-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Kevin Butler becomes Vice President of betrayal in new commercial
- Thread starter Skiesofwonder
- Start date
Is it really worth it to Sony, considering the potential fallout, to pursue legal action here? This suit reeks of ineptitude and maybe desperation on Sony's part. Let's hope it's not a sign of corporate decay.
CommonSense
Banned
A man has gotta eat....fuck you sony 
Canis lupus
Member
Have you heard of The Outfoxies?
http://www.metatube.com/en/videos/151958/Bridgestone-commercial-Kevin-Butler-becomes-VP-of-Betrayal/
(and I made a copy this time lol)
Damnit. Beaten by Wario64 4 pages ago
Could someone please update the OP?
I uploaded it to mediafire as well. http://www.mediafire.com/?j2qvizthubdgrlt
Sye d'Burns
Member
donkey show
Member
Well this is gonna be awkward when Karting comes out...
Well this is gonna be awkward when Karting comes out...
Hahahahahahaha, good job, Sony. :lol
Since when was it ok to do what Lambert did? I await the long list of actors who have served as spokespeople for one product, who then began appearing in commercials pimping a competitor's product.
Lambert advertising tires in January, seemingly no fucks given by Sony: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGIN58Tnkt0
Lambert advertising tires in January, seemingly no fucks given by Sony: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGIN58Tnkt0
That's my only issue. Bridgestone obviously hired him because of his visibility in gaming media. If he contacted them in advance asking if it was ok to be in a commercial that featured a Wii console as an appealing incentive to buy Bridgestone then I would be willing to side with him on this, but I doubt that will be the case.
Metalmurphy
Member
I don't really think the tires were the problem.
DeaconKnowledge
Member
lol. Really? This wasn't the first Bridgestone commercial he was in.
DrForester
Kills Photobucket
He was in Bridgestone commercials long before this Wii promotion started.
whalleywhat
Member
WE'LL HAVE YOUR PINKIE, BUTLER
That's my point. People need to stop thinking that Lambert is being forced by Sony to stay out of work, period.
This isn't like Warner Bros suing the movie trailer voice guy because he did a trailer for Paramount. Lambert is THE (fictional) face of Playstation, which makes it awkward to see him pimping a non-Sony console. Can you imagine if he walked out onstage at Nintendo or MS's E3 conference? Shit would hit the fan. Even if there's no contract, he at least owes an apology for tainting Sony's ad campaign, because now a lot of people think that, KB or JL, he'll advertise any game console you pay him to. The lawsuit negotiations seem to have completed very swiftly and without complication, so it would seem that everything was done with tact. But the internet loves a knee-jerk reaction-- especially if they can attack Sony-- and they hate reading-- so they'll likely ignore my post.
DrForester
Kills Photobucket
Bullshit, he was hired by a company who later ended up doing a promotion with Nintendo, he didn't go out of his way to promote Wii. By that logic Lambert can never work for any company that could have any possible chance of doing work with Nintendo (or by extension Microsoft). Never work on a film or TV show that could have Nintendo or MS as a product placement advertiser. Never work for any company that could later do a promotion with Nintendo.
Sure him working directly for Nintendo or MS would raise eyebrows, but he's pretty much out of the acting industry if every contract he signs comes with the stipulation that his employer can never do business with Nintendo.
AlphaTwo00
Member
Sony should sue Capitol One too. Why is their VP such a cheapass?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHfv17liWVw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHfv17liWVw
Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew
Banned
I know it's a joke, but as I said before: You don't see Old Spice Guy directly or indirectly promoting Axe, and you don't see Progressive chick directly or indirectly promoting Geico.
DrForester
Kills Photobucket
And you don't see Lambert directly promoting Nintendo. He's promoting a tire company that happened to be run a promotion with Nintendo long after he had begun his contract with them.
OldJadedGamer
Banned
I didn't know that all Sony PS2 football games had Sega Dreamcast ads when playing the Arsenal.
Metalmurphy
Member
Did you really went back 4 pages to say something that was already said by someone else?
I don't fully know how football licenses work but I do know league, squads, tournaments, etc... are all difference licenses. You can have a league licensed and not a squad from the same league , and vice versa, and it has happened before. If you license the champions league, you use their sponsers. That's why you got this:
If you license a racing car you get its sponsers.
And considering EA was in war with Dreamcast at the time they probably went out of their way to do it themselves and not Sony. Yes, because they're not Sony games.
Either way don't worry, you'll still get this:
In the next Gt.
Chuck Norris
Banned
Sony invests tons of money in developing a marketing persona for their brand
Said marketing persona is used by a company to promote competing game console
And Sony is the bad guy?
Said marketing persona is used by a company to promote competing game console
And Sony is the bad guy?
alfredofroylan
Member
So was the Wii the focus of the commercial or the Bridgestone tires???
Its a Bridgestone ad.
Mihael Mello Keehl
Banned
True but thats not what sony is suing for.
Grimm Fandango
Member
How is Kevin Butler in the Bridegestone commercial? The actor who plays him is in it but not the character.
Chuck Norris
Banned
The Wii is the focus of the one ad where Lambert is heavily prominent. It's pretty obvious the intention was not innocent, hence why they removed him.
It's like if Bridgestone hired the Mac Guy. No problems I'm sure, but there will be problems if he is suddenly promoting Windows or Samsung in conjunction with the ad
Chuck Norris
Banned
Yeah I'm sure is just a coincidence
Grimm Fandango
Member
Why does that matter when talking about trademark infringement? What kind of Kevin Butler "trademarks" occurred in the commercial?
Chuck Norris
Banned
Using the very actor who would illicit a response as a Sony spokesperson. The one that Somy had spent money building up. Or you think Bridgestone had no awareness of his history as an actor when deciding to pitch him in a videogame commercial using a very similar persona?
You believe actors like this don't have non-compete clauses in their contract to STOP them from promoting competing products in this very way?
Grimm Fandango
Member
Then why isn't the actor being sued for breach of contract? (probably a money issue since Sony is going after a corporation but still I don't think they have a case here)
He's not promoting tires in the Bridgestone Wii ad. His character is engaged in the Wii, not tires.
Chuck Norris
Banned
GameCenterXDS
Member
DiscoJer
Member
But what is the actor going to do? Get plastic surgery? Change his personality?
There used to be an actor that was a pitchman for all sorts of local businesses, probably 5 different ones, all playing the same character, himself. And the same person he'd play on TV in a bunch of bit parts (he played the Undertaker on an episode of The Golden Girls, the one where Rose yells at someone and they drop dead from a heart attack)
Similarly, look at Joe Isuzu/David Leisure. Sure, he didn't lie on his TV show Empty Nest, but he basically played a sleazy, dishonest guy. Noe he's resurrected the Joe Isuzu persona in ads for trial lawyers (portraying a sleazy, dishonest lawyer)
Chuck Norris
Banned
He is not going to promote gaming systems other than Sony, as I'm guessing is stipulated in his contract?
As I said, Sony didn't have a problem with the Bridgestone role until he was promoting Wii.
DrForester
Kills Photobucket
He's doing the same background stuff he's done in all the Bridgestone ads, that one just happened to have a Wii in it.
If his appearance were as truly innocuous as you suggest this thread wouldn't exist.
We recognized it because we're really into the industry.
For the general public, Sony just pulled a Streisand.
Right, and we noticed it because of the confusion it could potentially create in the market, which is the essence of a trademark infringement claim.
whalleywhat
Member
bwahhahahaha
Kevin Butler, VC of Sony's Wii, yeah, I can see that happening, poor Sony.
LOL. No, we noticed it because it's the same actor and that's it, although I wouldn't put it past some people to think he was really VP of shooters or some crap.
DrForester
Kills Photobucket
If Sony claims to have a copyright on the guys image, then they're as silly as the old MGM urban legend that Bond Actors could never appear in a tux in a film again.