Blackberry and Samsung tease us with previews of Superbowl Ads

By Joshua Sherman February 1, 2013

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Superbowl is America’s biggest sports event of the year, as well as one of its most watched too. Whether you’re watching it for the game or not, companies of all shapes and sizes are preparing for the big game this year with witty and expensive advertising to shower you with. With only a few days remaining until the big game, both Samsung and BlackBerry are showing off teasers on what should come on Sunday.

Samsung decided to release a teaser on YouTube titled “El Plato Supreme,” poking fun at the NFL trademark of the Superbowl as Paul Rudd and Seth Rogan pitch an ad to Bob Odenkirk. The ad also feature Samsung’s ongoing theme that “The Next Best Thing is Here,” taking aim at Apple and their ongoing war to eat away at the iPhone maker’s market share. The teaser also hinted at participation by both Superbowl teams.

BlackBerry, however, has chose to remain even more discrete with its advertising, sharing only a screen still of its anticipated Superbowl ad that we frankly can’t make heads or tails of. The ad will air less than a week after BlackBerry’s debut of BB 10, they’re company claims it will display the same revolutionary values as their new OS. While no other teasers have been released by BlackBerry, digital agency Pixelcarve has released their own BB 10 “Superbowl Ad,” offering a very bold perspective of the company.

While BlackBerry and Samsung both chose to remain discrete, a myriad of companies have already took to YouTube, releasing their Big Game ads in advance to the public. Some of these videos have already garnered millions of views, and feature everything from RAV 4 genies to gods of war. While the styles differ, all of these companies are getting immense attention through social media, and certainly doing their best to get their money’s worth.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Joshua Sherman is a contributor for Digital Trends who writes about all things mobile from Apple to Zynga. Josh pulls his…

Mobile

BlackBerry rises from the grave: New 5G phone with a keyboard coming in 2021

BlackBerry Key2. Credits: BlackBerry official.

BlackBerry is the smartphone brand that steadfastly refuses to die. The presumed-dead name has been resurrected once again, this time by a new company called OnwardMobility. It will work with manufacturer FIH Mobile to create and sell a 5G BlackBerry Android phone with a physical keyboard, ready for a potential release in the U.S. and Europe during the first half of 2021.

You read that right: A new BlackBerry phone with a physical keyboard and 5G, running Google’s Android software, is coming next year. TCL Communications was the last company to produce BlackBerry smartphones. It did so under license from BlackBerry Ltd., which continues to provide mobile security services, but isn’t in the hardware business anymore. TCL let its license lapse in February 2020 when modern, Android-based BlackBerry phones became a thing of the past. Until now.

Mobile

Samsung previews foldable Galaxy Z Flip phone in Oscars ad

galaxy z flip

Two days before its official unveiling, the forthcoming Samsung Galaxy Z Flip bore it all in a commercial during the 92nd Academy Awards. Samsung previewed its second foldable phone in a 30-second advert ahead of its Galaxy Unpacked event that’s set to take place on Tuesday, February 11.

https://twitter.com/markgurman/status/1226677970208608256?s=20

Mobile

TCL won’t make BlackBerry phones anymore, sending the brand back into limbo

BlackBerry Key2 LE review

TCL Communication has announced it will no longer be making BlackBerry smartphones, after taking over the dormant brand at the end of 2016, and bringing it back to life with a series of ever-improving devices. In a statement tweeted out by the official BlackBerry Mobile account, TCL Communication does not have the rights to design, manufacture, or sell BlackBerry phones any longer.

This means the BlackBerry Key 2 LE will be the last BlackBerry-branded phone produced by TCL Communication to be released, and it follows the BlackBerry Key 2, and the BlackBerry KeyOne. TCL Communication’s BlackBerry phones took the features fans of the brand loved — the physical keyboard, long battery life, and extra levels of security — and put them inside modern hardware with Google Android software. While not for everyone, they were successful with those either familiar with the brand, or those looking for something a little different.
What does this mean for BlackBerry?
The future of BlackBerry phones is once again unknown. While TCL Communication will not make another BlackBerry phone, it does not necessarily mean we will never see another BlackBerry phone. It’s possible the global license could be snapped up by another company eager to capitalize on the brand’s highly recognizable name. HMD Global, for example, has seen considerable success with the Nokia name since acquiring the license, while British phone maker Bullitt owns the license to make phones from brands including Cat, JCB, and Land Rover.