Ten years ago, Microsoft unveiled Windows 95 in a way that suggested that the product's arrival was no less momentous than when humans stood upright for the first time.
The company spent about $200 million introducing the operating system. That paid for festivities on the Microsoft campus, rights to use the Rolling Stones song "Start Me Up" in a global advertising campaign and permission to bathe the Empire State Building at night with the Windows logo. What was remarkable about the Windows 95 introduction was the acquiescence of customers, who took part so willingly in the spectacle.
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