ANN ARBOR, Mich., April 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Domino's Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ), the largest pizza company in the world based on global retail sales, has always had one nemesis: the Noid – an antihero that has been trying to prevent great pizza delivery since 1986. Maybe it was the chaos of 2020 that gave the Noid the confidence to return, or possibly the fact that Domino's has continued to innovate around great pizza delivery with amazing technology. Whatever the reason, the Noid simply can't stand it anymore, and the pesky antihero has returned in Domino's new television ads, which begin airing today, trying to thwart the advanced technology of Nuro's R2 robot, a completely autonomous, occupantless on-road vehicle, out on a pizza delivery. (See more at selfdrivingdelivery.dominos.com).
"The Noid is Domino's oldest and most famous villain, and the pizza delivery testing we're doing with Nuro's autonomous vehicle is exactly the kind of technology innovation that could provoke the Noid to return," said Kate Trumbull, Domino's vice president of advertising. "However, after 35 years of practice in avoiding the Noid, we're pretty confident we know how to defeat it."
While television screens are a great place for a classic nemesis to return, mobile devices are the newest place for the Noid to cause problems. Starting May 7, the Noid will join the newest installment of the Crash Bandicoot gaming series, Crash Bandicoot: On the Run!, a new mobile adventure that honors the rich 25-year history of the beloved franchise. For a limited time, the Noid will be featured as one of the game's mini bosses, pitting players against the Noid as Crash progresses through the story. Avoiding the Noid has never been so fun! Players will also have access to exclusive Domino's pizza-themed player skins, showing players love for all things pizza.
"We're excited to launch our first in-game collaboration for Crash Bandicoot: On the Run! with Domino's," said Richard Hocking, head of marketing at King, the game's developer. "With the Noid making its big return this year and the Crash Bandicoot franchise celebrating its 25th anniversary, it was the perfect opportunity to have players take on the Domino's antihero alongside other nostalgic Crash bosses in this brand-new mobile adventure."
Feeling sentimental about the Noid? Domino's now has a limited number of "Hanging in There" and "Avoid the Noid" T-shirts, as well as tumblers available for purchase on Amazon. All profits from the Noid merchandise will go to Domino's Partners Foundation, an independent internal nonprofit organization that provides financial assistance to Domino's franchise and corporate team members in need. The Noid has even schemed its way into GIPHY, the online platform that houses GIFs and stickers for use on all major social media platforms. Fans can find and share the devious creature by searching "The Noid" in GIF and sticker search engines on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok, or by visiting giphy.com/dominos.
About Domino's Pizza®
Founded in 1960, Domino's Pizza is the largest pizza company in the world based on retail sales. It ranks among the world's top public restaurant brands with a global enterprise of more than 17,600 stores in over 90 markets. Domino's had global retail sales of more than $16.1 billion in 2020, with nearly $8.3 billion in the U.S. and more than $7.8 billion internationally. In the fourth quarter of 2020, Domino's had global retail sales of more than $5.5 billion, with over $2.7 billion in the U.S. and more than $2.8 billion internationally. Its system is comprised of independent franchise owners who accounted for 98% of Domino's stores as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2020. Emphasis on technology innovation helped Domino's achieve more than half of all global retail sales in 2020 from digital channels. In the U.S., Domino's generated more than 70% of sales in 2020 via digital channels and has developed several innovative ordering platforms, including those for Google Home, Facebook Messenger, Apple Watch, Amazon Echo, Twitter and more. In 2019, Domino's announced a partnership with Nuro to further its exploration and testing of autonomous pizza delivery. In mid-2020, Domino's launched a new way to order contactless carryout nationwide – via Domino's Carside Delivery®, which customers can choose when placing a prepaid online order.
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About King
King is the game developer behind the world-famous Candy Crush franchise, as well as mobile game hits including Farm Heroes, Bubble Witch and Pet Rescue. Candy Crush is the top-grossing franchise in US app stores, a position it has held for the last two years, and King's games are being played by 240 million monthly active users as of Q4 2020. King, which is part of the Activision Blizzard group since its acquisition in 2016, employs nearly 2,000 people in game studios in Stockholm, Malmö, London, Barcelona and Berlin, and offices in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Malta.
© 2021 Activision Publishing Inc. CRASH BANDICOOT: ON THE RUN!, CRASH BANDICOOT and CRASH are trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc. KING and the KING crown logo are trademarks of King.com Ltd.
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SOURCE Domino's Pizza, Inc.
Jenny Fouracre, 313-300-6822, jenny.fouracre@dominos.com
