Screen Grabs: Pretty Little Liars is TV's newest home to egregious product placement (video)
By Thomas Ricker 
posted June 30th 2010 4:25AM
posted June 30th 2010 4:25AM
End scene.Bitter Barbie: "What are you doing? Is that a new phone?"
Bland Barbie: "Yeah, I'm checking my Kin. I'll just write on Hannah's wall from here."
Yes, ABC's new Pretty Little Liars show is the future of American television, where entertainment morphs into infotainment and bakes the minds of an entire generation into a lovely pie of corporate servitude. We blame TiVo. Oh, and just because Palm quit making creepy commercials doesn't mean that they've given up on promoting its Pre to women. Looks like Roger McNamee was right about that backside mirror's appeal. See what we mean in the PLL episode 3 embeds posted after the break.
[Thanks, Dave]
Hmm... I think Thomas Ricker likes the show...
Ewww...Kin...
@Muhammad Oli He even forgot to sign the article, "XOXO".
Somehow I seriously doubt Palm had anything to do with the Pre being in that first video. At least, I hope they didn't.
Omg, I can use it to talk to other people!
@DrScope [iPhone 4 joke goes here]
Dont forget about that whole episode that was dedicated to the iPad.
@IseWise At least the iPad "Modern Family" was about the public spectacle of having to wait in line outside an Apple Store. This is a stupid commercial (for a crappy product) INSIDE a television program.
Sorry, but "infotainment" is already owned by the American news media.
@Rubbinz
Isn't that the phrase John Stewart uses to refer to glenn beck and all the other brain washers at fox news?
Stay classy, American media.
What? Companies do product placements? What a TERRIBLE thing to do! I'm sure Apple would never do such a vile thing... >.
Troy McClure would be proud! While you're thinking about Tory McClure, why not enjoy the smooth taste of Laramie Cigarettes!
@vvtopkar
.... Apple never approaches companies to do product placements. They want to use Macs in their TV shows, and they pay Apple to do so. Even that Modern Family episode where they ruthlessly promoted the iPad, they paid Apple.
This was a shameless plug, and you can tell by the horrible cover-up writing that the character is trying to talk about the abilities of the phone "I'll just write on Hannah's wall from here", to which the other character asks "if she's not replying to texts why would she check her wall"... GOOD QUESTION. Because it's shameless fucking promotion, bitch!
@jellotime91
uhhh . . . you aren't serious are you? apple makes DAMN sure they get their products in front of as many tv and movie goers as possible. get real, sir.
This is so funny because if it was an iPhone 4, Engadget would be praising it!
@markd751 As if anyone actually likes the Kin.
@markd751
sad but true
@markd751
I don't have an iphone or a kin. but the kin sucks, the iphone doesnt -if engadget wants to tell people that, good for them. if you care so much about a few bloggers promoting a phone . . . I suggest you go camping and get your mind off it!
Oh Microsoft, you try *so* hard...
Yes one show pushing the Kin is bad while the whole newsmedia and "blogs" give free pub to Apple for anything that drops from Stevies rear. Since you know if something bad about a product was discovered they'd report it before it was released or downgrade the product. Silly me the device that has been held the same way ever since it was created is now a problem as you're holding it wrong. Silly me I thought product reviewers would discover potential defects in it instead of giving glowing reviews always, unless it's from another company that isn't Apple then they'll rip it apart and find every small defect wrong. why wait don't buy this product the logo is silkscreened not embossed on the device tsk tsk.
Yeah Modern Family didn't have a episode pushing the iPad, or Colbert pushing it on the Grammies and his show. Or any of the other breathless hacks ad nausem in the weeks before. Journalists? lol thats a good one. Even PBS shilled for it.
@Amusednow
You are the ejit who brought up apple.
@nwndarkness Are you kidding me? Every time I watch American TV I see tons of MacBook Pros/iMacs/iPhones. In fact, almost every other laptop at the very least is a MBP (I remember a recent episode of House where 3 or 4 people used one!)
Apple is the leader of product placement in shows and movies, and that's without mentioning the unrivaled media hype the company for various reasons, some of which I can point out. Bringing Apple into this is very valid. In fact, NOT bringing it up shows bias.
@Amusednow
Well said man. Apple gets a very disproportionate amount of screen time on tv.
People forget the real reason TV exists.
I think there's a difference between product placement and actively plugging the product... Using Apple as an example, since it's been raised here: every episode of House has Apple products whenever there’s a need for a computer prop (foreground and background), which I’m sure Cupertino supply and pay a fine price for, but at no point does House say "hey, I'll just turn on my new Macbook Pro and type Cuddy a note on this amazing backlit keyboard, safe in the knowledge that the Magsafe connector will stop my laptop crashing to the ground". I think viewers can deal with some subtle product placement without it jarring or feeling painful (recent James Bond films push the limit of this though). Any time you have to actually name the product or its features, you failed.
@jonnyjedi You mean, You blew it.
"Any time you have to actually name the product or its features, you [blew it]."
@jonnyjedi
"Any time you have to actually name the product or its features, you failed" I can agree to that somewhat, since the show now has a commercial embedded on it, but on the other hand, when MBPs, iPhones, and Sony, HP, and Cisco products have placements the product has the company logo front and center, making it hard to miss. Remember the first chapter of Transformers, when the HP laptop had the huge logo on it, or whenever they do some sort of video chatting on a movie the UI has a big Cisco logo somewhere, and in movies from columbia pictures the Sony logos shine and really stand out, but with the kin all you've got is a plain black face, no logo, therefore the only way to actually do product placement would be by saying it. I mean outside of the tech world (and we all have high end smart phones), who knows about the kin (not their target consumer).
Also on the data thing, it may be $30, but why are you all complaining, it consumes data regardless. While a lower monthly on the kin would have been nice, the kin theoretically will consume the same, if not more data than other phones (it uploads all your pics to the web).
To be fair, the show seems to be all kinds of stupid, not just product placement.
Can we get away from product placements anywhere? This is still not as bad as Transformers 2. Product placement isn't a bad thing, but once it get's included in the script whatever the show is becomes compromised by the powers that be.
Guess it's back to watching reruns of old shows on Hulu plus... I hope Saved by the Bell will be included!
@JakeK66 You just referenced a movie, a video service, and a tv show. So if I made a movie about your life, you'd be product placing 3 things in less than a minute.
I don't see the problem. It's more realistic to have people talk about products and use actual products than to use fake mockups that draw attention to themselves by being such.
Well, Ari and Drama were using a Nexus One...and I liked it.
The Kin department is an embarrassment to microsoft.
Found 1 out 500 in the wild. 499 to go.
ima guy and I fucking love that show it's so mysterious!
I don't see anything wrong with it. In the real world people call their iPhones "iPhones", like wise blackberry or HD2 or in my case my TP2. So her statements though blatant are very realistic.
There's nothing wrong with product placement as long as its not too over-the-top. As long as it's not more commercial or something disruptive to me, the viewer, what do I care?
LOL I should repost this article using my IPHONE to show all of my friends on FACEBOOK how lame product placement in the media is while drinking a can of PEPSI.
So ironic given the Kin's killing.
palm pre mirror = awesome