HODGES & CO. DESIGN
in association with
Greenishbrown Productions
and
Be Now Here Concepts
PRESENTS...The Formation of a New Organization:
The Animals in Advertising Royalties Concern (A.A.R.C.)AARC's mission is to ensure that when a for-profit corporation uses a photographic image or illustrated likeness of a currently extant animal (excluding Homo sapiens) for purposes of advertising, entertainment, or any other activity by which said corporation can be reasonably expected to benefit, either through financial gain or brand identification, the corporation is responsible for paying due royalties to the animal.
AARC will accomplish this mission through a four step process:
1. Identifying ad campaigns that use animals.
2. Calculating royalty rates based on total expenditures for the ad campaign and estimated increase in revenue due to the ad campaign in which the animal was used.
3. Identifying non-profit and private conservation organizations that work to restore, protect, or study the animals featured in the ad campaign.
4. Directly contacting said corporations through publicly available communiques that detail their financial obligation to the animal used in their ad campaign and an appropriate organization to whom they can remit the funds.
For example, the infamous Geico Gecko is a wildly successful ad campaign. Geico has even used the computer generated gecko to promote wildlife conservation efforts and sponsor a travelling gecko exhibit aimed at educating school children about the importance of wildlife conservation. These efforts are commendable yet are thinly veiled ad campaigns aimed at increasing the popularity and recognition of the Geico brand. Their responsibility to the gecko is greater. I suggest a yearly donation of $500,000 to
Project Gecko, a non-profit organization with a proven track record of effectively protecting the world's most endangered gecko species.
Other obvious examples of corporations that will be receiving communiques include Coca-Cola for their use of the polar bear
Kellog's use of the tiger to sell breakfast cereal
and the Lunesta moth.
AARC believes in the fair and just treatment of all life and that the exploitation of animals in advertising without due compensation is ethically unjustifiable.
This is of course a large task and the AARC is currently looking for volunteers and interns to assist with the four step process outlined above. AARC does not expect or receive any financial gain from addressing this issue and we are therefore unable to pay our assistants. We are also currently investigating the feasibility of developing a sister organization, PARC (Plants in Advertising Royalty Concern).
If you have noticed any ad campaigns using an animal please contact n.hodges@gmail.com immediately.
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