Whatever next?
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Microsoft increasingly seems to be preparing the ground for an assault on the high-end business software market.
The recent actions of Microsoft have struck even seasoned observers as erratic and unpredictable. In the last few months, it has discussed a merger with SAP, stopped selling WiFi devices just as the highly lucrative sector was taking off, and reached a peace settlement with its most bitter rival, Sun.
Whatever next, you might think: perhaps Microsoft will sponsor the European Union.
And yet, this is precisely what the software giant has done. Microsoft is one of a small number of companies to have contributed to Ireland's six-month presidency of the EU. Specifically, Microsoft has given away some free software to the Irish government. (The other sponsors include Dell and Audi, which like Microsoft have a sizeable presence in the country, as well as local companies such as Eircom and Jameson.)
Which all begs the question, what is Microsoft up to? Its actions could be interpreted as the deeds of a company preparing for a major change. That change might be part-cultural - from now on, Microsoft will play nice - and part-strategic. For Microsoft increasingly seems to be preparing the ground for an assault on the high-end business software market.
It can do this by acquiring technology - SAP's, for example - and by smoothing relations with parties that might seek to block its efforts in the courts (EU, Sun).
And users of Microsoft - not to mention users of SAP, SSA, Sage, Oracle, PeopleSoft and other mid-range and high-end products - will have to take note. Microsoft might soon - or in the next three or four years, at least - be entering the high-end business software market.
