Samsung Curved TV promises a view as real as life

The consumer durable brand's new campaign highlights the diverse viewing experience of the Curved TVs, replete with sensational picture quality, seamless interaction and ultra-stylish design proffering surround view as real as life.

Manufacturers and marketers of television sets are leaving no stone unturned to cater to the changing tastes and preferences of the modern-day, evolving consumer. Samsung's launch of Curved TVs too is aimed at the same.

The consumer durables brand has brought out an ad campaign, in association with Cheil Worldwide SW Asia, promoting its Curved TV range. The campaign's objective is to 'sustain the market leadership' which the brand claims to have held since the least nine years, and break the clutter during the festive time with an out-of-the-box idea.

Launched on October 2, the campaign will be aired on over 50 channels across all genres and will continue till the second week of November. The campaign highlights the diverse viewing experience of the Curved TVs, along with their sensational picture quality, seamless interaction and ultra-stylish design proffering surround view as real as life.

The TVC, conceptualised by Kiss Films, opens in a haveli in the middle of a desert in Rajasthan. A 10-year-old boy is shown running down the village street calling out to his friends to follow him, as he announces, "Jaldi aao, udne waali machali aayi hai!" With curiosity writ large on their faces, the other kids follow the boy passing over sand dunes when they are introduced to a huge luminous dome where they see bright-coloured coral and fish swim around them in the beautiful blue waters, along with various other wonderful sights. Eventually, they realise that this larger-than-life view has been made possible by Samsung Curved TV.

Samsung's brief to Cheil Worldwide SW Asia was to redefine the premium TV category in India and own it with Samsung Curved TV range, as well as educate and demonstrate the benefits of Curved TV through an engaging story. The brand believes that males, predominantly in the 25+ age group, along with women and children in the family, are major influencers in top 15 cities within SEC A and B. Apart from TV, the brand has also taken to advertising via print, digital, retail and OOH. It also has plans to boost the campaign via promotional activities during Diwali.

Talking about the new campaign, Kundan Joshee, senior vice president, Cheil Worldwide, says, "With Samsung Curved TV, we already have a differentiated product; our challenge was to present a fresh perspective and align it with the brand's promise of delivering outstanding viewing experience. The simplicity of the thought has been crafted into a visual spectacle, making it memorable."

Navin Theeng, group creative director, Cheil Worldwide, adds, "Advertising for televisions always talks about product attributes, better colours and sharper pictures being the usual suspects. So, for Samsung Curved TVs, we decided to go beyond that and incorporate an emotional arc. It is the story of children who live in the desert, experiencing the wonders of the ocean for the very first time. The product differentiator - the unique curved design of the TV - comes across subtly in the design of the dome-shaped aquarium. What add to the charm are the wonderful lyrics by Swanand Kirkire and the feel of the desert that Mame Khan's singing has brought about."

Expressing his views about the TVC, Sambit Mohanty, creative head, DDB Mudra North, says, "Ads for high-end TVs have become almost formulaic in nature - set it in Rajasthan (where else will one find vivid colours?), throw in some surrealism (a space-age dome in the middle of nowhere), let the viewers' imagination join the dots and voilà, it's ready to air." According to Mohanty, a pastiche of all these tropes, the TVC for Samsung fails to impress on any count. "The technology may be cutting-edge, but the story doesn't engage at all."