14 DAY TRIAL // It looks like Microsoft is dead serious about its counter-offensive towards Apple. The software giant has allegedly hired famous comedian Jerry Seinfeld to be the image of its ad campaign dubbed (hear this) "Windows, Not Walls".
Not that Microsoft's move isn't logical, or worthy of our appreciation (not to mention that Seinfeld is the most suitable man for the job), but "Windows, Not Walls"? Like Windows is free or something...
What Microsoft can, and will do, is take a more serious approach than Apple, and not speculate as much on the faults of the Mac like a spoiled brat ('cause, really, there isn't much to speculate there) and emphasize Apple's show-off nature, the overpriced hardware and other typical Apple stuff. They might even invoke the case with Psystar somewhere along the way (depending on the outcome of the suit). Microsoft is also likely to pick on Apple's secretive nature when issuing updates, ridiculing the fact that Apple thinks users might try to reverse-engineer its software. But all this remains to be seen.
What we know, as a fact, is that Microsoft is planning to spend a whopping $300 million on its new ad campaign, 10 million of which going to Seinfeld, should he "Tell it for the Last Time"... again. People familiar with the situation also told the Wall Street Journal that Bill Gates would also be featured in the ads. Oh, are we going to have some laughs... (I mean that in a good way, of course).
During the keynote address at Microsoft's annual Worldwide Partner Conference, Brad Brooks, Microsoft's VP of Windows Vista consumer marketing, disclosed the company's plans to counter Apple's "Get a Mac" ads. Reportedly, the campaign was to be called "Free the People", and referred to making computing solutions available for everyone, under any form.
Knowing Apple's modus operandi, the Mac maker will most likely reply immediately to the first wave of ads, probably using something more personal this time, like... "No Gates, Just Doing our Jobs". Just a thought...