Outrage Sparked in Thailand Over Apple's 'Out of Office' Advert

[AustinRacing]

I think the ad is too generous to Thais. They’re good at lip service but delivery usually takes longer than promised. 

[Rhys]

The James Bond/Tuk Tuk.. was hilarious and smart.

 

[brianthainess]

1 minute ago, 2baht said:

Thai's won't watch it! It doesn't have a rich family, expensive car, huge house, Son falls in love with poor Isaan maid and where's the ladyboy that just has to be there for some reason!

Yeh, maybe your right, no Hospital dying scenes either..........

[bob smith]

Thai people have the thinnest skin I have ever seen.

 

they can't even take a single ounce of constructive criticism, everything has to be great, perfect, you did good, pat on the back and a pay rise..

 

get over yourselves for god's sake.

 

bob.

[moe666]

11 hours ago, NoDisplayName said:

 

So the producers have done their due diligence.

 

 

Bwahhahhahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!

Hub of hurt butts.

 

 

 

1 hour ago, herfiehandbag said:

You don't have to go that far, Malaysia or Indonesia would suffice!

Where will they find a run down airport in Thailand, even the small airport in Nae Hong Song is nice. The Thai phonic folks love to to come out

[Thingamabob]

Much ado about nothing. The criticism appears to come from a foreigner living in Thailand. I suggest he shuts up on this and gets on with whatever he's supposed to be doing here.

[IamNoone88]

In use Samsung every-time.

[bob smith]

8 minutes ago, Thingamabob said:

Much ado about nothing. The criticism appears to come from a foreigner living in Thailand. I suggest he shuts up on this and gets on with whatever he's supposed to be doing here.

he is entitled to his opinion and to openly express it how he sees fit.

 

bob.

[spidermike007]

Victimization seems to be a new form of heroism, so many people have succumbed to the disease of being a victim and being outraged. Better to save your outrage for something that's worthwhile, this is such a nothing burger.

 

I suggest to the Thai people that are outraged that they try using a train in France which takes two and a half hours to go 600 km. or they try using a luxury bus elsewhere in the world and then compare it to the local Thai buses. Or try using a Mercedes taxi in Merseilles instead of a rundown Corolla here.

 

Some of the depictions are not all that far from the truth. Thailand is not exactly all glitz and glamours. Many of us would argue that though it contains some modern spots, it is still very much a third world nation. 

[stix40]

They don't like it upum ! 

Jai yen  yen ! 

[kingstonkid]

13 hours ago, MartinBangkok said:

It never stops amazing me how Thais, and other Asian people, vehemently refuse to accept any criticism from "white" people.

 

If you are a Thai reading this, try travelling by bus or train in a western developed country, and then make an honest comparissment with Thailand.

I am not a Thai but have used buses in both Canada and here. As well as taxi

 

The main difference I find is the age of the buses. But comparing service it is on par with using the Toronto bus terminal.  As to taxi's the big differences that I see are that there are no companies that own the taxi.  I'm the u.s. Canada there are no individual taxi owners they all drive for a regulated company.

 

I am surprised that patpong cowboy or nana were not shown.  Then you would have heard the screams.

 

As to outrage at Apple we will see how outraged Thai are when the next iPhone comes out

 

[NorthernRyland]

I'm shocked that photo only has one black person and the  white man isn't drooling, very unusual for any American media.

[bendejo]

11 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

But other films are banned and blocked in Thailand.....And they are really good movies but nobody in Thailand may see the truth

 

For a few years we were getting MNet from South Africa in the southern part of the country.  After being in the north with cigarettes and guns being pixelated on TV, imagine my surprise to see that certain Jodi Foster movie on the screen, completely oblivious to Thai censorship.  Maybe that's why it's not here any more.

 

[Lorry]

31 minutes ago, twizzian said:

Isn’t it better to show the real

NO, it isn't!

Thais see the reality of their country every day, and it's sad enough. 

Don't think they don't realise it.

But it's one of the most basic rules of Thai culture:  avoid telling the truth about reality.  Too confrontational.

 

[herfiehandbag]

39 minutes ago, moe666 said:

 

Where will they find a run down airport in Thailand, even the small airport in Nae Hong Song is nice. The Thai phonic folks love to to come out

1: phonics is the study of sounds used in languages. It is actually jolly useful in learning to speak tonal languages such as Thai.

 

2: Buses and Trains. I'm sure that Nae Hong Song airport is an absolute delight! Unfortunately it does not appear on Google. There is a Mae Hong Song airport, it is all in the phonics you see!

 

3: Chiang Rai airport is getting a bit tatty around the edges...

[Lorry]

1 hour ago, john donson said:

they needed a WORK PERMIT

No more with the new 60d visa

[Lorry]

2 minutes ago, herfiehandbag said:

1: phonics is the study of sounds used in languages. It is actually jolly useful in learning to speak tonal languages such as Thai.

 

2: Buses and Trains. I'm sure that Nae Hong Song airport is an absolute delight!

Nae Hong Son airport is a phonic

[BigStar]

3 hours ago, Jonathan Swift said:

I think Thai people just don't understand the humor.

 

David Williams doesn't. I don't either.

 

3 hours ago, Jonathan Swift said:

I think if Thai people are familiar with American culture they'd understand the humor and not take it as and insult.

 

As an American, I'm familiar with American culture. Many Americans, like the Brits here, would enjoy the condescension and negative portrayal of other countries as primitive and backward. They love feeling superior. Lots of bigotry as we see on this thread. Seems to be no cure for it.

 

No one said they were insulted. Williams said, "it painted an unattractive and outdated picture of Thailand to the world. He contrasted this with Apple ads shot in US cities, which positively portrayed those locations." He's right. No reason Thais should approve of such bias. It's annoying.

 

 

 

 

 

[RethairedJarhead]

13 hours ago, MartinBangkok said:

It never stops amazing me how Thais, and other Asian people, vehemently refuse to accept any criticism from "white" people.

 

If you are a Thai reading this, try travelling by bus or train in a western developed country, and then make an honest comparissment with Thailand.

Does Apple marketing represent “criticism from white people“ or are you referring to yourself? 
 

Either way, categorizing all asian people under your narrow understanding is almost amazing as you choosing to live among Asian people. 

[bob smith]

8 minutes ago, BigStar said:

They love feeling superior.

So do the Thais.

 

Just ask the Cambodians and the Burmese.

 

bob.

[BangkokReady]

3 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Utterly delusional.

 

I actually think that if Thailand was still like it is portrayed in the ad (fun, chilled out, relaxed, and welcoming to foreingers), tourism would not have gone down as much as it has.

 

I'm not sure if the ad is enough to fool people anymore. The 90s was a long time ago.

[GammaGlobulin]

8 hours ago, soi3eddie said:

Can't see what all the fuss is about. Good production. Quite commical. Made me think about The Hangover Part 2 movie.  Chill peeps!

 

 

Right.

HANGOVER

Good Thinking.

 

Hardly...

Gone With The Wind

Where is Rhett Butler when we need him?

 

All in today's world has become.....

GARBAGE!

 

We are in our last days, THE FINAL COUNTDOWN....

 

 

 

[hotchilli]

47 minutes ago, BangkokReady said:

I'm not sure if the ad is enough to fool people anymore. The 90s was a long time ago

Maybe they should try the "good old days" brand...  in many ways Thailand is 30 years behind

[Jenkins9039]

seems a good representation.

[GammaGlobulin]

1 hour ago, IamNoone88 said:

In use Samsung every-time.

 

I agree with you.

 

APPLE is GARBAGE

Apple OS is garbage. User control is at minimum.  Instead, use Linux

Apple air/mac is garbage.  User has no control, or not as much with Linux or even Windows OS.

Apple phone is GARBAGE....  Samsung MUCH BETTER for price and user experience and no wasted money on apps, as with Apple store.  So, A is a Ripoff, compared to Samsung and Google PlayStore.

 

SAMSUNG Every Time, as you correctly state!!!

 

[SbuxPlease]

Outrageous

 

Anyways, this advertisement is not aimed at anyone in or near Thailand. It is full of tropes that American westerners will relate to which furthers Apple's advertising goals. The location depicted doesn't even have to be Thailand... They could have inserted any travel destination that's not Western and achieved the same result.

[daveAustin]

Dunno why they're wound up. Not negative at all; if anything making the characters look like donkeys. Thais do have this thing of not being able to laugh at themselves. Don Muang does still look like that, immigration lines are rammed like that, there are tuk-tuks and taxis just like that, there are hotels just like that. Stuff like this happens on my turf and doesn't display the glitz of London etc... who cares! The complaining make them look uptight and silly.

[jimgilly]

This is just one more example of how thin-skinned, no sense of humor with a superiority complex these people are.  Unfortunately, most people don't get to realize it until it's too late. 

[ourmanflint]

I've watched this a couple of times now, if anything it is far far too generous to Thailand. Nobody is as lucky as the these visitors to Thailand. not anymore.

 

[Wrwest]

Dear Khon Thais. I just watched this commercial. I am a retired American and Thailand is my only global home for over 13 years. My reaction to this? ... I came away with a positive impression that Thailand will make everything work. Nothing is impossible if you are flexible and even if last minute changes are needed. As to the citing of any older hotels, buses, etc., these can all be found here. I am thinking that if only the most modern hotels were shown, the most modern of buses, trains, etc., you would loose the charm that differentiates Thailand. The most important and most positive message is that Thais and Thailand will accommodate business needs with a smile.