Monthly Archives: October 2001

Dave Farber has written an essay (PDF, 400k) for IEEE. The title is “Balancing Security and Liberty.” Worthwhile reading. Comments

Cartels and monopolies are the bane of competitive markets. We’re seeing an attempt to consolidate far more than is warranted in a key market — direct satellite broadcast. How this merger goes through the regulatory system will determine a lot … Continue reading →

Mercury News: Tentative Microsoft accord reached. Sources say terms are weaker than those handed down by judge last year. If the sources are correct, the expected has occurred — a sellout of the American public by an administration that had … Continue reading →

If the regulatory authorities permit Dish Network to take over DirecTV, you may as well say goodbye to antitrust enforcement altogether. This deal would create an effective monopoly. It’s like allowing a merger of all cable-TV systems nationwide. I’m a … Continue reading →

I’m heading back to Asia today, to teach at the University of Hong Kong and make several regional reporting trips. Watch this space… Comments

Rob Fixmer (Interactive Week): Don’t make cyberspace into a police state. We need to protect our borders and our identities with equal vigilance. But if Americans think they are being spied upon, by government or businesses, as they make their … Continue reading →

Microsoft Responds to MSN.com Browser Issue. The decision to block anyone from the site was clearly in error. Dave thinks it was deliberate. Could be… Comments

Washington Post: A Panicky Bill. One of the mysteries of the bill is why it reduces the healthy oversight of the courts at critical junctures. Have they, and the constitutional standards they enforce, really stood in the way of law … Continue reading →

Ed Foster (Infoworld): The 500-employee limit. Why, in fact, does Microsoft even have this policy in its OEM agreement if it’s not going to be enforced uniformly? I don’t know, but I doubt that Microsoft’s OEMs could legally enforce this … Continue reading →

Well, today’s the official launch of Windows XP. Microsoft deserves credit for finally coming up with a consumer OS that doesn’t crash all the time. But the control-freak stuff, and Microsoft’s relentless push to bring people into its own product … Continue reading →