Microsoft released a new series of Apple-mocking videos but pulled them after negative reception
Not too long ago, Microsoft released a series of ads, comparing the Surface RT directly to the iPad, trying to boost their disastrous sales of its tablet. Which didn’t work out that well…
Now, Microsoft released a series of videos on their Windows Phone Youtube channel, called “A fly on the wall in Cupertino”, spoofing Apples newly released iPhones. The 7 videos show 2 employees presenting the new iPhone models to their executives in a product pitch meeting. The executives can only be seen from behind but bear a striking resemblance to Jony Ive and Tim Cook. Some even say that,in fact, the resemblance of the Tim-Cook-character is intended to resemble Steve Jobs.
The biggest mistake, in my opinion, Microsoft made with this videos is that at one point in the video, one of the employees says “And the beauty part is we can charge whatever we want,”. Then, the hashtag #timetoswitch then flashes on the screen, a reference to Microsoft’s Windows Phone. The message received by the public is exactly the opposite of its intentions: the iPhone users are insulted to their face and, at the same time, expected to switch to the Windows Phone.
After a short while and, probably, a lot of negative reception, even a lot of mocking on numerous social networks, Microsoft decided to pull the ads, stating that the campaign was “intended to be a lighthearted poke at our friends from Cupertino. But it was off the mark, and we’ve decided to pull it down”. Fortunately, one of the videos was reposted by another user and can be watched here:
While the commercials were clearly supposed to be funny, they mostly make Microsoft look desperate. It’s somewhat understandable but not excusable. You would expect any public material to be thoroughly reviewed before releasing it, especially from a giant like Microsoft.
Microsoft clearly has a lot of issues and troubles lately, not only regarding their products and sales, but especially with their public image. I really hope that this will be the last of Microsofts public self-humiliation and that they start doing things right.
