Microsoft's VS Free Software ¶

Why does Microsoft deserve special casing among all companies producing proprietary software? Because Microsoft is the only company that actively and repeatedly tried for years to kill FreeSoftware and Linux.

This is a collection of a variety of strategies attempted by Microsoft against an extremely resilient competitor that couldn't be simply brought or driven out of business in the conventional ways.

Targeting GNU/Linux ¶

• Selling Linux related patents to trolls (Sep 2009)

• Linux vs Windows 7 slides for retailers (Aug 2009)

• Linux is a Cancer — Steve Ballmer, CEO (2001)

• Linux is un-American — Jim Allchin, Windows chief officer (2001)

• Microsoft suspected behind SCO's "smoking gun" attacks against Linus Torvalds

• Microsoft paying a "think tank" to bribe Tanembaum to accuse Linus Torvalds of stealing Minix's code

• Software patent lobby at the EU parliament

• "Get the Facts!" (AKA "Get the FUD!") campaign

• $25M spent for "We have the way out!" anti-Unix campaign with Unisys

Targeting Linux distributors ¶

• Paying Novell with "vouchers" for unclear patent and "interoperability" pact (2007)

• Paying Novell again (2008)

• Attempting to take over OLPC (2005)

• Attempted patent deal with Red Hat and Canonical (2007)

Targeting hardware vendors ¶

• Undisclosed deal between Bill Gates and Nicholas Negroponte, disrupting OLPC (2008)

• Dumping Linux in Australia on the Asus EEE PC (2008)

• Inducing PC manufacturers to enter into anticompetitive licenses under which they must pay royalties to Microsoft even when they sell PCs containing non-Microsoft operating systems

• Political action to make selling bare PCs illegal in China (2006).

Internet market share ¶

• Commissioning biased benchmarks to make Windows look better than Linux (2005)

• Make IIS look better in Netcraft's web server survey by convincing domain registrars to use Windows servers for parked domains (2006)

Targeting Apple ¶

• Fake "Mac switchers" campaign with stock photos of models

• The "I'm a PC" campaign (2008)

Targeting open standards ¶

• Creating OOXML to disrupt the Open Document Format.

• Bribe ISO into accepting OOXML (2008)

• The Passport authentication scheme (aka Microsoft Wallet, aka Windows Live ID (2007).

• Tactic for taking over standard panels by controlling the moderator (1997-2008).

Targeting Android ¶

• Undercover Microsoft lawyer attacks Android for alleged GPL violations (2011)

• Patent attack on Android from Microsoft, Apple and Oracle (2011)

• Campaign offering free Windows phones for badmouthing Android (2012)

Targeting specific Free Software projects ¶

• Bribe Blender (2008)

• Bribe PHP (2008)

• $100K bribe to Apache Software Foundation (2008)

• The Windows loves PHP campaign to promote the WAMP platform (2008)

• Video against OpenOffice and OpenSource in general (2010)

Targeting Free Software licenses and development model ¶

• Exclude GPLv3 and other copyleft licenses from Windows Phone and XBox appstore (2011)

• Claiming the GPLv3 is invalid and unenforceable (in the context of distributing the Novell "vouchers" to customers)

• The Halloween documents (1998-2004)

• Microsoft claims that OSS violates 235 (unspecified) patents (FUD)

• CodePlex foundation — Motivation behind this initiative is still unclear (as of Sep 2009)

Targeting Microsoft's own customers ¶

• Microsoft hides mystery Firefox extension in toolbar update

• Gmail Man campaign, asking people to switch to Microsoft Office 365 (2012)

• Googlighting competitive campaign asking companies to stay with Microsoft Office (2012)

Help wanted! ¶

Please help expand this list! Each new item should come with a link a reference to supporting evidence or press coverage.