Are hydration breaks served from a poisoned chalice?
It’s a mistake to mess with an established format because you know better.
I’m not talking about hydration breaks.
I’m talking about everyone expecting America – and its massive corporations – not to capitalise on making as much money as possible with the world cup.
Initially I perceived calling them “hydration breaks” as a simple trick to fool people into buying into this ploy.
I was rather blinkered thinking the name change was a simple masking exercise.
”Of course we notice its an ad break
-Any Human ever--with eyes
It seems like this word was actually carefully chosen because it skirts around IFAB guidelines – allowing a match to contain a Hydration break – it is a rule after all…
Although, it does seem that the IFAB and FIFA are butting heads on this issue.
And lets not even go down the route of of half time length.
So rather than me assuming it was failed naming exercise, It was actually a clever trick in order to stretch the rules to enable ad breaks – quite clever actually.
The reason people are unhappy about all this though, despite it being a technically legal slight of hand with the name, is because it fundamentally alters the experience.
It changes the game. A game the world loves.
Many comment that the change is for the worse (Lets not talk about the newish VAR please).
And for changing a thing people love? You get booing for 3 minutes.
I fundamentally believe that If you spoil the content with ads , you spoil the ads.
”If you spoil the content, you spoil the ad
I wouldn’t want my brand shown at these 3 minute watery wait times.. But then im not an advertiser.
In the Superbowl – they love ads.
But then ads don’t fundamentally alter the game itself.
In fact Its a good implementation of ads. Some might say ads are now part of the content.
They have leaned into the ads.
Perhaps we should be leaning into it. Making the most of those 3 minutes.
My local Grimsby town Tier 2 Football club should have their mighty mariner mascot, handing out drinks and leaflets for the local chip shop.
Personally, coming from a compositing and VFX background, I believe content should be respected and placed top of the tree.
A purest if you like. Any corruption of content with ads will cause significant backlash from me.
That said, I also understand that content requires capital and one of those means of paying is advertising.
”Ads shouldn't compromise content.
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Yes this is a brand pitch inside content. You might not have even noticed it less it takes 3 mins to read.
People will pay to have content – unaffected by ads. The rise of SVOD services are a testament to that..
But then, the massive increase in AVOD and FAST show there is a market in which people will tolerate obstruction.
Perhaps the rest of the world just isn’t ready for a hydration innovation.
Are hydration breaks here to stay? Or are the hydration breaks served from a poison chalice – brands won’t want to drink no matter how thirsty they are…
