THE 1ST ANNUAL PRODUCT PLACEMENT AWARDS UNVEIL THE MOST ACTIVE ADVERTAINMENT MEDIUMS

During 2002 going to the movies or sitting at home watching television was sometimes made more entertaining by searching the screen for strategically placed logos. Yet now the industry of product placement has been opened up to mainstream recognition with the announcement of the Top 10 Annual Product Placement Award's winners for 2002.

The 2002 Product Placement Awards reflect one of the most active years in product placement which saw movies, television, computer games, music and even books loaded with advertiser's messages. The Top 10 winners of Product Placement Awards ranged from big budget international release movies like the Minority Report and Die Another Day to the Australian product placement advertainment CD Single "Get your juices going" by Starburst.

"Product placement is increasingly becoming a more relevant way for marketers to reach consumers" said Anthony Dever, the founder of the Product Placement Awards. "That is why 2002 was packed with so many entertainment productions with paid commercial messages and product placements."

Advertisers pay for product placement within entertainment productions so that their product is used or integrated into the entertainment medium itself, blurring the distinction between the two.

The effectiveness of product placement was shown this year in the latest Austin Powers film, which featured a Union Jack painted Jaguar XK8. In the United States of America the expensive British motor vehicle's sales increased by 70 percent.

Product Placement has even gone into the virtual world. The cult computer game The Sims Online which allows people to play a 'simulated' life features advertising from McDonald's and Intel. Players can work on PCs blazed with Intel's logo and then throw down a virtual Big Mac and Fries.

Advertisers are also getting more aggressive in their use of product placement. In this year's smash hit Spiderman featuring Tobey Maguire, the real life Times Square NBC billboard was digitally altered in post production to become the film's ad for cell phone company Cingular.

"Consumers don't seem to mind advertising being integrated into entertainment, so long as the entertainment remains entertaining." says Dever.

The Top 10 Product Placement Award winners are:

10. American Idol (TV Show)

9. Starburst (CD Single)

8. All My Children (TV Show)

7. My Big Fat Greek Wedding (Movie)

6. Goldmember (Movie)

5. Spiderman (Movie)

4. Liberation Day (Book)

3. The Sims Online (Computer Game)

2. Die Another Day (Movie)

1. Minority Report (Movie)

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About the Product Placement Awards:

The Product Placement Awards are judged by an international panel of marketing, advertising and entertainment industry professionals from Australia, America and the United Kingdom. To decide the annual award winners we look at each individual medium's quality, effectiveness and quantity of product placements. For more information visit http://www.productplacementawards.com.

Media Contact: Mr Anthony Dever

Phone: +61 7 46393970

Email: media@productplacementawards.com