Fido Dido, the adorably reckless cartoon character representing 7UP, is all charged up in his new avatar to reflect the style and mood of the Orkut generation.
MUMBAI: Fido Dido, the adorably reckless cartoon character representing global beverage giant PepsiCo's soft drink brand 7UP, is all charged up in his new avatar to reflect the style and mood of the Orkut generation as he gets more jazzy and hi-tech but with a warm heart.
"Fido already became three-dimensional in 2005. And now he is soon going to launch his own blog to communicate with his friends and fans, young and old, across the globe," said the character's creator Joanna Ferrone.
"In this changing world where youngsters are more actively exchanging views and ideas, Fido will also reach out and make relevant his point of view," Ferrone, here last week for an entertainment industry conference, said.
Born 23 years ago on a cocktail napkin in a downtown pub in New York, Fido was created as 7UP's brand ambassador to reach out to an audience from all walks of life - rich or poor, rural or urban.
It was 1985 and Ferrone used to ride her bike to bring a sack full of white T-shirts and get them to print Fido's picture on them that was distributed with posters that were also pasted in all strategic locations of New York.
She is now the owner of a creative studio called Honest Entertainment, set up in 1995 with its headquarters in New York. The company recently tied up with Mumbai-based Graphiti Multimedia to present an all-new rocking Fido Dido.
"We have tied up with Graphiti to create 13 one-minute shots of Fido for TV," Ferrone, president of Honest Entertainment, said adding that these shots will feature Fido in his usual fun-loving yet ecstatically adventurous form.
"PepsiCo is soon going to launch a full-fledged website for 7UP, where Fido will be at his best," Ferrone said, even as she fondly recalled how the company once decided to part ways with Fido as 7UP spokesperson and "try out something else".
"7UP was turned around by Fido. Between 1992 and 2002, Fido was not their spokesperson and the sales went flat. But after he joined them back in 2002, the sales zoomed by 15-20 percent," said the creator.
"Fido is ubiquitous with 7UP," she said looking visibly pleased. "Now there's a huge mutual respect in the relationship and I am sure it's on for quite some time to come."
For Ferrone, Fido is more than just a cartoon character that has brought her and her creative team fortunes.
"Fido's arrival was definitely a turnaround for all of us. But it was much more than that. Fido has given us enough for a good living and has taken care of us quite well."
That's not all. Amid his busy schedule, Fido will also be at his charitable best - he will offer more of his services for social causes, raising and donating money.
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