Turner signs commercial deals to promote Ben 10: Alien Force series
Turner Broadcasting is launching the new series of Cartoon Network’s flagship Ben 10 franchise with a raft of commercial deals and initiatives, with partners aiming to capitalise on the channel’s top-rated show.
Tesco is sponsoring the premiere of Ben 10: Alien Force, which shows Ben 10 aged 15. The retailer tie-in with the launch event will be linked to a series of print and online competitions, which offer tickets as prizes. The premiere and post-show party is being produced by Turner, in collaboration with experiential agency Mission.
A sponsorship deal with video games company D3 has been signed and will coincide with the company’s launch of a new game called Ben 10: Alien Force. The deal, which was negotiated by Turner Media Innovations and agency Miller Advertising, includes a series of six ten-second idents profiling individual characters.
Ben 10: Alien Force will be backed by an extensive cross-channel advertising and digital campaign. MediaCom has brokered a deal that will allow children to trade in virtual currency from kids’ social networking site BinWeevils.com for real Ben 10 merchandise from online marketplace Swapitshop.com.
The Ben 10 toy range was the UK’s best seller of 2008, according to NPD Epos Data. There are currently 500 product lines based on the franchise, many based on the alien characters Ben 10 can transform himself into by using his Omnitrix watch.
A series of new toy launches are expected to follow the launch of Ben 10: Alien Force, featuring many new characters.
