Mossberg: Two years ago we talked to you and you brought up this “Gang of Four” idea. The most influential tech companies. Please expand on that, and update that. Schmidt: Something unusual has happened. All four companies are networks/platforms generating enormous scale effects. We’ve never had that before: Facebook, Amazon, Apple and Google. All different, all competitors, all making enormous investments. Swisher: You left out Microsoft: Schmidt: Deliberate. and
Mossberg: Why did you keep Microsoft out of the Gang of Four? Schmidt: They’re a well-run company, but they haven’t been able to bring state-of-the-art products into the fields we’re talking about yet.and
Mossberg: In a few weeks we’ll see something historic. Microsoft will have built its first computer, with Surface. Running a Microsoft OS. That’s a huge change for them, because they were always licensing operating systems to other people. What does this mean? Schmidt: “It means a lot if the product works.” Mossberg: Let’s say it does. Schmidt: “My answer stands.” Microsoft built a structural monopoly around Windows. “Produced enormous value, and a series of antitrust cases, which they lost.” So is that the right model to solve problems? I would argue that we’ve evolved to a new model, like with Android. “We’re going to see an explosion of integrated hardware/software solutions.”Very interesting. In the next few months we are going to find out if Eric is right or not. Source]]>
it appears eric failed to mention google, and facebooks 20 oversite by the FTC. Microsoft’s oversite period is over and done with eric.
Eric is just bitter. He ended up a looking like clown when Microsoft bitch-slapped Novell out of meaninful existence. He actually had the better product (Novell Netware) but he was so incompetent he still managed to run it into the ground. I don’t know why the guy is being listened to or hired anywhere.
Well Mossberg failed to ask the question why Android partners are confronted with so many patent infringement cases from Microsoft and Apple. Furthermore he failed to ask Schmidt why almost every Google or Android partner (99% except for Motorolla) have conceded to Microsoft by signing licensing agreements with Microsoft. Also Mossberg should have asked Schmidt why Micorosft is sueing Google directly now and why Motorolla has lost almost every paten infringement case brought upon it by Microsoft. Last but not least Mossberg should have asked Schmidt if that’s the business model he lives by. Bad journalism of Mossberg. Why don’t journalists ask the right and juicy questions. Lame interview.
Wow,I thought the “age of arrogance” in the high tech industry was passing…I guess not. When are these “dinosaurs” ever going to become extinct?
It all goes in cycles, FaceBook will pass, Apple will pass, Amazon will pass and Google will pass. NONE of them do anything that any other company can’t step up and do. They are all of them over rated.