America's No. 1 financial conglomerate

Chapter 306: Love Turns to Hate?

On the leather sofa in the living room, Ernst's cigar was slowly burning, a wisp of smoke rising gently in the warm yellow sunlight.

His gaze had already fallen on the stack of newspapers piled high on the coffee table. The eye-catching headlines and contents had already made everything clear, so Wenger didn't need to say anything more.

The front pages of major newspapers were filled with news about Microsoft bundling MSN.

The Los Angeles Times' front-page headline read like a stark warning: "Microsoft Bundles MSN: The Hand of Monopoly Reaches into the Internet Ecosystem."

The article bluntly states, "Microsoft's move is tantamount to using its dominant position in the operating system field to forcibly shove MSN into the hands of every user. This isn't product promotion; it's clearly cutting off the path to innovation in the internet industry."

Then, naturally, I was worried for Google. "Although Google is currently leading in the instant messaging and email field, once Microsoft goes all out, with its resources and market influence, even if Google has three heads and six arms, it will be difficult to withstand this offensive."

"This kind of bundled sales tactic is simply throwing users' freedom of choice into the trash. You buy a new computer and are forced to accept MSN as soon as you turn it on; this is a trampling on the freedom of America."

"If even a giant like Google is facing this situation, how can other smaller internet companies have any breathing room under Microsoft's pressure? If this continues, Microsoft will eventually use this method to dominate the entire internet market. At that time, users will have to do whatever software they use and whatever content they watch, depending entirely on Microsoft's whims."

"This isn't business competition; it's practically cyber dictatorship."

The New York Times was not to be outdone, strongly condemning Microsoft's predatory behavior.

Microsoft's bundling of MSN: A new variant of industry monopoly?

The report thoroughly analyzed the ins and outs of Microsoft's move, from the background of the decision-making process to the potential chain reactions, and even brought in several industry experts to provide analysis and interpretation.

One expert bluntly stated, "Microsoft has forgotten its past mistakes. It hasn't been long since Netscape sued Microsoft for monopoly, and they think winning the lawsuit means they've already won? If Microsoft continues to act so recklessly, it might be the next one to be dragged into antitrust court. The federal government will absolutely not allow Microsoft to continue its domineering behavior; the Department of Justice will definitely sue Microsoft."

Meanwhile, another major New York media outlet, The Wall Street Journal, took a different approach.

The newspaper somehow managed to interview an anonymous whistleblower from within Microsoft.

"There is huge controversy within the company regarding the bundling with MSN. Many senior executives believe that although this will cause MSN's market share to skyrocket, in the long run, it is a short-sighted move. It will not only damage the company's reputation, but also attract the attention of regulatory authorities, which could lead to a drop in the stock price."

"However, Bill Gates was adamant. He felt that Google's Google Messenger and Gmail had already crushed MSN's ICQ and Hotmail, and were far ahead of Microsoft's similar products in every aspect. Only by bundling them together could MSN defeat Google. So no matter how others tried to persuade him, he was determined to push through this move."

"This report is like a bombshell. If users see it, they'll be furious with Microsoft. I really want to know who this anonymous employee is; I need to thank him properly." Ernst said, casually tossing the Wall Street Journal back onto the coffee table. The newspaper made a crisp sound as it hit the surface, almost as if applauding his words.

Doesn't this mean admitting that Microsoft's products are no good and forcing users to choose outdated products?

"But these are just for show; their authenticity is impossible to verify," Wenger cautioned.

What is anonymous whistleblowing? It means that the whistleblower does not want to take responsibility for what they say, and may not even be a Microsoft employee.

For the media, this is commonplace in their pursuit of traffic.

Ernst knew this, but that didn't stop it from stirring up emotions in the market.

He leaned back on the sofa, a playful smile playing on his lips. "It seems that people in the market who are dissatisfied with Microsoft have been holding back their anger for a long time, just waiting for someone to stand up and raise their voice, so that all eighteen warlords can join forces to attack Microsoft."

Wenger, listening nearby, couldn't help but nod. "The media's information about Microsoft bundling MSN is too well-informed. They've even published interviews with internal employees. There's definitely something fishy going on behind the scenes."

Logically speaking, what happened this morning should only be starting to take effect today.

The newspapers and Microsoft made their decisions almost simultaneously; in fact, the media knew about it even earlier, printing newspapers long before it happened.

Ernst flicked the ash from his cigar, his eyes sharpening. "Is that even a question? Anyone with eyes can see that the computer manufacturers using Microsoft systems had already spoken to the media. They've been extremely dissatisfied with Microsoft's bundled sales for a long time, since it's directly robbing them of their profits."

He paused, tapping his fingers lightly on the armrest of the sofa. "Microsoft is indeed the leader in the operating system field, but that doesn't mean it has a monopoly on the entire market."

"Apple's operating system, Linux operating system, and Uni operating system together account for about 15% of the market share."

"Besides, Google is no pushover. I'm also Apple's largest shareholder. If I were to integrate the resources of these operating systems and fight a head-to-head battle with Microsoft, although we would be at a significant disadvantage and have little chance of winning, we might still be able to take a piece of Microsoft's flesh."

He held up three fingers and shook them. "It doesn't have to be many. As long as we can get 30% of the market share, it will be a huge loss for those computer manufacturers."

Once the operating system war begins, Microsoft will definitely force computer manufacturers to choose between two options: either follow its lead or face being squeezed out. In that case, users who chose computers with other operating systems because of Google's products will become the loss for those manufacturers.

Although this possibility doesn't seem very high right now, it has indeed raised concerns among computer manufacturers, who don't want to become casualties in the battle between Microsoft and other camps.

"By the way, what did Hamilton say?" He looked at Wenger.

As Google's dedicated law firm, he must have already been in contact with Google.

Wenger immediately took out his notebook, opened it, and said, "Hamilton has indeed devised three plans. The first is to work on public opinion. He intends to use various channels to make users aware of the harm of Microsoft's monopoly, arouse everyone's resentment towards Microsoft, and make public discontent boil over even more."

Ernst nodded upon hearing this. "This is crucial! Once public discontent arises, the US government can't simply ignore it, no matter how hard it tries."

The power of public opinion is sometimes more effective than the law.

If the government sits idly by, the opposition party will definitely seize this opportunity to criticize the ruling party's inaction to the bitter end, and then the ruling party will be in for a tough time.

Therefore, as long as public discontent is strong enough, the government must step forward and make a statement, and no amount of money Microsoft spends on government public relations will be of any use.

"The second option is to find loopholes in Microsoft's patents," Wenger continued. "Hamilton plans to organize a team to thoroughly study Microsoft's operating system patents and see if we can find a breakthrough. Even if we can't do anything to Microsoft, we should at least make it suffer and stop it from acting so recklessly."

"The third option is to unite more victims." Wenger's voice was filled with excitement. "Hamilton has already contacted Case from AOL, and Case immediately agreed to join as soon as he heard about suing Microsoft."

"Hamilton is currently contacting other manufacturers, intending to file a joint lawsuit against Microsoft for monopoly."

In fact, as early as 1996, Netscape sued Microsoft for unfair competition.

In an effort to suppress Netscape Navigator, Microsoft added numerous obstacles and proprietary tags to its operating system, resulting in Netscape users experiencing issues such as webpages failing to load or displaying a large amount of garbled text.

Netscape sued Microsoft on the grounds of monopoly, but the matter was temporarily settled after the court ruled that Microsoft had engaged in unfair competition.

Although Microsoft later removed those labels, it refused to admit that it had lost the case, let alone compensate Netscape.

It kept appealing and dragging its feet on resolving the issue, clearly trying to kill Netscape.

After hearing this, Ernst sneered, "Google is not Netscape. I won't let it succeed so easily. I will personally talk to Apple and IBM. Bill Gates won't have an easy time getting through this time."

Ernst needs to bring in enough allies of sufficient importance.

Needless to say, Apple, whether as a major shareholder or due to the lawsuit between Apple and Microsoft, would certainly be willing to join in.

The connection between IBM and Microsoft mainly stems from their acquisition of Lotus.

Don't forget how Microsoft's office software came about; it was copied from Lotus.

Moreover, IBM surely remembers the time Microsoft betrayed IBM in the PC market and would be willing to stand up and cheer them on.

Ernst couldn't help but shake his head, his tone full of sarcasm. "Has Bill Gates lost his mind? To do something so irrational for MSN, has he really been blinded by MSN?"

Anti-monopoly is a term we hear all the time.

However, few people know that monopolies are not illegal, and normal business practices following a monopoly are also not illegal.

What is illegal? It is the abuse of market dominance resulting from a monopoly. This is illegal.

Simply put, it means your company is so big that it can cover the entire market and it's fine.

But if you engage in unfair competition, you're doomed.

Therefore, many companies are imitated and copied but have no choice but to improve their internal capabilities and strengthen their own strength.

Companies like Microsoft, which lack internal strength and only rely on their physical strength in the early stages to threaten others into not training, are engaging in illegal activities.

Wenger suddenly gave a meaningful smile and looked at Ernst, saying, "Some media outlets say that Bill Gates wasn't blinded by MSN, but by you."

Ernst was stunned upon hearing this, and looked at Wenger in confusion. "What do you mean by that? It sounds so awkward."

Wenger explained, "What is Microsoft's core business? It's operating systems and office software. Even the browser business has only been elevated to a strategic core position in the last two years. As for email and communications, in the eyes of Microsoft's management, they are just peripheral products."

"Don't be fooled by the amount of money Microsoft invests in these two areas; compared to operating systems and office software, they are nothing."

He stared into Ernst's eyes and said seriously, "But Google, which you founded, launched office software and is gradually eroding Office's market share. You've stabbed Microsoft in the heart, making Bill Gates restless. Now, his hatred for you is probably deeper than his hatred for anyone else."

Wenger couldn't help but quip, "Some people even say this is called 'love turned to hate,' after all, you and Microsoft had a brief honeymoon period, and now you're turning around and attacking Microsoft, how can Bill Gates not be angry?"

Ernst's expression turned very strange after hearing this. He did have a brief honeymoon period with Microsoft, but it shouldn't have reached the point of love, right?