Does (Has) Microsoft use(d) fair business practices? (for my paper)

[Pi rules]

I working on a paper, and my topic is mostly whether or not Microsoft has used fair business practices and whether or not they currently use fair practices. I would appreciate it if people would vote (private poll, so nobody knows your answer).

Comments are OK as long as they are level, but they won't be in my paper.

Also, I still need at least one more interview if anybody is interested, but, according to the guidelines, you have to have schooling and/or experience in the field. Just PM me if you would like to know more about it. You can stay anonymous if you would like.

[Decay]

Personally don't see the point ... since the United States Goverment found Microsoft to not use fair practices....

http://www.theregister.co.uk/1998/11/18/sun_judge_says_unfair_business/
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-279561.html
www.epic.org/privacy/consumer/MS_complaint2.pdf
http://news.com.com/2100-1001-245237.html

The list goes on...

[Pi rules]

I already saw some of those, but thanks for voting everyone. :wave:

[MSFT]

After serving a handful of corporate clients, you learn that there is no such thing as "fair business practices". Microsoft is the worlds largest software manufacturer for a reason. They know how to market and distribute products well enough to beat their competitors.

Before Jobs joined Apple again, he owned NeXT. And NeXT had something that everyone needed; a state-of-the-art GUI. So what did he do? He sold the company to Apple. Then what did Microsoft do? They bought the GUI from Apple. Seems like a fair practice to me, eh?

I find it funny that the EU is so pathetically stupid and ignorant to listen to the open-source companies whine and ***** about how Microsoft is so unfair. It's your own fault you chose to be open-source! An OS without a built-in media player is ****! Just pure useless ****! Apple puts QuickTime AND iTunes in their OS! You don't see them getting shoved up the *** with lawsuits from the EU!

So Microsoft won't release their Windows source to the public. Oh well, go get some more of your open-source developers to think of more ideas. Welcome to the 21st century, it's called intellectual property rights.

Case in point, without Microsoft, the world would be a bad place.

Oh, and when I say "*****y open-source companies" I mean RealMedia, Novell, and those other fools that challenged Microsoft. Companies and foundations that are open-source, such as Mozilla, get my full backing. After all, who want's to use a media player that's loaded with ads? Get real, Real!

[sho-dan]

One more
http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/1037

"fair business practices"= What you got to be kidding,I kicks them when their down :D

[Vercades]

I put sometimes, because history already tells us the reason why.

[minorgeek]

Their validation process could use some work to identify legal software correctly.

[baboon]

I would love to hate MS. On the operating side of their business I dont see where they are really monopolizing. The software makers of the world are helping them push their operating systems, by making so they will only run in the Microsoft OS.

[Decay]

There was a post here seeming almost intellegent but further examing... I failed to see the intellengence.....

I find it funny that the EU is so pathetically stupid and ignorant to listen to the open-source companies whine and ***** about how Microsoft is so unfair. It's your own fault you chose to be open-source! An OS without a built-in media player is ****! Just pure useless ****! Apple puts QuickTime AND iTunes in their OS! You don't see them getting shoved up the *** with lawsuits from the EU!

At first I thought it might have been a decent .. (without the cussing) post....
but further examing see's there is nothing that makes sense within it...

It's your own fault you chose to be open-source! An OS without a built-in media player is ****!

Media player? ya mean like realplayer? http://www.real.com/linux ...
or something more like this? http://www.mplayerhq.hu/design7/news.html
Thank god Linux (and other open source os's) Have media players...

Apple puts QuickTime AND iTunes in their OS! You don't see them getting shoved up the *** with lawsuits from the EU!

http://www.theregister.co.uk/1998/11/18/sun_judge_says_unfair_business/
Microsoft being sued for using Java produced by Sun not using the standards in the license that Sun sold Microsoft.

http://news.com.com/2100-1023-279561.html
Borland sueing Microsoft for trying to create a monopoly and push all other companys out of buisness by paying off employees

Do you seriously want only one company ('Microsoft') to control everything? Competition is what lowers prices... "I'll sell ya a apple for 10$ ...I'll sell for 8$... wait no I'll sell for 4$"
Microsoft was at one time thinking of charging window users monthly fee's

how Microsoft is so unfair. It's your own fault you chose to be open-source!
Open Source doesn't mean 'free to do with it as you wish'
Linux uses a license GNU Free Documentation License (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) violating it is no diffrent than using pirated software of microsoft windows.

One of the worlds most known computer company is IBM ...http://techupdate.zdnet.com/techupdate/stories/main/0,14179,2860394,00.html
and they make a huge profit off Linux....

So Microsoft won't release their Windows source to the public. Oh well, go get some more of your open-source developers to think of more ideas.
All the features in VISA is ideas already implemented in linux for several years now.... Windows is behind in technology while open source pushs ever foward....

They bought the GUI from Apple
Before Bill Gates created Microsoft he worked for Apple he stold the product with his insider knowledge.

fools that challenged Microsoft
Microsoft is a young pup .. and has very little influence when it comes to new technology's and corperatations.... Windows NT was their first attempt at becoming buisness related..... Which failed.... Unix , SunOS and Linux have always been the big boy toys...

[Snurfen]

The reason that MS got into trouble with the EU was that they had embedded software ACTIVELY PREVENTING concurrent running of other vendors' software on your pc.
Somewhat akin to Ford saying you can only use Ford Petrol in their cars.

[oracle128]

I'd say a good deal of your paper should involved defining what exactly "Fair Business Practices" are, then you can work on finding evidence that they have or haven't breached those guidelines. Another section of your paper should probably focus on why MS would have (or have not) breached them, and the outcome of how those breaches that affected MS, and how they affected other businesses.

[Nick Grana]

Yeah. What ever snurfen and oracle said.:thumbsup:
I like M$. I don't think I'm in a minority position. Every big company crosses the line at times and that's what the court system is about. Been exposed to many OS's in my day and the start of Windows became a revolution in user friendly systems.:cool:

[renegade600]

fair business practice - look what microsoft did to dr dos and os2. What they did to them was unethical and imo. Look it up yourself and you find info about them. Read the court documents where they were mentioned.

[minorgeek]

Is that "mentioned" to include conviction? How often do they lose? I think Nick is on the right track. We would still be parallel parked in geekdom without M$. I don't care for some practices, but as long as the courts rule for them they are theoretically correct.