NeoMedia Technologies, Inc (NEOM)

[Zacked]

Howard, Congrats and good to hear the weather was agreeable. Sounds like you are really blessed. Now, we are back to NEOM with hopefully a great week starting with good volume.
I'm waiting for the 27th. Seven days to go.

Is Microsoft Bouncing Back?
by Chad Mumm

Since 2006, Apple has been pummeling Microsoft in its "I'm a Mac" ad campaign, stereotyping PCs as stuffy, business-obsessed, and out of touch, while characterizing Macs as cool, savvy, and aware of the latest trends. For three years, we've seen Microsoft try (and fail) to find a relevant answer to the tremendous success of Apple's effort. From talking dinosaur heads and the Bill Gates/Jerry Seinfeld duo, to the embarrassment of the news that the "I'm a PC" ads were actually made on Macs, Microsoft's responses to Apple's "I'm a Mac" ads have seemed like one flub after another.

Recently, however, there are signs that Microsoft may be bouncing back, if its new ad campaigns are any indication. The Redmond, Washington company has found a winner with 'Laptop Hunters,' an ad that plays up the good value of PCs in difficult financial times. In a recent column, Newsweek writer Daniel Lyons praised the new angle Microsoft has taken in relation to Apple, saying, "the deeper subtext is that these days, wasting money doesn't make you hip and smart-it makes you stupid. In the age of the collapsing economy, frugality is the new cool." Microsoft may well be striking a chord here in more ways than just consumer perception -- sales of Apple computers declined by 16-percent in February, while sales of PCs rose 22-percent in the same period.

In the new ads, cameras follow supposedly real people as they try to find a laptop that fits their budget.