Crackle, Sony Pictures Entertainment's online video
entertainment network, said it signed auto brand Acura as sole sponsor of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, the
Web series created by and starring Jerry Seinfeld.
Acura will sponsor 24 new episodes of the show during 2013
and 2014. Acura products, including the new Acura MDX, will be integrated into
the series.
The deal follows the digital media NewFronts, in which
online video platforms including Crackle, presented their shows to media buyers
the same way TV networks do in a bid to capture a larger share of ad spending.
"Crackle is a big priority at SPE and the studio has
had a long, successful relationship with Jerry, so Comedians in Cars is very important to us," Eric Berger,
executive VP of digital networks for Sony Pictures Television and general
manager of Crackle. "It's a great fit to have Acura on board and through
our exclusive partnership, we will be working closely to engage millions of
fans around the fun, simple pleasures of driving."
Seinfeld worked with Acura on a commercial that aired during
the 2013 Super Bowl.
"We love Jerry's unconventional, fan-first approach of
creating great content and trusting that the right people will find it,"
said Mike Accavitti, Acura senior VP of auto operations. "It is totally
consistent with Acura's organic approach of putting the customer first and
building the vehicle around them."
Comedian in Cars Getting
Coffee has generated more than 10 million streams since it launched in July
2012.
"We at Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee
are so glad a company we already admire has stepped forward to support
us," Seinfeld in a statement. "Not everyone understood what we
were doing. But like Moe Green who invented Las Vegas, Acura is a company
of vision and guts. We could not be more thrilled to have them as our
sponsor. Because of them, we advance!"
