It seems Microsoft have found it (with a little help from Dell). Better click it fast before they realise they haven’t, which is why I’ve included the screenshot below.
To be fair they don’t really claim to cure AIDS, but a PC can’t really be “designed to help eliminate AIDS,” so they deserve my misleading headline.
Vista sales must really be struggling along if Microsoft need to resort to this kind of thing. Not sure why Dell are playing along though.
The Waffle Group 
Although you make good points, and funny ones at that, I still think it’s a good idea. Raising money for AIDS is never a bad idea.
wellwell: I absolutely agree that it is a great idea to raise money to combat AIDS and the socio-economic impacts of the disease.
Raising the money by implying that actively using a particular product will help fight AIDS is ridiculous at best, but certainly ethically dubious.
I think it’s the way they present the product, rather than the good it will do, that irks me. Why not just donate the funds without this silly marketing nonsense?
“Why not just donate the funds without this silly marketing nonsense?”
Er, it’s Microsoft. Their fundamental core competency is marketing nonsense 🙂
Hmmm, for whatever reason, my comments from last night never made it up…
I will have to agree with wellwell on this, I’m all for a bit of micro$oft bashing, but the partnership of Bono, Dell and M$, raising money and awareness for AIDS in Africa (albeit using a slightly misleading headline) is good in my books.
Ed:
Previously unpublished comment 1
Did you click on the “learn more” link? I’d love to know what they have to say…
Previous unpublished comment 2:
Well, i’m no fan of micro$oft, but at least they are helping…
http://www.happynews.com/news/1282008/dell-microsoft-launch-red-branded-products-help-eliminate-aids.htm
Michael: Bizarro. WordPress still emailed me your comments, but didn’t post them here.
I’ve edited your comment to include what you said before.
Michael: That press release you link to has a lot of brackets, but I round a link in it to the (RED) project page. It’s an excellent initiative, but only Microsoft (as far as I can see) seem to think their product is “designed” to fight AIDS.
Every other (PRODUCT) has their marketing blurb included on the site. Here is Apple’s for example.
I didn’t follow them all, so perhaps some of the other company’s think their product has been designed to fight AIDS in Africa — but I doubt it.
I think that raising money can be a difficult thing. I mean, I love this whole (RED) campaign and all, but people are really only paying for that symbol on their clothing/computers/Hallmark cards (?!). They’re paying for the illusion it gives that they are always going around donating money to AIDS relief efforts. It’s like, “Oh, I’m going to buy this Project (RED) computer because when I’m sitting with it in the library, people are going to think of me as such a generous person because I’m saving the world from AIDS.”
Maybe I’m thinking all this because I just got back from class and we’re studying things people will do or present (symbols) in order to make others think certain things about them. Impression management.
But the people behind it are GENIUS. I mean, any way to get money from people for important things, I guess…