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Droga5 wheels out heavy guns for Facebook Olympics

One of the ironies of the digital era is that the tech companies that have, among other things, supposedly written the obituary of big, mass audience TV campaigns, are falling over themselves to compete with – big, mass audience TV campaigns. In part, maybe, because they’re the only companies left that can afford them.

We’ve seen a number of recent ad blitzes from Apple as it brings out each year’s new product extensions and now Facebook, whose intentions are somewhat different, is joining the fray.

Its basic point is that connecting people via Facebook is a good thing rather than a spectacularly efficient of gathering data it’s not supposed to.

The imminent Olympics is clearly a good opportunity – the first (mostly) virtual Games where devices are all – and skateboarding, making its Olympics debut, has clearly captured the attention of advertisers seeking a young audience. We had some of it in Samsung’s rather lame effort yesterday, now Facebook is giving it all its billion dollar barrels in a massive new campaign from Droga5 New York. Featuring a starrier line-up of directors than you’d have found at the Oscars.

Skate Nation Ghana
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_ysoCP1UcI&list=PLKdbWuZ2pbLUO6KqkYaKPRwOfr7JrnTqd&index=2

No Comply:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-AzdRko09s&list=PLKdbWuZ2pbLUO6KqkYaKPRwOfr7JrnTqd&index=3

Longboard Family:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YS_KzPau1SE&list=PLKdbWuZ2pbLUO6KqkYaKPRwOfr7JrnTqd&index=4

Once Upon a Time Everywhere: (from the inimitable Juan Cabral)

Facebook V-P global company marketing Andrew Stirk says: “Facebook is proud to celebrate skateboarding and its athletes around the world, as the sport takes the global stage in Tokyo for the first time. Skateboarding is a grassroots sport and culture, centered around connection and community. This work celebrates the authentic stories of skaters using our platforms to find each other, broaden the culture, and push the sport forward.”

D5 Co-CCO Felix Richter “The Skateboarding debut at the Olympics this summer felt like the perfect moment to tell stories about how the sport has also evolved to become more inclusive and illustrate the role Facebook’s suite of apps have played–helping people find each other in sports and beyond–to build great things.”

Difficult to do these: you need to speak the language of the young while not putting off everyone else who is watching NBC’s Olympics coverage. And tackling some pre-determined views of Zuckerberg and co. of course (there seems to be a book a week on the contentious empire.)

But D5 is good at marshalling major forces and this lot constitute a veritable armoured division. Facobook should be happy.

MAA creative scale: 9.

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