Ducatista (singular) or Ducatisti (plural) are passionate about their brand of choice, motorcycles like the Diavel and Diavel Carbon. That's why Ducati North America is one of the first brands to kick the tires on Contain, a new "white label" social community platform for brands.

In a similar vein to Communispace, for example, Contain is helping created branded communities for those brand marketers who are finding uber-sites like Facebook and Twitter too cluttered and one-size-fits-all. The name refers to its goal: to help focus and stimulate conversations among brand enthusiasts and target social content in the process.Continue reading...

President Obama unveils US budget plan to trim deficit, with $4 trillion in cuts over 12 years, keeping Medicare and Medicaid, and curbs on charity write-offs. The 2012 race in mind, Barack and Michelle Obama also plan to appear on Oprah's May 2nd show.

Apple's iPhone 5 said to be coming this summer, while do-not-track tool added to new Safari browser. Sony, meanwhile, lands top spot for consumer electronics in latest Harris Poll.

Barry Bonds found guilty of osbtruction of justice.

LeBron James bumps Kobe Bryant for the bestselling NBA jersey, as Bryant accused of anti-gay slur.

BP cleanup funds come under scrutiny.Continue reading...

After last week's nearly brandless #1 film, Gnomeo and Juliet, Brandcameo is expecting another animated weekend thanks to Rango. From the looks of it, Rango will continue the months-long trend of animated children's films with virtually no product placement. But the Johnny Depp kids' vehicle isn't the only new film this weekend. One comedy is taking aim at Goldman Sachs.Continue reading...

The above clip from I am Number Four, the likely top film opening this weekend, proves that one sure way to "blend in" is to carry an iPhone.

Also in our weekend look at product placement in entertainment, Britney Spears' new video asks, "Would you hold it against me?" If she's talking about the product placement in the clip, the answer is "yes."Continue reading...

In honor of last week's new film, The Mechanic, we had challenged you, brandchannel's product placement-savvy readers, with an an all-Jason Statham Product Replacement Quiz. The answers, with a few observations about Statham's brand promise, after the jump.Continue reading...

No surprise that Tron: Legacy won the weekend, taking in $43.6 million in the U.S. The sequel that took nearly three decades to make is being heralded as a lot of things, although "good movie" doesn't seem to be one of them.

But Tron: Legacy is being recognized for one accomplishment. As one Twitter user summed it up: "Tron, the story of a Ducati rider struggling to find a CD by Daft Punk."

Yet, as much as Tron: Legacy showed off its Ducati, the film may be an even more effective ad for the iPad.Continue reading...

The lasting "legacy" in this week's upcoming release of Tron: Legacy may be its marketing tie-ins. Brandcameo has already looked at the Ducati, Apple, Coors and Motorola product placements onscreen. But offscreen, there is far more to Tron's marketing partnerships, thanks to a raft of licensing deals. Far, far more.Continue reading...

When it comes to Tron: Legacy and product placement, we know about the Coors. We know about the Nokia. We even know about the Apple Macintosh Easter egg. But one brand has far more screen time than any other: Ducati. We spoke with the Italian bikemaker about how the brand got its motorcycle in the Tron sequel, if money changed hands, and what, exactly, Ducati hopes to get out of it.Continue reading...