Vending machine dispenses free soda, flowers and balloon animals

Coca Cola’s new Happiness Machine video on YouTube is well on its way to receiving a million hits. The company set up a Coke vending machine on the Queens campus of St. John’s Univ. from which it dispenses free bottles of Coke, flowers, a pepperoni pizza, a 6-ft. sub sandwich and balloon animals. The video shows real students and their real reactions. At the end of the video, it tells viewers to “Share the happiness, share the video.”
The Happiness Machine video is Coke’s first worldwide viral effort. It is part of the company’s Open Happiness marketing campaign, which was launched a year ago.
A.J. Brusstein, the company’s senior brand manager, told Media Post Publications, that the video was conceived as an alternative way to connect to young people rather than through TV ads and online games. He said the video was meant to give them something that would make them happy that they could pass along to friends to spread the feeling.