On the battlefields of New York City, the lumbering ancient empire of Microsoft laid down its smartphones and trudged across the muddied land to greet the booming empire of Apple to lay down their arms and sing carols.
In the next 100 years, people will speak of the Microsoft and Apple armistice on 5th Avenue in New York in the same way they speak of English and German troops laying down their arms on the western front on Christmas Day 1914 to embrace their enemy and play a football match.
Okay, so maybe this is a bit of an exaggeration, but you can’t help but think Microsoft’s latest advert was at least trying to emulate the concept of sharing the love during the festive period, or more cynically, trying to say they’re more caring than the company that’s rapidly outpacing them.
“To celebrate the holidays,” the company says in its video, “Microsoft employees, who were selected from across the country, gathered together, meeting each other for the first time, at the new Microsoft 5th Ave Store to spread some holiday wishes. Joined by a local NYC children’s youth choir, they share a message of peace and harmony with their neighbour down the street.”
The video goes on to show Apple employees walk out of their store to listen to the Microsoft carolers and children’s choirs, which is in itself some feat given that it was probably hard to hear them over the constant ringing of the cash register.
It certainly hadn’t registered with Apple to make note of one of its oldest rivals in its own Christmas ad, having decided it would be better just to get Stevie Wonder and Andra Day to sing a lesser-known festive classic.
Meanwhile, Google shrugged.
