Morning Update: BT Sports wins Ashes; NFL game Madden goes way over the top; Oscars seeks new producer; Facebook gets gifs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eVF9uBbuqc
Creativity: ‘Madden: The Movie’ Might Make Your Eyes Explode
EA Sports and its agency Heat are known for going way over the top when it comes to promoting the Madden NFL franchise. Last year, to promote Madden NFL 15, they created an outrageous music video starring actors Dave Franco and Kevin Hart in a totally ridiculous game of one-upmanship. This year, to usher in what’s come to be known as “Madden Season” and the arrival of Madden NFL 16, they’ve turned up the rivalry in what could be the film trailer to obliterate all other film trailers, promoting the fictional “Madden: The Movie.”
The Guardian: BT Sport has secured UK TV rights to Ashes in Australia, say reports
BT Sport have won the TV rights for Ashes series in Australia for five years from 2017-18, according to reports.
The Ashes adds to BT’s growing sports portfolio which now includes all Champions League fixtures, as well as a portion of the Premier League fixtures, which will increase from 2016-17 to included 42 matches, compared to Sky Sports’ 126.
BT are believed to have paid £16m a year for the deal, according to the Daily Mail, a sum which has allowed them to beat competition from current rights-holder Sky Sports to air the series on British television.
AdWeek: (Some) Facebook Marketers Can Finally Start Playing With Animated GIFs
Looping video fans, rejoice. After rolling out GIFs to user pages in May, Facebook is now opening up the animated clips to a small percentage of brand pages.
It’s been a long-awaited tool for marketers who are already accustomed to posting GIFs on Tumblr, Twitter and Imgur. Facebook also has made moves to support GIFs to build on the success of autoplay video.
As a workaround, some brands like Trolli and Chubbies have played with video hacks to upload short, animated loops in recent months.
NY Times: Much at Stake in Academy’s Hunt for a 2016 Oscars Producer
Will the next Academy Awards ceremony be street smart, like the “House Party” movies? Digitally savvy, with a BuzzFeed twist? Or as grandly mainstream as, oh, almost anything Tom Hanks has ever done?
The answer may depend on a talent search that will soon be concluded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
After three consecutive Oscar shows from the producers Neil Meron and Craig Zadan, officers and executives of the Academy have been quietly examining an intellectually and professionally diverse group of prospects as possible overseers of the next broadcast, set for Feb. 28.
The Drum: It’s pilot season, now on Facebook
With the number of TV shows being produced each year growing exponentially, the success of a show’s pilot episode is becoming more important than ever.
One way networks are helping their chances is via Facebook. In the past few months alone we’ve seen USA Network post the premiere of the hugely successful Mr. Robot on the platform; HBO posted the premiere episodes of Brink and Ballers on Facebook prior to their linear debuts; Amazon did the same with Catastrophe, Fox with Wayward Pines, and ABC Family with Kevin at Work.
