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Apple Demands Microsoft Pull Laptop Hunter Ads

GoCubsGo

GoCubsGo

macrumors Nehalem
Feb 19, 2005
35,742
155
Dear Apple,
Good luck with that.
Did MS ask for the I'm a Mac ads to be pulled?
 
Eidorian

Eidorian

macrumors Penryn
Mar 23, 2005
29,190
386
Indianapolis
Comments on Engadget are having a field day with it.

Turner said that he knows the ads are working because "two weeks ago we got a call from the Apple legal department saying [...] 'Hey, you need to stop running those ads, we lowered our prices.'" Turner further went on to note that "they took like $100 off or something," before stating to applause that it "was the greatest single phone call in the history that I've ever taken in business" -- though he did apparently take a minute to ask: "Is this a joke? Who are you?" In case you're wondering, Turner also confirmed that Microsoft is indeed "just going to keep running them and running them and running them."
Click to expand...
 
Tomorrow

Tomorrow

macrumors 604
Mar 2, 2008
7,160
1,365
Always a day away
I've seen the ads - while I don't necessarily think they tell the entire story, they do appear to tell a truthful story.

Generally, a Mac does cost more for similar hardware, relative to a PC - but the TV commercials are, at best, vague about the specs on the PC laptops. I know the "hunter" mentions some features they would like to see, but we never see any real feature-for-feature comparison.

I'm not sure Apple can strike this down; it doesn't sound like Microsoft is being untruthful, and not even particularly misleading.
 
NT1440

NT1440

macrumors Pentium
May 18, 2008
15,092
22,158
Uh, this doesn't exactly sound credible. Even if Apple did call I highly doubt the MS guy didn't put their own spin on it (as anyone in the business would).
 
jav6454

jav6454

macrumors Core
Nov 14, 2007
22,303
6,264
1 Geostationary Tower Plaza
As much as I despise Microsoft, Apple has not right to dictate MS what it can air on the ad front. Apple aired "Get a Mac" ads, and they were great. No MS is striking back. All Apple can do is watch and innovate on a new advertising method.

I can call the strike back questionable at best since many of those cheap PCs have no exact comparison to the Mac equivalent being compared. So they don't exactly tell the truth.

However, the ads work on less tech savy people. Its marketing. Apple took advantage of it, anyone can.

What Apple should really be doing is start changing their "Get a Mac" campaign ads and focus on something new and catchy; more so than "Laptop Hunters"
 
upinflames900

upinflames900

macrumors 6502a
May 20, 2009
603
0
The ads are misleading in many ways though...I can understand why mac is upset. I don't think they should be calling and asking for the ads to be removed that is just asking for it to be thrown in their face. It is a shame that the laptop hunter ads are working, because all they do is convince people to buy a windows laptop without actually offering any evidence or credible data to support it. I know the ads piss me off when I see them because they don't ever compare the two laptops feature for feature. It isn't illegal but it is crummy what Microsoft is doing.
 
bruinsrme

bruinsrme

macrumors 604
Oct 26, 2008
7,197
3,063
upinflames900 said:
The ads are misleading in many ways though...I can understand why mac is upset. I don't think they should be calling and asking for the ads to be removed that is just asking for it to be thrown in their face. It is a shame that the laptop hunter ads are working, because all they do is convince people to buy a windows laptop without actually offering any evidence or credible data to support it. I know the ads piss me off when I see them because they don't ever compare the two laptops feature for feature. It isn't illegal but it is crummy what Microsoft is doing.
Click to expand...

Who's mac? The guy driving the dump truck?
Misleading ads, how so?

What features of the laptops do you want them to compare, blu-ray for instance? Perhaps, larger screen, more ram, faster processor for less money?
 
W

WickedRabbit

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 17, 2009
153
0
upinflames900 said:
The ads are misleading in many ways though...I can understand why mac is upset. I don't think they should be calling and asking for the ads to be removed that is just asking for it to be thrown in their face. It is a shame that the laptop hunter ads are working, because all they do is convince people to buy a windows laptop without actually offering any evidence or credible data to support it. I know the ads piss me off when I see them because they don't ever compare the two laptops feature for feature. It isn't illegal but it is crummy what Microsoft is doing.
Click to expand...

To be fair, Apple isn't entirely out of the misleading or stretching the realm of perception either. Remember that disclaimer commercial where like half of the 23 steps listed were talking about running defrag. Pretty sure I find myself running Disk Utility on my new iMac pretty often to clear up quite a few things. That, of course, would be the Mac version of a defrag. There are other examples, but I'm not going to get in to it. That's just the first one that comes to mind that stood out the most for me.
 
P

pdjudd

macrumors 601
Jun 19, 2007
4,037
65
Plymouth, MN
WickedRabbit said:
That, of course, would be the Mac version of a defrag. .
Click to expand...

No, that's not accurate at all. Mac's do not require defragmenting - the file system (HFA Journaled) does that.

If you are referring to repairing permissions, that is a repair function roughly equal to chkdsk on the PC - it should only be done if you are having problems.
 
LethalWolfe

LethalWolfe

macrumors G3
Jan 11, 2002
9,370
124
Los Angeles
upinflames900 said:
The ads are misleading in many ways though...I can understand why mac is upset. I don't think they should be calling and asking for the ads to be removed that is just asking for it to be thrown in their face. It is a shame that the laptop hunter ads are working, because all they do is convince people to buy a windows laptop without actually offering any evidence or credible data to support it. I know the ads piss me off when I see them because they don't ever compare the two laptops feature for feature. It isn't illegal but it is crummy what Microsoft is doing.
Click to expand...
Riiiight. If you seriously think this you need to take a step back 'cause you are seriously approaching Apple fan-boy territory. Every person that has ever advertised anything has put their product in the best light possible and their competitors product in poor light (assuming a head-to-head type comparison).


Lethal
 
upinflames900

upinflames900

macrumors 6502a
May 20, 2009
603
0
bruinsrme said:
Who's mac? The guy driving the dump truck?
Misleading ads, how so?

What features of the laptops do you want them to compare, blu-ray for instance? Perhaps, larger screen, more ram, faster processor for less money?
Click to expand...

I can see you obviously disagree with me...no need to point out the fact that the company's name is apple. The ads dont give a comparison of what you are actually getting. I would like to see here is mac with processor, hard drive, screen size, etc and here is pc with... However if they did that it wouldn't be as effective for Microsoft. I just want them to actually say more than jeez these macs are expensive.

LethalWolfe said:
Riiiight. If you seriously think this you need to take a step back 'cause you are seriously approaching Apple fan-boy territory. Every person that has ever advertised anything has put their product in the best light possible and their competitors product in poor light (assuming a head-to-head type comparison).


Lethal
Click to expand...

Okay I am not an apple fan boy, but thanks for the insult. My point is I see the ads as misleading. If you don't then just say so and state why you dont have to pick a fight with me. I am simply expressing my opinion thats all no more. I understand advertising, but I just feel that it is a little (perhaps not illegally so) misleading thats all. If you disagree fine.
 
bruinsrme

bruinsrme

macrumors 604
Oct 26, 2008
7,197
3,063
upinflames900 said:
I can see you obviously disagree with me...no need to point out the fact that the company's name is apple. The ads dont give a comparison of what you are actually getting. I would like to see here is mac with processor, hard drive, screen size, etc and here is pc with... However if they did that it wouldn't be as effective for Microsoft. I just want them to actually say more than jeez these macs are expensive.
Click to expand...

thats the WHOLE point of the commercials, macs are MORE expensive than pc notebooks.
Watch them again, The commercials do say they are aesthetically pleasing.
 
nostaws

nostaws

macrumors 6502a
Jan 14, 2006
530
488
If apple legal really did this they are stupid. What do they think MS would say?
 
upinflames900

upinflames900

macrumors 6502a
May 20, 2009
603
0
bruinsrme said:
thats the WHOLE point of the commercials, macs are MORE expensive than pc notebooks.
Watch them again, The commercials do say they are aesthetically pleasing.
Click to expand...

A PC with a 2.66GHz Quad Core is probably more expensive than a PC with a 1.2 GHz Pentium 4...my point is mac is a higher end machine and the price difference is not that different if you compare it to a higher end windows machine. And again...I dont want to have to defend myself. If you think that you dont have to direct it at me.
 
bruinsrme

bruinsrme

macrumors 604
Oct 26, 2008
7,197
3,063
upinflames900 said:
A PC with a 2.66GHz Quad Core is probably more expensive than a PC with a 1.2 GHz Pentium 4...my point is mac is a higher end machine and the price difference is not that different if you compare it to a higher end windows machine. And again...I dont want to have to defend myself. If you think that you dont have to direct it at me.
Click to expand...

I want to understand, perhaps my thinking is warped, please help me understand.
higher end?
how so?
 
IBradMac

IBradMac

macrumors 68000
Jun 27, 2008
1,799
2
Ohio
Small White Car

Small White Car

macrumors G4
Aug 29, 2006
10,972
1,468
Washington DC
If the MS ads say something that's no longer correct, they should change it.

But I'm not sure what they're talking about here. They don't mention an exact price for any Mac as far as I remember. Is there a version I haven't seen?

I kind of expect that by tomorrow morning this will turn out to be a hoax. If there was some part where they said "A Mac costs $x" then I'd believe it, but I don't remember hearing that in any of the ads.

If this is true it is very strange.
 
N

neutrino23

macrumors 68000
Feb 14, 2003
1,881
391
SF Bay area
Very bizarre story. Sounds like BS to me. Maybe someone called with a very specific complaint about a particular claim? Even that sounds iffy.

And that's the reason he knows they are effective? Because Apple legal called? They don't have metrics that tell them whether this ad money was well spent? If there is truth to this at all this is something small that was blown out of proportion.
 
P

pika2000

Suspended
Jun 22, 2007
5,587
4,903
First of all, will a legal department from big companies call you? Highly unlikely. Most of them will contact you via fax/letter. So I smell publicity stunts. MS, could you just put Ballmer jumping around again? That is more entertaining.
 
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