Sony UK is set to spend a whopping £4 million on its first Christmas TV campaign for PlayStation 3.

The company is spending in the region of £3 million on TV campaigns for its flagship first-party releases: Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, Ratchet And Clank: Tools Of Destruction and SingStar – earmarking £1 million for each product.

A new dedicated hardware TV campaign will run alongside the software ads – and MCV understands that a similar £1m budget has been allocated.

The heavyweight marketing budget will secure Sony some much sought-after TV spots in the lead up to December 25th.
The PS3 ad, created by agency TBWA, was first shown online at www.thisisliving.com on Monday and will air on TV in the UK on Saturday December 1st.

Sony says that the 60 and 30-second TV spots will ‘introduce a cast of unusual characters which each exemplify the amazing theatre of entertainment available’.

“When you add up all the individual software and brand campaigns, it promises to be one of the most integrated and impactful Christmas campaigns we have put together for the UK market,” senior product manager Adam Boita told MCV.

“Consumers have been given a great choice and diverse product line-up this Christmas. Aside from the focus on PlayStation 3, we have offerings from Buzz and SingStar ranges on PS2, while PSP has great titles including Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow, Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice and Wipeout Pulse. Whichever PlayStation platform consumers decide upon, there is a product to suit their needs.

“Each campaign is being delivered in multiple media channels, using a combination of TV, cinema, press and online.

Highlights include interactive online elements amongst the software titles, with various takeovers and dynamic advertising, as well as a web page off the main This Is Living site which is hosting all the TV advertising in a high quality format.”

Marketing director at SCEE Alan Duncan added: “The new campaign is designed to showcase the wealth of entertainment available on PS3 with a creative that both entertains and informs in equal measure. The television ad represents a spectacular celebration of the different entertainment experiences that PS3 has to offer.”

The ad positions the PlayStation 3 as an ‘entertainment super computer’ that plays games as well as storing music, films and photos.

Al Young, creative director of TBWA offered: “What I’m most pleased about is that it feels and looks like nothing you’ve seen before.”