The hunt continues: long list of Microsoft employees deposed by DOJ zdnet.com
Of local interest, for old timers anyway:
Included on the list of second-tier engineers and managers to be deposed are Thomas Reardon, Ben Slivka, Steven Sinofsky and J Allard - all of whom were involved in the development of IE 1.0 and the management of the relationship with Netscape. Reardon was the primary Netscape liaison at the time, according to sources, and one of those in attendance at the infamous meetings that took place at Netscape's headquarters in Mountain View, Calif.
Poor Thomas, and this time no sarcasm. I still feel sort of guilty for getting on his back sometimes, he had a job to do. On the other hand, I used a bit confused by the hostility toward him I got from old Nick Z. and Jim Ash in my rare private email, now the reason seems clear. Hope he doesn't have to face legal pit bull Boies. And poor Slivka, first Bill calls him a communist, then he gets deposed. And he's got to reconcile the current revisionist history with the old "day of infamy" story planted in Business Week, that's going to be painful.
Allard, currently general manager of Microsoft's Windows DNA (Distributed interNet Architecture) effort, is credited as the company's first Internet program manager. He joined the company in the early 1990s and was charged with integrating TCP/IP into Microsoft's LAN Manager and Windows for Workgroups products. Since that time, Allard has worked on a number of Internet-related projects at Microsoft.
Ah, the mysterious #2, J Allard, him I'd like to hear about. After getting Bill on top of the internet game back in 1991, he's moved on to the much more rewarding (if vaporous) DNA retrovirus initiative. I wouldn't drink any water he gave me. Probably more germaine to the case, though, is this part:
On the OEM side of things, Bengt Akerlind, Candace Grisdale, Donald Hardwick, Gayle McClain and Joseph Williams are due to be questioned about their jobs as Microsoft representatives to some of the industry's biggest computer vendors. Akerlind is the director of OEM sales and marketing and reports directly to Joachim Kempin, senior vice president of the OEM sales and marketing group, who has already been deposed twice by DOJ attorneys.
Kempin probably got Boies though, he earned it almost as much as Bill. That was probably a fun time.
"They're going after the team that sets pricing and contracts. Our OEM divisions deal day-in and day-out with this team of people," said an official at one computer maker who requested anonymity. "These are the guys who handle the push-back and escalation. If Microsoft was bludgeoning us on something, our first line of contact would be our account managers."
OEM official: Good move, DOJ
Added another OEM official who asked not to be identified: "This is a good move on the DOJ's part. These aren't the usual front-line people who are used to lying. They're the soldiers. The DOJ will be able to ask them whether their accounts have asked for certain things to be included in their contracts."
All very interesting. Stay tuned as things heat up.
Cheers, Dan. |
