• Valleywag, Thursday, September 18, 2008 9:45 AM

Microsoft is already pulling the plug on its Bill Gates-Jerry Seinfeld act, Valleywag reports. Apparently, the software giant's press people are now frantically trying to explain to reporters why "phase two" of the Microsoft Vista campaign no longer includes Seinfeld -- without making anybody look bad.

Microsoft's version of the story is that it always planned to drop Seinfeld for the second wave of Vista ads. However, as Owen Thomas says, "The awkward reality: The ads only reminded us how out of touch with consumers Microsoft is -- and that Bill Gates's company has millions of dollars to waste on hiring a has-been funnyman to keep him company."

In a follow-up phone call, Microsoft press contact Frank Shaw at Waggener Edstrom confirms that the move to pull Seinfeld was planned and that there is still "potential to do other things" with the former prime-time funnyman. He also suggests that the ads weren't funny: "People would have been happier if everyone loved the ads, but this was not unexpected."

Read the whole story at Valleywag »