PHARRELL WILLIAMS - MICROSOFT REPLACE SEINFELD WITH PHARRELL + LONGORIA

MICROSOFT REPLACE SEINFELD WITH PHARRELL + LONGORIA

Hip-hop star PHARRELL WILLIAMS and actress EVA LONGORIA are to replace JERRY SEINFELD in a new Microsoft advertising campaign - less than two weeks after the comedian's ad debuted on U.S. TV.
The Seinfeld actor, who appears in the computer software giant's latest promos alongside Microsoft founder Bill Gates, was paid an estimated $10 million (GBP5.4 million) to endorse the brand.
Two spots were filmed - one featuring the pair chatting while out shoe shopping, and another showing the two talking at a blue collar family's dinner table. They began airing on 4 September (08).
But the ads are to be pulled in favour of a new campaign fronted by Williams, Longoria and author Deepak Chopra.
Rumours have surfaced surrounding the decision, suggesting the Seinfeld ads failed to lure consumers to the brand - but a spokesman for the firm insists that is not the case.
The representative claims the line-up change is "completely in accordance" with the company's plans and was part of the "second phase" of their campaign. It is unclear whether Seinfeld will be appearing in Microsoft's autumn (08) print ads.
It's not the first time Williams has teamed up with Microsoft - executives have previously called on The Neptunes producer to help launch their Xbox 360 computer game Halo 3 in the U.K.