In an announcement that further blends traditional and new media, NBC said today it will launch a brand-awareness television campaign to promote its new Snap! joint venture with CNET.
Aiming to make Snap! a “household” name to its viewers, NBC said the TV spots are slated to debut during the week of July 27. Initially the promos
will be broadcast on various NBC dayparts for six weeks, followed by a full
launch in the fall. The television company said it expects the ad rollout this summer to draw more than 400 million viewer impressions in the highly-targeted 18-to-49 year-old Internet population.
The Snap! promos feature a frustrated Internet user who consults a
psychiatrist to help him with his Net search problems. The tagline for the
“pain and relief” spots: “Don’t suffer from information overload. Snap! out of it! Search the Internet with Snap.com today!”
Shelly Palmer Productions produced the initial ads, and NBC said it is
presently conducting detailed media research and major review of ad houses to pick an agency of record.
“We intend to make the most of the combined broadcast and
Internet reach of NBC and CNET to advantage the Snap! brand, especially as
more and more TV viewers begin to go online,” said Martin J. Yudkovitz,
President, NBC
Interactive Media, in a statement.
“This initial awareness campaign only is the beginning of our joint effort
to empower Snap! with mass-media sensibilities as we work to make Snap! the
starting point of choice for US television viewers,” added Halsey Minor,
Chairman and CEO, CNET, and CEO, Snap!
On June 6, NBC first announced it was purchasing an equity stake in CNET’s Snap!, and unveiled plans to run it as a joint venture. At least initially, Snap! will be 81% owned by CNET and 19%
owned by NBC, with NBC retaining the option to increase its ownership stake to 60%.
Snap! is distributed by more than 40 Internet service providers and PC makers including GTE Internetworking, MCI Internet, Earthlink Network, and Sony Electronics.
