GameBridge And Their Super (Sonic) Clients

Ever since the first 'celebrity endorsements', the use of iconic figures to promote products has been de rigueur for most popular brands. Be it Michael J Fox sipping a cold can of Pepsi, Michael Jordan slipping on a pair of Nikes or numerous famous faces covering their lips with moo-juice for Got Milk, the association of star and merch is a no-brainer for most. It's unsurprising then that with the explosion of geek-culture in recent years, the sportpeople and movie hunks/hunkettes we're used to seeing are being usurped by icons of more digital origins. Enter GameBridge.

Based in New York, newly-launched GameBridge licenses characters from popular video games for use in advertising content and ad campaigns. Co-founded by Andy Uterano and Billy Bell, veterans of the music sales and licensing industry who come to the venture from Sumthing Else Music Works (SEMW), the industry leader in licensing and distributing video game soundtracks. SEMW will function as a strategic partner to GameBridge, as will Grand Large and its Founder and EP, Steve Horton, who holds the title of Strategic Media Partner. Their existing ties to video game publishers means licensing relationships with Sega and Capcom, with more publisher agreements in the wings. That means characters like Sonic the Hedgehog, his pal Tails and Street Fighter veterans Ryu and Chun-Li are now available for brand 'connection'.

We were tickled by the idea of an agency for avatars, so sat down with Billy Bell to chat about their console-clientele.


Co-founders Andy Uterano (left) and Billy Bell (right).

How would you guys describe yourselves? We kinda see you as agents for console stars - are we far off?

We like that – "agents for console stars." You're not far off at all! Actually, we like to consider ourselves as the very first digital modeling agency. We think GameBridge – and our stable of videogame characters – is the hottest new thing to hit the advertising world. But then, I'm being modest, of course.

Where did the concept for the company come from? How did you get it off the ground?

My partner and GameBridge Co-Founder Andy Uterano and I were walking down the aisles of the Licensing Expo in Las Vegas a couple of years ago, passing by signage of every brand imaginable. And we just thought, 'Wouldn't it be cool to see some of these brands placed in video game scenes, like product placement in movies?'

Both Andy and I have an extensive background in the music industry, and have been senior executives at the label Sumthing Else Music Works for some time. SEMW was the first to bring music from these games to the marketplace, and quite successfully. So we had some really strong relationships with game publishers, and that's what got us started on this idea.

It also just happened that I'd recently reconnected with an old friend, Steve Horton (Founder and Executive producer at Grand Large) on social media after losing touch many years ago. Steve was my record producer when I was riding the New Wave of punk rock as a musician in New York City in early '80s. Steve was running a very successful production company that worked for all the major agencies and brands, and had been doing so since our days in the music biz.

Steve's work at Grand Large gave him deep insights into how agencies and advertisers work, and where advertising is headed as it converges with all forms of entertainment and content. We got to talking, and the stars just sort of aligned for us to launch GameBridge.

You currently work with behemoths SEGA and Capcom, well renowned for their cast of characters. How did those relationships come to be? Did you specifically aim for Japanese companies first?

SEMW had released titles from both Capcom and Sega games, so those relationships had been forged long before the conception of GameBridge. It certainly helps that Capcom and Sega have some of the most iconic characters from franchises that are well-entrenched in the gamers' psyche. So it was a logical choice for us to launch with these historic IPs.

How are the characters typically used? Are there suggestions or requests you have to say no to?

There are a million ways to fit a video game character with a brand or product. Much of it depends on the story line and strategy. We have a few mock-up examples on our Tumblr page. And while we don't want to say 'no' to anyone, there might be certain cases where we think something just isn't right. We always have to keep the respect and integrity for the game intact.

What's the balance between the characters with massive pop-culture recognition (Sonic, Ryu, etc) and the more niche members of the digital gang? Is there much demand for the less- familiar folk?

Of course, the well-known personalities are more in demand, just like their analogue human counterparts. But we feel there's room for everyone! Again, it depends on the franchise. In games like "Sonic Boom" or "Street Fighter," you have the stars and then you have the supporting characters. And just like in the game storylines, these characters have roles to play. From the brands' perspective, we feel it's all strategy-dependent.

Can you see the market for these sort of characters growing? It seems as though 'geek culture' is rapidly becoming the dominant pop culture in all media.

Absolutely!! Everywhere you look, 'geek culture' is taking over, in areas from fashion to entertainment to mass media to product design. It's crossing all sorts of boundaries and has become ingrained in pop culture, but in an aspirational way.

How does your background in the music sales and licensing industry influence the decisions you make as a company?

First off, we know how to sell, and we know how to work with IP owners, so that helps. Andy and I have been dealing with major music labels and their corporate environments for over two decades, so this has been a very transparent transition for us. Game publishers sell an entertainment product targeted toward a loyal consumer audience, as do record labels. As far as it influences our decision making, gaming is a different animal for sure, since it's interactive.

Are you guys gamers yourself? Do you need to be?

No we're not gamers. I think the last game we actually played was the original "Doom"! But in this specialty I don't believe you need to be an actual gamer. We look at the characters we represent as if they were cartoon characters, or artistically-rendered pop culture icons. It would be as if we were representing Kermit the Frog. But we do indeed have hard core gamers on staff.



Are there any characters you're keen to get in the roster? Is Jet Set Willy playing hard to get?

Yeah, the Mario Bros. would be nice. And anything from The Legend of Zelda or Tomb Raider. We have our hit list, for sure.

Who's the trickiest character to deal with? We hear Sonic can be a little spikey *groan*

Very funny! All of our characters are joys to work with.

What's next for GameBridge?

Continue to grow our stable of characters and publishers and build strong working relationships with ad agencies, brand managers and marketing executives. We want to have GameBridge be the one stop destination and the first place you think of when you need a hero.