Third time's a charm?
September 18th 2008
This morning the mainstream media and blogsphere are alive with reports that Microsoft has dumped its Seinfeld and Gates series of ads. ValleyWag has an interesting take on that sad reality:
Microsoft's version of the story: Redmond had always planned to drop Seinfeld. The awkward reality: The ads only reminded us how out of touch with consumers Microsoft is.
What's next? New York Times is quoting some fluff from Microsoft on the subject:
[Continue Reading]
"This is just the beginning, the first phase of the campaign," said Mich Mathews, senior vice president for marketing at Microsoft. "We're on a journey to reposition the PC."
A journey? The first toll booth along the road cost $10-million for Seinfeld alone and now Redmond's planning to spend more of their $300-million marketing budget.
"Hello, I'm a PC and I've been made into a stereotype," says a Microsoft engineer in one of the new ads yet to air. The engineer resembles John Hodgman (in an ugly sort of way) and he uses PC's opening line--Microsoft's going to reframe their message, take back their image.
Good luck with that.
According to UK's Times Online, other ads will feature Mr Gates, as well as celebrities like Desperate Housewives actress Eva Longoria, hip-hop star Pharrell Williams and the author Deepak Chopra.
So far this year, we've seen Microsoft's insulting Mojave Project and the just-concluded Seinfeld and Gates pairing. Third time's a charm?
Don't start holding your breath just yet...
What's your take?
Choose from over 4 Million songs!
