Orangeman Burns - Sriram Sridharan's Blog

Did you “get” the new Microsoft commercial? Apparently, some people didn’t, so Microsoft officials were calling reporters Friday to explain it. The company started airing a commercial Thursday night in which comedian Jerry Seinfeld encounters Bill Gates shopping for real leather shoes at Shoe Circus! - “Quality shoes at discount prices, why pay more?” - and helps Gates squeeze into a pair. As they walk out of the store together eating churros, Seinfeld asks Gates if he and the other great brains at Microsoft “are ever going to come out with something that will make our computers moist and chewy like cake so we can just eat them while we’re working?” In response, Gates wiggles his bottom.

Here's the commercial in case you missed it:


The ad barely mentions the word “Microsoft” and never mentions Windows. Nevertheless, the Microsoft officials who phoned reporters Friday said it is indeed a campaign to brand Windows, “the start of a conversation … easily the largest marketing campaign we’ve ever had.” Microsoft plans to hire 155 “gurus” by the end of the year to work in Circuit City, Best Buy and other retailers to help customers pick out PCs, said Eric Hollreiser of Microsoft - presumably the way Seinfeld helped Gates pick out shoes. Microsoft is also working with PC manufacturers to deliver “a compelling Windows experience” - to study how long it takes, for example, for Windows to start up and shut down. Mobile phones and Microsoft’s Web site are also part of the plan. Hollreiser said Microsoft will do “a terrific job of delivering consumer information.”