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Instant Messaging Giveaway
An anonymous reader writes "Microsoft is planning on giving away $1000/hr randomly to users of the new MSN messenger. They are going to send instant messages to the winners. I can just see it now, 'You've won $1000 in the MSN Messenger giveaway, just go this website and enter your SS# and credit card info for verification.'" Where's Ed McMahon with the big check when you need him?
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Therefore 1% of slashdotters will care.
Good quote, too many chars. Seriously, the slashdot 120 char limit sucks!
It's sad actually -- that this is Microsoft's "biggest giveaway" to date. Why don't they at least do something SERIOUS like take a mere 1/2 billion and give away $1,000 to 1,000 people (a cool 1 million weekly)...and run THAT promotion for the next 9.61 years.
Yeah -- they have THAT MUCH money and STILL Windows is what it is.
I've always claimed that I wouldn't use Microsoft products if you paid me. This changes nothing.
But seriously, wouldn't this normally set off red flags in the antitrust department (if it wasn't gutted)? Paying people to use your product as a method of moving into a new market sounds a little dicey coming from someone like Microsoft. Normally I'd have nothing against this kind of gimmick, but it seems rather sleazy compared to Microsoft's normal tactic of assaulting me with MSN ads and breaking competing products.
If you're worried about your monopoly, just pay people to use your service. I mean, COME ON!
Also, it is my understanding that random contests such as this must be open to EVERYONE (i.e. the 'no purcase necessary' that you always hear). Does this qualify as being open to everyone? Not everyone owns a computer ...
Sure. They'll also have to have a way for people to enter without buying a computer or Internet connection. Or a clue...
Most giveaways are explicitly required to have rules that allow people to be eligible to win without purchasing a product. If such a rule applies to this contest, they'll have to have a way for people to enter without purchasing Windows, won't they?
An informational column in a local newsweekly recently mentioned these laws. It stated that the purpose of these laws is to prevent illegal lotteries. Any contest in which you must buy a gamepiece to participate is considered a lottery. Thus the "no purchase necessary" and "for a free gamepiece, write..." on soda giveaways and the like are designed to comply with that law.
Restricting your giveaway to users of a certain product is probably not covered by such laws. If this giveaway were only for MSN subscribers, for example, that would hardly be illegal, would it? (IANAL, of course)
Besides, you could just as easily argue that they have to have a way for people to enter without purchasing a computer, couldn't you? If MS does have to comply with any lottery laws, they'll probably implement a mail-in method ("please send a self-addressed stamped envelope to...").
Sounds like a trial run of a marketing/publicity stunt. Next thing you know, they're selling IM "pop-up ads" to companies in blocks. It'll be the next "feature" of IM. When rolled out, everyone's permission setting, buried somewhere deep in the settings, will be "I want IM ads." Then, when enough people get completely annoyed by it and complain, Microsoft will "apologize" but only after seeing how long they can stretch it out...all the while raking in cash.
IM "spam" is going to be the next big headache...and of course, the knee-jerk reaction will be to pass more laws.
"Those who would sacrifice liberty for security deserve neither!"
I'm fairly sure they dont care about the client. They just want the network. They'd like to have 'the' IM network of choice.
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
Yes, the law requires a free entry, but this kind of giveaway makes it real easy to drown it out.
We haven't seen the official rules yet, but what I expect the free entry method to be will be to send a 3x5 inch card with your name and mailing and indicating which hour's drawing you want to be entered for to an address in Redmond. There will likely be a limit one mail-in card per hourly drawing, which will equate to the one entry that online users will get for showing up on the service during that hour. Cards must be handwritten, no printed cards accepted.
But, the catch is that if you want to enter all 24 drawings in a day, you'll need to seperately mail 24 envelopes with single cards in them. Afterall, 37 cent stamps are paid to the United States Postal Service and not Microsoft.
Still, spending $62.16 to enter all of the drawings in a week seems a bit unwise, because you'll only be allowed to win one $1,000 if you win at all. Lottery tickets would be a better use of that money.
Where are these drug dealers that give away free dope?
Seriously. I'm pretty sure that's just a wives tale, part of all the scary stories they tell 6th graders about drug users. I never get offered free dope on the streets.
Can pitch out thousands to some numb-nuts but for the faithful investors, they get to kiss Bill's arse.
Yeah, seriously. After all, owning MSFT over the past ten years is just a *huge*, *huge* mistake. Er, well, mistake if what you're trying to accomplish is to not make any money.
So, ivestors should be cheesed off if their company has a contest that, (are you ready for the shock of this?) gives away prizes? If they give away $1,000 an hour, for a *month*, it'll cost them a bit more than half a million. Compared to conventional advertising, and the number of users this might bring in?
Yes, indeed. It looks like owning MSFT will continue to be a huge mistake. I weep for those poor investors.
Looks like yet another case of Microsoft abusing their monopoly position to dump money into a new market.
IE.
XBox.
MSN Messenger.
All these products, Microsoft offers below marginal cost (or in this case, gives away money for a free product) by subsidizing the new product with money gained from a monopoly.
Open and shut case, slam dunk, etc, etc.
MORTAR COMBAT!
I'm more worried about the opposite effect -- someone out there is going to start IMing random users, telling them to visit a Microsoft-looking web page and enter their login and passwords (along with some other identifying information) to receive their prize. Odds are they'll hit just enough suckers who've actually entered the contest (and a few who haven't) to get a $@!%load of stolen accounts.
Of course, people have been doing this anyways without Microsoft's help -- or AOL's, or Yahoo's. So maybe I'm making something out of nothing here.
Well, MS no longer considers MS stock options to be a reward for their employees. If I owned MS stock, I'd be doing some serious thinking on the subject.
Well, this could be because of the slight tilt of the job market in the employers favor, but that's just a guess. Has anyone else noticed this? =p
Lord, I'm a smartass. Sigh. Sorry about that. =)
But I bet that 99% of the 'you're a winner' IMs will not be from microsoft, but rather spammers. I remember after Iwon.com setup there 'win every time you search' thing just about half the popups out there said 'you're a winner! click here to claim your prize'
I think a good number of pople will get these things and just assume they are some kind of spam...
autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
While installing MSN 6 it gives me a check box with the blurb "Set my home page to msn(recommended)"
why recommended? does it improve the performance of MSN Messenger if my home page is msn.com? or does it make IE load faster?
"When the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem begins to resemble a nail." - Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)
Don't laugh. A young woman I value quite highly otherwise moved to Yahoo messenger because the "smileys are cuter". Sigh.