Indiantelevision.com Team

(14 February 2007 4:00 pm)

MUMBAI: Sony Pictures India Ltd has roped in P9 Integrated in an exclusive marketing deal for it's upcoming feature Spiderman 3. A replication of an International approach towards signing on brands to leverage the success of a movie, at an event held in Mumbai the two companies proposed the multiple opportunities for strategic marketing partnerships with the film.

Sony Pictures manager marketing Harshavardhan Gangurde said that the tie-ups for the film that have already been cemented include Horlicks, General Mills Diptricks, Sony Ericsson and Sony. A point of note here, however, is that the association with Horlicks - a GroupM client - was initiated by GroupM's entertainment division BroadMind.

Among the clients present at the event were representatives from Camlin and Hansaplast, which had also tied up with Krissh.

Reiterating the benchmarks that Spiderman 2 provided the five Indian brands that opted to ride the film activation route, Gangurde in his presentation highlighted the many avenues that these brands namely Airtel, Sony Ericsson, Kellogs, Sony and Mirinda benefited from the associations.

Camlin Ltd VP sales and marketing Mahesh Joshi said that they would have to consider entering into a deal for Spiderman 3 as the timing of the movie release in May will not be favourable to kids as it will be during the vacation months. However, a post release period that coincides with the back to school season could be considered for a marketing initiative.

With soaring optimism, Gangurde said that if Spiderman 2 could create history with a Hollywood film opening weekend record for the Indian box office with an overall gross of Rs. 342 million, then the success of Spiderman 3 he estimates will only be doubled. "It is poised to be the biggest grosser of Hollywood this year," he adds.

Spiderman 3 is slated to release worldwide (simultaneous date and time release) on 4 May in four languages English, Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu therefore inviting brands with a large presence in these vernacular markets an avenue for marketing tie-ups, co-branded associations, multiplex activations, merchandising and licensing opportunities with apparel, accessories, stationary, electronics and even branded foods.

P9 Integrated CEO Navin Shah said, "A detailed presentation like this helps the companies in knowing the essence of the particular film and understanding the plethora of opportunities they can leverage from associating with it, it gives them a platform to understand the various avenues that this medium can give for their brands and products viz a viz of them using traditional mediums, We are happy to be an exclusive marketing partner for Spider-Man 3and will ensure a maximum return on investment for companies looking forward to associate with this film, which is poised to be the biggest grosser of 2007."

Sony Pictures India Ltd CEO Uday Singh said, "We are glad to be partnering with P9, who has been providing tailor-made and resourceful marketing solutions to production houses and Studios all over, we would like to leverage on their expertise in providing parallel revenue models to producers and simultaneously provide prominent podiums for Corporate and Media to utilize entertainment brands as an effective catalyst in their marketing mix."