Talking about some slick advertising. Here it is. It starts like a movie trailer: “The first rocket to reach the moon had less computing power than today’s Sony VAIO notebook”. The trailer announces a branded documentary that shows how some whiz kids learn “rocket science” to launch a rocket with a Sony Vaio. The Hollywoodish tone of voice is no surprise when you realize it was created by 180LA (180 Amsterdam’s sibling). And while the cynics among us might say that probably any other comparable laptop can launch a rocket, you got to admit this (literally) is a great piece of ad. We can easily imagine people getting goosebumps when seeing the trailer. And they might even be compelled to see the entire documentary on Science Channel “this fall”. It caries all the Hollywood tricks (“a weather setback!”) that will make compelling TV. And we’re pretty sure that Sony Vaio will gain on the brand attributes “smart” and “powerful”. Job well done – this goes for both kids and agency.

We had to view this Sony commercial a few times, before we could fully appreciate it. The reason is that if feels a little corporate. As if Sony told its agency: make a big budget commercial, throw in massive special effects, show that we spend lots of money on R&D and please feature some of our fantastic entertainment titles. Oh yeah, and make sure everybody likes it. As said, a little corporate. What we like about it, however, is that Sony for the very first time in its history positions itself as a complete entertainment company that offers movies (2012), games (Motor Storm, Pacific Rift) and music (Hey Monday). We also like the on/off button as ad property, combined with the pay-off ‘make.believe’. It says: we are a ubiquitous, full service entertainment company that makes everything you can imagine. It makes Sony look confident, ambitious and ready for the next century. The commercial was created by 180’s Amsterdam and LA offices, directed by Noam Murro and given special effects by Animal Logic.