Situation:

Princess Cruises aimed to expand its brand outreach and rejuvenate interest amidst the cruise industry's post-pandemic recovery. The company sought innovative ways to engage a broader audience beyond conventional advertising.

Brief:

The project involved creating an Augmented Reality (AR) experience at SoFi Stadium during Los Angeles Rams Home games. This collaboration with Snapchat and the Los Angeles Rams aimed to showcase Princess Cruises' Love Boat in a captivating AR surf race, leveraging the stadium's advanced graphics system.

Objectives:

Boost fan engagement: Offer LA Rams fans a cutting-edge AR experience, enriching the game-day experience.

Highlight innovation: Utilize AR to underline Princess Cruises' commitment to cutting-edge entertainment.

Extend audience reach: Introduce Princess Cruises to sports fans, potentially attracting a new customer base.

Strengthen brand image: Cement Princess Cruises' status as an industry innovator, capable of delivering unique, memorable experiences.

The creative idea was to merge the thrill of live sports with the cutting-edge use of augmented reality (AR), transforming the Los Angeles Rams' game-day experience into a visual spectacle. By partnering with Snapchat, the Los Angeles Rams, Meptik and Disguise, Princess Cruises transformed SoFi Stadium into a virtual ocean, complete with a thrilling AR surf race. This spectacle featured avatars of Rams players surfing waves, dodging obstacles, and racing towards a giant Princess Cruise ship. The experience was not just about showcasing technological prowess; it was about creating a moment of wonder, connecting fans with the spirit of adventure that cruising embodies. This bold integration of AR into a live sports event allowed Princess Cruises to stand out, offering fans an unexpected journey from their stadium seats to the Pacific Ocean's waves, thereby redefining fan engagement and brand experience in a memorable and innovative way.

Implementation: Utilizing Snapchat's Lens Studio, the creative team at Meptik designed a 3D AR surf race, integrating actual Rams players' avatars into this virtual competition. The experience was powered by a custom solution using Disguise GX 3 and RX II media servers, and their RenderStream™ data transfer protocol, ensuring seamless real-time AR rendering.

Placement: The AR feature was showcased on the 70,000-square-foot Infinity Screen at SoFi Stadium, ensuring visibility to all attendees of the Los Angeles Rams home games. The Infinity Screen boasts around 80 million pixels, making it the world's largest 4K end-to-end video board.

Scale: This ambitious project was not just large-scale in terms of screen size but also in its reach, targeting thousands of fans present at the games.

Brand relevance: For Princess Cruises, this execution was a strategic move to position the brand within the context of innovative, memorable experiences, aligning with its image as a leader in the cruise industry. The choice of a surf race, culminating in a celebration atop a Princess Cruise ship, reinforced the brand's association with oceanic adventures.

Touchpoints: Primarily through visual engagement during the games and extended through texting the Cruise line for a chance to win a Princess cruise getaway.

Materials, style elements, design choices: The AR content was rich in maritime themes, with stylized elements like the iconic Love Boat and animated marine life, boats, and a beach enhancing the thematic connection to Princess Cruises.

Methods and process: The project was a result of collaborative efforts between technical and creative teams, ensuring the AR content was not only visually captivating but also technically robust, offering a seamless experience.

Timeline: From ideation to execution, it took the team about 2 months to complete. The AR experience was part of all Los Angeles Home games in their 2023 football season.