Rip-off Taiwanese TV Ad soundtracks

[Confuzius]

Queen has been ripped off lots of times too.

Queen was ripped off by Vanilla ice too (I don't think he's Taiwanese, I could be wrong though).

He ended up having to pay.

[headhonchoII]

Steviebike, this one irks me no end. Awful.

That reminds me of the Pom Pom men ad. Someone here was asking what was the point, and the point was copying from the movie 3 Idiots the shower dance scene, just because the movie was popular in Taiwan. Still a grey area copyright-wise.

Also I will add Pom Pom Ad to the list!

can I quote you again for a laugh please Steve

If it makes you happy HH. I'm not in any way ridiculing you, so I don't know why you are trying to make me look like a fool. Your issues with Taiwan are not mine. I've worked in marketing and advertising for over 15 years. I'm just stating my observations. I spend a lot of time looking at various ad campaigns along with the associated marketing. Granted it's mostly below the line stuff, but I understand above the line as well. Considering the car and the obvious demographics it's intended for, I feel it's pretty good. Being like Mika's song is not the same as being Mika's song. Anyway...

Have a good weekend, I'm off to Kending.

I have shown conclusively that three things obviously derive from Mika in the advertisement. Remember again that Mika is an extremely popular artist with young people in Taiwan, this is no coincidence.

- the soundtrack
- the video
- and even the product name 'tobe m'car '

So how can you ignore this and say it is not directly linked , just similar. I have to call BS on that

I have also worked in marketing too. I don't think it is creative to copy things hook , line and sinker. Sometimes it might work, but it's definitely not creative and in many cases it is skirting very close to breaking the law.

For what it's worth I think the design of the car itself is quite interesting and fun. I think there is a huge opportunity for more fun designs instead of the boxy silver, black and white saloons and SUVs that populate the roads.

[Formosa Fitness]

People don't want to hear this but novelty in advertising is a waste of time. The point of advertising isn't art for art's sake -- it's to sell a product. The best way to do that is look at what's popular elsewhere and copy it, at least to some extent.

[Steviebike]

I have shown conclusively that three things obviously derive from Mika in the advertisement. Remember again that Mika is an extremely popular artist with young people in Taiwan, this is no coincidence.

Considering the car and the obvious demographics it's intended for, I feel it's pretty good.

- the soundtrack
- the video
- and even the product name 'tobe m'car '

Emulation is not a bad thing.

The Mika video is a rip-off too! The style of creative has been done for years (think Beatles Yellow Submarine).

From Sesame street, which is probably a Mika fanbase

So how can you ignore this and say it is not directly linked , just similar. I have to call BS on that

I can't ignore the obvious style that has been done and done and done. So Mika is just one in line of a emulation of a style.

I have also worked in marketing too. I don't think it is creative to copy things hook , line and sinker. Sometimes it might work, but it's definitely not creative and in many cases it is skirting very close to breaking the law.

True but, what is the line between obvious simularity and copying? Again it's ok to be like something, but not be it.

For what it's worth I think the design of the car itself is quite interesting and fun. I think there is a huge opportunity for more fun designs instead of the boxy silver, black and white saloons and SUVs that populate the roads.

Yep

Ok, my last post for the weekend

[headhonchoII]

Novelty is absolutely not a neccessity, but that's not what is being debated here. The fact is that these big advertising companies do this a lot with foreign artists music, and I often wonder if this is the case with local musicians music too. I also think it's unusual internationally that big companies will use advertisers with obviously 'copied' music.

That points to either cultural indifference, legal laxity of copyright in Taiwan (another example being E-coffee vs Starbucks logo a few years back) or big brass kahuna balls in hoping that it flies under the radar.

Steve- you are ignoring my three points of origin of pointing directly from Mika, not emulation.

Namely-
-Lollipop Song
-Lollipop Video Animation
-M'car (Mika) Product Name

That's not emulation, let's put that argument to rest.

[Incubus]

And then there's the new HTC commercial that uses Laurie Anderson's O Superman without giving her credit.

[superking]

How do you know they didn't buy rights or are paying royalty?

I don't see any laziness or lack of creativity in the Tobe adverts, rather the opposite.

We all know that Taiwan is on the big black list for copyright infringement, but these adverts don't seem to be on that same ground.

Agreed.

Nobody spot the play on words between Mika and M'car? And the Taiwanese apparently lack creativity... I also didn't think the two videos were all that similar, the Taiwanese one reminded me more of old stlye French animation (or even something like Fantasia), whereas Mika's was more Warhole/Beatlesque style bubblegum animation.

If there has been an infringement then fire off an e-mail to Polydor records who he is under contract with.

There are a lot of anti-Taiwan threads popping up recently. Is the hot weather and rapidly approaching summer holidays having an effect on the ex-pat thought process?

[Icon]

Wouldn't it have been easier to hire this artist as their spokesperson? If they wanted that image, I mean, and demographic? Look at Elva: it seems as she's got only one song -the one with the chorus in English- as it is the one used over two different ads to promote a scooter brand.

I mean, if you even have Simon Baker pushing a bank in Asia, a local artist's fees wouldn't be a pie in the sky... Amei... cough... Wubai... cough... all of SHE... COUGH!

[superking]

Wouldn't it have been easier to hire this artist as their spokesperson? If they wanted that image, I mean, and demographic? Look at Elva: it seems as she's got only one song -the one with the chorus in English- as it is the one used over two different ads to promote a scooter brand.

I mean, if you even have Simon Baker pushing a bank in Asia, I mean, a local artist's fees wouldn't be a pie in the sky... Amei... cough... Wubai... cough... all of SHE... COUGH!

Dunno the cost margin between getting permission to use Mika and getting permission to make certain allusions to his work. Baker is an actor, and therefore his fee will be settled between him and an agent. Mika will have global imaging rights, and probably some locked tight contract stuff. Amei, Wubai, SHE, are not global artists, and are also likely bound to different types of contract to Mika. Those artists are more likely to be doing stuff as part of contract obligations. I'm not saying Mika is a massive global superstar, but I suspect he sells more widely than any of the artists you mentioned, thus making his contract more tricky and expensive to swim through.
Alternatively, the Taiwanese market may never have heard of Mika, so using him to sell the car would be pointless, as they are selling a lifestyle rather than a desire to have the same car as some skinny Brit falsetto male.

[headhonchoII]

Mika is one of THE most popular Western artists for young people in Taiwan, it's not hard to see why.

but I suspect he sells more widely than any of the artists you mentioned, thus making his contract more tricky and expensive to swim through.

The key word is underlined and bolded for all to see. You see everytime the ad is played they would have to pay a royalty to the original artist, can't have that now can we.