After decades of crappy ads, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) seems to finally have struck gold with its new ad campaign playing upon the price difference between the PC and similar Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) products. In an interview in Brandweek, the general manager of brand marketing at Microsoft, David Webster, states that recent Microsoft marketing has enjoyed a recent 10% lift in preference for Windows PCs over Apple computers.

The clever ads follow 'real consumers' who are given $1,000 to buy a laptop, with the understanding that they can pocket any money left over. Since the Mac starts at $999, the results were preordained. More troubling for Apple, as pointed out by Daniel Lyons in Newsweek, is that one ad in particular undercuts the hip image of the Mac user. Lauren is an appealing, very cool young lady who opines, "I'm just not cool enough to be a Mac person." This message resonates particularly well in contrast to Apple's long-running "I'm a PC" ad campaign.

When the first Bill Gates/Jerry Seinfeld television commercial was released about three weeks ago, there were mostly negative reviews of it. After all, the spot was odd, didn't mention Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) products at all, and really did not have any connection to what Microsoft was all about. Most likely, this was by design. This was Microsoft's attempt to fend off those cute (but now, annoying) Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) ads that have a "hip and cool" actor portraying the Mac PC while a geeky, nerdy actor portrays the Windows PC. And this was Microsoft's comeback? That was the question many asked.

The second commercial in the series was much better -- but it seemed more like a sitcom mini-episode than anything. The editing and writing was admirable, but still -- the connection with Microsoft's products, vision and former leader and founder was small and light at best. Where was Microsoft going with this? Was the company trying to re-invent Seinfeld's own award-winning sitcom that aired on NBC until 1998? Who knows? Throughout both commercials, though, Microsoft was generating a buzz. Although much of the best-covered buzz was negative.

Although there are reports that Microsoft is "dumping Seinfeld," perhaps he was just a way to generate initial buzz about Microsoft's campaign to position Windows Vista and other Microsoft products as helpful lifestyle tools. Although the company says that a move away from the Seinfeld-Gates shtick was a planned move, maybe it was and maybe it wasn't. Regardless, Microsoft does have an enormous challenge to really get consumers convinced that a Windows PC can be just as cool as an Apple PC. Maybe a rotation of stand-up comics throughout its spots could do the trick.