With the heat on, Microsoft's Ballmer remains defiant infoworld.com
Ballmer's back! And I, for one, have to say I've missed him. After his extended penance for that "To heck with Janet Reno" thing, he's as unbowed and outspoken as ever. Refreshing, after all the metaphorical analogical Chrysler car radio/ Coke and Pepsi stuff.
InfoWorld: Looking back, were there any gray areas in which Microsoft might have overstepped that brought on the antitrust problems you're facing now, or do you contend that there is no legitimacy whatsoever to any of the complaints that have resulted in your run-in with the DOJ?
Ballmer: There's no legitimacy whatsoever in the legal sense to any of the claims of the DOJ in our view. None whatsoever. Now, why have we become such a target, not just for the DOJ, but for our competitors' whining? Hey, maybe there is a set of things we could have done differently, although it's hard sometimes to even imagine that. We know we've operated under the law -- absolutely, positively, 100 percent categorically. We feel good about that.
He feels good, too! Him and the rest of the aggrieved 'Softies, and James Brown too. Ethical and courteous as ever. To heck with Janet Reno, Rick Rules!
If we have a customer or a partner who complains, then I really worry. Occasionally I'll read something about a partner or an OEM being unhappy in one of these deals. That, I don't like -- then I feel like we could have done something a little better.
Compaq couldn't possibly have been unhappy about that sacred icon war thing could they have? Of course, now that we know that Ballmer's the good cop the OEMs beg for mercy from after this Joachim Kempin guy does the bad cop act, I'm sure Steve does the best he can.
InfoWorld: Do you have any knowledge of anything whatsoever that Microsoft has ever done that you would consider anti-competitive?
Ballmer: I don't know what anti-competitive means. If you mean it in a legal context, absolutely, positively, 100 percent no. We have never done anything that I know about that is anti-competitive in a legal sense. We've done some things to try to beat our competitors -- that's what we're here for.
Steve doesn't know what it means, but in a legal sense, Microsoft is 100% innocent. It's competitive to be anticompetitive in business, you know, or vice versa. But recently we've heard that the browser is no competition from Windows, from that Kevin "consensus of this thread" guy. Bill's email didn't mean much to him, just as I'm sure the innovative Microsoft legal team will explain how it doesn't mean much to the judge.
Of course, naive high school civics guy won't claim to understand the conundrum either. It's one of these duality of man things. It's impossible to compete against Microsoft, so the competitors should quite whining and compete. To go with the Zen koan, what is the sound of one hand clapping, we have what is the market with one company competing? If antitrust law isn't the answer, what is? Leaving John Galt out of it, that is, until the Libertarian utopia gets some real world testing someplace.
InfoWorld: Suppose Sun CEO Scott McNealy came to you and said that if Microsoft would stick with 100 percent Pure Java, Sun would adopt NT as a strategic platform. Would you take him up on it?
Ballmer: No. It's confusing the customers. We need a clear message to software developers about how they should build applications. They don't have to choose our way, but I think we have a clear message -- Windows, Windows, Windows. If we were to make this deal with the devil that you suggest -- no offense to Scott personally, since he's a friend of mine -- we don't have a clear message to developers. Scott's never going to support NT to the exclusion of Solaris -- I would never ask him to do that.
Microsoft's strategy is Windows World, that overrated internet stuff has already been hijacked. Embrace and Demolish!
Nobody will believe me, but I really do like Ballmer. I used to make fun of him (well ok, I'm still doing it), but he's a lot more straightforward and honest than all the other corporate voices, including Bill himself. I haven't seen his name on any of the innovative email either. None of this metaphorical analogical cheesy debating technique for Steve. Damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead.
Good for him, I say.
Cheers, Dan. |
