It's very common for designers to showcase their skills by publishing a redesign of a famous brand or product.<p>What's less common is for one of these projects to become widely exposed and get recognition. The main reason is that a redesign is usually received with a lot of criticism ("He doesn't know what he's talking about" or "It's not that simple to launch a redesign in a big company" or "It looks good but it's unusable" or even "I could do better").<p>Such designers usually end up forgotten as quickly as they got famous, for good or bad reasons.<p>So, I'm quite pleased to see one of these unexpected talents hit the spotlight. Having a post dedicated to you published on the Microsoft website is far from being insignificant, on both sides. The designer gains exposure and confidence, and Microsoft proves its desire to remain innovative and open to new ideas (and criticism).<p>Will this spawn an era of similar projects to be published by young designers? Maybe it won't, maybe it already has. For example, a designer published a concept for the IMDb iOS7 app [1]. It looks good actually.<p>What's in for the designer? He has fun, he may get exposure, and it can land him a job.<p>What's in for the companies being rebranded? It's free publicity and free work, but it's based upon criticism.<p>I can't tell if such a redesign trend is viable in the long term. It's like those marketplaces where companies launch a $50 offer for their logo. Tons of designers will participate but only one will eventually be picked. It's hundreds of work hours wasted. And what about professional designers who have a hard time finding clients and need to compete with those ridiculous prices?<p>I'm thinking about designers at Microsoft, IMDB, or American Airlines, how they end up looking with all these projects.<p>A young designer publishing a rebranding concept on his blog may think it's benign, and actually a good way to get exposure, but it can harm the market and his fellow designers as well.<p>If you focus on the big picture, it's a worldwide competition that can only lead to a global increase in quality. Maybe that's what the internet, or should I say the web, is about. Having a unified pool of talent that will value your skills regardless of your origin, age, or experience. I'm a designer myself, and I find it both amazing and terrifying.<p>[1] <a href="http://www.behance.net/gallery/IMDb-The-New-iOS-7-App/10711893" rel="nofollow">http://www.behance.net/gallery/IMDb-The-New-iOS-7-App/107118...</a>