Friday, November 10, 2006

Branded interaction

Ever wonder how much all those car crashes in the movies would actually cost? Well, Progressive Direct, a division of a US auto insurer has come up with a way to estimate the costs. Progressive Direct tied up with Universal Studios Home Entertainment to make a program that inserts a running total of the damage being done in its HD DVD release of "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift". So as cars crash into each other the description of the damage and the estimated cost will be displayed in a small window.

This is the first of a stream of branded interactive features that Universal will be releasing in its new HD DVDs. Product placement has become the norm and this is an interesting and interactive take on the concept that viewers will probably enjoy. Progressive Direct has created a new website, www.progressivefastandfurious.com, where it has contests to promote the movie and the DVD. Marketing manager at Progressive Direct Fred Khoury, emphasized that this was for fun as it gave the company an opportunity to reach people in a new and different way. It's a totally different way of advertising and reaching newer customers. While on car repair and insurance, here's a good place to compare car insurance rates and get all your questions answered, regarding insurance, quotes and buying insurance online.

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