Michelob ULTRA - Dreamcaster
Michelob ULTRA needed to address the inaccessibility of live NBA games for 284 million visually impaired fans worldwide. The brand aimed to plant its flag in the cultural conversation about accessibility in sports, reinforcing its 'It's Only Worth It If You Enjoy It' philosophy and launching a long-term commitment.
Creative Idea
Translated live basketball's visual action into a multisensorial experience for blind fans via groundbreaking technology.
Michelob ULTRA developed groundbreaking multisensorial technology, the Dreamcaster app, to translate live basketball action into a felt experience for visually impaired fans, making the joy of sports truly accessible and reinforcing the brand's commitment to enjoyment.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
Michelob ULTRA leveraged its brand belief in enjoyment and its capacity for innovative, purpose-driven initiatives to address sports accessibility.
Category
The sports broadcasting category typically offered only audio commentary for visually impaired fans, overlooking the full sensory experience of live games.
Customer
Visually impaired sports fans deeply desired to truly feel the game's action and excitement, not just hear it, to experience complete joy.
Culture
A growing cultural emphasis on inclusivity and accessibility across all sectors created a receptive environment for solutions addressing overlooked communities.
Company
Michelob ULTRA leveraged its brand belief in enjoyment and its capacity for innovative, purpose-driven initiatives to address sports accessibility.
Category
The sports broadcasting category typically offered only audio commentary for visually impaired fans, overlooking the full sensory experience of live games.
Strategy:
Leverage innovative sensory translation to make the experience of enjoyment universally accessible for underserved communities.
Customer
Visually impaired sports fans deeply desired to truly feel the game's action and excitement, not just hear it, to experience complete joy.
Culture
A growing cultural emphasis on inclusivity and accessibility across all sectors created a receptive environment for solutions addressing overlooked communities.
Strategy:
Leverage innovative sensory translation to make the experience of enjoyment universally accessible for underserved communities.
Results
The campaign was experienced by 21,000 people in-arena. It garnered 10.4 million viewers on live TV. The broadcast was fully integrated, indicating significant media exposure. Michelob ULTRA's parent company, AB-InBev, made a $115 million inclusivity investment commitment. The campaign received positive media attention, with The New York Times calling it "Changing The Game," USA TODAY stating "Evolving basketball through technology," and the NBA recognizing it as "Driving innovation in sports." The Athletic mentioned "Breakthrough tech for '23/24 season."
10.4M
viewers on live TV
$115M
inclusivity investment
21,000
in-arena experiences
Strategy Technique
Build an Utility, Not an Ad
Michelob ULTRA created a functional, free app that genuinely solved a significant accessibility problem for sports fans. This utility extended the brand's commitment beyond traditional advertising.
Explore Technique
Creative Technique
Technology
The campaign centered on developing and launching a new technological solution, the Dreamcaster app. This groundbreaking tech translated visual game action into multisensorial feedback for blind fans.
Explore Technique
Craft Breakdown
This campaign's craft is exceptional for its pioneering creation of a multi-sensory technological system, leveraging advanced sound design, digital craft, and AI to make live sports broadcasting accessible and immersive for the visually impaired.
The campaign's core innovation is the creation of a 'new language' of spatial audio, meticulously designed with 1,020 unique sound possibilities across 62 speakers, enabling blind commentators to perceive and react to live NBA game action.
The comprehensive development and seamless integration of the haptic feedback vest, refreshable Braille displays, and the overall digital architecture form a groundbreaking multi-sensory system.
AI is critically employed to process vast amounts of real-time NBA data, translating complex game dynamics into immediate, intelligible audio, haptic, and Braille inputs for the commentator.
The campaign is built upon a truly innovative and empathetic idea: to leverage technology to provide full accessibility to live sports for the visually impaired, transforming a universal passion into an inclusive experience.
The brilliance of this campaign lies in the powerful synergy between the exceptional ideamaking, the groundbreaking sound design that creates a new sensory language, and the sophisticated digital craft and AI that integrate all the technological components into a cohesive, real-time experience.
