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10 Worst Microsoft Videos: Why We’re Amazed by the Windows Phone 7 Ads

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Microsoft’s spent millions of dollars producing and promoting commercials and viral videos that do more harm than good. Some of them are creepy, others make you scratch your head and some will make you sick. Microsoft is a huge company and we surely don’t expect every ad and video to be a hit. But they’ve had more than their fair share of horrible ads over the years. Perhaps Microsoft’s getting a fresh start in the video department as it introduces Windows Phone 7.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHlN21ebeak&feature=player_embedded

These first two Windows Phone 7 commercials are well produced, drive home a message, are entertaining and don’t really offend anybody. Contrast the above Windows Phone 7 video with the below 10 gems.

10. Windows 7 Party!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cX4t5-YpHQ

We were pretty happy to see Windows 7 coming to market, but we weren’t about to throw a party in our homes on launch day.

9. DOS is Going Bye-Bye!

Bizzare doesn’t even begin to describe this Windows 95 promo video. I guess they couldn’t just stick with the whole ‘Start Me Up’ theme that wasn’t half bad.

8. MS-DOS Upgrade Party

I guess it can be tough to sex up an MS-DOS upgrade tutorial. Bill Nye the science guy is clearly the answer…

7. Bing Goes the Internet

Microsoft didn’t actually produce the Bing Goes the Internet video, but they did encourage it by running a contest of some kind. In a truly evil move, they made hundreds of middle schoolers do the Bing dance in an attempt for it to go viral.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaFY7hVxjek

5. Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld

The idea of spending a fortune on a celebrity spokesperson flopped. Microsoft’s ad agency at the time must have had a hidden agenda of some kind and I can’t believe Gates and Seinfeld allowed this commercial to see the light of day. Unfortunately, this is just one of a series of Gates and Seinfeld commercials.

6. Microsoft Store Dance

Nothing brings customers into a retail location like a bunch of Microsoft employees dancing in unison. This viral video was filmed in Microsoft’s Mission Viejo, California store.

5. Smartphone Funeral

Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 was caught dancing to Thriller last month. Some of the dancers aren’t all that bad at mimicking the King of Pop, but the idea of declaring Android, iPhone and BlackBerry dead is poor form before you’ve sold a single unit.

4. But Wait There’s more!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGvHNNOLnCk&feature=player_embedded

If the whole software thing didn’t work out, Steve Ballmer still would’ve become a billionaire by selling kitchen gadgets and auto accessories on late night TV.

3. Microsoft Vista SP1 Promo

Businesses didn’t exactly jump at the chance to upgrade from Windows XP to Vista. To rally the troops Microsoft somehow convinced Bruce Springsteen and the E Street band to perform for the Vista sales reps. Just kidding…they spent far more than it would’ve cost to hire The Boss and his bandmates for a day and put together this craptastic video.

2. Microsoft Songsmith

I’m not sure how the producers of this video managed to get the green light on this project. And I’m really not sure how this got Microsoft marketing and legal stamps of approval considering that an Apple MacBook Pro was on camera for most of the video. The Songsmith commercial spawned a number of remixes and spoofs, all of which were less embarrassing to Microsoft than the original.

1. OMGIGP

This is the one Microsoft ad that made a lot of people sick. It doesn’t exactly leave a good image in of IE in your head.

7 Comments

7 Comments

  1. Anonymous

    10/13/2010 at 4:32 pm

    I still think the Gates/Seinfeld commercials were just a way for Bill to be on TV with Jerry. Less embarrassing way to be on TV than going on Dancing with the Stars or dating Kathy Griffin like the Woz did (I like Kathy, but dating her is kind of embarrassing).

    • Xavier Lanier

      10/13/2010 at 4:46 pm

      Gates could have just revived the Seinfeld show and been the new quirky neighbor.

    • Xavier Lanier

      10/13/2010 at 5:18 pm

      Exactly- I’m sure a billion or two $ could’ve made this a reality

  2. migrosoft

    10/13/2010 at 7:02 pm

  3. Brett Gilbertson

    10/14/2010 at 12:26 am

    Hey that Win Phone 7 ad is funny! ROFL…

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