Microsoft joins options reformfest
,----[ Quote
| Microsoft is the only significant tech company on board, despite the fact
| XBRL was hammered out by others including Oracle, IBM, and Hyperion.
| Consultants Deloitte & Touche, also an XRBL author, is also on the committee.
`----
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/08/01/microsoft_xbrl_sec/
It's ironic and sadle Microsoft presidents commit crimes (see below), Microsoft
itself will also be the watcher.
Related:
Insider Trading Hasn't Affect Microsoft Stock - Yet
,----[ Quote ]
| MarketWatch.com reports that Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft's
| Entertainment and Devices division, sold $6.2 million of Microsoft
| stock just prior to announcing that Microsoft was going to have to
| extend XBox 360 warranties to three years because of extensive
| failures. The filings note that this was not part of any
| scheduled diversification or selling program; this was a
| conscious, unscheduled sale by the guy in charge of releasing
| news that could affect the value of Microsoft stock.
|
| [...]
|
| Insider trading is a very serious violation of the law; just
| ask Martha Stewart, who served five months in prison for
| avoiding losses of $43,000 through trades that just had suspicious
| timing (no insider trading was actually proven). This is $6.3
| million that went straight into Robbie Bach's pocket.
`----
http://biz.yahoo.com/seekingalpha/070713/40947_id.html?.v=1
McCain comes out against Net Neutrality; Says would hire Microsoft CEO Steve
Ballmer
,—-[ Quote ]
| In another move that was sure to infuriate many geeks, the 70 year
| old presidential hopeful also said that he would ask Microsoft CEO
| Steve Ballmer to serve on his cabinet to deal with technology issues
| if elected. He did not however say what position Ballmer might be
| hired in, but did joke that he might consider him for a diplomatic
| position, such as ambassador to China.
`—-
http://www.thedailybackground.com/2007/05/30/mccain-comes-out-against-net-neutrality-says-would-hire-microsoft-ceo-steve-ballmer/
Treachery In The Trenches
,—-[ Quote ]
| I believe that most people do not grasp the immense entity of Microsoft.
| This is an organization and a man who commands the attention and bidding
| of world leaders. On a recent trip to America, the President of China
| spent his first evening in the United States, not with our President,
| but Bill Gates. He was the guest of the Gates mansion that first
| evening and the guest of honor for a dinner attended by over one
| hundred people. Why? To ask him to crack down on Software piracy
| and to insure that his computer manufacturers put Microsoft Windows
| on thier newly made machines instead of shipping them with no OS. He
| didn’t see the President of the United States for over 36 hours…he
| spent that time with Bill Gates at his home and at the Redmond
| Campus.
`—-
http://blog.lobby4linux.com/index.php?/archives/88-Treachery-In-The-Trenches.html
Microsoft Finds Legal Defender in Justice Dept.
,—-[ Quote ]
| Nearly a decade after the government began its landmark effort to break
| up Microsoft, the Bush administration has sharply changed course by
| repeatedly defending the company both in the United States and abroad
| against accusations of anticompetitive conduct, including the recent
| rejection of a complaint by Google.
|
| […]
|
| In the most striking recent example of the policy shift, the top
| antitrust official at the Justice Department last month urged state
| prosecutors to reject a confidential antitrust complaint filed by
| Google that is tied to a consent decree that monitors Microsoft’s
| behavior. Google has accused Microsoft of designing its latest
| operating system, Vista, to discourage the use of Google’s desktop
| search program, lawyers involved in the case said.
`—-
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/10/business/10microsoft.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin
US politicians go to bat for Microsoft
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/26/microsoft_eu_political_lobbying/
Report Says Nonprofits Sold Influence to Abramoff
,—-[ Quote ]
| E-mails released by the committee show that Abramoff, often
| with the knowledge of the groups’ leaders, exploited the tax-exempt
| status and leveraged the stature of the organizations to build
| support among conservatives for legislation or government action
| sought by clients including Microsoft Corp., mutual fund company
| DH2 Inc., Primedia Inc.’s Channel One Network, and Brown-Forman,
| maker of Jack Daniel’s whiskey.
`—-
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/12/AR2006101200889.html
Politicians in Microsoft’s Pocket
,—-[ Quote ]
| Continuing on the theme of which politicians are receiving money from
| who. Here is a list of candidates who took money from MSFT.
`—-
http://www.fonz.net/blog/archives/2007/06/04/politicians-in-microsofts-pocket/
Politics and tech companies: follow the money
,—-[ Quote ]
| Microsoft took first place with $651,100 given out, while
| Hewlett-Packard gave only $185,550, and Gateway gave a paltry
| $2,000. Microsoft’s donations certainly illustrate well the true
| size of the company and the extent of its political concerns.
`—-
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061110-8194.html
Feds seek formal extension of Microsoft antitrust deal
,—-[ Quote ]
| The U.S. Department of Justice and Microsoft on Wednesday filed a
| formal application for a two-year extension of portions of their
| landmark antitrust settlement, with the possibility of stretching it
| until 2012.
`—-
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-6111240.html
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