Marketing Alert!
Paul Thurrott sparks the imagination with his report on the Consumer Electronics Show:

Being the Butterfly Isn't Better
A host of Microsoft people dressed as MSN butterflies plied the show floor with giveaway CD-ROMs and MSN gear. This year, they weren't wearing roller blades, which was probably for the best, but you have to feel bad for the people who had to dress up in those skin-tight costumes.

Microsoft's press release on the subject:

Media Alert: It's a Bird; It's a Plane; It's a Human Butterfly?

MSN 8 Human Butterflies Swarm the Streets of Las Vegas to Make Things Better For CES Attendees, City Visitors and Residents

What: They've been seen on television, as well as fluttering around New York, Seattle and even Superior, Wis. Now the MSN® 8 human butterfly squad is infiltrating Las Vegas, visiting heavily trafficked areas to make things better for attendees at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Celebrating the MSN 8 brand and theme, "it's better with the butterfly," the colorful MSN 8 butterflies will distribute MSN 8 gear, offer free shuttle bus passes and hand out gift certificates for free back massages to weary show attendees.

When the revolution comes, the marketeers will be first against the wall.

On the other hand, I really need some pictures of the "skin tight" costumes to judge this properly. And it beats the old decal scheme.