Channel Strategy


We’re responding to support calls from devices, not people, says fast-growing MSP

A Saskatchewan-based managed services provider is reaping the fruits of its investments in predictive analytics and gaining a foothold in the Western Canadian market as a result.

2 min read

Recent Channel Strategy Stories

We’re responding to support calls from devices, not people, says fast-growing MSP

A Saskatchewan-based managed services provider is reaping the fruits of its investments in predictive analytics and gaining a foothold in the Western Canadian market as a result.

2 min read

Conservatism makes it hard to manage the Canadian channel in a multinational company, experts say

3 min read

OpenText announces fresh partnerships and talks Google at Enterprise World

Partnerships were the name of the game at OpenText Enterprise World. Although no new programs for the channel were announced, the message was all about alignment.

3 min read

The Reddit Recap – Microsoft partners rejoice, Azure Lighthouse, outgoing vendor challenges

Microsoft partners rejoice, and maintaining confidence in your solution even when an outgoing MSP gives you a hard time.

2 min read

Microsoft responds to Internal Use Rights removal: we can’t afford it

UPDATE: Microsoft has retracted the decision to discontinue its Internal Use Right (IUR) program for its partners.

5 min read

Channel Strategy News

It might have been the lowest-rated since 2010, but the fifty-second Super Bowl still delivered more than 100 million eyeballs to advertisers, and tech firms and their marketing departments were more than ready. Have a look.
Amazon: Alexa Loses Her VoiceAs usual, the biggest tech giants sat out for this Super Bowl. Also per usual, the exception was Amazon, which delivered an ad - starring Jeff Bezos himself, no less! - that depicts Alexa losing her voice and a long list of celebrities including Gordon Ramsay and Rebel Wilson fulfilling requests in her stead.
Netflix: The Cloverfield ParadoxIn an unpredecendented move, the streaming giant's newest original movie premiered immediately after the Super Bowl, a feat of unofficial post-game programming that analysts will no doubt closely watch to see if it pays off.
Lexus: LS 500 F Sport featuring Black PantherHow quickly times change. We remember writing this site's first car-manufacturer-as-tech-company story back in 2016, and now it seems every manufacturer is hopping on the digital transformation train. Lexus, whose LS 500 F Sport features a now-standard intelligent system, undeniably produced our favourite ad, a slick collaboration with Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman. (Kia also made a Super Bowl ad for its Apple- and Android-powered 2018 Stinger featuring Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler.)
TurboTax: The Thing Under the BedTax software developer TurboTax is a perennial favourite of the Super Bowl, with this year's ad campaign making the fear many of its users feel around tax time a bit more literall than usual. (A similar TurboTax ad featured "The Noise in the Attic.")
Squarespace: Make It With Keanu ReevesContent management system, integrated website builder, blogging platform, hosting service, commerce platform, and domain name registrar Squarespace has recently banked on the considerable appeal of actor/luxury motorcycle entrepreneur Keanu Reeves to sell its service to the masses, with this year's Super Bowl spot arguably its most eye-catching yet. (Incidentally, you can see what Keanu made here.)
Rocket Mortgage: Super Bowl 2018 ad featuring Keegan-Michael Key and Big SeanQuicken Loans Inc.'s fintech division, Rocket Mortgage, enlisted Keegan-Michael Key and his well-known "anger translator" sketch persona to translate the flowery language employed by so many marketers (and mortgage lenders) into plain English.
Wix.com: Official 2018 Big Game Ad with Rhett & LinkWe're not going to pretend we knew who comedians Rhett and Link were before watching this, but will concede they made a very nice website using cloud-based platform Wix.com.
Groupon 2018 Super Bowl Commercial - "Who Wouldn't"Groupon takes a page from the Simpsons with this SMB-boosting ad starring Girls Trip's Tiffany Haddish.
Beats By Dre: Tom Brady - Above the NoiseApple-owned Beats By Dre enlists five-time Super Bowl-winning, four-time Super Bowl MVP, three-time NFL MVP, Donald Trump-supporting New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady for its newest ad.
Sprint Super Bowl Commercial 2018: EvelynTelecommunication companies aren't tech companies per se, but we cover them often enough on CDN, and Sprint's vision of AI, and the capabilities of chess-playing Android Evelyn, are closer to reality than you might think. (We doubt an actual AI would laugh at your choice of cellphone provider however.)
SoFi: Get There SoonerFintech Social Finance, Inc. encourages the recent university graduates among its viewers to step online and use its services to pay down their student debt.
T-Mobile: #LittleOnesThere was a time - oh, say, less than two years ago, when ad promoting multiculturalism wouldn't have been considered a political statement. Sadly, we no longer live in that time.
Tide: It's a Tide AdNo, it's not directly tech related (though at the very least its star can probably thank Netflix for the opportunity), but marketers can learn a great deal from this year's most popular Super Bowl ad, a Tide commercial starring Stranger Things’ David Harbour.
It might have been the lowest-rated since 2010, but the fifty-second Super Bowl still delivered more than 100 million eyeballs to advertisers, and tech firms and their marketing departments were more than ready. Have a look.
Amazon: Alexa Loses Her VoiceAs usual, the biggest tech giants sat out for this Super Bowl. Also per usual, the exception was Amazon, which delivered an ad - starring Jeff Bezos himself, no less! - that depicts Alexa losing her voice and a long list of celebrities including Gordon Ramsay and Rebel Wilson fulfilling requests in her stead.
Netflix: The Cloverfield ParadoxIn an unpredecendented move, the streaming giant's newest original movie premiered immediately after the Super Bowl, a feat of unofficial post-game programming that analysts will no doubt closely watch to see if it pays off.
Lexus: LS 500 F Sport featuring Black PantherHow quickly times change. We remember writing this site's first car-manufacturer-as-tech-company story back in 2016, and now it seems every manufacturer is hopping on the digital transformation train. Lexus, whose LS 500 F Sport features a now-standard intelligent system, undeniably produced our favourite ad, a slick collaboration with Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman. (Kia also made a Super Bowl ad for its Apple- and Android-powered 2018 Stinger featuring Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler.)
TurboTax: The Thing Under the BedTax software developer TurboTax is a perennial favourite of the Super Bowl, with this year's ad campaign making the fear many of its users feel around tax time a bit more literall than usual. (A similar TurboTax ad featured "The Noise in the Attic.")
Squarespace: Make It With Keanu ReevesContent management system, integrated website builder, blogging platform, hosting service, commerce platform, and domain name registrar Squarespace has recently banked on the considerable appeal of actor/luxury motorcycle entrepreneur Keanu Reeves to sell its service to the masses, with this year's Super Bowl spot arguably its most eye-catching yet. (Incidentally, you can see what Keanu made here.)
Rocket Mortgage: Super Bowl 2018 ad featuring Keegan-Michael Key and Big SeanQuicken Loans Inc.'s fintech division, Rocket Mortgage, enlisted Keegan-Michael Key and his well-known "anger translator" sketch persona to translate the flowery language employed by so many marketers (and mortgage lenders) into plain English.
Wix.com: Official 2018 Big Game Ad with Rhett & LinkWe're not going to pretend we knew who comedians Rhett and Link were before watching this, but will concede they made a very nice website using cloud-based platform Wix.com.
Groupon 2018 Super Bowl Commercial - "Who Wouldn't"Groupon takes a page from the Simpsons with this SMB-boosting ad starring Girls Trip's Tiffany Haddish.
Beats By Dre: Tom Brady - Above the NoiseApple-owned Beats By Dre enlists five-time Super Bowl-winning, four-time Super Bowl MVP, three-time NFL MVP, Donald Trump-supporting New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady for its newest ad.
Sprint Super Bowl Commercial 2018: EvelynTelecommunication companies aren't tech companies per se, but we cover them often enough on CDN, and Sprint's vision of AI, and the capabilities of chess-playing Android Evelyn, are closer to reality than you might think. (We doubt an actual AI would laugh at your choice of cellphone provider however.)
SoFi: Get There SoonerFintech Social Finance, Inc. encourages the recent university graduates among its viewers to step online and use its services to pay down their student debt.
T-Mobile: #LittleOnesThere was a time - oh, say, less than two years ago, when ad promoting multiculturalism wouldn't have been considered a political statement. Sadly, we no longer live in that time.
Tide: It's a Tide AdNo, it's not directly tech related (though at the very least its star can probably thank Netflix for the opportunity), but marketers can learn a great deal from this year's most popular Super Bowl ad, a Tide commercial starring Stranger Things’ David Harbour.

The top tech-related commercials from Superbowl LII


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