Xbox has released an epic new ad as it looks to win over market share from arch-rival Sony PlayStation, in what is a very high-stakes year for the brands as they each gear up to launch a hotly anticipated new generation of consoles The 70-second global ad by longtime agency 215 McCann has been released…
Microsoft is still getting catty with Apple. This time, in song.
A new ad for the Surface Pro 4 pokes fun at the Macbook Air, continuing one of the Windows giant’s favorite traditions of recent years—mocking Siri, and other aspects of Apple products, in its marketing.
Unlike previous commercials, though, this attack—from M:United and Reset director Daniel Warwick—comes in musical form, with a man praising the Microsoft tablet and berating the Apple laptop in pop honky-tonk rhymes that might leave you laughing, or else curled up on the floor in the fetal position crying in pain.
Last November, Xbox celebrated the launch of Rise of the Tomb Raider in the U.K. with quite a sadistic stunt in London. It challenged eight Lara Croft fans stand on a billboard and get pummeled with harsh weather conditions, as voted for by the public watching online.
Last person standing would be the winner.
In the end, the McCann London stunt was a rousing success. And last week at Cannes, the work won 17 Lions, including five golds, becoming one of the most-awarded campaigns of the year.
We wanted to learn a little more about how McCann pulled off the stunt, which of course brought with it myriad logistical and medical concerns. Below, Lolly Thomson, co-president and chief creative officer at McCann London, tells us how it all came together—from the contestant who got hypotheriam to two others who found a love connection.
Microsoft’s $26.2 acquisition of professional network LinkedIn will not immediately impact its relationship with creative agency partner BBDO.
Today a LinkedIn spokesperson writes, “Our relationship with BBDO does not change. Until this deal closes, each company will continue to operate independently.”
Sources close to the matter tell us that BBDO’s San Francisco office has been working with the professional networking company on a per-project basis and that it will continue doing so aside from the acquisition, which was announced this morning.
While the agency’s relationship with the client will not be impacted in the short-term, the future of the business is unclear. For now, at least, we should expect more LinkedIn work from BBDO San Francisco following February’s launch of the brand’s first broadcast ad, “You’re Closer Than You Think,” which debuted during ABC’s broadcast of the Academy Awards.
Microsoft mostly works with McCann’s dedicated unit m:united on creative, such as this International Women’s Day effort celebrating female inventors. In April, McCann hired former Havas executive creative director Jim Hord to work on the account.
Thanks to YouTube stars Shane Bang and Kevin Ke, the beat lives on by way of some finger-tapping mojo used to promote Microsoft’s Surface 3 laptop.
Finger Music, along with the agency services of m:united, which was launched last summer and continues its Surface work and take on Apple in the process. Finger Music Creative Director Dave Hodge says in a statement:
“The spots were briefed from the beginning to be very rhythmic, when m:united sourced Shane and Kevin, we knew the filming would also incorporate the rhythmic movements of their hands. Being brought in at this early stage meant that we were able to get the process of the filming, edit and music to harmonise throughout the production process. Over two studio days with Shane and Kevin, two tempos were chosen for the spot which were organic with the pen tapping they were doing. It was important that these were ascertained beforehand so that we could ensure the visuals.”
The goal of the campaign, most of all, was to prove that music can transcend its status as background noise–according to the 13-year-old Finger Music.
Check out second clip, “College Flow,” below.
Agency: m:united
Client: Microsoft
Agency Producer: Meg McCarthy
Agency Executive Music Producer Eric David Johnson aka DJ Bunny Ears.
Executive Creative Director: Bobby Pearce
Executive Creative Director: Yo Umeda
Creative Director: Todd Brown
Director of Creative Technology: David Cliff
Production Company: White Label
Director: Olivier Gondry
Music and Sound: Finger Music
Music Creative Director: Dave Hodge
Editing House: Rock Paper Scissors
Editor: Frank Snider
Post Production: Method
Microsoft is back with the latest installment in its “Productivity Future Vision” series—and this time, it’s drifting through the story of a marine biologist, Kat, and a corporate executive, Lola, who collaborate on a complex undersea project. Naturally, thanks to Microsoft, they get thoroughly immersed in their work.
The goal of the six-minute film is to whet viewers’ appetites for Microsoft products and services that are roughly five to ten years away. In this regard, the impressive video—with visual storytelling that puts some sci-fi epics to shame—makes a big splash. Sexy tech on display includes scuba gear that generates holograms for oceanographic study and a segmented bracelet that’s also a computer (it forms a larger display when its pieces are joined). There’s also a hyper-flexible magazine-like digital device that works with a stylus. One especially cool demo even shows hologram Lola “beaming” into a meeting, and interacting with data on a wall-size blackboard-screen, just as if she was in the room.
As in Microsoft’s previous productivity plays, as well as its home-of-the-future clip a ways back, the new video assures a shimmering techtopia of endless endeavor, achievement and connectivity. In this particular clip, there’s an emphasis on seamlessly “fluid” communications and information sharing—hence the aquatic theme. In effect, though, all that water reminds me of the blue screen of death… but I’m sure nothing could possibly go wrong.
And frankly, Microsoft’s notion of the future has always seemed kind of fishy, anyways. Everyone’s toiling all the time. Even the future house is overstimulating, with its motion-activated wallpaper and tweets dancing through the halls. Watching this stuff gives me a sinking feeling that we’ll be drowning in technology, with no time to come up for air. Maybe the company should develop an inflatable device that helps us float around the pool as we unplug and decompress.
On the bright side, Internet Explorer’s finally capsized. We’ll see if its successor, code-named Project Spartan, is really such a catch.
m:united launched a Valentine’s Day campaign for Microsoft, focusing on users’ relationships with virtual assistant Cortana.
“Breaking up is hard…but one day I just had enough,” begins the man in “Breaking Up.” As the camera pans out we see that his face is actually on a Lumia 635 screen and as he continues talking it becomes clear that the “breakup” he’s referring to is with the iPhone’s Siri, and the “someone new” he gushes about is Microsoft’s Cortana.
“New Love” takes a similar approach, with a woman talking about telling her parents how she isn’t like everyone else and “met someone who brings out the best in me.” (“Honey, we know you were never an iPhone girl,” her father responds.)
The tongue-in-cheek approach, while a bit on the obvious side, finds an appropriately jokey tone for Valenine’s Day (at Siri’s expense). While these ads won’t make anyone laugh out loud, they do play on audience expectation, and the way they gradually pan out to show that the entire ad takes place on the Lumia 635 is a clever way to integrate the product. We just wonder how Siri is taking all of this.
Credits:
Client: Microsoft
Agency: m:united
Co-Chief Creative Officers: Andy Azula John Mescall
Executive Creative Director: Yo Umeda
Senior Copy Writer: Thom Woodley
Senior Art Director: Trinh Pham
Director of Creative Technology: David Cliff
Head of Integrated Production: Aaron Kovan
Executive Producer: Carolyn Johnson
Junior Producer: Monique Fitzpatrick
Managing Director: Kevin Nelson
EVP Group Account Director: Tina Galley
SVP Group Account Directors: Darla Price, Jason Kolinsky
Account Director: Melissa Trought
Account Supervisor: Greg Masiakos
Assistant Account Executive: Emily Glaser
Project Managment: Stella Warkman
Production & Post-Production: CRAFT
Director of Photography: Larry Kapit
Editors: Nate Troester Carlos Hernandez
Music: “Big Top Polka” Erin Gemsa
Media Agency: EMT
Ever since Microsoft introduced Cortana, its personal assistant for the Windows Phone, it’s been slamming Siri for her vanity and uselessness. Now, for Valentine’s Day, it’s proposing that you give Siri the old heave-ho for good—and begin a torrid affair with her archrival.
Check out the two new spots below, from m:united. The second one has a particularly cute subtext, although Siri would tell you to watch out—that this is one suitor with a menacing agenda under all the sweetness.
CREDITS
Client: Microsoft
Agency: m:united
Co-Chief Creative Officers: Andy Azula John Mescall
Executive Creative Director: Yo Umeda
Senior Copy Writer: Thom Woodley
Senior Art Director: Trinh Pham
Director of Creative Technology: David Cliff
Head of Integrated Production: Aaron Kovan
Executive Producer: Carolyn Johnson
Junior Producer: Monique Fitzpatrick
Managing Director: Kevin Nelson
EVP Group Account Director: Tina Galley
SVP Group Account Directors: Darla Price, Jason Kolinsky
Account Director: Melissa Trought
Account Supervisor: Greg Masiakos
Assistant Account Executive: Emily Glaser
Project Management: Stella Warkman
Production & Post-Production: CRAFT
Director of Photography: Larry Kapit
Editors: Nate Troester Carlos Hernandez
Music: “Big Top Polka” Erin Gemsa
Media Agency: EMT
Xbox cannot explicitly advertise the launch of the highly anticipated first-person shooter Destiny. So, it came up with clever trick to draw attention anyway: Promote a non-existent cologne with the same name as the game.
“The new fragrance by Xbox,” reads the copy on a simple ad (posted to Xbox’s social channels late last week) with a blue crystal bottle labeled Destiny. The equally coy website encourages visitors to check with retailers about Xbox One offers.
Microsoft’s slyness is born of necessity, and is a de facto dig at its chief rival in the console wars. Sony has the exclusive rights from Destiny publisher Activision to advertise the game, according to CNET. The title is available on Sony’s PlayStation 4 with early access and bonus content, part of the console manufacturers’ fierce competition for users.
The perfume theme is a particularly cheeky touch given that Destiny, the game, is about a post-apocalyptic future where players try to save humanity by battling aliens across the solar system—not the stuff of most luxury ads.
It’s also nice to see that Microsoft’s cattiness isn’t limited to mocking Siri.
There is no real breaking news here. Advertising for video games has only grown more prevalent with the launch of interactive gaming as top brands aim for a little word-of-mouth love, real-time sharing and a larger piece of the consumer pie.
However, this story from Business Insider is news: Sony has spent $59 million on PS4 advertising … in the past five months alone.
Moreover, the company succeeded in its efforts to trample Microsoft’s marketing campaign, which only spent $34 million within the same time frame.
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
Em um mundo cheio de Androids e iPhones, ter um Windows Phone pode ser sinônimo de rebeldia? Para a Microsoft, isso não só faz sentido, como se tornou também o tema do primeiro comercial da marca para os celulares da Nokia que usam o sistema operacional da empresa.
Esteticamente, o diferencial do Windows Phone é evidenciado ao colocar o protagonista do comercial em roupas bastante coloridas, circulando por um cenário em preto e branco, em uma interessante referência à diversidade de cores dos aparelhos da Nokia.
A trilha sonora, da banda inglesa “The Kinks”, reforça o conceito com o refrão ‘not like everybody else’ – enquanto o moço caminha pelas ruas ouvindo a canção a partir do seu Lumia 1020, os passantes parecem surpresos e chocados.
Pode parecer um exagero, mas é uma interessante estratégia para um sistema operacional que ainda amarga uma terceira posição no market share. Além disso, o TechCrunch lembra que a Apple já havia usado o mote revolucionário no seu histórico comercial ‘1984’.
Não por coincidência, hoje mais de 25 mil funcionários da Nokia estão oficialmente se tornando colaboradores da Microsoft. Muitos deles estão divulgando selfies com seus novos crachás, e o vídeo da campanha ajuda a motivar essa nova equipe que se junta ao time da empresa de Bill Gates – afinal, eles não são como todos os outros.
Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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With millions of Windows XP users clinging desperately to the reliable but officially obsolete operating system, Microsoft has created a surprisingly fun new game to nudge us all into the future. Or present. Or at least recent past.
Escape From XP is an arcade-style video game in which you play as a developer who's been stuck supporting Windows XP and the antiquated Internet Explorer 6, your grandmother's favorite Web browser.
Check out the entertaining little game here, brought to us by agency Bradley and Montgomery (a fun nod to the Kurt Russell masterpiece, Escape From New York) and our shot-by-shot GIF breakdown of Escape From XP below.
Put an end to zombie IE6 and Windows XP once and for all in our new game, “Escape from XP.” http://t.co/bPzJpUk7TF pic.twitter.com/UC97V1DF1U
— Internet Explorer (@IE) April 9, 2014
First we are confronted with our old friend, "Bliss," which glitches out to the "blue screen of death."
Next we are transported to a terrible dystopia and tasked with escaping from XP:
Here in this wasteland our plucky developer traverses a graveyard of browser windows, battling recycling bins and the Internet Explorer logo. And watch out for the enormous Clippy in the background shooting LASERS FROM HIS EYES. 
Finally we are saved!
Now push the button. Clippy is there in case you're having problems executing.
BOOOOOOOOM!
RIP XP.
Microsoft wants to make sure you remember the famous image of the blue sky and rolling pasture that graced so many computer screens for so long.
As the world mourns (or not) the end of the road for Windows XP—as of Tuesday, Microsoft is no longer offering support for the operating system—Microsoft Netherlands has posted this nine-minute film on its YouTube channel about XP's famous default wallpaper.
The backstory is told by Charles O'Rear, the photographer who snapped the iconic picture, aptly titled "Bliss," in 1996 along a California highway north of San Francisco (reports seem to differ on whether it's Napa or Sonoma).
The video is a bit slow moving, but is worth watching mostly because of O'Rear's amusement at having stumbled, quite literally, into the background of history, and because of the irony that the photo was, contrary to much speculation, shot on the kind of analog film that digital has rendered obsolete (though Microsoft ultimately cropped the shot and pumped up the greens before presenting it to users).
Notably absent is any specific discussion of how much Microsoft originally paid O'Rear for the rights to an image that this video touts as perhaps the most viewed in history. O'Rear does point out that the original print was valued too highly for regular shipping services like FedEx to be willing carry it … but the courier's current maximum declared value for packages containing photos clocks in at a whopping $1,000, not counting for inflation.
O'Rear has said in other interviews that the fee was the most he, previously a photographer for National Geographic, ever received for a photograph, and one of the largest amounts ever paid for a single shot.
Regardless, the fact is, the use of the photo was marketing genius, as it projects natural serenity in a totally generic kind of way. (Guesses as to its provenance ranged over the years from New Zealand to Ireland to Washington state.)
Still, as inoffensive—pleasant, even—as it is to look at, it's memorable mostly because it couldn't be avoided. So, while Microsoft deserves credit for having some fun with the news that it's retiring an era-defining product, it's also hard not to interpret it all as a legacy technology company lamenting its once-great history as its modern significance has waned.
Via Devour.
Depois de muita espera e beta testes, o elogiado “Titanfall” será lançado amanhã para Xbox One e PC.
O comercial criado para promover a produção da Respawn Entertainment mostra como a vida é muito mais legal quando acompanhada de um robô gigante pra chamar de seu.
A criação é da Wieden + Kennedy.
Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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Se alguém ainda tinha dúvidas de que a Budweiser levaria, mais uma vez, a liderança do Super Bowl AdMeter, realizado pelo USA Today, elas acabaram. Puppy Love, o fofíssimo comercial criado pela Anomaly e estrelado por um cãozinho e os cavalos Clydesdale, ficou em primeiro lugar no top 10, repetindo o feito de Brotherhood no ano passado. Foram 57 comerciais exibidos no jogo de ontem, três a mais do que em 2013.
Foi a consagração total da marca e da agência, mas também serviu para mostrar que é possível contar boas histórias sem precisar complicar, emocionar, sem ser piegas. Basicamente, o que a gente espera do maior embate do mercado publicitário: que realmente sejam os melhores entre os melhores.
Outro filme da Budweiser, Hero’s Welcome, que mostra uma cidade recepcionando um soldado que está voltando para casa, ficou em terceiro lugar.
Doritos também se deu bem mais uma vez, e dois comerciais do Crash the Super Bowl ficaram em segundo e quarto lugares – Cowboy Kid e Time Machine, respectivamente. A invasão dos personagens dos anos 1980 no comercial da RadioShack garantiu à rede a quinta colocação, enquanto a Hyundai ficou em sexto com Sixth Sense.
A fofíssima Gracie, de Cheerios, Technology, da Microsoft, e Going All the Way, da Coca-Cola, ficaram com a sétima, oitava e nona posição. Soundcheck, da Pepsi, encerra o top 10.
Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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Em sua estreia no intervalo publicitário mais caro do mundo, a Microsoft traz casos reais da tecnologia colaborando e mudando a vida das pessoas, com foco naquelas com algum tipo de deficiência.
Começa com o ex-jogador do New Orleans Saints, Steve Gleason, que atualmente enfrenta uma doença degenerativa. Ele utiliza uma tablet Surface Pro controlada através dos olhos, e que se transformou na sua voz.
A marca detalha nesse site todos os casos mostrados no comercial.
Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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Em um comercial para o Bing, a Microsoft celebra as mulheres heróicas (e mais pesquisadas no serviço de busca) em 2013. Uma receita inspiracional que cai bem para gerar views nesse começo de ano, embalada pela música “Brave” de Sara Bareilles.
Os comentários no YouTube polemizam sobre as escolhas de algumas personagens e, acredite, alguns até questionam porque a Microsoft não fez também um vídeo para celebrar os homens de 2013. Na dúvida, nunca leia os comentários do YouTube.
Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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Microsoft took a different approach this time with its year-end roundup for Bing. Instead of simply copying Google's Zeitgeist with its own year in review, it focused instead on the inspiring (and presumably well-searched) women of 2013.
Set to the lady-power ballad (and intended gay-rights anthem) "Brave" by Sara Bareilles, the video parallaxes its way through some of the inspiring women who did great things in 2013. It includes Margaret Thatcher, whose main contribution to 2013 was dying. But in general, it's a feel-good mélange designed for maximum inspirational shareability. It's also designed not to offend by only vaguely referencing ladies on the front lines (where they've been for a while, btw) and leaving out the word "marriage" before the word "equality."
It already has a couple hundred bitter comments on YouTube about how Microsoft didn't out a video celebrating the heroic men of 2013—posted by people who haven't yet figured that's every other year-end roundup out there.
Microsoft's right. We're gonna need some bravery for the year ahead.
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If true, this is rather embarrassing. Several Twitter users last night reportedly caught @Xbox tweeting an Xbox One support question to Microsoft's own @XboxSupport team. The assumption, of course, is that the question (now deleted) was meant to be posted elsewhere, with some theorizing it was intended for a fake user account to make Xbox Support look responsive.
"Hi @XboxSupport. I just got an Xbox One and connected my Kinect," the tweet says, "but it (sic) showing me that its (sic) not connected up in the rt hand corner. help!"
Proving the legitimacy of a deleted tweet is, of course, rather difficult. But more than one user snagged a screenshot at different times with different amounts of retweets and favorites, meaning that if it was faked, it was faked by multiple people in multiple screenshots. The screenshot above was posted to Reddit, where it became one of this morning's top posts. Another was posted to Neogaf, and a third is shown below.
We've reached out to Microsoft for clarification.
Wondering how the @Xbox twitter accidentally tweeted this: pic.twitter.com/z9gkAG5mQf
— Sam Houston (@samhouston) December 22, 2013
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