Amazon today unveiled a $99 Fire TV set-top box for the living room and is using Gary Busey — yes, this Gary Busey — to help tout the new device.
In what is both a funny and peculiar new one-minute video advertisement, Busey begins by describing things that he likes to talk to: His lamp, himself, his pants, fish in the ocean.
“But it’s frustrating when things don’t listen — especially high tech things,” Busey says.
He then tries to use a Roku — one of Amazon’s new set-top box competitors — to “find Gary Busey” in an attempt to load video content that features himself.
“FIND GARY BUSEY,” an annoyed Busey repeats.
The Roku remote does not allow for voice commands, but of course, Amazon’s Fire TV does.
“But this new Amazon Fire TV listens to me and does exactly what I say,” Busey notes as he says his name into Amazon’s remote.
Amazon’s marketing strategy is a little off-beat here, as past ads have featured random actors on the beach or confused Kindle owners testing out the Mayday feature. The company is also getting aggressive by showing the lack of voice support on Roku, although comparing competing products in advertisements is nothing new for the Seattle online retailer.
In addition, it is interesting to note that Amazon, which has typically positioned itself against Netflix in the streaming space, is instead going after Roku with its latest ad.
Read more about Amazon’s new Fire TV here, and enjoy one minute of the crazy Mr. Busey below:
