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Microsoft Barring Certain Staff From Buying Macs, iPads?

Posted by samzenpus on from the no-apple-for-you dept.

mr100percent writes "Microsoft has reportedly moved to prohibit employees in its Sales, Marketing, Services, IT, and Operations Group (SMSG) from using company funds to purchase any products produced by Apple. The company had already barred staffers from using expense allocations for competing smartphone platforms, however the new guidelines explicitly note that Macs and iPads have been added to the list. 'Within SMSG we are putting in place a new policy that says that Apple products (Mac & iPad) should not be purchased with company funds,' an alleged letter distributed to staff reads."

7 of 416 comments (clear)

  1. Barring? by bananaquackmoo · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Barring and "should not be purchased with company funds" are two entirely different things.

    1. Re:Barring? by Skapare · · Score: 5, Insightful

      This only says not to buy those things with company money. IOW, Microsoft doesn't want its own company money to be supporting Apple and other competitors. It is not applicable for staff buying them for personal use.

      Any company is perfectly within their rights to specify how the company money is spent.

      --
      now we need to go OSS in diesel cars
  2. Right by mwvdlee · · Score: 5, Insightful

    And this is news... how exactly?
    Don't most companies ban using company funds to buy competitors' products for operational staff?

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  3. Just like a lot of companies by g051051 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Lots of companies, including the one I work for, won't let you arbitrarily buy Apple products with company money.

  4. I am no longer surprised. by aardvarkjoe · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Just when I thought that the quality level of Slashdot stories couldn't get any lower, samzenpus swoops in to prove me wrong.

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    How can we continue to believe in a just universe and freedom to eat crackers if we have no ale?
    1. Re:I am no longer surprised. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      What did you expect? The story had "Microsoft" in the title and ended with a question mark. This pretty much always means it's bollocks. See these examples of headline that would not technically be wrong, due to the question mark, but that are clearly inflamatory and designed for nothing more than page hits:

      "Apple CEO Steve Jobs spent $10 billion dollars on FUD campaigns?"

      "Google stole your credit card details?"

      On that note, I think just to prove the point I'll publish my own little mini story within this thread to prove the point:

      Samzenpus is a child rapist?
      =====================
      It turns out that a guy was arrested for child abuse earlier this year who held the same first name as Samzenpus, could it therefore in fact be Samzenpus himself who raped these children?

  5. "With company funds" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "With company funds" being the keywords here.