In the modern media landscape, indirect advertising is highly visible to viewers and can be highly effective when it fits in with the context of a program. However, it can also degrade the quality of a program by overemphasizing commercial elements, which requires critical acceptance and media education.
Nowadays, viewers are often exposed to indirect advertisements without realizing it, and have become used to living with them. The development of digital media has allowed us to access advertising through a variety of channels, and indirect advertising in particular has become more widespread. Direct ads are broadcast before and after broadcast programs. On the other hand, indirect advertising, also known as PPL, is a form of advertising that attempts to place products within programs. In recent years, indirect advertising has been widely used not only in broadcast programs but also in web dramas, YouTube content, and more, and its influence is growing by the day.
Compared to direct ads, indirect ads are more likely to be exposed to viewers because it is relatively difficult for viewers to avoid the ads by using the remote control. This has a particularly powerful impact on younger generations, who are more likely to form positive perceptions of a product without realizing it. Advertisers want to increase awareness of their products and spread favorable attitudes towards them through advertising. Indirect advertising uses mainstream and peripheral placements to achieve this effect. Mainstream placement is when a performer uses, wears, or mentions the product in dialog, while peripheral placement is when the product is shown in the background of the screen. Viewers are more likely to pay attention to mainstream placements than peripheral placements. In addition, if the product placed through indirect advertising is naturally utilized and fits well with the context of the program, the advertising effect on the work will be increased, which is called contextual effect.
The contextual effect of indirect ads is important for both programmers and advertisers. For advertisers, indirect ads are a natural way to introduce their products, and viewers are less likely to object to them because they’re part of the program. On the other hand, programmers need to carefully consider the inclusion of indirect ads to ensure that they don’t detract from the integrity of their work. This process requires creative direction, and sometimes it can be a challenge to properly place the ad product in line with the program’s storyline.
South Korea has had a sponsorship system since the mid-1990s that allows only very limited forms of indirect advertising. Under this system, program producers received expenses, goods, personnel, and locations from sponsors. The law allowed sponsorship announcements at the end of a broadcast program to alert viewers to the sponsor, but prohibited the display of a product name or trade name during the course of the program, or any mention of it by a performer, to create the effect of an advertisement. This is why the trademarks of sponsored outfits are hidden from view.
South Korea kept the sponsorship system in place but added a new provision, which has been in effect since 2010. In response to demands from advertisers and broadcasters, the law allowed indirect advertising. The idea behind the indirect advertising system was to boost the broadcast advertising industry by loosening the legal restrictions on advertising within programs. This allowed the display of product names or trade names within programs. However, in order to protect the viewing rights, it was prohibited to mention the product name or trade name or to solicit the purchase or use of the product. In addition, indirect advertising was prohibited in programs that require objectivity and impartiality, such as news, current affairs, and debates, due to the high impact of broadcasting on the public.
Nonetheless, critics of the indirect advertising regime have argued that it has led to a decline in the quality of programming due to the long running time of ads and the frequent placement of intrusive product placements that take away from the context of the program. This criticism is based on the fact that indirect ads can break the flow of a program and cause unnecessary distraction for viewers. In particular, too much commercial emphasis can undermine the original purpose of the program.
In order to respond appropriately to indirect advertising that creeps into viewers’ perceptions, viewers need to be able to interpret indirect advertising on their own terms. According to media theorists, people do not just passively accept media content because they have their own frames to interpret external information. This subjective interpretation is an important means of limiting the effectiveness of indirect advertising, which is why media education is needed to analyze and critically engage with indirect advertising.
In the end, indirect advertising is an inevitable part of the modern media landscape, but the debate about its impact and side effects should continue. Audiences need to develop the ability to critically engage with media content, and advertisers and producers need to take a thoughtful approach to ensure that these ads provide a positive experience for viewers. When this balance is achieved, indirect advertising will become a more effective and acceptable form of advertising.
