The Final Episode of Seinfeld

So... Microsoft clubbed Jerry Seinfeld.

That happened much faster than I thought. My friend Eric brought this up tonight at a party.

The initial focus group results must have been absolutely dismal for the Evil Empire to have dumped him that fast. I mean, they spent millions on production for these spots. And they dropped them faster than the stock market. (Quick tangent: About 20 years ago I learned about short selling and was amazed that this was even legal. Today we learn that this is one of the main reasons our financial institutions are crashing -- lousy short sellers. They come in like sharks smelling blood. They short a stock and when the price falls, they profit. Over the past few weeks these financial stocks have been easy targets for short sellers and they have driven the prices into the ground. End tangent.)

So, should Microsoft have kept Seinfeld on for a longer run? Despite my initial reaction that they should never have hired him, no. They did the right thing. If they're going to keep placing media buys, they should get a strategy that works for them. I understand they are now going to attack the Mac ads. Bad move. They need to fortify their strong holds and play them up. Don't go on the defense. Stay on offense. Aim their cannons in a different direction. (Perhaps they should aim them at the Vista product division and blow that up first.)

Matt's Recommendation to Microsoft (Bill, if you're reading, take note): If I were you I would first try and find out why your fans love Microsoft products so much and then blast that message loud and clear. This should at least stop the slide you're seeing from your brand to Mac. Then, once the bleeding is stopped, fire your product development team. Hire someone that can actually read the marketplace and do some research on trends. Find someone who will create products that are easy and enjoyable to use. Then, compensate them in a big way to create a trojan horse product that your users love and can't live without (ahem...like an ipod). Once your users are hooked on this gateway product, you can lure them into bigger and better stuff.

Or, you can sell all of your stock and by Apple (NASDQ: APPL). If there still is a stock market.