Deutsche Telekom: Breaking down barriers or raising them?

Hm, how do you feel about this ad by Deutsche Telekom? The German telecommunications company says of its festive season campaign: "In a time when the world feels more divided than ever, we all benefit from real human connection. By opening ourselves to those on the other side, we realise that we're not so different after all. Let’s break the barriers we create in our minds". Which sounds good, but does anyone get a whiff of emotional manipulation? The two-minute tale is a thought-provoking one which makes its point effectively, yet in a somehow lifeless manner. Ah, there's a disclosure clause under the YouTube version, alerting those who see it to "Altered or synthetic content. Sound or visuals were significantly edited or digitally generated". Right.... We're not having a go at Deutsche Telekom here - most companies are experimenting with generative artificial intelligence (AI). However, it would appear to require quite a bit of digging to understand exactly how the content has been altered. If you press the button to 'Learn More', you may find yourself with more sodding learning than you're prepared to take on, particularly as you con the Christmas gift list and wonder where the time and money are going to come from. YouTube explains: "To help keep viewers informed about the content that they're viewing, we require creators to disclose content that is altered or synthetic when it appears realistic or meaningful. Examples of content, edits or video assistance that creators need to disclose: Synthetically generating music / Cloning someone else's voice to create voiceovers or dubs / Synthetically generating extra footage of a real place, like a video of a surfer in Maui for a promotional travel video / Synthetically generating a realistic video of a match between two real professional tennis players / Making it appear as if someone gave advice that they did not actually give / Digitally altering audio to make it sound as if a popular singer missed a note in their live performance / Showing a realistic depiction of a tornado or other weather events moving towards a real city that didn't actually happen / Making it appear as if hospital workers turned away sick or wounded patients / Depicting a public figure stealing something that they did not steal or admitting to stealing something when they did not make that admission / Making it look like a real person has been arrested or imprisoned / Bear in mind that the above list is not exhaustive". Indeed. And probably never will be.

Keywords: Deutsche Telekom Bubbles Christmas Ad 2024, Christmas ads 2024, generative AI in advertising, artificial intelligence ads, MUW Saatchi & Saatchi