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Microsoft Pays Bloggers to Tout MS Slogan

Posted by samzenpus on from the we-love-our-sponsor-and-their-product dept.

Stony Stevenson writes "In an effort to inject Microsoft's latest slogan, 'People-ready business', into popular usage (and no doubt raise its Google page rank), Microsoft asked a passel of A List Bloggers to write blurbs on what this meaningless phrase means to them. Michael Arrington, Om Malik, Fred Wilson, Richard MacManus and a handful of others happily agreed to churn out some mush for Microsoft, which it later used in banner ads. What it really meant to these guys was income. Redmond paid the bloggers for every user who clicked through to the PRB microsite. That caused other bloggers, lead by Gawker chief Nick Denton, to rightfully question their ethics. A spitball war has been raging ever since."

5 of 339 comments (clear)

  1. Aha! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    So how much did Slashdot get paid?

  2. Ethics are easy if your wealthy, but.. by iHasaFlavour · · Score: 0, Troll

    There is a distinct tendancy to view people on the internet as being the sum of their online work.

    This is a big mistake. People, ordinary people, have bills to pay. Real life costs money, and if someone offers you money to do something which, lets face it in this case, is a pretty trivial and short term thing, what's the big deal?

    Oh wait, its microsoft, therefore it must be bad. Oh how very sheeplike.

    How many celebrities have done adverts for crap and been paid well for it, lots. It's a common event, nothing to be ashamed of, people have to live, and life costs money. And don't tell me that if someone said 'here, have lots of money and all you have to do is write some blog entries', you'd say no. Not if the money were good. I wouldn't.

    --
    Reality is that which, when we cease to believe in it, still exists. - Philip K Dick
    1. Re:Ethics are easy if your wealthy, but.. by iHasaFlavour · · Score: 0, Troll

      AHA, Now I see the true color of Slashdot. Dare to say microsoft isn't evil and get moderated troll.

      Hmm, guess this 'open forum' isn't as open as I thought. Moving on...

      --
      Reality is that which, when we cease to believe in it, still exists. - Philip K Dick
  3. Re:Easy Way To Counteract That by suv4x4 · · Score: -1, Troll

    Might I suggest that we all blog the term People Ready Business [ubuntu.com], and link it to www.ubuntu.com or our www.apple.com our our favourite decent provider of software, and someone who deserves the publicity. A bit like all the tags for VISTA on amazon marking it as DRM Filled, Buggy, Bad Vista etc..

    This looks like your latest and greatest ploy to get a girlfriend, and let me tell you: it won't work.

  4. Re:In other news... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    So long as it kills an American, I'm all for it!