I think you are right Duran which is why I prefer they use MJ's version.
that doesn't really matter, because free publicity most likely will have the affect of the song being played on radio, and help album sales. and though some might not want to believe it, Michael's name has magic and tends to break a lot of traditional rules. a lot of incidental stuff can most likely benefit MJ financially from this. sometimes, people don't account for x factors. and there is always the possibility of extracurricular stuff that MJ's crack lawyers know about that we don't know about. i'm sure he hired lawyers who would think like he did to some extent..outside the box. what you said about people thinking about MJ is true. and it's priceless. the value of people thinking about something, or making an association, is something madison avenue would kill for. i believe MJ wasn't uptight about suing people as much, because he was intuitive about the many x factors that could make him some serious money. and that is the difference between how he thought about his stuff on youtube, as opposed to how Prince felt about HIS stuff being on youtube. of course, that doesn't mean that the Beatles were wrong in suing Nike. they were right to do that, in that case.
but again, free publicity is important. that's why advertisers pay millions to let a tv station play their commercial for free.
and that's why it didn't matter that Gordy didn't give MJ any MOtown rights. even if you hear MJ's voice as a little boy, i'm sure there are many fans who will buy Thriller, just because of that, let alone, buy the Motown music. because Michael is the central figure in the fans' minds. and the general public, for that matter. that kind of thinking is the fantasy of madison avenue, and made some detractors jealous of MJ.
so hey..they can go ahead and hire other singers. wouldn't make much difference.
i'm sure we didn't get interested in this, to get the name of the singer to the left of center, that we can't see, in the ad. lol
indeed most people don't make as much money claiming copyright, as Michael/the estate does from free publicity.
that's why he was called a cash cow. his not being able to go outside, was a financial clue. he drew the public to him. that's why his detractors called him a 'trainwreck' in later years, because he was able to draw ratings, even 'when he wasn't supposed to', according to the jealous detractors.
so if advertisers want to 'hire' lizards, as they've done..if people want to dance in prison, on youtube, as they've done, and, if the other ads in this thread are to be made, from the motown days such as the state farm commercial, or if they want to 'hire' raisins, as the advertisers have done..so be it. it doesn't matter. Michael made and still makes, by way of the estate, more money than any copyright claimant could dream of., since he/the estate owns his own publishing, from songs included on the thriller album. an album that people keep on buying, whenever free advertising makes people think of Michael Jackson. this is why we never heard from Michael or his lawyers, in this age of piracy. there is no substitute for magic. there may have been fallout where people would buy bootlegs, but collectors don't like bogus stuff. and nobody can do without a piece of magic. other artists didn't have Michael's magic. so, Michael could sell his music by 'accident'. he could step out anywhere, and it meant money. other artists dream of this, and that's why the complained more about piracy than Michael did. if an artist doesn't have magic, then they're the ones who have more to worry about in this piracy age. that's why other artists were complaining about piracy. and they have a right to do that. but Michael was less affected by it all, than any other artist. because, indeed, there is no substitute for having the most kaching thing one can have...magic. Michael really is the first artist to have that magic, for his entire life, and beyond, non stop. so MJ is the least of all artists, that we have to worry about, being cheated, financially. he's so magical that someone on the street can say the word 'thriller', and somebody else, who is on the street with them will go buy the album, just because of hearing that.
it's sorta like Michael Jordan and Nike...one person says, on the street, 'i'll get some Jordan shoes' and the other person on the street, hearing them, goes out and buys some of those shoes, as long as Jordan has that mystique, in association with the shoes, which he still does, to this day.
so, Michael's likeness doesn't have to be there, for Michael's likeness to be there, and ultimately make Michael some money, anyway, no matter what. this is so rare, that people tend to forget it, in normal circumstances, and it's easy to apply the normal rules, that the label has an advantage over the artist. but in Michael's rare case, that was not the case. because of magic. magic was Michael's dear friend. and, in essence, it still is.
