As advertising gets more subtle, complex, inter-twined, audience measurement becomes even more difficult.

World of Make-believe
Recently, movies have been getting more & more brands as sponsors. These 'products' are strategically placed in the frame and sometimes, especially in less subtle films (e.g. Indian commercial films), there are direct "referrals" to the product by the star cast.

In other cases, the brand is saliently displayed for sustained periods. Naturally, what's good for movies is usually good for television. So a lot of product placement activity is already 'visible' in TV programs. Not ready to be left behind, theatre starting with Broadway, has also embraced product placement.

As product placement becomes even more entrenched as an advertising vehicle, there will be a demand for tools to measure the value of such initiatives. Not surprisingly, a number of companies have leaped into the fray.

With content going 100% digital, product images can be inserted into digital content - giving rise to a new generation of digital content with images of virtual products which may be dynamically 'placed' in the back or fore ground. (And shifted, removed or replaced. All with ease.)

In fact, Warner Brothers TV has reportedly started implementing plans to insert computer-created images of branded products into its TV programs.

Measuring Effects
It's all about monitoring your competition. But product placement makes monitoring competition a more complex affair. There are a number of tools available each uses different methods.

Tools range from tracking branded entertainment, to noting brand-wise, program-wise exposure, to recording opinion about each exposure. For example, In-Program Performance (from IAG) tracks viewer recall of branded entertainment. Another service iTVX advises advertisers what they should pay for placement, by linking a set of pre-determined parameters with fee structure.

Other methodologies compensate for flash appearances - product exposure is not counted if the camera pans away & returns. Some methods incorporate factors like degree of 'integration' of the product with the content. Coupled with factors like foreground or background and number of other brands present (same frame as well as throughout the content).

Some tools come up with a calculated value to signify (estimated) audience reaction. Others do not assign a single value - but display a number of parameters for individual assesment.

Basic Question
Till now, knowing your competitors was limited to tracking their ad spend & share of voice. With product placement, monitoring competition is becoming more complicated, given the multiple parameters coupled with the information explosion.

But finally, we may come back to the old question : if the yardstick for measuring product placement is a 30-second spot, then what is the worth of a 30 second spot ?