Pokemon craze spreads to MTR

<p>The Mass Transit Railway (MTR) has scored a hit by zeroing-in on </p><p>the global craze for the Japanese cartoon series Pokemon in its current </p><p>tactical advertising campaign. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The campaign, headlined "Catch the MTR, Find the Pokemon", aimed to </p><p>enrich the experience and excitement of the underground ride on one of </p><p>Hong Kong's largest transportation networks. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Six Pokemon characters can be redeemed in a six-week long campaign </p><p>period supported by television, print and outdoor advertising, as well </p><p>as point of sales and public relations activities. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>FCB Hong Kong managing director Margaret Kennedy said the campaign has </p><p>enhanced the atmosphere of the transport network, with the Pokemon </p><p>characters decorating the stations and trains. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Bringing the Pokemon characters on board for the campaign involved a </p><p>strict agreement with the Japanese cartoonist as any use of the </p><p>character image must be originally drawn and produced in Japan. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The television campaign, entitled "mysterious creatures", featured </p><p>strange beings appearing in MTR stations, with everyone wanting to get a </p><p>hold of them. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"We wanted to create a feeling of excitement," said FCB executive </p><p>creative director Ronnie Wong. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The creative idea tapped into people's understanding of the Pokemon </p><p>characteristics, he added. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The word "find" rather than "catch" was used in the tagline of the </p><p>campaign, as Mr Wong said the concept had to be relevant to the </p><p>Pokemon's legend, which dictated that the characters could not be </p><p>caught. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Altogether, 500,000 Pokemon premium soft toys would be given away, and </p><p>Ms Kennedy said the market reaction and noise level was stronger than </p><p>originally expected. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The first Pokemon premium characters were fully redeemed by the third </p><p>day of the week, according to Ms Kennedy. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Asked if the MTR would take on similar campaigns in the future, Ms </p><p>Kennedy said the promotional direction would depend on the MTR's overall </p><p>plan for the second half of the year. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Pokemon was described as the right choice for the campaign since the </p><p>characters themselves were well known through television cartoon </p><p>programmes. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>