on critical study of product placement in indian films...

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SYNOPSIS

On

“Critical study of Product Placement in Indian films with

Special reference to Hindi films”

Thesis Submitted to Symbiosis International University

For award of the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Faculty of Management

RISHI P. SHUKLA

Under the guidance of

Dr. Manohar Ingale

College of Business Studies,

Royal University of Bhutan, Bhutan

SYMBIOSIS INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Pune – 412115

2013

© Symbiosis International University, Pune 2013……..

All rights reserved.

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Thesis Certificate

1. The thesis entitled “Critical study of Product Placement in Indian films with

Special reference to Hindi films” submitted to Symbiosis International University

(SIU) Lavale, Pune, for the degree of PhD under the faculty of management is

based on my original work carried out under the guidance of Dr. Manohar Ingale

From Jun. 2010 to July 2013. This work has not been submitted elsewhere for

award of any other degree.

2. The material borrowed, referred to from other sources and incorporated has been

dully acknowledged.

3. I understand that I myself would be held responsible and accountable for

plagiarism, if any, detected later on.

4. The list of publications and the copies of certificates of the research papers

published during the period of study are appended.

Date Signature of the Research Scholar

30 July 2013 Rishi P. Shukla

Research Guide

Dr.Manohar Ingale

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Chapter 1 Introduction

Product placement

Product placement has created a new way of communication by using media like films

and television. Films are shot with special product-placed within films in association with

lead actors or actresses in various important situations. Indian consumers are having a

tendency to follow their dream heroes or heroines. Indian fashion market follows the

trend set by Hindi film actors and actresses. In spite of this, Indian product placement

industry is not as successful as the Hollywood. Product placements are on a meteoric

rise in Hollywood. Greater numbers of advertisers are looking for alternatives to

traditional advertising avenues, in search of more effective ways to reach an ever-

elusive audience. Producers‟ desire to achieve realism on screen and the need for

alternative sources of funding are further feeding the exponential growth of product

placements and branded entertainment.

What is striking about product placements practices today is how methodically and in

refined ways the efforts are used to integrate brands and brand messages into

entertainment venues. The integration strategy meets the needs of both producers and

advertisers. Producers are looking to nontraditional partners to finance and support their

programs. In addition, they want to achieve authenticity which means characters

interacting with real products which the audience (as consumers) can identify with.

Advertisers are stimulated by a different set of incentives. Technological advances such

as the Internet, digital video recorders, and video iPods have led to increasing audience

fragmentation, making it harder for advertisers to reach consumers, resulting in

advertisers searching for innovative ways to influence their customers.

Western interest has been growing in “Bollywood,” as India‟s large film industry based in

Mumbai which produces more than 300 Hindi films every year (Geetha, 2003). With the

end of colonialism, Indian popular cinema emerged as “India‟s sole model of national

unity” with an emphasis on “realist aesthetics” (Chakravarty, 1993).

―Hindi films are more than just Western-inspired products of market manipulation – like

their Western counterparts, they represent a continuation of their culture's pre-cinema

dramatic forms and stories, transformed by the capitalist economy of scale and the

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power of the mass media. Where they differ from their Western counterparts is in the

dramatic traditions from which they emerged‖. (Booth, 1995).

―Approximately 300 films are announced and launched in Hindi Film industry every year

out of which only 200 are completed and 150 are released. Fifteen of the released films

are blockbusters with popular stars, renowned directors and big production and

marketing budgets; around 35 films have a well-known star cast but with smaller

production budgets ranging from $1 million to $2 million; and around 60 films are made

for small towns and villages with production costs of less than $200,000 .‖( Khanna

2003).

Current trends in Hindi Film industry show that more than looking into scripts and turning

attention towards creative details like integration, brand marketers consider factors like

potential for box-office success, lead actors, frequency of placements, length of

placements, and so on. However, the study suggests that viewers give little

consideration to whether the lead actor is the brand ambassador for the product, the

movie earns box-office success, the brand is mentioned in the dialogue and the product

is shown frequently and/or for a long period of time. Marketers and creative

professionals often take to integrate brands into the story and plot of the films.

When viewers decided to watch a movie, their main objective is entertainment. When a

producer of a movie decides for product placement or merchandising in the film, he is

influencing indirectly the innocent viewers. Innocent viewers, because he is not aware

about intension of producers for such merchandising or product placement. Is it ethical?

The researcher has discussed the moral and ethical concerns along with the

acceptability of product placement in Indian films with special reference to Hindi Films.

Background of research problem

Scholars, within and outside of India, have conducted textual readings of films (e.g.,

Kazmi, 1998a; 1999; Shah, 1950; Valicha, 1988), studies of political economy of the film

industry (e.g., Pendakur, 2003), or narrative history of films (e.g., Dwyer and Patel, 2002;

Gaur, 1973; Gopalan, 2002; Jain and Rai, 2002; Ramachandran, 1984), but only

recently have studies of audience reception of particular film texts (e.g., Juluri, 1999;

Ram, 2002; Srinivas, 2002), on film-going experiences of audiences (e.g., Derne, 2000;

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Dickey, 1993), and ethnographies regarding Indian film workers (e.g., Ganti, 2002)

begun to emerge(Rao, 2007).

Product placement is a type of advertisement and promotion. One of the focuses of this

study was on product placement as a promotional tool and how it should be mingled with

an integrated marketing communications strategy. The other components of the

marketing mix were excluded from the study. The outcome of this research shows the

influence of the product placement on viewers and their attitude towards it. Study also

explains the ethical issues related with the acceptance of product placement in the

movie.

The research problem

1. How can consumer product marketer implement and benefit from product

placement in an integrated marketing communication strategy?

2. How do viewers of Hindi films react to product placement practice?

3. Is it ethical to allow product placement in Hindi films?

Significance of problem

Need for the selection of the topic is based on the following points -:

1. The rising use of product placement.

2. Win-win situation for all.

3. Very less amount of research has been done in this area especially in Indian

cinema.

4. Ethical considerations.

Objectives

1. To analyze the viewers response about the practice of product placement in a

Hindi movie.

2. To compare the various strategies used by marketer / manufacturer for

product placement in Hindi films and its impact on attitude toward brands.

3. To discuss the ethical issues involved in practice of product placement in

Hindi films.

Hypothesis

Based on literature review, expert interviews and pilot study conducted by the

researcher, the following hypotheses are formulated:

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H1: Viewers have a positive attitude toward product placement practice in Hindi

movies.

H2: Positive attitude to product placement in general will result in greater acceptance

of particular product placed.

H3: There is no significant difference in influence on “attitude toward brands”

between verbal, visible and mixed strategy of PPL.

Hypothesis related to Ethical issues in Product placement in films-:

H4: There is no significant difference in respondent‟s opinions about product placement

in films is Ethical or unethical.

H5: There is no significant difference in respondent‟s opinions that the government

should regulate the use of brand name products in Movies.

1.7 Definitions of key terminology

Attitude is the degree of positive or negative affect associated with some psychological

object. (Thurstone, L.L. 1946).

Product placement (abbr. PPL): The term product placement refers to the potentially

compensated (in the form of money or other promotional service) inclusion of consumer

brand name, products, packages, signs, logos or other trademark merchandise,

services, a verbal mentioning or an advertisement of the product within a motion picture,

television show, music video, commercial, video / computer game, book or theatre play.

(Adapted from Nebenzahl & Secunda 1993, Steortz in Babin & Carder 1996, Steortz in

Immonen 1998, Balasubramanian 1994, Vollmers in Immonen 1998, ERMA 1996).

Popular definitions of brand/product placement

The inclusion of a brand name, product, package, signage or other trademark

merchandise within a motion picture, television show, or music video‖ (Steortz

1987).

The planned entries of products into movies or television shows that may

influence viewers‟ product beliefs and/or behaviours favourably‖

(Balasubramanian 1994).

The paid inclusion of branded products or brand identifiers, through audio and/or

visual means, within mass media programming‖ (Karrh1998).

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A paid product message aimed at influencing movie (or television) audiences via

the planned and unobtrusive entry of a branded product into a movie (or

television program) (Gupta and Lord 1998).

The inclusion of a product ,a brand name, or the name of a firm in a movie or in a

television program for promotional purposes‖(d'Astous and Chartier 2000).

Commercial insertions within a particular media program intended to heighten the

visibility of a brand, type of product, or service‖(La Pastina 2001).

The purposeful incorporation of a brand into an entertainment vehicle (Russell

and Belch 2005).

Cross-promotions: A name for a promotional program where the two parties involved

in product placement deal use each others' promotional channels in order to reach new

(what ?)

Audiences. This is the main gain and motive of using product placement. (Kotler 1997)

(?)

"Sponsorship refers to the company's financial support of a media, social, sporting or

cultural activity in return for exposure of its brand or brands." (Rossiter & Percy 1998)

‖Sponsorship is a contribution to an activity by a commercial organisation in cash, or in

kind, with the expectation of achieving corporate and marketing objectives.‖ (Pickton &

Broderick 2001)

" Public relations is the management function which evaluates public attitudes,

identifies the policies and procedures of an individual or organization with the public

interest, and executes a program of action to earn public understanding and

acceptance." (Belch & Belch 1995).

Measures for response variables

Brand awareness

Exposure to Hindi film industry, films and brand placement

Attitude toward brand placement

Liking of brand placement

Ethics

Demographics

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Chapter 2 Literature Review

History of global product placement

Product placement started as a periodic barter arrangement for lowering film and

television costs is now a vehicle for multimillion-Rupee integrated promotional

campaigns” (Karrh, McKee, & Pardun, 2003). Friedman (1985) found that the incidence

of brand name appearances within both best-selling novels and popular songs has

continually and substantially increased since World War II. Because of the success of

product placement, it has become popular across the media. The practice is prominent

in television shows (Avery & Ferraro, 2000; Russell, 2002; Taylor, 2003), movies (Gould,

Gupta, & Grabner-Krauter, 2000; Delorme & Reid, 1999), music videos (Chang, 2003),

and computer/video games (Nelson, 2002). In recent years, marketers are now moving

more aggressively, seeking star roles for their brands in feature films (D‟Orio, 1999;

McCarthy, 2000), video games (Gunn, 2001; Rodgers, 2002), magazines (Fine, 2004),

and television shows (Elliot, 2002; Vagnoni, 2001). The content analysis conducted by

Galician and Bourdeau (2004) showed that automobiles were the leaders in Hollywood

product placements in 1977, 1987, and 1997. Among all different types of media,

product placement has become a multi-million dollar business, as marketers search for

new methods that will give exposure to specific brands and products

Past product placement research has identified several program-related, placement-

related and viewer-related variables. However, their integrative effects on viewer

attitudes to the brand have not been studied from an empirical perspective. Research

integrates key constructs from these categories in a unified model, examines their

relative strength. Key findings reveal the central position of attitude to product

placement.

Product placement in the media has been viewed as a fusion of advertising and

publicity (Balasubramanian, 1994). It is believed that in the near future, there is a good

possibility that product placement will be an important revenue source for screen

television networks (Schneider, 2002). As the practice of product placement continues to

increase at swift rates, there is no sign of discontinuance or even slowing down in the

near future. It has become a widely used form of increasing product awareness in

various types of media. The increase of use has spark storm as to whether it should be

regulated, and/or even allowed. Critics argue that the audience is incarcerated and may

be unaware of the passive messages that they are receiving. Studies have noted the

increase in product placement; simultaneously consideration has been given for the

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audience as receivers of the message. Considering the history and dimensions of

product placement, it can be argued that though product placement is a booming

industry, its success is dependent on viewers‟ individually conceived feelings regarding

products and/or services.

Karrh (1998) estimated that 90% or more of product placements are done on

negotiated basis, where the product or service is traded for publicity in the program.

However, more recently, some deals have been quite large and have included large

sums of money being exchanged for placement services. For example, BMW invested

an estimated $20 million on the placement campaign that launched the Z3 roadster

(Hammer & Brown, 1997; Maynard & Scala, 2006). The Z3 made a prominent

appearance in the James Bond film Golden Eye, as well as in most of the

advertisements and trailers for the film (Einstein, 1997). Product placements are on a

meteoric rise in the Hollywood. Greater numbers of advertisers are looking for

alternatives to traditional advertising avenues, in search of more effective ways to reach

an ever-elusive audience. Producers‟ desire to achieve realism on screen and the need

for alternative sources of funding are further feeding the exponential growth of product

placements and branded entertainment. It is safe to say that such advertising strategies

are here to stay. However, the United States lawmakers have been largely ignoring the

changes that these new advertising strategies have brought on public programming.

These changes bear significant consequences for consumers and producers alike. Not

only does the average viewer have the right to know when he is being subjected to an

advertisement, but producers also need to know what kind of protection their artistic

works will be afforded. (Lee, 2008).

Table No. I Product Placement in Hollywood

Brief Overview over the years

Movie Product (s) Remarks

Scarface (1932) White Owl Cigars $250,000 worth of

Advertising

Dinner at Eight Coca Cola Pictures of Jean Harlow and

(1933) other glamorous stars

swigging soda pop

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You‟ll never get rich Chesterfield cigarettes Starring Fred Astaire

(1941)

The African Queen Gordon‟s Gin Product thrown overboard

(Early 1950s) by Katherine Hepburn‟s

character in the movie

Superman II (1979) Marlboro

E.T. (1982) Reese‟s Pieces Sales up 65%

Never say never again Winston and Camel cigarettes Sean Connery and others

(1982) shown smoking these

Brands

Risky Business Ray-Ban Sunglasses

(1983)

Bull Durham (1988) Jim Beam Whiskey

License to Kill (1988) Lincoln, Larks Aston Martin replaced by

Lincoln Continental Mark

VII; free cars donated for

the film

Home Alone (1990) Budget Rent-a-Truck

Groundhog Day Jim Beam Whiskey

(1993)

The Firm (1993) Stripe Beer Sales increased by more

than 50%

Strictly Ballroom Coca Cola

(1993)

Pulp Fiction (1994) McDonald‟s & Burger King A lengthy conversation

about the two brands

Goldeneye (1995) BMW Z-3 One of the most successful

new-car launches ever

Jerry Maguire (1996) Reebok Backfired, company bad-

mouthed in movie by Cuba

Gooding Jr.

Anastasia (1997) Chanel perfume Product placement in an

animated movie; Chanel did

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not pay for the visibility,

though

Men in Black (1997) Ray-Ban sunglasses Worn by Will Smith

Tomorrow Never Visa card, Avis car rentals, Reckless use of products

Dies (1997) BMW cars and motorcycles, throughout the movie; Over

Smirnoff vodka, Heineken beer, $100 million placement deal

Omega watches, Ericsson cell

phones, L'Oreal makeup

Armageddon (1998) Ray-Ban Sunglasses

Small Soldiers (1998) Hasbro action toys Movie based on action toys;

script revolved around these

toys made by Hasbro

Where the heart is Wal-Mart Character lives in the store

(2000)

I am Sam (2001) Starbucks, Nike Sean Penn shown as an

employee of Starbucks

The Italian Job (2003) Mini Coopers

Shrek 2 (2004) Baskin-Robbins ice cream Shrek & Fiona drive

through a town that has a

Baskin-Robbins store; three

new flavors tied to the

movie created in real life

Pearl Harbor Pepsi (Coke) Negative placement for

Coke as Coke bottles shown

as being used as blood

containers, while characters

sipped Pepsi sodas

The Faculty Tommy Hilfiger Cast given outfits from the

Tommy Hilfiger Jeans line

in exchange for appearing in

an ad

Back to the Future Pepsi products

Demolition Man Taco Bell “In the future, everything is

Taco Bell….”

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You‟ve Got Mail AOL, Apple, IBM and

Starbucks

Austin Powers Pepsi and Starbucks

Cast Away (2000) FedEx and Wilson

Men in Black II Mercedes Benz, Ray-Ban

sunglasses, Sprint, Burger King

Wayne‟s World Nuprin, Pepsi, Pizza Hut, Characters shown hawking

Reebok these products

Josie and the America Online, American

Pussycats Express, Bebe, Billboard

Magazine, Bugles, Campbell's

Soup, Coke, Entertainment

Weekly Magazine, Evian, Ford,

Gatorade, Kodak, Krispy

Kreme, McDonald's, Milky

Way, Motorola, Pepperidge

Farm Cookies, Pizza Hut,

Pringles, Puma, Ray-Ban, Sega,

Starbucks, Steve Madden,

Target, and T.J. Maxx

Herbie, The Love Bug Volkswagen Beetle

RoboCop Ford Taurus

Back to the Future DeLorean

Smokey and the Pontiac Trans Am

Bandit

The world is not BMW Z8

Enough

Lara Croft : Tomb Jeep Wrangler Rubicon

Raider

I, Robot (2004) Audi RSQ concept car Audi created the concept car

for the movie

The Matrix (1999) Duracell batteries

Beauty Shop Fiji Water

What Women want Nike

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Panic Room Evian

My Big Fat Greek Windex

Wedding

You‟ve Got Mail AOL, Starbucks, New York Film‟s title changed from

Times “You have mail” to

“You‟ve got mail” to match

the AOL phrase exactly

Jurassic Park Ford Explorer

Jurassic Park 2 Mercedes Benz SUV

Rocky Wheaties, Hugo Boss

Max Keeble‟s Big Nike, Coca Cola, Apple Coke being consumed in the

Move Computers cafeteria

How High Nike, Adidas, Sam Adams beer

O Puma

Bandits Adidas, Pepsi

The One Pepsi

Hardball Pepsi

Hearts in Atlantis Pepsi

Life as a house Coca Cola

Serendipity Coca Cola, USA Today

Newspaper

Glass House Coca Cola, AOL Coke shown being

consumed at dinner and at

the movies, main character

shown using AOL

Rat Race Coca Cola

Bubble Boy Coca Cola

Kate & Leopold Apple computers, Colgate, Hugh Jackman shown

Gillette, Hungryman frozen TV trying to use these products

Dinners

Slackers Apple computers

Domestic Disturbance MSN An MSN account shown

being used by John Travolta

Snow Dogs Kawasaki, Powerade, ESPN

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Orange County Spongebob Squarepants This cartoon is popular with

(Nickelodeon cartoon) kids as well as teenagers

and adults

Black Hawk Down USA Today newspaper

Vanilla Sky Kodak and Marriott Hotels Billboards for these

products shown in the

background

The Caretakers Pepsi

Good Will Hunting Dunkin‟ Donuts

American Gigolo Giorgio Armani

Boogie Nights Fresca, 7-Up, Chevrolet References to the mentioned

Corvette Brands

Forrest Gump Dr. Pepper Incorporated into the

Dialogues

Grease Philip Morris cigarettes

Rocky II Philip Morris cigarettes

Little Shop of Horrors Philip Morris cigarettes

Crocodile Dundee Philip Morris cigarettes

Die Hard Philip Morris cigarettes

Who framed Roger Philip Morris cigarettes

Rabbit

Field of Dreams Philip Morris cigarettes

Analyze This Merrill Lynch

History of Indian product placement

The very first product placement that can be noticed is in the movie called Bobby, in

1970 for Rajdoot Motorcycle. It can be said that the product placement has reached

Hindi Film industry, the Indian cinema very late but now has been in focus of the

marketers for advertising their products. The product placement is taking place in both

ways verbal or visual or both. The products that are marketed range from fast moving

consumer goods (FMCG) to high interest products like automobiles. The product

placement mainly has three components namely, the production houses, the product

placement agencies and the clients/ companies. Earlier the producers contacted the

companies directly but as the film Industry has grown and so also the marketing of

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products, there is a need for the placement agencies to step in. The product placement

agencies may be the advertising agencies or in-house marketing departments of the

companies. The agencies mediate between the clients and the producers by providing

scripts and specifications about how better the product can be placed and viewed by the

audience. (Russel & Belch, 2005).

Although the format of Hindi film industry has changed over the years, a typical Hindi film

is histrionic filled with song and dance, sophisticated sets, and bright and delicate

costumes based on values and emotions such as family, love and religion. Cheesy and

colorful with rhythmic melodies, Hindi films resemble Hollywood musicals to a certain

degree. The storyline and the plots of Hindi movies follow a predominantly formulaic

tradition. At the center of the plot is often a love story, where lovers overcome great odds

to be together. A disparity on the theme is the revenge saga, where a common man

victimized by a powerful villain overcomes great odds to take revenge. These central

themes are mixed with liberal doses of action, romance, comedy, thrill and dynamic

twists and turns. Most Hindi films are developed around customary themes of star-

crossed lovers, censorious families, protective love triangles, corrupt politicians,

villainous rogues, dramatic reversals of fortune and unbelievable coincidences.

However, recent developments have indicated that some filmmakers are moving away

from the formulaic romantic or action movies. They have begun to segment their

audiences and are trying to develop formats and themes that fill all niches (Sinha, 2009).

Indian audiences are now exposed to different genres and styles and have come to

expect good scripts ranging across varying storylines.

Filmmakers can no longer ignore the diversity of their viewers and are diversifying their

product portfolio to reach a greater number of audiences. Formulaic or otherwise,

various threads of influence are found in Hindi Film industry films, primarily the-story-

within-a-story tradition from Indian epics, the song-and-dance-routine from Hollywood

musicals, the village tradition of epic narration and the spectacle and melodrama of

Indian theatre.

Critics, historians and authors have acknowledged that Hindi films reflect an assimilation

of different influences starting from theatre to Hollywood; however, this same group

acknowledges that despite the inspiration, Hindi films are thematically and structurally

distinctive. ( Sen, 2010)

Hindi films have come a long way from the Lumpier tradition of ―placing the world within

one„s own reach to one where the magic of illusion and escapism is lightly draped over

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the thick fabric of reality. In other words, the Indian film industry enchants viewers by

presenting them with a different world from their own. Though Hindi films are more

―exhibitionistic and less indirect in nature than Hollywood films, Indian audiences watch

them to escape the real world. The Hindi Films typically showcase a world that is

conjured and entertaining but with strong links to emotions and values that are real and

palpable (Hirsch, 2009). In this context, Hindi films are basically ―blend products where

global references have been adapted to a more Indian context . (Kavoori and

Punathambekar, 2008).

Films enable fleeting inner emotions with universal appeal to transcend time, place and

language through the permanent images of cinematic expression. Although a dream can

only be remembered after the fact, a film can be watched over and over on videotape or

digital video disk (DVD) (Halpern, 2003). This illusory nature of films provides filmmakers

the creative license to integrate exotic locations, elaborate set designs and sophisticated

costumes. It also allows filmmakers to create their own rules of logic to meet a variety of

artistic and marketing needs. The song and dance routines in Hindi films play a special

role in product placement. An example of this can be seen in the box-office hit Kuch

Kuch Hota Hai. A total of 144 product placements are featured in the movie, which is an

emotional love story set against a college backdrop. The story of the film shows the

relationship between three college students and provides the perfect setting for

promoting youth brands. The film is replete with fashion brands like Polo Sport, GAP,

Speedo and others that target youth, like Pepsi and Nescafe. The first branded attire

shown is a DKNY shirt worn by the female protagonist in the 19th minute of the film. In

the following ten minutes fifteen different clothing brands are presented on screen. The

first song and dance sequence of the movie, showcases brands like DKNY, GAP, D&G

and Pepsi. The song and dance sequence is extraneous to the plot of the film and is a

flight of fantasy that allows the director to integrate brands and entertain at the same

time. In general, identified clothing labels are predominantly printed or sewn on T-shirts.

In addition, brands also occur on sweatshirts and sportswear. This is often presented in

scenes illustrating sports and leisure activities. Mostly, people wearing these products

are 20 and 30 year old students who have rich parents, enabling them to purchase

higher-end designer clothes. For Pepsi, a brand attempting to connect with Gen Y, the

movie was a perfect fit. The song that displays the bond and camaraderie between two

friends and reflects the easy-going-air of college life was something to which Pepsi„s

target audience could relate. This example demonstrates how product placement can be

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easily integrated into the formulaic nature of the films and their ethereal settings. Given

the ease with which products could be placed, financers, directors and producers alike

see product placement as a way of balancing marketing and production costs. (Sen,

2010).

All film productions in Hindi Film industry fall into two categories – mainstream,

commercial, high budget films produced by well known and larger production houses;

and low-budget, niche films made by an individual producers or smaller and less-known

production houses.

There is no fixed rule, however, for how the films are made, financed or distributed. In

some cases the producer may double as the financer while in other situations the

producer may obtain funds from financial institutions. Distributors sometimes finance the

film for exclusive distribution rights. (Sen, 2010).

The analysis of 30 movies showed that there were a total of 299 product placements, an

average of 10 for each movie. Of the 299 placements, 129 were found in Bollywood

movies and 170 were found in Hollywood movies. Almost 200 different brands were

identified in the selected 30 movies, out of which a few were common in both the

industries. The number of brand appearances in Hollywood movies varied from 10 to 50

per year, as compared with Bollywood’s 25 to 30 per year (Gokhale, 2010).

Indian film industry is becoming more systematic and structured in every function and

activities. Priya Village Roadshow which began as a movie theater in the nation„s capital

region, expanded into distribution and recently also started dabbling in production and

finance. Adlabs, a key Indian film processing company, recently attracted huge

investments from India„s biggest telecom corporation, Reliance, and moved into

production, exhibition, distribution and finance of films. UTV, which started out as a

television production company soon moved into film production, marketing and

distribution and is currently one of the biggest domestic film distributors (Lorenzen and

Taeube, 2007). Percept Picture Company was created by Percept, an advertising

agency in a joint venture with the Hindi TV channel and film distributor Sahara One, to

tap the potential of in-film marketing and to ensure a constant supply of films and film-

related content to Sahara One„s TV channel. Sahara One did not succeed in integrating

film production in its joint venture with Percept Picture Company, and exited the venture,

focusing upon film distribution and finance. Percept now produces finances and

distributes films on a much larger scale. Several film productions, distribution and

18

exhibition companies have been listed on the Indian stock exchange and have issued

shares to the public. There is a growing interest by global studios in the Indian film

market; these studios are increasingly producing and distributing Hindi movies.

Current trends in Hindi Film industry show that more than looking into scripts and turning

attention to creative details like integration, brand marketers consider factors like

potential for box-office success, lead actors, frequency of placements, length of

placements, and so on. However, the study suggests that viewers give little

consideration to whether the lead actor is the brand ambassador for the product, the

movie earns box office success, the brand is mentioned in the dialogue and the product

is shown frequently and/or for a long period of time. Though the above-mentioned

factors are deemed inconsequential by viewers, the study suggests that there are certain

other key placement characteristics such as integration, usage and familiarity that play a

role in influencing purchase decisions. Consider the movie where the hero wakes up in

the morning and gargles with Pepsi. The placement of the brand is so seamless that the

viewer does not question it. What the director does is portray a lifestyle that is young,

urban, cool yet irreverent; a tone that is carried out throughout the movie.

Table No. II Product Placement in Hindi Film industry

Brief Overview over the years

Movie Product (s) Remarks

Taal

Coca-Cola,Thums

Up,BMW,Screen 20% of the Taal

Magazine,Sony Cam,Diet production budget came

Coke,Nescafe,MTV,BPL,Honda just from Coca-Cola.

Rumours also have

it that Subash Ghai

shot two sets of

scenes, one with

Pepsi and the other

with Coke,

Hum Tum Times of India Group, Lays

Koi Mil Gaya Karizmaa. Hero Honda,

Love Ke Liye Kuch Mc Donalds,

Bhi Karega

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Dilwale Dulhania

Le Canned Stroh's Stroh's is said to

Jayenge have paid Rs 15 lakh

to the producers for

15 sec display

Jo Jeeta Wohi BSA SLR

Sikandar

Hum Saath Saath Coca-Cola.

Hain

Chalte Chalte Hyundai Santro, Castrol

Kuch Na Kaho Coca-Cola,Mentos

Baghban Ford Ikon, ICICI Bank, Tata Tea Total benefit to the

producers from

associating with the

brands is in the

range of Rs 3-4

crore.

Khakee Thums Up

Road Tata Safari

An Evening in

Paris Coke

Production

There are a number of production houses escalating in India, many of which are

ventures by Indian actors. Several stars today largely work under their home production

banner, or selectively undertake a co-production with an established studio. This model

has largely come into play on account of the revenue sharing pattern that is able to

compensate the high fees otherwise demanded by these stars. The Indian film industry

is expected to grow at increasing annual growth rate. The contribution of domestic

theatrical revenues to the overall industry pie is expected to reduce slightly, while the

share revenues from cable and satellite rights is expected to increase going forward .

The product placement process

20

The placement of brands and products within films allows an ordinary setting to be

developed for the products which are then portrayed in either conventional or

unconventional everyday situations of use. Furthermore, cinema film allows the use of

color, movement and sound, meaning that products and brands can be shown at their

very best, and often with time frames and a quality of exposure that cannot be equaled

by any other communication tool. Product placement also permits typological

segmentation of the public it reaches. Every film has its own particular identity and this is

usually quite evident even in the advertising trailers, which aim to attract specific sectors

of the public. So, product placement is a powerful tool available to marketers which can

be used to direct corporate communication at a specific public that is well defined within

its own distinctive profile.

Before this medium emerged as an important revenue channel for filmmakers, producers

and placement agencies, product placement was primarily used as a means of surrogate

advertising for products that could not be advertised on regular mass media. Tobacco

manufacturers have for long been accused of promoting smoking through the portrayal

of the macho hero who is depicted brandishing a cigarette and blowing smoke at the

villain‟s face. Many critics still feel that it is a medium for “hidden but paid” subliminal

messages. Their worst fears are that it is the younger generation, generally, that is taken

in by the charms of the products being used by their favorite stars and scrupulous

marketers who just want to increase their revenues may exploit this. Placement of

ethically charged products like cigarettes, arms and ammunitions, alcoholic beverages

etc. has long been a point of contention between filmmakers and regulatory authorities.

As mentioned earlier, audiences generally have no means of escaping product

placements embedded in films or television and hence are subconsciously exposed to

certain products that may be harmful for them. Hence, it is extremely important to have

in place regulations that ensure that product placement is used as an effective marketing

tool for products and not as a means for surrogate advertising of forbidden products.

As the product placement industry has boomed in Hollywood, a newly recognized

Hollywood icon is Mark Burnett. Mark Burnett Productions has produced multiple reality

television programs that integrate product placement and advertising clients in “closer-

than-ever relationships” as the practice rapidly expands (Grainger, 2004).

21

Chapter 3 Research Methodology

Design for research

Research design is a blueprint of research. It can be compared with the plan of a house,

which lays down the methods and procedure for the collection of information and its

measurement and analysis with a view to arriving at certain meaningful conclusions at

the end of proposed study. Before selecting the research design, researcher has to take

proper care to deal with two issues. First, it must answer the research question and

second, the result of the study can be generalized.

In this study researcher was interested to know the characteristics of movie‟s viewers

and to determine their attitude toward product placement practice. Researcher was also

interested to analyse their awareness level about product placement practice in Hindi

movies. That‟s why researcher has selected descriptive study as a research design.

Aims and objectives

Research Questions:

• How can consumer product marketers implement and benefit from product

placement in an integrated marketing communication strategy?

• How do viewers of Hindi films react to product placement practice?

• Is it ethical to allow product placement in Hindi films?

Objectives of the study-:

• To analyze the viewers‟ response about the practice of Product Placement in

a Hindi movie.

• To compare the various strategies used by marketers / manufacturers for

product placement in Hindi films and its impact on attitude toward brands.

• To discuss the ethical issues involved in practice of product placement in Hindi

films.

Scope of the study:

The study conducted to analyze the viewer‟s attitude toward product placement practice

in Indian films with special reference to Hindi films. Their acceptance for this practice

was also measured and compared with their attitude. The study was restricted to

analyze the product placement in Hindi films only. But the outcome of this study may

apply to other regional films also. The results of the proposed research will provide

marketers and business decision makers with a further understanding of product

placement, identifying whether it is a worthwhile promotional strategy compared with the

traditional media which are becoming saturated. The study will also provide a platform

22

for the use of product placement practice in Regional films like Marathi films which are

technically not superior because of paucity of funds. Producer of such cinema will get

extra financial support and marketer / advertiser will get a new way to communicate with

viewers. Because of newness of product placement, respondents who were not aware

about the practice, lacked in having knowledge that may lead to proper response.

Researcher has taken proper care to deal with this issue and tried to minimize the

misleading response. Second limitation for this research was population that was very

large. To deal with this problem researcher has taken sample from different cities,

different age groups, having different educational background. Research area for this

study was Pune and Mumbai, the reason behind it was that these cities are

cosmopolitan cities.

As it was anticipated, during research work following limitations were faced:

Non availability of contacts and persons themselves for study at decided time.

Inadequate response from respondents

Hesitation in sharing information

Avoidance to give appointment for interview

Non availability of secondary data from records

Non-familiarity of the respondents with product placement.

Very large population.

To overcome these difficulties and to complete the study, sincere and timely efforts have

been put.

Pilot Study:

A pilot study, conducted by the researcher with 110 sample size from 11 cities, helped in

the foundation of various concepts and assumptions for this research. It helped in

revealing the weaknesses of it and then it was further reconstructed very carefully so

that it proved effective in collecting the relevant information. Parameters associated with

viewer‟s attitude and behaviors are finalized after receiving and analyzing various

responses in the pilot study. A pilot study also helped in ascertaining the time required

for field procedure.

Hypotheses are formulated based on learned opinion of researcher from outcome of

pilot studies along with literature review and expert interviews.

Development of Hypotheses

Based on literature review, expert interviews and pilot study conducted by the

researcher, the following hypotheses have been formulated:

23

H1: Viewers have a positive attitude toward product placement practice in Hindi

movies.

H2: Positive attitude to product placement in general will result in greater

acceptance of particular product placed.



H4: There is no significant difference in respondent‟s opinions about product

placement in films is Ethical or unethical.



Table No. 1 Sample distribution – Age group

Age-Group

Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative

Percent

Valid

Below 25 585 60.7 60.7 60.7

25 - 40 259 26.9 26.9 87.6

40 and

Above 119 12.4 12.4 100.0

Total 963 100.0 100.0

All respondents were classified in three categories, below 25 years, between 25 to 40

and 40 and above. 60.7% respondents were below, 26.9% were between 25 to 40 and

12.4% were 40 and above. These categories of respondents are used to find out the

categorical difference between various other phenomena of product placement in Hindi

films.

Table No. 2 Sample distribution - Location of respondents

Location of respondents


Percent

Valid Pune 579 60.1 60.1 60.1

Mumbai 384 39.9 39.9 100.0

24

Total 963 100.0 100.0

All respondents were classified in two categories, Pune and Mumbai. Mumbai is a centre

place of Hindi Film Industry and Pune is selected due to its cosmopolitan nature. 60.1%

of total respondents were selected from Pune and remaining 39.9 were from Mumbai.

These categories of respondents are used to find out the categorical difference between

various other phenomena of product placement in Hindi films.

Table No. 3 Sample distribution – Occupation of respondents

Occupation of respondents


Percent

Valid

Professional/ managerial 120 12.5 12.5 12.5

Self Employed / Owner 207 21.5 21.5 34.0

Govt. Servant 81 8.4 8.4 42.4

University/College student 446 46.3 46.3 88.7

Other 109 11.3 11.3 100.0

Total 963 100.0 100.0

All respondents were classified in five categories of Professional/ managerial, self-

employed, Government servant, University/college students and other. Out of total 963

respondents 12.5% were from professional / managerial categories, 21.5% were self

employed, 8.4% were government servant, 49.3% were university / college students and

11.3% were from other categories. These categories of respondents are used to find out

the categorical difference between various other phenomena of product placement in

Hindi films.

Table No. 4 Sample distribution – Gender of respondents

Gender of respondents


Percent

Valid

Male 715 74.2 74.2 74.2

Female 248 25.8 25.8 100.0

Total 963 100.0 100.0

25

Out of total 963 respondents 74.2% were male respondents and remaining 25.8% were

female.



Constructs Operational Description

Brand Awareness Percentage of respondents that have heard of a designated

brand;

awareness could be either unaided or aided.

Brand Attitudes The number of respondents and their intensity of feeling positive

or

negative toward a specific brand.

Purchase Intentions The number of people planning to buy the specified object

(e.g. product or service) within a designated time period.

Importance of Factors To what extent do specific factors influence a person's purchase

choice?

Psychographics The attitudes, opinions, interests and Life style characteristics of

individuals providing the information.

Satisfaction How people evaluate their post-purchase consumption

experience with a

particular product, service or company.

Samples size

It should be noted that as the population increases the representative sample size

increases at a diminishing rate and remains relatively constant at slightly more than 380

cases. (Robert V. Krejcie and Daryle W. Morgan, 1970)

For primary data collection, Pune and Mumbai have been selected on the basis of the

assumption that the sample selected from these cities would represent the population.

26

For higher accuracy of the data very small and very large sample sizes are avoided. A

Sample size of 963 viewers was considered as the ample size for the study with 715

males and 248 females. Convenient sampling was adopted for collecting the sample

elements. Large sample size has been avoided due to its difficulty to manage and small

size of sample is avoided due to improper representation of the universe and one sided

result.

All respondents were classified in different categories based on age of respondents,

location of respondents, occupation of respondents of respondents and gender. These

categories of respondents are used to find out the categorical difference between

various other phenomena of product placement in Hindi films. Population distribution of

these categories is shown above.



27

Chapter 4 Results and Discussion

Introduction

A structured questionnaire was used to collect primary data. In the questionnaire the

viewers were asked about their awareness level about product placement and their

response about ethical concern related to film based merchandising. Also unaided and

aided recall of product / brands has been analyzed.

Non parametric tests such as Chi-Square test are used to investigate the differences

across classification variables such as age, Gender, Occupation and Location of

respondents. For the research, researcher has taken 8 movies with 9 product

placement.

Table No. 4- I Product Placement Strategy

Film Product Product code PPL Strategy

3 Idiots Volvo Xc90 R Design

----------------------------

And Mahindra Flyte

19

--------------------

78

Visible

------------------------

Visible

Namaste London Spykar 21 Verbal

Krrish Lays 11 Visible

Dostana Verve 20 Visible

Phir Hera Pheri Dominos Pizza 24 Mix Strategy

Break Ke Baad Zen Mobiles 22 Visible

Bhootnath Mother Dairy 10 Visible

Karthik Calling Karthik Asian Paints 13 Visible

Data have been analysed and tested with the help of tables, charts, diagrams,

percentage, correlation analysis, chi- square.

Reliability Analysis

A reliability analysis is conducted to measure the internal consistency of the

measurement method. The Cronbach‟s Alpha is used to measure the reliability of

variables. Cronbach‟s alpha indicates the degree to which set of items measure a single

28

construct. According to Cooper and Schindler, 2008 should be above 0,6. The table

below shows the results:

Normality Test:

To satisfy the demands of normality the histogram should show a line of normality, the

skewness and kurtosis should be between -1.96 and 1.96 and the Kolmogorov-Smirnov

should not be significant. The analysis shows the results of the normality test.

Data is normally distributed when there are more than 30 respondents. The test result

shows that not all the data is normally distributed. The data is normally distribute

because half of the data is normally distributed and the n is bigger than 30, in this case n

is 963. Large sample size n also declared the negative results of the Kolmogorov-

Smirnov, when the n is high the Kolmogorov-Smirnov will deny normality. The demand

of normality is granted.

Comparison of Unaided Recall and Recognition Result-:

Product code Product /Brand Unaided Recall (%) Recognition (%)

10 Mother dairy 25.8 49.1

11 Lays 19.8 63.7

13 Asian paints 20.3 59.8

19 Volvo XC90 R Design 42.8 58

20 Verve 21.8 61

21 Spykar 42.3 70.3

22 Zen mobiles 11.8 63.2

24 Dominos Pizza 57.2 70.9

78 Mahindra Flyte 4.6 22.8

29

Hypothesis Testing- First

The six questions about the attitude of product placement in general were combined to

one overall conclusive score. The questions used a five-scale likert -scale. A mean of 5

is not accepted and 1 is very accepted.

H0: There is no significant difference in respondent‟s attitude toward product

placement practice in Hindi movies. (µ = 3)

H1: Viewers have positive attitude toward product placement practice in Hindi

movies. (µ < 3)

One-Sample Statistics

N Mean Std.

Deviation

Std. Error

Mean

Attitude of respondents

toward product

placement in films

963 2.659 .6805 .0219

One-Sample Test

Test Value = 3

t df Sig. (2-

tailed)

Mean

Difference

95% Confidence Interval

of the Difference

Lower Upper

Attitude of

respondents toward

product placement in

films

-15.532 962 .000 -.3406 -.384 -.298

Result H1:

The first hypothesis is not supported by the analysis of the data. And it is concluded that

viewers have positive attitude toward product placement practice in Hindi movies.

Analysis shows that there is a significant positive attitude toward practice of product

placement in general in Hindi films. (p<0,05).

30

Hypothesis Testing- Second

H2: There is no significant relation between attitude toward product placement and

acceptance of product placement.

H2: Positive attitude to product placement in general will result in greater

acceptance of product placement.

Second hypothesis was tested using the five question of the questionnaire. These

questions are combined to one overall conclusive score. These five questions provide

the acceptance of product placement.

T-Test

Correlations

Attitude of

respondents

toward

product

placement in

films

Acceptance

of products

or brands

placed in

films


toward product

placement in films

Pearson Correlation 1 .969**

Sig. (2-tailed) .000

Sum of Squares and

Cross-products 445.505 448.114

Covariance .463 .466

N 963 963

Acceptance of products

or brands placed in

films

Pearson Correlation .969** 1

Sig. (2-tailed) .000

Sum of Squares and

Cross-products 448.114 480.493

Covariance .466 .499

N 963 963

**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

31

Paired Samples Statistics

Mean N Std. Deviation Std. Error

Mean

Pair 1


toward product placement

in films

2.659 963 .6805 .0219

Acceptance of products or

brands placed in films 2.6401 963 .70673 .02277

Paired Samples Test

Paired Differences t Df Sig.

(2-

tailed

)

Mean Std.

Deviation

Std.

Error

Mean

95% Confidence

Interval of the

Difference

Lower Upper

Pair 1

Attitude of

respondent

s toward

product

placement

in films -

Acceptance

of products

or brands

placed in

films

.01931 .17591 .00567 .00819 .03044 3.407 962 .001

32

Paired Samples Correlations

N Correlation Sig.

Pair 1


toward product placement

in films & Acceptance of

products or brands placed

in films

963 .969 .000

Result H2:

The second hypothesis is not supported by the analysis of the data. Analysis shows that

there is a significant relation. The acceptance of product placement is higher where

viewer‟s attitude is more positive.

Hypothesis Testing-Third



H3: There is significant difference in influence on “attitude toward brands”


ANOVA

Sum of

Squares

df Mean

Square

F Sig.

Brand

recognition

of Volvo-

XC90R

Between

Groups 2.928 4 .732 3.028 .017

Within Groups 231.585 958 .242

Total 234.513 962

Brand

recognition

of

Dominoes

Between

Groups 1.347 4 .337 .682 .605


Total 474.692 962

33

Brand

recognition

of Spykar

Between

Groups 1.081 4 .270 1.294 .271


Total 201.061 962

Brand

recognition

of Mahindra

- Flyte

Between

Groups 2.851 4 .713 4.091 .003


Total 169.740 962

Brand

recognition

of Verve

Between

Groups 1.351 4 .338 1.352 .249


Total 240.656 962

Brand

recognition

of Asian

paint

Between

Groups .532 4 .133 .544 .704


Total 234.987 962

Brand

recognition

of Lay's

Between

Groups 2.459 4 .615 2.673 .031


Total 222.793 962

Brand

recognition

of Mother

dairy

Between

Groups 2.165 4 .541 2.174 .070


Total 240.675 962

Brand

recognition

of Zen

Between

Groups 1.665 4 .416 1.795 .128


Total 223.869 962

Result H3:

This hypothesis is not supported by the analysis of the data. Analysis shows that the

result is not significant and it is concluded that mix product placement strategy has

significantly more influence on viewers compared to other two strategies of product

34

placement practice.

Hypothesis Testing-Fourth

H0: There is no significant difference in respondent‟s opinions about product

placement in films is Ethical or unethical.

H4: There is significant difference in respondent‟s opinions about product placement

in films is Ethical or unethical.

One-Sample Test

Test Value = 3

t df Sig. (2-

tailed)

Mean

Difference


of the Difference

Lower Upper

Product Placement

practice in films is

Ethical.

.803 962 .422 .034 -.05 .12

Result H4:

This hypothesis is supported by the analysis of data. Analysis shows that result is

significant, the sig value is .422 for two tailed test and it is less than 0.05. So it is

concluded that respondents have mixed opinion about product placement practice is

ethical or unethical in spite of Distribution of the respondent‟s opinion related to

product placement in films is unethical, is comparatively higher than those who think

it is ethical

Hypothesis Testing-Fifth



H5: The government should regulate the use of brand name products in Movies.

35

One-Sample Test

Test Value = 3

t df Sig. (2-

tailed)

Mean

Difference


of the Difference

Lower Upper

The government

should regulate the

use of brand name

products in Movies.

-9.494 962 .000 -.361 -.44 -.29

Result H5:

This hypothesis is not supported by the analysis. Analysis shows that result is not

significant. The sig value is less than .05 and it is concluded that in respondent‟s opinion

product placement practice should be regulated by the government.

36

Chapter 5 Finding & Conclusion

Findings related to awareness of product placement practice in Hindi films

• 56% respondents go to cinema hall for viewing movie at a regular basis.

• Most of the respondents prefer comedy movies. (56 %) followed by romance,

horror and action.

Findings related to viewers response about the practice of Product Placement in a

Hindi movie.

• 87 % of respondents were familiar about the practice of product placement in

movies while 13 % were not familiar at all. For those respondents who were

not familiar, a brief about the practice of product placements was given.

• 48 % of respondents agree that their views about a product have changed

after seeing it placed within a film that they liked.

• 44 % of respondents don‟t like to see brands or product if it is placed within

film for advertising purpose.

• 38 % respondents would like to avoid watching movies if they knew before

hand that brands are placed for advertising purpose.

• Approximately 50% of respondents don't mind if Movies producers receive

money from manufacturers for placing their brands in Movie.

• 51% respondent says that they would prefer to see real brands in Movies

rather than fake/fictitious brands.

• Only 44% respondents agree with the statement that the presence of brands

in Movies makes them more realistic.

• 44% respondents say that Product placements in Movies might make them

want to use the product if it is associated with an actor I like.

• 47% respondents feel that they would prefer to see brands placed within

Movies than traditional advertisement.

Findings related to attitude of viewers towards product placement practice in

Hindi films

• 46% of respondent have positive attitude toward practice of product

placement in Hindi films.

• 48 % of respondents feel that product placement practice should be used in

films.

37

• 52 % of respondents feel that product placement should be used if it suits the

contents of story of film.

• 48 % respondents don't mind if brand names appear in Movies.

• 43% respondents feel that If brands are to be placed in Movies for which

producers receive a payment from the advertisers, this information should be

disclosed at the beginning of the Movie

• 48% respondents assume that when brands appear in Movies it is usually a

form of paid advertising.

Findings related to acceptance of product placement practice in Hindi films by

the Viewers

• 48% respondents assume that when brands appear in Movies it is usually a

form of paid advertising.

• 45% respondents agree that Manufacturers are misleading the audience by

disguising brands as props in Movies.

• 48 % respondents feel that it is unethical for Movie producers to influence the

audience by including brands in their Movies. Only 25 % of respondents did

not agree with the statement.

• Approximately 50% respondents feel that most people would be influenced

by the brands they see in Movies.

Findings related to various strategies used by marketer / manufacturer for product

placement in Hindi films and their impact on brands recall and recognition.

• Product placement in the movie 3 Idiot of Volvo-XC90R was correctly recalled

in aided recall test by 58% of respondents.

• Second product placement in the movie 3 Idiot of Mahindra Flyte was not well

recalled in aided recall test. It was correctly recalled by only 28 % of

respondents.

• Product placement of Domino‟s Pizza in the movie Phir Hera Pheri was

recalled correctly by 71% of respondents. It was a perfect example of mixed

strategy of product placement in the films.

• In the film Kartik calling Kartik, Asian paint was recalled by 59% of

respondents.

38

• Lay‟s that was placed in the movie Krissh was recalled correctly by 63% of

respondents.

• In the film BhootNath, there was a product placement of Mother Dairy Ice-

cream and it was recalled by 50% of respondents.

• Again product placement of Spykar in the movie Namaste London was a

good example of mixed strategy of product placement practice in the films

and it was recalled by 71% of respondents.

• Zen mobile brand which was placed in the movie Break Ke Baad, was also

recalled correctly by 63% of respondents.

Findings related to the ethical issues involved in practice of product placement in

Hindi films.

.

• 40% respondents feel that the practice of placing brands within Movies

should not be allowed.

• 44% respondents agree that the government should regulate the use of

brand name products in Movies.

• 45% respondents agree that Manufacturers are misleading the audience by

disguising brands as props in Movies.

• 48 % respondents feel that it is unethical for Movie producers to influence the

audience by including brands in their Movies. Only 25 % of respondents did

not agree with the statement.

• Approximately 50% respondents feel that most people would be influenced

by the brands they see in Movies.

Conclusion

This research study has discussed and established the acceptability of product

placement as a marketing communications method. This research study also has

discussed product placement as a marketing communications method. There was

good awareness about product placement practice among viewers Product

placement communications are, according to research results, recognized and

recalled at higher rates. As per the result of analysis product placement is a good

39

communication medium when audience attitudes are concerned.

Respondents have positive attitude toward product placement practice in Hindi

movies and that result in greater acceptance of product placement practice in Hindi

films. Respondents don't mind if brand names appear in Movies and producers

receive money from manufacturers for placing their brands in Movie. Respondents

also agreed that if brands are to be placed in a Movie for which producers receive a

payment from the advertisers, this information should be disclosed at the beginning

of the Movie. Respondents agreed that the government should regulate the use of

brand name products in Movies. Respondents also agreed that people would be

influenced by the brands they see in movies.

Majority of audience accepts the product placement practice in films. Higher brand

recognition and recall levels pave the way for other marketing communications to

enhance the actual brand attitude, thus confirming the need for integrated marketing.

Suggestions and Recommendations

Recommendations for future research-:

In view of all the fact and figures, Indian product placement industry has a good

opportunity in near future if viewers‟ attitude and behavior are analyzed correctly.

Analyzing this with other variables may be the scope for future research.

This study was focused on product placement practice in Hindi films. Analysing the

scope and opportunity of this practice in other regional language and its impact on

viewers may be scope for future research.

Suggestion for social advertising-:

This practice may be useful for social advertising as viewer‟s attitude is positive toward

it. Product placement practice has a good awareness level in all age groups in spite of

their occupation and geographic areas. Hindi films may be a good medium to convey

social messages because of its awareness level and attitude of its viewers toward

product placement practice.

40

As this study highlighted and presented the ethical issues involved in product placement

practice and concluded that viewers accept this practice as ethical but express the need

to have some government monitored legal framework. So, social advertising about

smoking, child labor, aids awareness and other environmental issues may be addressed

to mass audience with low cost and high recall value by using product placement and

medium like Hindi films.

Suggestion for Advertisers-:

Understanding the viewer‟s media behavior may help advertisers to effectively achieve

their product placement and marketing communication objectives. Effective advertising

results in creating awareness, high recall and conversion. As per the result of this study

the brand / product recall and recognition were very high. Therefore, if advertisers use

product placement practice as per the characteristics of medium and audience / viewers,

they may achieve their advertising objectives.

Suggestion for Producers-:

The use of product placement strategy should be as per requirement of script, plot and

viewers‟ characteristics. The success of product placement practice depends on the way

it has been used in the medium. It should not be used in offending way; else it may

create negative impact on viewers and may give adverse result to advertisers. Product

placement should not be obvious.

Another factor for the success of product placement depends on the expertise of the way

it is integrated in the script. The product / brands characteristics should be analysed and

matched with the characteristics of the script.

41

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