11.01.08
Microsoft: 800 lb. Guerrilla
Guerrilla Against Apple
Microsoft’s means of aggression against Apple, such as offering $15,000 for Mac bloggers to sell out, have almost culminated in moves that resemble their recent interference in a VMware conference [1, 2], crashing of PlayStation3 launch parties, the Linux Personas Web site and so forth. Microsoft seems to have used similar techniques against ODF [1, 2] and Novell is guilty of the same behaviour [1, 2].
A reader who prefers to remain anonymous has just sent us a pointer to this.
Microsoft Corp., engrossed in multi-million dollar marketing blitz to counter anti-Vista propaganda from rival Apple, Inc., is now using a portion of its budget to fuel guerilla retail tactics near the Mac maker’s stores.
Says the unnamed reader: “See the poster on the right in the background: The product that just won’t die.
“If it weren’t for OEM lock-in BeOS, Amiga and Apple would have each bitten off a third each.”“If it weren’t for per-processor fees and such, DR-DOS would have killed off Microsoft.
“If it weren’t for OEM lock-in BeOS, Amiga and Apple would have each bitten off a third each.
“If it weren’t for all kinds of lobbying and out-sourced marketing with off-the-scale marketing budgets, Red Hat and Ubuntu would have seen the end of Microsoft.
“It’s responsible for 90+% of the world’s spam, nearly 100% of the world’s botnets, the vector for nearly 100% of the world’s viruses and worms, in violation of most privacy and security laws, and yet the product line just won’t die.”
Guerrilla Against FCC
We previously discussed the relationship between Microsoft and the FCC, as well as with Comcast. A few months ago we also showed Gates' political intervention in the United Nation, which is part of a much broader phenomenon [1, 2] that shows Microsoft is a political creature no less than it is a legal, marketing and technical company. That last part too is in doubt…
“Usually Microsoft doesn’t develop products, we buy products.”
–Arno Edelmann, Microsoft’s European business security product manager
Anyhow, another thing that was shown before is that Gates’ lobbying for more visas was only for selfish gain [1, 2]. It was seen as unnecessary or even harmful at the time and earlier this month it turned out to be a fraud.
With all this knowledge in mind, can Microsoft and Gates be trusted as they approach the FCC regarding white spaces? Here are some bits from various articles in the news:
1. Gates, Microsoft lobby FCC for unlicensed white spaces use (Microsoft-influenced New York Times)
Microsoft is lobbying the FCC this week to allow unlicensed use of so-called “white spaces” television spectrum for wireless Internet services.
2. Microsoft urges FCC vote on airwaves access (Gates-funded Mercury News)
Microsoft Chief Strategy Officer Craig Mundie said a plan to use television airwaves for free Internet access may face significant delays if the Federal Communications Commission puts off a vote next week.
3. Microsoft’s Gates steps up FCC ‘white space’ lobbying (FUD-mongering Reuters)
Bill Gates and other Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) officials stepped up lobbying of top U.S. communications regulators on Monday, ahead of an important vote next week to open up unused wireless airwaves.
Aren’t governments supposed to think for themselves and make their own judgment? Are they not capable? Since when is Bill Gates a white space expert?
Guerrilla Against Yahoo and Google
Still searching for answers to Google
“Forty percent of servers run Windows, 60 percent run Linux…”
“Ballmer Still Searching for an Answer to Google”
According to Bloomberg, Yahoo is still gaining in search and the main loser continues to be Microsoft.
Yahoo had about 20.2 percent of queries in September, up from 19.6 percent in August, Reston, Virginia-based ComScore said today in an e-mail. Microsoft’s share fell to 8.5 percent from 8.9 percent. Google Inc. handled 62.9 percent, compared with 63 percent in August.
Todd Bishop argues that Microsoft’s attempt to pay users was unsuccessful.
[O]verall, those initiatives haven’t had a lasting impact on Microsoft’s share of the market.
According to another independent meter, Microsoft declined to 5.46%, down from 9.85% the year before. This statistic was shown around the same time that Microsoft began paying users in order to entice them to use its search engine (only to be spied on for harvesting behaviour of search and clicks).
These unsustainable strategies may not last for long though because Microsoft cut $400,000,000 in this particular area, due to lingering financial issues.
In reporting its latest quarterly results, the company last week said it will lower spending by $400 million to $500 million over the next year to weather the downturn.
Microsoft’s last resort seems to be Yahoo, but that too would be costly (also to the consumer). One has to remember the referrer spamming that Microsoft uses, as well as other black-hat tricks and tweaked search engine results [1, 2, 3].
Several sources, all of which cite a report from the Wall Street Journal, claim that the Google-Yahoo deal is becoming less likely to materialise.
Google and Yahoo may abandon their planned search advertising deal as early as next week.
What’s to blame? The very same department which Microsoft is known to have lots of control over.
Google is considering walking away from its advertising deal with Yahoo! because the Department of Justice is demanding too much in return.
We have already covered the abuse and the political games Microsoft has played to intercept this deal [1, 2]. It’s always disturbing to find governments that are run by corporations. █
“[If I ask you who is Microsoft's biggest competitor now, who would it be?] Open…Linux. I don’t want to say open source. Linux, certainly have to go with that.”
–Steve Ballmer (Microsoft’s CEO), February 28th, 2008
