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Microsoft Rocks It Again!

Calling all shower singers, wanna-be rappers, pop princesses and bedroom yodellers: “LIPS” is finally here. The highly anticipated singing party game exclusively on Xbox 360, will be hitting stores on 21st November 2008.

Lips is the only music video game that comes with two wireless motion-sensitive microphones, allowing you to put your fantastic dance moves to the test! You can even get other people involved in your songs by having them playing percussion with your Xbox 360 controllers. Whether you’re throwing a party for your friends or simply staying at home with your family, Lips will have everyone singing and dancing…

White Cyc Doesn’t Have Walls, Either

I’m not generally a fan of tit-for-tat advertising, probably because it’s usually found in political ads. But the latest ads in Apple’s “I’m a Mac” campaign are a brilliant response to Microsoft’s new and much-maligned (and not just by me) $300 million “Life Without Walls” work.

First up, “Bean Counter” skewers the idea that throwing $300 million at the marketplace will make people forget about Vista’s issues. Especially when that money could be spent do little things like fixing the operating system.

Second is “The V Word” in which PC (John Hodgman) buzzes out all mentions of Vista due to its “baggage.” Instead,…

HOW FAR WILL MICROSOFT GO??

Seriously though!

I found this interesting article on Adage.com about Microsoft.  Apparently, they launched another program to try to lure more traffic towards its search engine, but according to Search Engine Land, don’t expect too much success.   

This program, dubbed SearchPerks is “a sort of frequent-searching program that rewards people for their loyalty”.  It seems to be a lot like a credit card rewards system.  You have to earn a certain amount of points in order to get an X-Box, ringtone or airline miles. 

I think that they are just getting plain desperate.  Microsoft is one of the biggest; if not the biggest company in the…

What Were They Thinking? Part One

So I’ve written some filler pieces; now it’s time for the good stuff.  Lately, I have been seeing some really bad advertising; for example the Microsoft commercials with Seinfeld.  What were they thinking?  CP + B are known for their unconventional creative strategies, but this?  I find these commercials kind of weird and out of touch, don’t you?  Then again, I have never been a fan of Seinfeld; which probably is the key to understanding these commercials.

Here is another example: Emerald Nuts.  Back in 2007, or was it 2006?  Anyhow, Robert Goulet was the mischievous guy who messed with your stuff while…

I Am Not a PC

Ever think you’d see this phrase: Crispin Porter + Bogusky just did a montage spot. On purpose.

Yeah, neither did I.

But a montage is exactly what they did for Round 2 of their $300 million campaign for Microsoft. See the spot below:

This spot comes on the heels of the two perplexing mini-movies featuring Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates. Personally, I thought these short films were fairly funny. They just had absolutely no marketing value whatsoever. I love wackiness. I own the url wackinessensues.com (it redirects to my bio, which is appropriately wacky). But wackiness for the sake of wackiness just doesn’t fly…

Lame-err…Microsoft: New Family

As fellow blogger Joel Kirstein pointed out, the new Microsoft commercial featuring Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld in the shoe store was a real disappointment – I too expected more from Crispin Porter + Bogusky. The latest spot, which I saw on creativity-online does a slightly better job – there’s some funny bits in this almost five minute commercial, but I think it fails in actually giving me any reason to buy a PC. And isn’t that the point after all? (Click here to view on youtube.com) Actually, I think it rips off something Seinfeld did for American Express back…

Stepping Up

There was a great cover article in the June issue of Fast Company. Pull yourself away last years Black Book, The UTNE Reader and the local weekly alternative newspaper that turns you into an ink-stained wretch. Wash your hands and go read how the rock star ad agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky has undertaken the daunting task of trying to create a new audience for tech mega-giant Microsoft. Yes, those guys out in Redmond, Washington. They gave their $300 million consumer-branding business to the hottest shop right now: Crispin Porter + Bogusky. This article is why we creative types got…