beyondbrics

Super Bowl adverts always draw attention – but not usually for their politics. This year, however, things are different. Groupon – the US-based company that helps group-buyers get discounts – ran an advert during the break in America’s most watched sporting event that is already raising plenty of eyebrows, and some criticism, in China.

During the spot, actor Timothy Hutton delivers the line: “The people of Tibet are in trouble, their very culture in jeopardy”, before explaining how they are still able to “whip up a great fish curry” (something Groupon members can save money on).

Here’s the whole thing:

The timing is bizarre. It comes as Groupon seeks to expand into the potentially lucrative Chinese market (what happens when 1.3bn people group buy?). It also coincides with a chunky piece in the China Daily – published on Monday – which not only extolls the virtues of group buying, but also provides news that Groupon is partnering with Tencent and hiring 1,000 staff in its bid to crack China.

The reactions are already popping up on Chinese microblogging sites. Here are some samples from The Nanfang. It also appears to have upset some from the Free Tibet camp – who see it as making light of the situation.

Here is Groupon’s explanation:

The gist of the concept is this: When groups of people act together to do something, it’s usually to help a cause. With Groupon, people act together to help themselves by getting great deals. So what if we did a parody of a celebrity-narrated, PSA-style commercial that you think is about some noble cause (such as “Save the Whales”), but then it’s revealed to actually be a passionate call to action to help yourself (as in “Save the Money”)?

Further inspection shows that the advert is part of a campaign to raise money for a Tibetan Refugee community. We’ll leave you to make your own judgment on the execution.

And there’s one other thing that gets the mind buzzing: since when was fish curry a symbol of Tibetan culture?

Related reading:
Super Bowl ad featuring Tibet triggers angry reaction in China, CNN.com
In Brief: Groupon Teaches us How to Please No One, ChinaGeeks