Is DirecTV's use of Chris Farley distasteful? Will it help the stock?

I understand better the outrage over David Spade using his dead friend to make a buck, a friend whose funeral he did not attend because he "couldn't have gone into a room where Chris was in a box." So, even though the Farley family agreed to the ad, some anger over Spade's use of Farley's image is warranted. Heck, he could have used Chris's brother, who is tarnishing the image of his brother by trying to recreate his comedy in commercials for his own benefit.

Now that my rant is over, let's talk about how effective these ads are. Today, people are talking about the ads. If you do an Internet search for "DirecTV ad" you will find that there is no shortage of discussion in both the news and the blogosphere about the Farley commercial. I remember an old saying that any publicity is good publicity, and that is exactly what is happening with DTV today. The company is being talked about -- bottom line! Will this discussion translate to new subscribers? We can only guess.

In order for the stock to move higher, it will need a push in order to challenge with the upper reaches of the $27 region. The stock has retreated from the $27.75 level three times in the past two years -- action which helps calcify potential resistance. Will the Farley ad lead to a breach of this resistance? Probably not, but again, any publicity is good publicity.