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HP and MTV Offer Thinly-Veiled Commercial as TV Show

by Terrence O'Brien on September 15, 2008 at 01:08 PM

HP and MTV Offer Thinly Veiled Comercial as TV ShowHewlett-Packard (HP) and MTV are joining forces (again) to launch a new reality mini show thats being pitched as "the 'Real World' with more computers." 'Engine Room' is a show that gathers young creative types from around the world, sticks them in an apartment in Brooklyn, and makes them create digital art using HP PCs. Episodes will run only five to seven minutes each and will air both on mtvU (MTV's channel targeted at college kids) and will be available online.

If this sounds as much about advertising as it does about programming, you're not too far off. 'Engine Room,' like 'Meet or Delete' and 'College 500' before it, fall into the category that is being called branded-entertainment. Branded-entertainment generally consists of usually short-form reality shows with heavy branding from a sponsoring company, in this case HP. In other words, it's just like the soap-operas of yore, only with more of a reality-show-twist and the 'product' actually being used in the show.

In 'Engine Room' 16 contestants will be divided up into four teams and compete for a prize of $400,000 and a chance to program the giant MTV screen in Times Square. Filming is complete and the editing is almost done. If you feel like you really need a multi-part infomercial posing as a television show in your life, then check out 'Engine Room,' which premieres tonight. To be fair, we haven't seen it yet, so it just might be good -- but if it stinks.... [From: New York Times]

Tags: branded entertainment, BrandedEntertainment, engine room, EngineRoom, hewlett packard, hewlett-packard, HewlettPackard, hp, mtv, mtvu, trends

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