“In recent months, we have seen two spectacular trials, each of
which is going to have a profound impact upon the evolution of
technology and the global economy. These are the Microsoft Trial
and the DVD Trial.
“The Microsoft Trial: Microsoft is widely viewed as a great
technology company by people who see its market capitalisation.
People who have had a closer look at the company tell a very
different story.”
“To laymen, Microsoft did a remarkable job by coming in from
behind to this “significant presence”. However, the events that led
up to this included numerous illegal acts by Microsoft…”
“In most countries, a company as powerful as Microsoft would
have been able to get away with a variety of illegal acts. It’s
useful to try to imagine an important lawsuit against the most
profitable company in India: the state would just not embark on
such a prosecution seriously.”
“The DVD Trial:… “When computers started displaying movies
from DVDs, programmes were written which had the same decryption
capabilities. However, a DVD player programme was not available for
Linux, the new free operating system. In late 1999, Jon Johansson,
a Norwegian student,… wrote a programme which breaks this
encryption… “The programme spread like wildfire…”
“The entertainment industry knew that the horse had bolted;
however they tried to make an example by trying to punish the Linux
community.”
“… the Microsoft Trial and the DVD Trial are the defining
events in the evolution of technology and economics at the end of
the 20th century. In both cases, we see a confrontation between big
business and clever technologists; and in both cases, big business
lost.”