The City of Miami Beach has approved negotiations with Rockstar Games for an upcoming marketing campaign. This would bring advertisements for Grand Theft Auto 6 to the seaside city in exchange for millions of dollars.
The votes came in at 4-3, following arguments between those concerned with the violent nature of the game and others seeing value in the promotional power of Rockstar’s upcoming mega-release. Through this debate some components of the deal being negotiated were disclosed by commissioner Laura Dominguez.
This includes the current price Rockstar is expected to pay, which is $3m. However, Dominguez noted the city would attempt to negotiate for a higher fee. Later in the meeting, commissioner Tanya Katzoff Bhatt indicated the city would receive benefits “closer to $4m”. GTA6 would be advertised “discreetly” through Boucher Brothers beach chairs and umbrellas, featuring the roman numerals VI or Vice City rather than the words Grand Theft Auto.
This campaign is currently planned to run from the 15th October through to the end of the year. However, it will not be advertised at Miami Beach’s Art Basel event in early December. Also, these GTA adverts won’t be present on city property, including iconic landmarks or lifeguard stands.
This approval was far from a sure thing, with some commissioners sharing their displeasure with the GTA series and its depiction of violence. Commissioner David Suarez presented video footage of both GTA5 and the recent GTA6 extended preview on Netflix. While showing the police car chase during the extended preview, Suarez said: “I certainly don’t want to see our brand associated with this video game, I don’t think it’s worth any amount of money.”
That money, however, would be incredibly valuable to the city, others argued. Commissioner Bhatt said: “This is coming to Miami Beach with or without us, and to pretend that it isn’t is a missed opportunity […] “It’s actually close to $4m or so in benefits to the city, which itself would pay for the Flamingo football field renovation project that is currently not funded, which is of vital importance to families all across the city.”
Freelance Miami journalist Francisco Alvarado also reported that the Miami Heat affiliate Basketball Properties, Miami Dade County, and Rockstar Games are close to concluding a deal to put up a giant GTA6 sign on the roof of the Kaseya Center.
This debate has raged far beyond the city commission meeting. Miami-Dade county sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz spoke out about the planned promotion between the city and Grand Theft Auto 6, saying: “Grand Theft Auto is a video game franchise built around criminal activity — we need to seriously consider the message we send when our own government promotes a fictional identity centered around many of those same crimes.”
