Fast-food chain McDonald’s Vietnam has posted an apology on its official Facebook page amid fierce criticism from netizens after the firm launched an advertisment for a new product whose content was based on the recent tragic suicide of a Chinese gamer.

The fast-food restaurant operator on Monday evening uploaded an apology after its improper food ads appeared earlier with their content related to Fat Cat, the nickname of a 21-year-old Chinese man who committed suicide out of love failure last month. 

The firm made the move amid a strong backlash from upset netizens who vehemently criticized McDonald's Vietnam, with some even calling for a boycott of the company over the past two days.

It has also removed all the indignation-causing content from the ads on its online food sales platforms.   

“Today, on some McDonald's online delivery platforms, there was information about McDonald's new programs and products using inappropriate language related to Fat Cat in a sensitive context," the firm said.

"This caused resentment and upset to netizen communities.”

The company acknowledged the need for self-criticism regarding the incident and expressed a heartfelt apology to Fat Cat and his family, the online community, and all customers who have consistently trusted and supported McDonald's.

After seriously considering the circumstance, the firm became aware that such an ad “not only hurts the people involved but also affects customer trust.” 

This incident occurred due to a lack of prudence in moderating the content of fan page posts, McDonald's claimed in the apology.

The fast-food chain promised it would strictly review the content moderation process and consider disciplinary actions against related staff to avoid similar cases in the future.

Along with the apology, McDonald's Vietnam said it has learned a big lesson for its communications activities.

“The company is also committed to always following the principle of respecting and supporting the community, honoring ethical values from each individual to large groups, and appreciating feedback and suggestions from customers and the community,” stated the apology.

In less than two days after the advertisement was published, it garnered 2,100 emoticon reactions from netizens, with 1,800 expressing anger.

Among the angry comments are “dirty marketing,” “get out of Vietnam,” “insensitive ad,” “lack of humanity,” “disrespectful advertising,” “thoughtless content,” “Boycott! Content is inhumane,” and “using the human death to create ad content is evil,” among many others.

Earlier in the ad for a new fast-food product, McDonald’s Vietnam used this line in Vietnamese: “Không thích ăn rau thì ăn gà dính phô mai BBQ” (literally “If you don't like vegetables, eat chicken with BBQ cheese”).

This content was based on the line "don’t want to eat vegetables anymore, want to eat McDonald's" Fat Cat attached to his avatar when he was alive.

According to social media, Fat Cat, a native of China's Hunan Province, had a talent of playing online games since childhood, so he was often hired by others to play games or compete in professional arenas.

After falling in love with a girl six years his senior he met on social media, he dedicated himself to playing video games excessively, striving to earn more money to support her.

In his pursuit of accumulating a substantial sum of money for his love, Fat Cat endured a bleak existence for two years.

During this time, he lived frugally, restricting himself to meager meals, and refrained from seeking medical treatment services out of financial concern.

Over the period, the man transferred a total of 510,000 Chinese yuan (US$70,680) to the girlfriend.

In order to live near the girl, Fat Cat moved to work in Chongqing City, where she lives.

It is known that the two agreed to register their marriage by May this year, but since early April, the girl had shown an indifferent attitude toward Fat Cat and wanted to break up with him. 

Despite Fat Cat's insistence, the girl still refused to continue the affair, causing the man to take his own life.

He died after falling off a bridge into the Yangtze River in Chongqing City on April 11.

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