Intel Targets Notebook Users With New Ad Campaign
By: Donna Fuscaldo, Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
biz.yahoo.com
NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Aiming to boost sales of semiconductors used in mobile computers, Intel Corp. (NasdaqNM: INTC - news) (INTC) recently launched a new advertising campaign geared toward consumer notebook users.
In its biggest mobile marketing push yet, Intel intends to spend more than five times the amount it did last year in hyping its mobile microprocessors in print and television advertisements.
Ann Lewnes, vice president of consumer marketing at Intel, said the Santa Clara, Calif. chip maker is focusing on the mobile computer market because its an area that is "exploding."
"Year over year from 2000 to 2001 there's been 30% growth and that was in a depressed economy," said Lewnes.
The forecasts are for notebooks to grow two times as fast as the overall personal-computer market, she added.
She declined to disclose how much the company has spent in the past on marketing its mobile chips.
While Intel plans to promote its mobile processors to corporations and consumers, it is focusing heavily on the latter. Currently corporations represent two-thirds of the mobile market, while consumers represent one- third, said Lewnes. Both segments are growing, but consumers are expected to grow larger as a percentage over time, added the executive.
Last month Intel began running television ads targeting consumers for its mobile processors as well as full-page advertisements in national newspapers.
The 30-second television ads, which are running in prime-time slots, feature alien characters, shown floating in space to Frank Sinatra's 'Fly Me To The Moon.' The tagline: Get powerful desktop PC performance without the desk.
Intel is also offering increased cash rebates to original equipment manufactures who run mobile computing advertisements as part of its Intel Inside program.
Under the program, Intel pays a portion of the advertising dollars OEMs spend if they use the Intel Inside logo in their ads. Lewnes said Intel will pay a higher portion for the costs of ads about its Pentium 4 mobile chip.
On Tuesday Intel will unveil faster versions of its Pentium 4 Processor-M mobile chip, running at speeds of 1.4 gigahertz, 1.5 gigahertz and 1.8 gigahertz. In the first half of next year Intel plans to launch its first microprocessor designed specifically for mobile computing code named "Banias."
To kick off its new marketing push, Intel is hosting a series of events in New York Tuesday, including laptop demonstrations, notebook and software giveaways and a free concert in Bryant Park featuring the Bare Naked Ladies.
The company will have pavilions across the city in such highly trafficked areas as Grand Central Station, Pennsylvania Station and Columbia University.
American Express Co . (AXP) has agreed to award card holders who buy Intel- based notebooks with double points before May 4 at select retailers including CompUSA, Gateway Inc. (NYSE: GTW - news) 's (GTW) retail stores and J&R ComputerWorld.
Intel also plans to unleash about 70 bicyclists, roller-bladers and "mobile messengers" into the streets of New York City Tuesday to get the word out about its mobile chips.
The message the chip maker is trying to convey with its latest campaign is desktop performance on the go, said Lewnes.
For its print and television ads, Intel tapped New York 's Messner Vetere Berger McNamee Schmetterer Euro RSCG, which is has used for a number of years.
Last month Intel introduced its first Pentium 4 processors for the mobile market and earlier this month the company unveiled five Pentium III-M and mobile Celeron chips.
Shares of Intel were recently trading down 22 cents at $29.88 on volume of 16 million shares. Average daily volume is 48 million shares.
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