“Yet more criticism of Microsoft’s business practices has emerged in the wake of the recent Iowa anti-trust trial [Comes vs. Microsoft],” Jonny Evans reports for Macworld UK.
“Documentary evidence that Microsoft considered abandoning Office for Mac in order to cause ‘a great deal of harm’ to Apple has emerged,” Evans reports.
Evans reports, “An emailed memo from Microsoft-founder Bill Gates to then Mac Business Unit chief Ben Waldman dated June 1997 talks about morale in the Mac Office development camp. At that time Microsoft’s senior management were considering dumping Mac support.”
Evans reports, “It describes dumping development of the product as: ‘The strongest bargaining point we have, as doing so will do a great deal of harm to Apple immediately.'” The document also confirms that Microsoft at the time saw Office for the Mac as a chance to test new features in the product before they appeared in Windows, ‘because it is so much less critical to our business than Windows.'”
Link to the full document is available in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]
Related article:
Mac users should not buy Microsoft software (or hardware) – May 16, 2003
This is news? This is just Billy’s way of doing or should it be giving the business?
F microsoft. Their time has come… and gone. I laugh EVERY single time businesses using Windows go down due to viruses.
I am glad I get paid to support MS at work because I ALWAYS buy Macs with that money.
As part of a corporate SWOT analysis programme where I work, I’ve just been given a motivation book titled ‘Now discover your strengths’ by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton. The cover blurb states ‘The International Bestseller’.
Flicking through it, my eye was caught by a passage on p20 which says “In a business context Bill Gates’s genius at taking innovations and transforming them into user-friendly applications is a strength, whereas his ability to maintain and build an enterprise in the face of legal and commercial assault – as compared to his partner’s, Steve Ballmer – is not.”
This book is now in the bin.
“The document also confirms that Microsoft at the time saw Office for the Mac as a chance to test new features in the product before they appeared in Windows”
And that’s why our version of Office was so much better for a while. Entourage was far and away a better email app than Outlook. Funny how the plan kind of backfired no ya, huh Bill?
No matter. Writing is on the wall, your days are coming to and end.
-c
MW: ‘living’ (though another Cuba)
I have MS Office 2004 on my Mac. I rarely, if ever, use it. Thought I needed it back then. Now there are many free alternatives. Office 2004 will be the last version on any of my Macs.
In 10 years Office will be Microsoft’s only product. And it probably won’t matter what platform will be running it as all apps will be web based….. The OS wars will long be over. All we will will need is for the device to get us on the web, from where we can do what ever we need to do……Bank, Email, Access, get from and add sales figures to the office, tap into the proprietary database etc.. it will all be about the security of the browser.
A sad bit of (internal self-deluding) spin on Microsoft’s part. It seems the only bit of “innovation” at Microsoft is in the Mac Business Unit. So Mac BU comes up with some new features for Office, and the excuse for Mac users getting them first is so that they can “test” them out before the more “critical” Windows users get to see them. I wish all software developers used Mac customers as “guinea pigs” and let then try new features first, before the Windows customers.
Long live the Mac BU…
I wonder if Apple will eventually sell iLife for Windows in order to not look like a monopoly.
In all fairness, it wasn’t Gates who was suggesting getting rid of Mac Office in the e-mail, but Ben Waldman, referenced beneath the email from Dr. Evil. That said, it was before Jobs’ return, it seems, round about OS8. Old news.
MDN: done – Done bun cannot be undone.
Yeah, and now Apple should do the same thing to them with iTunes for Windows.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”tongue wink” style=”border:0;” />
Haven’t used Office on Mac for years.
We’ve had to convert PDF’s to Word for a large client who relies on Word. The PDF we converted was 52MB, the Word file SolidPDF produced from that PDF was over 500MB!
Talk about BLOATWARE!!!!
Dumb question: I thought the point of a PDF file is that it is a cross-platform file format. Why then did it need converting to Word?
Sounds like it’s time to mail our copy of M$ software, if I had such a copy, back to Billy Boy – telling his just when he can put such a copy!
For the life of me I can’t understand why any one inthe Mac camp would want or need anything M$ at this point in time!
I remember buying a copy of Office way back in ’95 or ’96 and it ran like a dog on my Mac. I actually managed to get a refund out of the company even though I’d already loaded that sucker. Nowadays I have no Microsoft products in my computer.
@ jay,
The client needs to put amendments on their documents, and demanded Word compatibility (we produce the docs using InDesign, so PDF creation is one click). Despite informing the client you can put notes on PDF files, they only have Word on their oil platforms… so they need Word docs.
Since it is a £2m contract, I agreed to find a solution to their Word problem SolidPDF creates Word docs from PDF files. However, the file size increases enormously!
The loss of Office for Mac IS critial and WOULD do a lot of harm to Apple. Office is the ‘standard’ for business documents. The common consumer looking to switch to a Mac wants some familiarity. Ask them to use a different program and that’s 1 more reason not to switch. Regardless of if there’s an open source alternative or if it’s ‘better’, it’s not Office. iWorks isn’t the same. The common comsumer hasn’t heard of OpenOffice. Ask the common person if they know what Firefox is.
The memo says, “The strongest bargaining point we have, as doing so will do a great deal of harm to Apple immediately”
The second half is a statement of fact: dropping Office would have done a great deal of harm to Apple.
The first half is a statement of fact: this put Microsoft in a strong bargaining position.
What it does not say is, “This is our opportunity to harm Apple,” and it does not say, “We should avoid harming Apple.” It says “Mac Office is more important to Apple than to Microsoft.”
Microsoft does a lot of harm, but because I’m in contact with them almost every day, I don’t think it is deliberate. Like a teenager, they keep giving themselves legal headaches by not paying attention to the consequences of their actions.
Overheard at the watercooler in ’04
Originally posted on 1/5/07
“We’re pulling the resources for Microsoft Office for Mac.”
“Whaaa?” No way! When?
“I don’t know for sure. This is such a delicate matter and he really hasn’t decided how or when to do it. It’s politics, you know?”
“But it’s a moneymaker!”
“Doesn’t matter. He’s blaming MBU for making the rest of us look bad. He resents the fact that you guys are always so, so, happy!”
“Happy? He resents us because we’re happy?!!”
“What can I say? Your products are top shelf and everyone at MBU always looks so casual and stress-free and that really bothers him. But what really sizzles his bacon is the fact that because you’re so productive and your numbers don’t lie, it’s hard not to envy you. He still talks about the time when Bill asked, “Why can’t you be more efficient like MBU?”, which really pisses him off each time he recounts that story and he’s no good to us for the rest of the day.”
“So what’s wrong with that, fer chrissakes?”
“Well, the way I figure it, it’s easier to shut you guys down than it is to bring the rest of us up. So, there it is.”
“Wait a minute. Lemme see if I got this straight. He’s pulling the plug because we make him feel bad about looking good? What kind of crap logic is that?”
“Hey! Don’t bite my head off. I’m just telling you what’s floating around campus at the moment.”
“Well what if we missed a few deadlines, feigned low morale, fired a few key people, you know, give the impression that MBU is no bed of roses?”
“I’m afraid that won’t do. He’ll see right through it and when he does, we’ll find you in emergency with a chair up your ass. He’s no dummy. He knows that even if you guys were as miserable as the rest of us, you’d still be pumping out terrific products like Microsoft Office for Mac.”
“So it’s Microsoft Office for Mac?”
“Yup. He’s gonna’ strangle it with his bare hands. Remember what he did to that toad at the company picnic?”
“If that’s the case then maybe he would at least allow us the honor of killing it off. Maybe in the next revision we could throw convention out the window and completely radicalize the user’s approach? You know, test the waters, so to speak? I mean we could design an interface so unique that only Mac users could comprehend it anyway. If it fails, or if our clients are so repulsed by it, that it utterly flops, so what” What have we got to lose? The OPTAR money’s already spent anyway.”
“Well… I don’t know. What if it becomes the next killer app? What then bright boy? You know what that’ll do for morale around here, doncha? He’ll have to remodel the office again and then we won’t be able to find him for weeks at a time.”
“Just float it around and see what comes up, k?
“Later.”
Microsoft is the next Enron
@Jim, try a Save As.. on those Word docs, it may shrink them.
I use Office less and less myself these days. Pages is a great word processor and comes close to a mini Quark or InDesign. Excel is the one think that needs sorting (my sons Excel screwed up while in a major project, followed by the MS Office Recovery programme which in turn screwed up his hard disk..nice.)
That said, I don’t think the decent folks at MacBU are about to be put out of business.
Sadly, nothing will happen to Mafia$oft over this.
As more internal memos get out – maybe even Apple’s someday – it shows how businesses operate. Of course, Apple probably does some of the same things. Not a popular notion, but true nonetheless.
—
I’m glad MS didn’t pull the plug on Office. I’ve tried Pages and NeoOffice and hated both.
Even if they pull the plug now, at least I have a copy. I don’t know how much of an upgrade the next version may be.
If it’s absolutely necessary and they drop Mac development, I’d just run it in emulation mode.
U.S. Government Bans Vista, Office 2007
Microsoft (MSFT) has run into trouble with a major customer over Vista: The U.S. Department of Transportation has banned Windows Vista, Office 2007, and Internet Explorer 2007, InformationWeek reports. The newly revealed policy forbidding installation of Microsoft’s latest software has been in place since mid-January.
Finally, someone’s taking my advice from last fall: Punish Microsoft for delivering a buggy, bloated operating system by simply not buying it. In the DOT’s case, the ban was imposed because certain applications essential to the agency’s function won’t run on Vista. For these Microsoft customers, Vista doesn’t just fail to deliver more value; it actively detracts from their jobs.
As a consequence, the DOT isn’t just holding back on upgrading to Vista. It’s actively considering Apple (AAPL) Macintosh computers, as well as PCs running Novell’s (NOVL) SuSe Linux. I think it’s unlikely that the DOT will switch, since moving to those platforms will require even more reprogramming work than making its apps Vista-compatible. The threat, however, should be a wakeup call to Microsoft: Less “wow,” more “works.”
Technorati Tags: Microsoft, Windows Vista
Email this • Add to del.icio.us • Digg This! • Subscribe to this feed
Hey!
Zune screens are Crack-a-lacking!
‘Bill Gates’ confidential email: Mac Office users were Microsoft guinea pigs’
Misleading. Should read
‘Gates Wanted To Zune Office for Mac’
therepguy
Unfortunately MS office is the best option for the Mac. I have used Neo Office and it is so slow that its unusable. Until Apple finally comes out with a spreadsheet app I will be forced into using MS Office.
The only Microsoft product I ever purchased for use on my Mac was “The Magic School Bus Explores the Human Body” CD-ROM for my kids in the late 90’s. It was a tumultuous time. Everyone was experimenting with all kinds of things, just trying to find their way.
Since the move to newer Macs + OS X and the kids growing up it hasn’t been installed. I must say that for the past 5 years it has been a delight using a computer without any Microsoft software on it. At work they pay me to use Windows. It’s the least they can do.
MDN Magic Word: ‘tell’, as in Tell me why I would buy anything from Microsoft?
And this is surprising because………
Just my $0.02
NEVER USED OFFICEMAC never will, just because of this reason.
I have been advocating for years that Mac users should drop all M$ software and hardware.
DON’T FEED THE REDMOND DEVIL AND IT WILL DIE!!!
hey i guess microsoft its going to pass long days thinking how this vista cow entered in the Xp world,one i was going to M$ internacional site and i discovered that their are only an enterprise based on antique 3.1 to XP systems but i came to this question:
why many windows only recieve a piece of a difrent component in every machine?
its because their philosofy its not based on the essence of what the word MAC=MACHINE means,and why a software company:because they can´t compete with good style and funcionality hardware,my to MS programmers and to ballmer and bill gates its:
GO SCREW YOURSELFTS IN THE TOILET!
That Michael Anthony Hall is taking it too far! Do something about it, Noah Wiley!
Actually, I’m not too surprised, nor do I think this is a bad thing. Hell, Apple did the same thing.
The Mac user-base is smaller and is also more vocal. Problems with interface will be brought to the developer’s attention immediately. Also, if there’s back-end processing, you can (in theory) get everything working before having to deal with issues of scale. Why do you think iTunes Music Store was Mac-only at first?
If MS dropped Office for the Mac it would be the best thing (in the long run) for the Mac:
• it would FORCE Apple to support developers to make their Office-alternatives Office-compatible and better, thereby pumping millions into the Apple developer community.
• it would encourage innovation in the Office market.
• it would get Apple out of the shadow of MS who hold the Office ‘Sword of Damocles’ over Apple.
• it would stop Apple having to pretend liking MS by offering Office bundles with Macs.
• it would allow Apple to release the full iWork complement.
• it would help others who have Mac & Win platform Office alternatives, helping Windows Office innovation.
• we might finally get decent competition in the presentation market (I love KeyNote, but we need more). PowerPoint is not intuitive!
• it would force MS to compete on a more level playing field (Win only) and have to truly innovate to keep customers.
• the Entourage/Exchange tie-in solution would die and third-party alternatives would thrive.
• Mac switchers would get used to alternatives as easily as they get used to Safari and Mail
• the world would be free from the MS ‘tax’ on every student, home and business. The full-legal price is truly ridiculous and indicative of their stranglehold.
The temporary pain would give way to a better Office-suite. BTW I paid for and use MS Office amongst other Office solutions on my Macs. I even recommend others buy Office. But would like to see the innovation in the Office market that we see in the other markets. I vote MS keep selling Office for Mac, innovate more or else give up the charade.
this isn’t completely secret or new.
in fact, Apple traded the use of the trashcan (and associated lawsuit). for a small pile of cash, and microsofts promise to continue developping software for the mac.
that’s where the “microsoft saved apple” story came from (it was in fact only 150 million dollars)
When you think about it, Apple only tests operating systems on Mac users, and Microsoft then selects which features it wants from OS X to give to it’s Windows users. Remember Vista from a few weeks ago?
Interesting email – if you havent read the whole email, you should…
Anyone know why Microsoft were so upset with Apple at that time? They must have been very upset to have been contemplating dumping all the work on Office for Mac…
For those who haven’t READ THE MEMO: http://edge-op.org/iowa/www.iowaconsumercase.org/122106/PLEX0_6060.pdf
As is so often the case much is said about a few lines taken from the context of the whole. In the memo Ben Waldman champions the work MS has done on Office for the Mac and bemoans the lack of interest throughout the company (at that time) in promoting it. He praises his team for a doing a great job on the product (Office 98) and touts the fact that many new features can be developed for the Mac first. He sounds like a Mac evangelist on the MS payroll!
This memo shows an insight into the Mac development area within MS at that time – highly dedicated people, doing great work, in an environment that doesn’t seem to care.
Working for the MS MBU (Macintosh Business Unit) must really be a difficult job. You love the Mac and do great work but your own company is, in some ways, your own competitor and your fellow Mac users view you as the enemy as well. I for one use MS Office on a daily basis: Sometimes because I have to – I need to use both Windows and a Mac for my work – and sometimes because I want to. I really appreciate the parity between the Mac and Windows versions and I also appreciate the Mac support the Mac version gives me.
That last advantage, however, causes me some concern: what happens when the next version of Office for the Mac is released with out Basic support for Xcel macros – will I still really have parity between the two platforms? Lack of parity could mean trouble for mid-to-large businesses. I am hopeful of a good solution from the MBU.
Does anyone know if Apple is quiety working on their version of Office as a n alternative?
MDN COMPLETELY misrepresented this M$ memo. Not only is Bill Gates not scheming against Apple, he didn’t even write most of the damn thing! Gates has just two sentences at the top, which is a response to a long memo from the head of the MBU. And the MBU memo is arguing passionately on behalf of Mac software and bemoaning the lack of marketing support from the rest of Microsoft for their Mac products. This was in the midst of negotiations between M$ and Apple. The MBU head acknowledges that a decision on whether to release the new Mac Office is getting delayed to help M$ keep leverage in those negotiations, and argues that they need to stop it. Part of his argument is that Mac BU innovation benefits the rest of Microsoft. And Gates praises his passion in his response.
Though I usually like MDN and dislike M$, in this case M$ is completely in the clear.
Jake
MDN didn’t write this article dumbass, blame MacWorld UK for misrepresenting it…
hello Bill Gates I am 23 years old and well you know it’s normal well.
@JB
Did you read the article? I don’t think Macworld misrepresented it at all. It is clear that the author was more than slightly worried that Microsoft were going to dump Office for Mac when it was almost ready for release. Apparently because Microsoft were annoyed with Apple about some negotiations which weren’t going Microsoft’s way.
He put the case, as an argument to persuade Bill NOT to drop Mac Office, that the mac user base was a good testbed because it was less critical to Microsoft.
No misrepresentation at all as far as I can see. Microsoft’s business practices, as outlined in this memo, should act as a cautionary note to any organisation planning a business relationship with Redmond.
@MDN BLEW IT
I dont agree with you at all. The author stated the argument that Microsoft might cancel Mac Office in order to counter it. The implication is, quite clearly, that he was worried that Microsoft may well do so.
You will note that Bill Gates, in answer to this memo, does not reassure the author that Microsoft has no intention of cancelling Office for Mac. Instead he asked if Apple can be prevented from finding out how close Microsoft are to releasing it. The clear implication here is that Bill Gates believed it would help in whatever negotiations were going on if Apple were allowed to believe Microsoft might not release the new version of Office for the Mac.
It’s clear reading the email, that Ben Waldman, the MBU manger, was responding to a suggestion by someone else (probably Bill Gates) to kill off Mac Office.
It was a classic structure of “Yes, but”. Waldman has effectively said “Whilst I agree that threatening to kill Mac Office is a strong bargaining tool, we have put too much of our sweat into this product, and risk losing goodwill on many fronts if we do cancel.”
Reading the whole email, you realise that Waldman was in fact the hero championing the cause to keep Mac Office alive and growing.