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Microsoft Corp. officials on Wednesday again expressed concerns about the threat Linux and open-source software poses to the companys business.
In an annual letter sent to all Microsoft employees by CEO Steve Ballmer following the companys annual retreat for senior managers, Ballmer said that while most non-commercial software products present challenges to the firm, Linux in particular poses a competitive challenge to both Microsoft and the rest of the industry.
“There is always enthusiasm in our business for new concepts. So-called free software is the latest new thing. We will rise to this challenge, and we will compete in a fair and responsible manner that puts our customers first. We will show that our approach offers better value, better security and better opportunity … In the event of needed enhancements or fixes, the Linux development community, no matter how well intentioned, simply cannot advance Linux the way we can—and must—innovate in Windows,” Ballmer said.
Ballmers comments follow last weeks news that the German city of Munich decided to dump Windows and move to Linux and other open-source software, despite the intervention of Ballmer, who interrupted his ski vacation in Switzerland to personally call on Munichs mayor.
In a controversial move late last month, Microsoft also said it was licensing the Unix source code and patent from the SCO Group, which has sued IBM for $1 billion, threatened to sue Novell and warned Linux users that they could face legal liability for using code that SCO claims violates its Unix rights.
Ballmers latest comments about non-commercial software follow those made by other senior Microsoft executives in recent months. In a teleconference with the media and analysts in April to present the Redmond, Wash., companys third-quarter financial results, John Connors, Microsofts chief financial officer, said that Linux and non-commercial software was one of the risks facing the company.
That followed the February admission by Bill Gates, Microsofts chairman and chief software architect, to more than 600 of Microsofts Most Valuable Professionals (MVPs) that he took the Linux threat seriously.
In its last 10-Q quarterly filing, Microsoft also said that the popularization of the open-source movement continued to pose a significant challenge to its business model.