Intel and Toshiba breaking ground with their social movie marketing strategy

Toshiba and Intel are using a new video series to promote their product, a video series that allows their fans (that have to use Facebook) to shape the star and the plot of their cinematic experience, an interesting and innovative movie marketing strategy indeed.


The protagonist of the movie (Alex), is scheduled to be played by “That 70’s Show” Topher Grace, has an interesting condition. The condition has him wake up looking different every day as he wakes up, hairy, bald, black, white, old, or young. This allows for a great deal of options and it is said that as many as 30 people play the role of Alex at some point. However, even though many different many people will play Alex, the internal voice belongs to Grace, which allows the audience to immediately identify with the character, regardless of what he looks like.

The one constant in the video series is going to be the Toshiba Portégé Ultrabook that Alex always has with him, allowing him to check his appearance every day as he wakes up in lieu of a mirror. According to the chief creative officer of Pereira and O'Dell, PJ Pereira, the series understands that they are marketing towards younger individuals, but the series does not aim to be a direct pitch.

While Grace will not be netting anything close to his rumored $6 million per season he made during the television show, this is still an expensive experiment that both brands assume will at least provide attention. However, are people going to tune in every week for six weeks to see what happens with Alex? We will find out August 16. Regardless, it is certainly an interesting step forward.