‘The media pulls your strings’: Presto takes part in global Mr Robot marketing push
Streaming service Presto was part of a co-ordinated global marketing push for the upcoming second series of Mr Robot yesterday, delivering an anti-capitalist rant live to fans on its Facebook page via Facebook Live before a clip which answers one of the cliffhangers at the end of the first season.
The stunt made it appear that the cyber hacking operation from the acclaimed show ‘fsociety’ had taken over the Facebook pages of broadcasters of the show in 13 countries, featuring a countdown and then a tailored message to fans in the native tongue of each country.
The Australian version starts with the line”Gday brothers and sisters” and goes into a rant on how the “media pulls your strings” and people are “seduced into buying things you don’t need” by marketers.
It then featured an exclusive preview of the second series featuring lead characters Elliot Alderson and Tyrell Wellick as they prepared to execute the hack which was the pivotal moment of the first season, but was skipped over by program makers.
“Passionate fans around the globe have embraced the spirit of Mr Robot. It’s nothing short of a phenomenon,” said Alexandra Shapiro, EVP, marketing and digital, Entertainment Networks, NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment.
“To date, Mr Robot has been licensed in nearly 200 territories worldwide, and the fan fervour and interest in the franchise inspired us to create a coordinated global campaign around the second season premiere.
“Along with NBCUniversal International’s broadcast partners and Amazon Video, this rollout is one of the most extensive marketing stunts ever conducted on the Facebook Live platform and offers a way for us to engage with our fast-growing fanbase on a massive global scale.”
The stunt rolled out in the US, U.K., Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Canada, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia and India.
The second season of the USA Network produced show, which will air in Australia exclusively first on Foxtel and Seven West Media-owned platform Presto from July 14.
