Hook ’em, Steve

IN MID-JULY, while Washington wrung its hands over unchecked corporate greed, Microsoft was feting and rallying its elite reseller corps — its partners — at the Fusion conference in Los Angeles. The juxtaposition of these events was bizarre. A sign that stood just inside the entrance to the convention center for me summed up the tone of Microsoft’s rally: “Hook them on the technology, then make the sale.” Bravo for a concise, frank statement of mission. The sporting metaphor is evocative, though not entirely flattering to the fish (that’s you).

I am glad to see the strut back in Microsoft’s step, but I’m concerned about the cost. Microsoft has emerged from years of battles with Sun, Oracle, and the Justice Department not humbled, but bitterly determined. The innovation Gates spoke of so often could be quickly overshadowed by a drive to accumulate revenue and market share now that Microsoft is off Justice’s leash.

Should IT care what motivates Microsoft if its technology is sound? A vendor’s attitude toward its customers, business partners, and even competitors should figure into the degree of trust invested in that vendor. So much of a business relationship isn’t codified in contracts — choosing an enterprise software platform is a long-term commitment, a declaration of faith. I’m inspired by Microsoft’s new technology, but wary of its new business ethic.

Microsoft’s old licenses were unintelligible, but one blanket license used to cover a lot of software. Now there are fees and licenses for every identifiable bit of technology. The old pitch was that Windows would play well with other platforms in your shop; the new slogan is “better together,” meaning the best solutions are those built entirely from Microsoft parts (and parts from pliant third parties).

There are other tip-offs, too. Microsoft’s abandonment of its honor system licensing model disappoints me most. The criteria for success have changed, and the relationship with customers along with them.

As a marketing mantra, “better together” is no more evil than Sun’s “pure Java,” Oracle’s “unbreakable,” or Intel’s “yes.” I just hope Ballmer’s new, precise, calculating vision doesn’t erase all traces of Gates’ bumbling, nerdy, entrepreneurish Microsoft.

I’m not waxing nostalgic about Microsoft’s old bugs; Ballmer’s new process will create better technology. But now customers are quarry instead of an audience whose applause the engineers crave. The Windows NT Option Pack was a big, fun, geeky grab bag. I imagined that the engineers were so proud of it that they had to ship the CD before someone in marketing figured out how to charge for it.

There are still labors of love inside Microsoft (JScript .Net is the best language nobody’s using), but they’re marginalized. Too bad. I wonder if Microsoft is sending a new message to its most creative people: If you can’t bait a hook, stay out of the water. You might scare the fish.