OTOinsights

Halo "Believe" Campaign

As anyone who's ever played a videogame can probably tell you, Halo 3's upcoming release is pretty big stuff. Halo 2's first-weekend revenues exceeded any Hollywood movie release of all time, including all the Spider-Mans and Pirates of the Caribbeans, and Halo 3 is expected to be even bigger, with better graphics, more multiplayer options, better online support, and a conclusion to the trilogy's storyline.

Recently Microsoft has kicked off a new "Believe" campaign for the game, which focuses on the "humanity at war" aspect of the series, earlier this week premiering a new Saving-Private-Ryan-esque TV ad with an old man visiting the "Museum of Humanity" and looking at a model of one of the battles as he recounts how he survived. See it here:

On the heels of that, however, Microsoft opens up this website, which -- after certifying that you're old enough to enter -- which allows visitors to take a 3D Flash tour through the same battlefield model the old man was staring at, stopping along the way for 360-degree views and the ability to click on icons buried in the model for more info, screenshots, and screensavers. It looks rather like a real model they built, with cotton used at one point to represent a tank's rocketfire, and plays sad piano music in the background to presumably build up the sense of loss from the war.

It's all very well done and does a fantastic job of drumming up the epic scale of the coming "war". Here's hoping the game itself is as good at creating such a mood.

One to One Interactive launches Comcast into In-Game Advertising

OTOi, the digital marketing agency division of One to One Interactive, has recently launched an extensive in-game advertising campaign for Comcast's new Game Invasion High Speed Internet Product.  Via the Massive Incorporated video game ad network, Comcast is able to reach there target of male 18-34 hard-core gamers in a contextual way, adding to the realism of the game while simultaneously creating pervasive brand awareness.  Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG), First Person Shooters, and Sports categories made up the buy.  Rainbow Six 4, Splinter Cell 4, Swat4, Anarchy Online, And1 Streetball, MLB 2K6, and Tony Hawk AW are just some of the titles where the Comcast messaging appears.  Some screen shot provided below:

 

 

Notable Technology Marketers on MySpace

Below represents three major technology brands that are using social network site MySpace.com to promote their brand and/or products via their own MySpace page.

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Company: Cingular

URL: http://www.myspace.com/cingularsounds

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Company: Dell

URL: http://www.myspace.com/dellditty

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Company: Motorola

URL: http://www.myspace.com/motoq

Eons.com Begins To Gain Traction

Eons.com, Jeff Taylor's new venture, has launched its Life Calculator section and is on track for a full portal launch on July 31.  Several news services have begun to pick up on the buzz surrounding the ambitious 50+ community site including an article from the WSJ "Start-up magazines, Web sites beckon to Baby Boomers" .  The article mentions the traditional advertiser notion that brands and products must be seen as young and vibrant to make an impact, and how Eons and a few others will attempt to tackle this dated view head on. 

The site seeks to not just be a "MySpace for seniors" but will offer a wealth of knowledge as well as applications like the currently live Life Calculator.  Business Wire has an in depth view of how detailed the application is, and how long it has been in development.

"Dr. Perls created his first Web-based Life Expectancy Calculator in 1999 and recently collaborated with Eons to create proprietary offerings that specifically target adults 50+ and help them to add, in the words of Abraham Lincoln, "not just years to life but life to their years.""

"Mr taylor says advertisers won't worry about the image fallout if they are seen on Eons.com, because the Web site's self-selecting audience will be made up of people 50-plus."

The market certainly holds a lot of potential for companies that can harness it.  The 50+ market is growing at a tremdous pace and this year alone accounts for "78 million americans... with $2 trillion in spending power".