Cheerios rain down on Angry Birds' piggies in limited-time integration
Angry Birds 2 players will be able to rain Honey Nut Cheerios down on the game?s piggies for a limited time beginning on Aug. 6 in a mobile in-game integration that leverages ad-serving technology instead of being hard coded into the platform.
The much-anticipated follow-up to the popular Angry Birds mobile game ? which has more than 3 billion downloads since 2009 and woke up the marketing world to significant influence of mobile games - debuted on July 30. The integration with General Mills? Honey Nut Cheerios brand represents a technological advancement in mobile in-game advertising as it is delivered through Rovio?s ad server for a limited time and it not hard coded into the game.
?We know our consumers play games on their mobile devices and we saw this as a fun opportunity for Buzz the Bee to help people get past difficult levels in the game,? said Jared Pippin, associate marketing manager for Cheerios.
Honey Blaster Spell
Honey Nut Cheerios? mascot, BuzzBee, will appear in the game along with a Honey Blaster Spell that helps players drop a floor of Honey Nut Cheerios on the piggies.
Besides advancing mobile in-game advertising through the use of Rovio?s ad server for a limited-time integration, the effort also represents the first time General Mills has had one of its equity characters in an established game.
By integrating the Cheerios into the gameplay in a way that helps players get to the next level, General Mills is hoping to gain more good will for the effort than a mobile ad that would interrupt the game experience.
As the game is focused around a struggle between birds and pigs, introducing a bee to the environment fits thematically, another way the integration is likely to feel more organic to players rather than like an intrusive ad.
Mobile-first brand
Angry Birds is one of the first mobile-first brands to really take off. While the frenzy surrounding the Angry Birds franchise of a couple of years ago has died down somewhat, the brand is still popular with mobile users, with close to 600 million new game downloads in 2014. As a result, Rovio claims it was one of the top five mobile games companies last year.
Rovio said its revenue dropped by 9 percent in 2014, driven by a drop in licensing revenue. At its heights, a wide variety of Angry Birds licensed merchandise was available, including stuffed toys, games and t-shirts.
An upcoming Angry Birds feature, which is scheduled for release in May 2016, film could help further reignite the brand.
Final Take
Chantal Tode is senior editor on Mobile Marketer, New York