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Microsoft's iLoo Project A Hoax
minesweeper writes "It appears that the 'iLoo,' a portable toilet with Internet access designed by Microsoft, was actually just a hoax issued by its MSN division in the United Kingdom. In addition to receiving press here on Slashdot, the fake release was also covered by The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press, and Reuters. See a diagram of the iLoo here."
click here (don't be afraid, it's not one of those links that are on-topic to this story in their own special way...)
... after they realized everyone was making fun of their iLoo. So they just pulled it back.
... This is very much a 'toe in the water' experiment to gauge interest so we'll have to see how it goes, although judging from response so far it's really captured people's imagination!"
From the article:
In an e-mail sent last week to The Associated Press, Red Consultancy's Ben Philipson wrote "MSN is really working on building a prototype for the Summer festivals, perhaps Glastonbury
Malina Bragg, who helps with MSN's account for Waggener Edstrom, also verified last week that the project was true.
Keep open minded - but not that open your brain falls out...
Yes, "Loo" from the company that *still* spells "colour" as "color" and "favourite" as "favorite" even when you select the UK English language settings? Come on guys, you're supposed to have this language thing sorted now.
So the UK office puts out a funny-gram on 30 April and it takes the headquarters over 10 days to say it was a joke? This after the "release" was carried by everyone from /. to major news carriers? Sure, it was amusing but it was obviously being taken seriously by the press. They should have come out with the laugh and the "oh, hey - they were just kidding" memo a lot sooner.
"MSN is really working on building a prototype for the Summer festivals, perhaps Glastonbury ..."
The Glasonbury Festival could be the ultimate test for a wired toilet. Problem is most of the users would be too stoned to notice, and who in their right mind is going to spend any longer than needed in a Glasto portaloo to check their hotmail, (that is if it doesn't get nicked by the skallies).
This is how the Festival Organisers describe them...
"The 'long drop' toilets are open stalls positioned above a large pit - looking down is not advised! The stall gates often don't lock, so it's advised to look under the gate for feet before entering a stall. But don't be surprised if you then do find someone inside - squatting with feet on the seat is a popular way of avoiding skin contact."
Offtopic, Inflammatory, Inappropriate, Illegal, or Offensive comments might be moderated up.
This time, SFgate is wrong. It's not a hoax. Read the article. It's a legitimate experiment to build a prototype for the Glastonbury festival. It's just that it got so much attention that an embarrassed Microsoft had to say that it wasn't officially sanctioned communication. This does not mean it's a hoax. The SFgate chose a poor headline, especially after the reporter verified that the project was true.
bp
If that is the case, aren't there regulations against such things?
In the US there are regulations against false advertising, but AFAIK press releases don't count. Press releases are released to the press (for those who couldn't figure that out) and not published by purchasing ad space. So it's my understanding a company can announce whatever they want and the press can report it. What they can't do is buy a billboard and post a picture of the iLoo on it saying "Contact your local plumber!"
Developers: We can use your help.
And for an extended "shit happens" review:
Shit Happens
As the article states, the Associated press recieved confirmations that it was true from two of Microsoft's public relations agencies.
... there is no way they would have confirmed that unless they had microsoft corp's ok.
It is believable that maybe some engineers or lower management will plant a false story as a joke, but the public relation firms deal with top management only
It is much more likely that after realizing the whole thing just got turned into a bad joke in the media, Microsoft decided to pretend they never had anything to do with the whole project.
According to this article Microsoft is now claiming that the iLoo is not a hoax, but was a concept being developed and has since been cancelled. "We jumped the gun basically yesterday in confirming that it was a hoax, and in fact it was not," said Lisa Gurry, MSN group product manager....On Tuesday, though, Microsoft said it had relied on bad information from a Microsoft employee in the United Kingdom who said it was a hoax, Gurry said. After more talks with people in London, the company determined it was a real project, after all.