GoDaddy has pulled their 2015 Super Bowl commercial after receiving backlash from animal activists. The company’s CEO Blake Irving confirmed in a tweet on Tuesday that the commercial won’t make it to air.
The ad featured a golden retriever puppy who gets lost after falling out of the bed of its owner’s truck, only to find out upon its arrival home that its owner sold him using website set up by GoDaddy.
It didn’t take long for users to point out if a puppy is sold over the internet, it’s usually being sold by a puppy mill. The hashtag #GoDaddyPuppy was used to vent frustrations over the ad, AdWeek reports.
Irving caught wind and tweeted the account @animalrescuers back. “Thank you @animalrescuers for the candid feedback. What should have been a fun and funny ad clearly missed the mark and we will not air it,” he wrote.
He also issued a statement titled "We're Listening, Message Received.”
“At the end of the day, our purpose at GoDaddy is to help small businesses around the world build a successful online presence,” he wrote. “We hoped our ad would increase awareness of that cause. However, we underestimated the emotional response. And we heard that loud and clear.”
“We are pulling the ad from the Super Bowl. You’ll still see us in the Big Game this year, and we hope it makes you laugh,” he added.
Thank you @animalrescuers for the candid feedback. What should have been a fun and funny ad clearly missed the mark and we will not air it.
— Blake Irving (@Blakei) January 27, 2015
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