During yesterday's Super Bowl broadcast, a new ad featuring rock group U2 announced that Bank of America would donate $1 to (Product) RED's fight against AIDS for every free iTunes download of the band's new single "Invisible" [Direct Link]. The promotion will be active until 11:59 PM EST on February 3.


Product (RED) was co-founded by U2 lead signer Bono and activist Bobby Shriver in 2006, with Apple raising more than $65 million for the charity since then through special products. Last year, one-of-a-kind products designed by Apple's senior vice president of design Jony Ive and designer Marc Newson were sold off at Sotheby's charity auction to benefit Product (RED), which raised over $13 million.

(Product) RED is also affiliated with several other companies in addition to Apple, including American Express, Nike, and Starbucks, raising more than $200 million to date.

Top Rated Comments

polterbyte Avatar
137 months ago
I'd prefer a free song from Katy Perry. Bono is a bit of a dick.
"A song from Katy Perry" is a contradiction of terms.

And if you can be a dick, as your post clearly shows, I believe Bono is entitled to be one too.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iSRS Avatar
137 months ago
I'd prefer a free song from Katy Perry. Bono is a bit of a dick.

First, I love U2. Have since "October"

I wouldn't call Bono a dick. Pompous? Certainly. But he certainly is passionate about helping people, putting his own money where his mouth is, too, as well as using his celebrity to raise money and awareness.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Digital Skunk Avatar
137 months ago
Done. Don't even really care for the music but it's a small thing to do that might help someone.

Same here. My wife loves the band so that will be two more.

----------

that.

but also, i think the whole "Red" thing is throwing money away, instead of putting it to good use. instead of using the money towards research to find a cure, they'd rather hand medicine to HIV women so they can get pregnant with some sort of ease-of-mind, that the baby's condition will be taken care of.

Yeah because everyone suffering from HIV thinks exactly like that. Or is this some sort of slight against the entire movement to help treat poor people in Africa instead of lining the pockets of Americans to help develop a cure that will most likely be out of the reach of folks suffering in Africa?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ck2875 Avatar
137 months ago
Yes, I know it's a commercial to create good will for the companies involved, and while it's a nice gesture, I find it a bit weird for them to spend $8 million for the 1 minute advertisement slot during the Super Bowl (not counting production costs), and then Bank of America only pledging to donate $1 per download, up to $2 million. I would have rather seen a 30 second slot for $4 million and BoA donating $6 million to charity.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dejo Avatar
137 months ago
...and then Bank of America only pledging to donate $1 per download, up to $2 million.

Actually, it's up to $8 million.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
albusseverus Avatar
137 months ago
First, I love U2. Have since "October"

I wouldn't call Bono a dick. Pompous? Certainly. But he certainly is passionate about helping people, putting his own money where his mouth is, too, as well as using his celebrity to raise money and awareness.

I don't know. The rock career is long over and this new gig raising money for needy pharmaceutical companies kind of creeps me out.

At one end you have people donating money, and at the other, really needy sick people and that sounds OK, until you think about the millions for big pharma in the middle.

Look around the www, researchers say it's almost impossible to find out where the money is going. 1% to the needy, >50% on salaries? RED is a business not a charity. It's more about awareness… Eww.

I know someone who went to school with him and I think the consensus was, he was always a bit of a dick. Just add money and fame.

I'm more than happy to 'take' the bank's money, but looking around, I get the uneasy feeling, I'm not making much of a difference.

It might be The Edge you were thinking of admiring.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone SE 4 Vertical Camera Feature

iPhone SE 4 Rumored to Use Same Rear Chassis as iPhone 16

Friday July 19, 2024 7:16 am PDT by
Apple will adopt the same rear chassis manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 that it is using for the upcoming standard iPhone 16, claims a new rumor coming out of China. According to the Weibo-based leaker "Fixed Focus Digital," the backplate manufacturing process for the iPhone SE 4 is "exactly the same" as the standard model in Apple's upcoming iPhone 16 lineup, which is expected to...
iPhone 16 Pro Sizes Feature

iPhone 16 Series Is Just Two Months Away: Everything We Know

Monday July 15, 2024 4:44 am PDT by
Apple typically releases its new iPhone series around mid-September, which means we are about two months out from the launch of the iPhone 16. Like the iPhone 15 series, this year's lineup is expected to stick with four models – iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max – although there are plenty of design differences and new features to take into account. To bring ...
bsod

Crowdstrike Says Global IT Outage Impacting Windows PCs, But Mac and Linux Hosts Not Affected

Friday July 19, 2024 3:12 am PDT by
A widespread system failure is currently affecting numerous Windows devices globally, causing critical boot failures across various industries, including banks, rail networks, airlines, retailers, broadcasters, healthcare, and many more sectors. The issue, manifesting as a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), is preventing computers from starting up properly and forcing them into continuous recovery...
iphone 14 lineup

Cellebrite Unable to Unlock iPhones on iOS 17.4 or Later, Leak Reveals

Thursday July 18, 2024 4:18 am PDT by
Israel-based mobile forensics company Cellebrite is unable to unlock iPhones running iOS 17.4 or later, according to leaked documents verified by 404 Media. The documents provide a rare glimpse into the capabilities of the company's mobile forensics tools and highlight the ongoing security improvements in Apple's latest devices. The leaked "Cellebrite iOS Support Matrix" obtained by 404 Media...
Apple Watch Series 9

2024 Apple Watch Lineup: Key Changes We're Expecting

Tuesday July 16, 2024 7:59 am PDT by
Apple is seemingly planning a rework of the Apple Watch lineup for 2024, according to a range of reports from over the past year. Here's everything we know so far. Apple is expected to continue to offer three different Apple Watch models in five casing sizes, but the various display sizes will allegedly grow by up to 12% and the casings will get taller. Based on all of the latest rumors,...
tinypod apple watch

TinyPod Turns Your Apple Watch Into an iPod

Wednesday July 17, 2024 3:18 pm PDT by
If you have an old Apple Watch and you're not sure what to do with it, a new product called TinyPod might be the answer. Priced at $79, the TinyPod is a silicone case with a built-in scroll wheel that houses the Apple Watch chassis. When an Apple Watch is placed inside the TinyPod, the click wheel on the case is able to be used to scroll through the Apple Watch interface. The feature works...