Freespire's Google ads: "What is Ubuntu Missing?"

[Melissa Draper]

Joel Bryan Juliano wrote:
> clearly what' their doing is calumny and defamation of character.
>  
> Joel
...And meanwhile, they're achieving what they initially set out to do,
and then some.

The aim of advertising is usually to get people to notice the product.
If people find the ads worth talking about, then the reach of the
campaign is magnified. Effective advertising is self propelling and
memorable. Word of Mouth is an awesome tool.

I'm not stating that the actions of freespire are ethical. IMHO, they
are not. Smart? Yes. Ethical? No. Quite often, these sorts of campaigns
are not ethical, and for a reason. The potential defamation compensation
might well outweigh the benefit that the unethical technique generated.

Controversy sells. Think what it has done for JK Rowling with Harry
Potter. If it is not already there, add controversy to the list
alongside erotica (strangely, this is sometimes the same deal) and.
Think 'linuxxx' [1] (Disclaimer: I'm not saying warty was unethical,
simply using it as an example of erotica + controversy).

In my opinion, this is the second time freespire has gone
below-the-belt. This time, they can't call it an accident [2].

Quite simply, they *do not deserve* the attention we are giving them and
this discussion is only adding to the success of their campaign. Unless
you actually *want* to do this, I would strongly suggest stopping this
topic and leaving it alone. Please, do not exacerbate any harm that has
already been inflicted by the ads, that would be giving freespire what
they want. You'll only make the baby newt cry [3].

Canonical is, no doubt, aware of this. They're the ones who can decide
what the effect of the campaign has been and they're the ones that will
sort it out, if they deem it necessary.

In closing, I repeat. Please, leave this topic alone. Please, do not
give them what they want.

[1] http://www.communitymx.com/content/article.cfm?page=2&cid=C5776
[2] http://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?issue=20060904#freespire
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eft

-- 
Sincerely
Melissa Draper

http://www.meldraweb.com

Phone: 0404 595 395

P.O Box 1412
Lavington, NSW 2641