Every dig inspires their audience to step outside of official boundaries and to challenge the very definition of success. Their competitors, however, are often unwilling to sit on the sidelines, resorting instead to ambush marketing. The returns to the marketplace and the host country are correspondingly large: the 2000 Sydney Games, the most profitable ever, generated $2.6 billion in licensing and sponsorship revenue. This practice is entirely legal, although event organizers and sponsors may find it annoying. In 1996, Nike had a marketing moment of Olympic proportions at the Atlanta Games. The brilliance of the ad is that it doesn’t reference the Olympics even once. What Are the Best Tips for Ambush Marketing? On the basis of these laws, organizers of the 2003 World Cricket Cup in South Africa boasted that they could activate police to enforce these protections "at the push of a button." §§ 1051, et seq.) While these tactics are sometimes controversial, none has attracted the outcry provoked by ambush marketing. Netherlands' fans celebrate after their win over Denmark in their 2010 World Cup Group E soccer match at Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg June 14, 2010. Ambush marketers seek to attach their products to major sports and cultural events - the Olympics, the Super Bowl, the Academy Awards - without the expense of sponsorship. Media controversy reigned when Michael Jordan, the face of Nike, used an American flag to cover rival company and official sponsor Reebok’s logo. %PDF-1.2
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The debate persists. The total worldwide audience for the 2002 World Cup was estimated at 5 billion people; last summer, the Athens Olympics was beamed to 8 billion viewers. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has zealously guarded its trademarks for decades, but if there was one tipping point, it happened 23 years ago, during the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. It was an iconic moment that cemented Nike as a challenger brand. Not only did millions of television viewers see those Nike shoes on their screens, millions of Americans saw those same shoes slung around Johnson’s neck a few days later on the cover of Time Magazine. In other instances, a sports team or organization may be forced to make certain concessions to meet the demands of a sponsor, raising questions about their integrity. While Reebok was invited (and paid over $20 million for the pleasure), Nike showed up unannounced and rocked the party. I like this web blog very much, Its a very nice situation to read and obtain info . Even a standard 30 second television ad (without superstar athletes) costs around $96,000. It’s spectacular. ( Log Out / Nike ambushed the 2014 Brazil World Cup by releasing an advert just before the tournament that referenced the players in Brazil leading everyone to believe they were involved with the competition despite Addidas being the official sponsors. “They’re not walking through the stands saying, ‘You know, I don’t think that they’re the official sponsor.’”. And, now pretty illegal. Please indicate that you consent to our use of cookies in accordance with our policy, or you may opt to browse without cookies. This article discusses the legal environments in which ambush marketing occurs and highlights some strategies for those attempting it. Bavaria, a rival of World Cup sponsor Budweiser, sold hundreds of the dresses before the tournament. Nike also distributed flags to fans, guaranteeing that its “swoosh” logo would be in full view all over the property. Not being an Olympic sponsor, Target got around Rule 40 restrictions by posting the billboards before the games began. Stranglely enough he had the same name as his sponsor a german underwear company. The bad news is that greater sophistication on the part of sponsors and event organizers has led to more sophisticated tactics to block would-be ambushers. While only official sponsors of the Olympics games were allowed to use the words Olympics, London 2012 or the image of the Olympic rings, Nike still managed to find a loophole. If the principal event is off-limits, for instance, consider sponsoring an athlete, a team, or an off-site event. During the 2004 Summer Games, non-sponsor Miller ran ads touting its dominance in a beer taste test in Athens, Georgia. McDaniel, “Strategic Implications of Attitude towards the Ad in Leveraging Event Sponsorship” (Norfolk, Virginia: American Academy of Advertising Conference, 23–27 March 1995, paper). So what is Ambush Marketing and where does it come from? 15, n° 4, 1998, 385. Miller was blunt: "We weren't prepared to surrender these two weeks" to sponsor Anheuser-Busch. Don’t do it! Some famous examples: At the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics, Sprint, not an official sponsor, ran ads in snowy settings: "Sprint: Proud sponsor of everything fast, new, and really quite amazing." At the 2004 Boston Marathon, for example, Adidas was the official sponsor, but all of its competitors found ways to come to the party: Reebok vans dispensed Gatorade, PowerBars, and massages; Nike provided expert running consultations at the Nike store on Boylston Street; Brooks reps handed out flip-flops, bandages, and "runner's rescue guides"; Saucony ran an ad campaign featuring 26 local runners; and New Balance offered instant photos in front of a New Balance finish line. S UTTON , « In search of a new defender : the threat of ambush marketing in the global sport arena », International journal of sports marketing & sponsorship 1999, 1, 64-86. Here are three examples that show how Nike’s marketing team win gold at the Olympic Games (every time!) The offense: wearing dresses distributed by the company competing with the sponsor of FIFA’s quadrennial event. exciting challenge of being a wiseGEEK researcher and writer. Fines for infringers could be substantial, since they can reflect the lost license fees for the marks infringed. Unless expressly stated, this material is copyright Lex Sportiva. She produces practical resources for employers on topics like promotions, disciplinaries, and interviewing. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. Ambush marketing can even border being destructive, as was the case when IBM painted "PEACE, LOVE, LINUX" on San Francisco streets to promote the company's switch to Linux systems. Please remember these articles do not contain specific legal advice. Interesante artículo y sobretodo muy documentado Implications For Marketers And Their Lawyers -- What Lies Ahead. If used correctly, brands can cash in and win big in these “marketing games”. It’s, uh, pretty tactical. Look to the fringes of the stadium for materials from competitors. The Trade Practices Act makes ambushing by association a criminal offense, and the Merchandise Marks Act (MMA) outlaws acts of ambush by intrusion where the government has declared an event to be "protected." 0000001618 00000 n
This is one of the early instances of Ambush marketing. Hannah began writing for the Hub in 2015 and specialises in HR and social issues. 0000001247 00000 n
This high-profile product placement at the London games motivated consumers and companies worldwide to search online for the headphones. “Ambush marketing poses a very odd fringe gray area threat because it’s … In return, they get some form of publicity and media coverage. REUTERS/Michael Kooren. So yes, even saying London 2012 as I just did breaks the rules…oops. I promise you it’s not worth it! In this instance Nike ambushed the event but there are three main types of ambush marketing: Imagine an American business tweeting “Congratulations to Usain Bolt for winning gold in the 100m at Rio 2016!” Sounds legit? And, Nike are the unofficial masters of it. Marketers have learned that the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) has ironclad regulations, backed by US trademark law. Every line in the six-minute advert is a jab at the Olympics and it perfectly aligns with their mission statement.