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[News] A Look Back at a Year of Microsoft Bribes, Intimidation, Fake 'Standards'

  • Subject: [News] A Look Back at a Year of Microsoft Bribes, Intimidation, Fake 'Standards'
  • From: Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Thu, 03 Jan 2008 01:35:00 +0000
  • Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.advocacy
  • Organization: Netscape / schestowitz.com
  • User-agent: KNode/0.10.4
2008 will be great for the Free Software world

,----[ Quote ]
| While the year of the Linux Desktop may not be here just yet, every where we 
| look we see great things happening to the open source movement. Read on for 
| an overview of what we can expect in 2008 and what has changed for us geeks 
| in the good ‘ol 2007.  
| 
| [...]
| 
| FUD and bribes
| 
| But there are some clouds at the horizon, the patent ‘agreements’ Microsoft 
| has forced on various Linux distributors being one of them. After Novell gave 
| in, more companies gave in to the FUD spread by Microsoft. After Novell, both 
| Xandros and Linspire have made deals with Microsoft regarding technical 
| interoperability and legal protection. Fortunately, not all companies 
| delivering Linux based solutions are giving in. Canonical, Red Hat, Mandriva 
| and others continue to say no to Microsoft. It’s strange that even though 
| Microsoft won’t give more information on the 235 patents that it believes 
| Linux is violating.        
| 
| Unfortunately it didn’t stay at spreading FUD, during the ISO approval 
| process of Microsoft’s OOXML wanabee-standard, it became clear that there had 
| been some unfair play by Microsoft. The entire chain of events is to long to 
| list again here but you can read all about them here on masuran.org or the 
| excellent no-ooxml website.    
| 
| Regardless of all the Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt Microsoft tries to spread, 
| regardless of the bribing of ISO committee members, 2008 will be good for us. 
| We who love freedom and openness, we who like to share information, we who 
| love technology, we’ll have it good.   
`----

http://www.masuran.org/2008/01/02/2008-will-be-great-for-the-free-software-world/

Ten challenges and priorities for open standards in 2008

,----[ Quote ]
| Over the next couple of weeks I plan to publish several entries 
| on “challenges and priorities in 2008 on a range of topics, some related to 
| work areas of interest, some related to personal ones. I’m kicking this off 
| today with standards.   
`----

http://www.sutor.com/newsite/blog-open/?p=1998

Microsoft deprecating big portions of OOXML?

,----[ Quote ]
| There were some stories in the blogosphere over the holidays saying that 
| Microsoft was telling some national standards bodies that it was willing to 
| deprecate portions of OOXML in order to satisfy some of the thousands of 
| technical criticisms of OOXML in the JTC1 standards process.   
| 
| [...]
| 
| It’s not uncommon to see some deprecations in versions 2.0 and higher of 
| standards. It could mean one or more of 
| 
|     * “whoops, we goofed”
|     * “there was a problem with what we said to do”
|     * “we’ve come up with a better way of doing that”
|     * “you really don’t want to be doing that”
`----

http://www.sutor.com/newsite/blog-open/?p=1997

Some more examples of Microsoft bribes (from 2007) below.


Related:

Director: Microsoft fueling HD wars

,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft is deliberately feeding into the HD disc format wars to ensure that 
| its own downloads succeed where physical copies fail, says movie director 
| Michael Bay in a response to a question posed through his official forums. 
| The producer contends that Microsoft is writing "$100 million dollar checks" 
| to movie studios to ensure HD DVD exclusives that hurt the overall market 
| regardless of the format's actual merit or its popularity, preventing any one 
| format from gaining a clear upper hand. Bay's own Transformers is available 
| on disc only in the less popular HD DVD format despite his stated preference 
| for Blu-ray. To the director, this is primarily a stalling tactic while 
| Microsoft refines its own online-only technology.         
`----

http://www.electronista.com/articles/07/12/04/bay.on.microsoft.hd/


Two Studios to Support HD DVD Over Rival

,----[ Quote ]
|     But money talks: Paramount and DreamWorks Animation together will receive 
|     about $150 million in financial incentives for their commitment to HD 
|     DVD, according to two Viacom executives with knowledge of the deal but 
|     who asked not to be identified.   
| 
|     The incentives will come in a combination of cash and promotional 
|     guarantees. Toshiba, for instance, will use the release of “Shrek the 
|     Third” as part of an HD DVD marketing campaign.  
| 
|     Paramount and DreamWorks Animation declined to comment. Microsoft, the 
|     most prominent technology company supporting HD DVDs, said it could not 
|                                                                   ^^^^^^^^^
|     rule out payment but said it wrote no checks. “We provided no financial
|     ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^     
|     incentives to Paramount or DreamWorks whatsoever,” said Amir Majidimehr, 
|     the head of Microsoft’s consumer media technology group.    
`----

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/21/technology/21disney.html?ei=5088&en=d4e1f285e2f41437&ex=1345348800&adxnnl=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1187698143-B5wO3L/F+4r1NyAsum87vQ


,----[ Quote ]
| "Let me be clear, ladies and gentlemen, there is one company that will
| have to change its illegal behavior as a result of this ruling, and
| that is Microsoft," Kroes said at a news conference.
`----

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/332064_msfteu18.html?source=mypi


Corrupt countries were more likely to support the OOXML document format

,----[ Quote ]
| Is this just a random coincidence? The median of the CPI index of the above 
| mentioned 70 countries is 3.95. Of the most corrupted half (CPI index less 
| than 3.95) 23 or 77% voted for approval (approval or approval with comments) 
| and 7 or 23% for disapproval; 5 abstained. Of the least corrupted half (CPI 
| index more than 3.95) 13 or 54% voted for approval and 11 or 46% voted for 
| disapproval; 11 abstained - see the table below.      
`----

http://www.effi.org/blog/kai-2007-09-05.en.html


Microsoft buying it's way into OOXML ISO certification?

,----[ Quote ]
| It appears that Microsoft is just buying the OOXML ISO certification!
`----

http://masuran.org/node/90


Ecuador Tax Agency Closes Microsoft Branch Offices For 7 Days

,----[ Quote ]
| "We have twice requested balances, payment reports and complete tax 
| information, but the company hasn't given it to us, so in accordance with our 
| laws we have proceeded with the closure," the SRI official in charge of the 
| proceeding said.   
`----

http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200710041610DOWJONESDJONLINE000810_FORTUNE5.htm


Microsoft Office raid in Hungary

,----[ Quote ]
| "Such behavior could lead to the exclusion of competitive products from 
| the market and violate European Union rules, according to the authority 
| known as the GVH."
`----

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/07/26/ap3957835.html


SaaS and OOXML

,----[ Quote ]
| I am doing some corporate research these days to understand what it would 
| mean if an entire company of 10,000+ employees chose to migrate to OOXML. OK, 
| OK, I know ODF would probably be a better choice, but there are big bucks and   
|                                                   ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
| corporate "friendships" involved here, so it runs out of favour.
`----

http://discuss.joelonsoftware.com/default.asp?joel.3.569345


Microsoft Tech Ed 2007: OpenXML

,----[ Quote ]
| He was asked "Why did Microsoft push OOXML through the "Fast Track" process 
| instead of the standard ISO process? Wouldn't they get less resistance than 
| faced now?"  
| 
| His response was very frank: "Office is a USD$10 billion revenue generator 
| for the company. When ODF was made an ISO standard, Microsoft had to react 
| quickly as certain governments have procurement policies which prefer ISO 
| standards. Ecma and OASIS are 'international standards', but ISO is the 
| international 'Gold Standard'. Microsoft therefore had to rush this standard 
| through. Its a simple matter of commercial interests!"     
`----            ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

http://www.openmalaysiablog.com/2007/09/microsoft-tech-.html


Evidence of Microsoft Influencing OOXML Votes in Nordic States

,----[ Quote ]
| "This is how a standard is bought," Bosson wrote later. "I left the meeting 
| in protest - pissed off." 
`----

http://www.betanews.com/article/Evidence_of_Microsoft_Influencing_OOXML_Votes_in_Nordic_States/1188335569


Microsoft Memo to Partners in Sweden Surfaces: Vote Yes for OOXML - Updated

,----[ Quote ]
| He acknowledges that the rules might need to be changed.
`----

http://www.groklaw.net/article.php?story=20070829070630660


[Mandriva CEO:] An open letter to Steve Ballmer

,----[ Quote ]
| Wow! I’m impressed, Steve! What have you done for these guys to change their
| mind like this? It’s pretty clear to me, and it will be clear to everyone.
| How do you call what you just did Steve, in the place where you live? In my
| place, they give it various names, I’m sure you know them.  
|
| Hey Steve, how do you feel looking at yourself in the mirror in the morning?
|
| Of course, I will keep fighting this one and the next one, and the next one.
| You have the money, the power, and maybe we have a different sense of ethics
| you and I, but I believe that hard work, good technology and ethics can win
| too.  
`----

http://blog.mandriva.com/2007/10/31/an-open-letter-to-steve-ballmer/


Lessons from Africa: How to Kill Your Own FUD

,----[ Quote ]
| So, even as Microsoft claims superior quality over Linux, they act as if they 
| don't even buy their own FUD. If they really believed that Windows was 
| superior to Linux, they wouldn't have to bribe people with “marketing help” 
| to get them to choose Windows.   
`----

http://www.linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2007-11-09-030-26-OP-MD-MS

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