In a new ad campaign, Microsoft
is showing acceptance for Internet Explorer's dark past, calling it “the
browser you loved to hate.” The company has set up a website with video ads and silly graphics, all
of which essentially admit that Internet Explorer used to stink. “Some people
are trying the new Internet Explorer and actually liking it,” the site's
description says. “Not that they would say it out loud.” The most endearing of
the video ads shows a young man meeting with a
psychologist about his tendency to uninstall Internet Explorer on other
people's computers. “The only thing Internet Explorer is good for at all … is
downloading other browsers,” he exclaims. Graphics on the site visualize other
things that were once popular, then suffered a steep drop in popularity before
becoming cool again. (Examples: “Tablet Worship,” “Bird-Based Communication”
and Pabst Blue Ribbon.) On a second page, the site admits that “Your current
browser is probably great … So keep using it.” But it also encourages people to
use Internet Explorer 9 to pin sites such as Facebook and Pandora to the
Windows taskbar. “And when you do, you might find some stuff you like in
Internet Explorer,” the site says. Will the campaign get me to switch? Probably
not, even though IE9 is markedly better than its predecessors.
No comments:
Post a Comment