Apple calls in lawyers over Microsoft's Laptop Hunter ads

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 16 Jul 2009 at 10:06

Microsoft has revealed that Apple wanted its series of Laptop Hunter ads pulled.

The Laptop Hunter ads feature people off the street who are given $1,000 to buy the best laptop they can. The unscripted ads show customers comparing Apple laptops to those running Windows - with the customer coming down on the side of Windows because it's cheaper.

The adverts have proven a success for Microsoft, which was striking back after Apple's high profile "I'm a Mac" campaign. However, Microsoft's chief operating officer, Kevin Turner, admitted the company had no idea just how stung Apple was.

"You know why I know they're working? Because two weeks ago we got a call from the Apple legal department saying, hey - this is a true story - saying, "Hey, you need to stop running those ads, we lowered our prices," Turner related at the Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans.

"They took like $100 off or something. It was the greatest single phone call in the history that I've ever taken in business. I did cartwheels down the hallway... And so we're just going to keep running them and running them and running them," he finished.

Turner further revealed that Microsoft would also be aggressively targeting Apple on the high street. The company plans to open its new stores "right next door" to Apple's existing shops.