[Sussex] MS "alledged" threats to Denmark

[John D.]

Karl E. Jorgensen wrote:

>-----%<-----
>    "If I am to keep my development centre in Denmark, it requires a
>    solution to the IP rights question. Otherwise I will move it to the
>    US of A where I can protect my rights", said Bill Gates according to
>    Microsoft's chief attorney Marianne Wier, who also took part in the
>    meeting with Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
>
>As your probably know by now, Anders F. Rasmussin the the Danish prime
>minister... 
>
>And if you think the phrases used in the translation sound a bit final
>or demanding, fear not - the phrases are just as explicit in Danish...
>
>So it wasn't a journalist hiding behind the chairs that picked it up.
>It was Microsoft itself who let the cat out the bag (!)
>
-----%<-----
Which now makes it sound even more like "business bullshit" and/or 
"smoke and mirrors".

It's one of those things, a bit like when I (as a Union rep) go to 
meetings that have "negotiation function" (wages/T&C's etc). It's often 
hard to make the membership understand that "the company" don't give a 
**** about it's staff, or the levels of employment to the mid sussex 
area - if they're gonna close it down, they're only interested in the 
"bottom line".

That it was an "M$ legal wallah" who wanted this made public, just makes 
it smell all the more - i.e. I read it as "well, we're gonna close this 
down anyway, but we (M$) want as much out of it as possible". So they're 
just using it as a "big stick" in the short term and ultimately the IT 
people affected will probably get their P45 (danish equiv') later rather 
than sooner, but if they (M$) could get something out of it in the 
direction of Software Patenting, then they'd try the "euro 
harmonisation" route.

****ing snakes, the lot of them. Shit, I know that I don't know very 
much about linux and stuff OSS, but I'm happy to try to learn it, 
because it keeps me away from their garbage!

Ha, if I can get SAMBA configured, so that Clares laptop will run the 
printer and do file share, it'd mean that my windows partition won't 
have long for this world !

regards

John D.

p.s and yes Karl, that's also bearing in mind your translation 
correction - it was easier to make my "snippy" reply with this copy 
though. 8-)