Japanese Advertisers & Astrobiotic Technologies Aim To Advertise On The Moon - Polidicks

[QUOTE]Life is imitating science fiction, but not necessarily in a good way. In an echo of Robert Heinlein's influential tale “[URL="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16688.The_Man_Who_Sold_the_Moon"]The Man Who Sold The Moon[/URL]” our natural satellite will soon be hosting advertising, although it will be too small to see with even the largest telescope. In Heinlein's short story a business man, Delos Harriman, funds a mission to the moon by selling sponsorship rights to pretty much everything. Harriman says, “I would cheat, lie, beg, bribe – do anything to accomplish what we have accomplished.” So far Astrobotic Technology have not revealed themselves as going so far, but their plan to put a can of Pocari Sweat on the lunar surface may make people as queasy as the name of the drink. Astrobotic are chasing Google's [URL="http://www.googlelunarxprize.org/"]Lunar X prize[/URL], which offers $20 million to the first private company that can land a rover on the moon, travel 500m “above, below or on the Lunar surface and send back two 'Mooncasts' to Earth.” The mission must be completed by the end of 2015. Another $10 million in bonus prizes are available if the craft can survive the freezing lunar night or study particular object types. In return for a rumored $500,000 Astrobotic will carry a can of Pocari Sweat, a citrusy powdered drink popular in Japan and Korea, to the moon on their [URL="http://http//www.astrobotic.com/2011/02/06/astrobotic-technology-announces-lunar-mission-on-spacex-falcon-9/"]Griffin lander[/URL]. The craft will be launched by [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elon_Musk"]Elon Musk[/URL]'s [URL="http://www.spacex.com/falcon9"]Falcon 9[/URL].[/QUOTE] Maybe the Moon Treaty should be extended to corporations as well... [URL="http://www.iflscience.com/space/advertisings-gone-moon"]Source[/URL]

If it means putting some heat on more space travel I say more power to em

I think that's a little much...

Wouldn't be the first time. [Quote]In an unusual form of fast food advertising, two Pizza Hut marketing ploys have involved spaceflight. In 2001 they were the first to deliver pizzas to outer space when their vacuum-sealed food arrived at the International Space Station,[5] just a year after signing a deal to have a 30-foot (9 m) Pizza Hut logo placed on the side of the unmanned Proton rocket that launched Zvezda module.[6] Kodak then paid to have their logo and a slogan placed onto a material that was to be tested for durability in space on the outside of the International Space Station.[7] The team White Label Space competing in the Google Lunar X PRIZE plans to raise the money for its Moon mission from space advertising in the form of sponsorship by one or more large global brands[/quote]

[QUOTE=JohnFisher89;44845068]If it means putting some heat on more space travel I say more power to em[/QUOTE] To what end though? It'd seem like we'd be going to space for all the wrong reasons, I'm not saying commercialized space travel is bad (Just look at SpaceX), but it seems we should be going to space for more productive means.

Also unintentional product placement like Coke, and Sriracha sauce. [editline]18th May 2014[/editline] [QUOTE=LoneWolf_Recon;44845124]To what end though? It'd seem like we'd be going to space for all the wrong reasons, I'm not saying commercialized space travel is bad (Just look at SpaceX), but it seems we should be going to space for more productive means.[/QUOTE] They're sponsoring a lunar X prize which is a pretty big deal. The lander is not specifically for this ad from what I can tell. It's like space nascar.

[QUOTE=OvB;44845132]Also unintentional product placement like Coke, and Sriracha sauce. [editline]18th May 2014[/editline] They're sponsoring a lunar X prize which is a pretty big deal. The lander is not specifically for this ad from what I can tell. It's like space nascar.[/QUOTE] I do believe I misread that portion, I digress (Especially now with that comparison)

[QUOTE=OvB;44845132]Also unintentional product placement like Coke, and Sriracha sauce. [editline]18th May 2014[/editline] They're sponsoring a lunar X prize which is a pretty big deal. The lander is not specifically for this ad from what I can tell. It's like space nascar.[/QUOTE] holy fuck, i just noticed your avatar is animated.

Imagine looking up and seeing mcdonalds and viagra adverts being projected onto the moons surface.

Um, how about you kindly [i][b][u]FUCK THE FUCK OFF[/u][/b][/i], advertisers? Your cancer has no business in space and you're proving my point when I say no to commercial spaceflight when you do shit like this.

[QUOTE=Tea Guy;44845219]Imagine looking up and seeing mcdonalds and viagra adverts being projected onto the moons surface.[/QUOTE] IIRC, Coca-Cola tried to use lasers or giant spotlights to "paint" a giant Coca-Cola logo on the moon's surface, but had to back down because it would pose a risk to airliners

[img]http://pbfcomics.com/archive_b/PBF105-The_Schlorbians_Strike_Again.jpg[/img]

[QUOTE=T553412;44846399]IIRC, Coca-Cola tried to use lasers or giant spotlights to "paint" a giant Coca-Cola logo on the moon's surface, but had to back down because it would pose a risk to airliners[/QUOTE] [url=http://what-if.xkcd.com/13/]Wouldn't have worked anyways.[/url]

[Quote]The specially toughened can will contain not only the powder to make a drink, but the wishes of children from across Asia etched onto silver disks. The disks will bring the total weight to a kilogram. Pocari claim their goal is to inspire a generation of children to become astronauts with the hope of one day reclaiming the can from its resting place. Exactly why a product that needs water, one of the things most desperately lacking from the lunar surface, should prove the new holy grail is unclear. However, what is unambiguous is that Pocari are getting advertising value from their stunt, with articles in numerous outlets, including some in places where Pocari Sweat would be unfamiliar to most. And yes, we know this includes us.[/quote] So a company that's developing autonomous sample return rovers is getting half a million dollars to stow a soda can full of letters from children.

Well, if advertising that is visible from Earth were put on the moon, it would at least silence the fools who insist we never went there.

Yeah. Really nice. Because advertising is really what I want to see when I'm trying to stargaze and enjoy a beautiful sky. :/ If anything, seeing something like that would make me avoid purchasing from the place that's being advertised at all costs.

[QUOTE=MR2;44846968]Well, if advertising that is visible from Earth were put on the moon, it would at least silence the fools who insist we never went there.[/QUOTE]conspiracy theorists have their heads so far up their HAARP-globalwarmed asses that no solid empirical evidence can ever dig them out.

[QUOTE=TestECull;44846327]Um, how about you kindly [i][b][u]FUCK THE FUCK OFF[/u][/b][/i], advertisers? Your cancer has no business in space and you're proving my point when I say no to commercial spaceflight when you do shit like this.[/QUOTE] How is flying a can of soda to the moon terrible?

[QUOTE=OvB;44846861]So a company that's developing autonomous sample return rovers is getting half a million dollars to stow a soda can full of letters from children.[/QUOTE] I don't think that their crappy soda is as important as they seem to think.

Keep in mind what OvB highlighted: [QUOTE=OvB;44845132]Also unintentional product placement like Coke, and Sriracha sauce. [editline]18th May 2014[/editline] They're sponsoring a lunar X prize which is a pretty big deal. The lander is not specifically for this ad from what I can tell. It's like space nascar.[/QUOTE] So, annoying advertising aside, its driving production, but still that seems to be rather petty instead of a purely scientific mission with no bullshit advertising objectives.

[QUOTE=Sharker;44848886]I don't think that their crappy soda is as important as they seem to think.[/QUOTE] Who cares, if it gets the public more interested in space it's a good thing. Besides it's just a stupid soda can, they aren't using the moon as a billboard

The thing is, lunar X prize contenders are going to advertiser for money. Perhaps if they could get big enough grants from the government they wouldn't need to go through ad's. Though I also thing they could receive private funding without needing to put an ad on the lander. I mean we're al re already talking about it, it's already advertised to a lot of people without going to the moon just by being associated with it.

Imagine if aliens come to the Moon, aeons after mankind has rotted away or turned into vagrant nanomachines, and discover the cans or what little else remains of them.

[QUOTE=JohnFisher89;44848741]How is flying a can of soda to the moon terrible?[/QUOTE] It's advertising. I don't care how minor the advertising is, it's still advertising, and it still has no business in space right now. Advertising is already a cancerous blight on our society [i]without[/i] being in space as it is.

Advertising is cancer and has no redeeming qualities

as long as they don't want to put a permanent installment/billboard on the moon, I have no problem with it.

But what will the moon people think?

[QUOTE=Laserbeams;44851309]Advertising is cancer and has no redeeming qualities[/QUOTE] Except half a million dollars in space funding in exchange for a can.

[QUOTE=SuperDuperScoot;44847152]Yeah. Really nice. Because advertising is really what I want to see when I'm trying to stargaze and enjoy a beautiful sky. :/ If anything, seeing something like that would make me avoid purchasing from the place that's being advertised at all costs.[/QUOTE] Completely with you on this, the very last thing I want to see when I look at the moon is some fucking advertisement tainting it. Same goes for orbital advertising, I'd personally make it my life's mission to build spacecraft capable of attaching to and deorbiting any satellite able to produce such a blemish on the night sky if such things were to come to pass.

Space billboards = bad Companies sponsoring ground breaking space technology = only good [editline]19th May 2014[/editline] Simple solution, ban adverts in low orbit and in line of sight of inhabited bodies and moons. Problem solved.