GM Skips 2009 Oscars, Won’t Buy any Advertising Time

General Motors has pulled the plug off its 19-year long relationship with the Academy Awards, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. Despite the fact that the Oscars are one of the biggest annual events on broadcast television, GM decided to end its long-time sponsorship of Hollywood’s flashy annual awards that included heaps of advertising time and the use of its vehicles to transport celebrities to the event and to Oscar-related parties. "It is a great property, but it simply didn't fit into our plans for 2009," said a GM spokeswoman. -Continued

The cash-strapped American automaker was one of the biggest advertisers for the Oscars spending $13.5 million for ad time last February and over $110 million the past 11 years according to TNS Media Intelligence. "With the current business challenges and tightening budgets, we've decided to focus our advertising and promotional dollars on activities that reach customers in the most impactful ways," a GM spokeswoman said. In other words, GM has decided to shift a large portion of its ad budget from the traditional media to digital marketing (internet) where the company’s execs believe they’re getting more bang for their bucks.