With its Kinect device on the horizon and some potential players still skeptical, Microsoft is preparing to do what it does best: throw money at it. Gobs and gobs of money. The NY Post reports that the company is set to kick off a $500 million marketing effort for this holiday season. To top it off, hit-maker Steven Spielberg has been assisting on the launch blitz plans since they started over a year ago.
Microsoft has penned deals for co-marketing with several other popular brands, like Pepsi, Kellogg’s cereals, and Burger King. The company is targeting its advertising on channels like Nickelodeon, Disney’s family of channels, and YouTube. AgencyTwoFifteen, the ad company behind Halo Reach‘s “Deliver Hope” and Gears of War 3‘s “Ashes to Ashes” trailers, has made TV spots to air with Dancing with the Stars and Glee. Print ads will cover non-gaming magazines like People and InStyle.
The strategy seems to be reaching outside the hardcore gaming market, which is already familiar with the device. To the broader public, a marketing campaign like this is designed to generate hype through saturation, and chances are most people will be hearing about it for the first time. Even if you don’t want a Kinect yet, Microsoft is going to make sure you see plenty of it in the next few months.
