Picture This: Blockbuster Nets Academy Award Promo Prize

For the first time, a retailer has become an official promotional partner for the Academy Awards.

On Jan. 27—the day nominations for the 76th annual awards were announced—Blockbuster Video stores began linking with ABC's oscar.com Web site.

"From Feb 10 through the beginning of April, we will have an in-store merchandiser of past winners," Blockbuster spokesman Kevin Gardner says.

Although in the past retailers have obviously built displays around the Oscars, Blockbuster's deal marks the first time the Oscars have directly provided a chain with in-store materials around which to build a campaign and linked with a retailer online.

Additionally, the chain's 5,000 stores will run a one-minute trailer promoting this year's Feb. 29 Academy Awards ceremony. The merchandiser of Oscar winners and the trailer will be displayed as part of a "Watch a Winner" wall.

Blockbuster.com will feature a banner ad highlighting information about the telecast and promoting oscar.com's annual "Predict the Winners" game.

"Blockbuster.com will have polls relating to Oscar trivia and this year's nominees," says Alexis Rapo, director of marketing for ABC.com and oscar.com. "They will also be providing us with prizes for 'Predict the Winners.' We will be running banner ads for Blockbuster as well, which relate to renting and owning past Oscar winners."

The oscar.com promotion will run until the Academy Awards air on ABC.

In other Blockbuster news, look for the chain to introduce a new DVD trade-in promotion in the second half of this year. Though details have not yet been announced, the program is expected to give customers store credit for DVD trade-ins. The retailer had a different trade-in program that ran Nov. 4 through Dec. 22, 2003, which allowed customers to buy a new DVD for the discounted price of $12.99 when trading in a used DVD.



NEW PARTNERS: Paramount Home Entertainment is PBS Home Video's new distributor in the U.S. and Canada. The five-year partnership begins April 5.

PBS had been distributed by Warner Home Video for the past 10 years. The company made the switch in part because of Paramount's expertise in children's programming, according to Tracey Beeker, PBS VP of marketing and consumer products.

PBS counts children's franchises "Caillou," "Sagwa the Siamese Cat" and "Teletubbies" as part of its library, while Paramount distributes many popular Nickelodeon titles.

Additionally, Beeker says Paramount's marketing strategy played a large role in completing the deal. "We like that they are great about developing strong national campaigns to support their products, and they also do grassroots and local marketing," she says.

The deal is part of Paramount's goal to acquire more content. "There are very few brands that are as prestigious as PBS," says Thomas Lesinski, president of Paramount Pictures worldwide home entertainment. "There is really no more trusted brand in television."



'PUFNSTUF' STUFF: The story of a boy named Jimmy, a magic flute and a six-foot dragon named H.R. Pufnstuf intrigued the Saturday morning cartoon audience when it debuted in 1969. The H.R. Pufnstuf series also introduced the creative team of Sid and Marty Krofft,which went on to make numerous cult faves such as "The Bugaloos" and "Land of the Lost."

The Kroffts' first series is debuting on DVD Feb. 10 and is also coming back to TV thanks to a deal between Rhino Home Video and TV Land.

The "Pufnstuf" three-disc DVD set will contain uncut versions of all 17 episodes as well as interviews with the Kroffts. A TV Land logo will be on the package, and short TV Land spots are featured on the DVDs.

TV Land will air a four-hour "Pufnstuf 'N' Stuff" programming event Feb. 17. The series will also be featured on the network's "Kitschen" block of programming beginning in April and lasting through next spring. Kitschen airs every Friday and Saturday from midnight to 2 a.m.

"This is great for both of us, because we are getting the extra exposure and they get DVD promotion," says Karen Levy, VP of marketing for TV Land. TV spots advertising the DVD will air Feb. 17 and in the Kitschen blocks.

Paul DeGooyer, VP of sales and marketing for Rhino, anticipates that the DVD and the TV programming will appeal to many generations. "There seems to be this great groundswell of affection towards the Kroffts," he says. "They are featured prominently in the VH1 show 'I Love the '70s.' Saturday morning cartoons have been about toys or trying to sell a product over the years, but the Kroffts weren't about that."