Re: Some interesting economic facts

["Norm" <normanmo@clark.net>]

On Thu, 23 Apr 1998 00:58:27 -0400 (EDT), Matt Deatrick wrote:

>My take is that M$ is scared of the changes that are going to inevitably
>occur in the software market. My job, as a good citizen, is to make sure
>that they can't get in the way of that happening. I don't want to wait
>another twenty years for the next best thing in operating systems because
>of a monopoly. 
>	Yes, the OEM's are in a bad position. And when M$ offers them IE free, it
>gives them the chance to make a margin up somehwere. They will take any
>advantage they can, unfotunately they all have the same advantage system
>from M$ to work with. It is odd to me that OEM's scrape out a 10% profit
>margin whilst M$ gets 20-30% margins. I mean lets be honest for one second,
>this is a symbiotic relationship, isn't it? How did we get here? M$ got us
>here, and now we have to do something about it.


     I wouldn't be too quick to allow the OEMs off the hook, the truth
is that M$ couldn't have pulled it off without them.  Although it's
true that at this time they have little choice but to play ball with
M$, but it wasn't always like that.  As much as I hate to see OEMs
bullied by M$ my sympathy isn't with the OEMs themselves.  They made
their bed, but what's sad is that they're able to force the consumer to
sleep in it along with them.

 ...Cheers,

 ...Norm

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