Bonum Certa Men Certa

Breaking Microsoft's Two-pillar Strategy

"It's possible, you can never know, that the universe exists only for me. If so, it's sure going well for me, I must admit."

--Bill Gates, TIME magazine Vol. 149, No. 2 (13 January 1997)



The following short article comes from a reader, who strives to explain Microsoft's current strategy.




Microsoft must be very scared. Their monopoly is at stake (or as Eric Raymond says, if they don't get a monopoly lock-in their options will plummet and everything is over, so they will never behave). Their hopes to keep their monopoly remain in 2 fundamental pillars: Expect them to bury as much money as necessary to sustain these 2 pillars and get their way:

Pillar 1



Microsoft OOXML is a fundamental part of their strategy: Without the fixed revenue stream coming from governments they will suffer much, not only because they will lose one of their biggest sure captive customers (governments) but also because it would open the floodgates to competition. And they don't stand any chances against GNU/Linux in terms of cost, scalability, security, performance and so forth.

That is why if ISO refuses Microsoft OOXML and governments start to migrate to alternatives, they are doomed.

Their other captive customer (the OEMs) are starting to fail them. As hardware prices are lowered, the 'Microsoft tax' is becoming more and more visible. A computer without the extra tax -- and the extra requirements to run Windows -- is more competitive and successful: Think about the Eee PC. That's why they opposed so hideously to the OLPC project.

Pillar 2



The other pillar is Software Patents, which is the legal mechanism they are embracing in order to perpetuate their monopoly. Alas, software patents are illegal in Europe and we must be alert on this because they are trying to see them passed in the EU (heavy lobbying behind the scenes to our elected representatives), so this is another field where FLOSS has to fight and fight hard.

“And think about the economic crisis: It was already hard to try to prove their products were worth the ridiculous prices they ask for the licences, but it is getting harder every day.”They have extended a worldwide network of Microsoft Certified Partners, Microsoft certified developers, system administrators and satellite business that sell you anti-virus for systems they make insecure by design, and there is a huge amount of money in the whole game, much of it coming as a sure thing (the OEM tax, governments spending public funds on their products due to the lock-in, etc), and any member of this network can see its business menaced by people like you and I telling everyone that "The emperor just has no clothes". So expect the fight.

But at the end of the day we know -- as well as them -- we are right and they are wrong and they know it (I always try to imagine the cognitive dissonance inside Jason Matusow's head looking at how he bends the truth to serve his employer in his posts). Free Software has just started rolling and it is like a snowball now, but soon it will be an avalanche. Lies will be revealed sooner or later (documents coming out of legal processes show Microsoft has not changed an inch in more of 10 years).

And think about the economic crisis: It was already hard to try to prove their products were worth the ridiculous prices they ask for the licences, but it is getting harder every day.

So, let's keep up the good fight for software freedom, which is as well our freedom, the society's and the legacy we can fight from in our reduced field of action -- we are not world leaders or powerful entrepreneurs, but into our "everyday people" possibilities we do make a difference -- for the generations to come.




Remind yourself of this: Steve Ballmer keeps saying (and last said it just two weeks ago) that Linux is Microsoft's number one competitor. Remember this. Number one threat. Not Apple. Not IBM. Microsoft is meanwhile approaching debt and it may soon be tipped over the edge only to surprise everyone who previously fell for their constant lies (otherwise known as "embellishments").

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

New Video Report About Microsoft Cancelling Multi-Billion Dollar Projects
direct link to the video
Microsoft is Already Laying Off Lots of Contractors
cost-cutting at Microsoft takes a new "edge"
Coming Soon: Microsoft Fake Results, Mass Layoffs, and Silence About All the People Microsoft Pressured to "Quit" (So That They Don't Get Counted as Layoffs)
there will be more mass layoffs
Speed of GNU/Linux
The media seldom speaks of the dangers of "proprietary software"
 
Google Spreading Misinformation and Lies
Google is in the propaganda business
statCounter: GNU/Linux Adoption Surging in Switzerland, Windows at All-time Low
What happened?
Gemini Links 28/04/2025: Free Speech and Perfectionism in Design
Links for the day
What Fake News Looks Like (IBM)
IBM told a lie. The media then just blindly repeated this lie.
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, April 28, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, April 28, 2025
China is Already Culling GAFAM (Not Just Microsoft Windows)
OS monoculture or "OS hegemony" may be coming to an end
The "Telephone Operating System in the Vatican" is 95 Years Old, Vatican Moved to GNU/Linux
Maybe Microsoft is down to zero already
If Tesla Shares (and Alleged Value) Fell 55% (From $489 to $222) in a Few Months Maybe It's Not Worth Anything At All (It's Just Gambling)
Tesla swasticars have turned from a "status symbol" into a "public embarrassment" and cause for casual humiliation
Chromebooks' Adoption in Sweden No Longer Depends on Schools
School breaks are when classrooms are shut
No, IBM is Not Investing $150 Billion in the US and It Doesn't Even Have That Kind of Money
Here we go again... media as a vehicle of lobbying and misinformation
Leak: The EPO's General Consultative Committee (GCC) Does Not Consult Staff on Crucial Matters and Bypasses the Administrative Council (AC) to Do Illegal Things
violations against the EPO's very staff
New Leaks Coming Soon, We Maintain 100% Record of Successful Resistance to Censorship
We won't be told what we can and cannot say (especially when it's true)
Central African Republic (CAR): Vista 11 is Only ~0.2% Market Share
99.8% to go!
BSD and GNU/Linux Replaced Microsoft in Secure Servers, All Microsoft Has Left is LLM Slop for Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD)
the FUD machine never rests
Gemini Links 28/04/2025: A Simple Task Tracking and Auto-Prioritization Tool and Other Programs
Links for the day
Links 28/04/2025: Canada's Election, Pakistan-India Conflict
Links for the day
Glue Inside Your Pizza (or Why People Will Get Fed Up With Slop)
People are given "answers" from non-intelligence word dumpsters
Proprietary Windows Versus "Linux" News (Trying to Keep People on Windows, Never Exploring GNU/Linux)
Good editors know better how to recognise threats and not give them lip service
Ensuring That Every Computer User Anywhere in the World Can Take Control of All His or Her Computers
We must fight the people who attack general-purpose computing, in particular those who push this agenda very aggressively inside Linux
Links 28/04/2025: Cyberattacks Happening, Chatbots Disappointing, and "Free Speech Under Fire"
Links for the day
Phone Adoption Very Low in Vatican, Windows Usage Fell Nonetheless
Even in places where people still use desktops/laptops most of the time (and have access to these) Windows is gradually losing ground
GNU/Linux 9% in Cuba, Vista 11 Waning, Android Dominant
Microsoft has pretty much lost Cuba
Gemini Links 28/04/2025: Autism and Structural Navigation
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, April 27, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, April 27, 2025
What Happened to the Open Source Initiative (OSI) Elections: The Purge, the Cover-up, and the Witch-hunts
OSI has gone "full Microsoft"
In 24 Countries Observed by statCounter Vista 11 is Still Less Than a Quarter of Windows Users Despite All Other Versions Being 'Expired'
They ought to move to GNU/Linux
Links 27/04/2025: Pope Goodbyes, "Politics of Fear", Slop Redux and More Google Shutdowns (Google Debt Had Grown This Year)
Links for the day
Links 27/04/2025: Serenity Dialectics, Hockey Jersey Ethics, and More
Links for the day
Links 27/04/2025: Death of Nest Thermostats, Death of Metaverse
Links for the day
Links 27/04/2025: Projects Workflow and Discovering Technology
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, April 26, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, April 26, 2025