Fox plans superpower Fantastic Four campaign
Oct. 2 Silver Surfer to jumpstart fourth quarter
By Susanne Ault -- Video Business, 8/30/2007
AUG. 30 | Fueled by a hefty marketing campaign, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer will jumpstart the all-important fourth quarter on Oct. 2 on standard-definition and Blu-ray Disc.
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer will street Oct. 2 in four different SKUs.
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment will offer Fantastic Four in four different SKUs: in standard definition as a single disc for $29.98, a two-disc The Power Cosmic Edition for $34.98 and a franchise complete Fantastic Four Two Pack Collection for $34.98; and on Blu-ray, as a 50GB disc.
Additionally, Fox has slated Live Free or Die Hard to bow on DVD on Nov. 20 (prebook Oct. 24), similarly day and date with its 50GB Blu-ray version.
The Bruce Willis action movie will be available as a standard-def single-disc ($29.98), an unrated standard-def two-disc ($34.98) and on Blu-ray
Standard-def and Blu-ray versions of Fantastic Four and Live Free or Die Hard feature commentaries, several featurettes and deleted scenes.
Exclusively on the Blu-ray edition of Fantastic Four is the trivia game “Saving the World One Question at a Time” and multi-player strategy game “Who Dares Defy Galactus?” Additionally, the Blu-ray Fantastic Four is equipped with motion sensor capabilities that can be accessed through the use of D-Box’s line of luxury home theater furniture. Last year, Fox promised as many as 30 such BD titles that would come pre-loaded with the D-Box sensor technology.
The Blu-ray Live Free or Die Hard title exclusively features the multi-player strategy game "Black Hat Intercept!"
Signage for the films will mention of both standard-definition and Blu-ray editions.
Fox is aiming to generate 2.8 billion consumer impressions with its Fantastic Four marketing blitz, corralling AAA in the auto club’s first national entertainment cross-promotion.
AAA will be highlighting the film throughout its 23 magazines and 1,100 AAA locations, with spots tying into a Fantastic-themed vacation and insurance package sweepstakes.
Additionally, Fantastic Four will be part of Panasonic’s current family high-definition blitz, in which the title will be spotlighted during the manufacturer’s fall big-rig truck tour. The movie also will be underscored during Panasonic’s multi-million-dollar ad campaign for its PTX-7 Home Entertainment Theater System.
In other prongs to Fox’s Fantastic Four marketing strategy, the U.S. Postal Service will display film posters in nearly 1,500 locations. Continental Tire outlets will offer a sweepstakes with a Fantastic Four-customized Dodge Charger as a grand prize. Levitz furniture will tie in a TV/print campaign dubbed “Fantastic deals on four-piece room collections.” Kellogg’s is stamping Fantastic Four images onto 50 million of its products. And Dodge will be running a Fantastic Four trailer to help highlight its booth at the L.A. Auto Show, among other car events.
“There is nothing like kicking off the fourth quarter in a big way with a great title and lots of activity partners,” said Steve Feldstein, senior VP of marketing communications at Fox. “It’s very comprehensive, covering all classes of trade, where it’s the Post Office to Panasonic to Dodge. It’s really broad.”
