Clearly miffed by the Department of Justice’s decision not to allow Microsoft Corp to bundle its internet browser with its operating systems, the software giant decided it would be a good idea to commission a survey to rubbish the DOJ’s decision (CI No 3,332). So off it trotted to Los Angeles-based market research firm Telecommunications Research Group who spoke to 200 randomly selected independent software vendors out of 4,000 possibilities. And surprise, the results came out on the side of Microsoft. According to the survey 85% of the questioned ISVs thought by integrating web-browsing technology with Windows would help their company. And 83% said the integration of Internet Explorer would have a positive impact on end users, while 80% thought the blending of browser technology with operating systems would benefit the software industry as a whole. It leaves us asking the question, what is Microsoft up to now. It is clearly trying to prove a point and indicate it has been hard-done-by the Department of Justice. Surely if it wants to have any clout, the best way to go about it is not to commission its own survey of such a small proportion of the ISV market.
