Sony to vandalize Atlanta
Sony plans to vandalize Atlanta.
I kid you not. Sony is advertising its PlayStation Portable with a “stealth marketing” campaign that consists of paying people to spray paint pre-fab images of PlayStation characters onto outdoor walls in several big cities around the country. Atlanta is one of those cities.
Apparently, it’s a response to Sony’s realization that traditional forms of outdoor advertising (buses, billboards, etc.) just aren’t reaching their target audience.
Some people have pointed out that Sony’s spray painted ad campaign is both a violation of law and a finger in the eye of local communities working hard to clean up blighted inner city neighborhoods.
Those people are a bunch of killjoys!
I, for one, think that illegally spray painting ads on private property is a great idea. So great, in fact, that I think everyone should be doing it.
To help get you started, I’ve compiled a list of several buildings whose tenants are known supporters of illegal, spray paint “stealth marketing” campaigns.
Sony Business Solutions & Systems Sales Office
3175A Northwoods Parkway
Norcross, GA 30071
(770) 263-9888
Sony Music Inc
1000 Abernathy Rd NE
Atlanta, GA 30328
(770) 392-1844
Sony Pictures Television
2859 Paces Ferry Rd SE # 1130
Atlanta, GA
(770) 431-0202
Sony Electronic
120 Interstate North Pkwy SE
Atlanta, GA
(770) 953-5880
Sony Electronics
1050 Centennial Olympic P
Atlanta, GA
(404) 347-9492
Sony-Atv Music Publishing
Atlanta, GA
(404) 350-1669
Happy marketing!
UPDATE: Prompted by a comment below, I went by Marco’s Pita with a camera to see if a) Sony had sprayed adgraffiti on the building and b) whether Sony had the building owner’s permission. I didn’t see any graffiti — Sony or otherwise — so I left.
Vandalism aside, the campaign has *got* to be better than that stupid squirrels watching the game playing that they have going on now…
This is a nice follow-on to Sony’s campaign to secretly install spyware when some of their music CDs are played in your computer. Interesting that they would try something like this while they’re still busy getting sued for that.
At least this is far less intrusive than the rookit software which got installed on computers when people listened to music that they bought legally.
I find this funny that this is now hitting the news. I’ve seen the graffiti on The Earl for a while. I thought nothing of it because it was painted over the cool Adult Swim graffiti that was on the building.
Allright, I’ve got one for you: how to you find a tagger? I need to talk to whoever “toes” is because I’ve been recording as twinkletoes for a few years now and I want to make sure we don’t have a problem.
It’s time to get seen Atlanta, so what are you waiting for?
Don’t forget that sope sent you, so if you decide to become a member type my name after your last name on the submission form and remember once a member you will be on the show Indie Heat Video Magazine, so you can promote what you do.
Sorry – but it is not illegal. Business owners are paid to use their walls as ad space…ask Marco of Marco’s pita. This is the first place i’ve seen with the sony graffiti and he’s getting paid.
I will ask. And I’ll get back to you on what he says.
Also, don’t forget — outdoor advertising is subject to local regulations. Sony, or whomever, might have paid for some or all of the walls they spray paint, but they may still be illegal.
Not that zoning and code violations are ever enforced in this city anyway.