____/ nessuno@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx on Sunday 16 December 2007 23:37 : \____
> <Quote>
> Is lack of standards compliance an anti-trust issue? The Opera folks
> think so. Yesterday, the Norwegian browser-maker submitted an anti-
> trust complaint against Microsoft to the European Commission....
>
> Who knows how many chairs Steve Ballmer might throw over this one. But
> it's worth watching. Across every technology we cover, browser
> standards compliance (and non-compliance, and attendant application
> incompatibilities) remain a big challenge for the customers we talk
> to.
> </Quote>
>
>
http://www.cmswatch.com/Trends/1097-Microsoft-Sued-Over-(Lack-of)-Standards-Compliance
And from the New York Times:
Web Browser in Windows Is at Center of Complaint
,----[ Quote ]
| Michael Reynolds, an antitrust lawyer with the firm Allen & Overy in
| Brussels, said that Opera’s legal case was probably strengthened by the
| ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
| outcome of Microsoft’s appeal. “What has changed is that we now have very
| clear guidance from the court as to what constitutes bundling and tying,”
`----
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/14/technology/14opera.html?ref=business
I'm sure Microsoft might pay some money for its deliberate technical sabotage
and just move on virtually unpunished, just like Fulton has said:
"Microsoft's distorted perception of the computing industry, and of the
world as a whole, is important because of a fact which Judge Jackson
came to realize but, all too soon, commented on: Any conduct remedy
which relies solely upon Microsoft's own ability to scrutinize,
admonish, and improve itself through its own means, will be treated by
Microsoft's executives with disrespect and contempt. It's like a
parent ordering his wayward son to shape up. The executives of
Microsoft are as unwilling to consider such an order as an adolescent
boy, bottled up in his room, is willing to remove his headphones and
listen to his dad for five seconds. They are likely to ignore such an
order altogether. I say this with the utmost respect: They don't give
a damn what you think."
[...]
"The code of conduct which the Appeals Court upheld as illegal use of
Microsoft's monopoly power, stems directly from the code of conduct
Microsoft taught itself in fending off the DR-DOS threat. It is not
the behavior of an established, experienced company whose leadership
position is bestowed upon it by its customers and partners. It is the
behavior of an adolescent, catapulted quickly to prominence in a young
industry, without ever having found the time or the inclination to
learn how success may be achieved fairly and with honor. It is a
spoiled brat kid that never listened to its elders, and has never come
to appreciate the world outside of itself. It has erected its own
psychological "barrier to entry" that prohibits it from absorbing
anything of positive benefit--any new ideas, any good alliances, any
substantive partnerships--from the outside world, out there, where the
enemy lives. Paranoid, over-sensitive, and withdrawn, it hides out in
its room, nails a "Keep Out" sign to its door, locks the door shut,
loses itself in a video game, and drowns itself out with loud music
laced with messages of pessimism and disdain. It is the unloved
child. It is built in the image of its maker. It will not listen to
reason."
[...]
"To presume that Microsoft can make reparations for this violation by
way of an agreement stating that it promises this will never, ever
happen again, is to ignore the extent of the damage that was done. For
Netscape, Sun, and Novell, the death spiral was indeed devastating,
but their survival is foreseeable. They may each yet rise from the
ashes, with or without Microsoft's aid--and they may be better off
without it anyway. These are companies that may never benefit from any
settlement on the content of future agreements with Microsoft. These
companies don't want future agreements with Microsoft."
--
~~ Best of wishes
Roy S. Schestowitz | Oracle: Linux adoption to accelerate
http://Schestowitz.com | GNU/Linux | PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
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