The DeanBeat: A Westworld ‘activation’ that illustrates the creepy side of tech

My colleagues have been wondering what the word “activation” means, as the Entertainment Software Association used the word in describing why its Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) was still going to be good even after Sony decided to skip it for two years in a row. People say it’s a meaningless buzzword, but brands do activations in advertising to get fans more engaged and aware about something. For techies, esports fans, and gamers, these activations have to be authentic, or they will react poorly. And experiential marketing is one of the keys to activating a brand in the right way. These are ads and campaigns that deliver a real experience.

When I attended CES 2020, the big tech trade show in Las Vegas last week, I experienced an activation like no other. I was one of a number of journalists (like my friend, Martine Paris, who also wrote about the dinner) who attended the HBO Westworld Experience at CES, a dinner in a luxurious library at the NoMad Hotel. It was a kind of play with real actors mixed in among the dinner guests, trying to make a point about tech and society, as well as promoting Season 3 of Westworld debuting on HBO on March 15.