14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has changed 'Laptop Hunters' ads after having stated last week that Apple's legal department had contacted it to ask for the ads to be removed. The modified ads should now reflect the current prices of the MacBook Pro. The advertisement has been tweaked, and the customer, Lauren, doesn't mention the price of the MacBook Pro, as she did before.
Even if the reference to the US$1,999.99 price has been removed, the ad is still on the air. “We slightly adjusted the ads to reflect the updated pricing of the Mac laptop shown in the TV advertisement,” a Microsoft spokeswoman said in a statement. “This does not change the focus of the campaign, which is to showcase the value and choice of the PC.”
COO Kevin Turner stated on Wednesday at Microsoft's Worldwide Partner Conference 2009 in New Orleans, La., that the advertisements had proved so effective that a phone call from Apple had been received. He also commented: “the greatest single phone call in the history that I've ever taken in business.”
Apple hasn't commented on the matter, yet it seems that the only ad that the company was concerned with was the modified one. Starting with June, the MacBook Pro has been replaced with a new model that costs only $1,699, which means that the price reference was wrong, as the advertisement continued to run on TV with the old pricing.
As many of you might already know, Microsoft has started a $300 million campaign for promoting its Windows operating system, which has been put together by the advertising agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky. The Laptop Hunters ads bring forth the idea that the PCs are capable of delivering more choice and value than Macs. According to AdAge.com, this is not the first time when outdated comparison ads are delivered, one such example being Ford, which pulled commercials for its Freestar minivan in 2004 only after being pointed that they were old.