Radical Media Taking Nike Show To Int'l Market

Radical Media Signs Deal For Overseas Distribution

New York-based Radical Media, which has produced branded entertainment programs for a number of customers including Nike, signed a deal with FremantleMedia to distribute such shows overseas, according to Suzanne Vranica of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Radical produced “Nike’s BattleGrounds,” a documentary series about a street basketball tournament that aired on MTV.  For Toyota it made “Two Roads to Baja,” a 60-minute special that aired on Speed Channel. Radical is currently working on “Fast Cars & Superstars” for Gillette, which debuts on ABC tomorrow.  Rights to "American Idol" are among FreemantleMedia's properties.  Radical President of Media & Entertainment Robert Friedman, in a Q&A, was asked if the problems with Bud.TV “will sour other marketers on the practice” of creating branded content. Friedman: “I don’t think it will sour marketers. I think great branded entertainment starts with compelling storytelling. ... For every 10 shows that are piloted, one works”  (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6/6).

NEW STRATEGIES: Anheuser-Busch VP/Digital Entertainment & Branded Content Jim Schumacker said that A-B has enlisted New Media Strategies “to reach out to bloggers and make them aware of Bud.TV content.” For example, the agency “might contact NASCAR blogs when video” on Budweiser endorser Dale Earnhardt Jr. is posted (ADWEEK, 6/4 issue).