You know that voice in the back of your head that yells at you when you’re about to do something stupid, but you don’t listen and end up getting embarrassed/arrested/maimed? Sony obviously didn’t listen to theirs.
In what will probably be the dumbest thing Sony’s done since the PlayStation 3 pricing, in the promotion of the Pang Brothers-directed flick THE MESSENGERS, Sony Pictures have announced that they will be selling ultrasonic ringtones that are audible to teenagers but not adults. Yes, you read that right.
While studies have shown that certain ultrasonic frequencies are detectable to teenagers but go unheard by adults, this promo wouldn’t be so bad if you didn’t have to pay $2.49 for the damned thing. Granted, JoBlo and I are probably the only living people on earth that don’t have cell phones, so I wouldn’t know the going rate for extras such as these.
Still, when executive director of marketing for Columbia/Tristar Joe Epstein says that the main goal of this promo is to target teens, it doesn’t bode well for the Pangs, who have shown to be geniuses when it comes to horror. Will true horror fans be turned off by crappy marketing? Find out February 2nd.