Old music videos.....new ads?

So I came across a Rolling Stone article about a new, semi-creepy advertising practice: digitally placing new ads into old music videos.

image via Rolling Stone - Far East Movement's 2010 video "Rocketeer"

Confused? Me too. And I'm finally starting to think we've gone a bit too far....


According to Rolling Stone,

As first reported in Financial Times, the deal will integrate brands in music videos in ways unheard of even five years ago. Unlike a traditional product placement deal — in which a brand would work with the record label and artist and insert their product into the video during its production — retroactive product placement (a.k.a. native in-video advertising) functions more like traditional advertising. The ads inserted into each video have a finite lifespan and can be removed or replaced instantly. Companies may also localize ads, meaning a person in New York may see a Pepsi billboard at the same time someone in London sees an ad for McDonald's.

Ummm, that. Is. Crazy.

I'm all for innovation and finding exciting ways to reach new customers, but I also looooove music and I'm kind of protective of the art form.

Yeah some music videos are pretty much mindless garbage filled with blatant product placement anyway, but others are highly lauded as art and should be left alone. Could you imagine seeing an ad for an alcoholic beverage digitally placed behind Michael Jackson in Thriller?

No? Well here's what it would look like:

Let's take a moment to applaud my Photoshop skills

Scary right? And I'm not talking about the zombies...

So, where do we draw the line? Or has it already been crossed? Does it even matter? Sound off below!