A lot has been said about Microsoft's advertising over the past year, both good and bad. But a new batch of ads for Internet Explorer 8 has elicited a response unvoiced up to this point: Blechh! The ads, created by agency Bradley and Montgomery and starring former TV Superman Dean Cain, are based upon the notion that making silly acronyms out of various Web surfing behaviors is both funny and a good way to promote a Web browser.

For instance, take this humorous swipe at those who dispense unwanted Web arcana:

Mildly entertaining, even if "lolcats" ceased being funny around the time I Can Has Cheezburger? was published in print. Most people can relate, at least, and relating seems to be the gist of the campaign, as evidenced by two other ads in the same series poking fun at Internet addicts and old people.

But Microsoft literally made us gag with this one, which sells IE8 based on the idea that you don't want to know what your spouse has been looking at on the Internet. (Note: do not watch this while eating.)

As hard as it is to say, Microsoft may have been better off with the nonsensical, non-product-pushing Jerry Seinfeld/Bill Gates ads than with these. At least Seinfeld's face conjures warm memories of laughter past rather than what we ate for breakfast.

With the odd exception here and there, commenters on YouTube seem less than thrilled with the campaign as well:

[via Gawker, The Los Angeles Times]

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