Same Old, Same Old

This year’s Superbowl hit many lows. Lowest score line, lowest viewing figures, no controversial half time show, all very boring.

So how about the ads, which after all usually attract almost as much – if not more – attention as the game itself? Nope, not much to look at here either. Which, given that they cost upwards of $5m a pop, and in recent years have seen some strong and provocative political statements (think Airbnb promoting diversity and taking a stab at Trump’s immigration ban), is a pity.

Budweiser did manage to rile the corn industry, with its ad goading its competitors about their use of corn syrup, but we're not sure that counts when set against the impact that comes from goading the President. Amazon gave us an ostensibly light-hearted ad for Alexa that painted an oddly dystopian vision of a future where astronauts on the ISS accidently shut down the US electricity grid through a mistimed voice command, which felt a long way from being either aspirational or reassuring.

Microsoft’s We All Win ad about adaptive gaming was a bright spot – showcasing a product innovation that actually solves a social problem (rather than just talking about it) and doing it in an inclusive way: it overcomes differences without focusing on them. And with 25 million views on YouTube, its impact is extending way beyond the Superbowl moment.

But taken as a group, the ads left us cold. And although we wouldn’t suggest every company or campaign needs to make a statement (there can be too much purpose sometimes), when they’re spending that much money, and they’ve got that many eyeballs, you do really want a brand to have something meaningful to say.