November 20, 2006
Sony Computer Entertainment
America Spotlights PSP System With New Marketing Efforts
New Advertising Campaign, PSP
Spot Download Station and More Continue the Momentum of the PSP System as the
Holiday Shopping Season Kicks Off
Sony Computer Entertainment America
today announced several new marketing initiatives designed to continue the
momentum of its popular PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) system through the
holiday shopping season. A new national television advertising campaign, titled
"Find Me," has launched, focusing on the PSP system’s multi-functional features
shown in a real-world narrative. SCEA is also making downloadable gaming and
other media content available with new PSP Spot Download Stations at select
retailers nationwide. Additional efforts at retail, in home, on the Internet,
and on the streets are generating strong awareness for the system and everything
it offers to consumers who want their gaming and entertainment on-the-go.
"The PSP system has already been
established as a popular gaming handheld, but it was designed to do so much more
— from playing music and videos to sharing photos and accessing the Internet,"
said Peter Dille, senior vice president of marketing, SCEA. "These marketing
initiatives deliver the broader PSP brand message and offer PSP owners the
entertainment experience they’re thirsting for from a content perspective. We’re
excited that these new efforts place a spotlight on the PSP system by delivering
value to existing PSP owners and reaching new audiences at a time when
gift-givers are looking for what’s hot in entertainment."
"Find Me" Ad Campaign Launched at
the end of October, the new TV advertising campaign uses an engaging narrative
style to show one PSP owner’s quest to find his love interest, armed only with
his PSP system and a 4 GB Memory Stick PRO Duo(TM) filled with her photos,
videos, and music. Spider-Man 2 movie clips, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam
Bravo 2, and ATV Offroad Fury(R) Pro are also shown to emphasize the PSP
system’s broad content offering.
The campaign, consisting of two
30-second spots and one 60-second spot, targets the 16- to 34-year-old male
audience. The PSP system’s vibrant LCD widescreen, broad range of gaming and
entertainment content, and overall sleek design have enabled SCEA to
successfully carve out this new market, which represents a departure from the
far younger consumer that competitors have traditionally reached with their
gaming handhelds.
The 30-second spots are now airing
on network, cable and syndicated programming. Executions will run through the
holidays on a broad mixture of programs and networks that reach the target
demographic, including: the Jimmy Kimmel Show (ABC); Mad TV, Family Guy and The
Simpsons (Fox); Conan O’ Brien and Saturday Night Live (NBC); The Daily Show and
South Park (Comedy Central); NCAA Football and Basketball, NBA Basketball, and
SportsCenter (ESPN/ESPN2); TRL (MTV); WWE (USA); the G4 network and more.
PSP Spot Download Station Beginning
this month, consumers can take their PSP system to participating retailers,
including Circuit City, GameStop, Target, and Toys "R" Us, to download the
hottest gaming and entertainment content from a PSP Spot Download Station. These
interactive kiosks offer game demos, movie trailers, music clips, mini-strategy
guides, wallpapers and more, delivering a broad range of content that PSP owners
are looking for. By January 2007, PSP Spot Download Stations will be available
at more than 6,000 retailer locations. The PSP Spot currently offers the
following content.
Game Trailers
Demos
NFL Street 3
Outrun
Bounty Hounds
Worms
LocoRoco
Dungeon Siege
Lemmings
MLB 2006
Ultimate Ghosts and Goblins
Videos
Lumines 2
PSP Greatest Hits
Every Extended Extra
PSP Educational
MX vs ATV
Face Driver 2006
Game Sharing
Daxter
Lemmings
Lumines 2
Every Extended Extra
LocoRoco
"At GameStop, we’re always looking
for ways to enhance the customer experience, and the PSP Spot’s gaming
demonstration capabilities does just that by delivering content that gamers can
enjoy while shopping at our stores," said Bob McKenzie, senior vice president,
merchandising, at GameStop. "This is also a great opportunity to let our
customers check out the newest releases for themselves before they decide which
titles to buy."
Online Marketing Campaigns Two
online marketing campaigns will generate awareness of the PSP system through the
holiday shopping season. One campaign already running focuses on the PSP
Entertainment Pack, a hardware bundle available since September that includes
the PSP system, ATV Offroad Fury(R): Blazin’ Trails, the "Lords of Dogtown"
UMD(TM) (Universal Media Disc) movie, and a 1GB Memory Stick PRO Duo(TM). The
creative concept utilizes a wish list style and showcases the PSP Entertainment
Pack’s consumer value. Executions are running on a variety of enthusiast,
consumer and lifestyle Web sites, such as IGN.com, ESPN.com, and MTV.com.
A second campaign, launching
shortly, is designed to reach gift-givers, with creative focusing on how the PSP
system is among the sought-after gifts this holiday season. The campaign will
run on a mixture of sites.
PSP on the Web With Wi-fi
connectivity, the PSP system’s online experience is just as important to
consumers as the offline one. The PSP system now has its own Really Simple
Syndication (RSS) site to deliver gaming and movie content, music, photos, and
more. Available directly from a PSP system at
http://psp.us.playstation.com/rss, consumers can subscribe to feeds
that automatically push these entertainment files to them whenever they access
their device’s RSS Channel at a hot spot. The new RSS site features the
PlayStation Mayhem show, an entertaining lifestyle audio and video program
covering style, gaming, gadgets, music, celebrities, civilians and trends.
Additional content now available includes trailers and other videos from Def
Jam(R): Fight for New York(TM): The Takeover, The Godfather: Mob Wars, Metal
Gear Solid: Portable Ops, Need for Speed(TM) Carbon: Own the City, as well as
athlete interviews and top tricks from the Dew Action Sports Tour. On the
official PSP Web site
http://www.us.playstation.com/psp , consumers can now download content from
the "Find Me" ad campaign, including the TV spots, behind-the-scenes shots,
screen grabs, and more.
PSP Billboards With nearly 23
million units shipped worldwide, the PSP system has become a common sighting on
the subway, at the park, and on planes. You can even catch a glimpse of the
handheld in the sky — SCEA has launched a giant PSP billboard in Las Vegas at
the busy corner of Las Vegas Blvd. and Tropicana Ave., complementing a similar
billboard that has been live in New York City since 2005. The oversized PSP
screens of both installations have been refreshed with first and third-party
gaming content from upcoming releases, Sony Pictures’ UMD movie trailers, and
highlights from the Dew Action Sports Tour.
