They Go On
Encyclopedia
They Go On was a dot-com era
Internet
-only soap opera
developed by Levi Strauss & Co.
and NBC Digital Productions and streamed
from NBC
's website
. The show, funded entirely by Levi Strauss, was based on characters from their advertising campaign
of the same name.
The show featured characters from the ads, such as D.J. Marcus and the Impala man, with two lead characters introduced for the show, Chloe (played by Laura Prepon
) and Zack. Chloe and Zack interacted with the viewers during the "broadcast" via an Internet forum
that was part of the website.
Tarsem
from @radical.media directed the original ads. NBC Digital Productions then created a new media
drama which tied together the ads and added interactive features.
It was touted as a new example of the blurring of the lines between advertisements and entertainment, an alternative to product placement
, infomercial
s, or various forms of undercover marketing
.
Dot-com bubble
The dot-com bubble was a speculative bubble covering roughly 1995–2000 during which stock markets in industrialized nations saw their equity value rise rapidly from growth in the more...
Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
-only soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
developed by Levi Strauss & Co.
Levi Strauss & Co.
Levi Strauss & Co. is a privately held American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's brand of denim jeans. It was founded in 1853 when Levi Strauss came from Buttenheim, Franconia, to San Francisco, California to open a west coast branch of his brothers' New York dry goods business...
and NBC Digital Productions and streamed
Streaming media
Streaming media is multimedia that is constantly received by and presented to an end-user while being delivered by a streaming provider.The term "presented" is used in this article in a general sense that includes audio or video playback. The name refers to the delivery method of the medium rather...
from NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
. The show, funded entirely by Levi Strauss, was based on characters from their advertising campaign
Advertising campaign
An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication...
of the same name.
The show featured characters from the ads, such as D.J. Marcus and the Impala man, with two lead characters introduced for the show, Chloe (played by Laura Prepon
Laura Prepon
Laura Prepon is an American actress, best known for her role as Donna Pinciotti in the long-running Fox situation comedy That '70s Show, for all eight seasons. She is also known for the role of Hannah Daniels on the ABC drama October Road...
) and Zack. Chloe and Zack interacted with the viewers during the "broadcast" via an Internet forum
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
that was part of the website.
Tarsem
Tarsem Singh
Tarsem Dhandwar Singh , known professionally as Tarsem, is an Indian director who has worked on films, music videos, and commercials.- Life and career :...
from @radical.media directed the original ads. NBC Digital Productions then created a new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
drama which tied together the ads and added interactive features.
It was touted as a new example of the blurring of the lines between advertisements and entertainment, an alternative to product placement
Product placement
Product placement, or embedded marketing, is a form of advertisement, where branded goods or services are placed in a context usually devoid of ads, such as movies, music videos, the story line of television shows, or news programs. The product placement is often not disclosed at the time that the...
, infomercial
Infomercial
Infomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...
s, or various forms of undercover marketing
Undercover marketing
Undercover marketing is a subset of guerrilla marketing where consumers do not realize they are being marketed to. For example, a marketing company might pay an actor or socially adept person to use a certain product visibly and convincingly in locations where target consumers congregate...
.
External links and references
- Levi Strauss decides its jeans could use a little soap, a September 1997 article from the San Francisco Business Times
- NBC continues TV/Internet convergence with Snap! alliance, from an August 1998 SHOOTSHOOTSHOOT magazine, founded in 1960 as Back Stage, provides news and information about advertising agencies, executives, and creative professionals in the advertising industry...
article - Levi Strauss campaigns become pieces at an exhibition, from an October 1997 article in the New York Times
- Jean's List, from an October 1997 Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
article - The Fall Girls, a September 1998 article from MaximMaxim (magazine)Maxim is an international men's magazine based in the United Kingdom and known for its pictorials featuring popular actresses, singers, and female models, sometimes pictured dressed, often pictured scantily dressed but not fully nude....
identifying Prepon as Chloe