Ambush Marketing Assignment Test

Ambush Marketing Assignment Test

Running head: WEEK 8 AMBUSH MARKETING 1

WEEK 8 AMBUSH MARKETING 4

WEEK 8 Ambush Marketing

Respond to Jarrud and Shultz write up, no more than 150 words

jarrud

Ambush marketing is the practice of stealing or using another adviser’s campaign or event to raise awareness of another company or brand, often in the context of event sponsorships (Schewan, 2020). I’d like to think of it sort of like you have some good news but the other person ignores it and starts to talk about themselves and what they have going on for them. One of the examples of Ambush Marketing in Sports took place during the 92 Winter Games. This happened between American Express and Visa. Visa was the official credit card sponsor of the Winter Games. They paid $20 million for the rights. Leading up to the games, Visa had been running Commercials and Ads stating that credit cardholders to should leave their American Express Cards at home. This was implying that the Olympics don’t take American Express. Well some of it is true. The tickets to the games could only be purchased with a Visa. American Express was upset because the assumption that they couldn’t use it anywhere in the location where the games were being held. In response to seeing that American Express decided to “Ambush” with their own marketing Ads. Their TV commercials stated “When you go to Spain, you’ll need a passport – but you don’t need a Visa ( (Deckman, 2007)).” This was a shot to the upcoming Summer Games in Barcelona. I feel that this Ambush Marketing was successful. This was calculated Ambush that happened to be true. Visas aren’t needed in Spain yet it was an indirect shot to get their message and product more notoriety.

One of the ways to prevent Ambush Marketing is to detail their intellectual property rights to prevent Ambush Marketing. Such use of this law was proposed prior to 2018 FIFA world games. FIFA requires prospective host countries to detail how its laws protect relevant intellectual property rights, and FIFA may require host countries to enact special anti-association and anti-ambush marketing laws for the duration of the World Cup (Morgan, 2018). This prevents marketing and advertising that aims to connect or associate the brand with the competition. These laws cover a wide range of marks and rights (Morgan, 2018). The legal issues related to Ambush marketing varies in what it could be. One could argue freedom of expression allows them to Ambush the Market. There are copyright laws and the one stated earlier intellectual property laws. If the marketer doesn’t abide by those laws prior to advertisement, they could face legal action.

Shultz

According to Cambridge Dictionary by the Cambridge University Press, ambush marketing is “a situation in which a company tries to advertise its products in connection with a big public event, without paying any money, although they are not the official sponsor.” (Ambush Marketing, 2020)

One such example of this is Dr. Dre and his Beats headphones controversy at the 2012 Summer Olympics. The reason why this was controversial is because Beats was not an official sponsor at the Olympics, however, some high-profile athletes, such as Michael Phelps wore the headphones. (25 Greatest Ambush Marketing Examples that You Will Love, 2016) Beats was a relatively unknown brand at the time, therefore making this a very successful example of ambush marketing. A YouTube video that speaks briefly on this marketing moment is called “How Beats by Dre Became a Multi-Billion Dollar Brand” and begins at the 4:50 minute mark. While this was successful, the legalities behind why it was controversial is because athletes are not supposed to promote a product that isn’t sponsored or approved by the International Olympic Committee.

When it comes to the legal aspects of ambush marketing, it can be argued two different ways. One way that supports ambush marketing is “freedom of expression”. According to “Ambush Marketing in Major Sporting Events and the Legal Framework Surrounding it” by Ankita Ranawat, freedom of expression can be curtailed by utilizing intellectual property laws and regulation of rights to events. (Ranawat, 2019)