This could be a little controversial. Microsoft is offering the chance of winning a free Windows Phone, in exchange for Android owners sharing tales of woe on Twitter concerning Google's operating system, Electric Pig reports.
People are encouraged to use the hashtag #droidrage to vent their dissatisfaction.
Windows Phone 'evangelist' Ben Rudolph tweeted: "Share your android malware story... and you could win a #windowsphone upgrade."
Microsoft's official Twitter account retweeted it, which we'll take as an endorsement of the campaign. Though even it seems to know it may be a little controversial, saying Rudolph is "always causing trouble". We imagine a Microsoft exec rolling their eyes as they tweeted that.
There's no word on which handset Rudolph will give away (maybe that rumoured Lumia 900, if it launches in the States). He's in the US, so bad luck for any of us Brits fancying a free upgrade.
Rudolph doesn't seem short of entrants to pick from though. One person tweeted: "My Samsung Galaxy S would crash just lying there. Battery pull needed, no malware needed." And another: "I've had to flash my Android phone twice because of malware. Not to mention the fragmentation issues + battery life."
They have to be taken with a pinch of salt of course, seeing as those tweeting are after a freebie. One example: "Personal info compromised twice from malware. #windowsphone looks too beautiful for hackers to dare lay a finger on." Or how about: "Come on guys. My iPhone is infected with iOS. Surely that's worse?"
It's certainly entertaining reading, but is encouraging people to slag off a rival company in return for a freebie a bit below the belt? Or just a bit of harmless fun? Let us know what you think either in the comments below or over on our Facebook page. Feel free to share any horror stories relating to mobiles too, though we're afraid we can't offer any free handsets in return.
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Comments 10
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Ryan J Pattinson 13 December, 2011 12:41
lmao as much as i love android i wana done it if i was granteed a new phone :P
Jefferson Lee 13 December, 2011 13:23
bad and buggy roid phone
anonymous 13 December, 2011 19:49
Pathetic attempt from Microsoft. Having to resort to such dirty tactics surely mean that their own phones are not doing so well?!
ponyman 13 December, 2011 19:59
It seems ironic that this article is released on the same day: http://crave.cnet.co.uk/mobiles/windows-phone-text-bug-lets-hackers-bork-your-blower-50006383
anonymous 13 December, 2011 23:25
ahaha! ponyman has a point.
It's good to see people taking it lightly, and I have a sneaking suspicion that if Apple did it, nobody would be laughing. ;)
anonymous 14 December, 2011 23:20
Free market research for Android, fix gripes in Jellybean = millions more happy cutomers! Great work Microsoft, thanks...
anonymous 18 December, 2011 06:19
Hey if I wanted a new phone I'd be more than willing to slag (since no one is going to take anything written there seriously anyway) my android phone. The only problem is I'd have to lie because I've had no issues with my Android OS, specifically HTC Sense. Sure I had a pretty major screen snafu, which HTC and Bell graciously took of for me, but that had nothing to do with Android operating system itself. Sure, I'd make crap up about my android to win a new phone, but the proof is in the pudding, and the fact is I'm happy with my phone and it would be tough for the Windows phone to win me over before I sold it on Ebay.
anonymous 8 January, 2012 19:46
to the curve!
anonymous 8 January, 2012 19:48
droidrage phones !
anonymous 8 January, 2012 19:53
i had a iphone 4s, ipad 2, samsung galaxy s ll, ipod 4th gen 64 gb, blackberry bold 9900 and a dell laptop for staying out of the house for a week!!! god my family is rich!!!!!! :)