Comedian Jerry Seinfeld will be Paid by Microsoft to Promote Vista

Comedian Jerry Seinfeld was enlisted by Microsoft as a pitchman to promote its Vista operating system. Seinfeld is going to appear along with Microsoft's chairman Bill Gates in advertisements that are going to counteract the ultra-cool Apple advertisements.

Microsoft is going to pay Jerry Seinfeld $US10 million for his part in an upcoming $300 million advertising campaign. The campaign with a motto "Windows, not Walls" is created in order to boost sales of Vista to businesses and consumers. The campaign is an attempt of Microsoft to hit back the initiative from Apple. His long running "PC versus Mac" advertisements were very popular and many imitators were inspired by them. These advertisements characterize a nerdy PC guy who looses to a cool representative of Apple's increasingly popular Macs.

Robert Passikoff, president of Brand Keys, a New York branding firm said, the advertisements are not seen as cool, Apple is cool. Does anybody ever remember a Microsoft ad? No. Manufacturers, for instance, HP give strong commercial resistance to Vista. Developers are also keeping away from the operating system.

Passikoff also reported that in the weeks ahead, they are going to launch a campaign in order to address any slow doubts their customers could have about Windows Vista. He added, that later this year the company is going to introduce a more comprehensive attempt in order to redefine the meaning and value of Windows for their customers.

The Seinfeld campaign on Vista is probably going to be the theme of much discussion around Microsoft. Some multiple sources reveal that there was heated debate over whether to even launch a counterattack against Apple, which still has a small fraction of the market share for personal computers comparing with Windows. In the meantime it is unclear if any catch phrases of Seinfeld like "Yada, Yada, Yada" are going to be part of the campaign. The first advertisement will debut on September, 4.

Resources:
Microsoft hires Seinfeld to advertise Vista
Seinfeld is being paid $US 10 million by Microsoft to promote Vista
Microsoft engages Seinfeld in $300 million advertising campaign on Vista
Seinfeld is being chosen by Microsoft to headline Vista