Chevrolet's future is increasingly global, as the brand chalks up big sales of its new Cruze compact sedan in China, for example, and as General Motors leadership plots ways to extend Chevy further in Europe, where Opel has always been its reigning small-car brand. But for right now, at least, Chevrolet is All-American.

A year after the whole "Chevy vs. Chevrolet" naming flap, GM is wrapping up a weeks-long celebration of the brand's centennial with the showing of a new documentary film, Chevy 100, An American Story, at the Detroit Institute of Arts in downtown Detroit.

The film premiered on the centennial, November 3rd, as Chevy celebrated selling its one millionth Cruze. The New York premiere is on November 14th, after which it will be shown on Discovery's new Velocity Channel.Continue reading...

Six months after buying in to art of selling out with his film Pom Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold, Morgan Spurlock is using his newfound expertise to help other filmmakers get in on the action.

Spurlock has partnered with the Grey New York agency on a new service called Launch PAD, which aims to match filmmakers with sponsors and product placement deals.

The media-savvy filmmaker called Launch PAD, featured on a panel taking place Wednesday at the Doc NYC festival, "a unique opportunity for both brands and filmmakers to benefit from the other's expertise."

It might revolutionize independent filmmaking, or it might crash and burn… like the numerous other product placement matchmaker services that came before it. But one thing is for sure, Morgan Spurlock will get paid.Continue reading...

It used to be that Sears’ in-house brands – Craftsman, Kenmore, and DieHard – could only be found at Sears-owned stores and acted as magnets to consumers, bringing them in so they’d check out other products.

But those days are over. Following in the footsteps of a deal to sell Craftsman at Costco and agreement to DieHard products at Meijer, Sears is reportedly prepping to sell its Kenmore goods elsewhere as well, marking the first time that Kenmore goods would be sold elsewhere in the brand's 98-year history.Continue reading...

NBC's web-only series In Gayle We Trust has broken the barrier on digital series’ success and proven that an insurance agent, played by Elisa Donovan (Clueless, Beverly Hills 90210, Sabrina The Teenage Witch), can become a star.

A branded entertainment partnership between NBC Universal and media agency Mindshare, the series — backed by AmFam, or American Family Insurance — launched in 2009 and was renewed last year.

By season two, Gayle had doubled viewership from 18 million to 34.9 million. Season three, which launches this week, centers on a newcomer who is creating a musical, aptly titled Policies! Policies!

“In Gayle We Trust delivers quality entertainment in a manner that both keeps viewers coming back for more and aligns with the values of the sponsor. American Family Insurance beckons the insurance-buying public to allow us to protect their dreams,” said Telisa Yancy, advertising director.

Emmy Award-nominated actor Fred Willard and Richard Karn (Home Improvement) make cameos in season three, with Anthony Q. Farrell (The Office) as writer and Jason Farrand (Head Case) director.Continue reading...

PepsiCo and its Frito-Lay subsidiary are on notice for “engaging in deceptive and unfair digital marketing practices in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act” for online marketing campaigns that may seem tame compared to the new Take This Lollipop Facebook-stalking campaign.

The complaint — filed by the Center for Digital Democracy (CDD), Consumer Action, Consumer Watchdog and The Praxis Project — focuses on Frito-Lay's no longer active digital campaigns for Doritos under the "Snack Strong Presents" branded entertainment banner.

Specifically cited in the complaint to the FTC: the online game Hotel 626 (which launched in 2008) and sequel Asylum 626 (launched in 2009), plus the Doritos Late Night concert series which last year released a Rihanna tie-in. According to the complaint, these efforts and related digital marketing are claimed to “target teens through a variety of stealth interactive marketing and data collection techniques involving social media, immersive multi-media content, mobile phones, and gaming platforms.”Continue reading...

Warren Buffett's Secret Millionaires Club, a cartoon series funded by and starring the Oracle of Omaha to teach kids about saving and investing, is moving from the web (where it launched last year) to TV. Beginning Sunday, Oct. 23rd at 1pm ET, the billionaire investor will star in the first of four half-hour specials on The Hub kids' cable TV channel.

The first special, "Be Cool to Your School," Buffett gives financial advice to a group of teens attempting to raise money for their school and a trip to New York City. Making a special appearance in Sunday's special: Jay-Z, the musician-turned-mogul for whom Buffett tells the New York Times he has nothing but admiration.

"It was not a tough sell, believe me," Buffett told the Times. "He’s a real business man, I’m just pretending."

Product placement may make a big leap soon if the reboot of the 1981 classic Cannonball Run gets the green light.

New York magazine's website reports that GM is deep "in discussions about backing an update of The Cannonball Run in a deal that would be much larger than your average product placement." Reportedly looking for an "equity stake," GM could go deep into its pockets in a gamble to pack the film with its models, and might even give the "new Corvette the lead."

There are several reasons this might be a disaster — so it's a good thing GM isn't getting involved.Continue reading...

McDonald’s pulled in more than $24 billion in revenue in 2010, but it is always looking to sell more Big Macs. The company is introducing a new in-store television channel in California that will spread nationwide if it succeeds, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Restaurants with the channel will have large-screen televisions that are visible from 70 percent of the seats, airing content that is “customized to specific communities around the individual restaurants, and will include local news and entertainment features, such as spotlights on upcoming films, albums and TV shows,” the Times reports.Continue reading...