08.28.07
Another Interoperability Licensing Deal with a Linux Company Microsoft Trades and Depends on
From ’software police’ to ‘licence police’
An interesting little press release did not grab the attention of journalist because it appears like “just another licensing deal”. However, given what we’ve found in the cross-licensing deals with Fuji Xerox and with Samsung(departing from hardware devices, one might even include Scalix here) , one has to stop and wonder. One of the new licensees is Aruba, which builds products using Linux. The press release says nothing about Linux however.
“The innovative solutions we built using Windows client-to-server protocols were made possible by our ready access to technology and documentation as an MCPP licensee, as well as our close alliance with Microsoft,” said Michael Tennefoss, head of strategic marketing at Aruba Networks.
Remember what Shane said about MCPP, also in the context of Novell and Xandros.
What makes Aruba particularly special in this context is that it is one among the few companies whose Linux products Microsoft depends on.
What the press statement didn’t mention is that Aruba mobility controllers run the Linux operating system which Microsoft has aggressively targeted as being inferior to Windows as part of its “Get the Facts” marketing campaign.
[…]
Pandey’s appraisal of Aruba’s technology is in stark contrast to Microsoft’s “Get the Facts” rhetoric which places Windows as a more secure, and higher-performing choice over Linux.
Is there something going on here which goes beyond what meets the eye? Any screws being tightened?
Highlight: Novell was the first to acknowledge that Microsoft FUD tactics had substance. Novell then used anti-Linux FUD to market itself. 
Highlight: Xandros let Microsoft make patent claims and brag about (paid-for) OOXML support. 
Highlight: Linspire's CEO not only fell into Microsoft arms, but he also assisted the company's attack on GNU/Linux. 
Highlight: Microsoft craves pseudo (proprietary) standards and gets its way using proxies and influence which it buys. 
Highlight: The invasion into the open source world is intended to leave Linux companies neglected, due to financial incentives from Microsoft. 
Analysis: Xen, an open source hypervisor, possibly fell victim to Microsoft's aggressive (and stealthy) acquisition-by-proxy strategy.