Anyone notice lately how the major networks have had Apple laptops on their shows but have been placing things over their backlit logos, such as masking tape or stickers? Boston Legal last night and Joey have been a few examples. This really irks me!
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple laptops in TV
- Thread starter NEENAHBOY
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Duh...
Licensing/royalty type issues. If a TV show was to use any name brand item (well, show their logo) they have to pay a fee to whomever owns that brand. It's the same reason you see generic cola and no name beer on sitcoms. Purely a money thing and they might not want to go through the hassle of obtaining permission.
Licensing/royalty type issues. If a TV show was to use any name brand item (well, show their logo) they have to pay a fee to whomever owns that brand. It's the same reason you see generic cola and no name beer on sitcoms. Purely a money thing and they might not want to go through the hassle of obtaining permission.
TV
Ive been away in N.Z. for a while and coming back to UK noticed all BBC news progs have Powerbooks(complete with logos) they appear to be 15" .Funny thing is during olympics some of the stringers only had PC laps and did they look pissed off.
Actually I'm watching News at 1 now and the logo is not litup must be some sort of beeb hack.
On second thought if the most prestigious news org in the world orders 2000 powerbooks Apple are going to say no lit logo no prob.
Ive been away in N.Z. for a while and coming back to UK noticed all BBC news progs have Powerbooks(complete with logos) they appear to be 15" .Funny thing is during olympics some of the stringers only had PC laps and did they look pissed off.
Actually I'm watching News at 1 now and the logo is not litup must be some sort of beeb hack.
On second thought if the most prestigious news org in the world orders 2000 powerbooks Apple are going to say no lit logo no prob.
I don't think they are Apples on BBC.
Although there is a logo of some kind on the lappies, I don't think they are apples. True, the logo is roughly circular, but the rest of body looks cheap and nasty, the ports visable, and the powercable in some bulletins..
Also, the finish is different to the Alu and Ti Books, more like those on Acer laptops.
It would be nice to think that the Beeb uses Macs for everything, but I don't think they do on the news.
Although there is a logo of some kind on the lappies, I don't think they are apples. True, the logo is roughly circular, but the rest of body looks cheap and nasty, the ports visable, and the powercable in some bulletins..
Also, the finish is different to the Alu and Ti Books, more like those on Acer laptops.
It would be nice to think that the Beeb uses Macs for everything, but I don't think they do on the news.
Yes you may be right I've just noticed the body extends past the hinge.Guess I need to pay more attention to the tele.Oh the shame.
I noticed the duck tape on the PB lid, as well and wondered why such a slickly-produced show would make such a bone-head production error. I mean what law firm would actually DO that? It looked lame.
I suspect the producers may have added the "tape" electronically after sooting for some reason related to product placement expenses. But even that sounds unlikely. The placement cost would have been a drop in the buclet compared to the over cost-per-episode on that show.
Weird.
I suspect the producers may have added the "tape" electronically after sooting for some reason related to product placement expenses. But even that sounds unlikely. The placement cost would have been a drop in the buclet compared to the over cost-per-episode on that show.
Weird.
OldManJimbo said:
I can't imagine they would alter the image in post and do anything other than obliterate the logo entirely. That would be much simpler to do than to add in something like (blech) duct tape. I bet the tape was real, and that's even more of a crime.
Say, anyone want to put some duct tape over the logo on their 'book and see how easily it comes/cleans off? I would, but I don't have any handy...
Hey check out all the Macs on Spike T.V They got the check in or checkout spot that shows a guy run to a old 512k and then run out and find a guy on a 15" Powerbook
then they have a nother little spot that shows a 17" Powerbook spinning with the apple logo and the Spike T.V logo next to it.
then they have a nother little spot that shows a 17" Powerbook spinning with the apple logo and the Spike T.V logo next to it.
powermac666 said:
I agree - it would be a simple thing to erase the logo in post, so there must be some reason behind the "goof."
I wonder if there isn't some pissing war going on between legal departments at Daved E Kelly and Apple?
I can't imagine a continuity director with even one good eye missing this "on accident."
OldManJimbo said:
I really doubt this has anything to do with hostility between Apple and these production companies. I think the most obvious and simplest answer is that other computer companies are purchasing advertising time on these shows. Watch Boston Legal, Joey or any of these programs and count how many Dell ads you see on commercials.
An advertiser like Dell is not going to be happy to spend good money on commercial time, and then have a competitor's clearly identifiable product prominately featured on the show. It's the same reason you never saw someone drinking a Pepsi product on the Olympics broadcasts -- Coca Cola is a major commercial sponsor, so Pepsi products aren't allowed in. Although maybe they do drink Pepsi's Gatorade (I'm really not sure). But you won't see someone in the stands downing a big obvious 32-oz cup of Pepsi. Another example -- if anyone here watched The X-files, you might have noticed that any time a car company was sponsoring the show, you saw all sorts of product showcasing. At several moments during the X-Files movie, I felt like I was watching a commercial for the then-new Oldsmobile Intrigue.
As far as digitally erasing the logo in post-production, I suspect the reason why you don't see that happening is because it adds another element of expense and time. These aren't films being shot, they're weekly television programs that operate on a much more limited budget and timeframe. Rather than have to digitally alter every frame that might contain an Apple logo, it's probably just easiest to cover it up. The laptop still looks sleek and stylish, and to all of us, it's clearly an Apple but to your average viewer, it's just part of the background scenary.
I watched the first episode of Boston Legal and saw the Powerbook one of the characters had on the desk. I could have sworn it had what appeared to be a plain gray circular sticker covering the Apple logo. I don't believe it was just a raggedy piece of duct tape, I'm pretty sure it was at least cut into a circular shape. If I didn't know better, I'd figure that was just the design of the case -- most PC notebook makers put all sorts of geometric shapes and fins and ribbing and crap all over their laptops. Law and Order is another show I've noticed covers their Apple logos -- usually with a post-it note.