PSPromo

The Sony PlayStation Portable is widely discussed as a platform not just for games, but for marketing as well. Beyond direct advertising, there is potential for creative promotions. The Japanese unit of Coca-Cola may be the first to venture beyond attaching an ad to downloaded video, or in-game advertising. The soda distributor set up a microsite at its Cokestyle.net as a cross promotion for players of the PSP title, Wipeout Pure, a futuristic racing game developed by Sony.

Players will get keywords, likely printed inside Coca-Cola products, and will be able to use the keywords to unlock content in the game. New items include menu graphics, courses, vehicles, and sound effects. It is unclear whether the content was previously built into the game, or will be downloaded from the Internet via a Wi-Fi connection.

Wipeout Pure was among the launch titles for the PSP. It contains the Web browser used by the Wi-Fi-enabled PSP to access the Internet.