Richard's Animorphs Forum

Animorphs Section => Animorphs Forum Classic => Topic started by: wolfev on June 25, 2008, 11:19:41 PM

Title: Product placement
Post by: wolfev on June 25, 2008, 11:19:41 PM
Did K.A. ever get money from all the product placement? I read in anibase that there are references to real brands in the books because she thought it was stupid to refer to fake brands.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: esplin on June 25, 2008, 11:21:24 PM
yeah its definatly stupid lol.  but i love it in GTA...
i really doubt she got any money
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Essam 293 on June 26, 2008, 02:22:17 AM
It wasn't really product placement since she never got any money for promoting anything. It's not like they actually got paid for mentioning Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Sega in their books or anything. K.A did it because it would be more relatable to kids rather than using fake brands, people, etc. The only time she actually used a fake famous person was in #12 where the guy was supposed to be like Jonathan Taylor Thomas.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Mongoose on June 26, 2008, 06:40:07 AM
It just helps to show they live in the 'real' world. They're surrounded with familiar brands and products rather than fictitious ones. They hand out in McDonalds, they shop at gap just like everyone else. Well I say everyone else, not me, since my town had neither a McDonalds or a Gap, or a shopping mall, but you get the idea.  It also helps to promote the idea that that it could be any town (even your town, as they used to say).
Either that or it's a commentary on globalisation.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Phoenix004 on June 26, 2008, 08:17:27 AM
I can understand some books that use fake names/products for legal reasons, or that they simply don't want to offend people. I do agree with KA in this case though, that writers should use genuine brand names wherever possible, as they are easier to relate to and prevent confusion.

However, KA actually used at least two fake names in the series. The name in book 12 has already been mentioned, but she also made up the name of the millionaire software designer in book 16. It is widely believed that this man was supposed to be Bill Gates.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: ThermalRider on June 26, 2008, 09:10:24 AM
Well in the Andalite Chronicles she mentions Bill Gates though. Because Elfangor in human morph helps explain things to his friend Bill using words like "window" to explain things.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: esplin on June 26, 2008, 11:59:18 AM
i kinda thought the guy in 16 could be jobs too cause she has stated that she likes macs alot better, idk whats with that
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: ~ on June 26, 2008, 12:07:58 PM
No, they mentioned Steve in TAC. The company was an ISP based on AOL, so I always thought it was supposed to be whoever actually invented the internet.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: esplin on June 26, 2008, 12:17:10 PM
mmm the internet, i forgot he invented the internet
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: sundi on June 26, 2008, 12:17:46 PM
Your town doesn't have a McDonalds? Where do you live, the antarctic? :P
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: esplin on June 26, 2008, 12:23:29 PM
lol i was thinking that too
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Phoenix004 on June 26, 2008, 12:52:45 PM
You mean they don't have a McDonalds in the Antarctic? And yet they do have one opposite an ancient Egyptian temple in Luxor (And sadly, I'm not joking).
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: esplin on June 26, 2008, 01:54:23 PM
why on earth did the egyptians let them do that
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: wolfev on June 26, 2008, 01:56:16 PM
Cause the chee weren't there to stop them.
Come on its capitalism, thats what happens, once the War in the books was over, there probably was a McDonalds on the Andalite home world.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: esplin on June 26, 2008, 01:57:28 PM
know how the french have diffrent stuff in their mc donalds? I wonder what kind of stuff the andalites would have
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: wolfev on June 26, 2008, 02:02:12 PM
Same as we have, but with more GREE-GREASE.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: esplin on June 26, 2008, 02:10:26 PM
lol like it needs anymore grease, i guess morphs cant get fat though :]
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Mongoose on June 26, 2008, 03:13:41 PM
Cause the chee weren't there to stop them.
Come on its capitalism, thats what happens, once the War in the books was over, there probably was a McDonalds on the Andalite home world.

I'm not sure about McDonalds, but they definitely opened a Cinnabon on the Andalite Homeworld. That's another brand name right there.
And in answer to your earlier question, I grew up in a small town in South Wales, we didn't have any fast food chains at all. And you know what, I consider myself lucky to have grown up somewhere like that.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Kelly on June 26, 2008, 07:52:44 PM
I live in a country town so no maccas here haha. there's one like 30 min away though.
I thought it was cool KA mentioned mcdonalds and shopping centres and stuff in her books like that, coz yeah it does just make everything seem like something you can relate to.
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Essam 293 on June 26, 2008, 08:11:40 PM
I used to work at a McDonalds a long long time ago, when Animorphs was still running. The only thing that made it bearable to work there for the time that I did, was that I could pretend I was spying on them for the Animorphs (silly, I know :P). It was fun to imagine that there was a secret entrance in that store somewhere that led to the Yeerk Pool. And of course all the managers were evil because they were part of the conspiracy.

You don't know how many times I went into the walk-in-freezer looking for that secret door (I was 16, gimme a break :P)
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: wolfev on June 26, 2008, 09:42:13 PM
So, did you ever get the secrete password? Also, has anyone ever asked for a happy meal with extra happy ?
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Essam 293 on June 26, 2008, 11:07:08 PM
LOL, someone did ask for it, but it was just my brother being an ass. He stopped finding it funny once he started working there too, and I kept asking him :P
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: ThermalRider on June 28, 2008, 11:48:14 PM
No, they mentioned Steve in TAC. The company was an ISP based on AOL, so I always thought it was supposed to be whoever actually invented the internet.

She mentions both Steve Jobs and Bill Gates in The Andalite Chronicles.

And I could definitely see a Cinnebon on the Andalite homeworld. They should be like starbucks and be on every corner. One can dream, eh?
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Tim Bruening on July 01, 2015, 06:45:57 PM
I can understand some books that use fake names/products for legal reasons, or that they simply don't want to offend people. I do agree with KA in this case though, that writers should use genuine brand names wherever possible, as they are easier to relate to and prevent confusion.

However, KA actually used at least two fake names in the series. The name in book 12 has already been mentioned, but she also made up the name of the millionaire software designer in book 16. It is widely believed that this man was supposed to be Bill Gates.

I take it that KA didn't actually use the name Bill Gates for fear that he might sue her for implying that he was a cannibalistic parasitic alien from outer space?
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Tim Bruening on July 01, 2015, 06:47:43 PM
know how the french have diffrent stuff in their mc donalds? I wonder what kind of stuff the andalites would have

Grass!
Title: Re: Product placement
Post by: Tim Bruening on July 01, 2015, 06:50:25 PM
I used to work at a McDonalds a long long time ago, when Animorphs was still running. The only thing that made it bearable to work there for the time that I did, was that I could pretend I was spying on them for the Animorphs (silly, I know :P). It was fun to imagine that there was a secret entrance in that store somewhere that led to the Yeerk Pool. And of course all the managers were evil because they were part of the conspiracy.

You don't know how many times I went into the walk-in-freezer looking for that secret door (I was 16, gimme a break :P)

Did you ever attempt to join the Sharing so that you would be shown the magic door?