Microsoft's Secret Plan Revealed: Copy Facebook

Silicon Alley Insider:

Are we finally seeing the results of "Project Granola," Microsoft's post-Yahoo plan to grow its online services "organically?"

MSN, MSN Live, Windows Live or whatever Microsoft calls its consumer-facing online services these days will soon begin to roll out features similar to those you'll find on Facebook, Brian Hall, general manager of Microsoft's Windows Live (ah hah.) business told the Wall Street Journal:

Among the changes are new features that closely resemble features on Facebook, the popular social-networking site, that make it easier for users to keep tabs on the activities of friends on the Internet.

Read the whole story: Silicon Alley Insider

Comments

[likeicare]

Bill Gates never met an idea he didn't want to plagiarize.

I remember watching him and Warren Buffet, about a year or so ago, on a PBS show, answering questions from students in Wash DC. For each question posed, Gates would remain silent until Buffet had the chance to give his input, unless he (Gates) was specifically addressed by the questioner.

Deferential manners, perhaps? Possibly, except that Gates took every oppotunity to agree with Buffet on everything -- he didn't have an original idea/answer to anything!! Every answer was prefaced with, "Yes, I agree with Warren," and so on.

Bill Gates built Microsoft on the graves of his competition -- which he ruthlessly crushed at every turn. His example is to be derided, not praised -- economic tyranny is not the same thing as free market enterprise -- it's the equivalent of cancer in a human.

[thephenomenologist]

bill gates and his company are truly amazing proof that you can never have an original idea and engage in poor execution of the ideas that you do have, and yet still dominate the market. kind of like a business-version of republican leadership. they stole windows and icons from apple decades ago, they've copied mac's widgets, now they're copying facebook, and the list goes on; despite their armies of nerds and geeks, they are constantly repairing bugs, and half of chennai services customers around the world.

[NationalTreasure]

does anyone at microsoft have an original idea?

they stole their GOOEY from Apple decades age, then they stole from Netscape, Linux, a host of small compaines and they keep ripping off any other company that has a good thing going

[MrWampler]

Doesn't MS already own most of Facebook?

[darthdarcy]

DARPA, DARPA, DARPA...!

Figure it out...TIA is here..!

[Dystopic]

Poor Ballmer, Gates was right to keep him under wraps for all those years.

He has been WRONG about everything­...

Google will fail

Apple will lose money and get zero marketshare with iPhone

Vista will be a breakthru OS

[KillTheMessenger]

The only question is why they ever "unwrapped" him. He is a catastrophe.