Roger Fingas
Apple has signed a deal with NBC that will see the crew of "Saturday Night Live" create at least one commercial for the iPhone maker, blurring the line between the show and advertising.
The content should appear during the show in a few weeks from now, Variety said on Friday, citing a pair of sources. The material is expected to "look different" from an upcoming ad for Verizon, which features show member Kenan Thompson in a treatment written by "Weekend Update" anchor Colin Jost.
Although such spots may raise concerns, "SNL" creator Lorne Michaels is said to have approached NBCUniversal's ad sales team about the idea, with the hope of cutting down on the overall number of commercials to make watching live more palatable.
"People can DVR and scroll through the commercials and watch it the next morning, but we want them to watch it as an event show," he explained to Variety. "And in exchange for losing three minutes of commercials, which makes the show go much faster, we sort of made an agreement that we would be open to working with advertisers."
The show's producers are said to have approached the idea carefully, selecting the kinds of products and brands that might be appropriate. Last year NBC began offering a variety of related ad opportunities, ranging from using the current cast and writers to having former stars resume old roles.
Linda Yaccarino, chairman of advertising sales and client partnerships at NBCUniversal, told Variety that "SNL" won't be doing ads in large numbers since "the art takes a while."
Apple's marketing strategy has evolved in recent months to focus less on TV and more on digital platforms like Twitter and YouTube. Indeed the company's main ad partner, TBWA\Media Arts Lab, has consolidated and laid off some workers in order to cut costs.
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10 Comments
This article is so weirdly worded, I don't really understand what to expect. I suppose I'll have to Variety article to understand.
This seems like something that could backfire.
More entertainers shilling for products. It's really nothing new, as noted in the Variety article (and if anyone has ever watched any old Jack Benny or other early televised shows they'd know this).
Some of the most egregious examples are on Fallon, Colbert and Kimmel where products are up front and center and part of the act. I can't watch any of those people anymore.
If I were Apple I would not associate with SNL. Apples ads show class, sophistication and art. SNL does none of that! Wrong image!
I love SNL, Colbert and Kimmel, but I'd rather they'd not appear in any Apple ads. I hate the idea of anyone who makes a living commenting on politics, society and life generally to come across as if they are taking money from a company or person and in exchange not being critical of that company / person. There are plenty things about Apple that could be SNL fodder. Perhaps this deal would not prevent SNL et al from beating up on Apple when they see fit, but there is no way of knowing. I'd rather the two just didn't mix.