Slashdot Mirror
NASA May Sell Corporate Naming Rights For Rockets, Spacecraft (al.com)
schwit1 shares a report from Alabama Local News: NASA's administrator Jim Bridenstine has directed the space agency to look at boosting its brand by selling naming rights to rockets and spacecraft and allowing its astronauts to appear in commercials and on cereal boxes, as if they were celebrity athletes. While officials stress that nothing has been decided, the idea could mark a giant cultural leap for the taxpayer-funded government agency and could run into ethics regulations that prevent government officials from using public office for private gain.
"Is it possible for NASA to offset some of its costs by selling the naming rights to its spacecraft, or the naming rights to its rockets," Bridenstine said. "I'm telling you there is interest in that right now. The question is: Is it possible? The answer is: I don't know, but we want somebody to give us advice on whether it is." He also said he wanted astronauts to be not only more accessible to journalists but even to participate in marketing opportunities to boost their brands - and that of the space agency. "I'd like to see kids growing up, instead of maybe wanting to be like a professional sports star, I'd like to see them grow up wanting to be a NASA astronaut, or a NASA scientist," he said. "I'd like to see, maybe one day, NASA astronauts on the cover of a cereal box, embedded into the American culture."
"Is it possible for NASA to offset some of its costs by selling the naming rights to its spacecraft, or the naming rights to its rockets," Bridenstine said. "I'm telling you there is interest in that right now. The question is: Is it possible? The answer is: I don't know, but we want somebody to give us advice on whether it is." He also said he wanted astronauts to be not only more accessible to journalists but even to participate in marketing opportunities to boost their brands - and that of the space agency. "I'd like to see kids growing up, instead of maybe wanting to be like a professional sports star, I'd like to see them grow up wanting to be a NASA astronaut, or a NASA scientist," he said. "I'd like to see, maybe one day, NASA astronauts on the cover of a cereal box, embedded into the American culture."
Perfect brand for rocket.
imagine paying $25 million to slap your company name on the side of a space craft and have all articles and press releases required to mention it by its "proper" name, and disaster strikes. 8 dead, program set back 3 years to investigate. news reports flood the airwaves for months, always mentioning your company name in their reporting of the disaster. your brand will forever be known as a spacecraft that blew up and killed astronauts. history books would be written that way, too, because your name would be part of the name of the spacecraft. there would be no way to remove that association, none. history, nor the internet, will forget.
"I'd like to see kids growing up, instead of maybe wanting to be like a professional sports star, I'd like to see them grow up wanting to be a NASA astronaut, or a NASA scientist,"
Me too.
But if that happens because someone is appearing in commercials instead of news, then something is wrong on a much more fundamental level.
bickerdyke
"I'd like to see kids growing up, instead of maybe wanting to be like a professional sports star, I'd like to see them grow up wanting to be a NASA astronaut, or a NASA scientist,"
Small anecdote: I remember almost nothing from my early childhood except this trauma from when I was 5-6 years old:
Teacher asked us what we wanted to as grown up. Other kids said things like policeman, baker, etc. I said “astronaut!”. Teacher immediately replied “Impossible, you wear glasses!”
Looking back, while she was right, she shouldn’t have crushed an early childhood dream so quickly and thoroughly.
At this point, trying to monetize-by-branding the NASA brand smells of desperation. NASA used to be cool. Going to space used to be cool. But then they just sat there and did nothing of use*, and their brand and even their entire league withered. Now they're going "oh hey spacex is cool so let's make us cool again too!"
Yeah, no. You can only do so much with marketeering. You do have to have an actual product and/or service at some point.
* The space shuttle was supposed to be a shuttle, but it wasn't: 250 million dollars per launch and not even metric? Guise, please. Not to mention nasa's management's rather poor grasp of the risks involved. They *should* have worked at it until they could offer a price of 250 thousand dollars (per seat, if not per launch) at car-level accident rates, if not quite airline-level. They didn't. Now their show is over.
So now Bridenstine wants to take what NASA stands for and make it stand for anything else? The US Army could do the same with their uniforms. Make them like NASCAR outfits with logos and stuff (just as bright though, so they stand out). Judges could logo up their robes so we know who's paying for justice. We already pay for something that is supposed to stand for what is best in us, pushing at the final frontier. If the endeavor is not worth it, selling ads for chump change will make that clear.
Think the idea is new? This joke is from back when the space race was on.
"General! The Soviets are on the moon! And they painted it red!"
"Fine. Load the next Apollo with white paint and have the crew paint "Coca Cola" all over it"
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
Rocket McRocketFace
Is this going to be like that thing from the Jurrasic World movie where they had some kind of.... Verizon Wireless -saurus Rex or whatever?
For your deep space probe.
putting the 'B' in LGBTQ+
With this announcement, I'm done with "space". I hereby cease to give a flying fuck about NASA. Just the fact that they're CONSIDERING it... fuck them. I'll take this a step further... I don't give a completely sedentary, ground-based fuck, let alone a flying fuck, about anything they're doing from now on.
Soon as exploration for profit occurs... -sigh- Want to see an example of exploration for profit: look no further than the colonization of the so-called "new world".
Soon...
NASA: Hey, look we're...
ME: Fuck off, NASA, brought to you by Whoever-The-Fuck.
On the off chance NASA gives a damn about public perception of it, NASA's stock just took, with me, a 10,000% nosedive straight into Shitsville.
Our reign has gone on long enough. Indeed. Summon the meteors.
If they open up corporate naming, I suspect this will not be far behind.
I also hope this doesn't happen. I'm tired of seeing stadiums, rate tracks, and all sorts of other highly visible cultural centerpoints being corporate-logod.
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
Starting from the top -- Cony McConeFace
I leave the remainder to Slashdotters
I expect we will see the Google Lincoln Memorial and the Apple Washington Monument.
Starships were meant to fly, Hands up and touch the sky - Nicky Minaj
Victoria's Secret
Astronauts are more valuable members of society than people running around and kicking or throwing balls in a field.
You want to play sports? Fine. The fact that it became what it is now is proof that a huge percentage of the human race is still stupid.
#DeleteFacebook
Or you could get KFC etc.. with ... "Frying Tonight"
McDonalds would have to wait for a wider lift vehicle to get their logo on.
On a slightly more serious note, you don't see Playtex advertising their original company involvement in developing the space suits - International Latex Corporation (ILC)
A lot of kids want to be sports stars because, from a role model perspective, endorsements is one of their main avenues of awareness. I, for one, would like to see Astronauts on the cereal box instead of promotion of some random sports figure.
Errr... NASA is a "brand" ?
...that we aren't actually a country. All we are is a container for corporations. The veneer is coming off, being discarded shamelessly. No one even pretends anymore.
E Proelio Veritas.
We all know something like this would be tried and I for one would love to watch news casters try to say it with a straight face.
-- Slashdot, making the Left look conservative since 1997.
So who da %(*@#/ paid for the uniforms from the original series and especially TMP? A much more sensible sponsor is responsible for TWOK, obviously.
C'mon, y'all know it was coming...
Yushityu 2007 Mimetic-Resolution-Cartridge-View-Motherboard-Easy-To-Install-Upgrade for Infernatron/InterLace TP Systems for Home, Office or Mobile [sic]
"When I first heard Daydream Nation it quite frankly scared the living shit out of me." -- Matthew Stearns
Before they can start plastering adverts on a rocket they need an actual rocket. What are they going to put this on? SLS? Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha! Good one.
I wouldn't recommend it. Too much chance of unexpected baggage becoming attached to the naming, which could hurt either NASA or the company that sold its name.
Suppose 3 months ago, NASA had named a rocket the "Nike" rocket. It seemed perfectly safe and harmless 3 months ago. But today, NASA would be tied up in the Colin Kaepernick controversy.
Suppose Company XYZ sold its name to a rocket, which later on blew up. Then that explosion would be known as the "Company XYZ disaster".
Let's get that GoFundMe started!
Also lets get it on some super important mission. Only to see some super serious news anchor try to get though the historic writing, only to throw his papers in the air on live TV to exclaim "Fsck it I quit, this is ridiculous!". Would also make for good political speeches.
"On this day, a day unlike any other, the intrepid Rocket McRocketFace arches onward and upward on this historic mission, indeed the whole world is looking skyward in pride of human achievement that Rocket McRocketFace has enabled to happen.... etc..."
dammit... just saw a bunch of posts with the same subject, little surprise I guess...
Consider the real world possibilities. The Waste Management Uranus Probe. What about foreign powers? United States Lunar Base Putin. China doesn't have to build the Long March 12, they can just buy the naming rights to an American built missile.
Might as well let billionaires bid for the right to have their ugly mugs on the currency. Larry Elson would pay a billion dollars to have his face on a $50 bill. Goldman-Sachs or Bank of America would big bucks to have their logo on a quarter.
Just go all out: pay enough and you get to rename the country. If you're going to be a whore go all the way.
Why is Snark Required?
Perhaps there is hope for reviving "Boaty McBoatface".
How about a Leafly-branded SpaceX booster painted to look like a joint?