Jill, thanks for an early morning laugh!! I have a couple of good friends from Europe, and just had a vision of my Italian friend getting excited about us "crazy Americans."
I think I'll follow your cue and read through some of the posts on the SUNW and MSFT thread to get a better overview of how this is playing out.
<They're concerned too, as I am, about the ramifications. Not short-term impact on MSFT (that's my own concern since I'm still long Softee), but the impact on the tech industry as a whole.>
I have to admit that I'm seeing this as a good thing for the tech industry, and as a company specific ruling. I'm not envisioning the government chasing down other Gorillas. Honestly, the smugness of the MSFT leadership, and it's flagrant misuse of power is what brought this on. Call it karma. In the end, I think it could very well make MSFT a better company, offering better products, and easier interoperability. In Darwinian terms, adaptation leads to survival of the fittest. Let's face it, the typical user of a PC is not going to suddenly dis the PC and it's Windows operating system for something new. Corporations are not going to suddenly make a mass exodus of invested capital. It would be far too expensive. We are all creatures of habit. Maybe, and hopefully, the outcome is to motivate MSFT to alter it's intractable attitude toward competition, and shake out some of the complacency that has become the norm. If MSFT rises to the occasion, then it can maintain it's Gorilla stature. If not, we will probably witness a slow, steady erosion in it's share of the market. In any event, I think MSFT shareholders have time to evaluate the situation, how MSFT handles it, and what, if any, changes they will make to their portfolios.
Donna |
