Microsoft ads to promote Mac

Prepare to laugh hard people. Very hard :)

Microsoft is planning to announce on Thursday a new advertising campaign touting the Macintosh version of its Office suite. The ads, which play up the ability of Macs and PCs to get along, will begin showing up Saturday in magazines geared at Macintosh, business, technology and design audiences, according to an e-mail from a Microsoft representative. One ad features a Mac and a PC playing chess by a pool, while another shows a Mac and PC eating Chinese take-out while watching a late-night movie.

"Macs and PCs have never been so compatible," according to the headline on the ads. The ads encourage Mac users to go to a new Web site, www.officeformac.com, to download a 30-day free trial of Office.

Microsoft, which until recently had been critical of Apple's efforts to pitch Mac OS X, has been stepping up its marketing effort for the Mac version of Office. Last week, Microsoft and Apple announced a promotion in which new Mac buyers can get a copy of Office for $199, about half the regular price.

View: OfficeForMac.com