What Regulators Should Do about Microsoft's Monopoly
RE: " In all the discussion on this thread concerning Microsoft's business practices, I can't recall anyone discussing what "appropriate action" the company should undertake. Do you have a solution?" R. D. Neumeyer.
Regulators should act as they are charged to maintain free-enterprise competitiveness in the market place. After due process, the following resolution may be called for with respect to the folding-in ploy:
The OS Open Sockets Solution
A. Folding-In:
Folding-In would be allowed as potentially beneficial to consumers and to the industry as a whole. Exclusive Folding-In on the other hand would be disallowed.
B. Microsoft OS:
The Microsoft Operating System would be limited to being just that: a platform for running other programs. All programs. Not just Microsoft programs.
C. OS Open Sockets:
Non-exclusive folding in would be accomplished, if desired by the user, by the means of open operating system sockets. The operating system would use open sockets to fold -in conforming browsers, to fold-in conforming office suites, to fold-in conforming banking and e-commerce suites, etc.
Comments:
OS Open Sockets would allow a user to chose between Explorer or Netascape etc. for his browser, or among MS Office, Claris Works, Corell Office, etc for an office suite. Also, with the availability of OS Sockets that could be written to, non-Microsoft developers would not be precluded from developing useable banking and e-commerce software. And, Microsoft would be precluded from "inadvertently" cornering the market on access to e-commerce and banking.
This is the sort of solution strongly called for. Real competition in the program market would be preserved. Users would have real choices. The OS user would have the "advantages" of folded-in functionality but without the disadvantages of uniformity. Microsoft would have a better & more versatile product should folding-in be the way to go that they say it is.
Hal
PS: I would expect the prospect of forgoing monopoly profits in the short term for stronger prospects in the longer term would not have much instant appeal to current Microsoft shareholders. I therefore expect this vision of resolution to be widely ignored on this board, but I was asked. HR |
