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MOST CONTAGIOUS 2009

http://berglondon.com/projects/hat © 2009 BERG

most contagious / intro /

SUBSCRIPTION OFFER / 20% DISCOUNTVALID UNTIL 31ST JANUARY 2010NORMALLY £985 GBP, NOW JUST £790 GBP

CONTAGIOUS

CHAPTERS /

13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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MOST CONTAGIOUS / 2009 /

Lingeringlongerthanakissunderthemistletoeandmoreusefulthanadodgyjumper,MostContagious2009isourfreereviewofthemosttalked-abouttrendsandtechnologiestohaveinfluencedglobalmarketingoverthepast12months.UnlikeH1N1,feelfreetopasson.

Inayearwhenswineflupanicgrippedtheworldandthesubprimecrisisspreadlikeavirusthroughthewesternbankingsystem,ourfive year-old brand still remains the number one search resultwhentyping‘contagious’intoGoogleorBing.Thismeansthere’sastrongappetiteoutthereforintelligentreportingonfuture-facingbrandactivityandtechnologicalinnovation.

Perhaps because of the recession, there’s been lot of creativeingenuity flying around. ‘Think further with less’ seems to be2009’s tag line. We’ve noted trends such as Gutter Tech(usingsimpletechnologytosolvecomplexproblems;thinkNikeChalkbot)andtheNew Sobriety(the‘fewerbutbetter’approachtoconsumption).

Highlightsof2009forContagiouswere:• OurWILDFIREseminarandTitaniumsponsorshipatCannes• Hostingourfirstsoloconference,onMobileApps• OpeninginSydneyandMumbai,withNewYorktofollow• Presenting Contagious Trend Briefings all over the world forclientssuchasBBC,Diageo,Henkel,Mattel,Nike,O2andXbox

DemandforContagiousconsultancyserviceshasbeensohigh,we’vedecidedtolaunchadedicateddivision.NamedContagious Insider,thisnewservicewillofferpracticaladviceandstrategicinsightintothechallengesofmodernmarketing.

We’re closing 2009 with a beta launch of a new Contagiouswebsite. Faster news, more video commentary and improvedsearch functionality will give subscribers access to a uniqueintelligence resource (or ‘early warning system’) – of non-traditionalmediasolutions.Letusknowwhatyouthink:

www.contagiousmagazine.com

Contagious/Now/Next/Why/

Magazine/DVD/Online/FEED/SpecialReports/Consultancy/Events/SpecialOffertoreadersoftheMostContagious2009report–SubscribetoContagiousMagazinebefore31January2010andsave20%/Normally£985nowjust£790.Visithttp://bit.ly/contagiousoffertosubscribenow.T:+442075751998www.contagiousmagazine.com/E:sales@contagiousmagazine.com/

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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01 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /REAL TIME

Twitter et al /

In2009, if itwasn’thappeninginrealtime, itwasn’thappeningatall.WhilstTwitterhasbeenaroundacoupleof years,2009saw mass adoption of the micro-blogging service by everyonefromnewschannelstocelebrities,self-helpgurusandyourmum.ComScore’s most recent statistics indicate that growth is up949%to80millionusers,withthreequartersofthatuserbaseoutside theUS.Twitter’s foundersallegedly turneddownoffersfromGoogleandFacebook,thelatterofwhichseemssufficientlythreatenedbyTwitter’spopularitythatitsowninterfacehasbeenredesignedtoincorporatemore‘livenews’fromfriendsandfamily.

UptakeofrealtimesocialmediaservicesonmobilehasalsobeenlargelydrivenbyFacebookandTwitter,withusageup3500%inthefirstsixmonthsof2009.Fascinatingly,theuseofpageviewsvialinksharingservicesliketiny.ccandbit.ly isup1068%,indi-cating that users are not only communicating activities, they’resharingcontent.Despiteawidelyheldconvictionbycorneroffice-dwellersatthemainstreammediathatTwitterisdominatedbyacabaloflunaticscompulsivelycommunicatingthecomponentsoftheirlunch,theservicehasprovenitselfcapableoffarmore.

Nor is this real time movement confined to social networks.Google’sWaveserviceoffersaplatformforrealtimecollabora-tion, and launched in October 2009 to mass hysteria followedby almost complete confusion. YouTube’s biggest ever onlinestreamingeventoccurredthisyearwhen10millionpeopletunedtoseeU2 tearup thePasadenaRoseBowl.Andour favouritefusionofoldandnewmediacameinJanuarythisyear,whenCNN.com teamed up with Facebook to stream footage of Barack Obama’s inauguration within the Facebook interface, meaningthatpeoplecouldwatch,andcomment,withtheirfriendsorwiththeworld,inrealtime.ThecollaborationprovedsosuccessfulthatitwasrepeatedinJulyforthefuneralofMichaelJackson.

most contagious / real time /

CONTAGIOUS

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Realtimemediaisnotwithoutitsflaws.Manywouldarguethattheincreasedrelianceofmain-streamreportageonserviceslikeTwitterresultsinadumbingdownofnewsdelivery,andanover-estimation of the opinion of Joe Average com-pared to recognised expertise. The impact ofTwitter’scommunityonpoliticscanalsobeover-stated.140charactersof textcostsnothing toproduceandcanresultinahollowactivism.Theadditionofmanyvoicestoamovementdoesnotforcepolicychange,orprovidehumanitarianaid.

However, from a sociological point of view,Twitter and its community can do some mar-velous things.Wesuggest you read thearticleby comic and writer Graham Linehan (link onp.03). Frustrated with yet another dismissal oftheserviceheemployedthehashtag#whattwit-terdidforme to encourage users to share theirstoriesofTwittergoodwill.Theresponsewastre-mendous,andheart-warming.Youcanalsoturnthatfrownupsidedownwith@shitmydadsays,a young comedian who Tweets his 79-year-oldfather’smostamusingcommentsandhassincebeengivenaTVshowforhisefforts.

We’reonTwitter!@contagiousmag

Real Time Advertising /

Naturally,thereal-timephenomenonalsocaughttheattentionofadvertisers,andpromptedinno-vationinbusiness,customerservice,marketing,orallthree.

Best Buy / Twelpforce /

The US-based consumer electronics retailertookitsreputationforin-storeservicetothenextlevelwiththelaunchofTwelpforce–anarmyof2100Best Buy employeesauthorisedtoanswerconsumerquestionsviaTwitter.Queriesaresub-mittedusingthe#twelpforce hashtag.Thetooltook 13,000 queries in the first two months,and at a time when consumer spending in theUSisdownby1.9%,thecompanymadeanetprofitof$158min3Q09onrevenuesof$11bil-lion(upfrom$9.8billionyear-on-year).SeetheBestBuycasestudyinContagious21.

IKEA / Facebook Showroom /

Tasked with generating buzz surrounding thelaunchofanewIKEAstoreinMalmö,Sweden,localagencyForsman & BodenforscreatedaFacebook profile for the new store’s managerGordon Gustavssonwhouploaded12different

pictures of showrooms from the store over atwoweekperiod.Facebookmemberswhohadrequested Gordon as a friend could then tagthemselvestoaspecificitemineachphotoandin doing so, win that particular IKEA product.As with any photo on Facebook, as soon assomeonetaggedthemselves,newsofthisactionalso appeared on their news feed, growingthe campaign across thousands of differentprofilepagesasitwassharedbetweenfriends.An excellent deployment of a long-standingContagious mantra, namely that if something’sthere, USE IT. But wisely. See Contagious 21DVD.

most contagious / real time /

CONTAGIOUS

CHAPTERS /

13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Lufthansa / MySkyStatus /

UserswhosignuptoLufthansa’sMySkyStatuswillfindtheirFacebookandTwitterprofilesautomaticallyudatedwiththeiraltitude,location,departureandar-rivalinformation.Lufthansaisbrandingtheserviceas‘travel made social’, but any customers who don’twanttosharetheiritinerarieswiththeworldarefreetokeeptheinformationprivate.There’sacomprehensivelist of carriers, and Lufthansa has linked to Google Mapssouserscanseetheroutestakenbytheflightsbefore youboard. ThroughProfero,NewYork.SeeContagious21.

Cadbury’s Nibbles / Online Pop-Up Shop /

InOctober2009,CadburyteamedupwithBritishde-signerGiles Deacontocreatealimitededitionscarffor the launchof anewproduct,Caramel Nibbles.Apop-upstorewaslocatedjustoffCarnabyStreet,London,buttoclaimtheirscarf,peoplehadtolocatethe pop-up shop online. It appeared as a widgetacrossdifferentfashion-focusedsitessuchasASOSandhandbag.comandonfashionblogs,closingandopening periodically as thousands of fashionistaschaseditroundthenet.Thebrandicon,acurvaceousbunny,usedFacebooktoannouncewhenandwherethestorewouldbereopening.Whenuserssuccess-fullylinkedtoit,theycouldtaketheirplaceinavirtualqueue,wait tobe servedby anassistant andclaimtheirscarf.

This smart integration between online and offlinesawcommentsappearingon theFacebookpageatthe rateofoneevery2.5seconds for the twodaysof thepromotion,andthestoregarneredanequiva-lentfootfallinexcessof4mpeoplewithover£1.5mearned through social media. Through Hyper andStink Digital, London, with Fallon brokering theDeacondeal.FeaturedinContagious21.

Playground Stores / Sleepless /

Swedish outdoor and adventure sports re-tailer Playground Stores was seeking to promotethe positive health effects of leading an active life-style.Stockholm-basedagencyÅkestam.Holst chosefourindividualsincludingafireman,aprofessionalath-leteandaSwedishTVcelebrity,andchallengedthemtobreaktherecordforstayingawakethelongestbywalking – kitted out in Playground Stores productsas they did so. Users familiarised themselves witheach candidate via profiles hosted on the website,beforechoosingwhotheythoughtwouldlastlongest.ThewalkerswerethentrackedwithaniPhoneusingthenewBambuserlivevideostreamingservice.Ifitlooked like they were nodding off, users contactedthemwithanSMSorwithatweettotheirTwitterac-counts. And the incentive for following this record-breakingattempt?Anyonepurchasingproductsintheonlineshop‘through’theirchosenwalkerreceivedafullrefundiftheywentontowin.

Footfall increased11timesasaresultof thecam-paign, with 70% new visitors. Site traffic increasedeight-fold,andconversionratetoonlinepurchasewas10%.FeaturedinContagious20.

HTC / You Need a Phone That Gets You /

Deutsch in LA programmed billboards down theWestCoast to respondtoeventshappening in thatarea.Whethertoday’ssurfreportoramessageofen-couragementtofansofthedisgruntledanddisquali-fiedLADodgersbaseballteam,thisisapowerfuluseofoutdoorforacampaigndesignedaroundthetwinthemesofpersonalisationandhyper-localisation.

CADBURY’S NIBBLES /

PLAYGROUND STORES / SLEEPLESS /

links /

graham linehan / http://bit.ly/2QHQg

www.twitter.com/twelpforce

ikea / http://bit.ly/4l7tpo

www.myskystatus.com

www.nibblesboutique.com

http://shop.playgroundstores.com

www.htc.com

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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RATIONAL CONVERGENCE 02 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

The New TV /

Thebeginningofthe21stcenturycoincidedwiththestartofourloveaffairwith thedouble-edgedswordofconvergence.Therewere false starts: TV streamed to mobiles is wildly popular inJapanandKorea,butprovedlargelyuntenableintheWest.Therewerecasualties:Google’s latest additionof aGPS routeplan-nertotheAndroidplatformcouldseetheSatNavfollowingthewatch-makingindustryintothepilemarked‘thingsrenderedobso-letebythecellphone’.Thereweretriumphs–gamesonPCsandphones,andgamingconsolesthatusedTVscreensforintensiveaudiovisualexperience.Therewasidiocy–thatperiodoftryingtogetmediocreTVadsto‘goviral’ontheinternet,forexample.Allinall,aloveaffairinthestickiest,sweatiest,mostpassionateandflawedsense.

However, 2009 heralded the beginning of a more measuredapproachtoconvergence:rationalconvergence,ifyouwill.AndnowhereisthismoreevidentthanintheadvancesinTV.AsthebestbitsofTVfind theirway to the internet–catchingup lastnight’sX Factor orAmerican IdolviaclipsonYouTube,orstream-ing30 RockonHulu–sothebestbitsoftheinternetarefindingtheirwaytothescreeninthecornerofyourlivingroom,nowaninteractive,on-demandmediaplatform.

OnlinevideoservicessuchasHuluareprimeexamplesofthisrationalconvergence.InJuly,38millionpeoplestreamedvideosfrom Hulu – that’s more than Time Warner Cable, America’ssecondbiggestcablecompany.ThecluetoHulu’ssuccessmayalso lie in which advertising was served via the two networks.Hulugivesyouoptions:eitherfouradsperhour,oronelongadatthebeginningandthenhalfanhourofuninterruptedviewing.OnTimeWarner,youget32adsanhour,noquestionsasked.Isit anywonder theviewersaredefecting? InMay2009,analystLaura Martinconcludedthat,foreveryviewerdefectingtoHulu,

CONTAGIOUS

CHAPTERS /

13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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thenetworkwouldlose$920inadvertisingrev-enue (here’s the science part: Hulu runs fouradseachhourata$50CPMcomparedto32adsduringeachhourofprogrammingonTVata$35CPM.$1,120-$200=$920.)Still,thereareconcernsoverHulu’sability tocovercosts.Business Week reported inDecember that thecompany is in early-stage talks with cable op-eratorstolimitaccesstothoseviewerswhocanprovetheyalreadypayforacablesubscription.

Theinnovationscomethickandfast.ServiceslikeBoxeeallowforthestreamingofvideocon-tentdirectlyfromyourPCtoyourTVscreen.LG haslaunchedaTVwhichcomeswithNetflixbuiltin,allowinguserstodownloadfromtheworld’smostpopularondemandmovieservicestraighttotheirTV.SamsungjoinedthefraywithlinkstoBlockbuster’sservice,andAmazon’sVideo on Demand (themindbogglesat thesubsequentpotentialofa linkbetweenourTVscreensandtheworld’sbiggestonlineretailer).

Rational convergence is dependent on twothings– interface,andcontent.Themastersof

interfacedesign,gamesconsolemanufacturers,are also involved in the bitter turf war for con-trol of your living room.PS3 ownersnowhaveaccesstoPlayStation’sownmovienetwork. InJapan,Wii TV is on the rise.Nosing in front isMicrosoft’s Xbox, which in the UK now givesusers access not only to games, but to Face-book, Twitter, and crucially, BSkyB’s mightycableTVservice.Thesocialnetworkingadd-onsalsousegamingfunctionalitytoallowyoutoseewhat your friends are watching, and commentoncontent in real time.Allof this, throughonesleekblackbox.(SeeourRealTimesectionformoreinformationonthefusionofTVcontentwithsocialmedia.)

Asforthesecondhalfofthatequation,asfarasTVcontent is concerned, thenoughtieswillberememberedasthedecadethatgaveus 24, The Wire, Six Feet Under, and Mad Men.Argu-ably, the inventionof theDVR,massuptakeofhomeDVDplayersand–darewesayit–illegaldownloadinghascreatedacultureinwhichweneednevermissanepisodeofTVagain.Asaresult,thecontentispulsingwithcomplexnarra-tivearcsfeaturinggiganticensemblecasts.Farfromdumbingdown,TVistoolingup.Sofa-timehasneverbeensocompelling.

Post-Digital / Real World Interactive /

‘Post-digital’ is a term coined by planner/blog-gerRussell Daviestodescribethewayinwhichsmartdigitalandonlinebehaviourshavebeguntomaketheirpresencefeltintherealworld,onreal, tangible objects. It’s not hard to see theappealofthisconceptafteryearsofflash-heavymicrosites, and of ‘traditional’ vs. ‘digital’ silos:a distinction rendered increasingly obsolete bythe swelling ranks of a younger generation for

whomsuchboundariesaremeaningless.It’salsoworthpointingoutthatthemassmovetowardsdigitalcommunicationoverthelastdecadehasbeen matched only by our huge appetite forstuff.Weliketoownthings,andhavethem,andwhilstrabidcommercialismishopefullyathingofthepast, itstandstoreasonthatatsomepointour loveof thingsandofdigitalcommunicationwouldeventuallyconverge.

Davies’ own Newspaper Club initiative is aneatexampleofpost-digitalthinking–aservicebywhichyousupplytext,andimages,andtheyprintyouoffanythingfromfiveto5000copies.Atthemorecorporateendofthescale,Google’sEspresso Book Machine, to be placed inbookstoresaroundtheUS,makesthecompany’sarchiveoftwomilliontitlesavailabletoshoppersatthetouchofabutton.Yousimplychoosewhatyouwant,anditprints,binds,cutsanddispenses.

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XBOX LIVE /

NEWSPAPER CLUB /

most contagious / movements /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

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16 /VIRTUE

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RivalMicrosofthasplacedasimilarmachineinnewretail environments to ‘print’ videogames, from disctocovertoinlaytobox,toorder.Thesemechanismsaresimplygrown-upversionsofthatcartoonclassic,thebreakfast-making-machine. Is thereanything thatgives more pleasure than the sight of automated,mechanicalwheelsandpulleysspinningandheavingtoserveaperfectfry-uptoWallace and Gromit?

Gutter Tech /

And finally, a campaign so ingenious we put it onthefrontcoverofour20th issue–theNike Chalk-bot from Wieden + Kennedy, Portland for LIVES-TRONG, Lance Armstrong’s cancer charity. At theTourdeFranceeachyear,cyclingenthusiastschalkmessages of support on the side of the course toencourage and communicate with the competitors.Armed with this insight, Nike set about acting as aconduit to a broader audience. Developed in con-junctionwithsoftwareanddesignstudioDeepLocal,PittsburghandroboticsdeveloperStandard Robot,theChalkbotisaroboticchalkingmechanismthatre-ceives,processes,prints,capturesanddeliversdata(text,GPScoordinatesandphotographs).Itreceivedmessages fromanywhere in theworldviaTwitter to@Chalkbot,viaanSMSshortcode,orfromanentryformonwearyellow.comandprintedthemalongthe

roadsoftheTourdeFranceinbright,LIVESTRONGyellowusing48nozzlesandvatsofemulsifiedchalk.AllmessageswerealsophotographedbytheChalk-bot, and the GPS coordinates captured. This infor-mationwasthenreturnedtothemessagesenderviaemail. During the course of the Tour, the Chalkbotsprayedover100,000messagesofhope in vibrantLIVESTRONGyellow, andonegiganticContagiouslogo. Hey – if you don’t ask…Check it out on thecoverofContagious20.

DeepLocalrefertothiscrunchingtogetherofexist-ing properties to create tangible results as ‘gutter tech’. As David Evans, chief technical officer com-mented,‘Thewaythatpeopletreatthingschangesalotonceit’sphysical... it’snot justathrowawaytext,ora“Yo...I’msorry”.Nowit’ssomewhere,right?Nowit’ssomeTHING.’

Mobile Wars /

The2010stageissetforabattleroyaleinthesmart-phonemarket.However, it’snolongerthehandsets,but the operating systems jousting for supremacy.Applehasbeenattheforefrontofthischangeforsometime,withsalesofitsall-conqueringiPhonerisingby7%to7.4millioninthefourthquarteroffiscal2009.Thecompanyhasnotbeenshyinadvertisingthefactthat well over two billion downloads of 100,000 orsoappshavesofarbeenmadeviaitsApp Store.Iftheappsdoindeedmakeththephone,thenwhatarewe to make of the news from mobile app analyticsprovider Flurry that between September and Octo-berofthisyear,thenumberofappsbeingdevelopedforGoogle’sAndroidoperatingsystemincreasedby94%?

Unlikethe iPhone OS,Androidallowsmultipleap-plicationstoberunatanyonetime,facilitatingmulti-taskingwhicharguablyresultsinamoreflexibleand

NIKE CHALKBOT /

WAZE /

NOKIA / N900 /

most contagious / movements /

CONTAGIOUS

CHAPTERS /

13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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involved user experience. This is more reflective oftheprinciplesofconvergencehappeningelsewhereindigital technology– rather thanaseriesofdead-ended apps, there is power in the idea of severalapplications talking to each other at once. Perhapsmostimportantly,Androidiscompletelyopensourceandasa result,Samsung,LG,HTC,Motorola andSonyEricsson (amongstothers) areall nowdevel-opingAndroid-specificmodels.November’slaunchofVerizon’snewflagshipMotorola DroidphoneintheUSnotonlysaw250,000handsetssold in thefirstweek,butalsobroughtwithitthefirstunveilingoftheGoogle Maps Navigationapp.ThisGPS-enabledof-feringprovides turnby turn voiceguidanceand3DviewsàlaStreet View.DutchSatNavmanufacturerTomTom currentlyoffersa£60 iPhoneapp,but itssharesplummetedby24%followingthelaunchoftheDroid.

Still a country mile ahead in terms of smartphonemarketshare,however,isNokia,boasting44%ofallhandsets (although theFinnishmanufacturer did, atonestagepre-2008,accountforinexcessof65%).In May, Nokia launched its own apps/cross-mediasystem,Ovi,yetthelaunchwashamperedwithtech-nicalglitches.

So,areyouAndroidoriPhoneorOvi?Anappguyorabrowsergirl? Into thehandset,or justafter thesystem?Whoeveryouare,theeraofpocketperson-alisationisuponus,andthelong-heldvisionofeasilyportable,distributablebrandedcontentforcellphonesiscomingtopass.Wehatetousetheoldcliché,butthiscouldfinallybemobile’syear.

Landmark / Hyundai Assurance /

Not so much a movement as a landmark, Hyundai Motor America’s Assurance programme launchedin January thisyear.Theeconomywas in ruins,and

nobodywasbuyingcars.Whilstotherautomakersof-feredfreefuel,droppedpricesandploughedmoneyintoadvertising,Hyundaiannouncedthatanyonewhoboughtoneofitscarsandsubsequentlylosttheirjobwithinthenext12monthscouldreturnit.TheKoreanbrandputitsentiremediabudgetintothecampaign,andbetonthefactthat,onceconsumersdroveaHy-undai, any preconceptions of the marque as cheapand inferiorwouldvanish.And itworked. In January2009,salesofHyundaiwentupby14.3%fromthepreviousyear,whererivalcompaniessawdoubledigitdrops. JeffGoodby,co-chairmanandcreativedirec-toratSan-Francisco-basedGoodbySilverstein,whohandledtheHyundaiaccountatthetime,describedthe campaign’s conception in Contagious 19: ‘ItbeganwithsomeoneatHyundaiaskingwhethercar-repossession could be made into something otherthanacatastrophiccrediteventforthoseconcerned.’

MOTOROLA / VZW CLOCK /

links /

www.hulu.com

www.boxee.tv

www.netflix.com

Amazon / http://bit.ly/w59w1

Xbox / http://bit.ly/bZcQs

Russell Davies / http://bit.ly/aK9S4

www.newspaperclub.co.uk

chalkbot / http://bit.ly/17bQnb

www.deeplocal.com

Hyundai / http://bit.ly/XaDT0

HYUNDAI ASSURANCE /

most contagious / technology /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Augmented Reality /

InContagiousIssue19,GeoffreyHandley,co-founderofmobilespecialists The Hyperfactory, provided a stark assessment of2009’s craze for augmented reality: ‘AR is still only seen as a‘wow!’thing,evenwithacasethatisclearlymore.Thisisn’thelpedbytheoverwhelmingnumberofexamplesofARthatarepurely“lookhowcoolthisisandallthiscoolstuffwecando”–it’slikeacycle’.Sowhichcampaignswentbeyondthe‘wow!’factorandutilisedARtoagenuinelyuseful,profitableorentertainingend?

Perhapsnotthesexiest,butpossiblythehandiestARapplica-tionof2009wastheUnitedStatesPostalService’sVirtual Box SimulatordesignedbyAKQA,SanFrancisco(SeeContagiousIssue 20). The website-based app allows users to place theirparcels inside a series of virtual boxes, calculating the precisesizeneeded,andindoingso,savingthemmoneyonpostageandtyinginwithUSPS’taglineof‘Ifitfits,itships’.Attheotherendof the funspectrum isTopps’ 3D Live Baseball Cards viaARexpertsTotal Immersion.Whenscannedviaawebcam, theseproduceminiatureanimatedplayersinthepalmofyourhandoronyourdesk,whichcanthenbecontrolledtoplayaseriesofsimplebattingandpitchingmini-games.(SeeContagious19)

ToymanufacturerMattelalsoendoweditsnewrangeofAvataractionfigureswithARi-Tags.Theseplasticcards,whenheldinfrontofawebcam,produce3D-renderingsofthatverytoywhichthenspringtolife,stompingandleapingacrosstheuser’sdesk-top.SeeContagious21.

Interactive agency Zugara in Culver City showcased the im-pressive Social Shopper application to prospective clients viaa YouTube-hosted demo video. Designed for online retail envi-ronments, theapputilisesmotion-tracking toallowtheusertodressthemselves inaseriesofvirtualgarments.Theycanevengrabapicture,share itdirectlywithfriendsonlineandasktheir

TECHNOLOGY03 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

most contagious / technology /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

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opinion.Zugara’snumberofnewbusinessenquiriesincreasedby2400%inthetwoweeksfollowingthevideo’slaunch.(SeeContagious20).

Onmobile,theLayarbrowsingapplicationbecameavailableoniPhoneaswellasAndroid,andwontheVodafone Mobile Startup ChallengeinSeptember.Combiningahandset’scameraandGPSfunctional-ity, the app overlays information relevant to digitallytagged real-world locations or items – from restau-rantstosculptures.Layarhasrecentlylaunchedver-sion3.0withanabundanceoftoolstohelpindepend-entdevelopersadapt thesoftware.SeeContagious20.

Perhaps the most advanced AR application, how-ever, has come from those big-brained bods at theGeorgia Institute of Technology. The GVU Earth Mapprovides real-timedatasuchas traffic informa-tion,pedestrianmovementandpostaltracking,over-laidonanexistingGoogleMap.AlsobesuretocheckouttheirARhrrrrZombieshooterwhichallowsuserstoplacephysicalitemssuchasSkittlesinthegamewhichthenexplodelikelittlerainbowland-mines.SeeContagious20.

eBook Readers /

Withsmartphonepenetrationincreasingsorampantlyovertheyear,evensomeofusfearedtheworstfortheunder-appreciatedeBookReader.However,theyareselling.Amazonisplayingitscustomarytrickofclaim-ingthatitsKindledevicehashaditsmostsuccessfulmonthyetinNovember2009,withoutactuallyreleas-inganysalesfigures.AlsohighonChristmaslistsintheUSistheNook,fromretailerBarnes & Noble,al-thoughitisreportedthatSonymaystrugglewiththeYuletidelaunchofitsDaily Edition Reader,shippingaslateasDecember18th.

Beyondthefestiveperiod,thefuturefortheeBookreaderactuallylookssurprisinglybright–nottomen-tioncolourful.InSeptember,TaiwanesemanufacturerAsusunveileditsowndual-screen,full-colourreaderwhich opens like a book. Dubbed the Eee Reader afterthebrand’sEee PCrangeofaffordablecomput-ers,thedevicewillretailataround$180–waybelowthe respective $259 and $399 price tags of Ama-zon’sKindleandSonyDailyReader.Wemustalsoac-knowledgetheever-presentrumourssurroundingthelaunchofanApplehandheldtabletcomputer.Shoulditeverseethelightofday,thisunicornofaproductwillboastpowerandbrowsingcapabilitiestostunanyeBook readerat20pacesandnodoubtaprice tostunconsumersatfiftypaces…

Spotify / FIAT 500 Feel Good 50 Playlist /

Withthemusicindustrystaggeringbruisedandbat-teredin2009,itwasonlinestreamingserviceSpotifywhichcontinuedtofloatlikeabutterflyandstinglikeabee.AmassingoversixmillionusersacrosssixEuro-peanmarketsin2009,theSwedish-basedcompanynowhasitssightssetonChinaandtheUS.

By far the most successful advertising campaignrunsofaronSpotifyhailsfromthosesmartchapsatFIATandAKQA,London.InJuly,theItalianautomakerpromotedthelaunchofitsnew500Cabrioletsuper-miniviaaudioanddisplayadswhich invited ‘Young,cool music lovers’ to add their own feel-good tracktoahugecrowd-sourcedSpotifyplaylistattheFIAT 500 website. Thechance towin apremiumad-freesubscription to the music service (worth€9.99 permonth)wasprovidedasanincentive.Fromthe2,500songssubmitted,thecrowdwasthenaskedtowhittlethesedowntojust50forthefinallist.Doingsoauto-maticallyenteredusersintoadrawtowinoneofmanySpotifyPremiumannualsubscriptions.

FIAT / SPOTIFY /

LAYAR /

EBOOK READER /

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12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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ThiswasthefirsttimethatSpotifyhadcollaboratedwithabrandonsuchaninitiative.ImaginetheirdelightwheninOctoberAKQAannouncedthatofthe25mil-lionuser-generatedplaylistsonSpotify,theFIAT 500 Feel Good 50playlisthadreachedno.1,andstayedtherefortwoweeks.SeeContagious20.

MIT Media Lab / SIXTHSENSE /

BrainswereboggledattheTEDconferenceinFeb-ruary by the MIT Media Lab and their SixthSenseapplication.Thiscombinesawebcam,battery-pow-eredprojectorandmirrorincommunicationwithacellphone,allowingthewearertousetheirhandstointer-actwithinformationprojectedontoanysurface–fromawalltoahand,newspaperorentireperson.Inotherwords,thewearableprojectoreliminatestheneedforyoutowhipoutaphoneorotherdevice,bringingusonestepclosertoan‘alwayson’world.

Thetechnologyalsoprojectsrealtimeinformation on demand, such as the recommendations on po-tentialpurchases,withthesophisticationtointegrateAmazon ratings, environmental credentials, specialoffers and critical reviews, depending on the user’spersonalpreferencesandinterests.Fortravel,detailsaboutflightdelaysandgateinformationcaneasilybeupdatedandprojectedontotickets.SeeContagious21.

LosAngeles-based interactiveagency,Schematic,brought a little bit of Minority Report to Cannes Lions thisyearwith itsTouchwall technologywhichrecognisedandgreeteddelegatesviaRFID tags intheir name badges. It then let them access profilesofalltheevent’sspeakersaswellasdraganddropindividualconferencesintotheirowncalendars.Mostimpressively,iftwouserspulledtheirnamestogether,it exchanged their contact details via instantaneousemail.SeeContagious20.

links /

www.prioritymail.com/simulator.asp

www.toppstown.com

www.zugara.com

www.avataritag.com

www.layar.com

www.gvu.gatech.edu

sixthsense / http://bit.ly/3TaEkn

www.schematic.com

http://fiat.mailstat.co.uk/500cplaylist

www.amazon.com/kindle

www.barnesandnoble.com/nook

www.amazon.com/kindle

sony / http://bit.ly/8487pH

www.asus.comMIT MEDIA LAB / SIXTHSENSE /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Compare the Market / Compare the Meerkat /

Theawardforbestuseofmeerkatsinmarketingcampaignshastogo toVCCP,London forbringinganew twist toprice-com-parison website CompareTheMarket.com. Legend has it thatAleksandr Orlov,anextremelywell-turnedoutmeerkat,foundedcomparethemeerkat.combackin2002andwasdisgruntledbythenumberofvisitorsstrayingontohissite inerrorseekingtheprice comparison site. Like any smart-thinking entrepreneur, helaunchedamediaquesttopointthemintherightdirection.

Visitors to the ‘original’ site can find the perfect meerkatcompanion;othersare redirectedtocomparethemarket.comviapop-upsandbanners.Aleksbuiltupafollowingonsocialmediaplatformswithbreath-takingspeed,and todayhasover31,000followers on Twitter, and 600,000 Facebook friends. Hitwise UKestimatesthat,directlyafterthecampaignlaunched,visitstocomparethemarket.comincreasedby86%.AccordingtoAmelia Torode,VCCP’smanagingpartnerandheadofdigitalstrategy:‘Creative ideastakeona lifeof theirownwhentheyemerge inthesocialmediaworld.ItisonthelikesofTwitter,YouTubeandFacebookwheretherealfunandconversationsareoccurring.’

During2009,Aleks’activitiesincludedinterviewingDavid Has-selhoffina‘meerchat’podcastandbeingrecreatedasadollforsale inHarrodsandHamleys.And inayear thinonmemorablecatchphrases, Aleks’ trademark sign-off ‘simples’ was awardedsloganoftheyearbyAdSlogans.

ThemediadiversityoftheMeerkatcampaignisevidenceoftheMass & NichetrendidentifiedbyContagiouslastyear.Traditionaladvertisingstillhasaroletoplay,butbycreatingmoretargeted,granular,nicherelationshipswithpeople,theinteractionwithcon-sumers becomes more meaningful. People have elected to bepartofthebrand,andthereforeexpectdeeperlevelsofservice,helpfulapplicationsandexclusivecontent.SeeContagious18.

INTEGRATED04 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Doritos / Bring Slow Dancing Back /

Whycreateamarketingcampaignwhenyoucanstartasocialmovement,especiallyonethatinvolvespoten-tialsmooching?Frito-LaysnackbrandDoritosinAr-gentinaresurrectedtheslow danceafteritsagency,BBDOinBuenos Airesspentfivemonthsonblogsand social networks and realised that Argentina’syouth,agenerationusedtosocialisingviatechnology,needed the, ahem, physical benefits offered by thisgreatromanticinstitution.

An online petition persuading Argentina’s discostoplaymoreslowsongswashostedatamicrosite,the centre of the campaign. It then gravitated ontosocialnetworks,including33FacebookgroupsandTaringa!, a virtualcommunity inArgentina.Thepeti-tionpickedup500,000signaturesinjusttwoweeks,building a sizeable CRM database for Doritos, andchanging theplaylistsatover40discos to incorpo-rateslowdances.Thehighlightwasafan-organisedflashmobwhichsaw7,000peopleunitingaroundAr-gentina’s largestmirrorball.Will2010seeapopula-tionexplosioninArgentina?We’llkeepyouposted…Contagious19.

Sagami Original / Love Distance /

OK,stopsniggeringatthebackforasecondandthinkabouthowyou’dmarketcondoms.DurexandTrojancancreatehilariousviralsforamostlywesternaudi-ence, but for Sagami Rubber Industries in Japan,thatapproachisn’tanoption.SoSagami,whichpro-duces the thinnest condom in the world (0.02mm),toldforatruelovestorythroughthemediumof‘blind branded entertainment’.AgencyGT TokyoenlistedthehelpoftwoloverswholivedapartinFukuokaandTokyo,and,overamonth,trackedtheirprogressrun-ning the billion millimeters which separated them...until it became just 0.02m. Their story was told,

withoutanyreferencetoSagami,throughtexts,GPStracking, photos, blogs, web-chats and a YouTubechannelbeforethebrandwasrevealedonChristmasEve 2008 as the couple reunited. The centrepieceofthecampaignwasawebsite,dividedformaleandfemaleviewers,whichattractedover500,000uniquevisitors, along with widespread media coverage. In2009thecampaignrosetoglobalprominence,pick-ingupgoldCannes LionsforfilmandPR,aswellastophonoursatAdfestandacovetedD&ADPencil.SeeContagious18.

The British Army / Start Thinking Soldier /

The British Army has an impressive heritage of in-teractivecampaigns.In2009,itaddedgamingtothemix,aperfectmediumfromwhichtoattractitsyoungtarget.Start Thinking Soldierfeaturedgenuinesol-diers introducing combat scenarios asking playershow they would resolve situations. Problem-solvingskills were required as players removed suspectbomb-making materials and navigated undergroundtunnels.Aftermasteringteamwork,participantsweretestedindecision-makingandleadership.ThosewhocompletedthetaskscouldattendlocaleventsacrosstheUKtoexplorecareeropportunities.

The website, which attracted 1.7 million uniquevisitors,wasbuiltby Publicis Modem,andLondon-based digital agency Skive developed interactivecontent.Contagious19.

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Tourism Queensland / Best Job In The World /

TourismQueenslandwasnothingshortofpeltedwithLionsattheCannes Advertising Festival,includingGrand PrixforDirect,Cyber,andPR.Howdiditachievesuchanhistorichat-trick?Itallstartedwithasimplepressadappealingforan

‘islandcaretaker’.DubbedThe Best Job in the World,thetiny‘situationsvacant’adwascoveredbynationalpressaroundtheworld,creatinganestimated$100millioninmediacoverage.Asaresult, over34,000people from201countriesapplied for the position at islandreefjob.com.Visitors to the site watched video submissionsand voted for their favourite. The contest waswon by the UK’s Ben Southall, whose blogposts, video reports and photo reportingcontinued the campaign. This supplementedexistinginformationonthewebsiteaboutliving,working or travelling to Queensland. Nitro,Brisbane was responsible for Best Job In TheWorld,describedbyCannesPRJuryPresident,LordTimBell,as‘anabsolutelyclassiccampaignthatcapturedtheattentionofmostoftheworld’smedia’.Contagious19.

Love Jozi / Luv is Love /

Oneof thebravest,mostoriginalstrategies foran apparel brand came from South African T-shirt labelLove Jozi.Thecompanytookthe in-geniousstepofcreatinga‘fake’brand,Luv Jozi,

whichappeared indodgystreetmarketswherecounterfeitT-shirtsareusuallysold.Thisimmedi-atelypropelledthisrelativelysmallnationalbrandintothesamehemisphereasfashiongiantslikePrada,ChanelandLacostewhoarethenormaltargetsofcounterfeiters.

Blogspickeduponthestory,sparkingoutrageamongLoveJozifans.WhenLoveJozirevealedthe truth behind the two-year hoax, Luv Jozibecameadiffusionlabelinitsownright,availableinanationaldepartmentstore,existingalongside

theoriginal labelwhichremainsmorepremium.Thisinspiredconceptwasexecutedwithimpres-siveattentiontodetailandsuccessfullyextendedthebrand’sreachbeyondhipsters.TheLuvJozirangenowaccountsfor75%ofthecompany’ssales.SeeContagious21.

Walkers / Do Us A Flavour /

If there’s one thing that 2009 highlighted, itwas the UK’s passion for the humble crisp. Acontest for Walkers called Do Us A Flavourgeneratedastaggering1.2millionideasfornewtaste sensations. Five finalists,Cajun Squirrel,Chocolate and Chilli, Onion Bhaji, Fish and Chips, Crispy Duck were pipped to the postby Builder’s Breakfast, whose proud creatorwasawarded£50,000plusa1%shareoffuture

sales.Thecampaignwascreatedbyexperientialagency Not Actual Size with digital work byJigsaw, above the line creative by Abbott Mead Vickers BBDOandmediabyOMD UK,allbasedinLondon.SteveColl,seniorcreativeat AMV BBDO, reflects: ‘Flavour is a massivepartofWalkers’appeal.PeopleunderstoodthemagnitudeofbeingaskedtocreatethenextSalt&VinegarorCheese&Onion.’Contagious18.

links /

http://quevuelvanloslentos.blogspot.com

http://comparethemeerkat.com

www.lovedistance.jp

http://armyjobs.mod.uk

www.islandreefjob.com

www.lovejozi.com

www.walkers-crisps.co.uk

most contagious / online /

CONTAGIOUS

CHAPTERS /

13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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ONLINE05 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

2009 saw a move away from destination websites as brandssoughttointegratethemselvesintosocialnetworksandengageinrealtimemedia.However,therewerestillafairfewURLsthatrockedourworld.

Philips / Carousel /

TohighlighttheAureaTV’shighdef21:9frameandinbuiltAmbi-lighttechnology,manufacturerPhilipscameupwithacampaigntoredefineacategorylongdominatedbyFallon,London’sworkforSonyBravia.

ThankstotheDDB Philips team,Tribal DDBAmsterdamandStink DigitalinLondon,directorAdam BergcreatedCarousel,an eerie film depicting a complicated heist shot in frozen slowmotion. The beauty of the film was not only that it ran exclu-sivelyonline,butalsothattheactioncouldbepausedatvarious‘hotspots’ toenable theviewer towatchbrief tutorials fromthedirector,visualeffectssupervisoranddirectorofphotography.

Animpressiveproductdemocombinedwithanengagingpieceofcontentsaw1.9millionvisitorsstayingonthesiteforanaver-ageof4.5minutes–twiceaslongasthelengthofCarouselitself.

Thiscompellinginteractiveexperience–notacommercial,butratherapieceofcommercialvideocontent–scoopedtheFilmGrandPrixatCannesLionsandEurobest,theGrandPrixatBIMAandaSilverCyberLion.PhilipsalsogaveContagiousthechancetobaskinourfar-sightednessandscaresmallchildrenwhenwefeaturedoneofCarousel’sterrifyingclownmasksonthecoverofContagious19.

Nike / REALCiTY / Jumpman23 /

Nike’sownstandardsforcompulsivewebexperiencesarehigh,but this year, a couple of projects from different sides of theglobedroppedContagiousjawstothefloor.Firstup,Studio 4°C,Tokyo’s website for NIKEiD (Contagious 18) and History of

most contagious / online /

CONTAGIOUS

CHAPTERS /

13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Flight (Contagious 21), a Canadian effort fromVancouver-based Academy celebrating 25 years ofNike’sAir Jordansneakers.

REALCiTY,directedbyStudio4°C’sKoji Morimo-to, features threeManga-esquecharactershoveringontheedgeofablackandwhiteoutlineofacity.Asthey launch into theblankurbancanvastheysplashitwithcolour,until theyreachtheultimateprizeofablankBlazerhi-topsneakerwhichcanbecustomisedandboughtordownloadedasawallpaper.

Historyof Flight is a stand-outmini sitewithin theJumpman universe. It uses a beautiful series ofpop-upmodelstoallowuserstodelve intoJordan’sshoedesigns(1986:fauxlizardskinupper),greatestachievementsandhistoriccommercials.

Jumpmanitselfcontainsaseeminglyinfiniteamountofcontent,charting‘theman,themoments,theshoes,thestories’.Rotatethe25thanniversaryshoeandex-ploreitsraisond’êtreviahotspotsorwatchDwayneWadeapplytofillMichaelJordan’soversizeshoes.

adidas / Teamgeist /

Sportinggiantadidasusedastylishonlinegamein-spiredbythegraphicnovelgenretoallowfanstoex-plorethetruevalueoftheadidasjerseywornbytheGerman national football team. Through Stockholm-based agency North Kingdom, the Teamgeist siteplacedcaptainMichael Ballack and star players inanaugmentedreality,interactivecomicbook.Visitorshelped the team win back its identity after playersbecamelostin‘blank’jerseys.Thegamewasplayed500,000timesinthefirstthreeweeks.Contagious21.

Dexia / Axion Banner Concerts /

Cramming excitement into a limited ad space hasalways been a challenge, but one that Axion, theyouth division of Belgium’s Dexia Bank met with

aplomb.Workingwithdigitalagency BoondoggleinLeuven, thebankhostedbanneradswhichallowed25upandcomingbands toperform ‘inside’ theadspaces.Thiswasachievedbyfilmingtheactsinsidespecially constructed sets, designed to match thestandardproportionsofonlinebanners.

Livegigswerestreamedthroughthebannerframes,andviewerscouldvotefortheirtopband.ThewinnergottoperformatAncienneBelgique,oneofBelgium’sbiggestconcerthalls.Thegigwasalsostreamedliveonline. An embed option to include the banners inblogsandonfanpagesachieveda20%clickthroughrate.TheadsachievedsevenmillionimpressionsandwonfiveGoldLionsatCannesinMedia,Cyber,Inter-activeandDirect(2).Contagious18.

Swedish Armed Forces / Recruitment /

Inordertorecruitexactlytherightcalibreofcandidateamongstthecountry’s18-25year-olds,theSwedish Armed Forces used a dark, complex website thatsent users through a series of psychological testsassessing intelligence and motor abilities. Directmailprovidedpersonalfeedbackontheonlinetests,resulting in a response rate of 72.6%. The averagedwelltimewasalmostnineminutesandthesite(www.mil.se) received record breaking figures during thecampaign.ViaDDB Stockholm,withNorth Kingdom,Skelleftea, Teenage Engineering and Stopp,Stockholmallcontributing.SeeContagious20.

PlayStation 3 / Killzone 2 /

Deutsch,LAcollaboratedwithZOIC Studiosonaninteractive 4D ad / viral / TV trailer which enableduserstomanipulatetheactionbyswitchingbetweendifferentcameraanglesandindoingso,explorewhatwouldconstituteplayablelevelsofthefuturisticarmygame,Killzone 2.

DEXIA / AXION BANNER CONCERTS /

SWEDISH ARMED FORCES /

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12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

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Over in the UK, Agency Republic, London, created the Kil-lzone 2 Toolbar, anonlineapp tobuildpre-launchbuzz.Oncedownloaded,anadvergamealloweduserstofightwithuptothreefriendsaspartofasquad.Contagious18.

UNIQLO / Tokyo Fashion Map /

Last year that UNIQLO dominated Most Contagious 2008’sOnlinesection.Thisyearthefashionbrandhascontinueditsim-pressivework,mostnotablywithTokyo Fashion MapviaDentsu,whichgainedagoldCyberLionatCannes.ThecampaigninvitedrandompeopleinTokyotowearaUNIQLOparkaandusedthecityasabackdrop,tocreateafluid,virtualmap.SeeContagious20.

Burberry / Art of the Trench /

Burberry’ssocialnetworkingplatformhasgainedanimpressivefollowingsinceitslaunchinNovember.WelovethecollaborationbetweenestablishedbloggerslikeThe Sartorialistandthestreetportraitsofbeautifultrenchcoatwearers.Withinaweekoflaunch,thesitehadgained200,000uniquevisitorsfrom177countries,addinguptothreemillionpageviews.

links

www.cinema.philips.com

nike / bit.ly/79jein

dwayne wade / http://bit.ly/5F18nb

http://nike.jp/nike_id/blazer

www.nike.com/jumpman23

www.nike.com/jumpman23/historyofflight

www.adidas.com/teamgeist

www.axionweb.be/nl/bannerconcerts

http://rekryt.mil.se/recruitment2009

killzone 2 / http://bit.ly/5mEpPY

www.killzonewebgame.com

www.uniqlo1000.com

http://artofthetrench.com

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05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

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Last year only a couple of branded iPhone appsmanagedtocreep into theMostContagiousannualreview.Fastforwardtwelvemonthsandwehaveover100,000apps tochoose fromon theApp Store, abunchofwhicharehandylittlewidgetscreatedbythebrandsyouusedaily.Thebigoneof2009camefromtheworld’sthirdlargestfoodandbeveragecompany,Kraft.iFoodAssistantshotto#2intheLifestylecat-egoryoftheappstore,whichisimpressivebeforeyoueventakeintoaccountpeoplepaying99centsapop.BackinAprilwhenitwasfeaturedintheContagious Mobile Appsreport itwasstill inthetop100paidapplications-proofthatpeoplearewillingtotolerateandevenpayforappsfeaturingbrandsandadvertis-ing,solongassomethingrelevantandworthwhileisofferedinreturn.TheiFoodAssistantprovedsurpris-inglypopularamongsttheyoungmaledemographic,openingupawholenewtargetmarketforKraft.Fea-turedinContagious19.

Volkswagen / Real Racing GTi /

AKQA New York stuck two fingers up at traditionalmediaandlaunchedthenewVW Golf GTiwithaneatcarracinggameontheiPhone-andONLYthat.Ratherthangoingitalone,apartnershipwasformedwithanexistingsuccessfulapp,Firemints Real Racing.Thishad long hovered in the top 10 of the App Store’sracinggamesectionwithaconsistent4star rating,andVWworkedwithitscreatorstocreatealite,freeversion with all the action taking place in their newmodel.Thegamehasseenthreemilliondownloadstodate.VWpreviouslyspent$60mtopromotetheMk5 GTi back in 2006 – the racing app is estimated tohavecostamorecrunch-friendly$500,000.

Barclaycard / Waterslide /

Becoming the most popular, free, branded iPhonegame ever is quite an achievement. Who’d havethought itwouldcomefromabank?ContinuingtheslipperyslideyfunfromBBH London’swonderfulTVad,Barclaycard’sdigital agencyDare, Londoncre-ated the Waterslide Extreme game, downloadedsevenmilliontimestodate(withthreemillion in just12days!).Thegamewasalsothemostpopularfreeapp in 57 countries and was promoted as an AppStorestafffavourite.FeaturedinContagious20.

Zipcar /

Zipcar is a smart car share scheme popping up inmost major cities. Like its rivals, you book your caronlineandthenlocate,unlockanddriveitaway.Butthe ingeniousappmeansuserscannowseewhereavailablecarsareonahandymobilemap.Reserveacaronthefly,browsedifferentmodels,andextendorcancelreservations.Can’tfindthecar inacrowdedcarpark?Theappletsyouhonkthehorn,andevenunlocksthedoorsafteryouscanyourzipcard.

Pizza Hut / Dominos GPS Tracker /

Twoimpressiveappscamefrombigrivals,andbothmadeorderingyour favourite fast fooda funexperi-ence.Pizza HutthroughIMC2DallaswentdowntheengagingroutewithaniPhoneappallowinguserstodraganddroptoppings,pinchtochangepizzasize,shake virtual chicken wings to mix the sauce, andevenplayagamewhilewaitingforthepizzatoarrive.Witha20%discountontheorder,it’snotsurprisingthis appgeneratedover$1m in sales in just threemonths,accordingtoMobileMarketer.

06 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /BRANDED APPLICATIONS

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11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Domino’stookamorefunctionalroute,cominguptrumpswithaslickinterfaceandGPS Pizza Tracker feature that allowed customers to follow their pre-ciouspizzafromordertooventofrontdoor.NiceworkfromCrispin Porter + Bogusky,Boulder.FeaturedinContagious21.

Puma / Puma Index /

Doing its bit to lift spirits during the downturn,Droga5,NewYorkmademarketcrashesagoodthingwitharevealingmicrositeandiPhoneapptopromotePuma’sBodywearrangeofundies.ThePuma Index reacts to the fortunes of the Dow, German (DAX)andAustralian(ASX)stockmarkets:thelowersharepricesfall,themoreclothescomeoffthehotmaleandfemale models, representing each of the three mar-kets.A20%discountcanberedeemedifusersshowtheappinstore.Todate,theappandsitehavegener-ated118millionmediaimpressions.Ofcourse,asthemarketsrecover,themodelsrecovertheirclothes,sobythetimeyoureadthistherecould(un)fortunatelybelittleskinonshow.FeaturedinContagious21.

Burger King / Whopper Sacrifice /

ThisdevilishlyfunandheavilyawardedFacebookappfrom PR-savvy Crispin Porter + Bogusky, BoulderencourageduserstodoabitoffriendcullinginreturnforadeliciousmeatyWhopper.Theironicapptempt-edFacebookuserstosacrificetenacquaintancesinreturnforafreeburger,andwatchtheresultantfalloutonthesite’snewsfeed.60,000installsand233,906terminatedfriendships later itwasclear thatBurger King had struck a loud chord with users, althoughnotwithFacebookwhobannedtheappafteraweek,citingprivacy issues.MorepublicityplusaTitanium,Cyber and Media Gold at the 2009 Cannes Lionswasprobablyenough toconsoleeveryone involved.SeetheBurgerKingcasestudyinContagious18.

PUMA / PUMA INDEX /

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VW / REAL RACING GTI /

links /

www.vw.com/realracinggti/en/us

www.waterslide.barclaycard.co.uk

www.sitorsquat.com

www.zipcar.com/iphone

www.pizzahut.com/iphone

dominos / http://btly2mPWIL

www.theindex.puma.com

burger king / http://bitly/XyE7

most contagious / gaming /

CONTAGIOUS

CHAPTERS /

13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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NexttimeyouseesomeonesportingabizarremixtureofaVietnamVet-esquetwitchandshakingthumb/forefingers,you’llknowwhattoblame–Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.Activision’sblock-bustingwar-simhasbroughtoutthelatentscum-suckingmaggotinanextraordinarypercentageoftheworld’sgamingcommunity.

Itoutgrossedpreviousgaminggoldenchild,Grand Theft Auto IV(fromRockstar)onbothdayandweekonecopiessold:GTA4shifted3.6millioncopiesworldwideonthefirstdayofitslaunchwhereasMW2managed4.2millionintheUSandUKalone.OverthefirstfivedaysGTAgrossedUS$500mwhereasMW2passed$550m–$310mofwhichwasmadeondayone.

There is no doubt that the multi-platform MW2 will provide amuch-needed festive boost to 2009 game sales which havedipped since 2008. In October, for example, sales were down19%comparedtothesamemonthlastyear.Theriseandriseofcasualgaming–particularlyonmobileplatforms–hasnodoubthad a profound effect on sales of next-gen console games. InSeptember,Steve JobstoldThe New York Times thatApplewouldmarketitsrevisediPod Touchasprimarilyagamingdevice;littlesurprisegiventhatoneinfiveofthe100,000appscurrentlyavailable in theAppStore is agame. In theclosingmonthsof2009,theTouchhasremainedthesecondbestsellingconsumerelectronicdeviceonbothAmazonandWal-Mart intheUS– inturn,makingitthebest-sellinggaming‘console’.

Ahostofnewtitleswhichmakeuseofthedevice’sWi-Ficapa-bilitytoenablenetworked-basedmultiplaywerealsolaunchedintimeforChristmas.Now,userscanduelwithaHarryPotterspell-casting app, fly together in squadrons of World War 2 fighterplanes(Skies of Glory)ornurtureabroodofpuppiesbeforein-vitingfriends’virtualpetsoverforaplay-date(Touch Pets: Dogs).Of course, these retail for only a few dollars each – a fractionof the price of a Nintendo DS game. But what about the free

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12 /MONEY

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07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

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gamingopportunitieswhich2009hasbrought?Inparticular,socialnetwork-basedMMOG(Mas-sivelyMultiplayerOnlineGames)haveexploded,but that’s an entirely different kettle of fish, orvampires,orfarmers…

Zynga / FarmVille /

In2009socialgaminggurusZyngasaw60mil-lionusersworldwidedonastrawhatanddenimdungarees to join Facebook phenomenon,FarmVille – helping the company to generate$150 million in the process. This has helpedpushsalesofvirtual goods pastthebilliondollarannualmarkerintheUSalone.

Players addicted to the virtual smallholdinggamearebuyingsome800,000virtualtractorsaday,pluscows,sheep,seedsandallkindsofcutely-rendered farmyard staples. The fact thattheUSandtheUKprovidethehighestnumberofvirtualsmallholdersisanotablestep,takingthefrontier of virtual spendbeyond its FarEasternbase.Worldwide,thevirtualgoodsmarketisnowworthanannual$6billionandhelpedasurgeinactivityforonlinemicropaymentgroupssuchas

Offerpal.Paypalhasevennowopenedtothirdpartydeveloperstomaximisee-commerce.

FarmVille invites players to share their news,send each other free gifts and even networkwithin the game by taking neighbouring plots.The sensation has even moved offline withcleverly-linkedfancydresscompetitionsandfangroups. A well-received innovation saw onlinecashconvertedtocharitablecauses–halfofthe$854,000spentonsweetpotatoseeds in just3 weeks (!) was donated to Haitian children’scauses.

Microsoft / Project Natal /

VisitorstoLasVegas’E3 (Electronic Entertain-ment) ExpoinJunewereagogwiththeunveilingofnotone,buttwoprototypesformotion-sen-sitive control systems from Sony and Micro-soft, to rivalNintendo’sWiiconsole.ThemostimpressivewasMicrosoft’sProject Natal.UnliketheWii,whichutilisesbothan infra-redcontroland TV-mounted sensor, Natal is completelyhands-free and works with just the sensorwhichitusestodetecttheplayer’sbodymove-ment. Most impressive is the face-recognition capabilitywhichnotonlyknowswhoyouare,butcan replicate and then manipulate your image

onscreen.Checkoutthewebsiteforahostofdumbfounded celebrity endorsements, includ-ing Steven Spielberg who comments: ‘This isapivotalmomentthatwillcarrywithitawaveofchange,theripplesofwhichwillreachfarbeyondvideogames.’SeeContagious20.

Hasbro / Monopoly City Streets /

AsanyonewhohasbankruptedtheirmotheronBoxingDaywilltellyou,Hasbro’sclassicprop-erty development board game Monopoly is allaboutthenumbers.However,evenweweresur-prisedbythescaleofMonopoly City Streets–anewMMOGwhichpiggybacksGoogle MapstocreatethelargestrealtimeMonopolycontesteverplayed.

For thepre-Christmas launchof thenewMo-nopolyCityEdition (inwhichplayerserectsta-diums and skyscrapers instead of houses andhotels),Tribal DDB,Londondevelopedavirtualversionhostedatmonopolycitystreets.com.Aftersigningup,playersaregivenaninitialbankbal-anceofthreemillionMonopolydollarswhichtheythenusetopurchaseanystreetintheworld–ifit’sonGoogle Maps,itcangoinyourportfolio.

most contagious / gaming /

CONTAGIOUS

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Theobjectistoconstructanambitiousassortmentofproperties,collectingasmuchcumulativerentfromtheseaspossible.Youcansabotageyourfellowplay-ers’dealingsbyusing ‘Chance’cards, andeven in-dulgeinsomevirtualboardroomtable-slappingviatheMonopolyCityStreetsTwitterfeed.

Sincelaunch,thewebsitehasreceivedanaverageof4.5millionuniquevisitsand15billiondynamicre-questspermonth.What’smore,70%oftheseusersarespending10minutesormoreonthesitepervisit,and50%,halfanhourormore.ThisplacesMonopolyCityStreetsinthetop20mostpopularonlinegamesintheworld.SeeContagious21.

Sony PlayStation / MLB 09: The Show /

TaskedwithgeneratingincreasedsalesforthelatesttitleintheSonyPlayStationbaseballfranchiseMLB 09: The Show, Deutsch Inc,LosAngelessetaboutnot creating a campaign, but a debate. This pittedBoston Red SoxplayerandAmericanLeagueMVPof 2008 season Dustin Pedroia against fictionalSonyPlayStation‘DirectorofGameAccuracy’Kevin Butler. A series of viral and TV spots began withPedroiaprotestingtherealismof thegame inwhichhischaractercan’t hit the ‘high-inside fastball’. Thedebateragedonthecampaignwebsitewherevisitorscouldtrythegamebeforecastingtheirvote.

TVaudiencesandsportscasterswaitedforRedSoxgamestoseePedroiasettlethedebatebypoundingshotsoutofwhathewouldlaterrevealisironicallyhis‘hotarea’.248,000copiesofthegamebeingsoldinthefirstmonthalone–a46%increaseoverMLB08.SeeContagious20.

Coca-Cola China / Coke Zero Aion /

ApartnershipwithgamedevelopersShanda repre-sented Coke Zero’s first marketing push in China,andgave thebrand thechance toengagewith the300million registeredplayersofAion –oneof thecountry’sfastestgrowingMMORPGs.

Aion: The Tower of Eternityisafantasycombattitleintheserieswhichhadgainedoveramillionuniqueusers in the three months since its launch in April2009.ThecollaborationsawaCokeZerocharacterfeature in thegame,completewithvirtualpropsde-veloped by Shanda. The promotion was integratedacross digital and real-world touchpoints includinginternet cafés, retail environments, in lifestylemaga-zine,Milk, andon thebrand’swebsite, icoke.cn.Aniftyconnectedproductinitiativegavefanswhopur-chasedthepromotionalcana13 digit codeon theringpullwhichcouldbeexchangedforvirtualprops.

A user-generated aspect to the campaignencouragedgamerstouploadtheirownAion-inspiredimagesandscripts.Awinningscriptwas integratedintothegame,andthewriterawardedamuch-prizedinternship at Shanda. Creative was developed byRed Lounge, Shanghai, a collective of agenciesincludingLeo BurnettandStarcom MediaVest.SeeContagious20.

links /

www.farmville.com

www.xbox.com/en-us/live/projectnatal

www.monopolycitystreets.com

http://twitter.com/monopolycitysts

www.us.playstation.com/mlb09theshow

www.icoke.cn

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10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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ENTERTAINMENT08 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

Movies / The Year The World Went 3D /

OK,maybenotthewholeworld,asthat’sbeen3Dforquiteawhilenow,buttheworldofmedia.Aswithallrevolutions, leadingthechargeisanangry rebelwithacause,director JamesCam-eronwithhismega-dollaropusAvatar. Inpro-ductionsince2006(andingestationfrom1994whilstCameronwaited for technology tocatchupwithhisvision),thefilmreliedonafusionofmotioncapturetechnologyandvirtualsetdesigntofilmactorsin3D,whilstsimultaneouslywatch-ing their avatars perform in a special camera.Digitaldirecting, inreal time.Theepichasalsobeenprecededbyanexpensive,massupgrad-ing of projectors by pretty much every cinemachain.

Investinginthisextradimensionisprobablynotthefinancial risk it looksonpaper,as thecine-maticaristocracyarekeentousethetechniquein their forthcoming pictures. Cameron himselfis not new to breaking and remaking the rulesoffilm,aswithThe Abyss,Terminator 2andTitanic he pioneered jaw-dropping CGI, fullhumanreplicationandmorphinganddigitalsyn-thespians(whilstsettingiceberg-sizedboxofficerecords).He’salsonotnewto3Deither,havingshotanunderwaterdocumentarywiththetech-nologyforIMAX.

Fellow 3D heavyweights include Robert ZemickisofBack To The Futurefame,whoserecentwork–The Polar Express,Beowulf,A Christmas Carol – has acted as a scout-ingparty of sorts, using the samemo-capand

3DtechnologyasAvatar.BringinguptherearinthenextcoupleofyearsisthecavalrychargeofSteven SpielbergandPeter Jackson,whoseTintinseriesoffilmshasemployedsimilarcom-puter-aidedfilmmakingtotransformSimon Pegg andNick Frostintolook-a-likeThompsontwins.

Alsoin3Dthisyear,Pixar’sUP,Cloudy With A Chance Of MeatballsandLaika’sCoralinerubbed shoulders with My Bloody Valentine 3DandThe Final Destination.Thoughmainlypresentedasaside-showattractionoverartisticendeavour,theconsiderabletakings–UPisPix-ar’ssecondhighestgrossingfilmtodate–haveproved thataudiencesaremore thanwilling tostraponapairoffunnyspecs.

3D is now making the move into our homesas well. 3D TVs have been in development for

years,butwithBSkyBlookingtotestachannelnextyearand3Dgaming(firstinshops–Avatar,naturally) possible in the current generation ofconsoles/PCs, it looks to be hitting our sittingroomssoonerratherthanlater.Evenwiththecur-rentgenerationofTVs,Britain’sChannel 4ex-perimentedwithaweekof3Dprogramming.3Dhasbeenputfirmlyinthehandsoftheconsumertoo, as 3D cameras, webcams and even rapidprototypingprintersallowpunters toaddextra-dimensiontotheirpersonaloutput.

Still in its infancy, 3D technology has aspira-tionsaboveitsnoveltyheritage.Betterthanthered/blueglassesofthepast,thetechniqueisstillwaiting for aThe Jazz Singer/Wizard ofOzbreakthrough artistic application to set it asidefromgimmickry.

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04 /INTEGRATED

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Where The Wild Things Are /

ThecustomarywaitbetweenUSandUKreleasesofmovieshasmanyaBritishfilm-fanchompingatthebit.AwaveofpublicityandbrandedalliancesforWhere The Wild Things Are,Spike Jonze’sbig-screeninterpretationofMaurice Sendak’schildren’sclassic,haswhippedusuptoaleveloffrenziedanticipationbefittingthefilm’s examination of childhood. Sitting comfortably? Then we’llbegin.

Vicemagazine invited24of its contributors to create artworkinspired by the story, the results forming a pdf book and blog.Amongsttheclothingcompanieskeentogetinontheact,UGGAustraliacreatedbootsprintedwithcrownsandmonsterfaces,Christian Joy reinterpreted monster costumes and displayedthem at LA’s Space 15 Twenty Gallery and Urban Outfitterslaunchedanexclusivelineoffashion,toysandhomefurnishingsacrossitsstoresandalsoonline.

There’s more… Jonze’s side project, The Girl Skateboard Company (he isco-owner)producedaseriesof limitededitionboardsfeaturingthemonsters;Kubrikcollectabletoyshaverec-reated thecharacters inminiaturisedplastic.Andnomarketingeffort iscompletewithoutaniPhoneapp–messwiththemon-sters,feedthemphotosandcontactsandtakeapeekatahostofcontentfromthemovie.

Publishing /

Anthony E. Zuiker / Level 26 /

PickingupwherePenguin’simpressiveWe Tell Storiesleftoff,Level 26 isatrilogyofcrimenovelsfromCSIcreatorAnthony E. Zuikersteepedininteractivity.Thefirstnovel,Dark Origins,steered the reader frompaper to theweb.There, theyencoun-tered 20 ‘cyber bridges’ developed by Zuiker to be consumedalongsideeachbook,givingtheoptiontologintoacomprehen-sive sitewith exclusive cinematic content. Zuiker claims: ‘Level 26 takes thebest featuresofbooks,filmand interactivedigitaltechnologiesand rolls themall intoauniquestorytellingexperi-encewe’recallingtheworld’sfirstDigi-Novel.’

most contagious / entertain /

CONTAGIOUS

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

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Music /

Radiohead / WOWOW /

With web-housed video interactivity encompassingmuchmorethanPlayandPausebuttons, it’sunsur-prising that the fragilemusic industry is jumpingonthe technology bandwagon to promote their acts,and even less surprising that cyber-pioneers Ra-dioheadwereamongstthefirsttodoso.PromotingtheirtourofJapan,thebandcollaboratedwithTVsta-tion WOWOW on an interactive website which letfanscreatetheirownRadioheadvideo.Userscouldchoosebetweentwelvecameraanglesfilminga liveperformance,witheachcameraassignedadifferentcolourresultinginapretty‘rainbow’timelineforeachfan-madeclip.Addingtothecleverness,userscouldattach a comment to their creation and then add ittoa retina-burningpieceofdata visualisationwhichaggregated every user-generated video into stringof blazing colour. Each individual rainbow could beconvertedintoapersonalwidgetandembeddedonblogsandsocialnetworks.

MLB / Premier League / Mobile TV /

Despite theeffortsofmediaowners toconvinceusthatstreamingpre-ordainedTVschedulesontomobilephones was good for us, mobile TV in the westernworldhaslanguished,alongwithvideo-calling,inthepilemarked‘ThingsThatNeverCaughtOn’.However,2009saw the launchof two initiatives featuring thekindofcontentthatweWOULDwanttostream.

Forbestpractice insportsmarketing, lookno fur-ther than Major League Baseball (MLB). This is asportinwhich30teamseachplayastaggering162gamesayear,thusdiminishingtheoddsoffansbeingin front of their TVs at all times. As a result, MLB’srecentinitiativesindicateanunderstandingofthefactthat, if you have content people want, it’s probably

a lucrative business strategy to get it to them. NotonlyareallgamesbroadcastliveonlineaspartoftheMLB.TVpremiumsubscriptionpackage(around$20permonth),ithasalsotakentheplungeintomobile,streaming two games a day to users of its muchvaunted‘AtBat’iPhoneapplicationatnoextracharge.

Now, BSkyB in the UK has announced that itsmobileTVservicewillbeavailableoniPhones,whichmeansthattheBarclays Premiershipfootballmatch-estowhichSkyownstherightswillnowbestreameddirectlyontoahandsetwithascreenbigenoughtomaketheexperienceworthwhile.Thinkaboutit.Ifyouwereinchargeofasportwiththeinternationalcachetas baseball or football, would you rather a) lock upyourTVschedulesso tight thatnobodywithout therightsubscriptionpackageintherighttimezonecanwatchthemliveorb)openupthegamestotheworld,createan‘anytime’subscriptionforrealtimewebandmobilestreaming,andwatchasthedollarsfloodin?

For more on the changing landscape of entertain-mentmarketing,seeContagious’newspecialreport,publishedDecember2009.http://bit.ly/5Y7OQZ

links

www.avatarmovie.com

http://wherethewildthingsare.warnerbros.com

www.level26.com

www.wowow.co.jp/music/radiohead/special

www.coldwarkids.com/iveseenenough

mlb / http://bit.ly/8OE9P3

sky / http://bit.ly/8b9VvI

RADIOHEAD /

MOBILE TV /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

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06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

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/ CONTAGIOUS INSIDER /Bespoke Consultancy & Trend Briefings

Contagious Insider is a new division of ContagiousCommunications, established to meet the demands andexpectationsoffuture-facingmarketers.

The Contagious editorial team sorts through a vast quantityof information on a daily basis. We see everything: the mostinnovativecampaigns,thelatesttechnologiesandtheemergingtrends.

Insider is the human face of Contagious, bringing all of thisspecialist knowledge to life. Our consultants travel the worldtodeliver insightandcategory intelligencetobrandsandtheiragencies.

Insight & inspiration /

Insidercanprovide:

• Creativeandstrategicinspirationfornewbusinesspitches

• Trendbriefings-emergingtechnologies&consumerbehaviour

• CompetitoractivityinNTM,bysectororterritory

• Workshops&trainingonthenewmarketinglandscape

• Creative showcases, injecting energy and objectivity intointernalseminarsandclientbriefings

Whether you want to deep-dive into the creative possibilitiesavailabletoyourbrand,orsimplyinspireandeducateyourteam,ContagiousInsideroffersarangeofinsightandexpertadvice,frombespokeresearchprojectstooff-the-shelfpresentations.

PleasecontactJessGreenwoodon+442075751981/jess@contagiousmagazine.comforfurtherinformation.

ApartofContagiousCommunicationsLtd/45Foubert’sPlace/LondonW1F7QH/UK/T:+442075751981www.contagiousmagazine.com/http://bit.ly/contagiousinsiderE:jess@contagiousmagazine.com

CONTAGIOUSNow / Next / Why

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12 /MONEY

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09 /CROWD

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07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

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Netflix / Netflix Prize /2009wastheyearinwhichconsumersreallystartedtoembracethetrendoftinkeringwiththeirfavouritebrand’sAPI–theprogramminginterfacethatallowsthirdpartydeveloperstoaccessandinteract.Ofpar-ticularnotewasNetflix’scrowd-sourcedsolution toupdating its in-housemovie recommendationseries,Cinematch.Rather thanrelyon itsowndevelopers,theUSDVDrentalserviceturnedtoitsaudienceandinvitedthemtoimprovethecode.

The contest attracted 44,000 entries from 5,000teams in 186 countries as well as stacks of PR. ItendedinJulywithNetflixrewarding$1mtothewin-ningteam–inthiscase,The Ensemble,amergeroftwoseriouslygeekyteams–which,withjustminutestogo,trouncedthefavourites.

Thiskindofapproach isawin-win forall:consum-ersget toexperienceabetter interface;developerscan bask in the kudos of having created apps forhugeconsumerplatforms;whilethePRvalueforthebrandsinvolvedisoffthescale.Expecttoseemorein2010.FeaturedinContagious20.

FIAT / Mio /

This year saw the launch of FIAT’s Mio venture –an ongoing collaborative design project that asksconsumers to become involved in the developmentofanewconceptcar.Anyonecancontributetoanyaspect of the design process, from safety featuresandenvironmentalaspectsthroughtothefinalshapeand style of the car. A collaborative online forum,developed through leading Brazilian digital agencyAgênciaClick (profiled in Contagious 20), enables

people to share ideas and discuss concepts. All ofthecontentproducedwillberegisteredthroughtheCreative Commonslicensingprocess,meaningthatitwillbefreelyavailableforanyonetouse.FIATisduetounveiltheresultingconceptcarattheBrazilMotorShow inSãoPaulo inNovember2010.Featured inContagious20.

Marmite / Marmarati /

LoveitorhateitsnackMarmitehasbeentappingintoitsloyalfanbasetospreadthewordonanew‘extramature’ flavour set to launch in 2010. Playing per-fectlytoitsVictorianpastandsenseoffun,Marmiteinvitedconnoisseursofthedarkandgooeyspreadtojointheshadowy‘Marmarati’society.40bloggerfanswere invited into thesecret sect forproduct-testingandMarmite-relatedfunata luxuryLondonvenueinNovember.Marmiteloverscanjointhesocietythem-selvesatmarmarati.organdearnthechancetotastethe stronger product before launch. Users have touploadvideo,photoorwrittensubmissionstowinthepreview, with site visitors voting for the winner. ThecampaignwasaidedbysocialmediaspecialistsWe Are Social,LondonandSplendid Communications,Londonand thenewproductwill launchexclusivelyvia social networking sites such as Facebook andTwitter.

Sour / Hibi No Neiro /

Amidstaclutchofmusicpromosthisyearthatplacedfansinthedrivingseat,BBH LabsinNewYorkcaughtourattentionwith itsmusicvideo forJapanesepostrockbandSour’ssingleHibiNoNeiro.ManagingtoworkonthevideoaroundtheirdayjobsatBBH,Hal

CROWD-SOURCING09 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

NETFLIX / NETFLIX PRIZE /

MARMITE / MARMARATI /

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KirklandandMasa Kawamurastartedbypostingonfan forums asking for volunteers to take part in thevideo. Interestsprang fromallover theglobe–andthefanstookpart intheprojectwiththeBBHteamprovided the working framework. A few months oftightplanningandadetailedanimaticlater,thevolun-teerfanswerereadytopitchinonthepromoviathewonderofwebcam.Theresultwasinspiringconsid-eringthebudgetwasamassive$0andthedirectingteamwerebasedinNYwiththebandliveinTokyo…FeaturedinContagious21.

Paramount Pictures / Paranormal Activity /

Anhonourablementionmustgo to thesurpriseboxofficehitoftheyear,Oren Peli’sParanormalActivity.Made on a ridiculously low budget ($15,000, withthe Israeli-borndirectoreditingthemovie inhisSanDiego bedroom), the horror flick owed its successinnosmallpart to thecrowd-sourcedmethodof itsdistribution.Rather than theusual releaseschedule,fans had to log on to ParanormalMovie.com anddemandthatthefilmplayintheircity.Aftertwoweeksofscreenings,one million peoplehadrequestedascreening near them. Paramount released the filmnationwide inOctober and in just fiveweeks it hadpassed the $100m mark in the US, making it thehighestgrossingR-ratedthrillerofthepastdecade.

Waze /

Advanced as navigation technology has become, itisn’tallknowing,yet.Spottinglocaljams,overturnedmilkfloatsandburstwatermainsrequireseyesontheground.StepforwardWaze,afreecommunity-basedmobilenavigationappwhichautomaticallyupdatesinreal-timeasusersdrive,detectingtrafficlevelswhichareconstantlyupdatedforotherdriverstosee.Userscanshareand report informationsuchasaccidentsor roadworks,evenuploadphotos.Development iscompletelydependantonthecommunity,whoupdatestreetnamesandcorrecterrorsastheygo.Devisedby Israeli software engineer Ehud Shabtai, WazelaunchedworldwideinNovember2009.FeaturedinContagious21.

links /

www.netflixprize.com

www.fiatmio.cc/en

www.marmarati.org

http://sour-web.com

www.waze.com

www.paranormalmovie.com

SOUR / HIBI NO NEIRO /

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Nike / Short Films /

2009spawnedtwobrandedcontentgemsfromNike.InJuly,tocelebrate the release of the third shoe from skateboarder andactor Paul Rodriguez (P-Rod), Nike SB produced a corkerwhichhassofarattracted1.6millionviewsonYouTube.Thefilm,screenedonlyonline,showedP-RodskatingtothedulcettonesofIce-Cube’sToday Was A Good Day.Hewasjoinedbyskate-boardingstarEric KostonandbasketballplayerKobe Bryant.A60-secondcut-down,whichservedasanad,attractedonemillionviews.Behindthe-scenesfilmsalsoattractedtotalviewsofoveramillion.SeeContagious20.

InApril,NikecollaboratedwithUKillustratorJames JarvisanddirectorandanimatorRichard Kenworthy onabeautifulfilmen-titledOnwards.CommissionedbyNikeviaAKQA,London,On-wardswashostedonitsownmicrositecontainingtheanimatedfilmandJames Jarvis’biography;Nikebrandingwaskept toabareminimum.Fiveminutes long, thespotdrewonJarvis’ownexperiencesasanavidrunner,showingayellowstick-mansprint-ingthroughvariousnaturalenvironmentswhichmergeseamlesslyintooneanother.Contagious19.

Gatorade / REPLAY /

Nowthatsocialmediahasputbrandsandfansonanequalfoot-ing,nimbleadvertisershavestartedtoeschewbignamesportspersonalitiesinfavourofamateurplayers.SportsdrinkGatoradeproducedacompellingbrandedcontentplatformthroughTBWA\Chiat\Day Los Angeles called REPLAY based on restagingclassicgamesbetweensportingrivals.Itincludedareunionbe-tweentwoofthenation’sbiggesthighschoolteams,TheEastonAreaRedRoversandthePhillipsburgStateliners. In1993,onegame ended in a much disputed 7-7 tie, so Gatorade reunitedtheteamsforanail-bitingre-match,havingputall theplayers–nowintheir30s–ona10-weektrainingscheduledevelopedby

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06 /APPS

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04 /INTEGRATED

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01 /REAL TIME

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theGatorade Sports Science InstituteandVelocity Sports Performance.GatoradefilmedtheactionfortheREPLAYsectionofitsmissiong.comsite,whileapartnershipwithFOX Sports Netensuredthatitwasbroadcastnationallytoo.Contagious21.

MeanwhilechallengersneakerbrandNew Balancelaunched a 13-episode online series, produced byTangerine Films in New York, which followed thehighs and lows of a season with the Canandaigua Academy Varsity Lacrosse team. Season in the Balancefeaturedsemi-professionalplayersallsport-ingNewBalancegear;thesitealsofeaturedalockerroom section where users could click to purchase.SeeContagious19.

Nintendo / Britain’s Best Brain /

NintendopartneredUKterrestrialTVchannelFiveonaprime-timeshowentitledBritain’s Best Brain.Theshow, which launched in October, promoted Touch Generation software for Nintendo’s DS console intherunuptoChristmas. Initialfiguresindicatedthattheshow,developedandproducedbyTiger Aspectand GroupM Entertainment in London, had at-tractedclosetoamillionviewersanda3%audienceshare.Theeight-partseriessawcontestantsembark-ingonfivetaskstotest theirmemory,co-ordination,numeracy, recognition and risk. Their performanceon the challenges generated a unique brain score,andafinalesaw themost impressivescorersbeingcrownedBritain’s Best Brain.

Nintendoalsousedotherproducts in its stable torecruitcontestants:prospectivecandidateshadtheirmentalandphysicalagilitytestedviapuzzleandchal-lenger games, including Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training: How Old is your Brain?,Wii Fit andBig Brain Academy.SeeContagious20.

Macy’s / Yes, Virginia /

US retailer Macy’s merged the holiday traditions ofshoppingandslumpinginfrontoftheTVwithaChrist-mas special through JWT and The Ebeling Group,bothinNewYork.Buildingonthebrand’sexistingBe-lievecampaign,thehalf-hourshowentitledYes, Vir-giniawasbroadcaston11DecemberonCBS,andwasbasedonthetruestoryofVirginia O’Hanlon,aneightyearoldgirlwhoinspiredafamousnewspapereditorialbyasking‘IsthereaSantaClaus?’

AspartoftheYes, Virginiacampaign,childrenwereencouraged to post their Santa letter at special in-store‘Believe’stations;foreveryletterposted,Macy’sdonated$1totheMake-A-Wish Foundation,achar-ity helping children with life-threatening illnesses.Contagious21.

The Grid / Mobikasi /

The Grid,asocialnetworkthatusesmobilephonestoconnectpeople,placesandeventsacrossSouthAfrica, launched a 24-epsiode documentary aboutyouth culture in Soweto called Mobikasi. The lo-cation-based documentary featured people, music,social issuesandplacesof interest,witheachseg-mentlastingoneminute.Contentwasgeo-taggedtothelocationwhereitwasshot,enablingviewerstoex-ploreSowetanculturebytravellingthroughamobilestreetmapandenjoyingtheclips.Contagious18.

links /

www.missiong.com

www.seasoninthebalance.com

www.nike.com/nikeskateboarding

www.onwards.tv

www.britainsbestbrain.com

www.yesvirginiatv.com

wap.thegrid.co.za/mobikasi

GATORADE / REPLAY /

MACY’S / YES, VIRGINIA /

THE GRID / MOBIKASI /

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04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

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14 /PLACES

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T-Mobile / Dance /

Flashmobs invadedourdigitalandTVscreens in2009,as in-creaseduseofrealtimenetworkssuchasTwitterfacilitatedthespontaneousmassingofcrowds.BuildingontheanarchicidealsofthemovementT-MobileaddedasmiletoproceedingsinJan-uary with the famous ‘Dance’ spot. The ad through Saatchi & Saatchi,LondoncelebratedT-Mobile’s‘life’sforsharing’position-ingas400‘commuters’gotdowninfrontofgatheringcrowds.

Thedance-offstagedatLondon’sLiverpoolStreethashadmorethan15millionplaysonYouTube,afurthermillionforthe‘makingof’ filmandhundredsof thousandsof viewsof spin-off events.Inthenext installment,morethan13,000peoplefilledTrafalgarSquareforagigantickaraokesession,beltingoutclassicsbeforetheywerejoinedbyPinkforsomeprofessionalsupport.Theclipshavegarnered2.5millionYouTubeviews.SeeContagious18.

Samsung / i8910 Mirror Trick / SSD / LED sheep /Samsungwonatviralthisyear,withfilmsfromThe Viral FactoryinLondonemployingeverytechniquefromsuspensetoanimalsinjacketstodrawtheviews.

Back inMarch, the agency turned to their ITguyPaul todis-playthebenefitsofSamsung’snewSolid State Drive(SSD)fornotebooks.Bylinking24SSDstogetherPaulcreatedtheworld’smostpowerfulconsumercomputer,capableof2GBperseconddownload.Morethan2.7millionviewerswatchedPaulopentheentireofWindows7inhalfasecondandtransfera700MBfilminlesstimethanittakestothrowtheDVDoutofawindow.

NextcametheExtremeSheepLEDArtviralforSamsungLED TVs.FilmedonaWelshhillside, theclip–whichhasprovokedabitofclassicreal-or-fake?debate–showsshepherdsherdingsheepclothedinLEDjackets.ThelightsaredirectedintopositiontocreateagameofPong,aversionoftheMonaLisaandafire-workdisplay.Thespothasamassedmorethan10millionviews.

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06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

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In April, to support the launch of the i8910 HDcameraphone,themirror-trickviralshowedtheproudownerofanewSamsunggadget‘disappear’hisnewtoywhilefilmingintoamirror,whiletheapparentlyvan-ishedphonecontinuedtofilmPOVfootage.Viewerswerethenchallengedtoworkouthowthetrickwasfilmed:an invite toscrutinise theHD footage.Morethan a million views later the ‘reveal’ was released,picking up a further 375,000 views and spilling thebeansonabodydoublefilmingthroughanon-existentmirror.SeeContagious19forthefilmsandaninter-viewwithViralFactory’sco-founderEd Robinson.

DC Shoes / Ken Block Gymkhana /

ApartnershipbetweenDC Shoes founderandrallydriverKen BlockandMad Mediaagencyproducedaseriesofvideosdemonstrating‘Gymkhana’–acro-baticslidingandskiddingonfourwheels.Theserieslaunched with Gymkhana Practice in January asBlockhurtledfullthrottlearoundanaridracingland-scape,throwinghisSubaruintotyre-screechingcon-tortionstoscoreastaggering20millionviewsonline.Gymkhana Two saw Block cheating watery death,evadingpaintballfireandexplodingvanstothetuneof9.9millionviewsonYouTubealone.

Block’s rallying exploits, which linked DC’s worldsof motocross, snowboarding and skating throughthemed stunts and DC team hook-ups, appeal togearheadsandadrenaline junkiesalike.AftersellingthebrandtoQuiksilverfor$87millionin2004,Blockand co-founder Damon Way have maintained theirrolesatthecentreofthecorporation–Blockisnowchiefbrandofficer.SeeContagious18and20.

Evian / Roller Babies /

Whatyouseeisnotatest–yes,that isabunchofrollerskatingbabiesgettingdown tohip-hopclassicRapper’s Delight. Realising Evian’s ‘live young’

positioning,thecuteandcuddlyversionoftheSug-arhillGang rolledontoYouTube in Julyandbecamethemostviewedviralofall time,with theGuinness Book of Recordsawardingthetitleafterareported45millionviewsbymid-November.Thespot,byBETC Euro RSCG, with production by Partizan Lab anda social media build-up by BuzzParadise, broughtbabies back into Evian marketing plans after an 11yearabsence.Contagious20.

Durex / Get It On /

Condoms and virals have always proven a happycombination. Fitzgerald+CO and Süperfad NewYork created a trio of balloon animals who gamelyworkedtheirwaythroughthekarmasutra.13millionviewsandaGoldClioAwardlater,therampantbal-loonshaveproventheirstamina.SeeContagious18.

Nikon / Helicopter Boyz /

Rarely has a gadget come to life like the Nikon Coolpix in this wonderful clip from GT Tokyo. Aninspired bit of off-the-wall thinking showcases thecamera’sprojectorfunctionbystrappingthegadgets,preloadedwith images, to thebacksof acoupleofJapaneseteenyboppers,theHelicopterBoyz.Whenthelads’choreographeddanceroutinekicksin,pro-jectionsfromtheCoolpixburstintolifeonthestagebackdrop.Genuinelyadorable.SeeContagious21.

links /

www.t-mobile.co.uk/dance

www.samsungssd.com

www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2fx9rviehw

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix8ivo5vc8o

http://video.kenblockracing.com

evian / www.youtube.com/

watch?v=xqcvllwpwgs

www.durexworld.com

www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0toocgchte

DC SHOES / KEN BLOCK GYMKHANA /

EVIAN / ROLLER BABIES /

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Itstandstoreasonthat inayeardominatedbyan economic downturn, mass unemploymentand predictions of the apocalypse from mediapundits and politicians alike, money would beahottopic.We’veroundedupthedebates,theadvancesandthebusinessmodels togiveyou2009’syearinmoney,Contagiousstyle.

Paid-for Content /

Rupert Murdoch, top banana at News Corpandfamousinternetdenialist,announcedatime-lineinJunetoconvertallhisonlinepapersintopaid-forservicesbysummer2010,althoughthisdatehassubsequentlybeenpushedback.ThiswouldaffectThe Times andThe Sun intheUK,as well as the Wall Street Journal – now offi-cially subscription-based,but increasinglymak-ingleadarticlesandcommentavailableforfree.Interviewed by Sky News Australia, MurdochhintedthatNewsCorpwouldalsoberemovingstoriesfromGoogle’ssearchindexesaltogetheron thegrounds thata readerwhocame to thesitethroughaninternetsearchwasnotasvalu-ableintermsofpotentialadvertisingrevenueasonewhocamedirectlythroughthesiteitself.

The ironyofMurdoch’s ‘waron free’wasout-lined inaVanity Fair articlebynoneother thanMatthew Freud,PRandson-in-lawtoMurdoch.TalkingtoMichaelWolff,heexplainedthat‘Mur-dochisnotamodernmarketer.Herunshisbusi-ness not on the basis of giving the consumerwhathewantsbut throughmoreold-fashionedmethods of structural market domination...Curi-

ously, his newspaper battles have most ofteninvolved cutting prices rather than, as he nowproposes to do on the internet, raising them...Murdoch has contributed as much as anyone,with his low-priced papers, to the expectationthatnewsisade-valuedcommodity.’

It isundoubtedlytruethataworldwithouttheLynn Barbers, the Seymour Hershes and eventheCharlieBrookerswouldbea lesscolourful,lessaccountableplace,butMurdoch’sstrategyofresistance,ratherthansynergywiththewaysofthewebisrisky.Itisdangerousasabusinessstrategy to attack something when you clearlydonotunderstandwhatitis.Take,forexample,NewsCorp’s2005acquisitionofMySpace,nowfallenpreytothelawofdiminishingreturnsinthefaceofcompetitionfromthelikesofFacebook.However,thiscouldjustasequallybeblamedonNewsCorp’sinabilitytomovewiththetimesasonanyinnovationfromZuckerberg’scamp.

OptimistshavesuggestedthatMurdoch’scon-siderablecloutwouldforceaseachangeacrosstheentireindustry,withpaidforservicesbecom-ing the norm rather than a kick in the teeth tonews-curiouspunters.Butonline,theconsensusviewisthatnotevenMurdochcanmakeasuc-cessofsuchaventure,suchishisantipathyto-wardsnotonly the internetbutapparently alsothepeoplewhofindtheirnewsthere.AsMichaelWolffconcludes:‘Murdoch,at78,doesn’t,prac-ticallyspeaking,havethetimetoseetheonlineworldintomaturity–northeintellectualinteresttowanttobepartoftheeffort.Rather,hisstrate-giceffortmaymorelogicallybetoslowitdown.’

Freemium / This Year’s Model /

AlthoughfirstcoinedbyventurecapitalistFredWilsonthreeyearsago,2009hasbeentheyearof ‘freemium’ – the idea of providing a serviceorplatformforfreetothemajorityofusers,andcharging a handful of premium subscribers foradditional bells and whistles. Wired editor-in-chiefChris Andersontooktotheroadthisyeartopromotenotonlyhisnewbook,Free,butalsothewholenotionofscaledbusinessmodels.‘InthedigitalrealmyoucantrytokeepFreeatbaywith lawsand locks,buteventually theforceofeconomicgravitywillwin,’heproclaimed.Still,thefreemiummodelisservingsomecompanieswell.MobileappslikeEvernoteandDropboxchargeforstorageonaslidingscale,meaningthemoreinformationyouhaveboundupintheapps,themorelikelyyouaretoupgradeinordertokeepit.Onlinecollaborationplatformhuddle used this

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modeltoreachawider,non-payingaudience,andthisyear reached revenues into the millions of pounds.(Contagious21)

Basedonthenotionthateverything’sworthsome-thingtosomeone,successonfreemiumtermsisde-pendentonstrongcommunication.Itisnot,asMurdo-chfears,aliteralfree-for-allinwhichnothingisvaluedandeverythingisworthless.It’saboutfindingtherightcontentandservicesforthosepeoplewillingtopay.

Amazon / Twitter /

AlargepartofAmazon’ssuccessisduetoitsalgo-rithmic recommendations mechanism – namely the‘Othercustomerswholikedthisalsobought’button.Itstandstoreason,therefore,thatbeingabletoseewhatpeopleyourespectandlikehavebought isanequallypowerfulsales tool.With this inmind,Ama-zon Associate memberscannowbroadcastlinkstotheproductstheybuyonAmazontotheirTwitterpag-es.AnyonesubsequentlyclickingonthatlinkgoestoAmazon,buystheproduct–andrewardsthepersonthroughwhomtheyfounditwithacutoftherevenue.This kind of basic social shopping is affecting on-lineretailinunforeseenways.FashionsiteASOS,forexample, receivesone third of its recommendationsthroughFacebook.

Bartering /

Bartercard was launched in Australia in 1991, butthis year hit 75,000 members worldwide. A slowstart,perhaps,butthefinancialsarenotable–tradesthroughthenetworkareupby20%in2009to£1.2bn.In a time of economic crisis the bartering of goodsandservicesisfastbecominganeasierandmoretan-giblealternativetocoldhardcash.AccordingtotheInternational Reciprocal Trade Association, morethan 400,000 businesses bartered £6 billion worthoftradegloballyin2008,withthisexpectedtogrow

by15%in2009.Bakersmakecakesinexchangefornightsinhotels.Dentistsgivecheck-upsinexchangeforamassage.Now,putyourwalletawayandlet’sdobusiness.

Hitachi / Vein ID /

The Japanese electronic goods manufacturer’s longrunningVein IDprogrammewhichusestheveinsinpeople’sfingersandan infraredscanner inorder toprovide access to buildings and security-protectedPCshasnowbeenappliedtopayment,withtheintro-ductionofATMandbankingstationsusingthetech-nology.HitachiisalsointroducingvendingmachinestoenableyoutograbthatbagofcrispsorCokeusingjustadigit.Eliminatingtheneedforcreditcardsandpinnumbers,VeinIDisthefirstofawaveofbiologicalandtechnicalinnovationswhichcouldseethegradualextinctionofthecreditcard.

Starbucks / Mobile Payment /

SlightlylessfuturisticbutequallyusefulisStarbucks’iPhoneapp,whichprovidesuserswitha virtual loy-altycardandscannablecodestopayfordrinks.TheStarbucks Card app is currently being beta testedacrosstheWestCoastoftheUS.ItallowscustomerstopurchaseStarbuckscreditonlinewhichcan thenbe used against purchases in store. Users can de-cideon theirchoiceofdrinkbeforeevenenteringabranch;theappthencalculateshowmuchtheyoweandproducesaQR codeonthephone’sscreen.Thecodeisscanneddirectly intothetill’scomputerandthecorrectamountisdeductedfromtheirtotalcredit.Smart stuff, this: the tatty cardboard loyalty card isoneof the few ‘can’t livewithout’analogue items inmostwalletsandpurseswhichhasyettobesuccess-fullytranslatedtoamobile,digitalformat.

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04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Nokia Money /

Quotingthestatisticthattherearefourbillionmobilephonesintheworldandonly1.6billionbankaccounts,Nokialauncheditsmobile banking in September 2009. Developed in connectionwithmobilepaymentexpertsObopay,NokiaMoneywillenablepeople to manage their financial transactions, paying bills andtransferringmoneyinandoutofaccountsaseasilyassendingatext.Thecompany isalsodevelopingaglobalnetworkofNokiaMoney‘agents’,allowingforthedepositingorwithdrawalofcash.

TheFinnishmobilegianthashadaterribleyear,withtheecono-myandtheiPhonecontributingtoastaggering90%dropinsalesfromApril08toApril09.Still,thefocusforNokiaMoneyisverymuchonemergingmarketsandthankstoanundeniablelogicinthesystem,there’slifeintheolddogyet.

mflow / One to Watch /

Asweheadinto2010,theracetosuccessfullymonetisethemu-sicindustryisshowingnosignsofslowingdown.2009wasSpot-ify’syear(seeTechnology),butnegligableremunerativevalueforartists and labels has lead to doubts over its long term future.Currentlyinbeta,mflowcombinesthepay-to-downloadfunction-ality of iTunes with the social elements of Twitter, allowing youto‘follow’peoplewhosemusicpreferencesyouadmire.What’smore,everytimeyoubuyoneoftheirrecommendedtracks,theygetacut.Thisfusionofinfluenceandapathtopurchasecouldbeeffective,butwillitcatchon?

links /

vanity fair / http://bit.ly/19zeMu

freemium / http://bit.ly/JuK3B

https://affiliate-program.amazon.co.uk

www.bartercard.com

www.hitachi.eu/veinid

starbucks / http://bit.ly/65oEkG

nokia money / http://bit.ly/5qWCbe

www.mflow.com

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

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The Here and There Map /

London-basedgraphicdesignersJack SchulzeandMatt Webb createdanintriguingwayoffusingthe3Dgameplayoffirstpersonshooterswiththehundredsof2Dmappingapplicationsavailableontheweb.The Here and There Map manages both a first personviewpointandabird’seyeviewofwhat’scomingupinfrontofyousimplybycurvingthemapawayintothedistance.Availableinposterformfornow,butwesus-pectit’sonlyamatteroftimebeforethisstylespreadsintogamingandnavigation.Thecannycreatorsalsousedsalesofthestrikingposterstofundfurtherde-velopmentoftheproject.SeeContagious Issue19,andthecoverofthisyear’sMost ContagiousReport.

Philips / LED Replacement Light Bulb /

Finally!A lightbulbthat, ifadoptedwouldavoid5.6millionmetrictonsofcarbonemissionsannuallyandsave34terawatt-hoursofelectricity inoneyear,ap-parently enough to power the lights of a whopping17.4 million US households for a year. The designwasthefirstentryintheUSDepartment of Energy’s(DOE)Bright Tomorrow Lighting Prize,where the

DOE will award the first company or individual thatcreatesasubstitutefortheubiquitous60-wattbulb,whileconsuming10wattsorless.IfPhilipswinsthecontest, itwillbegrantedacashawardandfederalpurchasingagreementsworthabout$10million;thedesigns are currently undergoing a comprehensiveevaluationbytheDOE.

MARC BY MARC JACOBS, Louis Vuitton / QR Codes /

QRcodeshavebeenprolific in Japan foranumberof yearsnow,but2009saw themgettingacolour-ful facelift.SET Japan, adesignagencydriving theuseofQRcodesasvisualrepresentationsofabrand,workedwithMarc Jacobs,creativedirectorforluxurygiant Louis Vuitton and head designer for his ownMARC BY MARC JACOBSdiffusionline,tocreateabeautiful penned code and accompanying Takeshi MurakamianimationforthelaunchofJacobs’ latestcollection for Vuitton. Both codes directed users tomobilewebsites.SeeContagiousIssue19.

Emergent Architecture / Flower Street BioReactor /

Experimental architects Emergent brought a lushgreen sustainable world to an urban Los Angelesstreet scene with the aquarium-style Flower Street Bioreactor.TheLA-basedfirmhavedesignedady-namicplasticmouldingwhichcomes to lifewith anall-naturallightshowusingalgaebasedbio-feedbacklightingsystemsdesignedbyLAcompanyOrigin Oil.As night falls, the installation comes alive with thenaturallightofadazzlingjunglescenetorevolutionisethecityscape.SeeContagiousIssue21.

THE HERE AND THERE MAP /

MARC JACOBS / LOUIS VUITTON /

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U2 / 360º Tour /

Contrary topopularopinion,U2’s ‘360º’ tour–whichwill con-tinuethrough2010–didnottakeitsnamefromfrontmanBono’simpressivecollectionofwrap-aroundsunglasses.Itreferstotheextraordinarystagethebandareusingforthetour,designedbyBritisharchitectMark Fisher.Breaking the traditionalmouldofamplifiersbehind tight leather trousered-bandmembers in frontof screaming fans, this new stage is completely circular, plac-ingBono&Co.inthemiddleoftheaudience.Thespeakersaremountedonfoursupportinglegswhichmeetinacylindricalvideoscreen.FisherclaimshedrewinfluencefromtheThemerestau-rantatLosAngelesLAXairport,thedesignersofwhich(William Pereira & Charles Luckman)wereapparentlyinspiredbyspace-ageBmoviesofthe1950s.SeeContagiousIssue20.

Dyson / Air Multiplier /

TheideafortheDyson Air Multipliersprangfromafaultinoneof the domestic appliance brand’s existing products, the Airb-ladehanddryer.Drivingoutairat44mph,theAirbladescrapeswaterfromhandslikeawindscreenwiper.However,ithadaminorissue:duetopressureandfriction,thesheetofairthatwasdryinghandswasalsodraggingwithitalargeamountofthesurroundingair,aka inducement.Dyson’sdesignteamcapitalisedonthis tocreatethefirsteverbladelessfanwhichcanpushoutaround118gallonsofairpersecond,oraboutthesameasasimilarpremiumbladedfan,butwithouttheannoyingbufferingofair.Oh,anddidwementionitlookslikeApple’sversionofahouseholdgadget?Supersleek,andnotcheapat£200.

links /

http://berglondon.com/projects/hat

http://setjapan.com

www.emergentarchitecture.com

http://360.u2.com

www.dysonairmultiplier.com

www.philips.com

www.lightingprize.org

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Louis Vuitton / A Passion for Creation /

FortheMayopeningofLouis Vuitton’s‘A Pas-sion for Creation’exhibitionattheHong Kong Museum of Art, thebrandcalleduponyetan-otherofitsimpeccably-pedigreedartisticchums– American painter and photographer Richard Prince.Princewrappedtheentireexteriorofthemuseum with re-worked covers from his AfterDarkseriesofpulpfictionnovelscollectedfromcities around the world. The internal exhibitioncelebratedthebrand’ssharedinfluenceinartis-ticcircleswithworkby,amongstothers,Jean-Michel Basquiat and Gilbert & George. SeeContagiousIssue20.

Nike Store / Harajuku, Tokyo /

Thesportsweargiantcuttheribbononabrandnew Japanese flagship store on November14th,locatedinTokyo’strendyHarajukudistrict.Masamichi Katayama’s Wonderwall interiordesign agency has created what is arguablyNike’smost inspiredandengagingretailspaceto date. The three-story, 10,000-sq-ft space

includeswallsconstructedfromoldwaffleirons,similar to thoseused toshape theoriginal run-ningshoetread;achandelierfeaturing400sus-pended white sneakers and a giant ammonitefossilcomposedofconcentricNike Dunks.SeeContagiousIssue21.

Mattel / Barbie /

Justincaseyouhaven’theard,Barbieturned50thisyearandcelebratedinstylewithpartiesandbig name collaborations across the globe. Thecelebrations spanned all sectors; Fiat and VWcreatedcustomisedBarbiecars,completewithrhinestones;Parisianboutiquecolettelauncheda range of accessories for older girls that stilllovetheblondedoll;andKarl Lagerfeldshotaseriesofcouture-styledBarbiesforanexhibitioninParis.Barbie’sDreamHomeevengotamake-overwithdesigngurusKartelltransformingthewindowsof its flagship store inMilanwith life-sizeBarbie ‘home’settings.TheBourgie lamp,

Charles Ghoststool,andLouis GhostchairsbyPhilippe StarckwereallgiventheBarbie‘treat-ment’andwereallavailableforalimitedtime.

This year also marked the launch of a $10mBarbie store in Shanghai. Far more than justa store, the 35,000-sq-ft space also houses aBarbie-themedrestaurantandbeautyparlourandwillserveasaretailtestenvironmentfordisplaysthatmayeventuallyberolledoutglobally.BarbieownerMattel reports footfallofaround20,000shoppers per week since opening in March.10%ofvisitorsbuy‘BarbiePassports’,orloyaltycards that provide discounts on purchases,meals, and haircuts. Mattel worked with BIG,the branding and design division of Ogilvy & Mather, to develop the creative concept andSlade Architecture,New York led thedesign.SeeContagiousIssue19.

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12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Prada / Transformer /

The Transformer was Prada’s key communicationplatform for 2009, situated in Seoul to acknowl-edgethecity’sthrivingbusinessandculturalscenes.Thepavilionaccommodateda rangeofart, filmandfashion events, reinventing itself four times duringits four-month lifespan. The design was derivedfrom a tetrahedron which, when rotated by crane,provided four different façade and interior configu-rations for the varying programmes. The final itera-tion saw the Transformer changed into a university,whereKoreanartsstudentsremovedtheouterwallsandrecycledthematerial intoexperimentalprojects.National brands LG Electronics and Hyundai sup-portedtheevent,demonstratingthepowerofbrandcollaboration to strengthen a national culture. Thedesign was created by the Office for Metropoli-tan Architecture, Rotterdam and 2x4, New York.SeeContagiousIssue21.

Baubotanik /

Creatingtheliteralembodimentofatreehouse,threeGermanarchitects,Ferdinand Ludwig,Oliver StorzandHannes Schwertfeger,havedesignedstructuresthatseewillowtreesgrowingaroundametalframe,until

theyweavetogether,sotheframecanberemovedandfloorsinserted.Theprojectpullstogetherprinciplesofengineering with the aesthetics of a growing, livingorganism.Lookoutforthe1,290squareConcert Pa-vilioninStuttgartwhichisgrowingandbeinggraftedtogether,strengthenedbywinchesandtreesurgery.SeeContagiousIssue20.

Selgas Cano / Offices /

Living in the woods is an idyllic dream. Being sur-rounded by nature stimulates our creativity and ourhealth, and any baddies, or the occasional grand-mother,areeatenbywolves.Honouringthistradition,Selgas Cano is a small Spanish architecture firmwhich constructed its office in a woody ravine nearMadrid. Photographer Iwan Baan has documentedtheconstructionofthebuildingwhichoffersviewsofthenaturalworld,afloodofdaylight,ceilingsofvaryingheightsandretractableshuttersoverthetransparentroof.SeeContagious20.

links /

louis vuitton / http://bit.ly/13OJ2o

http://nike.jp/nikeharajuku

www.barbie.com

www.prada-transformer.com

www.baubotanik.com

selgas cano / http://bit.ly/spCjq

PRADA / TRANSFORMER /

BAUBOTANIK /

SELGAS CANO / OFFICES /

most contagious / outdoors /

CONTAGIOUS

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

p.41

Yellow / Treehouse /

ThedaysofriflingthroughtheYellowPagesmaybelonggone,but the Yellow brand still exists and needed a vehicle to clawback relevance in the web 2.0 era. Colenso BBDO AucklandandAIM Proximityputoutacallforliving,workingbrandambas-sador,andfoundTraceyCollins,whowasthengiventhetaskofcreatingNewZealand’sfirsttreehouserestaurantusingonlyYel-low’sonline,mobileandprintedlistings.

Thestunningresultsledtoafully-bookedrestaurantnestlingtenmetres in theairanda tonofPRcoverage forYellow.Tracey’sblogs,picturesandvideoschartedprogressandtheprojectwasreportedin70differenttraveltitlesandhundredsofblogs–evendrawingcelebendorsementfromKanyeWest.

FrontpagenewsintheNew Zealand Herald,2,000dinersinthefirstmonthalone,aquarterofamillionwebsitevisitorsanda10%improvement inunpromptedrecallof thebrandprovedYellow’sgoalofmakinganythingpossible.SeeContagious18.

Pampero Rum / Ephemeral Museum /

Venezuelan rum brand Pampero already operates the Pampe-ro Fundacion, an arts movement supporting grassroots activityacrosstheglobe.WhensearchingforalaunchplatforminPortu-gal,Leo Burnett,LisbonselectedtheFundacionastheperfectcatapult.

Gaining traction among young Portuguese drinkers requiredthebackingofthetrendsettingindiecrowd,whichwasreachedthroughtheworld’sfirstEphemeralMuseum.

WiththewallsofLisbon’shistoricBairroAltodistrictdestinedforclean-upbythecitycouncil,Pamperosetaboutcataloguingandtaggingthebeststreetartandcreatingapodcast,inPortugueseandEnglish,toguidevisitorsthroughtheopen-airmuseum.

GREAT OUTDOORS15 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

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12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

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10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

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04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Within months the museum, accessed through itsmicrosite,wasdrawingfourtimesmorevisitorsthanany other local traditional exhibit space and Pam-peromatchedcompetitorsforrecognitionandsales.Tour guide coverage and global news PR gener-ated €240,000-worth of marketing on a shoestring€30,000budget.

Furthermuseumsiteshaveopened inPortugal fol-lowing worldwide coverage and a glut of awardsincludingMediaGrandPrix atEurobest, aPRLion,SilverMediaLionandBronzePromoLionatCannes.

Beck’s / Music Inspired Art Digital Bus Shelters /

Typical – you’re waiting for a Contagious outdoorspot then threecomealongatonce.Beck’smusic-inspiredarttaglinereachedouttoLondoncommutersat12busstops,intrendsettingdistricts.

Bypluggingmp3playersintotheinteractiveshelters,users‘created’aninterpretationoftheirmusicontheposter’sdigitalspace,akin toamediaplayer’svisu-

aliser.BygrabbingascreenshottheimagecouldbeuploadedtoBeck’s’FlickrsiteandperhapsenduponabeerbottleinLondonbars.

Outside Line,London’scampaignlandedBeck’saspot in style mag Dazed and Confused and led to10,000interactionsatbussheltersintwoweeks,plus2,500Flickrpageviews.SeeContagious21.

The Zimbabwean / Trillion Dollar Billboard /

CannesLionsOutdoorGrandPrixwinnertheTrillionDollarBillboardspokeupforThe Zimbabweanin-ternationalnewspaperonbehalfofthosesufferingun-derRobertMugabe’soppressiveregime.

Bringinghomethecrushingeffectsofhugeinflationin Zimbabwe, the TBWA Hunt Lascaris, Johannes-burg campaign used genuine bank notes to createbillboardsandposterstohighlighttheworthlessnessofZimbabweancurrency.

Aluxuryimportstariffimposedin2008hadmadethenewspaper–theself-styled‘voiceofthevoiceless’–unaffordableinZimbabweandthecampaignhelpedboostsalesandincreasewebsitetraffic,whichgainedtwomillionhitsinthefirstweekalone.ThecampaignwaslaunchedinJuly,whenoneUSdollarwasworth37millionZimbabwean.SeeContagious19.

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

p.43

Flygbussarna / Anti-Car /

Swedish coach company Flygbussarna tookthegreenroutebyinstallingadramaticroadsidesculpturetoencouragedriverstoabandontheircars infavourofthebus.Thecompanyworkedoutthatonebuscouldtransport50cars’-worthofairporttrafficforafractionoftheCO2emis-sionsandemphasised theirpointbybuildinga300-tonnebussculpturefrom50wreckedcarsclosetothecountry’slargestairport.

With coverage on Swedish TV, radio and on-line,theAcne,StockholmcampaignhelpedFlyg-bussarnadrivewebhitsupby50%andincreasemarketshareby1.5%ina17millioncustomermarket.AmicrositefilmingtheinstallationroundtheclockcountedpassingcarsandcalculatedCO2emissionswhichcouldhavebeensaved.SeeContagious19.

James Ready / Share Our Billboard /

Atunderabuckabottle,CanadianbeerbrandJames Ready isallaboutvalueformoney.Leo Burnett, Canada took this positioning and ranwith it to crowd source a Cannes Gold Lion-winning campaign. In a ‘cost-saving’ exercise,drinkerswereinvitedtosharespacewithJRon100 billboards in Ontario, resulting in a floodof submissions and additional word-of-mouthbuzz.As therecessionbitandvalue formoneybecameabarstoolnecessitythecampaigncre-ated brand loyalty, customer engagement andincreasedsales,aswellasgrabbinganoutdoorGoldLionatCannes,GoldClioandObieBestinShowfromtheOutdoorAdvertisingAssociationofAmerica.SeeContagious18.

links /

www.yellowtreehouse.co.nz

www.museuefemero.com

becks / http://bit.ly/5wFDW3

www.flickr.com/photos/trilliondollarcampaign

http://jrbillboard.com

flygbussarna / http://bit.ly/92Vhaz

most contagious / virtue /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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Wedebatedthemeritsofincluding’Virtue’asanindi-vidualsectioninthisyear’sMostContagiousreport.Bynow,ecologically soundsolutionsandcorporatesocialresponsibilityshouldbeanintrinsicelementofsuccessfulbrands.Doesacknowledgingtheseeffortsassomethingexceptionalsomehowdetractfromhowstandard and compulsory they really ought to be?However,withgovernmentsstillscrapping for fundsin recessionary times and the UN Climate Changesummit in Copenhagen set to be one giant fudge,there is an increasing onus on the companies whoowntheworld’sbiggestbrandstoreducetheircarbonfootprintanddriveecologicalawareness.Ratherthanpickoutacoupleofwell-meaningbutultimatelyinsub-stantialcampaigns,we’vegoneforthebighitterswhoare championing major change and benefiting fromtheresultingPReffects,nottomentiondelayingthedestructionoftheworld.

Wal-Mart / Sustainability Index /

Wal-Mart is making huge commitments to becomepackaging neutralby2025,toreducecarbonemis-sionsby20%by2013andtomakeenergyintensiveproducts25%moreefficientby2011.TheUSretailgiant has also pledged to revolutionise the amountof information that consumers have access to byproviding information on products via its Sustain-ability Index.Thebrandissurveyingits100,000-plussuppliersandmanufacturers thencollaboratingwiththem, alongside retailers, NGOs and Governments,to launch the index. This will certainly crank up thepressure on those groups, particularly if Wal-Martcommits to stocking products with smaller carbonfootprints. Interestingly, the brand’s commitment is

basedaroundsavingitscustomersmoney,asure-firewaytodriveuptake.FeaturedinContagious20.

GoodGuide /

GoodGuide.com is a website that has made hugeprogress inratingcompaniesandproductswiththeaimofhelpingconsumersmakeinformed decisions.Thinkofitasanestablished,non-partisanversionofWal-Mart’sSustainabilityIndex,withitsmulti-platformsourcebringingtransparencytofood,personalcare,toysandhouseholdproductcategories.GoodGuide’sservicehasbeenextendedthankstoaniPhone app withabarcodereaderthatconsumerscanusewhileoutandabouttocheckuponaproduct.Thisfocusonreal-time transparency and accountability has majorimplicationsforretailers.FeaturedinContagious19.

General Electric / Plug into The Smart Grid /

To show GE’s commitment to improving Americanelectricity infrastructures, especially by incorporat-ingfeaturessuchassmartmetersinsidehomesandbusinesses, Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, SanFrancisco launched PlugIntoTheSmartGrid.com.Visitors to the site could see the positive impactthat the Smart Grid has on carbon dioxide emis-sions and get information about alternative energyuse. An interactive experience included augmentedreality, videos and data visualisation, which meantthat the site feels as innovative as the Grid itself.Users stayed for an average of eight minutes. Thishelped turn interestedparties intobrandadvocates.SeeContagious18.

GREEN / VIRTUE16 / MOST CONTAGIOUS /

GENERAL ELECTRIC /

GOODGUIDE /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

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IBM / Smart Planet /

Morebusinessagendaor leadershipstatementthancampaign, IBM’sSmartPlanet initiative–promotedbyOgilvyNewYork–coversamyriadoftopicsfun-damental to the global agenda. IBM wants to usetheSmartPlanetplatformtorestarttheeconomybyapplying high-tech intelligence and insight to chal-lenges in energy, transportation, food, water, evenhealthcare.Thecompany’sviewsarepresentedinaseriesofconversationsconsideringhow thingscur-rently work and offering an optimistic take on whatthefuturemightlooklike,engaginggovernmentsandaverageJoesalike.Miles Young,CEOofTheOgilvyGroupandheadofOgilvyEarthbelieves:‘It’sanewbreedofcontent foranewera,andsustainability istotallyimplicitwithinit.’

Climate Culture / Patenting the Environment /

Just as the Creative Commons revolutionised thedistribution of digital content, eco-friendly initiativesarenowencouragingthesharingofideasforpatentsamongst corporations. The Eco Patent CommonswaslaunchedinJanuary2008bymajorplayerssuchasNokia, IBM andSony, and is nowgathering anincreasingnumberofsupporters.Xerox,DuPontandIBM,amongstothers,haveallcontributedeco-inno-vationssuchascell-phone recyclingsystems,waterpurificationtoolsandexhaustfiltersfordieselengines.TheCommons isa forumthroughwhichcompaniescan pledge their environmental patents and anyonecanusethem,forfree.CreativeCommonsitselfhaspartnered with Nike and Best Buy to launch theGreen Xchange. The programme will include pat-ented technologies and forums for the exchange ofinnovations. Unlike the Eco Patent Commons, com-paniescontributingpatentswillbeallowedtochargelicensingfees.SeeContagious21.

Google PowerMeter /

Smart electricity meters are becoming increasinglycommon.However,whenGooglelaunchessomethingpeopletendtositupandtakerealnotice.Google’sPowerMeter is a software tool thatmonitorsenergyconsumption. Imagine energy saving hints and tips,aswellasexclamationsaboutlightsleftonappearingonyouriGooglepageorlinkingbacktoyourAndroidphone.Smart.SeeContagious21.

links /

www.makower.com/downloads/WMTquestions.pdf

www.walmart.com

www.goodguide.com

www.plugintothesmartgrid.com

www.smartplanet.com

www.wbcsd.org/web/epc

http://sciencecommons.org/projects/greenxchange

www.google.org/powermeter

IBM / SMART PLANET /

most contagious / subscription offer /

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13 /DESIGN

12 /MONEY

11 /VIRAL

09 /CROWD

10 /CONTENT

08 /ENTERTAIN

07 /GAMING

06 /APPS

05 /ONLINE

04 /INTEGRATED

03 /TECHNOLOGY

02 /MOVEMENTS

01 /REAL TIME

15 /OUTDOORS

14 /PLACES

16 /VIRTUE

/ CONTAGIOUS / FULL OF TOMORROW

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