Microsoft Chokes On Its Own Ad; Quickly Pulls ‘Vom.com’ Spot

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Microsoft Chokes On Its Own Ad; Quickly Pulls ‘Vom.com’ Spot

While the Jerry Seinfeld ads represented the nadir of Microsoft’s attempts to create a popular ad campaign, the software company seemed to hit its stride recently with the generally positive notices for its I’m A PC spots. But now the latest in a series of ads promoting Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 8 browser is so bad that it’s making some viewers want to puke—literally. The ad features a typical suburban couple at the breakfast table, and includes a laptop. (See the full ad, after the jump.) Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) told CNET that ad was intended to humorously highlight IE8’s InPrivate Browsing feature. But as complaints rose, Microsoft and its agency, Bradley and Montgomery, decided to remove the ad from their respective sites. The spot is still on YouTube for the time being.

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David Kaplan

@davidaKaplan Jul 2, 2009 1:30 PM ET

Posted In: Advertising, Technologies / Formats, Browsers, Companies, Microsoft

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Jamie Poitra

Where MS still fails to match their competition (and where ads like this can not help) is in their rendering and standards support.

Of course its just the developers who bemoan this. Everyone else just notices that things don't look/work quite right in their browser if a developer doesn't do extra work to make sure IE won't mangle something that works perfectly well in every other browser.

But that said. I think the commercial totally works in that viral sense. I suspect it'll be a hit with the same crowed who got such a kick from another puking related video…

morley brown

Isn't the bigger story how the world's biggest software company, aside from being clueless about advertising, needs 8 full versions of a 14 year old product to finally have private browsing? and call me cynical but how long should be give them (days?) before there's a security issue.

Richard

If they hadn't already pulled it and were really aggressive, I'd half expect some sort of announcement that a particular network refused to run it and then the viral blitz.

David Kaplan

Yep, it's hard to believe there wasn't some calculation to all of this. It's certainly a very fine line between a commercial that's not ready for primetime and a viral hit.

Joseph Tartakoff

I don't think the commercial is actually bad at all in terms of strategy. Microsoft needs to remind people that Internet Explorer 8 is as comprehensive as its newer rivals (ie it also has a private browsing mode)—and this ad shouts that. And, of course, by pulling it, the message is spread even more.

—Joe Tartakoff, paidContent.org

Ralph

It's gross, but it certainly makes its point. Hehe.

Laura A

This is quite possibly the WORST idea for an online commercial spot an ad agency has ever come up with. Someone at Bradley & Montgomery must have missed the "inappropriate ad content" day back in school. I mean seriously - this ad could have been funny and tongue in cheek, but this is just BLEEPING ridiculous. Bad form to all - especially Dean Cain. WTF is he doing here?