To me, the whole thing came off as a steaming cup of smug, with a healthy dollop of smirk.
Aside from the whole "boutique buildarrs - yee bee warrrned!" shtick, there was also the part about tv shows putting tape over the logos. He acted like Gibson would be doing them a favor by "working with them" to let them use G products in their programming. In reality, it's the other way around. It's not really news anymore: there is an entire industry built around manufacturers getting their products into programming, from wedding rings and t-shirts to cars and cruises.
I can tell you for certain that it is not cheap for a jewelry manufacturer to get one of their designs on the finger of an actress. Depending on the level of placement, it likely cost them thousands of dollars or more. You have to register your product with a Hollywood agent, who will then review scripts and work with producers to find a placement, at a price you can afford. Likewise, all the jewelry and clothing you see on people at the Oscars was placed there by agents, and by brands that paid fat stacks for the privilege.
Producers aren't taping over the logos to keep from infringing on G's trademarks. They tape over them because they aren't about to give G any publicity without G going through the placement process and coughing up some dough.
When it's a live production, which is often the case with bands, it is way too late to "work with Gibson". When some band shows up to play on Ellen, the producers don't have time to say "we are filming in one hour...but wait....the guitar player has an SG....someone call up Gibson right away!" Those decisions are made far in advance, by agents who specialize in it and have been working behind the scenes to get those placements.
So out comes the tape.
In cases like American Idol, where there is a house band every week, a lot of those guitars have been placed, by mfgr's who played the game correctly. The PRSi and Taylors I have seen on AI come to mind.
In the past, you saw musical instrument brands on shows a lot more often. These days, as people move more and more towards streaming content with no commercials, product placement screen time is becoming more valuable than ever.
So out comes the tape.
