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HTC to bring in actor Robert Downey Jr for $12 million ad campaign

Could it be that the successes of HTC’s current flagship – the HTC One have helped steer the company to look for another metal-clad hero, this time in the form of new marketing ambassador Robert Downey Jr? It would seem so.

Over the next two years, the Taiwanese company are looking to bring famed Hollywood actor Downey Jr on-board to support a new ad campaign in a deal said to be worth around $12 million according to Bloomberg.

Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark in Iron Man 3

Downey Jr’s popularity has risen immensely over the past few years, primarily as a result of his silver screen portrayals of billionaire playboy and super hero Tony Stark/Iron Man, as well as famed British detective, Sherlock Holmes in the Guy Ritchie films bearing the same name.

HTC has been looking to better position itself after having suffered poor sales as a result of a weak brand image. In recent years the company’s visibility Stateside has greatly diminished, especially considering it was once the top-selling smartphone vendor in the country. As a result of leading rival Samsung investing approximately ten times the amount of money in its global marketing budget, it’s no wonder that HTC is finding it hard to keep up.

Present global smartphone shipments see HTC sitting in the number nine spot behind the likes of Chinese manufacturers Huawei and ZTE. Despite the bleak outlook however, HTC is still turning over a profit, albeit their weakest profit on record in Q4, 2012.

“We’re not going to hide our brand anymore” – Ben Ho, HTC

Ben Ho – HTC’s newest Marketing Director told Bloomberg that the company is no longer playing up to its underdog image and needs to take its marketing in a “bold” new direction. “We’re not going to hide our brand anymore,” Ho said. “We’re going to be bolder with marketing.

Taking on such a mammoth contract with the likes of Robert Downey Jr seems like a suitable move with regards to upping the ante. The actor is anticipated to appear in global advertising for the smartphone manufacturer over the next two years across print, billboard and television spots.

 

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