Bonum Certa Men Certa

Microsoft DRM Lock-in and OOXML Lock-in in Britain

At risk of touching an off-topic story, we will briefly mention another form of Microsoft lock-in that requires industry deals and partnerships. This post focuses on the United Kingdom.

As you may or may not know, National Archives, the British Library, and the BBC are all victims (if not promoters) of OOXML and the nasty stack of so-called 'standards' which accompany OOXML (the XML du jour). Each of these standards has patents as an umbilical cord, which is enough to guarantee and secure cashflow, even from rivals.

Silverlight (.NET) on the BBC Web site is something which is being considered at the moment. It is a case of taxpayers paying the BBC, which then hands over that money for Microsoft to establish more lock-in with and discriminate against rival software (Web browsers, platforms, Web services, and beyond). Needless to say, this is unacceptable. The UK seems to have become a fertile ground for lock-in and it is truly worrisome. Gordon Brown, much like Ashley Highfield, truly seem to be deep in Microsoft's pocket (or simply careless and ignorant).

A couple of days ago, the MSBBC's iPlayer was released to the public. The initial reviews were very negative. Even those who were actually able to review the player said that much was left to be desired. The quality of the software aside, it is restricted to work only if you have Windows XP SP2 and Internet Explorer with the latest Media Player from Microsoft. So much choice, eh? This piece of shitoftware has been in the works for a long, long time, but given Microsoft's history of delivering very little, very slowly, and at well above budget (think about Windows Vista), this is hardly surprising.

The iPlayer is controversial for two main reasons. In our actions against the BBC, ORG are focusing on the DRM aspects. The Open Source Consortium is focusing on cross-platform and anti-trust aspects.

The FSF are going to join these actions as well. This will happen fairly soon. Peter Brown is coming to the UK from the 7th to the 15th of August and bringing the 'Defective by design' campaign with him. A protest will be organised (probably 14th or 15th) at the BBC Television Center. When this goes public, we should do our very best to give it wide visibility, and to get as many people to come along as possible.

Now that the iPlayer concern has been set aside (and I duly apologise if it was off topic), here is where Novell's involvement becomes more pronounced. Novell has been behind the key push whereby Microsoft strives to achieve stronger vendor lock-in. It does this in order to save its franchise. With Silverlight and OOXML, for instance, the two companies -- now assisted by Xandros, Turbolinux and Linspire as well -- help Microsoft dominate the Web and the office. Based on what is happening in Britain, one could argue that another story of political manipulation has already emerged. Have a look:

By trying to slam through a 6000-page specification on a "fast track" measured in weeks, that opponent appears to seek to turn a technical debate to a political one.


Watch the PDF cited in this short post from Lars. It won't be long before we hear stories about manipulation (maybe even corporate bullying) in Britain. Stories from Australia will probably precede these.

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

Bing Might Shut Down - Just Like Skype Did - Some Time in the Coming Months/Years (Parts of It Already Shut Down)
they try to bring the losses under control
 
Trolls With LLM Slop Are Disrupting Communications About Mass Layoffs at IBM
LLM slop to drown out the signal
Enshittification is Everywhere: You Pay More, the Services Get Worse
"Enshittification" is a term coined by an online friend; I increasingly use this term to describe what's happening even outside the realm of technology (which it was adopted to describe)
Microsoft Reduces Office Space Ahead of More Waves of Mass Layoffs
"The Gerstnerisation of Microsoft"
Anti-Linux FUD Produced by Microsoft LLMs to Blame "Linux" for Microsoft's Own Failures
We call out some of the worst culprits
Gemini Links 16/05/2025: Hoking GPS, Grabovac, and Tanana
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, May 15, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, May 15, 2025
Microsoft WARN Notices Proliferate in the United States
From what we've seen, this wave was more than 3% (a lot more) and the next wave/s will be even bigger (possible as imminent as weeks from now), based on insider leaks
Links 15/05/2025: Google Betrays Publishers Again, Openwashing by Sysdig
Links for the day
Richard Stallman Still Respected by Many in the Libre Graphics Community
Richard Stallman and Professor Moglen never harmed anyone
If You Read Techrights, Then You Probably Want to Read Tux Machines as Well
That site is more active than this one
Gemini Links 15/05/2025: Forced Music in Publicly Accessible Space and ~silv is Online
Links for the day
Links 15/05/2025: KOSA Censorship (USA Becomes More Like KSA) and More National Cuts
Links for the day
Your Real Ally Would Not Defend the Company of SLAPP and Strangling of Women
who's left to tell us what's true?
Breakdown of Microsoft Layoffs Shows It's About Cost, Not Performance or Hype (Like "AI")
MSN (Microsoft) reposted this with some unnecessary spin
The Lawyers Working for the Serial Strangler From Microsoft on SLAPPing Techrights Have Apparently Lost Their Voice
the moment we mentioned that their media lawyer is leaving they went all quiet in social control media
At IBM, Relocation Can be a Trick or a Trap (IBM Gets Rid of Staff Under the Guise of "Relo")
IBM is not being honest with employees
Microsoft Rumours: This Week's Scale of Layoffs "Higher Than Reported" and More Coming Soon ("A Lot More Severe" Than May's)
The "3%" figure is false
Slopwatch: Sloppy Brian, Brittany Slop, and General Observations
Creative people don't need slop; there's just nothing good about it, slop appeals to lazy people careless about quality
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
Beyond Mass Layoffs at Microsoft: Entire Units Shut Down for Good
And it's far from over
Links 15/05/2025: Crikvenica, Analog Computer, and Slop 'Hallucinations'
Links for the day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, May 14, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, May 14, 2025
Links 14/05/2025: Fentanylware (TikTok) Harms Kids, Russia Refuses to Defuse
Links for the day
Gemini Links 15/05/2025: Poseur Nerds and Mennonites
Links for the day
VS Code Is Not FOSS, And Neither Is the Site "It's FOSS"
VS Code is proprietary spyware of Microsoft, yet this site keeps promoting it like it's FOSS
No, Microsoft Didn't Lay Off So Many People Because of "AI" "Innovation" or "Efficiency" or "Era" or "Revolution" Etc.
Debunking one very common lie
What We Do When We Say "GNU/Linux" to People
It talks about "Linux", "GNU", and what it means to say "GNU/Linux"
Links 14/05/2025: Facebook And Instagram Risk Nationwide Bans, Microsoft Subsidiaries Have Mass Layoffs Too
Links for the day
Canonical Will Give You Money Only If You Work for Microsoft!
Only if you are servicing (being a slave to) proprietary forges that Microsoft and the NSA control while violating the GPL will Canonical give you money
If Microsoft Staff That Strangles Woman Pays You to Write Lies, It Will Not End Well
The past couple of years were our most productive ever
Gemini Links 14/05/2025: "Writing My Story with Inspiration from Notable Lives" and People Start Shovelling Up LLM Slop Onto Geminispace,
Links for the day
Microsoft is Very Highly Stressed About Adoption of GNU/Linux at Windows' Expense (on Former "Vista 10" PCs)
What does this tell us?
Slopwatch: BetaNoise (BetaNews), LinuxSecurity, and Slopfarms Still Promoted by Google News
The primary goal is to demonstrate the problem persists
Links 14/05/2025: Google Agrees to $1.3 Billion Settlement After Spying, China Tariffs Don't Work
Links for the day
There Are Also Loads of Microsoft LinkedIn Layoffs Today (Keep Track of the Subsidiaries They Keep Out of Headlines)
Perhaps lost in the smokescreen
There Are Bigger Rounds of Microsoft Layoffs Coming, a Cull of 10% Implemented in Waves (the "3%" Figure is Misleading, Face-Saving)
Last night we said they might do the layoffs in three or at least two waves
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, May 13, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, May 13, 2025