The latest James Bond film, Spectre, opened last week in Hong Kong to enthusiastic audiences, having already racked up record box office receipts in a number of key territories. Expectations are high that the 24th film in the long-running and storied franchise will match and perhaps exceed the US$1.1 billion made worldwide by the previous film, 2012's Skyfall.

Spectre is reportedly one of the most expensive films made, with a production and global marketing budget as high as US$350 million. Of course, the film's producers, Eon, MGM and Sony, are hoping to recoup as much as possible through the box office and then in DVD and streaming rights. The economic reality, however, is that Spectre mitigated a substantial part of the budget through partnerships with luxury brands before it even hit the big screen.

Critically acclaimed though it was, Skyfall's rather obvious product placement for the likes of Heineken, Aston Martin and watchmaker Omega raised eyebrow ... Read more »