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News
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The business of Bond...James Bond
'Buy a Ford today' is just one part of the latest Bond (marketing) adventure.
November 25, 2002: 11:02 AM EST
By Lara Magzan, CNN/Money Staff Writer

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Fast cars, sex appeal, clever watches and vodka martinis ... James Bond not only likes them, he sells them.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM: up $0.10 to $14.55, Research, Estimates) and Eon Productions are looking forward to cashing in on the superspy's style. The 20th Bond film in the series, "Die Another Day," starring Pierce Brosnan as James Bond and Halle Berry as Jinx (the latest Bond girl), arrived in theaters Nov. 22.

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A look at the latest James Bond movie, Die Another Day, and the marketing around it.

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Already the most successful film franchise in history, taking in more than $8 billion at the box office over four decades, the latest installment is "guaranteed to have a stellar opening weekend," said Gitesh Pandya, editor at BoxOfficeGuru.com.

The film grossed an estimated $47 milllion -- the biggest opening for a Bond movie ever -- on its opening weekend.

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Every new Bond film comes with new products and marketing tie-ins. "Die Another Day," is no exception. MGM is spending $30 million on advertising, according to Variety, and has enlisted more than 20 marketing partners who are reportedly contributing more than $120 million in worldwide promotions.

Here's a rundown of what you can expect.

Cars: From Ford with love

The last three Bond films featured BMW cars, but the latest film pays tribute to Bond's past by having the secret agent drive an Aston Martin with a passenger ejection seat -- first seen in "Goldfinger" in 1964.

Ford Thunderbird  
The 2003 limited edition 007 Ford Thunderbird.

Ford Motor Co. (F: up $0.60 to $10.81, Research, Estimates), which owns the Aston Martin brand, has reportedly paid $35 million to outdrive BMW as the official Bond car. Bond drives the $230,000 Aston Martin Vanquish V12 and Jinx is behind the wheel of a coral-colored limited edition 007 Ford Thunderbird, $43,000. The carmaker plans to make only 700 of the Thunderbirds -- the first-ever vehicle to wear a "007" logo, which appears on the dashboard.

And don't forget the villain, Zao, who drives a Jaguar XKR, also a Ford brand. There are several other Ford cars appearing in the film, according to the automaker.

There is something for the Bond fans with a smaller budget. You can own a diecast replica of the Thunderbird, Jaguar and Aston Martin Vanquish for $29.00. Another option: a radio-controlled Aston Martin or Jaguar for $35.00 each from fordcollection.com.

Watches: Man with the Omega watch

You can check the time on one of 10,007 limited edition James Bond Seamaster watches from Omega, for $2,195.

Seamaster  
The limited-edition 40th year anniversary 007 Seamaster.

Robert Emmons, president of Omega, said that James Bond has a "remarkable impact on the sales of Omega watches," adding that "people respond to Bond and want to own something that he has." The Omega Seamaster watch has been seen on Bond's wrist and, thanks to a few gadget alterations, helped him get out of some intense situations since 1995.

Omega is taking another step with a direct marketing promotion aimed specifically at James Bond fans. Moviegoers nationwide will receive a unique movie theater "playbill" (similar to those produced for Broadway shows) with the purchase of a "Die Another Day" ticket at the box office. The "playbill" will contain information about Omega, the film, how to win 007's watch and a trivia challenge.

If Omega is a little pricey, Swatch is introducing a collection of 20 watches themed after 20 Bond films. The watches are priced from $50 to $125 and a special collector's carrying case is available to hold all 20 of them for $150.

Makeup: A look to kill

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Take a peek at the 20th Bond film, Die Another Day.

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Attention Bond girls: Cosmetics company Revlon (REV: up $0.06 to $3.95, Research, Estimates) is introducing a limited edition 007 Color Collection inspired by favorite Bond movies.

"The Look of Jinx," played by Revlon spokeswoman Berry, and "The Look of Miranda Frost," an MI6 agent, are inspired by the "Die Another Day" film.

In addition, Revlon is rolling out "The Looks of Bond," which will feature four different makeup kits inspired by four different Bond films: "From Russia With Love," "Diamonds Are Forever," "The Spy Who Loved Me" and "Goldeneye." You also could "Win Your Own Bond Girl Adventure" in a sweepstakes on revlon.com

Vodka: Shaken, not stirred

Finlandia Vodka  
Finlandia is 007's vodka of choice.

In "Die Another Day," Bond still likes his martinis shaken, not stirred, but his vodka now is courtesy of Finlandia, not Smirnoff.

"We were honored and thrilled to be part of Bond; Finlandia is the true global brand with 80 percent outside the U.S.," said Scott Reid, global marketing director for Finlandia, a unit of Brown-Forman Corp. (BFB: Research, Estimates).

"Finlandia fits perfectly with the Bond image and ice-theme in the film," Reid added.

Want to know the secret of the James Bond perfect martini? Find out at finlandiavodka.com, where you also can enter the perfect martini sweepstakes.

Video games: Live and let play

Do you secretly wish to be James Bond? Here is your chance in the action-packed "James Bond 007: NightFire" video game, priced at $49.99. "This game will appeal to hard-core game players as well as casual players. It will give Bond fans everything they're looking for: gadgets, girls, guns and more," said Jerris Mungai of Electronic Arts. (EA: Research, Estimates)

Books: For your eyes only

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Take a look at Bond's best gadgets.

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"James Bond: The Legacy" by John Cork and Bruce Scivally covers 40 years of Bond as cinematic phenomenon. The book is your ultimate guide to 007, with rare photos and quotes from actors and production teams. The suggested retail price is $49.95.

Another Bond book is a photographic essay by photographer Greg Williams, called "Bond On Set," documenting the creation of "Die Another Day." A paperback copy can be pre-ordered for $24.95.  Top of page




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Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.