05.28.14
Gemini version available ♊︎Microsoft Back to Bribery as a Business Model in Search
Microsoft — like FIFA — follows corruption
Summary: Microsoft turns to Brazil for some bribery, expecting people to dump Google in exchange for some virtual currency that funds NSA-eavesdropped telephony
Bribery by Microsoft comes in many forms and types; some is "soft" bribery (e.g. revolving doors), some is more overt and criminal. Microsoft was even investigated by the government last year for bribing government officials in several countries around the world (no verdict on that yet). Other types of bribe go towards people in committees, or in order to stuff ballots. In some cases, as we have covered before, Microsoft offers bribes or predatory discounts to undermine the competition, essentially exploiting a monopoly position in a way that breaks the law. Microsoft occasionally bribes preselected reviewers of its products, giving them high-end laptops, for example, to keep as gifts. In some ways, Microsoft even bribes so-called ‘customers’, as it did with search several years ago (and failed nonetheless) [1, 2].
“Microsoft occasionally bribes preselected reviewers of its products, giving them high-end laptops, for example, to keep as gifts.”When Microsoft is accused of bribery (at any level) it should not come as a surprise. It’s merely more of the same. But as one of President Obama’s top funders (top 3), people at Microsoft’s management don’t expect to end up in prison. They’re like the big banks. They’re legalised criminals, above the law, and too “big” for jail.
A lot of the world is looking at Brazil right now. FIFA is running a festival there and the FBI uses that as an opportunity to militarise Brazil’s police, which often needs to deal with massive protests and unrest. Brazil has plenty to be angry about, especially corruption. So, perhaps it’s not surprising that Microsoft finds Brazil a convenient enough demography in which to bribe people to stop using Google, according to Slashdot. Microsoft has been very naughty in Brazil and nothing has changed.
Microsoft is not really a software company. Like Goldman Sachs, it is part of a well-organised ‘political’ movement and it would corrupt/bribe/destroy anyone who stands in the way of its political goals that include mass surveillance. █
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