Disney+ Hotstar details hyper-local marketing blitz in Thailand in line with launch

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Following its launch in Malaysia last month in June and Singapore in February earlier this year, DIsney+ Hotstar has landed on the shores in Thailand with an extensive through-the-line campaign. The campaign lasted three weeks leading up to the day of launch on 30 June.

The campaign sought to achieve four objectives, namely to announce the imminent arrival of Disney+ Hotstar in Thailand with disruptive and eye-catching creative, introduce the brand and content proposition of Disney+ Hotstar, develop a hyperlocal consumer-first approach as well as allowing Disney to react to consumers feedback.

Disney held a virtual media day on 8 June to unveil the brand and four content pillars, inviting celebrities Mario Maurer, Boy Pakorn, Aff Taksaorn, Tik Jesdaporn and June Sawitri. According to Disney, the artistes have a combined social media reach of almost 22 million.

Similar to the previous executions in Singapore and Malaysia, Disney debuted a series of teaser countdown videos for each day four days before launch. To showcase the breadth and depth of the titles on its service, slices of everyday life familiar to Thais were transformed by iconic moments and characters from Disney’s four content pillars. According to Disney, the 40 to 50-second shorts were “infused with local wit and sparked plenty of chatter with a mischievous wink to our fandoms”.

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On the launch day, Disney then unveiled its “Endless Entertainment” brand video. The minute-long video celebrated the endless entertainment it provides and the indelible moments in life with a splash of unexpected albeit playful humour, said Disney.

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Simultaneously, Disney also set up two disruptive DOOH showcases named “Level Up”. Harnessing the use of anamorphic 3D to showcase its content pillars, the showcases were set up at high-traffic locations situated at Parc Paragon and Emquartier.

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Extending on the activations in Malaysia, Disney also invested in branded wraps of the Bangkok Mass Transit System Skytrain (BTS). This provided commuters with a front-row seat to the Disney+ Hotstar experience as both the exterior and interior of two complete train cabins were wrapped for a “visually disruptive and immersive experience”.

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Disney also added that it built inroads with “localised social-first snackable content” that resonated with the locals on social media. “Disney+ Hotstar Thailand” managed to achieve the top social reach on 30 June with 2.5 billion. Meanwhile, the “Twitter Trend Takeover & Spotlight” by Disney+ Hotstar Thailand on 30 June garnered more than 34 million views and over 500,000 engagements. Loki trended at number one in the entertainment category, and more than 150 influencers drove the launch of Disney+ Hotstar Thailand across several social activations, building hype and excitement for the launch.

The centrepiece of the campaign was the “Sawasdee Disney+ Hotstar” show celebrating the launch of Disney+ Hotstar in Thailand. The 30-minute show featured celebrity appearances and musical performances by Palmy, Palitchoke Ayanaputra (Peck), Violette Wautier, Putthipong Assaratanakul (Billkin) and Achiraya Nitibhon (Ally), set within some of Thailand’s iconic landmarks. It premiered on the Disney+ Hotstar app and AIS Play, with a same-time telecast on Workpoint TV.

The videos of performances have collectively hit more than 5 million views on Disney+ Hotstar Thailand’s Facebook page at the time of writing, since their upload on June 30.

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The campaign brought together an arsenal of agencies, with Zenith Optimedia Singapore and Sun Reachers Thailand in charge of media planning and buying. VaynerMedia and Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide were in charge of Disney + Hotstar Thailand’s social and PR respectively. For the countdown and launch videos, Disney worked with Youngster BKK for the creatives and Phenomena for the visual effects and post-production. The 3D DOOH showcases were done by VividThree for design and Plan B for media.

For the “Sawadee Disney+ Hotstar” launch show special, the film production and visual graphics were produced by DecideKit. Index Creative Village was the event agency and GMM GRAMMY & AIS was the artiste management.

The launch of Disney+ Hotstar Thailand is supported by Dolby Laboratories. With a growing collection of films and TV series available in Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Audio, Thai viewers with compatible devices can stream a selection of their shows on Disney+ Hotstar with improved visual and audio quality, as Dolby promises to deliver "ultra-vivid imaging with Dolby Vision and crystal clarity, easy-to-hear dialogue, great detail, and realistic surround sound effects with Dolby Audio".

Pankaj Kedia, MD, emerging markets at Dolby Laboratories said: “We are excited to be on this journey with Disney+ Hotstar Thailand to boost the streaming experience with incredible audio and picture quality. With Dolby Vision and Dolby Audio, we want audiences to be able to enjoy the experience of streaming their favourite Disney+ Hotstar content from the comfort of their homes and on-the-go.”

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