SINGAPORE & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--ESP Properties, a sports and entertainment marketing agency dedicated to rightsholders—and part of WPP’s GroupM, the world’s leading media investment management group—announced today it has extended its strategic partnership with The Branded Entertainment Network (BEN), the world-leading marketplace for branded integration in popular global entertainment, into the Asia-Pacific region.
With the evolution of the sponsorship landscape and brands becoming more literate in new age advertising, product placements and brand integrations have emerged as a powerful form of advertising that targets consumers within content as natural part of their viewing experience. As marketers focus on maximizing returns on their advertising investments and move past commercial avoidance, this has become one of the most important vehicles by which a brand can reiterate its message to viewers in a subtle yet impactful manner.
BEN is an interactive platform that provides end-to-end access to film, TV, OTT, digital influencer, music video and celebrity brand placements. From a range of highest grossing films to the top rated TV series to broad-ranging influencer programming across online video networks, BEN aims to help brands discover content that delivers their target audience and is aligned with brand objectives.
With the pace of change and innovation accelerating in the advertising industry globally, BEN’s expansion into Asia Pacific will be led by ESP Properties APAC, one of the region’s foremost advertising, marketing and sponsorship agencies.
Gary Shenk, CEO of BEN, commented, “ESP Properties is clearly a leader in understanding and capitalizing on the power of branded integrations in content. Extending our partnership with ESP in Asia Pacific is a critically important strategic decision that will further our business and extend our reach for the brands and content partners that we represent in the high-growth APAC markets. We are excited and pleased to be working so collaboratively with ESP on this growth initiative.”
Toh Jin Wei, Managing Director of ESP Properties added “Brand integration in movies and sitcoms have the ability to build long-term relationships with viewers by connecting with them emotionally yet subtly. It can add a sense of realism to a movie and foster brand recall amongst viewers in a tactful manner which is what brands these days are looking for. We are very excited about our new partnership with Branded Entertainment Network here in Asia as we believe in the value of the product and that the platform will become the preferred choice for branded integration campaigns.”
As part of the agreement, ESP Properties will have access to BEN’s technology, database of content, planning and analytics to enhance advertising, marketing and branded integration campaigns.
About ESP Properties
ESP Properties is a new type of sports and entertainment marketing agency, dedicated to helping rightsholders take advantage of digital and data driven changes in the media landscape. It is part of WPP’s GroupM. ESP Properties is dedicated to helping properties better understand their audiences, develop more relevant ways to engage with them, and provide potential brand partners more valuable ways to connect with their communities of fans. Iconic organizations such as the All Blacks (New Zealand Rugby Union) and the Cleveland Cavaliers are among a growing list of major clients. www.espglobal.com.
About GroupM
GroupM is the leading global media investment management company serving as the parent to WPP media agencies—including Mindshare, MEC, MediaCom, Maxus, and Essence, as well as the programmatic digital media platform Xaxis—each global operations in their own right with leading market positions. GroupM’s primary purpose is to maximize performance of WPP’s media agencies by operating as leader and collaborator in trading, content creation, sports, digital, finance, proprietary tool development and other business-critical capabilities. GroupM’s focus is to deliver unrivaled marketplace advantage to its clients, stakeholders and people.
Discover more about GroupM at www.groupm.com.
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About The Branded Entertainment Network (BEN):
The Branded Entertainment Network empowers agencies, brands, publishers, and other media producers to capture the attention of audiences worldwide by integrating premium and timely entertainment content into their communications. From the world’s leading product integration platform (BEN), to the largest daily feed of celebrity content (Splash), to the global leading agency for rights and music clearances (Greenlight), Branded Entertainment Network helps elevate projects, amplify brands, and captivate audiences.
