A Crypto Project’s Weird Marketing ‘Hack’ Riffed on Infamous 1987 Chicago TV Hijacking

It appears that the strategy of NEAR Protocol involves an unusual incident this week, where their social media platforms were seemingly hijacked by a supposed hacker. The alleged breach began with playful tweets and escalated to a masked character interrupting founder Illia Polosukhin to criticize the concept of cryptocurrency as nothing more than a dream, and telling viewers that there is nothing to be found in Thailand (the location of NEAR’s hackathon in November)

Without playing tricks, the marketing gimmick references an old character from the early days of digital culture: Max Headroom. Originally portrayed as an artificially intelligent television presenter for 80’s TV movies and subsequent series that aired in both America and Britain, he was also the promoter for New Coke (an infamous failure)

Today, what truly stands out about Max and is particularly relevant to NEAR’s unconventional strategy, is the unexpected transmission: the Max Headroom incident. In 1987, an anonymous hacker seized control of a “Doctor Who” broadcast in Chicago, delivering a 90-second stream of nonsensical remarks while disguised as Max Headroom

A good deal matches up between the Max Headroom incident (an unsolved crime that sparked a decades-long federal investigation) and NEAR’s video takeover. Both star a masked, suited, sunglass’d, voice-altered man making fun of his viewers.

Indeed, while both characters faced criticism, the nature of their criticisms varied significantly. The unauthorized broadcaster from Chicago, who was known as a signal pirate, spewed nonsense on air and occasionally labeled people as “nerds.” His broadcast concluded in an unusual manner, with someone administering a spank on his bare bottom using a fly swatter

Although the Max Headroom interruption was an actual seizure of broadcast signals, the NEAR intrusion is a deliberately planned publicity move, as confirmed by representatives from the company itself. In essence, it’s more of a clever marketing gimmick rather than an authentic hacking event

According to CoinDesk, they discovered a piece of NEAR-Max’s backstory: His name is “HiJack,” and he embodies the opposite of Web3 ideals – he’s a slick, corporate worker bee who finds contentment in the existing system (as he and his associates occupy prominent positions within it)

A spokesperson informed CoinDesk that his intention appears to be creating confusion and uncertainty (metaphorically FUD), because Web3, specifically the combination of AI and Web3 where users (us) are prioritized, represents a genuine replacement for how our world, both physical and digital, operates at present

In contrast to Max, HiJack exhibited a very focused approach. For approximately a minute, he forcefully criticized cryptocurrency enthusiasts, even those backing NEAR, urging them to find more conventional employment and abandon their interest in this supposed “web3 nonsense.”

“You’re gonna trust Solana or Ethereum over household names like Apple and Amazon,” he asked. “Gimme a break, dude!”

But HiJack has a point. People really don’t trust any crypto network over Apple and Amazon. Not yet, anyway. The number of people who actually live on crypto – entirely separate from the traditional financial and technological system – is vanishingly small.

Could we say instead: Is it premature for cryptocurrencies to poke fun at their own efforts to remain significant? It appears that NEAR believes it could boost participation in the Thailand hackathon, referred to as REDACTED, regardless. A spokesperson chose not to provide comments for this article

At minimum, the alleged hack sparked interest among many people. Emily Lai, a high-ranking official at the crypto marketing agency Hype, posted on Twitter that this strategy boosted NEAR’s visibility to its peak in the last three months. However, the general opinion was overwhelmingly negative, as she conveyed, suggesting skepticism about whether it would truly benefit REDACTED. At the time of publication, NEAR’s price had dropped approximately 2% over the past day

Users on NEAR’s social platforms expressed varying opinions, with some admiring the innovative aspect. However, others criticized the move as a potential risk to NEAR’s reputation, offering more detriment than benefits for the brand image. Messari cautioned its market-intelligence software users, reporting that NEAR had experienced a security breach

“There is nothing waiting for you in Thailand,” wrote one commenter.