Gary North

May 24, 2008

The ad agency doing the Mac vs. PC ads has spotted a weakness: the Vista operating system. It is using gentle humor to ridicule Microsoft. What can Microsoft do? Sue Apple for laughter infringement?

The old advertising slogan, "clever doesn't sell," does not apply to these ads.

The Mac spokesman sometimes mentions a few of Mac's features, but usually it's the nerdy PC guy who laments his latest problem. He always has problems.

Vista is the biggest problem these days. That is unlikely to change for a long time.

A good ad stresses benefits. These stress liabilities, but in a way that keeps the lawyers away. I recall no comparable series in advertising history.

As a Vista user on one of my machines, I concur with the ads. I suggest that if you order a PC, you take the option and order it with Windows XP. You can still do this. The computer companies don't promote this, but they do offer it.

This ad is the Give Up ad. It's short and to the point.

Then there is Cancel or Allow?