

Windows Without Jerry: Microsoft to Can Seinfeld Ads? - technologizer
http://technologizer.com/2008/09/17/windows-without-jerry-microsoft-to-can-seinfeld-ads/

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tjr
Why? I admit that I'm not entirely sure what these commercials are trying to
express, but I thought they were both very good.

I'm a long time Amiga/Unix/Mac/anything-but-Windows user, and while I'm not
running out to buy a Vista-powered computer after seeing these ads, they do an
excellent job of portraying Microsoft as not being evil.

I find that remarkable.

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BrandonM
They are certainly more sensible than having Serena Williams or Lebron James
tell us that they use Vista. Who cares? They also drive luxury vehicles that I
will never afford. Just because some celebrity uses a product doesn't mean I
should.

I agree with you. At least these ads are entertaining and make Microsoft seem
less evil. Suddenly ending them will look downright stupid.

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hugh
I dunno, they don't give me warm fuzzy feelings towards Microsoft.

At the most, they give me warm fuzzy feeling towards Bill Gates, but
simultaneously reminds me that Bill Gates is no longer in charge of Microsoft
-- he's just a doddering old billionaire who in my imagination now spends his
whole life wandering around shopping malls and chatting to other semi-retired
figures who used to be important back in the 1990s.

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chriskelley
I think this is a really unfortunate demonstration of companies not trusting
the people they hire. Crispin Porter & Bogusky is one of the best agencies in
the world, and they have proven it year after year - there's no doubt they
know exactly where they are heading with these ads. If Microsoft is truly
balking at letting them "do their thing", it's too bad. CP&B knows what they
are doing and Microsoft may continue looking cold and stale if they don't let
Alex & Co. do what they do best.

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boogs
My (completely uninformed) opinion is that the Seinfeld ads were not CP&B's
idea. It seems like something that'd come out of msft marketing.

OTOH, what I hear they're doing with the next set of ads -- taking the "I'm a
PC" and trying to redefine it -- is 100% CP&B and reminds me of other things
they've done recently, such as taking burger king nastiness and making it a
manly thing.

I wonder if Microsoft rejected CP&B's initial idea and pushed for this
Seinfeld thing instead. After it completely tanked, they were persuaded to go
back to the original idea.

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mynameishere
"Reviews". "Bad reviews"

Seriously, how many commercials even _get_ reviews? The first season of
Seinfeld had middling audiences. Maybe they should have cancelled it...

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iamdave
_Will I stop asking endless questions about Windows ads?_

Why didn't you ask the most important question of all: what the heck were they
even talking about in those two spots?

(and I STILL don't know how they ended up in that family's house, these
commercials are already way too disjointed, it's like middle school where
everyone is making fun of you for no real reason, and even so you don't know
why)

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quadtodfodder
This is truly disappointing. I had theorized that in light of the strange and
arty ads for the zune and this amusing little romp, all of which seem to have
only tangental relationships to the products they purport to be promoting,
that Bill Gates had moved into a new area of "philanthropic advertising" where
the focus is improving your day first and selling products second, if at all.

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netcan
Microsoft's marketing team is doing well lately.

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mattmaroon
They're getting talked about. That's a big step for them.

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unalone
Microsoft doesn't need to be talked about. They're the leading brand.

What they need is a change in reputation. These commercials don't help.

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mattmaroon
They help a lot. They're different, which is not what MS is viewed as. They're
making MS the topic of conversation, which Apple has been for 5 years now.

They're the leading brand in terms of sales, but mindshare is all Apple, and
MS is playing catch up. They have to do something radical, and they are.

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unalone
It's tricky, though, because Apple so thoroughly DOMINATES this mindset.
Microsoft is playing against one of the strongest marketing teams out there,
and thus far they seem to be doing a pretty poor job.

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mattmaroon
How can you tell that? So far all we know for sure is that they're being
talked about, and going in, most people were questioning if/how that would
happen.

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axod
Maybe radical, but maybe ms should first concentrate on releasing some things
that don't suck. _Then_ advertise.

At the moment what are they even advertising? Vista? The promise that windows
7 won't suck as much as Vista?

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Timothee
> it’s hard to imagine that they paid him $10 million to do two spots

I'm not very familiar with prices for ad campaigns but the one number I know
from recently is Adam Carolla being payed $350k for a Taco Bell commercial.
Seinfeld being much much more famous than Carolla, and this campaign having
been seen by everyone, it doesn't sound that much. (in comparison of course)

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bkbleikamp
Agreed. He was getting $1,000,000+ per episode of Seinfeld towards then end +
the amount he gets for syndication rights is disgusting.

Seeing as how he A) doesn't really need the money and B) probably isn't that
interested in Microsoft products, I can see it taking $10,000,000 to get him
to show up to shoot the ads.

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whatusername
It really feels like the campaign is missing the punchline though. I can
understand the previous 2 ads to build some buzz, but they need to have some
form of finale.

I want my moist and cake-like computer - where is it Bill?

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raganwald
There is absolutely zero credibility in the statement that they only intended
Seinfeld to do these two ads. That being said, it is entirely reasonable to
assume that they planned to shot a couple of ads, see how they went, and
switch to Plan B if they were not achieving what MSFT wanted at this point.

That's just good business.

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mechanical_fish
Unbelievable.

