Mozilla Solicits Consumer-Created Ads

Mozilla Corp., distributor of the upstart open source browser Firefox, Thursday kicked off a contest for consumers who wish to create ads for the company.

The initiative, Firefox Flicks Ad Contest, solicits 30-second ads promoting the latest version of the browser. Entrants will be judged by a panel that includes Scott Goodson, founder of the StrawberryFrog ad agency McG, who directed the two "Charlie's Angels" movies, and Warren Zide, producer of "American Pie" and "Final Destination."

The project builds on a previous Mozilla effort at promoting its browser through consumer creations. Earlier this month, Mozilla solicited Web-cam recorded testimonials, and eventually published almost 40 of them online at FirefoxFlicks.com.

The Firefox browser has been fighting for market share with software giant Microsoft's Internet Explorer for the year. Web analytics firm OneStat.com recently reported that Mozilla's open source browser claims 11.5 percent of the market, trailing Internet Explorer's 85.5 percent.

Firefox might soon get a big boost in its struggle for more market share. Prominent Firefox developer Blake Ross wrote on his blog that computer giant Dell would begin bundling the Firefox browser with laptops in the United Kingdom. A Dell spokesman said the statement was "rumor and speculation," and declined to comment further.

Mozilla will accept submissions for the new contest until March 31, and filmmakers can enter as many ads as they wish. The grand prize is either a $5,000 gift certificate to B&H, a photo and video store, a 9X Multimedia multi-screen display, or a AlienWare media PC.

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