Microsoft is reportedly being probed by European regulators on whether it is using its dominance in word processing and spreadsheets to unfairly compete, Bloomberg.com reports.
The story says that the EU has sent a questionnaire to Microsoft’s rivals asking for details on how the company may be withholding technical data on Word and Excel that restricts competition.
While fair market competition is a noble pursuit, Microsoft has been down the antitrust road before. A judgment against isn’t what will change them. At least, this tactic hasn’t worked so far.
New market conditions are the only things that matter. Microsoft is aware that open source and software-as-a-service could be what cuts it down, unless it can both manipulate those markets and gain market dominance. (See “Will Microsoft survive with SaaS?” )
They are chasing after Apple when it comes to a consumer vision, just as they are chasing after others over open software and SaaS.
What they want to be is THE technology provider for the integrated home/office worker. They want a person to wake up to a home filled with Microsoft-controlled appliances. (Look at some the projects Microsoft Research is working on). On the way to work, that person would talk and e-mail on a Microsoft smart phone, (driving a car that presumably uses Microsoft technology). At work the person would use Microsoft operating systems, software and services. In the evening, the person could relax by playing some Xbox games or using the Surface PC.
It would be fair to say that Microsoft’s vision is world dominion. But the EU can’t exactly investigate that.
