Comments on: New Vistas for Microsoft--so why not Europe?

Policy analyst George A. Pieler says EC regulators are taking the wrong tack when it comes to the software giant.

[alber1690]

I Agree Completely

I could not agree more with this article's author. Everything stated has an absolute rational sense of support. I am no Microsoft employee, but as an experienced PC user, I believe that Microsoft does absolutely a great deed at providing me with all of the resources I need to fulfill the perfect Windows experience. Microsoft deserves full right at adding all of the well-needed applications, while the EU should concentrate on something they have at least a minor clue and not software effiency.

[Captain_Spock]

"God Bless America" and The Founding Fathers.

That it is so convenient; or, (are these cases of acute amnesia) that so many appear to forget about "The Constitution of the United States of America" in this day and age is beyond my comprehension when it is also to be remembered what is stated in part in THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE that "The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world"; that was then; so, are some to assume that there exist a group (in the EU) which is bent on injecting a new (brain washing drug) so; low and behold, the U.S. Constitution is circumvented by denying this "author" his rights as described in the U. S. Bill of Rights the first of which states "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."; so, in essence a particular U.S. based company (targeted by certain EU cronies) and the author of this article should not express themselves as freely as they please? Sheesh!

[kubrickau]

Help Stop Fake News

IPI is a maximum Conservative lobby and Microsoft Apologist. This
sort of thing should not be published as op/ed with out due
disclosure.
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?
title=Institute_for_Policy_Innovation

[qprize]

Pure crap

How to kill a lobbyist's PR piece in one sentence: You can order a
new car WITHOUT a radio. Bundle that with the rest of your useless
tripe and toss it in the trash, where it belongs.

[yikes31]

On Who's payroll?

Well thanks George Pieler for your narrow minded biased
opinion of the global software market, im wondering who will be
paying for your mercedes slk (sans car stereo).
Its very easy to forget that Microsoft have been accused of
antitrust around the world (including in the USA). The difference
with Europe is that they refused to settle for a financial reward
to cash in their complaints.
You may be happy to live in a world where choice is a myth, but I
believe that consumers should really be able to choose. I would
like to be able to purchase software from a number of different
vendors including microsoft. If the Operating System details are
not given to application developers, then they will not be able to
produce top quality products.
The result is that Microsoft applications have a distinct
advantage and users are left with a choice of one. That is bad for
consumers and it is bad for innovation. Anyone in a capitalist
environment should be able to see that.
Saying that it is ok for Microsoft to stifle competition and
innovation is like inviting returning to the bad old soviet days -
only the one player in this game would be a corporation!
As far as the european slap in the face, it must be annoying
finding that government bodies are not bowled over by lobbyist
cash and actually believe that they are working for the greater
good.

[kevinnospam]

RE One Who's Payroll

Letting the government regulate trade and business is a return to the old soviet system. There are plenty of OS alternatives available but the majority of businesses and users choose MS products. Now why would someone pay for a product (Windows) if there is a free product that is superior? (I use Windows, OS-X, Linux, Unix and some OS's most have never heard about..HPL...Xenix) The market does not work that way, remember the old cliché build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door? It still applies.

[afaet]

Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as you please

As Mark Twain said. Mr. Pieler please follow the advice of your fellow American and get your facts first. EC's antitrust complaint was about Media Player nor IE Explorer.
?Microsoft is also required, within 90 days, to offer a version of its Windows OS without Windows Media Player to PC manufacturers (or when selling directly to end users)? follow the link in Cnet www.news.com.com/EUs+statement+on+end+of+Microsoft+investigation/2100-1014_3-5178465.html?tag=nl
The rest of the article in not even worth reading.

[Andrew J Glina]

Odd mistake

I agree. That crucial error makes the whole article look stupid.

[kevinnospam]

Let The Consumer Decide

The way I see it is if you don't like microsoft don't buy it, whenever governments pass laws to help the people it actually has the opposite effect and hurts the consumer. Who do you think pays when Microsoft is fined? The consumer pays the fine and also for the lawyers and politicians who make the law. Such a simple principle, let the consumer decide

[t8]

What Europe is doing is right.

Your quote:
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
At the same time, it's ridiculous to think the world's leading software company would engineer its revamped platform for the benefit of "competition policy" rather than for the benefit of consumers.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

My quote:
Competition is what is good for the consumer, not allowing MS to take other people's stuff and bundle it. Take competition away and the consumer suffers higher prices and less innovation. This is really simple stuff, yet many cannot see the forest for the trees.

I guess that is why there is government in the first place.

What Europe is doing is right.

[SomethingToThinkAbout]

How to tell if an article is good or not

You can always tell an article is good when it elicits the predictable vitriolic backlash from those who like their ideas comfortingly provided to them by their government and government controlled media.

[Andrew J Glina]

Not in this case

This guy is just plain wrong. The EU case is nothing to do with IE.