Coinbase’s Super Bowl LVI commercial was so popular that it caused the company’s website to crash yesterday.
The ad, which consisted solely of a QR code floating around the screen for 60 seconds, culminated with Coinbase URL and promotion for $15 USD in free Bitcoin. Customers simply had to sign up within the next two days to receive the complementary cryptocurrency.
ICYMI ?
Now that we have your attention we’d like to announce that we’re giving away $15 in BTC to anyone who joins Coinbase by 2/15.
Click below for more info and RT to tell your friends!
Sign up and see terms here → https://t.co/fKHisXZJJc pic.twitter.com/SDWUup2Ql5
— Coinbase (@coinbase) February 14, 2022
Right after airing, the URL received an influx of traffic, causing both the Coinbase website and app to go down. Users received the message headlined, “Well, that was more popular than we thought,” and that the company would email them when things were back up and running.
Viewers then headed to Twitter to discuss the commercial. Some noted that Coinbase was able to save big time on production costs with the simple QR code. Others shared their mystified reactions to watching the commercial, or in one user’s case, their dog’s reaction.
Zonk was extremely interested in the tv for the @coinbase #SuperBowl commercial ?? pic.twitter.com/ZDZGfmAHWq
— Haley Spracale (@haleymspracale) February 14, 2022
In other tech news, Apple’s open-source code hints at a rumored augmented reality headset.