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On Sat, 1 Jul 1995 nathan@wantree.com.au wrote:

> Let me get this straight:
> 
> MS wants to charge content providers so that they (MS) can leech off their 
> hard work.

Actually, Microsoft intends to get you 3 ways.  First, they intend to 
charge the providers for access - this means that even though the 
customer only pays MSN $4/month, SOMEBODY has to pay the other 
$10/month.  Fact is, Content providers will pay more like $40/user/month
(Guessing).  You get to sell advertizing, sell directly to the customer, 
or do something else to recover your costs.

Second, Microsoft wants to charge you for advertizing slots on their 
"home page".  Nothing unusual there, except that you may not be able to 
"open" or "goto" an arbitrary address (so much for sending your URL) - 
Prodigy just disabled their "goto/open".  A feeble attempt at trying to 
"close" the "open" internet.

Third, Microsoft will be collecting your royalties for you - via their 
credit card accounts.  I don't know about you, but I have an uneasy 
feeling about giving Microsoft the guts of my disk drive, most of my web 
access AND direct access to my credit card.

Finally, because MSN will do all of the authentication, you will be 
giving Microsoft more datails about your customers' "viewing habits" than 
you yourself will get.  Microsoft will know exactly which markets are 
"heating up" and will be able to by "competitors" for pocket change (to 
Bill Gates).

> Amazing!  If anyone falls for this snake oil they deserve to lose 3000DM a 
> month.

Hey, you have investors paying over 400 billion for a company that did 
less than 40 billion in sales, has no book value (perceived value 
software could be rendered "obsolete" overnight), provides no chance of 
gaining control of the company, and has recently been the target of 
several legal actions.  - Yet people can't seem to pay enough for 
Microsoft's stock.

P.T. Barnum said their was one born every minute.  Bill Gates can keep 
them on the string for life.

	Rex Ballard
	Standard & Poor's/McGraw-Hill
	Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect
	the Management of the McGraw-Hill Companies.




From rballard@cnj.digex.net Sun Jul  9 23:56:13 1995
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