BUZZ NEWS

"I’m a PC," Microsoft Fights on Apple’s Terrain

Posted on September 19, 2008
Cédric Puisney

For a while now, not a week goes by that we don’t hear talk about Microsoft. The Redmond giant has invested $300 million in a multiple episode advertising campaign to restore Window’s reputation. After two episodes of The Simple Life with Bill and Jerry that viewers had a hard time wrapping their minds around, Microsoft has decided to change its approach. Exit Seinfeld stage right! Prep for scene two with a more "classic" commercial where the brand defies its enemy Apple by attacking it on its own playing field.

Apple has been making fun of PC in Get a Mac commercials since 2006. As you may know by now, "PC" is played by a fifty-something has-been in a suit and tie. Well, now Microsoft has changed its strategy and has decided to enter Mac territory. It recruited "Sean," a clone of Mac’s "PC," in order to debut its new commercial.

The result? A long list of people from different walks of life, with different professions, different and varied personalities, that are hip or not so hip, all star in this new commercial. And although they are all very different, they all have one thing in common: they use PC and are proud of it. The icing on the cake: Microsoft also recruited the Tony Parker - Eva Longoria duo. They’ve chosen glamour over comedy which is easier to understand, especially because the brand wants to win over an international audience and Seinfeld isn’t all that famous abroad.

Unlike the two clips with Seinfeld, viewers know what to expect at the end of this clip. The final message: "For a life without walls." This reminds us that what we have is a Windows commercial, but it ends rather awkwardly just the same. In any case, the "without walls" adventure continues on a special site where you can peruse through the "PC" gallery and appreciate the countless images originally intended for the new commercial. The whole ensemble is presented by Sean, head PC himself...

While we wait for the next one in the series, Mac users can continue to have a laugh at PC with the "Get a Mac" commercials, in particular, with the one below, the latest addition to the Mac family: