Universal Home Video, Universal City, CA, will get a jump on the scariest holiday of the year when it rolls out a Universal is Halloween program at the end of August.
The promotional blitz will tout scores of video titles and include such components as infomercials, in-store displays, sweepstakes, CD-ROM on-pack offers, and a new Web site (www.universalthrillers.com).
A total of 3.5 million videos across 43 different titles will feature a collectable Halloween Decoder Card that sends consumers online, where they hold the decoders up to their monitors for a chance to win thousands of prizes including trips to Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios theme parks, clothing, and posters.
The effort will be showcased through TV, print, and online ads. Consumers visiting universalthrillers.com can also download a $1 coupon good for the purchase of a Halloween title.
Separately, Universal is offering a “Haunted House of Fun” series featuring new releases Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet the Wolf Man, Archie and the Riverdale Vampire, and Monster Mash.
A national sweepstakes with partner Sun-Maid Raisins will promote the Alvin video. Five million bags of raisins will feature instant-win gamepieces and $3 mail-in rebates for video purchases. The collection will be backed by TV spots and in-store displays, as well as by a national FSI running Oct. 15.
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