Turner’s TBS and Google Play have inked a year-long mobile gaming partnership that will fuel live-streaming stunts, mobile-led marathon and in-show brand integrations for the platform’s titles on Conan.
The pact stemmed from Conan O’Brien’s “Clueless Gamer” segment featuring the late night host and guests playing—– or rather attempting to play – the hottest video games on the market. The deal “establishes Google Play as the platform of choice to bring the show’s gaming adventures to fans across all screens,” says Turner.
“As Conan continues to evolve the boundaries of his late-night show and build an incredible community of fans in the digital and social space, we’ve been able to take a true omni-channel approach to our partnerships with marketers,” said Jenn Cohen, senior vice president of entertainment content partnerships for Turner Ignite. “This social-led, year-long campaign brings Google Play unique access to the show across all touchpoints, while also rewarding the fans with more of what they want – their favorite late-night gamer.”
The partnership kicked off on November 9 with an in-show brand integration where Conan busted out Google Play on his smartphone to distract him from the ramblings of associate producer Jordan Schlansky on the way to New York City’s Apollo Theater for a week of filming.
The video was shared across Team Coco’s social handles and garnered over 1.7 millions views.
Variety points out that while the deal doesn’t include traditional commercials, there will on-air promotions of Google Play segments on Conan, which airs at 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday. The mobile deal also doesn’t restrict Conan from engaging in promos for console games.
The next Google Play promo is slated for December, and features gamer Aaron Bleyaert (aka “Bley”) diving into Google Play’s 2017 “Best of Play” list, reviewing the year’s top trending mobile games in a special edition of Stream Coco.
Then in 2018, Conan will attempt the show’s first-ever live 24-hour mobile gaming marathon with Bley, followed by the first Clueless Gamer segment on mobile games. And in July, Google Play will road trip with Conan to San Diego Comic-Con.
Chris Connelly, global content marketing lead for Google Play, said the rise of mobile gaming has led to a video game community this is more diverse, inclusive and representative than ever before.
“Conan’s authentic personality and broad reach makes him the perfect partner to help tell that story, and show the increasing role mobile gaming plays in our lives,” he said in a statement. “As huge fans of the show, we’re looking forward to showcasing the wide selection of fun and innovative games from major studios and indies alike on Google Play.”
READ MORE: Variety
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