Brand Beckham: Scheduled to Hit the U.S. in Summer 2007

Last week NBC announced that Victoria Beckham, former Spice Girl and wife to famous “footballer” David Beckham, will be starring in her own reality show coming this summer (the couple can be seen in this photo to the right). The television program will highlight her move from London to Los Angeles in six half-hour episodes, reported Michael Janofsky in Bloomberg. Producing the show is 19 Entertainment, a company run by American Idol creator and Beckham family manager Simon Fuller. Fuller is also a key negotiator in David’s $250 million deal with the Galaxy, Los Angeles’ Major League Soccer team. David is anticipated to start playing this July, conveniently close to Victoria’s expected reality television premier. “Brand Beckham,” as the pair is called in London, can arguably be considered Britain’s most watched celebrity couple, but are lesser known in the U.S. Victoria’s show offers the perfect introduction, not to mention being a tremendous marketing move for selling both the duo and Major League Soccer (MLS) in the states.

After a successful music career as “Posh Spice” in the 1990’s group The Spice Girls, Victoria is now focusing on clothing design, says People Magazine. Much of the star's show is expected to emphasize her break into the American fashion industry. The program will offer enormous publicity for Victoria's book released last October, That Extra Half an Inch: Hair, Heels and Everything in Between, as well as her fashion line DVB Style, which currently carries sunglasses, and perfume. March 1st, only a day after NBC’s announcement of the celebrity's show, DVB revealed that Victoria will be selling her own line of denim with pieces to hit stores in June 2007 and the entire collection to drop in September. Aaron O. Patrick quotes In Touch Magazine editor Michelle Lee in his Wall Street Journal article: “I imagine our coverage of Posh is definitely going to increases....She's maybe in once a month or every six weeks now. She's a very hot topic when it comes to her body.” Victoria, who is often criticized for being too skinny, is seen here with good friend Katie Holmes. Star power is a tremendous asset in the world of fashion, so entering the States with a bang is an incredibly smart decision. Six episodes all about Victoria will surely leave people wanting more, making the Beckhams the center of attention.

“Posh and Becks” are not the only ones benefiting from their star-studded entrance. The more attention they get, the more publicity there is for Major League Soccer. Some have said that the Galaxy paid too much money for Beckham, but what is the price of single handedly saving a sport? This is what MLS is hoping Beckham will do. Though it is the number one game in many parts of the world, soccer falls short in U.S. popularity; the website USA travel does not even mention it in their sports section. MLS is hoping Beckham will bring the game mainstream. He is the most known footballer for non-soccer enthusiasts in the States due to his celebrity marriage and the 2002 film Bend it Like Beckham (David is shown to the right in his Real Madrid uniform, with oldest son Brooklyn). People already interested in the sport will be drawn to witness the famous player in action, while others will be intrigued to see what the fuss is about, not to mention get a glimpse of Posh’s handsome husband.

Even before last week’s announcement of their reality television show, Beckham’s arrival has proven advantageous to MLS, says Grahame L. Jones of the Los Angeles Times. Since the news of his future arrival, season ticket sales for all MLS teams have spiked, not just the LA Galaxy, and for the first time in league history all soccer games will be televised, the majority of them nationally. The schedule has been set to make the most of the league's investment, ensuring nearly all the teams host the Galaxy at least once. MLS Commissioner Don Garber says in Patrick’s article “Having David play in the most commercially robust market in the world clearly is going to present a real opportunity to generate significant income.” The more America sees Beckham’s face, the more attention the league will receive. David has sponsorship deals with Adidas and Gillette and both are expected to use him in more U.S. advertisements. Having Beckham play for the Galaxy is like a celebrity endorsement. Paige Montgomery, of Paige Denim told USC students that having a star wear a pair of her jeans is worth millions of dollars in advertising. So perhaps having David play is like $250 million worth of promotion for Major League Soccer.

Coming this summer with a reality television show, endorsements, new fashion line and touring soccer star, the new kids on the block are set to put their stamp on the States. The British superpower known as “Brand Beckham” is entering an entirely new market, but with these incredible assets and friends like TomKat, one can expect that the pair will do just fine.

Spears and Seidlin: Is Any Publicity Good Publicity?

There’s an old saying that goes, “Any publicity is good publicity.” This theory of maximum exposure has worked well for some. Paris Hilton can credit her constant tabloid presence for much of her notoriety. It was the leak of her sex tape that brought many curious viewers to the first season of The Simple Life. Even Kazakhstan president Nursultan Nazarbayev said any publicity is better than nothing when questioned of Sacha Cohen’s Borat, which “portrays Kazakhstan as a country where people drink horse urine and whose national pastimes include incest and shooting dogs,” said Bloomberg in Business Report. This week I decided to see what the blogosphere was buzzing about. Two stories managed to get almost as much publicity as the Oscars: Judge Larry and shaven Britney Spears, as seen in the photo to the right. Both are rather bizarre spectacles. Find my comment on a blog concerning Judge Larry Seidlin’s strange behavior here, or read my thoughts below. A clip of his famous tears can be found at the bottom of this post. I also shared opinions on Britney Spears in response to the blog Celebrity Mound and how this attention may hinder her custody battle. Is this publicity “good” publicity?

Many people share in your distaste for Judge Larry Seidlin’s erratic behavior. Blogs and news articles joked he was a possible threat to “Days of Our Lives,” and called him ringmaster to a circus, even “Judge Crybaby.” Yet, coverage of that Florida courtroom made ratings soar. Judge Larry’s strange actions became center of attention in the media. Most of America was disgusted, but they were nonetheless enthralled. Despite the hundreds of criticisms, and universal mockery of this man, he will still most likely get his television show. Viewers watch shows like Dr. Phil and Judge Judy and hate the hosts but love the drama. As demonstrated last week, Seidlin has a flair for the dramatic. Embarrassment by those in his field makes no difference; his “circus” honored him widespread publicity. If Judge Larry is in fact looking to start his own show, this hype is exactly what he needed.

In the case of Britney Spears I cannot see how this publicity would be good for anyone but her ex-husband. Unforgiving tabloids paint Spears’ volatile behavior as bizarre and unstable. A favorite photo they use is one where her hair is half shaved and a desperate insanity is conveyed in her eyes. Spears and ex-husband Kevin Federline are in the midst of a custody battle over their two sons. This widespread, unflattering publicity for Spears may make her fight increasingly difficult. For Federline it does just the opposite. This is the perfect opportunity to use her negative attention for his benefit. “Kevin continues to be a very focused father with his children with hands-on management.” Kevin was sympathetic enough to postpone the court date and also brought his sons to visit their mother in rehab. It is hard to say whether Federline’s sincerity is genuine. But sincere or not, he is looking like the better parent.