History

• The Apple vs. PC ads began running in 2005. The ad agency responsible for the campaign is TBWA Worldwide. TBWA is a subsidiary of Omnicom Group, the world's largest advertising conglomerate.
  
  

Actors

• The Apple vs. PC ads use only two actors. The actor playing the Apple spokesperson is Justin Long. The actor playing the PC is John Hodgman. The Apple character is tall, laid back and cool, intending to evoke the characteristics of Apple CEO Steve Jobs. By contrast, the PC character seems older, nerdier and less cool, intending for viewers to think of Microsoft founder Bill Gates. Versions of the ad that appear in England and Japan use local actors, while the original American ads are dubbed into the local language in most other foreign countries.
  
  

Content

• Thus far, a number of different commercials have aired that point out the differences between Mac computers and PCs. Although the particulars vary, the overriding point of the commercials is to underline Apple's message that a Mac is a better choice than a PC for dealing with multimedia, staving off viruses, playing games and conducting business.
  
  

Web Content

• In addition to the television commercials, some exclusive content in this ad campaign can be found only on the Internet. The web ads are shorter than the TV commercials, and they highlight the differences related specifically to web advertising.
  
  

Strategy

• The strategy utilized in the Apple vs. PC ads is negative comparison. Although the commercials clearly intend to demonstrate Apple's ability to do things better, the thrust of the commercials is really to make the viewer think how bad PCs are. For this reason, the commercials have been criticized for taking the low road.
  
  

Truthfulness

• The most common complaint against the Apple vs. PC ads relates to the veracity of the claims made. Because the structure of the ad is negative comparison, questions have been raised about whether the ads simply go for a joke rather than providing any useful information with which a customer could make an informed decision.