It's not just this either. Have you upgraded Skype recently? It tries to set your homepage to MSN and make Bing the default search. It's like Java trying to install the Yahoo toolbar. It's almost like Microsoft and Oracle know they're headed toward irrelevance and are trying all the slimy tactics instead of actually just making better products.
"Did you think they will "abort" something they pumped several (possibly hundreds) millions dollars into?"
Absolutely. They do it all the time with billion dollar defense projects. Millions and even billions get dumped into projects like the osprey and nothing ever comes of it.