a migration of viewers, dollars are being spent in broadcast, and the key is to offer “a greater experience to the viewer.” Visible World build boxes to “deploy highly targeted, addressable” advertising. He said production in this space needs be “crafted so it can take advantage of the technology.” Through the technology, it will be possible to insert dynamic updates to ads on air, and have geographic addressability.

Greenbaum, of FKKS, noted that projects calling for the integration of advertising and entertainment raise key legal issues. The first being that ideas are valuable–it’s important to get compensated for the idea, not just the time. He related that compensation could come in the form of licensing, or another innovative compensation model, pointing out the fact that the sock puppet for pets.com led to merchandising. Another point Greenberg raised was the concept of control when a brand is incorporated into an entertainment property. For example, how do you manage the risk? To do that, one should look back at contracts and make sure all interests are protected. Another point was the idea of different rules in entertainment and in advertising. “There are new challenges in complying with traditional rules in untraditional formats,” he noted. Another legal issue was the idea that “getting under the radar” might not be acceptable–a sponsor involvement may need to be fully disclosed.

An additional area to sort out in the legal arena is celebrity involvement, noted Greenbaum. Some of the questions to ask are: Will a celebrity be willing to participate in branded entertainment, and what do you (and they) do about exclusivity? He related that in some cases “celebrities don’t understand what they’re getting into” when they initially agree to a branded entertainment project. This led to another point to consider: films and TV shows are forever–you need unlimited rights. He cited as an example the Taster’s Choice model–the guy featured on jars of the coffee–whom a jury awarded $15.6 million in compensatory damages for the long-running packaging.

ROI, noted the panel, would determine the success of branded content, and Caraccioli-Davis said that “branded entertainment is the first step” in the relationship between brands and popular culture, “and it will manifest” into other areas

–Kristin Wilcha

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