Why is this work relevant for Media?

‘The Cost of Bullying’ is an idea in which media plays an important role. The core idea was built directly into the game itself. A key part of online games are in-game purchases. They’re a big deal for gamers. So to tackle in-game bullying, we hacked Magic Quest and made bullies pay for their actions. By hacking, ‘The Cost of Bullying’ is an idea that celebrates creativity through the clever use of media. It’s an example of strategic targeting and going right to the heart of the problem. The solve is effective in the very space where the problem exists.

Background

In China, online gaming has exploded. But so has bullying. 1-in-2 gamers have at some point been bullied when playing online. As an industry leader, Samsung wanted to tackle this toxic behaviour head on.

Describe the creative idea / insights (30% of vote)

THE COST OF BULLYING. When gamers bully, they pay the price.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

There’s a real cost to bullying. Which made us think: When gamers bully, shouldn’t THEY pay the price?

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

Working with one of the country’s biggest game developers, we hacked ‘Magic Quest’—the biggest game of the year and China’s equivalent to ‘World of Warcraft’. A key part of the game are in-game purchases—for weapons, armour and power-ups. So we made bullies pay for their actions, quite literally. We linked the game’s ‘abusive language detection system’ to the pricing database. Every time the system detected any sign of bullying, it raised the price. So the more gamers bullied, the more they paid. All in real-time. All within the game.

List the results (30% of vote)

The hacked game gave bullies a real wake-up call. During the two-week hijack, over one million bullies paid the price. With reports of in-game bullying falling by 40%. Making this China’s most successful anti-bullying drive to date. The message was loud and clear… There’s a cost to bullying. And now when gamers bully, they pay the price.

Please tell us how the brand purpose inspired the work

Samsung’s CSR mission is to promote the health, safety and well-being for all. But 1-in-2 gamers have at some point been bullied when playing online. So an industry leader, Samsung wanted to tackle this toxic behaviour head on.