March 22, 2007

The Science of Biomonitoring: The Future of Advertising!
posted by Nickdanger 17 years ago
  • Disturbing. Inevitable, but disturbing.
  • Welcome to McGlobalMartBucks! To activate all current purchases and Viewership rights, please place your index finger in the BioNAScan module. Thank you, and enjoy your Episode of McGlobalIdol with a non-reoccurring side of LatteWalNugget.
  • Those idiots. Of course there's some emotional involvement when I'm fast-forwarding. It's pure, unadulterated HATE for the damn ads.
  • It's amazing what companies will do in the name of advertising. There might be some situations where this kind of seriously in-depth research (and, IMO, major invasion of personal space) is worthwhile; this most definitely is not one of them.
  • You know *why* I hate ads? It's this kind of crap: instead of presenting an argument as to why their product is better than another, they direct all of their energy into subverting the rational mind through the construction of an elaborate web of emotionally manipulative imagery. It doesn't matter whether their product is any damn good or not, all that matters is how effective they are at tricking you into thinking it is. Bastards. The worst part is, it totally works.
  • Nickdanger: well said, and spot on. Also: Monkeyfilter: Subverting the rational mind through the construction of an elaborate web of emotionally manipulative imagery.
  • I wonder how much a one-hour TV program would cost to the viewer if it came without ads. Would you pay it? Personally, I enjoy being entertained for free.
  • Advertising is okay as long as there are limits. It's getting a little creepy lately. I personally don't like the thought that I might be influenced on a subconscious level to buy a Big Mac. I also don't appreciate the fact that psychologists are using their advanced knowledge of the human psyche to make us all feel like we need to own an iPod.
  • Actually, the only 'T.V.' I watch these days, I pay for. I buy the Daily Show for approximately .62 cents an episode, bought Doctor Who on DVD, rented Deadwood, Arrested Development, Mr.Show, etc. etc. And you know, I've found that it's worth it. I'm also interested to see how programming changes in accordance to an increase in viewers whose habits resemble mine. I tend to think it'll make for better television all around if they find that revenue shifts from a traditional advertising base to more direct consumer preference model.
  • Well, rocket88, a t.v. license in the U.K. is £131.50 for 8760 hours of television, which I make 1.5p an hour, or a little less than 3 cents.
  • I used to work for a TV broadcaster, so I've always understood that it was ultimately advertising revenue that fueled my paycheck. I think the popularity of DVRs that can skip commercials threatens a system that has worked well for years, and I don't know what the outcome will be. I fear that advertising will simply move from annoying commercial breaks to even more annoying in-show product placement and 'hidden' ads in the on-screen dialogue.
  • Man, all this typing has made me thirsty. I'm off to enjoy a refreshing Coca-Cola!
  • Well, if we basically did away with advertising, the quality and quantity of tv would go way, way down. The consequence of that would be a society not centered around tv, which would be interesting to see. What I'd like to not see is even more sneaky advertising, as rocket points out.
  • It wouldn't neccessarily go "way way down", if, say, the revenue stream begins coming from a different source. For instance, increase in sales of complete seasons' worth of programs on DVD mean that the program itself, when aired on broadcast television, serves as a sort of advertisement for the dvd set. And, in order to convince the consumer that the dvd is worth buying, the producers will have to place more emphasis on overall content-quality.
  • I just had a major "Duh!" moment. I was thinking that if ad revenue went away, the large amounts of money it takes to make shows like Lost, etc., wouldn't be available. Then I realized they would have to do things the way they're done in movie-making (about which I know nothing).
  • Rocket: WHAT one-hour show? Take out the ads, you've got 15 minutes of crapola. *heads on down to the library with large bag of books to return
  • > I wonder how much a one-hour TV program would cost to the viewer if it came without ads. This is being done on iTunes and elsewhere. Maybe $1.99 per episode, though it might vary from show to show. The ability to screen out advertising when recording was feasible for VHS recorders but not marketed, or at least not extensively. I've never understood why.