Amit Agarwal has an interesting update in his blog – Chrome gets thumbs-up from Indiaâ??s Biggest Star – and goes on to explain how Amitabh Bachchan not only posed a Chrome-related (well, browser-related) question, but also praised Chrome specifically when the participant seemed confused.
Chrome recently released full-page advertisements in leading newspapers in India – The Times of India, The Hindu and Mint, if I recall right. And, this is perhaps the first ever, by any browser, in India, to use the print medium for promotion.
Taking that same logic one step forward, I wonder if the Kaun Banega Crorepati mention was a paid placement? The question is about which of the 4 options is ‘not’ a browser and lists 3 browsers in the options, along with Facebook (which Zuck may be planning to convert into it’s own browser, may be 5 years from now – digression!). Chrome is the 4th option and when the contestant finally manages to answer the question right, after getting an audience poll, Amitabh adds a special note of praise for Chrome.
Was it only because it is new (compared to veterans Firefox and Opera)? Or is Firefox too geeky and Opera, too niche, (in terms of user numbers) to single for such extra context from the host?
I do not think the contestant’s response or the way she went about finding the right answer may have been scripted. But, going by the extent of Google’s marketing of Chrome (Full page ad? For a browser? Right/wrong is subjective – I have ‘odd’ in mind.) Big B’s utterance singled out for Chrome alone may have been scripted, in my opinion. The question itself too…may have been placed for the purpose of this contextual plug – this is another possibility.
If yes, this is a very smart and intelligent move by Google! This goes way beyond all those tacky appearances by leading film stars in dance/singing/whatever shows as ‘guests’, while they continue to drop obvious references to their new films in assorted ways – share experiences, sing songs and dance along with the participants towards the end fr the same songs. That…seems obvious and explicit. The KBC plug, if it indeed was, seems subtle and completely within context.
Now, imagine the possibilities for other brands! It could degenerate into something completely messy, but I don’t think Siddhartha Basu may allow that to happen. The best, next possibility could be something like this…
Amitabh’s question: Which of the four causes visible damage to the human skin?
Option 1: Ultra violet | Option 2: Intravenous | Option 3: Aloe vera | Option 4: Primavera
After the question has been ‘answered’, cut to an ad for a Lakme skin care <something> that refers to sun’s harmful ultra violet rays and how Lakme helps!