Search results matching tag 'iPint'

iPint - the sincerest form of flattery?

693284 — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 10:11:00 GMT

My views on the iPint (great idea, could have gone further) prompted some to argue that the idea was good enough to preclude any criticism. Now it seems even that might not have been theirs in the first place.

For BMB, which created the iPint for Carling and won a Cyber Lion at Cannes for its efforts, is being sued by an apps developer that created iBeer and claims it refused BMB the rights to use it as the technology behind iPint. BMB instead went elsewhere to create their own.

Now, nicking ideas is not a rare occurrence in adland - particularly now that the 'viral' effect lands loads of them on creatives' PCs on a regular basis - and if iPint was nicked then it's the latest in a long line. But the mistake will have been to have messed with application developers.

Theirs is a close-knit world. They often feel they are fighting towards some undefined common goal (The Matrix, War Games and Tron will almost always feature in their favourite movies) and interlopers, particularly those from the dark world of 'traditional advertising', are not particularly welcome.

If BMB is found to have ripped off a member of this particular sect of the digital landscape, then it will have done much to confirm everything they already think about ad agencies. Since marketers these days need technology on their side to stand any chance of having an impact, that is not a helpful state of affairs

Beattie McGuinness Bungay hit with $12.5m lawsuit for 'iPint' app

Why the iPint fails (abridged)

693284 — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 08:46:00 GMT

Reports on Carling’s iPint have so far been overflowing (no pun intended) with praise. But, while the campaign brilliantly demonstrates how execution of ideas can be utterly tied into the medium (including device) on which it is viewed/used, it also misses the point that digital channels enable advertisers to complete the circle by tying their work to sales.

Carling is one of few brands - thanks to the efforts of people like Nicola Young - to have got its head round how to use digital channels as an FMCG brand. It focused on specific areas like football and music and developed assets (like venues such as the Brixton Academy) to support it all. Now it's worked out how using the special skills of the iPhone - namely its tilt function - it can engage well using mobile.

But, the iPint could and should have offered, first, instant information on the nearest pub with Carling on tap using the iPhone’s Google Maps and GPS services, and, second, a voucher (via SMS/email/Bluetooth/mobile web/whatever) for, say, a free second pint.

The fact that it doesn't is probably related to factors such as budget, technical knowledge/resource, or the need to get it out in time for the launch of the iPhone apps store.

Digital always offers the ability to link any advertising to the bottom line. In many cases, it might not be the right thing to do. But you can bet that Carling’s on and off-trade distributors - and even customers - would argue that iPint was not one of them

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Carling don't get it and it annoys me!

2228399 — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 06:54:00 GMT

A mate of mine sent me a mail about the new iPint campaign from Carling. If you haven't seen it, iPint is a v.cool iPhone app which basically pours you a virtual pint of Carling. It's one of those great ideas that is naturally viral - with people naturally talking about it + mailing each other about it. Congratulations Carling and Beattie McGuinness Bungay - the agency that created it.

Congratulations to a point. Although the creative concept is great, Carling and BMB just don't seem to understand how to execute and manage viral campaigns. Two main things annoy me about the execution of this campaign:

1) The content isn't as shareable as it should be: for example, the video demo of iPint is embeded in the Carling.com website without any easy way to share it, and embed it in blogs etc. as it uses an old school proprietary video player and not a video sharing platform like YouTube.

2) Carling are stopping users from sharing their content: I only know this as when I Googled "iPint" and it came up with a clip on YouTube with the following description: " iPint game for iPod touch showing the accelerometer to simulate a pint of beer!Keeps my daughter entertained!". Of course I thought this was pure viral gold-dust for the brand, so immediately clicked the link to then only find out that it had been pulled down from YouTube by Carling for being copyrighted material.

It was at this point that my opinion of Carling and BMB turned from viral geniuses to viral dumbasses. Why on earth would Carling want to stop brand advocates from sharing their branded viral content with friends on YouTube?

Carling and BMB got so close to creating viral nirvana, but seem to have shot themselves in the foot at the last hurdle. So near, yet so far . . .