Stars Are No Shows in 2010 Oscar Ads

LOS ANGELES, March 8 /PRNewswire/ -- GreenLight (www.greenlightrights.com), a global media licensing, talent negotiation and rights representation consultancy, today released the results of its GreenLight Ad Gauge of the 82nd Annual Academy Awards show, revealing a significant decline in celebrity endorsements in commercials aired during the nearly three and a half hour show.  Despite the decline in celebrity endorsements, pop music continued to feature prominently in about a third of all ads. The full report may be downloaded at www.greenlightrights.com/blog.

The GreenLight Ad Gauge analyzes TV advertising during the Academy Awards – also known as the Oscars – as a barometer to identify trends in how brands are using celebrities and pop music in their TV commercials. GreenLight has conducted similar reports in 2010 for the Grammys® and Super Bowl.

Key findings from GreenLight's 2010 analysis include:

• The number of Oscar ads featuring celebrity endorsements plummeted for the third year in a row to just 4%, down from 19% last year and 38% in 2008
• While brands are tuning out celebs, they continue to tune in popular music with 30% of ads featuring recorded pop songs, about the same as the past two years
• Just 34% of Oscar ads featured celebs and/or pop music, down from 47% in 2009 and 68% in 2008
• 4% of 2010 ads featured brand jingles, up from 2% for the previous two years

"The 82nd annual Academy Awards show may have been supersized with two hosts, 10 best picture nominations and two extended tributes to film icons, but advertisers downsized the use of celebs this year," said David Reeder, Vice President, GreenLight. "Unlike the Grammys and Super Bowl where we saw a post recession bounce in the use of celebrity, Oscar advertisers are possibly facing tighter budgets, being cautious following the Tiger Woods debacle or falling back on other approaches."

In 2009, the Oscars were watched by 36.3 million viewers. Estimates for the 2010 Oscars project more than 40 million.  During this year's Oscars, 30-second advertising spots were reportedly sold for $1.5 million, up a half of a million from 2009.

Apple and Coca-Cola were among the winners that used celebrity endorsement and music in their ads this year, with ads by both featuring music from alternative rock bands.

"Sticking with its tried and true trend-setting formula, Apple debuted the first advertisement for its forthcoming iPad, airing a spot three times featuring "There Goes My Love" by Danish indie group The Blue Van," said Reeder. "The spot does a great job of showcasing the iPad and you can't argue with Apple's success of picking trendy tunes by emerging artists."

According to GreenLight, JCPenney and birth control pill Yaz were among the ads that missed the mark in their use of celebrity and music content in Oscar ads.

To download the complete GreenLight Ad Gauge of the 2010 Oscars, visit www.greenlightrights.com/blog.

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About GreenLight

GreenLight is a global media licensing, talent negotiation and rights representation consultancy providing corporate, advertising and media clients access to music, film and other entertainment content and celebrities. GreenLight works with the world's leading advertising agencies and multinational companies to create innovative advertising, packaging and products. GreenLight's rights representation group manages the personality rights of iconic personas including Albert Einstein, The Wright Brothers, Steve McQueen, and Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. A Corbis brand, GreenLight is based in Los Angeles and serves clients in more than 50 countries. For more information, visit www.greenlightrights.com.

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SOURCE GreenLight