In February 2006, Intel introduced new TV spots, a refresher of its Centrino Entertainment in your laps campaign. The ads supported Intel's new focus on Intel Centrino Duo technology with dual-core processing. Mariah was featured on one of the ads, which debuted during the Grammy Awards presentation on CBS. In the spot, a man is working on his laptop wearing headphones and Mariah appears on his lap. “Making a playlist for your girl?” she purrs. “Yeah, my, uh, our favorite songs,” he meekly replies. “Like this one?” Mariah launches into “Mine Again.”
“Our first Laps campaign for the Intel Centrino was really successful; we have strong attention and recall and consumers got the message on how powerful mobile technology enables entertainment on the go,” said Sean Connolly, client integrated marketing manager. “We are building on this success… and bringing in more celebrities that people are excited to see. Mariah Carey has a lot going for her, her latest album is selling really well, she got eight nominations on the Grammys. She has the perfect profile to demonstrate to consumers how they can enjoy her music anyway, anytime, without the wires. She is able to project who she is through her music and great performances to a global audience. Her strong personality comes through in 30 seconds. It is entertainment come to life.”
“Intel was my first brand partner,” Mariah said. “The fact that the company deals in high-level technology, which music is a part of, appealed to me.” Mariah also appreciated that the 30-second TV spot for the Intel Centrino mobile technology was not “hugely exploitive,” but rather “creatively inspiring.”
Created by McCann-Erickson New York, the ad featured Mariah singing “Mine Again,” from The Emancipation of Mimi. Mariah acknowledged that for this deal to work it was key that a nonsingle, album track be used. “It exposed the song as well as the album to more people.”
