Snip Nets

Microsoft monopoly

THE state and federal officials, prosecuting the Microsoft anti-trust case now say that their goal in any settlement, or court-imposed remedy, will be to break the company’s monopoly in personal computer operating systems, or limit its ability to wield such monopoly power, reported The New York Times. The US Justice Department officials and states attorney generals have not decided how that should be done. Several proposals are on the table, from forcing the Microsoft Corporation to publish the proprietary code for the Windows operating system to breaking up the company.

In the end, Federal District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson, who oversaw the trial, will be the one to approve a settlement or select a remedy, after receiving recommendations from the plaintiffs. But even before a final verdict, which is expected in February, the plaintiffs have been emboldened by the judge’s findings on Friday that Microsoft used its operating-system monopoly to stifle innovation, reduce competition and harm consumers.

The officials say that their goal is to create competition in the operating-systems market—or to put sharp limits on Microsoft’s ability to exercise monopoly power.

Apple stock on the rise

Apple’s stock went up two points in trading on November 8, hitting $91.0625, an all-time high on the Nasdaq stock market, reports MacWeek magazine, while Microsoft stock has dropped almost four points to a high of $ 89.8125.

Microsoft’s stock situation was fuelled by the recent ruling by a federal judge that the company wielded monopoly power to stifle competition and innovation, the federal judge in the company’s antitrust case ruled. The finding of fact by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson was embraced by the Justice Department, which called the ruling a "tremendous victory." In a 207-page critique of the software company’s business practices, Jackson said Microsoft had used its position to harm consumers and rivals... Despite the setback, Microsoft has a market cap of $450 billion, while Apple, despite its run up of the last year, has a market cap of $15 billion.

Windows on our world

Paul Farhi, a staff writer for the Washington Post gives a different perspective to the Windows issue when he says that Microsoft, via its signature product, Windows, brought to computing all of the things we publicly attack but secretly adore: standardisation, stasis, predictability, a familiar product that was at least a little bit better than mediocre.

"Those of us who survived the computer operating system wars of the ‘60s, ‘70s and even the ‘80s should give at least a salute and a bow to Microsoft," says author Cliff Stoll, whose latest book is "High Tech Heretic." "We can at least now sit back and say, ‘Ah, there’s a standardised operating system, standard programming tools, standard sets like word processing and spreadsheets that let us not just transport programs from one to the other but let an office worker with a Dell machine move to another office with Hewlett-Packard computers."

This is why we have made Gates the world’s richest man. We don’t want to be bothered. Windows is here; it works, sort of. Without it, your computer would not easily talk to my computer, and my computer would have been harder for you to learn to operate. We’d still be learning new computer commands instead of just getting on with it. Spare us.

Neither McDonald’s nor Holiday Inn nor Windows is the best at what it is. They are just better than what we are fairly sure is the alternative, which is chaos.

Net tailored to needs

A non- partisan think tank, today released the results of a survey that indicate a majority of Internet users want information that is tailored to their needs and are willing to provide information about their preferences to receive personalised advertisements if they are given notice and choice, reports NewsEdge.

Dr. Alan F. Westin, Publisher of Privacy & American Business, presented the results of the survey entitled, "Personalised Marketing and Privacy on The Net: What Consumers Want," at a workshop co-sponsored by the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Commerce

The survey was commissioned by Privacy & American Business and conducted by Opinion Research Corporation and Dr. Alan Westin to gain additional insight into consumers’ expectations about how e-commerce should be conducted and was underwritten by a grant from DoubleClick, Inc., an Internet advertising company. The survey explored Internet users’ willingness to provide individualised data or have it acquired from other sources in return for personalised messages when notice and "opt out" choice were provided.

Key findings of the survey include:

* Of Internet users surveyed, 61 per cent are interested in receiving banner advertisements that are tailored to their personal preferences.

* Between 51 -68 per centof users (representing between 47 - 63 million Americans) would agree to have information based on their offline and online transactions used to personalise banner ads to them when they are informed how their information would be used and are given the chance to "opt out" of uses they did not approve.

* Most Internet users (71-78 per cent) who are interested in online personalisation expect companies to follow privacy policies that ensure consumers notice and choice.

"The survey findings validate previous research indicating that Internet users expect assurances of notice and choice when engaging in online information exchange," said Dr. Alan Westin. "This survey is unique in revealing that a majority of Internet users would allow companies to use information about their preferences from both online and offline sources in return for personalised messages."

— Compiled by Roopinder Singh