Ads on the Desktop: Worst Case Scenarios

Start Button Naming Rights We all know where the Start button is, so why does it need to have the Windows Logo on it? It could be put to much better use as ad space. Any number of company logos would fit nicely in this circle, especially something that looks pressable—like the Staples Easy button.

Battery Meter Presented By To get an idea of how much juice you have left, you have to hover over the battery icon in your tray. So why not place a tiny ad in the box that appears above the battery meter? And the promotion would likely pertain to endurance. So right next to “2 hours and 35 minutes” remaining you might see “Presented by Red Bull”…or “Viagra.”

Taskbar Offers Unless you have a dozen programs open at once, there’s a lot of extra real estate on the taskbar, particularly now that Windows 7 groups windows from the same program together. Why should that area be wasted? Advertisers can place rich media and interactive messages in that space, which could disappear if the taskbar fills up. Imagine the Geico money wad, featuring interactive eyes that follow your pointer around the desktop and play Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me” every time you switch tasks.

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