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Microsoft Standing Firm On OOXML ISO Vote

christian.einfeldt writes "Microsoft has responded via the industry trade group ECMA to some of the thousands of criticisms of its submission of Office Open XML as an ISO standard. Open standards advocate Russell Ossendryver takes a look at those responses to see if Microsoft has made significant changes in either the substance of OOXML or the manner in which the OOXML specification will be maintained going forward. Ossendryver concludes that Microsoft's position has not significantly changed, but only hardened in place in advance of the Ballot Resolution Meeting which is to occur from February 25 through 29 in Geneva. While no one can say for certain whether Microsoft will succeed in having OOXML win the nod from the international community, Ossendryer thinks that Microsoft's firm stance is likely to backfire."

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  1. How 'Firm' Would You Stand For 20 Billion A Year? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I believe Microsoft made 5 billion in revenue from having customers worldwide locked into their proprietary office document format.

    The vendor lockin from Office makes up almost half the company's yearly revenue.

    Microsoft would cease to exist as we know it if the office document lockin revenue went away to an open format.

    Fight? LOL! This is the type of shit Microsoft execs live for.

    Fake grassroots efforts.
    Standards body subversion.
    Paid for media shills.
    Shame studies.
    Mysterious compatibility problems with the competition.

    All in a days work.