O2 presents a Royal Flush - and still isn’t cool

November 6, 2008 · Filed Under Blather, Industry · Comment 

In 2003 at a conference with the great and the good of mobile industries meeting the music industry the man at the mobile phone network O2 got up and was complaining about how much money artists ask for when you approach them to do some sort of promotion. My reply reasoned was that the telcoms are seen as big uncool cash cows and it doesn’t matter how you throw money at the O2 brand nothing could make it sexy enough for a band to want to align with it without huge amounts of cash. He sat down in humph seemingly cursing my words.

Since then O2’s desire for cool music drive has almost seemed like a personal vendetta against my words 5 years ago. And blimey haven’t they thrown money at it.

The last 5 years have seen O2 have successfully rebranded The Dome and backed the most prosperous new music venue in years, turning around national embaressment. O2 have the sole rights for the glorious Iphone, the most desirable gadget in years bundling in real internet, Ipods, video players, and all your telephone needs in a sexy sleek pocket rocket. Gene Rodenberry didn’t even go that far. O2 have been sponsoring the Wireless festival in Hyde Park for the last few years, and by all accounts making up the shortfall that the ticket sales don’t achieve.

Today see’s O2 take over the ‘Carling’ Branding of the Academy Music group venues in the UK. That is a fair few: O2 Academy Brixton; O2 Academy Islington; O2 Academy Birmingham; O2 Academy Bristol; O2 Academy Glasgow; O2 Academy Liverpool; O2 Academy Newcastle; O2 Academy Oxford; O2 Academy Sheffield; O2 Academy Leeds; O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire.

Blimey that is a lot of branded venues that is a good budget. And with it are targeting the still blooming live industry. O2 customers benefit from booking priority tickets this allows their customers to book priority shows all over the country. It is a marketing idea that has been effectively administered and actually works and is now being rolled out across the country. Orange 2 for 1 cinema tickets, pah? Is that all you offer.

So back to the question? It doesn’t matter how much money you throw at it the O2 brand still won’t be cool. The Iphone is cool, the contract you have to buy isn’t, the sound at the Dome is cool the entrance (branded O2 galore) isn’t. Wireless has some storming lineups but the branding and sheer corporate money of it doesn’t create any loyality to the events, so much so the O2 Wireless name has been dropped back. The Academy music group was never that cool but the bands that play amongst their venues day to day are as cool you can get, dare I say O2 isn’t.

O2 has made a magnificent clean sweep of some of the best music properties in the UK and managed to brand venues and events from rival companies and somehow push their way onto some very loved brands. I wonder what their music marketing budget is compared to record sales in this country. It would not surprise me if it is more. I imagine marketing managers wet themselves in excitement when O2’s marketing get in touch, just think of the christmas bonus.

O2 seems more vulgar then ever to be honest, it doesn’t get to be cool by association to cool stuff. It remains that cold blue brand it always was, this time more monolithic then ever before.

But what does O2 care about what I think is cool anyway? They are in this to sell phone contracts and with a clean and aggressive sweep of music properties and seem to be doing nicely, what I get an Iphone with priority ticketing throughout the country for the same price as my crackberry ?

I want one (ssh)

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