Many of Silicon Valley’s most high-profile people, including some of the top innovators, have shown they care about more than technology. They care as well about the community. And it’s good when they’re recognized.
The winners at the third annual tech Visionary Awards, handed out this week in San Jose, were all impressive in their business and technology achievements. But their efforts in giving back to the community were also notable, according to the Software Development Foundation, which runs the event..
It took place at the Egyptian Museum (the venue’s significance eluded me). Prior winners had included Microsoft’s Bill Gates, eBay’s Pierre Omidyar and others whose name you’d recognize.
In alphabetical order, this year’s winners were Ron Conway, a longtime entrepreneur and investor; Steve Kirsch, founder of several companies including Frame Technology and Infoseek, and one of the valley’s most active philanthropists; Charles M. Geschke, co-founder and co-chairman at Adobe Systems; Gerald W. Kearby, co-founder and chief executive at Liquid Audio; Alain Rossmann, founder and CEO of Phone.com; Larry Sonsini, whose Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati became the valley’s premier law firm; and John Warnock, Adobe co-founder, co-chairman and CEO. (For details, click here.)
Congratulations to all of them.
Another View on Microsoft
Chuck Dietrick, general manager for Microsoft’s Enterprise Services Group, took strong exception to my reaction to the court ruling that the company should be broken up. Note: He emphasizes that this is a personal opinion, not necessarily the view of the company.
Dan, you are guilty of the exact same thing of which you accuse Bill Gates…refusing to acquiesce if/when proven to be wrong. Your less than fair, and highly arrogant supposition is that if the lower court ruling is overturned, it can only be the result of a breakdown in the antitrust lawsthemselves…in essence, an abolition of the rules.You continually pilloryMicrosoft over an inability to admit wrongdoing and accept “the rule oflaw”, yet you have the temerity to turn around and say that if yourlongstanding position is proven to be invalid by a court of law, that youare, in effect, still right, and the laws and/or court system is flawed. Iview that as exceptionally hypocritical. For somebody who views himself ashigh integrity, and the protector of all that is right and good, I’ll expectyou to behave just as you continually preach that Microsoft should behave ifMicrosoft does prevail on appeal.
My response: If Microsoft prevails on appeal, that won’t change the fact that the company has behaved in a less-than-honorable fashion again and again in its history. Such a ruling would be evidence that the antitrust laws are no longer adequate in the modern world.
But we should be clear on something. A Microsoft victory in this case would mean that antitrust laws do not apply to the software business. Period. It would be useful if Microsoft acknowledged this.
Rich Markwart writes: So, where does Bill go when he feels he’s getting the raw deal on competition?