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AB InBev Product Placement Samsung

Netflix eyes brand investment with AB InBev and Samsung product placements

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By Seb Joseph | News editor

March 1, 2015 | 3 min read

Netflix may not be running ads yet but it is open to brand investment, confirming for the first time product placement deals with AB InBev and Samsung.

netflix_houseofcards

The popular streaming service has been steadfast in not exposing users to ads in fear of their impact on the viewing experience. However, that unease hasn’t stopped Netflix from looking at other ways to get brands in front of subscribers.

AB InBev and Samsung have inked deals with the company, according to AdAge, that will see their products appear in some of its most watched shows. It is a practice long thought to have been underway though Netflix has only now confirmed.

AB InBev’s deal sees its Budweiser, Stella Artois and Shock Top brands appear in the latest series of House of Cards, which premiered last month (27 February). It continues a partnership from the first series and its beers will be the only ones shown in the episodes. No cash has changed hands between the two companies claimed the report and instead the brewer will provide the stock for the props, an arrangement very much reflective of product placement deals on big budget films.

AB InBev has struck similar deals with films such as psychological thriller “In Fear” and the Oscar winning “Birdman”.

Samsung has also struck a product placement deal of its own. While it is not clear as to whether the phone maker has paid Netflix, its products do appear in the new “House of Cards” episodes. The technology giant worked with the streaming service earlier this year when it offered people a free year’s subscription if they bought certain products.

Netlfix has not confirmed whether it has product placement deals with other brands. But products from the likes of Coca-Cola, Dell and Nike have all appeared in previous episodes of the service’s flagship “House of Cards” series.

Given the timing of the product placement reveals - as Netflix plans to up its original content output - it could be a way of putting itself in the shop window for advertisers. The success of shows like “House of Cards” and “Orange is the New Black” has given the business hope that it can stave off saturation in subscriber growth as it plans to be available in 200 markets worldwide by 2016. Last month, it proposed to raise $1bn to help fuel its original content output.

AB InBev Product Placement Samsung

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