Just to catch up on an amusing upset in America… Sony has been widely rebuked for daubing graffiti-style PSP ads on the sides of buildings in several cities – including Philadelphia, which has strict billboard controls and is famous for its community-minded murals. City authorities have served Sony with a cease-and-desist order, while enraged civilians are apparently painting over the offending 'artworks'.
Of course, there's no overt branding on Sony's cartoon figures – this is a piece of edgy stealth marketing - part of an ongoing pan-corporate attempt to reach out to young consumers who no longer respond to traditional advertising methods. But many also see this appropriation of youth culture as cynical and damaging to the urban landscape.
Justifying the campaign to Wired.com, Sony spokeswoman Molly Smith stated: "With PSP being a portable product, our target is what we consider to be urban nomads, people who are on the go constantly"
Urban nomads?! Is that a real demographic, or just the wishful fantasising of an under-employed marketing junior? It could be real - I have no idea, I live in Somerset where cloudy cider is still very much part of the contemporary zeitgeist. Are there really hip youngsters flitting around our cities, able to decode and respond to subliminal ad messages? I really want to know.
