McDonald?s is ramping up anticipation for The Angry Birds Movie?s May premiere by enabling customers to scan codes on various products to uncover an exclusive augmented reality game that brings the film to life on their mobile devices.

The fast-food chain is serving as one of The Angry Birds Movie?s key collaborators by featuring a digital program rollout in conjunction with a global Happy Meal program. McDonald?s is continuing its digital-first efforts by foraying into augmented reality, signaling that it understands its target customers? interest in lifelike mobile experiences.

?Kids today are born into a highly digital world ? hence the term, digital natives,? said Omaid Hiwaizi, president of global marketing at Blippar. ?We?re seeing younger and younger consumers owning smartphones and expertly navigating them.

?For The Angry Birds Movie, it makes sense that this AR mini-game would resonate well with the expected, younger target audience because of the engaging content, but moreover, because the content is delivered on a smart vehicle that has become second nature to younger generations,? he said.

?The challenge for brands in engaging kids, however, is in providing quality content that can compete for the attention on established and powerful game and movie franchises. Nevertheless, just like The Angry Birds Movie brings the popular mobile game to life, this AR experience offers a new way for fans to play.?

Innovating through mobile
McDonald?s digital program was designed to support BirdCodes for Rovio?s latest Angry Birds game, Angry Birds Action! 

Game players can scan codes found on various McDonald?s food items ? such as Happy Meal and Big Mac boxes, as well as promotional materials ? with their smartphone to unlock an augmented reality mini-game.

The mini-game will bring The Angry Birds Movie to life on individuals? personal devices, likely heightening their excitement for the film?s release on May 20.

Additionally, players will be able to earn power-ups valid for the Angry Birds Action! game.

Angry Birds? worldwide popularity among mobile users makes virtual reality the ideal advertising medium for the upcoming film release. The app has seen more than three billion downloads, with more than 100 million active players per month.

?In addition to those found on the McDonald?s Happy Meal packaging, there are 1 billion, AR-enabled ?BirdCodes? in the wild on many other brands' products,? said Caspar Thykier, co-founder and CEO of Zappar, the company powering the AR experience found on the McDonald?s packaging. ?Taken in total, this is the biggest and most truly integrated augmented reality campaign to date and we're thrilled to be a part of it."

McDonald?s desire to leverage mobile tactics in a bid to connect with younger consumers ? one of the primary target demographics for fast-food chains ? also lends support to its decision to collaborate with The Angry Birds Movie.

Consumers walking into a McDonald?s location with the hopes of receiving an Angry Birds Happy Meal box may become inspired to download Angry Birds Action! and interact with the product packaging before delving into the virtual reality game.

The Big Mac marketer is also experimenting with augmented reality experiences in foreign markets.

McDonald?s is adding a new spin to its Happy Meal by enabling customers in Sweden to download a complementary mobile application and turn the packaging into a virtual reality viewer, underscoring the fast food chain?s desire to build relationships with younger consumers (see story).

Virtual reality keeps shining
McDonald?s collaboration with The Angry Birds Movie will likely prompt many of its competitors in the QSR industry to consider similar partnerships.

As marketers begin to expand their storytelling initiatives beyond social media platforms, virtual reality will become more influential in advertising, although only certain sectors will make it a priority (see story).

Another sector likely to continue the virtual reality craze is entertainment, with an emphasis on film studios.

?Delivering AR promotional experiences is becoming an increasingly popular way to engage with consumers, but is particularly effective for film studios seeking to connect with fans,? Blippar's Mr. Hiwaizi said. ?In fact, in Blippar?s most recent film studio partnership, we teamed up with Warner Bros. around the release of Superman vs. Batman to bring to life exclusive comic content on Dr Pepper products.

?With the tangible and relevant use cases offered by the entertainment and film industry, we can expect to see more and more film studios using product packaging as a new medium for their content.?