News

Joint Intel and Microsoft Campaign Brings 'Digital Joy' to the Home (11/11/2004)

Intel Corporation and Microsoft Corp. are delivering the first joint consumer campaign to showcase the benefits of an emerging digital lifestyle. The integrated campaign, featuring two leading technology brands, consists of television, print, cinema and online advertising, as well as "experience zones" that provide consumers with a hands-on opportunity to try Intel and Microsoft's best digital entertainment technology.

Consumer purchases of electronics, such as digital cameras, personal media players, CD/DVD players, digital TVs and personal video recorders, are estimated to reach a record $101 billion this year, according to the Consumer Electronics Association's U.S. Consumer Electronics Sales & Forecasts. As the market for digital devices continues to grow, Intel and Microsoft are demonstrating a joint vision of the new "digital home" where various devices are interconnected and consumers experience digital entertainment in new and exciting ways.

To highlight the benefits of this emerging digital lifestyle, Intel and Microsoft will deliver a multifaceted consumer campaign that launches Nov. 7. Titled "Digital Joy," the campaign includes TV ads that highlight how families can use today's high-powered PCs based on the Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 processor with the Hyper-Threading (HT) Technology(1) and Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP Media Center Edition 2005 to deliver the ultimate digital entertainment experience. The combination of innovative software and hardware provides consumers with ease of use, choice, advanced performance and multitasking capabilities. Together, Intel and Microsoft technologies enable consumers to enjoy, manage and work with their digital content such as video, music and photos.

Microsoft and Intel are also providing potential PC buyers with the opportunity to test-drive today's digital lifestyle in unique "digital home" settings across the country. Intel and Microsoft will host consumer experience zones in high-traffic malls in 38 U.S. locations, including Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. The zones will bring to life a living room setting where consumers can experience the latest technology and see demonstrations that include viewing premium movie clips, listening to their favorite songs or albums, and recording, pausing and rewinding TV. The PC delivers this digital content through a simple interface and a remote control.

"Consumers have been anticipating the benefits of 'digital convergence' in the home -- integration of digital movies, music, photos and TV along with devices -- powered by the PC," said Tom Button, corporate vice president of Windows Client product management at Microsoft. "Microsoft and Intel share a common vision on how to deliver these benefits to consumers, and have enabled a new generation of innovative, high-quality PCs that will power their digital entertainment experiences."

Joy to the Digital World

The Microsoft and Intel TV ad reinforces the significance of digital media in the home and demonstrates "digital joy" -- the feeling people get when they can access their digital content at the touch of a button. The spot unfolds with a horse-drawn chariot racing down a city street followed by a high-octane car chase. "Annie" dances with a marching army; a father films his child's first bike ride on home video, while a UFO flies overhead. Martial arts fighters battle in midair; boxers engage in a championship fight. We see all these characters -- and more -- walking in unison and converging on an all-American home. They gather around a family on their living room couch and are introduced to a new home PC that allows them to access and enjoy their rich digital media in one location.

Intel and Microsoft are also launching a new Web site, at www.digitaljoy.com, where consumers can learn more about sharing digital photos with friends and family, staying up to date on favorite TV and radio programs, as well as digital entertainment technology. Special offers are also available on the Web site for the HP Digital Entertainment Center z540 and HP Media Center m1050y Photosmart PC featuring the Intel Pentium 4 processor supporting HT Technology and Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005. As part of the "ABC Treasure Hunt," consumers also have the opportunity to win a new home PC on Nov. 8 by following the clues provided during ABC shows on Tuesday night and logging on to Enhanced TV at ABC.com.

Deutsch Inc., New York, created the television, print, online and cinema advertising.

Creating a Digital Home

Consumers can access their digital entertainment from anywhere in the home with PCs powered by Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 and Intel Pentium 4 processors with HT technology, as well as a home network and a Media Center Extender. These technologies enable choice without complexity and the ability to easily select from a broad range of PC designs that provide users with multiple options based on their personal interests, whether those be music, photography, movies or video.

www.intel.com