The annual indie-film extravaganza known as the Sundance Film Festival got underway Thursday night in Park City, Utah, and the New York Times noticed something there that had been missing at recent fests: many corporate sponsors.

Eight brands are officially sponsoring this year's festival, which launched as an offshoot of Robert Redford's Sundance Institute in 1978: Adobe, GE, Sprint, Yahoo!, Bertolli, Grey Goose, Time Warner, and Hilton. Last year, the festival had two — Honda and Trident — and neither of them are back.Continue reading...

The emotional strings evoked in the film's title may not be attached. But there are certainly a lot of products attached to No Strings Attached. Booze. Cars. And of course, Apple. Bushels of Apple.

No Strings Attached is filled with products — nearly 30 by our count. It shouldn't come as a surprise.Continue reading...

Anyone who has watched the first few weeks of NFL football games has seen the ads for 1800 Tequila. "What can your top do?" accusingly asks Sopranos star Michael Imperioli of a bottle of Patrón brand tequila. His answer: "Nuthin.'" In another spot, Imperioli kicks the Patrón bottle off a table, adding, "Oops."

The ads are not new but they are playing in heavier rotation than ever during NFL broadcasts, the perfect tequila-drinking demographic. They're dramatic, and effective. So why isn't Patrón responding?Continue reading...