Pearl & Dean (and just as importantly, their jingle) need no introduction to any filmgoer in the UK. This is among the most universally recognized jingles in the country – such is the power of the cinema and more to the

point, cinema advertising. Pearl & Dean, of course weren't only promoting themselves. There were then and are now industry leaders in commercial production, especially big screen advertising.

Have the internet and other new media rendered cinema advertising irrelevant, or is it still possible to make a real connection with younger consumers who have been raised on internet advertising? Certainly internet advertising has been a game changer in the advertising world. As consumers, we don't respond to advertising in the same way we used to. People who were once delighted by consumer focused advertising are now put off by it – perhaps the flood of animated ads online has spoiled our appetite!

The challenge, then for cinema advertising is to convey the right message to consumers (some things never change, after all) at the right time – but is this a format still suitable for local and national advertisers alike? The answer, as it happens, is yes; but only if the advertiser knows how to make the best of the medium.

A strategy which has been successful for many companies is to use a strategy combining TV advertising and cinema advertising in a single campaign. For example, the famous Stella Artois campaign which paired short TV advertisements with longer-form movie theater advertising. It was a very effective campaign which has led many other companies to follow suit.

Local businesses still use cinema advertising and no doubt always will, but with the entry of national and international brands to big screen advertising, you'll see much more than those "dine just steps away from this cinema" sort of ads which were once the rule. Larger companies have made the leap from television to the silver screen, seeing the possibilities of the format.

Cinema advertising rates are lower the further from the main feature they appear. The more viewers in the theater, the higher the price (and often nowadays, the more likely these ads are to be from major companies). The cost of movie theater advertising does vary with length and placement, just as in any other media.

The cost of cinema advertising is generally less than that of TV advertising, making movie theater advertising a useful venue for businesses to experiment with video content and test response to its advertisements before taking it to the more costly arena of television. This quality alone makes cinema a valuable asset to both businesses and

advertising agencies.

One thing which hasn't changed is this: people still love going to the movies and unlike television, cinema advertising gives advertisers access to a captive audience who are relaxed and generally more receptive to the

messages on the big screen. To paraphrase a jingle as well known as Pearl & Dean's, things go better with popcorn.