What is MS Thinking? (Score 1)

This latest step from Microsoft is nothing new: re-writing a competitor's application and bundling it with the OS. But it seems to me that the computer industry, and Microsoft's position in it, has changed somewhat since the IE/Netscape fueds. At first blush, I accepted that Microsoft was just behaving like any other (unethical) company faced with the product of dwindling sales: do whatever is necessary to get people to throw away your old product and buy your new one.

But then, I thought about it a little more. People don't buy Windows for its features. They "buy" it because it comes pre-installed on their new computers. They buy new computers because they can't bear the fact that their neighbor has a shiny new Pentium 12, while they're stuck chugging away on a ratchety old Pentium 11. The unholy marriage between Microsoft and computer manufacturers seems to work in this way: MS releases a more bloated OS with a higher number every few months, so computer makers can tell their customers that they have to upgrade; computer makers, in return, install only Microsoft on the computers they sell. Now, I'll grant you that both parties need to be able to talk about "improved features" in the new software to make this upgrade sound legitimate, but the consumers are chomping at the bit for an excuse to buy something new, so they don't need much convincing. All of this new bundled software that Microsoft is talking about sounds like overkill.

It's overkill because all MS really needs to do is release something that wastes more system resources to keep computer makers happy. They could say something about "improved Object Brokering," "better XML support," and add some splashy eye candy and moving icons, and that's all a user needs to convince him to upgrade. But, by bundling all these rip-offs of third-party applications, they piss off one other very important segment of the industry who has been doggishly loyal since day one: the third-party developers. Assuming that Windows has not only bundled their generic HP CD Creator with Windows, but has also made it a "shocking experience" (a la Real Player) for a user to attempt to install the real HP CD Creator, how supportive of MS is HP likely to be in the future? Do you suppose that Adobe is taking a closer look now at their business relationship with MS? Maybe putting together a "Plan B" as we speak? It seems like Microsoft is shooting themselves in the collective foot.

Now, MS has proven itself quite adept at making money, so I have to assume that they have given all of this more careful thought than I have. So, would anybody care to hazard a guess: What does Microsoft know that I don't?