Super Bowl ads highlight wireless

Most viewers spent Sunday afternoon rooting for either the Bears or Colts, but wireless types were busy cheering on mobile marketing.
Anheuser-Busch was perhaps the most aggressive brand pushing the third screen during yesterday’s Super Bowl, urging viewers to rate its 10 commercials via text messaging. The company allowed fans who registered on its home page to weigh in on their favorite spot; users could also view a “secret” 11th commercial.
Meanwhile, Toyota used Super Bowl weekend to launch a cross-platform, cross-carrier campaign touting its FJ Cruiser. The effort includes repurposed video content documenting the vehicle’s performance in the Baja 1000, a grueling off-road endurance race, and was executed by Australian mobile marketing firm The Hyperfactory.
Pizza Hut and Emerald Nuts also employed a wireless angle to the pitches during the big game. Emerald nuts launched a campaign starring Robert Goulet that will offer free ringtones, while Pizza Hut encouraged viewers to send a message to a short code in an effort to win a host of prizes, from a car to music downloads.
The Pizza Hut and Anheuser-Busch campaigns were powered by Ipsh, a San Francisco-based wireless marketing outfit.
The Mobile Marketing Association’s Laura Marriott issued a post-game statement noting that the event “showcased some great examples of mobile marketing and clearly demonstrates that mobile marketing is reaching a wider and more diverse demographic.”