Microsoft Sends Laptops To Bloggers - And The Implications Are?
- By: DigitalGhost [privmsg - website] On 27th Dec 2006 In
Bloggers that blogged about Vista received a nice present in the mail, an Acer Ferrari 1000 laptop with Vista Ultimate installed.
This is a bit more subtle than being paid to post. How many bloggers are firing up those positive reviews of giant plasma screens, digital cameras and high-end stereos?
Buzz marketing at work.
- Y! MyWeb
MAN! THAT VISTA IS GREAT!!!!
yada, yada
What if
you blog about Vista after you receive a laptop from MS? Does that fall under the FTC disclosure ruling?
FTC be damned
What would YOU think about a reviewer if you found out that MS had sent him a free laptop?
That's The Crux
The problem with disclosure is that people then tend to trust only the negative reviews.
Blog subjects
I'll blog about how nice Angelina Jolie is if someone sends her over and I don't give crap what the FTC or anybody else thinks about it ;-)
Where is mine?
I'd be asking where mine was and how many words they wanted... There are pluses and minuses to every products which can be explored.
I think the real question is, if you said something negative would you get a laptop? If you wrote a neutral review that explored both positive and negative, would you get a laptop? Also, what qualified the blogger as a 'blogger'? Do you have to be some one on high, a digerati, A-lister like Robert Scoble or could you be a virtually normal guy/gal/blogger like so many of us here?
I think
this is a dangerous marketing method overall. Giving away free stuff to the same people seems to create some resentment by other profesionals who actually know and use the stuff, such as allowing certain bloggers access to yahoo panama accounts for sneak previews with goody bags, but not to some full paying API users who end up being premium customers - that doesnt go down well imo. Yea im jealous, send me a laptop dang it
Hmmmm...
Starting to smell like Pay Per Post at work.
Wonder if they'll pay their taxes on those laptops?
Hello? Is this the IRS....?
>Does that fall under the
Does that fall under the FTC disclosure ruling?
Was there a ruling? The only thing I've heard of was an FTC staff opinion, and a pretty weak one at that.
Ruling?
The FTC has lots of rulings. No laws yet.
>dangerous marketing method overall.
Not sure I agree. Reaching out to the influencers makes good business sense. The early adopters will reach out again.
Who said payola was dead?
Just an updated version of payola. Too bad the lawmakers won't climb on this one, but MS would unplug them all - hey, not a bad idea.
definitely a nice surprise
definitely a nice surprise for those bloggers :)
>The problem with disclosure
The problem with disclosure is that people then tend to trust only the negative reviews.
The fully disclosed world is Hell, isn't it?