The Phillips Files #12 -- The Almost Ruling
Did Everyone Forget What It Was Really About? and What's Next?
by R.P. Phillips

Big Surprise = Microsoft is a Monopoly!

But that was never what the case was really about; it was in relations to their ABUSE of the power they had as a monopoly when this suit was filed.

I've read the "accounts" of the case on Mac sites, wintel sites, news sites as well as some "personal" sites and it is amazing how different the results and ramifications are presented - with few mentioning that this case might take another 5 to 10 years before it is finally resolved and fewer mentioning the "reason" behind the case was their "ABUSE" of their power as a monopoly to force some companies "out of business", to force "compliance to MS whims" of other companies and to seriously "hurt" other companies. This actions were mostly directed at wintel computer hardware and software companies, but their "effects" were universal - and caused serious damage to all other hardware and OS makers.

So what is Microsoft doing to "prepare" for the inevitable? They're getting fatter - buying interest in other companies and, in some cases, buying them outright. If you reduce today's Microsoft by 50% it would "hurt" them. If they continue to buy and buy into other companies at their present rate, when they are finally "forced" to reduce their company by 50% they're be able to maintain everything they presently have now and just "sell" everything they've grabbed up. [50% is an arbitrary number chosen "totally" at random and is NOT be be considered the correct % Microsoft will be selling off when this case is finally settled]

Will Microsoft ever settle? I feel they will settle as soon as they get fat enough and avoid the court ordered "forced" break up. This is not only "good" for public relations, it will also allow Microsoft to return to "business as usual" - a concept they've been avoiding since the lawsuit was filed - I feel they've basically "allowed" other companies to increase their popularity and market presence to support their case that they haven't hurt or stifled competitiveness in the computer market. It will also save them the millions, if not billions, they've been spending and donating to improve their public image.

Will Microsoft "improve" their products? Let me start with a quote from a very surprising place - a wintel based magazine and website:

"Microsoft's technical skills in developing innovative and robust software does not strike fear into the hearts of anyone except its customers. To take some recent examples, think of how often Windows 98 machines crash, or the weekly crop of security problems with Internet Explorer, or the clumsiness of the Windows CE palmtops. And there's a very long list of Microsoft "innovations" that appeared first in packages from other vendors."

Eric Bender, PCWorld

[Never thought I'd ever agree and quote anything from PC World's magazine nor their website!]

In the short term - they'd better or risk losing the "majority hold" they have on the market. In spite of what the "media" reports say [control 90% of the entire market] - they have and are continuing to lose ground and by best "realistic" estimates control less that 75% of the entire market! [I've seen such absurdities as Mac holds a meager 10% - so Windoze must control the rest; with total disregards to Linux, BeOS and the many others that are out there. To start - the most honest and impartial estimates give the Mac OS 16 to 17 % of the entire market and growing - rapidly. Bias number jugglers are a big part of the extensive wintel propaganda machine].

What does all this mean for the Mac users? I feel we Mac users will see a couple more years of good growth and expansion into a lot of "new" software releases for either Mac only or a simultaneous release of software for both Windoze and the Mac OS. But, and this is essential, after a settlement has been achieved and the dust settles - I truly expect to see things return to what there were a couple years ago - with MS and it's associated companies, exerting undo and illegal pressure on software and hardware makers and trying to forcing those who don't "fully" comply out of business. I sincerely believe they will be a lot more devious in these actions - making it a lot harder for those companies they hurt or destroy to achieve a legal resolution.

I really don't see anything Mac users being able to "do" anything to stop this - I do see an opportunity for Apple Inc. and the other OS makers to influence the market - but, especially with Apple Inc., they've got to solve their supply and productions problems "NOW" and greatly increase their advertising as well as "public" image - and they've really got to "respond" to the lies the wintel propaganda machine puts out [either counter with the truth and/or sue them for false advertising - and start suing the news media for their excessively bias misinformation].

What the future of computing will be is a serious "unknown" - but with proper actions "NOW" by "ALL" non-Microsoft oriented companies will play a major role in the near future results [next 3-5 years].

R.P. Phillips -- Homepage
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