Tag: bet

VW Beetle makes a bold bet on Skins [w/video]

Filed under: Marketing/Advertising, Videos, Volkswagen

vw black beetle

Volkswagen’s Black Beetle Commercial – Click above to watch video after the jump

Companies prefer spending ad dollars on TV shows that people are actually going to watch. Sometimes, it’s simply a matter of buzz; if a lot of good or bad things are being said about a program, people are likely to tune in out of curiosity. Volkswagen is aware of this, and the automaker is betting that folks are going to tune into watch MTV’s controversial new show Skins.

Declared too racy by some critics, Skins was a high-school drama that showed drug use and sex amongst teenagers. It was also apparently quite terrible, judging from the reviews found around the Internet.The show aired its season (and possibly series) finale this past Monday, and VW was on board with some advertising airtime.

The initial backlash against Skins was enough to send some top-tier advertisers running. Volkswagen was willing to gamble that enough hype had been generated and people would tune in to the season-ender. Able to grab more airtime than usual, the automaker double-dipped on its new Black Beatle commercial, which was first seen during Super Bowl XLV. Smart move for VW? Well, the Skins finale drew 1.2 million viewers, the most the show had since February 7, for whatever that’s worth.

Click past the jump to watch Volkswagen’s Black Beetle commercial, and you don’t even have to sit through an episode of Skins beforehand.

[Sources: The New York Times, YouTube]

Continue reading VW Beetle makes a bold bet on Skins [w/video]

VW Beetle makes a bold bet on Skins [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 26 Mar 2011 17:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Richard Branson loses F1 bet, will cross-dress as Air Asia stewardess

Filed under: Motorsports, Lotus, Celebrities, Humor

You don’t get much higher stakes than Formula One. And while some teams have their own airplanes, there are a couple this season that have their own airlines: Richard Branson’s Virgin, and Tony Fernandes’ Lotus Racing and Air Asia.

As you may recall, the rivalry between the two tycoon-backed upstart teams escalated to such a point that Branson and Fernandes made a gentlemanly bet that was anything but: the owner of the team that fared worse in this year’s championship would have to cross-dress as a female flight attendant and serve as such on the other’s airline.

Well, Lotus edged out Virgin towards the bottom of the standings, so it’s Sir Richard who’ll be wearing Air Asia’s finest skirt and blouse. Fernandes is keen on placing his rival on a long-haul Kaula Lumpur-to-London flight, tickets for which he plans to auction off for charity. Looks like the negative effect of downforce isn’t the only kind of drag these guys will be dealing with in the offseason.

[Source: Autosport]

Richard Branson loses F1 bet, will cross-dress as Air Asia stewardess originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 21 Nov 2010 15:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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F1 bosses place bet that involves cross-dressing flight attendants?

Filed under: Motorsports, Etc., Europe, Lotus, Celebrities, Humor

Richard Branson StewardessThings are heating up in Formula One. As you may recall, earlier this year, Lotus head honcho Tony Fernandes jested that he would retire and kill himself if his team was bested by Virgin. A gaggle of reporters recently pinged Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson to see how he felt about Fernandes’ oath of victory or death, and Branson responded with a challenge for the Lotus guru. The boss of the losing team will have to serve as a stewardess on the winning team’s respective airline.

Surprisingly enough, ESPN reports that Fernandes is apparently just fine with the notion, saying that the sexier the outfit the better. Fernandes owns Air Asia, which was quick to crank out a rendering of what Sir Branson would look like all dolled up in the airline’s standard flight-attendant garb. It’s an image we won’t be able to shake for a good long while.

Fernandes was also quick to throw a little more fuel on the trash-talking fire, saying that he was certain that his customers would be thrilled to be served by a Knight of the Realm. Judging from that rendering, we’re not sure that “thrilled” is an accurate description.

[Source: ESPN F1]

F1 bosses place bet that involves cross-dressing flight attendants? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 11 Oct 2010 18:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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