Sony to back Bravia debut with £5m ads

by Ben Carter Marketing 26-Oct-05

Sony is phasing out its Wega widescreen TV engine and replacing it with a range called Bravia, which will be backed by the firm's biggest UK ad campaign of the year.

Bravia is a range of 26in-40in digital LCD TVs, which is being rolled
out onto the high street ahead of the peak Christmas selling season.

It is the first output of Sony's Seventh Generation factory in South

Korea, which is a joint venture with rival Samsung. Wega has been on

sale since 1998 but is now being updated.

Sony UK is investing £5m in a cross-media campaign for Bravia. It
has been developed by Fallon London and will centre on a one-off,
two-and-a-half minute ad, which will take over the entire ad break
during Chelsea's Premiership match against Manchester United on Sky
Sports on 6 November.

Cinema, radio, outdoor, online and print ads will support the activity,
under its recently introduced 'Like no other' strapline.

The ads feature 250,000 coloured rubber balls bouncing around the
streets of San Francisco. According to Sony UK marketing director Carl
Rose, the company plans to use the balls as a branding theme for Bravia
in leaflets, brochures and point-of-sale activity.

The increased focus on LCD TVs comes at a challenging time for Sony,
which aims to turn around disappointing sales and market performance
under new chief executive Sir Howard Stringer.

Sony is the UK's LCD TV market leader, with a 17.9% share, according to
GFK.