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The cat's out of the bag. Microsoft, the cute and cuddly monopoly
that wouldn't dream of harming a competitor, has let the world know
that it's Not Pleased with Apple and its promotion of OS X. In
fact, Apple's lack of promotion has hurt Microsoft's bottom line
because Office v. X isn't flying off the shelf. If more people
adopted OS X then more people would be buying the OS X-only
version of Office. Or at least, that's the way Microsoft sees it.
It's like shooting fish in a barrel - that's how ridiculous this
charge is. Let's go over the basic arguments:
Office v. X is too expensive. I mean, come on, $499 for
productivity software? Sure it's a sweet piece of software, but there
are other places I can spend $499 when AppleWorks is installed on the
iMac and iBook for free.
OS X's uptake is just fine, thank you very much. OS X has
garnered millions of users. Could these be the same users that look
at the v. X price tag and laugh?
Apple is getting a bit too uppity for Microsoft's taste. The sword
dangles here. Who saved your bacon, Apple? Who keeps Office on the
Mac platform? Who is you're sugar daddy? Of course, Apple has come a
long way in the last five years. Maybe too far for Microsoft.
Even with these sound arguments, I think Apple should roll over on
this one.
Microsoft has pretty much given Apple carte blanche to promote the
living heck out of OS X. Think of the possibilities. Maybe Apple
could start a cross-country tour called The OS Challenge. XP
in this corner; OS X in that corner. Two users take a run at
executing simple computer tasks.
May the best OS win.
Apple could also run a few ads about the software that comes
bundled with OS X. Oops, no need for Office v. X, because
AppleWorks is there. You can also dispense with a few after-market
apps like MP3 players and movie creation software.
A few ads about the lower overall cost of ownership might also be
in order. "Breaks less often than the competition." Well, we can't
mention the competition by name, but you get the idea.
Maybe the "fewer viruses" angle would work? No Outlook, so no
you'll never have to look like a complete moron when a virus spams
your friends.
Promoting OS X means gaining more Mac users. While Apple could
milk the installed base (as Microsoft seems to be suggesting), it's
already realized that there's a vast Windows market available to
them. The Switch ads show that they're aware of it and are pursuing
it.
So where does that leave Microsoft? If Microsoft is serious about
wanting OS X to gain market share, they must realize that the
gain will come at the expense of their own OS. What can they say?
Improve OS X market share, Apple, but don't convert Windows
users to get it? Ridiculous. If, on the other hand, they don't want
Apple to thrive, they have to clam up and sell fewer Office
suites.
Apple should do as Microsoft says in this case and prove that
OS X is a superior platform that everyone should be using.
Stephen Van
Esch is the founder and president of
the
E-learning Foundry, an online training
resource for Mac users. Steve loves the Mac and is doubly bilingual,
since he's also fluent in Windows and French.
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