VTubers are dominating Twitch, and a cereal mascot is hoping to take advantage of that trend. Kellogg’s is working with the Amazon-owned live streaming platform to launch a channel hosted by Tony the Tiger.
Tony, who has been selling Frosted Flakes for seven decades, will host his first Twitch stream on August 19. The animated tiger will be joined by several human creators, including Chrissy Costanza, Big Cheese, and GoldGlove. Together, they’ll play “a popular battle royale game.” That could be anything from Fortnite to Apex Legends to Garena Free Fire, but my money’s on Fall Guys. Tony will reveal his game of choice on his Twitch hub between 5 and 7 PM ET on the 19th.
The broadcast will be titled “Tony the Tiger’s Gr-r-reat Cereal Bowl of Gr-r-reatness.” If you’re keeping track at home, that’s two grrreats (three if you count the headline), and the stream hasn’t even begun yet.
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Kellogg’s told Adweek that Frosted Flakes is the “first brand globally to work with Twitch to transform a brand mascot into an interactive VTuber.” To create the virtual character and his streaming setup, Kellogg’s worked with the Brand Partnership Studio, an in-house team at Twitch. Tony’s Twitch backstory includes a number of details that fit a cereal mascot. For example, his PC will be cooled by milk. I don’t know if that’s the image I want when I look at a gaming rig, but it definitely fits Tony’s identity.
VTubers have had a big year in 2022, and it’s not surprising that brands are looking to latch onto the trend. On platforms like Twitch, VTubers can have malleable personalities that can shift to meet a sponsor’s needs. Lil Miquela, a virtual character who is often seen in the metaverse, recently landed a partnership with Pacsun.
In a statement, Kellogg All Family Cereal Director of Brand Marketing Sadie Garcia discussed Twitch’s potential as a tool for sponsored content. “Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes and Tony the Tiger are always looking for ways to connect with lifelong fans and the next generation of cereal lovers, whether that’s through releasing new fun flavors of Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes or by showing up in new places,” she said. “Twitch is a growing service with more than 31 million average daily visitors, giving Tony and Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes a chance to connect with new audiences and engage unlike we’ve ever done before with a fun and innovative gaming experience.”
As Tony acclimates himself on Twitch, we’ll get to see how the platform’s community reacts to a fully-branded VTuber. Depending on how this experiment goes, Tony’s turn on Twitch could be either forgettable or grrroundbreaking.
