It's probably both. It probably actually works and there is a delivery service to coordinate Dubai deliveries of this, but the city choice, the video and the PR outreach around it definitely feel like a guerrilla marketing effort to me. I'd be interested to see how long the app actually works for. My bet is it's quietly shuttered in Dubai after 3 to 6 months.
It's pretty easy to see a strategy that says after the initial worldwide buzz of a Dubai launch dies down that the app quietly shuts down after 3 to 6 months and then launches in Vegas, Bangkok, UK, etc. to drive local buzz there.
It's pretty easy to see a strategy that says after the initial worldwide buzz of a Dubai launch dies down that the app quietly shuts down after 3 to 6 months and then launches in Vegas, Bangkok, UK, etc. to drive local buzz there.