WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 1 NOVELTY ARTICLE AND PRODUCT PROMOTION USING THE NOVELTY ARTICLE FIELD OF THE INVENTION 5 This invention relates to a novelty article and to a method of promoting a product using the novelty article as a dummy product. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 10 It is known to promote sales of a product by distributing prizes in articles which simulate the appearance of the article being promoted, and seeding the prize containing articles amongst the products on sale. Examples of such articles are disclosed in US Patent No. 4,911,320, 5,056,659, 5,056,681 and 5,099,232 to Howes, 15 in which a prize award is secreted in a compartment under the lid or in the base of a dummy drink can or bottle. However, the simulated bottle constructions disclosed in the Howes patents have relatively small prize chambers and are thus limited in the size, and therefore type, of 20 the prize which can be awarded. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention aims to provide an alternative construction for a prize 25 containing simulated bottle for use in promotions. According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a container for a prize, said container having an exterior appearance which simulates an exterior appearance of a bottle for a liquid product and including first and second components 30 which are separably attached to each other, wherein: the first and second components together defining a substantially closed inner prize chamber within the container, the prize chamber being adapted to contain said WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 2 the first and second components together defining a substantially closed inner prize chamber within the container, the prize chamber being adapted to contain said prize and being configured to be opened when the components are separated from each other; 5 each of the first and second components has an exterior wall and a peripheral space separate from and surrounding the prize chamber; each of the first and second components is adapted to contain a liquid in the peripheral space of that component; each of the first and second components has a transparent exterior wall through 10 which the liquid in the respective component is visible; the article being configured such that the first and second components together appear substantially as a single component having an exterior appearance which simulates the exterior appearance of a bottle and the liquid in the two components simulates a single body of said liquid product. 15 Preferably, the container has a first upper component which simulates a top portion of said bottle and said second component which simulates a base portion of said bottle, the upper component simulating shoulder, neck and cap portions of the bottle. 20 Preferably, said liquid in said upper component partly fills said peripheral space in the upper component such that there is a headspace visible through the transparent exterior wall of said upper component, and said peripheral space of lower component is substantially wholly filled with said liquid. 25 In one embodiment, the upper and lower components may join at along a circumferential seam, said container further comprising a label covering said seam. Preferably the is substantially identical to a label of said bottle being simulated, and may be a band about a circumference of said container. 30 WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 3 The cap portion of said upper component may be removable to provide access to a further chamber of the upper component separated from said peripheral space containing said liquid. The further chamber is adapted to contain a prize notification. 5 Desirably, the liquid in said peripheral spaces of said first and second components is sufficiently opaque to prevent visible detection of said inner chamber through said transparent exterior walls of said components. In one form, the container includes a prize article, preferably a mobile 10 communications device such as a mobile telephone, located in said inner chamber. A further form of the invention provides a method of promoting, to consumers, a bottled liquid, having an exterior appearance, the method including the steps of: providing a prize container according to the invention, having an exterior 15 appearance substantially corresponding to the exterior appearance of said bottled liquid product, providing a prize item for a consumer within the prize chamber of said prize container; and positioning the prize container amongst a plurality of said bottled liquid 20 products such that the novelty article appears as a said product and thereby constitutes a dummy product, for chance selection by a particular said consumer. Preferably the prize located in the inner chamber of the container includes a mobile telecommunications device which is pre-programmed to contact a prize allocation 25 station. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example 30 only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic side elevation of a novelty article in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 4 Figure 2 is a schematic exploded partly sectioned view, from the side, of the novelty article of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a schematic exploded sectioned perspective view of the novelty article of Figure 1; 5 Figure 4 is a schematic exploded perspective view of parts of components of the novelty article of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a schematic exploded perspective view of parts corresponding to those of Figure 4, but according to another embodiment, with the components shown alongside each other; 10 Figure 6 is an enlarged view of the encircled detail of Figure 1, shown partly cut away; and Figure 7 is a schematic exploded sectioned view, similar to that of Figure 2, with the lid of the novelty article removed, and with a communication system in the chamber of the article. 15 DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to Figures 1 to 3, there is shown a novelty article 10 which is shaped in the form of a bottle. The article 10 includes a first, upper component 12 and a second, 20 lower component 14, these components, in a preferred embodiment, being of plastic. The upper component 12 and the lower component 14 have inner walls 16 and 18, respectively. The article 10 is configured such that when the upper component 12 and the lower component 14 are attached to each other, as described in more detail below, and as shown in Figure 1, the inner walls 16 and 18 together form a substantially 25 closed inner chamber 20 of the article, indicated as hidden detail by the broken line 21 in Figure 1. The upper component 12 and lower component 14 also have exterior walls 22 and 24, respectively. Additionally, the upper component 12 has a transverse wall 26 which 30 interconnects the inner wall 16 and exterior wall 22 of the upper component. Similarly, the lower component 14 has a transverse wall 28 which interconnects the inner wall 18 and exterior wall 24 of the lower component 14. With reference to WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 5 Figure 1, it will be noted that the transverse wall 28 defines part of the chamber 20. The exterior walls 22 and 24 are transparent, while in a preferred embodiment, the inner walls 16 and 18, and transverse walls 26 and 28, are not transparent. 5 As can best be seen in Figures 2 and 3, the inner wall 16 of the upper component 12 projects downward beyond the transverse wall 26, and hence beyond the exterior wall 22, to form an extension wall portion 30, which has an external screw thread 32. In a similar manner, the exterior wall 24 of the lower component 14 extends upward beyond the transverse wall 28 and hence beyond the inner wall 18, to form an 10 extension wall portion 34 which has an internal screw thread 36. The exterior wall 22 of the upper component 12 extends upwardly from the transverse wall 26, to a shoulder portion 38, and then to a neck portion 40, above the shoulder portion. As shown in Figure 6, the neck portion 40 has an external screw thread 42 15 which is engaged with a complimentarily, internally threaded lid 44. There is provided a blanking wall 46 (see Figures 3 and 6) which extends across the neck portion 40, approximately at the intersection between the neck portion and the shoulder portion 48. Thus, the neck portion 40 and the blanking wall 46 together define a small cavity 48 at the top of the upper component 12 beneath the lid 44, 20 which opens through an opening 50 defined by the uppermost edge, or rim, 52 of the neck portion 40 (see Figure 6). It will be appreciated that the inner wall 16, exterior wall 22, transverse wall 26, and blanking wall 46 of the upper component 12 define a fully enclosed space 54 of the 25 upper component, with a lower part 54.1 of the space being disposed between the exterior wall 22 and the chamber 20. In the lower component 14, the exterior wall 24 extends inwardly at the bottom of the lower component, to form a base 56. The inner wall 18, exterior wall 24, transverse 30 wall 28 and base 56 define a fully enclosed space 58 of the lower component 14, with an upper portion 58.1 of the space being disposed between the exterior wall 24 and the chamber 20.
WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 6 As shown in Figure 2, a coloured liquid 59 is provided in the space 54 of the upper component 12, and in the space 58 of the lower component 14. The liquid 59 in the space 58 of the lower component 14 substantially completely fills that space while the 5 liquid in the space 54 of the upper component 12 does not quite fill that space so that there is a small volume 60 within the upper component 12, when the article 10 is in an upright orientation as shown in Figure 2, in which there is no liquid. The liquid 59 in the space 58 of the lower component 14 is poured into this space 10 through an aperture 62 which is closed by suitable means after this liquid has been poured. The liquid 59 in the space 54 of the upper component 12 may be poured into that space through a similar aperture (not shown) which is also closed by suitable means after pouring of this liquid, or through the neck portion 40 prior to the provision of the blanking wall 46. In this case, once the liquid 59 has been poured 15 into the space 54, the blanking wall 46 is inserted into the neck portion 40 and secured thereto in a suitable manner, as will be understood by those skilled in the relevant art, so as to form a liquid-proof seal. It will be appreciated that the spaces 54 and 58 of the upper and lower components 12 20 and 14, respectively, are completely separate from the chamber 20 so that the liquid 59 in these spaces cannot enter the chamber. The upper component 12 and the lower component 14 are attached to each other by the screw threads 32 and 36, and can therefore be separated by unscrewing the upper 25 component from the lower component. It will be appreciated that unscrewing the components in this way separates the inner wall 16 from the transverse wall 28, thus opening the chamber 20 and allowing any contents thereof (as described further, below) to be removed. 30 When the upper component 12 is connected to the lower component 14 as shown in Figure 1, the lowermost extremity of the exterior wall 22 of the upper component 12 WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 7 and the uppermost extremity of the extension wall portion 34 of the lower component 14 abut each other in an aligned manner so as to define a seam 64. If a label 66 is placed on the article 10 so as to extend entirely around the article and 5 thereby completely obscure the seam 64 as shown in Figure 1, it will be appreciated that the upper and lower components, 12 and 14, respectively, together appear as a single, unitary component, and the liquid 59 in the space 54 of the upper component and that in the space 58 of the lower component appears as a single body of liquid. This provides the article 10 with the appearance of a bottle filled with the liquid. This 10 impression is facilitated if the liquid 59 is of relatively dark colour to obscure view, from a position exterior to the article 10, of the inner walls 16 and 18, and of any contents of the article. Referring to Figure 5, there is shown a detail of another embodiment of the article 10, 15 which, instead of having screw threads 32 and 36 to attach the upper component 12 to the lower component 14, has a "bayonet" fitting. The bayonet fitting includes a dog legged slot which comprises a vertical slot portion 70 and a horizontal slot portion 72 within the extension wall portion 34 of the lower component, and a radially outwardly extending stud 74 on the extension wall portion 30 of the upper component. (In 20 Figure 5, for convenience, the upper component 12 is shown rotated relative to the lower component 14 so that the stud 74 is visible. In use, however, the upper component is positioned for the stud to be received in the slot portions 72 and 74.) To attach the upper component 12 to the lower component 14, the components are mated such that the stud 74 slides into the vertical slot portion 70, whereafter the upper 25 component can be rotated relative to the lower component to allow the stud to slide into the horizontal slot portion 72 to prevent separation of the upper and lower components. A reverse process is used to separate the components 12 and 14 from each other. It will be appreciated that an additional, similar arrangement of slot portions 70 and 72, and stud 74, can be provided on a diametrically opposite side of 30 the article 10.
WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 8 The article 10 may be used in promoting, for sale, a product of a particular type to consumers. The method may, for example, be performed by a person or entity such as a promotion coordinator or a supplier of the products. According to this method, the particular embodiment of the article 10 which is used is such that the exterior 5 appearance thereof is substantially the same as that of each product of the type in question. The method involves positioning the novelty article 10 amongst a number of the products in question, such that the novelty article looks substantially the same as each 10 of the products, whereby the novelty article constitutes a dummy product. An example of where this method may be employed is where each product is a bottle containing a soft drink, where the products are placed on display in a retail outlet, in a commercial refrigerator. 15 To render the appearance of the dummy article 10 the same of that of each of the products, the liquid within the dummy product may selected so as to have an appearance substantially identical to that of the relevant soft drink, and may indeed be that type of soft drink liquid itself. 20 The performance of the method relies on the chance selection of the novelty article 10 by a particular consumer, in which the consumer believes that he or she is selecting, for purchase, an actual item of the product. In one embodiment of the invention, the method relies on a prize being provided, 25 within the chamber 20 of the novelty article 10. Also provided is a set of indicia in the form of written instructions, on a medium in the form of a folded sheet of paper 82 within the cavity 48. 30 After the consumer has selected the novelty article 10, believing it to be an item of the product, the consumer removes the lid 44 in an attempt to access the contents of what the consumer believes (in the present example) to be a bottle of soft drink. Once WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 9 having removed the lid 44, the consumer will realise that the novelty article 10 is a dummy product rather than a genuine item of the product, and will observe the sheet of paper 82 within the cavity 48, and will thus be prompted to remove the sheet through the opening 50 and to read the instructions on the sheet. 5 The instructions include that the consumer should remove the label 66 on the article 10 thus exposing the seam 64, and to separate the upper and lower components 12 and 14, respectively, from each other. The manner of separation of the components 12 and 14 will, of course, depend on whether the article 10 is the embodiment having 10 screw threads 32 and 36, or the bayonet configuration described above with reference to Figure 5. As the components 12 and 14 are separated from each other, the chamber 20 is opened, and the prize within the chamber is revealed, as a surprise to the consumer. 15 The prize may be of any suitable form to attract the interest of consumers, such as cash money, a ticket for an event such as a sporting event, a gift- or similar- voucher, a toy or trinket, jewellery, and so on. In another embodiment, there is provided, within the chamber 20 of the novelty article 20 10, a two-way communication system 76 which includes a navigation satellite system tracking device 78, for example a global positioning system (GPS) It will be appreciated that other satellite navigation tracking systems, such as the European Galileo system, may also be suitable. The communication system 76 is in the form of a mobile (cellular) telephone and is referred as such, below. The telephone 76 25 includes an actuation means in the form of a press-button 80. In this embodiment, the piece of paper 82 with instructions is removed from the cavity 48 in the manner described above. In this embodiment, the instructions may require the consumer to remove the telephone 76 from the chamber 20 once the chamber has 30 been opened on separation of the components 12 and 14. The instructions may also require the consumer to move to a location at which a suitably strong signal can be received by the telephone 76, such as a location remote from tall buildings.
WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 10 The instructions may also be to the effect that the consumer should actuate the telephone 76 by depression of the button 80. 5 Once the button 80 has been depressed, the telephone 76 emits a suitable outgoing signal. This signal, as part of the method, is received by relevant receiver means which, in a preferred embodiment, is a receiving station. In addition, on depression of the button 80, the GPS device 78 is activated, and "locks onto" remote location identifying means in the form of GPS navigation system satellites orbiting the globe. 10 From signals emanating from the satellites, the GPS device 78 determines an estimate of its location. Once this estimation of location is determined, the telephone 76 emits a location signal, to the receiving station. The location signal contains information as to the estimated location of the GPS device 78, so that the estimated location, and hence that of the telephone 76 and of the consumer, can be determined. Thus, the step 15 of receiving the location signal by the receiving station, and the determination thereby of the estimated location, also form part of the method. It will be appreciated that, to emit such a location signal, the telephone 76 must be equipped with suitable means for doing so, which are referred to herein as location-transmission means, and which may form part of the GPS device 78. 20 Suitable conditions and a suitable GPS device 78 can assist in enabling the location of the GPS device to be estimated, in terms of relevant latitude- and longitude-co ordinates, and possibly also altitude, to within about 1 to 5 metres. A suitable communication device is a Track One GPS-enabled mobile telephone, by Benefon of 25 Finland. In one embodiment, the telephone 76 may be configured to automatically transmit a signal to the receiver station indicating the status of the process of "locking onto" the satellites by the GPS device 78, so that it can be determined once this has occurred. 30 The relevant information about this process may be presented at the receiver station on a screen, such as a web-viewer screen.
WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 11 In one embodiment, the outgoing signal described above is the location signal itself, so that the steps of receiving the outgoing signal and receiving the location signal by the receiver station is the same step. 5 Once the above-mentioned outgoing signal has been received by the receiver station, the method involves transmitting a reply signal from the receiver station, to the telephone 76, and hence to the consumer. The reply signal represents a message to the consumer. The telephone 76 is configured to receive this reply signal and to present it to the consumer in a form that the consumer can comprehend. In preferred 10 embodiments, the message is in the form of an SMS message received on an SMS display of the telephone 76, or in the form of a telephone call placed from the receiver station to the consumer. The telephone call may be a person-to-person call, or may be in the form of an automated audio message transmitted from the receiver station to the telephone 76, for receipt by the consumer. 15 A preferred embodiment of the invention involves a prize being given to the consumer. Thus, the message sent to the consumer, according to a preferred embodiment, advises the consumer that the estimated location of the telephone 76, and hence of the consumer, has been determined, and that the consumer should await the 20 approach of a prize bearer who will hand the prize to the consumer. It will be appreciated that the message may instead contain different information or instructions for the consumer. For example, it might request the consumer to go to another particular location to claim the prize, or to perform further activities before the prize may be claimed. 25 In an alternative embodiment to that described above, instead of the telephone 76 having a button 80 which must be depressed by the consumer in order to emit the outgoing signal, the article 10 may be configured to automatically emit the outgoing signal when the upper component 12 is removed from the lower component 14 and the 30 chamber 20 is opened to expose the telephone 76. The article 10 might also be configured to transmit the above-mentioned location signal automatically, so that a prize bearer may locate, and hand a prize to, the consumer, without the consumer even WO 2004/101377 PCT/AU2004/000658 12 knowing that his or her location has been determined, so that the approach of the prize bearer is a complete surprise to the consumer. The ability of the telephone 76 to receive a human-comprehensible message is 5 advantageous as it allows the consumer, virtually instantly, to be informed that knowledge of the selection of the dummy product constituted by the article 10 has been gleaned, for example, by the person or entity performing the promotional method. It also enables the consumer to be informed of the nature of the reward that will be provided. In addition, it allows arrangements, if required, to be made to 10 facilitate the provision of the prize to the consumer, or for the consumer to be advised of what further steps may be necessary to satisfy any further conditions for receiving the prize. In the above embodiments, i.e. those relating to a prize being provided within the 15 chamber 20, and a telephone being provided within the chamber, the nature of the novelty article 10, and the promotional methods described, provide useful means for promoting the products in question, by encouraging consumers to purchase items of the product in the hope that they will select a dummy product and derive any benefits, rewards or prizes that may be forthcoming. 20 Although the invention has been described above with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that it is not limited to those embodiments, and may be embodied in many other forms as well.