Houston, We Have Pizza: advertising in outer space
While there is a lot of space junk floating around in outer space, and many items left behind on the moon, the world of marketing wants to put more stuff out there. With the commercialization of space travel, it is opening up dozens of new opportunities for marketers. There are ads on rockets, ads on spacesuits, and big plans to even put ads on the moon.
In the mad race to find any point of differentiation, brands are relishing the thought of writing their names in the stars. It is the final ad frontier.
The thing about space advertising is that outer space is not ruled by any one entity, per se. Back in 1967, the United Nations passed the Outer Space Treaty. The treaty was largely based on the declaration of legal principles governing the activities of countries in outer space.
Essentially, it said the exploration and use of outer space shall be carried out for the benefit of all mankind. It said that nothing in outer space shall be claimed by any one country, no nuclear weapons shall be placed in outer space, and the moon and other celestial bodies shall be used exclusively for peaceful purposes.
The treaty was signed by the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States. There was nothing in the treaty about advertising.
While the U.S. prohibits American marketers from placing "obtrusive advertising" in space – defined as being anything that can be viewed from Earth without the aid of a telescope – Russia is much more lax about the issue. It has a history of selling ad space on Cosmonaut's space suits.
In 2001, Pizza Hut had its logo put on a Russian proton rocket. And Houston, we have pizza.
That same year, Pizza Hut delivered a pie to the International Space Station in a vacuum-sealed container aboard a Russian rocket. Pizza Hut paid the Russian Space Agency $1 million to deliver the 'za. Which was a bargain, as it's estimated that stunt attracted over $250 million-worth of free press for Pizza Hut.
A Japanese company called Ispace wants to put advertising on the moon. Again – is it legal to advertise on the moon? Well, the short answer is yes. The aforementioned 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which Japan has also signed, does not directly specify or restrict advertising. And as for the "no obtrusive ads" American law restricting celestial advertising, Ispace doesn't need to abide by U.S. laws. But – the company isn't suggesting plunking gigantic billboards onto the lunar surface. Instead, Ispace wants to project the image of an advertisement onto a lunar lander, rover, or other vehicle. While those ads wouldn't be visible from Earth, they would essentially be a photo-op for brands who want the lunar landscape to be a backdrop for their logos.
Another UK company called Lun-Ads has a similar idea. According to their website, Lun-Ads offers a non-obstructive, repeatable, and perpetual advertising method designed to bring ads from space to devices on Earth.
A satellite in lunar orbit would project ads onto the lunar surface. The satellite films the images it just projected, transmits them to an earthbound satellite, and then relays them directly to devices anywhere. The images could then be used in print ads and billboards here on terra firma.
The projected images do not touch or alter the lunar surface in any way, and cannot be viewed from Earth – therefore Lun-Ads does not contravene any laws. The company has been awarded a patent and a trademark.
In 2008, Doritos became the first brand to beam a commercial out to potential extraterrestrial life.
The commercial was part of the Doritos Broadcast Project. Doritos invited people in the UK to create a 30-second video clip that offered a snap shot of life on Earth. The public was also allowed to vote on the best entry – and chose a video directed by a 25-year-old named Matt Bowron. The video was then pulsed-out over a six-hour period from high-powered radar at the European space station in the Arctic Circle. The signal was directed at a solar system just 42 light years from Earth. Apparently, it hosts a habitable zone that could harbor small life supporting planets like Earth.
The head of the Doritos Broadcast Project said, "We are constantly looking to push the boundaries of advertising, and this will go further than any brand has gone before. Doritos is delivering a world first." He also said he wouldn't be too surprised if the first aliens start arriving on planet Earth immediately demanding a bag of Doritos.
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